Showing posts with label Nano. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nano. Show all posts
Friday, August 28, 2015
Nano makeover: Judicious pricing will rev up sales
The Nano has seen upswings as well as downswings in numbers and a spate of fire incidents had affected sales to such an extent that at one point of time during the recent auto market slump, the world’s cheapest and Tata Motor’s iconic car’s sales plummeted to only 500 a month but now the Tatas are going to give the cheapest car a makeover, which could help the car maker rev up sales substantially, especially in the wake of its judicious pricing policy.
The improved version of the Tata Nano is all set to roll out at the end of this month or early December.
Firstly, it is set to be available in many more colours such as pearl-white, green and orange, among others. The upgraded (and new) Nano will come with refurbished interiors and enhanced mechanics as well.
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| The 2012 new Tata Nano |
Tata Motors is packing it with a punch with further changes such as a new two-cylinder diesel engine and an even more powerful three-cylinder petrol engine. And, the good news is that there will be no hike in the price… it will remain the same as the existing models.
The price will be Rs 1.40 lakh for the Nano Standard, Rs 1.70 lakh for the Nano CX and Rs 1.96 lakh for the Nano LX (all ex-showroom Delhi rates).
The new Nano is believed to have an enviable mileage, which is almost 25 km to a litre. Tata Motors has always delivered on the mileage front, and with this, it has added another feather to its cap.
That’s not all. The 2012 Nano will also come with a passenger-side outside rear-view mirror, a snazzy-coloured dashboard that will give a fillip to the looks of the interiors, along with fresh seats and fabric and new wheel-cap design.
With the intention of providing a better experience while driving, the improved version of the Nano offers tweaked suspension along with an anti-roll bar.
Other changes that are available with the new 2012 Nano are a revamped steering geometry and a castor-angle, which will reduce the steering effort substantially and give a seamless driving experience. Moreover, power generation in the car has also been ramped up from 35 bhp to 38 bhp, which will provide succour to the engine.
The new Tata Nano versions will have a four-year or 60,000 km warranty, whichever milestone is reached earlier.
The Tatas are offering so much more with the refurbished (almost a complete overhaul) Nano at the same price. It’s almost a steal and this pricing policy is definitely going to pay dividends, and in fact, the move could see sales of the Nano surge manifold, even in the near term.
Saturday, August 22, 2015
Many may flock for the Tata Nano Twist
Well, the Tata Nano has been getting a slew of makeovers, and this time, Ratan Tata’s dream car has seen a few cosmetic as well as mechanical changes as part of its upgrade this year with the roll out of the Nano Twist, which may see many people flock for it.
The Nano Twist has been judiciously priced at Rs 2.34 lakh for the XT version and this is Rs 13,000 more than the current top variant, the LX.
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| The Tata Nano Twist. |
There are no mechanical changes on the new Nano and it will be propelled by the same 624 cc, inline twin cylinder, which belts out 38 PS @ 5,500 rpm and 51 Nm @ 4,000 rpm.
When these features are compared with competing cars like Hyundai Eon, Chevrolet Spark and Maruti Alto 800, the Twist is a dampener. But on the price front, the Nano is a lakh cheaper.
Sales of India’s first Rs 1 lakh car (it is no more Rs 1 lakh now and costs almost Rs 2 lakh for the basic variant) has been witnessing fluctuating fortunes.
Some years ago, a few of the brand new Nanos caught fire and this resulted in the sales dwindling to around 500.
The Tatas relaunched the Nano in 2012 with a litany of improvements and sales have been decent since then and no big complaints lodged.
This time, there is more to it. The Nano Twist would come with a power steering and this will make it more maneuverable as desired by many of its customers. It would also help in parking in the city’s overcrowded parking lots.
The Tatas have equipped the Nano Twist with an Electric Power Assisted Steering (ESP) along with keyless entry. The Nano Twist will be the first car in Tata Motor’s stable that would come with this type of power steering. Tatas other vehicles come with the Hydraulic Power Steering.
The interiors remain the same barring the new instrument console that shows distance to empty, fuel economy and the time.
So far as the looks go, the Nano Twist would be almost similar to the standard version and the only differences are ‘Twist’ and ‘XT’ badging at the rear.
The Nano Twist comes with four-speaker music system and has Bluetooth connectivity also. The Twist comes in some funky new colours. There is the all-new Damson Purple shade and a deep blue one.
There are two glove boxes near the instrument cluster and the top model comes with swanky nine-spoke alloys.
So, with a power steering, as desired by many customers, the Nano Twist’s price is almost a steal and many may actually flock for it and raise its sales numbers substantially.
Friday, August 14, 2015
Tata Motors takes a Nano step to rectify fault
The Tata Nano’s sales have been dwindling for quite some time and it plummeted to a low of almost 500 last month, forcing a rethink by Tata Motors, which albeit late, has set the ball rolling to introduce an upgraded variant of the car in the market soon.
The upgraded version of the world’s cheapest car will come with power steering and a five-speed gear box to give a fillip to fuel economy and bring stability during high speed driving. The new version is set to be rolled out within six months and will also come with adjustable seats.
