Tata Telcoline Reviews

The newcomer will be smaller and cheaper than today's Colt, which opens the action for Mitsubishi in Australia from $15,740, and should be ready for the road inside two years.  The codename for the project is 'Global Small' and it's a personal priority for the president of Mitsubishi Motors, Osamu Masuko. "The key issue facing the industry at the moment is increased demand from new markets - emerging economies - while sales in mature markets remain static. Increased environmental concerns have also become a major issue," Masuko tells Australian journalists. "These two factors are affecting the way we do business and have seen, globally, a shift from large passenger vehicles to smaller, more efficient and economical cars. In developing countries we believe the sales and importance of these vehicles will rise.  It is believed the growth segment will be small cars." He believes there is now an opportunity for a smaller car than the Colt, although he rules out anything as basic as the Tata Nano developed to take Indians off their bicycles and into cars.  "The size of the Global Small will be smaller than the Colt and the price will also be cheaper," he says. Masuko also confirms there will eventually be a plug-in electric version.  "We are also going to launch with an EV, one year later. Of course, it will come to Australia." Masuko says Mitsubishi plans to grow its global following with a range of vehicles which bring new customers to the brand.  "To to now, Mitsubishi is seen as having its strength in four-wheel drives. What we would like to build on, as a company, is to have vehicles which are sporty and emotional." He also confirms plans for strategic product alliances with other brands - such as the one Mitsubishi already has with Peugeot - to shortcut development times and boost its production numbers.  "From now on we are still going to be look at a lot of alliances," he says.

Active safety features like electronic stability control are bypassing the most-needed segment in the car market - budget cars, according to Singapore-based engineering executive, Robert Tan.With the global explosion of new budget cars from markets like India and China, these systems are critical to help save lives, particularly among younger buyers looking for a cheap car, he says.  "Governments need to be more pro-active to add these potentially life-saving devices into ultra-low and low-cost cars," he says."It's not happening fast enough on low-cost cars, those under $15,000."  Tan cost prohibited the full suite of safety features migrating from high-end luxury cars to mid to low-end vehicles.Such systems are accepted in high-end luxury cars from Mercedes-Benz but remain out of reach on cars like the Tata Nano, he says.  Tan is the engineering director of automotive electronics company Infineon Technologies, which builds safety systems for cars.Unlike passive safety systems like airbags, which only come into use during an accident, Tan says active safety systems are just as important.  "They help drivers avoid an accident in the first place," he says.He argues that seatbelt reminder lights and active brake lights are relatively cheap to install on low-cost cars, yet very few have them.  Tan also wants intelligent speed limiters, drowsiness detection devices and brake assist systems in budget cars."They are proven to work in high-end cars but are largely unavailable on low-cost cars," he says.  These systems could be piggy-backed on to existing technologies that are already in some cars, he says.All these things could create an "electronic safety cocoon" for occupants.  European figures already show that electronic stability control systems have helped reduce fatal accidents by more than 30 per cent.Australia will mandate ESC on all cars and off-roaders from November next year and all vehicles from November 2013.  Tan, who was in Melbourne this week to address a Society of Automotive Engineers Australia safety conference, concedes that cost remains a big hurdle to some of the newer safety systems."It is difficult to develop something like radar cruise control on a $5000 vehicle," he says.  However, he says there is no reason low-cost cars should not get seatbelt reminders, speed limiters and brake assist."The challenges are cost, then there is original equipment maker acceptance and consumer acceptance," he says.  "Lastly legislation - without legislation there would be no pro-active safety systems."

