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Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 19 Jul 2008 04:49
by gogna
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 28 Jul 2008 11:36
by vina
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 01:06
by nikhil_p
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 09:32
by ajay_hk
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 15:46
by uddu
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
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 16:03
by Dileep
With 6 hours power cuts, when would you charge the electric car?
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 16:10
by Singha
using a diesel genset

Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 16:10
by Rahul M
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 16:13
by Rupesh
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

Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 16:19
by Rahul M
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 !
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 18:53
by uddu
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 31 Jul 2008 19:08
by Singha
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 01 Aug 2008 03:26
by archan
Rahul M wrote:
lucky me ! only 1 hr on alternate days in kolkata !
Commies are taking up all the nation's power!

Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 02:30
by Shivani
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 03:14
by Rahul M
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 !!

Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 07:57
by abhishek
Yeah because the commies have screwed Bengal soo much that there is nothing to use the little power that is generated.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 08:47
by Dileep
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 09:06
by John Snow
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
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 09:21
by bart
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 09:58
by Dileep
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?
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 15:07
by Shivani
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 15:09
by Rahul M
shivani, IIRC nano has cleared euro safety and emission standards. aren't US ones below that level ??
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 15:32
by Shivani
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 02 Aug 2008 15:50
by Rahul M
emission standards in US are lower AFAIK.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 16 Aug 2008 00:20
by Ameet
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
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 16 Aug 2008 04:29
by Shivani
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 16 Aug 2008 07:01
by Dileep
A 'plug in' hybrid? How can that be a hybrid? It is an electric vehicle. Hybrid is a mix of fuel and electric.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 16 Aug 2008 22:57
by jyerna
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 17 Aug 2008 11:19
by Nayak
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 18 Aug 2008 20:29
by SK Mody
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?
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 19 Aug 2008 03:42
by hnair
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 19 Aug 2008 13:00
by Neshant
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 19 Aug 2008 14:42
by bart
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2008 09:47
by rahulm
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 22 Aug 2008 14:07
by Tanaji
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 22 Aug 2008 15:03
by Neela
Tanaji....are you posting in rediff too.
FOund a similar comment here
http://specials.rediff.com/money/2008/aug/22slde5.htm
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 22 Aug 2008 15:23
by bart
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
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 22 Aug 2008 15:32
by Tanaji
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 22 Aug 2008 15:50
by Neela
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.
Re: Indian Autos Thread
Posted: 22 Aug 2008 18:17
by vina
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..
