Hero Honda hikes Splendour and Passion prices

Owing to the raising input cost, Hero Honda today increased the prices of its 100cc bikes – splendour plus,passion plus, splendor NXG, CD Dawn and CD deluxe by up to Rs 850. “In view of consistently rising input costs, we have raised the prices of our product range to partially offset this increase, for example in 100cc range, the price increase is limited to Rs 850,” the company said in a statement.

Update: Bajaj Auto has also increased prices of its platina 100 cc, 125cc XCD and all variants of pulsar with effect from the last week of July.

“We raised price on the non-metallic variant of Platina by Rs 500. A similar hike has been implemented even on 125 cc bike XCD . In case of Pulsar, 150 and 180 cc, the price increase has been increased Rs 1,500,” Mr Amit Nandi, Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Bajaj Auto, said.TVS Motor Company too has raised prices of the models beginning August.“We have already increased prices up to Rs 1,800 on different models,” said Mr H.S. Goindi, the company’s Head of Marketing and Sales.

Toyota to launch new Corolla altis in India in September

For september 05th Toyota Corolla altis launch ceremony visit http://www.vicky.in/blog/toyota-launches-new-corolla-altis/

To view pictures of Indian altis visit

http://www.vicky.in/blog/pictorial-preview-on-toyota-corolla-altis/

Finally your wait for the new corolla will be soon over. Toyota has been delaying the new generation Corolla in India for sometime and invited rant reviews from Indian customers.  The tenth generation Corolla made its international debut in October 2006. However the story will be soon over, Toyota will launch the car in September.

To be christened as Corolla altis in India the car will spearhead the second beginning for Toyota in India. The new corolla altis is a dramatic departure from the succession of dull, anonymously styled models as it borrows styling cues from the Camry.

The 2008 corolla Altis will be 10mm longer, 60mm wider and 20mm lower than the current model. The wheelbase will be unchanged at 2,600mm, but with the wider track and lower center of gravity the handling should be noticeably improved. The extra width should also improve cabin space, and although slightly lower, the Altis is still 50mm taller than the Civic. The new corolla altis will be powered by a 1.8L engine developing around 140bhp. This engine is a carryover from the existing corolla but will be tweaked for better performance. A four speed auto box will be offered as optional. However the new coroll altis won’t come with diesel engine atleast  initially.

The bookings for the new corolla altis has started and you can book the car by paying Rs2 lakhs in chennai.  The new corolla altis will be available for display in showrooms from third week of August and the official launch would happen sometime in september. The new corolla altis will be priced around Rs13 lakh.

* As advertised in leading newspapers the new corolla altis will be launched in India on September 05th

Hyundai to launch Avante LPG Hybrid

Hyundai may be the slowstarter in making hybrid cars behind Toyota and Honda but the company is planning to go full steam on developing its own hybrid technology. We recently reported you that Hyundai may soon give an go ahead singal to its Indian subisidiary Hyundai Motor India to develop similar technologies for smaller cars.

Hyundai plans to roll out a gasoline-electric hybrid version of the its sedans in 2010 and Hyundai will launch larger hybrid vehicles soon after that. But before the big launches, Hyundai plans to launch the world’s first hybrid vehicle (Avante) to be powered by liquid petroleum gas (LPG) and the first to adopt advanced lithium polymer batteries.

The Avante LPG Hybrid will be powered by a hybrid system that combines a combustion engine fueled by LPG and an electric motor powered by lithium ion batteries.According to Hyundai,  Acaante hybrid will be powered by a LPI Gamma engine displacing 1.6 liters, a 15kW electric motor and a continuously variable transmission. The Elantra or Avante LPI hybrid-electric vehicle (HEV) is a mildtype hybrid capable of delivering a competitive fuel economy rating. The Elantra / Avante LPI HEV is expected to be as much as 40% cheaper to operate than other competitor models in the marketplace and 50% less than a conventional Elantra model powered by a gasoline-only engine.  Hyundai will launch the Avante LPG Hybrid or Elantra LPG Hybrid in the Korean market in 2009.  Hyundai hopes to sell at least 50,000 units of avante LPG hybrid annually in Korea.

The good news is Hyundai says that it is open to consider export of this avante LPG hybrid to other countries where LPG filling stations is widely available. India is one of the important market for Hyundai and as LPG powered cars is setting the sales chart of every manufacturers soar, Hyundai may bring Avante LPG hybrid to India too. Let’s keep our fingers crossed and wait for the launch.

Proton gearing up to launch saga and persona in India

As we reported earlier, http://www.vicky.in/blog/proton-plans-savvysaga-and-persona-for-india/

Malaysian auto maker Proton is gearing up for its Indian foray. Proton is heavily testing its saga hatchback and persona sedan at the outskirts Delhi.Proton is believed to be in talks with Argentum Motors (founded by BVR Subbu Hyundai ex-president) for manufacturing saga and persona in India. If the talks fruitify, Argentum Motors may make proton’s cars in India and may also design India specific cars in association with Proton.Argentum has the facilities for making complete vehicles as well as powertrains at Surajpur and has also acquired capabilities to design complete vehicle solutions. Proton is also in talk with Mahindra & Mahindra and the Hero Group for a separate alliance to market & distribute its cars.

Chevrole Cruze spyshot

As we reported earlier http://www.vicky.in/blog/chevrolet-cruze-pictorial-preview/

Chevrolet is producing a replacement for the optra and optra magnum called Chevrolet cruze. Yet another spy shot of the Chevrolet Cruze has come out (by thecarfanatic.com). From the spy shot it seems like GM has carry forwarded the centrally monuted instrument cluster to Cruze as well. Chevrolet has earlier launched the spark with centrally mounted instrument cluster. Also, it seems that the quality and styling of interior is given special importance by Chevrolet engineers. The two-tone color scheme of the dashboard and seats and nice curves is sure to make headache for civic and jetta makers.

