All posts tagged tata nano
Renault confirms low-cost car plans
Renault has confirmed plans to produce a low cost car in order to compete with Tata Nano in those markets where there is a considerable demand for this type of vehicle, as French newspaper La Tribune had anticipated. However, a Renault spoke-person also denied rumors that the price of the car has already been set at 2,500 €. The new model will be initially introduced in India, where it will be positioned below its older cousin Nissan Micra (on sale in India at the equivalent of 5,900 €) with a price tag similar to the one of the Nano (2,000 € approximately).
To produce both cars, the Renault-Nissan group will partner with Indian company Bajaj (specialized in 2 and 3 wheel vehicles) in a move that will reduce the overall costs of the project. Head of Renault’s entry-level car division Gerarde Detourbet confirmed that his team is currently working on a small car that will be positioned below Renault Pulse and Nissan Micra, adding that it won’t be a super-cheap model. Apparently, the plan is to introduce a low-cost car that will be better equipped than the Nano. An all-electric version of the model is also in the cards.
via | Ansa
Tata Nano Model Year 2012
Tata Nano will enter the new year with a light upgrade of its 2-cylinder engine, which will provide it with an handful of extra horsepower and torque and an optimized fuel consumption. In fact, its little 624 cc SOHC petrol unit will boost its output from the current 35 hp and 48 Nm up to a grand total of 38 hp and 51 Nm, although top speed will remain 105 km/h. Average fuel consumption will go from 4.23 l/100 km down to 4.08 l/100 km, with CO2 emissions of 92.7 g/km.
The 2012 version of Tata Nano will also boast a revised suspension set-up with reinforced anti-roll bar at the front, a new steering system and booster-assisted brakes. The model will be available in many vivid colors, with also revised wheel caps, a different exhaust and upgraded interior. The price will remain 140,000 rupees, rough equivalent of 2,000 €/2,670 $/1,700£. Well, we won’t be holding our breath for a Nurburgring lap time.
View Tata Nano MY2012 photo gallery
Tata Nano electric for Europe?
The Tata Nano could appear in Europe as an electric model only, after the Indian company conducted further market analysis on the possible future of the Nano on the old continent. In fact, the choice makes a lot of sense. While the Nano Europa is planned for a 2012 debut at less than 6,000 euros, an electric version could make this a real city car for European centres getting stricter about pollution and emissions.
Originally, an electric Tata Nano was not planned but a recent interview with CEO Carl Peter Forster hinted that one could be developed. It would make the Nano quite unique, and we believe could even make it a significant long-term prospect in its own country of India if the right infrastructure could be developed. The only downside is that an electric version could cost double the 6,000 euros for the standard version, making it decidedly less appealing in Europe.
However, if an electric city car is your choice of vehicle, competitor options such as the Citroen C-Zero or Peugeot iOn have pricing around the 30,000 euros mark. It’s still a Tata Nano, though…. Despite our European cynicism, if the Nano electric goes ahead it could be produced in the same production facilities as the Smart EV, indicating a possible future joint-venture. It seems the Indians are getting very good at collaborating and we could soon see an intelligent choice from Tata entering the European market. Something to look out for in the future.
Source | Autointernationaal
Tata Nano taxi: the real revolution
Aside from the insight that most Indians and Englishmen are die-hard cricket tragics, Mark Tisshaw on Autocar shows how much of a gap there is between the Western world and our perceptions, and the developing world’s needs and values.
According to a cricketing friend of Tisshaw, many Indians are purchasing the Tata Nano to set up taxi businesses. So there is an added dimension to the revolution many of us were expecting in terms of recreational use, family mobility and one’s own slice of luxury.
Surprising? Not if we think about it. The Indians are an enterprising society, and it’s interesting to see that the world’s cheapest car could be turned into a business proposition, getting a good return on investment and providing an additional, ongoing transport option in a populated country on the move.
Whenever I’m next in India, I’m definitely going to see whether there’s any truth in this theory. It’s an intriguing idea and I think we’ll have plenty to observe and learn from as the Tata Nano starts its career. It’s got good prospects so far, and any move to Europe should prove equally curious.
