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Tata has confirmed the launch date of its Twist, new variant of Nano. Tata will launch this new Nano Twist on January 13, 2014 in Mumbai. As we reported earlier the new model will come with power-steering. Heavy Steering of the current Nano is the biggest complaint from the customers. So the heavy steering is replaced by the Power steering which is developed by the German Automotive component manufacturer, ZF.

The new car will get the same 624cc, twin cylinder engine which can deliver maximum power output of 37.4 bhp. The engine is mated to four speed manual gear box .Nano Twist will be sold at a price of Rs15000 more than the standard model. The power steering will be the first mechanical upgrade for the Tata Nano since its launch.

Currently Nano is available in five variants of both petrol and CNG. The variants of Tata Nano are Nano STD, Nano CX, Nano LX, Nano CNG CX, Nano CNG LX. All these variants have 0.6-litre petrol engine which can churn out maximum power of 37.4bhp and a peak torque of 51Nm. The engine system is coupled with a 4-speed manual transmission.

Honda plans to launch the fourth generation City on 7th January 2014.It has unveiled the fourth generation City at the last month in India. According to Indian Car Enthusiasts (ICE), the fourth -generation City will be available in five different variants such as E, S, SV, V and VX.

The SV, V and VX variants will come with the automatic climate control air conditioner with touch controls while the other two lower variants will get manual air conditioner only. The top three variants will also include air-con vent for rear seats. The top two variants only get alloy wheels, front fog lamps and power outlets.

The top end variant VX get the features like push-button start/stop switch, smart key, sunroof, chrome door handles and leather upholstery. All variants will include driver side airbag while the passenger side airbag will be available only on the variants such as SV, V and VX.

The top two variants will get the five-inch display, eight-speaker entertainment system with a CD player and reversing camera. The S and SV trims will come with an integrated four-speaker system without a CD player or the camera. Both audio systems offer USB, aux-in, Bluetooth streaming and steering-mounted controls, while the base variant E comes without an audio system.

The fourth generation City will be available in both petrol and diesel engine options. The diesel version will get 1.5 liter, i-DTEC engine which can produce 99bhp of maximum power and 200Nm of maximum torque. The petrol version will get 1.5 litre i-VTEC engine with maximum power of 117 bhp and maximum torque of 145 Nm.

The City Diesel is only available in manual transmission while the petrol version is available with both manual as well as CVT automatic gear box. It is expected that the price of the Honda City in the range between Rs 8lakh to 12 lakh.

South Korean automaker, Hyundai plans to launch its flagship luxury models in India. Hyundai wants to enter the luxury car segment in India with its luxury cars like Genesis sedan, luxury saloon and Veloster Sports hatchback.

It is expected that Hyundai to display the Equus at the upcoming Auto Expo 2014 which is the most expensive model. Equus is currently available in the countries like South Korea, North America, China and the West Asia. Hyundai will have to compete with the brands such as BMW, Audi, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz.

Hyundai Spokesperson said, “We are studying the luxury space right now, though there is nothing definite yet. Apart from Equus, there are more luxury models in the Hyundai range. However, we will need a different network to sell these cars. We are gauging customer acceptance of Hyundai’s luxury car range and then we will take a decision.”

“The luxury car market requires a very different end-to-end long-term strategy in terms of marketing and channel partners. One school of thought is that it will be tough to establish a new brand, but we have been heading towards the premium end progressively with new launches like the Verna, Elantra and Sonata”

Kawasaki, Japanese motorcycle manufacturer has launched two new litre class bikes Z1000 and Ninja 1000 in India. The Z1000 and Ninja 1000 will be imported as Completely Built Units (CBU). The both litre class bikes will cost the same price of Rs 12.5 lakh.

The Z1000 and Ninja 1000 will sport the same 1043cc, liquid cooled, DOHC, 16-valve, in-line four cylinder engine with digital fuel injection. The engine can produce maximum power of 142 PS at 10000 rpm and maximum torque of 111Nm at 7300 rpm. The engine is coupled to six speed transmission. Kawasaki has offered onABS on both bikes.

Kawasaki Z1000 is a naked street bike, while the Ninja 1000 is a full faired sports bike. The both motorcycles will get a twin-tube aluminium frame, 41 mm adjustable inverted fork suspension at the front and horizontal monoshock rear suspension. The Z1000 gets 300mm dual petal brakes at the front and a single 250 mm petal brake at rear.

Yuji Horiuchi,MD, India Kawasaki Motors said, “There is a substantial growth in 500 cc segment. Focus in India are the high-performance bikes and currently we do not have any plan of launching an entry-segment type bike. Our estimation of market size of these bikes is of 2500 units every year. We are targeting 20 per cent market share of this category. Along with Ninja, Z-series is also important for us. Our initial target for sales is 100 units per model per year. We will expand our business territory in a phase-wise manner.”

He added, “We had recently launched two of our flagship models and received impressive response for these products. To further strengthen our presence in the country, we are now launching two more global products targeted at specific audiences. We are also launching our first exclusive showroom in North India, to strategically expand our national footprint. With incessant support from our long-standing partners, Bajaj Auto, we look forward to taking the Kawasaki brand in India from strength to strength.”

Honda, the Japanese carmaker plans to launch the new generation Accord by 2014. The company has stopped the production of its flagship sedan Accord in India due to the poor demand of the vehicle. Now it plans to introduce the next generation Accord in the country.
The company has sold 11,492 units only since the launch of eighth generation Accord in 2008.Honda will launch the ninth generation Accord by early 2014.

The new generation Accord will be available with both petrol and diesel engine options. The discontinued accord model was powered by a 4-cylinder 2.4-litre engine which can produce 180PS of maximum power and maximum torque of 22Nm.The another 3.5-litre V6 engine can develop maximum power of 275PS and maximum torque of 339Nm.

Honda, Jnaneshwar Sen, senior vice-president said, “We have stopped production of the current eighth-generation of Accord in India”.”It is our flagship brand and we would be looking at the next generation of the sedan for Indian customers, though the exact launch details have not been worked out yet.”

Honda, Japanese carmaker plans to introduce its next generation MPV, Freed to take on Toyota Innova. The Freed MPV is expected to be launched by mid 2014.The MPV will follow its Mobilio, a seven seater crossover utility vehicle. Mobilio is built on the Brio hatchback platform which is to be unveiled at 2014 Auto Expo.

Currently the company does not have any idea to launch the Freed in India. Honda spokesperson said, “However, we are actively looking at the MPV (multi-purpose vehicle) segment and plan to launch the Honda Mobilio next year,” Toyota also working for its next generation Innova. Analysts said” Freed would bring real competition to Innova if it gets its pricing right”

Amit Kaushik, principal analyst-autos at global consultancy service IHS Automotive, said “This segment was untouched till date as Innova was perhaps the leader with almost no competition. Now it would be interesting to see how Honda takes this rivalry with an established product going forward”.