Indian specialist customiser, DC Design, is working on a Suzuki Hayabusa-powered Nano that will cost $240,000 and hit 225km/h.  DC Design has taken a stock-standard four-door Nano and converting it into a souped-up two-door racer. Looking like a Smart ForTwo on steriods, the car gets Mercedes SLS AMG-style gullwing doors, along with a light-weight carbon fibre body.  The minute 25kW 624cc engine has been ripped out, along with the rear seats, to fit the 147kW 1.3-litre Hayabusa four. To match the high-powered motorcycle engine, the nifty Nano also gets a seven-speed sequential gearbox, cross-drilled ventilated F1-style brakes, wider tyres and re-engineered sports suspension.  To cope with the hot-rod performance, the standard suspension has been completely re-engineered. Inside the bare-basic interior has been ditched in favour of a leather-lined cabin.  The car gets sports seats, a large screen to operate internet and satellite navigation systems and embedded lighting in the roof lining. There are also high-powered xenon headlights and an articulated one-piece windscreen wiper.  Electro-chromatic lighting will allow owners to change the intensity and colour of interior lighting. The head of DC Design, Dilip Chhabaria, says the company will build up to five hot Nanos a year for wealthy Indian clients. There are no plans for exports.  The chassis and car's floorpan will be largely the same.  "But apart from than that everything will be different," he says. DC Design is one if India's largest auto accessory makers.  It also specialises in customising cars for India's well-heeled car enthusiasts.

The Ford Figo - based on the previous generation Fiesta - was designed by Ford Australia, lead by head designer Scott Strong.  It has been re-engineered tougher to compete in India's small car segment, which accounts for more than 70 per cent of the new vehicle market. The Figo is one of a handful of mini and micro cars launched to rave reviews at this week's New Delhi show.  Apart from the Figo, Honda's ‘new small concept’ and Toyota's Etios sedan made their world debuts.  Designed to tackle the Tata Nano, the low-cost production version of the Honda will initially be sold in India but other Asian export markets are planned.  The 1.2-litre front wheel drive five-door hatch is expected to go on sale in India next year, with a starting price of about $11,000.   Apart from India, the small Honda is tipped to be built in Thailand and could also be sold here. Maruti-Suzuki, which dominates the Indian new car market, showed off its R3 MPV six-seater concept which looks similar to the just-launched Opel Meriva.The Etios - which was codenamed EFC for entry family car - could make it to Australia as a replacement for the Yaris.  The entry four-door sedan is designed to compete against the Suzuki Swift and goes on sale in India later this year, with a hatch to follow in 2011. The Etios will be powered by two new 1.2 and 1.5-litre petrol engines, with production initially destined for the Indian market but exports are planned.  Toyota vice-chairman, Kazuo Okamoto, says India is a key market in the company's global small car strategy.  It was also one of the few countries experiencing growth, he says. Apart from a host of micro and small cars, electric vehicles also made a show splash.  Renault launched its two-seater Twizy electric ahead of its global launch in 2012.  The two-seater Twizy is one of four full electric cars that Renault unveiled recently and is being displayed outside Europe for the first time. General Motors India is working with the Indian-based Reva Electric car company to launch an electric version of the Spark - expected to be Holden's next-generation Barina - towards the end of this year and Hyundai Motor India, the country's second largest carkmaker is showing of an electric version of its i10 hatch. Maruti-Suzuki also unveiled the SX4 hybrid, using a 1.2-litre four cylinder engine and 50kW electric motor mated to a CVT transmission.

It seems the head of the Indian Tata Group, Ratan Tata, is keen to turn his low-cost Nano into hybrid with cutting edge stop-start technology.  He has confirmed in an interview with a South Korean newspaper that a hybrid is planned.The baby 24kW two-cylinder petrol Nano was developed for India initially with a target price of 100,000 rupees, or $2500.  Since it went on sale earlier this year, sales gone wild and the waiting list is now out to several months.It has no real competition in its home market, where most Indians ride motorcycles or bicycles.  The rear-engined car is still some way from being certified for sale in any countries outside India.But Tata, which also owns Jaguar and Land Rover, has subjected the Nano to a round of frontal-offset crashes at England's MIRA vehicle research centre.  The car passed under the supervision of Britain's Vehicle Certification Authority.The Tata Group plans a bigger engined Europa model for export markets, with more safety gear and equipment to compete against Western competition.

