* On June 25 Bajaj revealed some information about its small car – Bajaj said it is experimenting with the concept of a small car but said it will not be a cheap car. Bajaj categorically ruled out its concept car being a competitor to the Tata’s Rs 1 lakh car saying: “We are striving to be a good two-wheeler manufacturer and we have no intention of getting into something which we are not capable of… that is manufacturing of cars”. He said the company’s concept small car would be a distinctive product and “it will be more like a Pulsar on four-wheels”. Bajaj small car will be a high technology car being, developed through in-house research and development and seeks to redefine small cars, bajaj added.
* Bajaj Auto introduced its 220 cc motorcycle Pulsar DTS Fi model priced at Rs 81,280 (ex-showroom Delhi) and also opened its first ‘probiking’ showroom in Delhi. The dispatches of pulsar 220cc DTSi-FI have already started for all-India launch of the bike, after it was initially test marketed in Pune earlier this year.
* Mahindra and Mahindra launches scorpio gateway which is priced in the range of Rs6.99 – 8.1 lakh. Mahindra and Mahindra(M&M) says it will launch the 2.2L scorpio CRDe in october.
source: NDTV profit
* Lewis Hamilton produced yet another incredible performance to claim his second successive F1 win in a McLaren one-two at the United States Grand Prix.
* While the other car manufacturers are cutting their production to face the slowdown, Maruti has apologised to customers for the long delay in deliveries of the Swift and the newly launched SX4. Maruti now wishes to push its other products through aggressive discounts – it has increased discounts on Esteem to Rs 35,000 from Rs 25,000 last month, that on the Zen Estilo has been hiked from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 this month. For the alto the discount is doubled to Rs10000.
* Finally India will host its first formula one in 2009. Soon IOA (Indian Olympic Association) will sign an agreement with formula one. Delhi may be the host for the Indian F1. Vijay Mallaya has been working for the deal for past many years. Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone has recently hinted about India hosting the F1. Recently Schumi and his brother Ralf Schumacher recently visited India. India’s Kingfisher Airlines owned by Vijay Mallya, inked a multi-year partnership deal with Toyota Motorsport to be an official partner of the Toyota F1 Racing team in January 2007
source: headlines today and times now
* Commercial vehicle maker Mahindra and Mahindra on 6th june launched its utility vehicle Mahindra Pik-Up in Australia. The 2.5 litre diesel engine powered Mahindra Pik-Up has been launched in partnership with Sydney-based (TMI) Pacific. TMI Pacific is an arm of Tynan Motor Group, which is associated with auto giants including Mercedes-Benz, Mitshubishi, Suzuki, Honda, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Hyundai, Subaru and Kia. Australian driving system is similar to the indian one.
*Global auto a JV of Xentis Group and China’s Guangzhou Automobile Industry will launch its second motorcycle soon. Xenitis first offering is 125cc xpression.
* BMW India, the fully owned subsidiary of German luxury car maker BMW, plans to launch its mid-luxury sedan 5 Series in the country by June from its Chennai factory and its sport utility vehicles (SUV) X3 and X5 through the import route later this year. The company has hiked its sales target to 1,200 units from the earlier 1,000 units for the current calendar year. The company said its SUVs, which are currently undergoing homologation process at the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), Pune would be launched in next few months. The new 5 Series sedan is expected to be priced in the Rs37 to 42 lakh range while the company is yet to determine the prices of its SUVs. BMW India had sold 107 units in April and is expected to sell 300 units by end of this month, which would surpass its last year’s sales of 257 units. BMW India will also expand its sales network by appointing 12 dealers across the country. The company will also open its international purchasing office (IPO) in India to out-source its worldwide ancillaries requirement.
source:domain-b
* Honda Siel Cars India will launch next week a new variant of its best-selling premium sedan — the Honda Civic. The new trim Honda Civic 1.8V will join the 1.8S, which is currently the only variant available with either a five-speed manual or automatic gearbox. The new Civic 1.8V will additionally sport features such as leather seats, front fog lamps and turn indicators integrated into outside rear-view mirrors. The new variant will also be offered with two new colours — Mystic Violet and Carbon Bronze Pearl. The new variant is expected to be offered with both the transmission options and is likely to cost about Rs 70,000 more than the respective 1.8S variants.