Automobile

Two and three-wheeler maker TVS Motor Company has launched an upgraded version of its Phoenix edition bike, in a bid to consolidate its position in the 125cc motorcycle segment.

The two-wheeler comes with a refined 125cc ecothrust engine, new tank scoops, a premium 3D logo, bold-body coloured front visor and pillion grab rails.

It also features a first-time comprehensive white backlit, fully digital speedometer and low battery indicator, the Chennai-based company said in a statement.

The earlier version of Phoenix 125cc motorcycle was launched in September 2012.

German luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz today launched a campaign to emphasise awareness on road safety in India in association with its four group companies working in the country.

Named as ‘Safe Roads’, the campaign is a joint CSR initiative of Mercedes-Benz global headquarter and its group firms operating here, in which the message is spread through visual aids, physical demonstrations and research projects.

Two- and three-wheeler maker TVS Motor Company Ltd. closed last fiscal with 26.8 percent growth in total revenue and 32.9 percent growth in net profit, the company said on Wednesday.

In its statement issued here, the company said it closed 2014-15 with a total revenue of Rs.10,098.22 crore, up from Rs.7,965.94 crore posted during 2013-14.

Last fiscal the company posted a net profit of Rs.347.83 crore, up from Rs.261.63 crore logged during 2013-14.

The directors have declared a second interim dividend of Rs.1.15 per share for last fiscal.

Homegrown auto major Mahindra & Mahindra has slashed the price of its electric small car ‘e2o’ by Rs 92,000 following the launch of a central government scheme offering incentives on electric and hybrid vehicles.

The e2o, manufactured by the company’s arm, Mahindra Reva Electric Vehicles will see a reduction in price by 16 per cent from its earlier price of Rs 5.71 lakh (on road Delhi) along with a fixed energy fee of Rs 2,999 per month for five years or 50,000 km.

The car will now be available at Rs 4.79 lakh (on road Delhi), while the fixed energy fee remains the same.

Driven by record sales, the country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India Monday reported its highest ever annual profit of Rs 3,711.2 crore in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2015.

The company, which had posted an annual net profit of Rs 2,783.05 crore in 2013-14, — its previous best– said it expected 10-11 percent growth in volume terms in the ongoing fiscal.

Net sales in FY 2015 also stood at a record high of Rs 48,605.53 crore, up 13.97 percent from Rs 42,644.76 crore in the 2013-14.

Self-drive car rental company Zoomcar, which is backed by Infosys ex-CFO Mohandas Pai and former US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers, plans to add over 3,000 cars to its fleet this year as it expands services into big and small cities.

“We will be taking the total cars to 3,000 from the present 1,000 cars. Majority of the cars are owned by us. Our plan is to add 10 cities in the coming year, including Mumbai and New Delhi,” Zoomcar Chief Executive Officer Greg Moran told reporters here today.

Driven by record sales, the country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India today reported its highest ever annual profit of Rs 3,711.2 crore in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2015.

The company, which had posted an annual net profit of Rs 2,783.05 crore in 2013-14, — its previous best—said it expected 10-11 per cent growth in volume terms in the ongoing fiscal.

Net sales in FY 2015 also stood at a record high of Rs 48,605.53 crore, up 13.97 per cent from Rs 42,644.76 crore in the 2013-14.

German luxury carmaker Audi on Thursday launched a new version of its sports car Audi TT in India priced at Rs 60.34 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) as it tries to retain top position in Indian luxury market.

“This is the first of the five launches that we have planned in the next five months. Despite economic downturn last year we have grown,” Audi India Head Joe King told reporters here.

Audi plans to launch a total of 10 products in India this year as it looks to fend off stiff competition from rival Mercedes-Benz.

Maruti Suzuki Celerio diesel, one of the most-awaited vehicles of the year, might hit showrooms next month.

The company has already begun car’s production at its Mansear plant.

Reportedly, Maruti Suzuki is also working on a small 800cc diesel engine. The new experiment, if successful, will power multiple small cars from Maruti Suzuki along with an LCV.

The company has now decided to introduce it first with with the Celerio.

For those who are waiting for the launch of all new GenX Tata Nano, they can now book one before the launch.

Tata has begun a pre-launch offer wherein current Nano owners can exchange their car for a good price at the dealership and will get an additional bonus of Rs20,000.

The GenX Nano will have the same engine as previous one. The Nano has a 624cc 2-cylinder gasoline unit that makes 38PS and 51Nm. Besides this the new one will also be offered with an AMT.

Passenger car exports from India declined 1.66 per cent to 5,42,082 units in 2014-15 due to challenges in traditional overseas markets like Europe, Sri Lanka and Algeria.

The decline was also mainly due to the country’s largest car exporter Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) slipping over 18 per cent in its overseas shipments during the last fiscal.

Car exports stood at 5,51,218 units in 2013-14, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

HMIL recorded a 18.02 per cent drop in car exports to 1,91,221 units from 2,33,260 units in 2013-14.

Skoda Auto India plans to foray into organised pre-owned car business and may launch few pilot projects this year.

“We are looking at the pre-owned car segment. This year, we may have a few pilots starting with Mumbai and Delhi,” Skoda Auto India director, sales & marketing, Ashutosh Dixit said during an interaction here on Thursday.

Over the brand used for the pre-owned car business, he said, internationally Das WeltAuto is used by its parent Volkswagen, but it is yet to take a call on the final brand strategy for India for used cars business.

Localisation of auto components of country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki might not be more than 95 per cent as certain highly sophisticated parts were required to be sourced from overseas suppliers, an official of the company said.