Without fanfare the Indian-built Tata Nano has taken some giant strides towards silencing critics of its safety and possibly finding a home in Australia by passing a series of Euro crash tests with flying colours. While the car is still some way away from being certified for sale in any markets outside of India the company chose to subject a Nano to a round of frontal offset crashes at England's MIRA vehicle research centre under the supervision of Great Britain's Vehicle Certification Authority. Tata spokesman Debasis Ray says the decision to put the Tata through the test process was to signal to the rest of the world that the company was serious about taking the tiny five-seater outside the Sub-Continent. "The purpose of the tests that we subjected the Tata Nano to at MIRA was to demonstrate that the vehicle structure is appropriate for European legislation," Ray says. "The tests indeed proved that. "Tata Motors has already developed a model for Europe, the Tata Nano Europa, which is expected to be launched in the continent in 2011 and the company is also developing a model for the US, expected to be launched after Europe." While Ray stopped short of confirming a development program for Nano sales to Australia he did say that overseas sales would not stop with the giant European and US markets. "There are indeed plans to market the Nano in other countries as well, but specifics on markets and timelines are yet to be concluded." What makes the MIRA tests more impressive is that the car which passed the 56km/h 40 per cent offset frontal and side impact tests was not the one under development for Europe but rather a slightly modified Indian domestic model with a drivers airbag and an extra front strengthening member behind the front bumper. The next step for the Nano is to undergo full Euro NCAP testing on the more luxurious Europa model, something the company hopes to do soon with an expected four-star outcome. Launched earlier this year to runaway demand in India the Nano's designers used a range of innovative cost-cutting measures to ensure the entry-level car met its stated 100,000 rupee ($2500) price. The Nano's boot doesn't open, with access gained to the luggage compartment by folding the rear seats down from inside the car, there is no power steering, a single windscreen wiper, one side mirror instead of two and three nuts instead of four or five on the wheels. There is no airbag or ABS and the tiny two-cylinder rear-mounted engine puts out just 24kW and 48Nm with a claimed economy of less than 4.0 litres per 100km. In the Indian home market there is a mid-specced model with air-conditioning while the luxury LX (170,000 rupees) adds power windows and central locking. The models being developed for overseas markets are expected to be slightly larger with a bigger three-cylinder engine, ABS and at least two airbags.

The car went on sale on Tuesday with the first deliveries starting in July.Already dealers are reporting long queues from buyers with the waiting list extending out to 12 months.The Nano has been designed with low cost in mind.The budget four-door five-seater car, has a small 22kW 624cc two cylinder engine at the rear and a four-speed manual transmission.Engineers have trimmed down the car so it appeals to Indians hoping to trade up from a motorcycle.There is no air conditioning, no electric windows and no power steering, although buyers will be able spend more on those items in two deluxe models, the CX and LX.The Tata Corporation also intends launching a better-equipped, larger engined Nano in Europe.Tata is building a new plant in Gujarat in western India to build the car.It will produce between 250,000 and 500,000 Nanos a year.The Tata Corporation also owns Jaguar and Land Rover.It bought the British companies for $US2.3 billion last year.

But while there’s no sign of them on the Champs-Elysee just yet, it looks like they might soon be on the streets of Delhi.While it might sound like a lot of … erm, hot air … Indian manufacturer Tata Motors is getting set to release an air-powered car.The auto giant plans to have about 6000 of the MiniCAT – short for Mini Compressed Air Technology, as they’ve sexily christened it – on the streets over there by the middle of next year, with a retail price of around $8000.This should make it an attractive option for small commercial enterprises, and go some way to avoiding the kind of pollution problems that are growing in India and other emerging economies.The MiniCAT is said to have a range of 300km, and can be refuelled for just a couple of dollars because the fuel is needed only to run the compressor that fills the air tank in about four hours.The car has a superlight fibreglass body built on a tubular chassis – which somewhat scarily is held together by glue rather than anything as reassuring as metal welding. On the other hand, we spent several teenage years in the company of a station wagon that used increasing amounts of fencing wire as the primary structural element (and a large flat-bladed screwdriver jammed into the open transmission linkage to change gears), so perhaps glue can do the job just as efficiently.The drivetrain, if you can use that term for something that is more like a drivebellows, uses 300 litres of compressed air stored in carbon fibre tanks under the body.Essentially, outside air is pulled into the engine chamber and compressed to 290psi, by which time has a temperature of 400C. Compressed air from the tank is then injected, and being much colder expands quickly in the heated chamber, pushing the piston. The process is called a thermo dynamic cycle and admittedly there’s a bit more too it than our simple explanation, but this is not Mechanics Monthly and we don’t really care.The MiniCAT uses a continuously variable transmission that relies on belts rather than cogs – so no chance a screwdriver will get you out of trouble – and produces a, well, continuously variable set of gears.The Tata baby is the invention of an insane Frenchman (if that’s not a tautology) called Guy Negre, who was an engineer in Formula 1, where he became fascinated by the compressed air system used to start the race cars. And also designed a W12 engine – think two V6s jammed together – which only serves to reinforce the insanity tag.However, Negre is adamant that his car will be a solution for the increasingly crowded streets of India and any other countries where presumably people are looking for cars glued together from leftover lego and styrofoam, sitting on top of a highly pressurised balloon. 