A Tata Motors official said the company had charted plans to upgrade the Nano based on feedback given by customers. The upgraded variant will still be priced lower than the Maruti Suzuki Alto, which is the highest selling car in India. The new Nano is likely to carry a price tag of 10-15% more than the existing variant.
A couple of days back, Tata Motors came up with a four-year manufacturers warranty scheme for both new as well as existing cars.
Under the ‘Nano Happiness Guarantee’ plan, Tata Motors has planned to double warranty lengths of the Nano for four years or 60,000 km and started a Rs 99-a-month maintenance option to keep check on running costs. The auto major had previously been offering a warranty for 18 months or 24,000 km, with zero maintenance on the car which carried a price tag of Rs 1.23 lakh (the base model).
From a sales figure of 9,000 units in July this year, the figure tanked every month and plummeted to a low of 509 units in November. The main reason for this was the fire incidents, which made customers wary of the Nano’s safety. Tata Motors launched various campaigns and tried to assure potential buyers that the Nano was safe but in vain.
Tata Motors earlier requested Nano buyers to bring their cars back so that safety devices could be installed to prevent future fires but denied it was a recall. Tata Motors probably would have had to call the move a ‘recall’ had these incidents taken place in developed markets like the US and Japan.
Meanwhile, Tata Motors is weighing the possibility to sell the Nano in the Taiwanese market. Theodore Huang, who is chairman of the Teco Group in Taiwan, has shown keenness in introducing the car in the country’s market as he feels that the Nano imported from India will still be cheaper than the cheapest car already available in Taiwan which comes for T$400,000.
After import, Tata Nano will cost just above $150,000. But will these incidents in India force Taiwanese buyers to stay away also?
In India, for the Tata Nano to take over the Alto as the highest selling car, Tata Motors will have to go on an exhaustive damage-control mode and these offers, along with the recent warranty offered, could just be an initial move. Tata Motors needs to do much more to pick itself up from the loss of face it suffered owing to the fire incidents of the six brand new Nanos.
Despite being the cheapest car in a highly price-sensitive market like India, it is bewildering that the Nano is behind the Alto so far as sales go and this is something Tata Motors officials need to ponder about.
Finally, Tata Motors plans to make the Nano safe
Tata Motors seems to have launched a major damage-control exercise by beefing up the Nano’s safety as six of its brand new iconic small cars were engulfed in flames after they were handed over to customers.
Had the auto company been apathetic any longer, it could have dented its reputation. After all, one car catching fire could be seen as a stray incident. But if the figure is a whopping six, then there is a big reason to believe that something is going haywire with the production process.
Tata Motors is unwilling to call it a recall but said it will install “additional safety features” in the nearly 70,000 Nanos already sold, in case the owners want them, so that such incidents could be plugged in the future.
Tata Motors had initiated a probe after the first couple of fire incidents but had been given a clean chit. Even after this, more Nanos were engulfed in flames.
The latest fire incident was on August 17, 2010, in New Delhi, just a few months after the company declared the Nano absolutely safe.
Tata Motors, in a press release, had said, “We have decided to make the car even more robust. We will do this by providing additional protection in the exhaust system and the electrical system. Efforts do not constitute a recall.”
Earlier, Tata Motors’ group chief executive and managing director Carl-Peter Forster had said that the auto maker planned to introduce additional safety features in the small car after reports of it catching fire.
Well, this statement seems to give an impression that the fire incidents are just media reports and the company seems to have completely absolved itself despite a string of such fires.
So far as the safety measures go, the company will cover the catalytic converter to prevent the car from catching fire. It will also put a fuse in the electrical components to tackle short circuits.
“From the third week of November, all owners will be informed about these measures. The option lies with our customers as to whether they would like to avail these measures. This will be provided at no cost,” the company statement added.
Tata Motors’ managing director (India operations) PM Telang had been harping on the Nano’s safety also. “We are quite convinced that Nano is safe, based on our probe. However, we feel that probably there may be some extraneous circumstances where people may want additional protection.”
Tata Motors said an investigation by a team of international experts has again inferred that the reasons for the fires in a few Nanos are specific to the cars.
Besides the Nano, Tata Motors has also been striving to tackle fires on its low-floor buses it supplied to Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC). Eight of DTC’s low-floor buses have caught fire within the span of a year.
So, will this constant denial by Tata Motors not tarnish its image, especially in the wake of the mounting competition in the auto sector?
Thursday, August 13, 2015
Maruti Suzuki’s Alto 800 ‘Anniversary Edition’, Nano emax bank on festive buyers
The Alto 800 has seen runaway sales this year: till July, the car had notched nearly 1.4 lakh sales, and Maruti Suzuki, to celebrate a year of the car’s launch (and rev up its market share further), has rolled out the ‘Anniversary Edition’ while the Tatas have launched a CNG variant (emax) of the Nano to beef up sales (as the car’s figures had fallen far below expectations).
