Indian Autos Thread

gogna · Post by **gogna** » 19 Jul 2008 04:49

Took delivery of bajaj pulsar 180 black 3 days ago, very pleased with the performance of the bike so far, well built and excellent acceleration.

vina · Post by **vina** » 28 Jul 2008 11:36

Ah.. the Reva aka. the G-Whiz on the Pee Pee Cee

nikhil_p · Post by **nikhil_p** » 31 Jul 2008 01:06

Mahindra enters the 2 wheeler market!

http://www.business-standard.com/india/ ... 68&chkFlg=

ajay_hk · Post by **ajay_hk** » 31 Jul 2008 09:32

Chrysler in talks with Tata and Fiat: Report

uddu · Post by **uddu** » 31 Jul 2008 15:46

vina wrote:Ah.. the Reva aka. the G-Whiz on the Pee Pee Cee

The future is going to be electric that is assured.

Already there are mopeds and scooters like Yo bikes.
Speed is meant for two people
http://www.induselectrans.com/yo_speed.htm

A new revolution in automobile industry?

The Tata Nano: World's Cheapest (Electric) Car?
http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/1943/69/

But it seems Tata is going for an electric version of Indica.
Tatas plan to drive out electric car on Indica platform

Dileep · Post by **Dileep** » 31 Jul 2008 16:03

With 6 hours power cuts, when would you charge the electric car?

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 31 Jul 2008 16:10

using a diesel genset

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 31 Jul 2008 16:10

Dileep wrote:With 6 hours power cuts, when would you charge the electric car?

use a diesel generator !

added later : ah, singha ji has preempted me.

Rupesh · Post by **Rupesh** » 31 Jul 2008 16:13

Rahul M wrote:
Dileep wrote:With 6 hours power cuts, when would you charge the electric car?
use a diesel generator !

added later : ah, singha ji has preempted me.

lucky man onlee 6 hr power cut, we are having 7 and some of my friends 8-9 hrs

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 31 Jul 2008 16:19

Rupesh wrote:
Rahul M wrote: use a diesel generator !

added later : ah, singha ji has preempted me.
lucky man onlee 6 hr power cut, we are having 7 and some of my friends 8-9 hrs

lucky me ! only 1 hr on alternate days in kolkata !

uddu · Post by **uddu** » 31 Jul 2008 18:53

Dileep wrote:With 6 hours power cuts, when would you charge the electric car?

During the night when everyone sleeps.

Now think about it what happens when there is no oil.
Things must not be like this, then why is the nuclear deal. With the rains powercut is over.
Elimination of oil is a necessity.
Link
Renewable/Nuclear power generation must be the things that provide us with energy security. But for India
China will blow away India's wind power rank

Also electric cars are faster

And if Tata's succeed with their Indica electric things will change for ever.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 31 Jul 2008 19:08

SHQ's exercycle can be connected with a belt to a generator which will charge the car.
more she pedals, more she gets weekend and shopping trips.

work as you go kind of scheme.

archan · Post by **archan** » 01 Aug 2008 03:26

Rahul M wrote: lucky me ! only 1 hr on alternate days in kolkata !

Commies are taking up all the nation's power!

Shivani · Post by **Shivani** » 02 Aug 2008 02:30

www.nytimes.com wrote:G.M. Loses $15.5 Billion in Quarter

By BILL VLASIC
Published: August 2, 2008

DETROIT — The General Motors Corporation reported a stunning second-quarter loss of $15.5 billion on Friday because of a dramatic decline in United States sales and charges for job cuts, plant closings and the falling value of trucks and sport utility vehicles.

The hits keep on coming.

What are the implications for Indian operations? It seems the day is not far away when there will be full page advertisements in TOI etc pleading the Indian consumers to continue buying GM, Ford products because the Indian operations are independent of US situation.

I have been following this death spiral of GM, Ford, and Chrysler-Cerebrus on The Truth About Cars courtesy Farago & Co., and feel very happy to see these three are near extinction.