India's $3000 Tata Nano will face a surprising new rival from Renault-Nissan.The European carmaker has just signed a joint-venture agreement with Indian motorcycle maker Bajaj Auto to build a mini-car codenamed the ULC (ultra-low-cost) to compete against the Nano.The car is expected to cost about $2500 when it goes on sale in India about 2011, and the plan is to export it to other markets. It is also expected to be sold through Renault and Nissan dealers.However, Renault-Nissan hasn't decided if the car will be sold with Nissan or Renault badges in some Western markets.Like the Nano, the ULC is aimed at the growing Indian market. It gave clues to the car's possible Euro-look at January's Delhi motor show when it unveiled its Lite concept car.Company spokesman S. Ravikumar says the Lite show car and ULC would merge into the final production car.“There is only one car project and the car the joint venture is going to launch is codenamed ULC,” he says. “There are not two cars or two projects.”Ravikumar says the Bajaj shown at the Delhi show was at the time referred to as the Lite.“Since then the third-party deal has been struck for the same business idea and all thoughts have now merged into the car codenamed ULC,” he says.The ULC will be built at a new plant in Chakan in India with initial planned capacity of 400,000 units a year.The joint-venture company will be 50 per cent-owned by Bajaj, Nissan and Renault holding 25 per cent each.Bajaj Auto has been selling scooters and motorcycles across India since 1948. Based in the western city of Pune, it is the second-biggest maker of motorcycles in India behind Hero Honda Motors Ltd.Bajaj Auto executives say the car will initially be available with a petrol engine, but a diesel is planned.As world fuel prices soar, other mature Western carmakers are looking at a new generation of low-cost, ultra fuel-efficient small cars.Chrysler has gone into partnership with Chery in China to build a low-cost car. Toyota, Volkswagen and even Hyundai are looking at low-cost cars in India. 

At least three new Jaguars are on the drawing board, in addition to the replacement for the XJ saloon.An edgy new coupe based on the coming XF sedan is an open secret. So is an XF station wagon.And British sources point to a four-door version of the current XK coupe to go up against the Mercedes CLS and the coming BMW CS and Porsche Panamera. As well, a smaller F-Type sports car would rival the Porsche Boxster and BMW's Z4.News of the coming Jaguars surfaced in the Financial Times. It says executives have produced plans for investment approval after the company is sold by Ford.David Blackhall, who heads Jaguar Australia, has hinted in the past that the crucial XF — which will be on sale here midyear — could be developed with extra body styles.Jaguar design boss Ian Callum says Tata has responded well to the company's design direction.“We have shown Tata our new model lines and the planned product cycle,” Callum says. “Tata is very respectful about what we are doing.”Callum also suggests the relationship with Ford has often been subject to tensions over design, revealing that the compact X-Type model based on the Ford Mondeo was actually designed in Detroit.It was forced on the team at Jaguar's design centre at Whitley, in Britain's industrial heartland.But he says Jaguar deserves some blame because it had not kept pace with its rivals.Models of the XF coupe are rumoured to have already been built at Whitley and are understood to share the bulk of their design with the XF sedan, though the coupe has a lower roofline.Ford chief executive Alan Mullaly told carsguide at the Detroit Motor Show last month that Tata is the final bidder for Jaguar and Land Rover. The deal is expected to be finalised next month, for an expected $2.5 billion.