Skoda to launch Fabia Greenline in India

Skoda which buoyed by the success of its Hatchback the Fabia plans to launch enivronmental friendly variant of the car called Fabia Greenline in India.  Fabia Greenline is already being sold in European markets. The Skoda Fabia Greenline which comes with an ultra-efficient diesel engine has earned rave reviews across europe. Skoda has also made improvements in aerodynamics for Fabia Greenline for better air flow around the car and hence the fuel efficiency.

The 1.4-litre TDI engine from the standard Fabia has been modified to decrease the fuel consumption of the Skoda Fabia ‘Greenline’ and lower its carbon emissions. According to Skoda UK, Skoda Fabia ‘Greenline’ can achieve an amazing 69mpg (25kmpl) as a result, while producing only 109g/km of CO2. The emission is ultra low for instance the recently launched i10 kappa emits 10g/km of CO2 than Fabia Greenline.  The greenline engine would be used for Skoda’s and Volkswagen’s other models as well. The first greenline to be assembled in India could be on the Fabia, Thomas Kuehl, director at Skoda India said.

To know more about Skoda Fabia Greenline visit http://www.skoda.co.uk/ourcars.aspx

Toyota to launch Hybrid prius in India

The battle of green is all set to move into a new battleground the India.  While the civic hybrid is already here and soon the prius hybrid may hit the Indian shores soon. Toyota has said it plans to launch the prius hybrid soon in India. “We are preparing to bring Prius into the Indian market though we have not set any timeline yet,” Toyota Kirloskar Motor Ltd vice-chairman Vikram Kirloskar said.  But Toyota will not launch the prius hybrid in a hurry, it will prepare for it. Toyota plans to strengthen the sales and service network for the prius hybrid.  “We are aware that Honda is launching its hybrid variant in the Indian market soon despite high import tariff. We can also do it with due preparation. As I said earlier, we have to gear up to service such a premium car by training our personnel and stocking enough spare parts with the dealer network,” Kirloskar said. But again Toyota may follow the Honda’s path, prius Hybrid might be imported as a CBU and that will push the price to the sky. Kirloskar described Prius as a “great car” but admitted it was “expensive upfront”.
“In the long-run, it is economical, with higher mileage and lower maintenance cost. We are confident of its acceptability in the Indian market as it runs both on electricity and fuel.”

Yamaha pumps up sales with new launches

It seems that Yamaha’s revival plan is working. Yamaha has shown a growth of 21% as compared with the industry which has de-grown by 3.4% over June 08. Yamaha’s newly launched model YZF-R15 has gained market share of 24.2% by selling 4031 numbers and attained Second position in Premium Motorcycle Segment.
Expressing his delight at the emergent Yamaha, Mr. Pankaj Dubey – Division Head, Sales & Marketing said “Yamaha is striving to carry forward the global Yamaha brand image in India. The increase in our sales figures validates our success in re-establishing ourselves as a company, which delivers high quality and high performance products. Our sales performance between January and July this year is a testimony to the success of our customer centric business philosophy. Month over month, Yamaha has been recording increasing sales, signifying the success of our new models launched in the current year. Our bikes are doing extremely well in the market”.  “The company has opened up lifestyle stores in Delhi and Pune along with strengthening its dealer network which has helped us in connecting with the consumers better”, he added. Yamaha will unleash the FZ (150cc, Air-cooled) is expected during Diwali festival around October

Tata Motors might produce Indica electric with Miljobil

Tata Motors which recently said that it is developing an electric car  in Norway might develop the new electric car jointly with Miljobil. Miljobil Grenland a Norwegian company founded in 1997 has been developing electric cars for european and US markets. Tata Motors is said to be in talks with Miljobil Grenland for developing electric cars based on Indica platform. If talks fruitify, Miljobil Grenland will provide the gliders—vehicles without a powertrain—for the project.

For those who wonder why Norway, here’s the reason. The country offers surplus power and the respective Government is enocuraging customers to shift to battery-operated vehicles.  Already Norway is the home for two electric car makers – Th!nk and Kewet. For norway denizens car is to travel for short distances since the cities are very much closer. Also the climate provides an excellent environment for testing as well. The location of electric plugs close to parking spots may even be a factor.

Ford launches Road Assistance Programme

Ford India has introduced its Roadside Assistance Service (RSA) in Ahmedabad. Ford’s Roadside Assistance programme is designed to provide its customers a hassle-free driving experience in and around the city. The 24-hour assistance service will be accessible through a national toll-free number providing on-site assistance services such as mechanic services for minor repairs on-site, transportation of car to service centre if required, fuel delivery, jump-start of batteries, assistance to unlock cars and towing assistance, the company said.

Launched in November 2007, the first phase of this customer support initiative was introduced simultaneously in Delhi and NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Pune and subsequently expanded to Hyderabad, Kochi, Ludhiana and Chandigarh. Together with Ahmedabad, the third phase will see this initiative taken forward to Jaipur, Kolkata and Coimbatore as well, Mr Nigel E Wark, Executive Director, Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford India said.

Ford India has signed up with a global automotive service provider, Mondial Assistance, to introduce this professionally-manned programme in the country. With a presence in over 27 countries, Mondial is the leader among automotive service providers. It is through their collaboration with Ford India, that Mondial first entered the Indian market. The Ford RSA programme comprises a fleet of two types of vehicles, including flat-bed trucks and emergency response motorcycles. Depending on the type of service request, the requisite vehicle will rush to the site . The flat-bed trucks being deployed allow immobile vehicles to be recovered without the accompanying damages generally experienced during traditional towing.