Fiat and Tata in South America sales partnership for Nano
Fiat has been busy lately with corporate news and attempted takeovers and mergers, but this is one that could work for the company. Fiat and Tata have joined forces to sell the Tata Nano in South America.
The first Tata Nano has already been delivered in India and the next market for the economic car is South America. Fiat has a huge market in Brasil, its second biggest after Italy, and that country will become the base for the Nano in South America.
The joint sales venture on Nano will also extend to other vehicles to be sold in India, reportedly Ferrari and Maserati, in a total opposite to the cheap Indian car. Ratan Tata has said:
Continue reading: Fiat and Tata in South America sales partnership for Nano
First Tata Nano delivered
The world of motoring has come a long way in the last century or so, and I sometimes wonder if in the modern world we will ever see the equivalent of the inventions of the past: the first aeroplane, the first car etc.
It is true though, that we are seeing many evolutions which may be mini revolutions in their own right. And one mini motoring revolution that will chance the face of Indian society is that of the Tata Nano.
We’ve seen the Nano crash test, the first Nano test drive and we’ve discussed what this car might mean for a nation of India. A couple of days ago, the first Tata Nano was delivered to the first happy customer.
Tata Nano crash test video
We’ve already posted on the Tata Nano passing the NCAP crash test laws, and here is the video of the test. The success of the Nano passing the test may mean that we could see the small city car commercialised in the European and US markets.
Tata Nano passes European crash test
In what I think is quite an amazing piece of news given the cynicism of the Western world towards Indian manufacturing, the small Indian city car, Nano, has passed European crash test regulations. The tests were undertaken in Britain, where car safety laws are more stringent then in the Nano’s home country.
With the Tata Nano currently available only in India with a price tag of about 1800 pounds, this small crash success could mean we’ll see “Western” versions soon selling in the US and Europe. India is set to adop the strict NCAP testing rules in three years’ time, and Tata executives are very happy with the results.
Only time will tell whether the car will be successful in Western markets, but after Autocar’s test drive endorsement and these new results, in a world of economic crisis that may change consumer patterns, the car is well on its way to being, at the least, acceptable.
Source | Autocar
Autocar test drives the Tata Nano in India
Wow, is about all I can say to this video. The guys from Autocar have given the Tata Nano about the most important endorsement it could probably have, and we could really be seeing a modern revolution, which is something we haven’t seen much of late.
Despite its unbelievable price - about 1,500 euros, the Tata Nano drives and feels like a real car. And the most important thing is that the designers have done exactly what they needed to do; design a cheap and economical small car that will revolutionise motoring in India.
The 650 cc and 110 km/hr top speed are nothing special, and there’s no power steering (it’s starting to sound like the car I drive!). But everything is in its place and there’s no fancy additions to “disenfranchise” the scooter owners who are the one’s likely to take on this proposition. Watch the video, it’s worth it.
Source | Autoblog.com
Tata Nano production halted after protests
There’s an atmosphere of crisis in the Indian facilities of Tata where controversy has put a spanner in the works of Nano production.
The Singur plant has been blockaded by farmers from the area who have decided not to cede 162 hectares of terrain destined for factory expansion. The West Bengal government hasn’t reached an agreement with the workers, and won’t be using force to prevent the protests, as occurred a year ago.
Given the situation production has been stopped and while waiting for developments, Tata has threatened the local government with moving production to other areas if a solution cannot be reached in the near future. Keeping manufacturing in India will be essential to maintaining production costs at 100,000 rupies, the famous 1,700 euros so talked about.
Source | Ilsole24ore (thanks to derek for the tip)
The Tata Nano could see a compressed air engine
The revolution of the Indian “people’s car” continues as the Tata Nano still hasn’t finished it’s international debut. The petrol 33hp engine will soon be accompanied by a compressed air unit developed with the French over at MDI.
The engine, according to the company, emits a third of the CO2 emissions of an internal combustion engine. The cold air, compressed to 300 atmospheres, enters opposite tanks, is heated and moved to a piston engine which is then activated by the expansion of gases, which happens without any prior combustion.
Continue reading: The Tata Nano could see a compressed air engine
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