Their death should give some space for Tata and Mahindra to grow, if only through acquistion route. If the assets are sold in auction perhaps there would be opportunity to buy engineering centers and some intellectual property as well. The crash won't be limited to the maufacturers but suppliers will follow suit, so there's even more to be had.

Of course, the majority of the share will be taken up by established East Asian manufacturers who also played the biggest role in bringing the US majors down on their knees.

The only apprehension is this being election year, Barak Hussain is going to capatalize on this drama. Large scale socialist bail-outs are likely. But then, why fret over a few billion dollars when you are on the way to record trillion figured deficit?

The loss of manufacturing ability -not to mention tremendous economic fallout from supplier collapse, large scale unemployment- should provide a much needed 'attitude adjustment' to uncle.

Poetic payback for all the uneducated whining about Indians consuming "their" oil, "their" food and not doing enough to curb pollution.
Happy bankruptcy to you, uncle.

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 02 Aug 2008 03:14

archan wrote:
Rahul M wrote: lucky me ! only 1 hr on alternate days in kolkata !
Commies are taking up all the nation's power!

now, now, WB actually sells power !!

abhishek · Post by **abhishek** » 02 Aug 2008 07:57

Yeah because the commies have screwed Bengal soo much that there is nothing to use the little power that is generated.

Dileep · Post by **Dileep** » 02 Aug 2008 08:47

The midlands have only half an hour "load shedding" for residential folks.

I support electric and compressed air cars, as long as the electricity itself is generated from non fuel sources. I DO NOT support fad fueled cars (biodiesel, ethanol etc).

I LMAO when I watch the alternate energy topic programmes on the knowledge channels. They give pure BullShit with an ernest straight face.

About the Compressed Air car:

1. Air is free.
2. Air Powered car
3. What it emits is pure clean air, which cleans the city air

About Hydrogen power:

1. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe.
2. What it emits is pure water wapour.

About a Wood Gas car:

1. It is carbon neutral.
2. You can burn recycled wood.

John Snow · Post by **John Snow** » 02 Aug 2008 09:06

When is Nano being released to public. Its going to be a hit in US for sure ( I mean when some faster car is behind)

Seriously I am thinking of buying Honda fit/ Toyota Yaris (renamed Echo) (the good old tercel derated and smaller) or Nissan Versa, Toyota Matrix ( corolla chaiss).

Any feed back on Nissan Versa is appreciated

bart · Post by **bart** » 02 Aug 2008 09:21

John Snow wrote:When is Nano being released to public. Its going to be a hit in US for sure ( I mean when some faster car is behind)

Nano will not be sold in the US, just like American cards are not sold here.

Dileep · Post by **Dileep** » 02 Aug 2008 09:58

Why the fixation on selling nano in the USA? Give me ONE good reason for tata to do that?

They can sell much more cars and make much more money by selling it in other countries. In fact, it can easily beat the record of the beetle as the largest number of units sold. Why bother with the USA market?

Shivani · Post by **Shivani** » 02 Aug 2008 15:07

Americans consider the Corolla class automobile as small 'subcompact' cars. Most are too well-nourished to be able to enter the Nano

.

Besides, the Nano won't pass any safety tests. It is a made for India(ns) product. Let americans downsize to Corolla / Fit, which are better suited to their conditions.

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 02 Aug 2008 15:09

shivani, IIRC nano has cleared euro safety and emission standards. aren't US ones below that level ??

Shivani · Post by **Shivani** » 02 Aug 2008 15:32

Rahul M wrote:shivani, IIRC nano has cleared euro safety and emission standards. aren't US ones below that level ??

Heh, can't find anything here.

It's just disinformation being circulated by Tata. Word play. Ratan said during introduction that it passes all current safety tests. Precisely which safety standard, he didn't specify. And, of course the media didn't bother to ask. Why spoil the party...

Not that I am complaining, an air-conditioned Nano beats HMSI Activa anyday.

As far as US vs. EU safety testing, my superficial understanding is that it not a question of which is better or worse, they are somewhat different. Most international products are designed to do well in both tests anyway.