“Any model which the company has launched in India has 95 per cent localisation. Some components which are highly sophisticated need to be sourced from outside since there is no production base here”, R S Kalsi, Executive Director(sales and marketing) of Maruti Suzuki, said.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd on Monday launched a new version of its premium sedan Elantra priced between Rs 14.13 lakh and Rs 17.94 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

The sedan will be available in both diesel and petrol options. While the petrol version is priced in a range of Rs 14.13 lakh and Rs 16.45 lakh, the diesel option is priced between Rs 14.58 lakh and Rs 17.94 lakh (all prices ex-showroom Delhi), the company said in a statement.

German luxury carmaker Audi today launched a new version of its sports car Audi TT in India priced at Rs 60.34 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) as it tries to retain top position in Indian luxury market.

“This is the first of the five launches that we have planned in the next five months. Despite economic downturn last year we have grown,” Audi India Head Joe King told reporters here.
Audi plans to launch a total of 10 products in India this year as it looks to fend off stiff competition from rival Mercedes-Benz.

Rolls-Royce, the British maker of aircraft engines, unveiled today a new chief executive days after announcing a record deal.

John Rishton will retire from the top post on July 2 to be replaced by Warren East, a non-executive director at the company and former chief executive of British semiconductor manufacturer ARM Holdings.

“I am delighted to be appointed as chief executive of Rolls-Royce,” East said in a statement.

“It is well positioned in growth markets, with world class engineering skills and a proud record of innovation and delivery.”

Automotive major Mahindra & Mahindra has expanded its automotive manufacturing plant here by opening an extended facility on Wednesday.

Set up with an investment of Rs.250 crore, the extended facility will manufacture a new small commercial vehicle scheduled to be launched in the first half of the current fiscal.

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao inaugurated the new facility, which will have a production capacity of 92,000 vehicles per annum.

This will be in addition to the existing production capacity of 75,000 vehicles at the plant, company officials said.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd on Monday rolled out a new version of its premium sedan Elantra. The vehicle is priced between Rs. 14.13 lakh and Rs. 17.94 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

The sedan will be available in both diesel and petrol options. While the petrol version is priced in a range of Rs. 14.13 lakh and Rs. 16.45 lakh, the diesel option is priced between Rs. 14.58 lakh and Rs. 17.94 lakh (all prices ex-showroom Delhi), the company said in a statement.

Online queries for used cars grew 30 per cent in 2014 and has jumped 20 times in the last six years, with utility vehicles being the most sought after among used ones, technology giant Google said here today.

“The number of queries related to used cars on Google Search has grown 20 times in the past six years and a 30 per cent annual growth in 2014,” the US-based company said in a statement.

It said eight out of 10 buyers are undecided on which vehicle to buy and generally their searches are centred around budget, brands, fuel type and ownership.

The Shanghai Auto Show banned female models and automakers responded with dancers and fresh-faced young women holding tablet computers.

Organisers of China’s biggest auto show announced in February that models in slinky dresses who usually adorn the stands of some auto brands would be banned. It said it wanted visitors to focus on cars.

Swedish luxury carmaker Volvo Auto India (VAI) today launched V40 Cross Country petrol variant at Rs 27 lakh.

The new Cross Country petrol variant will be available in T4 engine, 1.6 GDTi 4 cylinder,6 speed automatic transmissions with class-leading 180HP and a 240Nm torque.

The GTDi (Gasoline Turbocharged Direct Injection) concept would offer low fuel consumption.

Priced at Rs 27 lakh (Ex-showroom, Mumbai) the Volvo V40 Cross Country will be retailed through Volvo dealerships across the country starting today, Volvo India Managing Director Tomas Ernberg told reporters here.

In a bid to increase its market share in the entry-level bike segment in the country, Japanese two-wheeler maker Yamaha on Friday launched ‘Saluto’ priced at Rs 52,000 (ex-showroom New Delhi).

“We are launching the motorcycle here today with Blue Core engine technology. We expect to sell 60,000 units of the bike this year,” Yamaha Motor India, Sales Vice President (Sales and Marketing) Roy Kurian told reporters here after the launch.

Japanese two-wheeler manufacturer Yamaha’s new facility here will be formally up and running next month, a top official said today.

The company is setting up the plant at Vallam Vadagal in Kancheepuram district at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore to be invested in phases. The plant would initially have a total capacity of 4.50 lakh units per annum, which can be scaled up to 18 lakh by 2018.

“Currently, trial runs are happening there. The formal inauguration of the plant will begin next month,” India Yamaha Motor Vice-President, Marketing and Sales, Roy Kurian told reporters here.

German auto giant Volkswagen attempted today to draw a line under a bitter power struggle between its chief executive and supervisory board chief, saying it would extend the contract of chief executive Martin Winterkorn.

The announcement was seen as a severe blow to supervisory board chief Ferdinand Piech, who has ruled the carmaker with an iron fist for more than 20 years.

“The executive committee of the supervisory board asserts that Martin Winterkorn is the best possible chief executive for Volkswagen,” the carmaker said in a short statement.

Honda Cars India has hiked prices of its entry level car Brio and compact sedan Amaze by up to Rs 800 to offset change in cost structure following tax rationalisation in the Budget.

Brio prices have been hiked by Rs 600 while those of petrol and diesel variants of Amaze have been enhanced by Rs 800 with effect from April first week.

After the hike, Brio is priced between Rs 4.21 lakh and Rs 6.79 lakh, while Amaze is priced at Rs 5.18 lakh and Rs 8.21 lakh (all prices ex-showroom Delhi).