The Alto 800 Special Edition comes for Rs 3.12 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), which is just Rs 4,000 costlier than the standard LXI (non-airbag model) and the pricing is again judicious.
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| Maruti Alto 800 Anniversary Edition. |
The Alto 800 is the highest selling car in India, and of course, Maruti’s strategy of fuel efficiency and low maintenance cost (which no other company can duplicate in the compact car industry) is responsible for the roaring sales.
The Special Edition comes with features like new seat upholstery, body coloured outer rear view mirrors, door trims, blackened B-pillar along with rear parcel tray.
To add a visual delight, Maruti Suzuki has given the Special Edition an all-new graphics and also added a new colour option of Purple Haze (which though doesn’t look too great).
So far as the mechanics go, the Special Edition would be powered by the ditto 796 cc, 3-cylinder engine, which produces 48 PS @ 6,000 rpm and a torque rating of 69 Nm @ 3,500 rpm mated to a 5-speed transmission.
The clear target for Maruti Suzuki is the festive buyers, as it had rolled out even the K10 model of the Alto or the Musik Edition recently.
Tata Motors rolls out CNG Nano (emax)
Meanwhile, Tata Motors has rolled out a CNG compatible model of the Nano (Nano emax) in two variants with price tags from Rs 2.40 lakh to Rs 2.65 lakh (Delhi price).
Badged as the ‘Nano emax’, the basic version of the Nano CNG in CX trim has been priced at Rs 2.40 lakh while the LX variant comes for Rs 2.65 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The CNG cylinders in the Nano emax, located under the front seats, have a capacity of 32 litres and the car has a fuel efficiency of 36 km per kg.
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| Tata Nano CNG-compatible emax edition. |
The Tata Nano emax is propelled by the 624 cc petrol engine that offers 33 PS power and 45 Nm torque on CNG fuel. On a single tank, the Nano can travel 375 km. The CNG cylinders probably give the car an additional range of 150 km.
The Nano emax comes with a sequential CNG kit that has been calibrated to its ECU and paves the way for a shift to petrol mode when the driver needs that extra comfort. One can shift fuel modes with the help of a switch.
The emax also has safety features like leak detection sensors and interlock sensors that automatically shuts off the engine while refueling CNG.
So, even as the Alto 800 Anniversary Edition can beef up sales, Tata is banking on the cost saving CNG Nano emax to rev up numbers ahead of the festive season.
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Tata Nano: people’s car price doubles in two years
With the Tata Nano becoming a Rs 2 lakh car within just two years of its launch, will Tata Motors see its people’s car image take a beating as the Nano loses its famous Rs 1 lakh car tag. Tata Motors said it raised Nano prices by nearly Rs 9,000 owing to a jack-up in interest costs in the last two years.
The move could also make the Tata Nano vulnerable to intense competition (in its category) as auto majors such as Bajaj, Nissan and even Maruti Suzuki are planning to launch small cars to take on the Nano and also grab a share of India’s motorcycles market.
This step by Tata Motors will make the ex-showroom price of the top-end Nano, which is the largest selling variant, Rs 2.01 lakh in Mumbai. However, the standard version will be priced Rs 1.49 lakh. But in Delhi, the prices will be far cheaper at Rs 1.88 lakh (for top-end) and Rs 1.37 lakh (base model). The prices have come into effect from November 1. This is the second time that the company has increased price of the Nano.
The Nano continues to be the cheapest car even after this hike, with sales on a slow rise over the last few months. Sales of the small during October 2010 stood at 3,065 units, up a tad 2 per cent.
Tata Motors is also eyeing tier II and III cities in a big way to rev up Nano sales. To boost sales further, it is exchanging two-wheelers for the Nano, which will help Tata Motors grab a small pie in the motorcycles segment.
Tata Motors had increased price of the car by four per cent in June. It recently started open sales in Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. As of now, it has sold 67,000 Nanos (as of September 30).
There has been buzz that Maruti Suzuki is mulling a stripped-down variant of India’s largest selling car, the Alto. This could bring the Alto within striking distance of the Nano (so far as the price goes). But Maruti is yet to confirm such a plan.
Tata Motor’s image was dented after a whopping six of its brand new Nanos caught fire just after they were rolled out of the showroom. But the Tatas had downplayed the incidents. Moreover, delay in deliveries and unavailability of parts owing to shifting of vendors from Pantnagar to Sanand have also taken a toll on Nano sales.
Also, Tata Nano bookings are not open for all states. The auto major is taking bookings from five states - West Bengal, Maharashtra, UP, Kerala and Karnataka.
Apart from this, the company said a number of customers from the first phase of bookings had postponed deliveries and wanted their cars delivered on auspicious days of the festive season. Tata Motors’ Sanand plant will become operational in March next year after which bookings will resume.
While launching the Nano, Tata group chairman Ratan Tata had said that when he saw a family in a motorcycle on the roads he dreamt that it would own a car one day and that the Nano was indeed their dream car. But considering the rate at which the Nano prices are soaring, Ratan Tata’s dream will most likely remain a dream.
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