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 02 Aug 2008 15:50

emission standards in US are lower AFAIK.

Ameet · Post by **Ameet** » 16 Aug 2008 00:20

Interesting update in auto tech. GM's plug in hybrid called the volt. Goes 40 miles just on battery and can be recharged by plugging a cord into a household outlet! Should be due out in 2010. Of course Toyota should also have a plug in hybrid then.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/15/busin ... =permalink

Shivani · Post by **Shivani** » 16 Aug 2008 04:29

Ameet wrote:Interesting update in auto tech. GM's plug in hybrid called the volt. Goes 40 miles just on battery and can be recharged by plugging a cord into a household outlet! Should be due out in 2010. Of course Toyota should also have a plug in hybrid then.

The Volt will cost ~$40,000~ whereas the Prius is significantly cheaper. All new Prius is coming soon, too. GM is good at getting the initial marketing thrust with movie promotions (Transformers), celebrity sound bites etc., but long term Toyota shall prevail. Honda too are working on a Prius of their own.

Volt will occupy a very small part of the alternative fueled vehicle segment in US, and will do nothing to fix the other GM products, and consequently, the GM bottomline. It is an ego project that shall get the loudest cheers and greatest media attention on launch.

Dileep · Post by **Dileep** » 16 Aug 2008 07:01

A 'plug in' hybrid? How can that be a hybrid? It is an electric vehicle. Hybrid is a mix of fuel and electric.

jyerna · Post by **jyerna** » 16 Aug 2008 22:57

Probably the Prius Hybrid batteries can be charged by plugging it in, in addition to regenerative braking. There is already speculation that the next gen Prius will have solar panels on the roof.

Nayak · Post by **Nayak** » 17 Aug 2008 11:19

Volkswagen planning to set up research centre in India

PUNE: Volkswagen Group, Euorpe’s biggest car group and part of Porsche, the most profitable car maker, is evaluating the setting up of a research centre in India. This will be on the lines of the centre it set up in China three years ago, to research accident sites and then incorporate safety features in cars.

“In China, we set up an accident research centre in 2005. We go to an accident site to find out exactly what happened there, the real cause, and then use the findings as design inputs. We are considering a similar sort of centre for India.

Every country has a different culture and this can require different safety features,” said Krishna Dhawan, head of technical office, SkodaAuto India. He added individual country traits have to be catered to especially in India and China, both being growing markets so getting critical volumes for such features should not pose a problem.

SkodaAuto is part of the Volkswagen group, which is setting up a e580 million, 1.1 lakh annual capacity greenfield plant at Chakan, near here, from where it will roll out small cars. The VW plant goes on stream next year, starting with Skoda’s Fabia, followed by its own product, the Golf, by late 2009.

VW group builds safety solutions on its platforms so such features go into products across brands in the group.
Mr Dhawan admitted that some safety features in a car would require the existence of infrastructure which is currently not available in India.

This includes things like lane departure indications, which requires providing clear lane indications on the road. However, some of the safety features which will go on high-end cars could be introduced simultaneously in India since that market is willing to pay.

“Features have a cost and they usually are introduced in a top down manner, so the high end cars have them first,” he said. Referring to VW’s global programme for safety, Mr Dhawan said some systems will come into force by 2010 while other systems would come in later since they require infrastructure.

“At the moment, VW cars in India have basic safety systems while we still have to see when we can bring in lane departure warning, night view, etc., since other infrastructure is still not available here. Car to car communication is still to happen globally and it will take longer than 2010 to be introduced globally. Some features can be retrofitted while others cannot,” he remarked.

SK Mody · Post by **SK Mody** » 18 Aug 2008 20:29

Ameet wrote:Interesting update in auto tech. GM's plug in hybrid called the volt. Goes 40 miles just on battery and can be recharged by plugging a cord into a household outlet! Should be due out in 2010. Of course Toyota should also have a plug in hybrid then.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/15/busin ... =permalink

What is this 40 miles/battery charge nonsense when they had already produced and scrapped a bigger car with a longer range some years ago?
Please have a look at EV1

People are talking of 200+ miles range and they come out with 40?

hnair · Post by **hnair** » 19 Aug 2008 03:42

Dileep wrote:A 'plug in' hybrid? How can that be a hybrid? It is an electric vehicle. Hybrid is a mix of fuel and electric.

it still has a the petrol engine. It is still required for seamless driving. eg: if the power is out for two days because KSEB dint pay up NTPC dues

). The plug-in hybrid takes advantage of the cheaper electricity production that is possible in massive powerplants and uses it to lessen the petrol consumption of the car itself. The best approach would be if one can deploy high capacity solar cells on the house roof to feed the grid during day, while draining the grid during night to charge up the plug-in hybrid.

Neshant · Post by **Neshant** » 19 Aug 2008 13:00

they should sell the nano in north america.

it would be a heck of a lot cheaper than the mercedes smart car.

rental car companies would snap it up.

but they have to be quick with its launch and not drag their feet.

bart · Post by **bart** » 19 Aug 2008 14:42

They cannot sell the Nano in NA without significant re-engineering to meet safety laws, more powerful engine etc. They could sell the Indica V3 though.

rahulm · Post by **rahulm** » 20 Aug 2008 09:47

Mahindra PikUp in Sydney, Australia
http://picasaweb.google.com/rahulm20/Ma ... i4YUcJv_d0

Tanaji · Post by **Tanaji** » 22 Aug 2008 14:07

http://in.rediff.com/money/2008/aug/22tata1.htm
Tatas thinking of quitting W Bengal

Delicious irony this, the commies are getting blow back for their anti industry stance. Its now a race to the bottom for W. Bengal, with each political party being more pro-farmer, pro-worker than the rest, meanwhile W. Bengal suffers from lack of investment.

Tatas should go to Maharashtra, Chennai or Gujarat where governments are receptive. Out of the three, I think Chennai is the best bet currently, given Maharashtra's pathetic power situation and total lack of action by Vilasrao to tackle it.

Neela · Post by **Neela** » 22 Aug 2008 15:03

Tanaji....are you posting in rediff too.

FOund a similar comment here
http://specials.rediff.com/money/2008/aug/22slde5.htm

bart · Post by **bart** » 22 Aug 2008 15:23

The all-new Tata Indica V3 is about to be launched to dealers tomorrow.

A scanned brochure and more details over here:
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-ca ... chure.html

Tanaji · Post by **Tanaji** » 22 Aug 2008 15:32

Neela:

No.. its not me.

The new Indica does look nice, but personally I dont like the central instrument cluster. I like it behind my steering wheel for ease of viewing. But thats me.. I suspect it has been implemented to reduce costs in case Tatas decide to export the car to places where people drive on the other side of the road.

Neela · Post by **Neela** » 22 Aug 2008 15:50

Tanaji wrote:Neela:

No.. its not me.

The new Indica does look nice, but personally I dont like the central instrument cluster. I like it behind my steering wheel for ease of viewing. But thats me.. I suspect it has been implemented to reduce costs in case Tatas decide to export the car to places where people drive on the other side of the road.

I agree....me thinks Tata took the cost cutting innovation too far on this one....assuming that was the real reason to have it in the middle.

If you are less than 160cm tall, seats have to be brought forward and the speedometer, rpm meter visibility is reduced even more.

They should have atleast had a swivel system implemented to align the insttrument panel with the driver's visibility

Nothing to complain about on the rest.

vina · Post by **vina** » 22 Aug 2008 18:17

No.. I think the central instrument cluster is fine. My dad bought a Chevy Spark recently and that too has the central instruement cluster. You get used to it in no time and it works fine. I got used to it in 5 minutes.

The minus is that SHQ in the back seat gets to see the speed at which you are driving and her back seat driving gets exponentially worse, now with constant readings of the "excess" speed at which i drive and how 60 kmph is not appropriate speed etc..