Tata Nano sales continue to grow! Clocks 7,723 units in January 2012!

The Tata Nano’s sales have climbed for the fifth consecutive month, in a very positive sign for both the small car and its parent company, Tata Motors Limited. The Nano registered 7,723 units in January 2012, a marginal improvement over the 7,466 units that Tata Motors dispatched to Tata dealers across the country. Tata Motors recently launched the upgraded 2012 Nano, which brought in a host of improvements, right from the interiors to the gear ratios of the car, very crucially without any increase in the price of the car.

2012 Tata Nano LX

Along with the big improvement in the Nano, Tata Motors has been offering attractive discounts and down payment offers on the 2012 Nano to push sales. Another effort from Tata Motors has been the push into rural areas of India with standalone Nano kiosks, taking this budget hatchback closer to people, which seems to slowly be delivering results with sales growing steadily over the past few months. That said, the Nano is still quite a mile away from being a profitable venture for Tata Motors and this is what will be bothering the powers to be at Tata.

Small cars sell at wafer thin margins and more so the Nano, which is the least priced car, not just in India, but the whole wide world. This means that Tata isn’t really making money on the Nano considering the volumes that this car is doing. After setting up a factory plant capable of producing over 250,000 Nanos a year, more than 75% of the capacity at Tata Motors’ plan at Sanand, Gujarat is unused. Typically, Tata needs to use at least 60% of the capacity to stay profitable with the Nano. This, evidently isn’t happening currently.

The diesel Nano, which will be Tata’s hope will not be here until 2013. But before that, another option for Tata would be the CNG version of the Nano, which the automaker showcased off at the 2012 Indian Auto Expo. The Nano CNG might be good alternative to the diesel engined Nano for the time being, in bigger cities and towns at least, where CNG is more easily available. The sooner Tata makes the CNG Nano available widely, the better for the brand. Tata also showcased a Nano with disc brakes at the Auto Expo, perhaps an inkling of things to come from Tata in the future.

Source: ICB

Tata Motors January 2012 sales up 16%; Passenger Vehicle Sales Highest ever for any Month

Tata Motors total sales (including exports) of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles in January 2012 were 87,465 vehicles, higher by 16% over January 2011. The company's domestic sales of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles for January 2012 were 80,382 nos., higher by 14% over 70,475 nos., sold in January last year.

Cumulative sales (including exports) for the company for the fiscal are 714,235 nos., a growth of 11% over 642,415 nos., sold last year.



Commercial Vehicles

The company's sales of commercial vehicles in January 2012 in the domestic market were 45,713 nos., a 14% growth, compared to 40,263 vehicles, sold in January last year. LCV sales were 27,375 nos., a growth of 15%, compared to 23,776 vehicles sold in January, last year. M&HCV sales stood at 18,338 nos., a growth of 11%, compared to 16,487 vehicles sold in January, last year.

Cumulative sales of commercial vehicles in the domestic market for the fiscal are 420,045 nos., a growth of 18% over last year. Cumulative LCV sales are 254,340 nos., a growth of 24% over last year, while M&HCV sales stood at 165,705 nos., a growth of 10% over last year.

Passenger Vehicles

The passenger vehicles business reported a total sale and distribution offtake of 36,770 nos. (34,669 Tata + 2,101 Fiat) in the domestic market in January 2012, higher by 14% compared to 32,386 nos. (30,212 Tata + 2,174 Fiat) in January last year. Sales of Tata passenger vehicles for January 2012 are at 34,669 nos., a growth of 15% over 30,212 nos., sold in January last year, and highest ever for any month. Sales of the Tata Nano were 7,723 nos., higher by 15%, compared to 6,703 nos., sold in January, last year. The Indica range sales were 11,534 nos., higher by 9%, over 10,591 nos., sold in January, last year. The Indigo range recorded sales of 9,272 nos., higher by 10%, over 8,456 nos., sold in January, last year. The Sumo/ Safari/ Aria/ Venture range accounted for sales of 6,140 nos., a growth of 38%, over 4,462 nos., sold in January, last year.

Jaguar Land Rover sales in India continued their upward trend.

Cumulative sales and distribution offtake of passenger vehicles in the domestic market for the fiscal are 254,870 nos. (241,894 Tata + 12,976 Fiat), against 256,268 nos. (238,909 Tata + 17,359 Fiat) last year. Cumulative sales of Tata passenger vehicles were 241,894 nos., compared to 238,909 nos., till January last year. Cumulative sales of the Nano are 54,835 nos., higher by 3%, compared to 53,463 nos., till January last year. Cumulative sales of the Indica range are 83,862 nos., higher by 4%. Cumulative sales of the Indigo family are 60,843 nos., lower by 15%. Cumulative sales of the Sumo/ Safari/ Aria/ Venture range are 42,354 nos., higher by 29%.

Exports

The company's sales from exports at 7,083 vehicles in January 2012 are higher by 43% compared to 4,948 vehicles in January last year. The cumulative sales from exports for the fiscal at 52,296 nos. are higher by 10% over 47,608 nos., in the same period last year.

Source: Tata Motors

Land Rover Defender Special Editions by Twisted Performance

UK-based Land Rover specialist Twisted Performance claims to offer the perfect remedies for the increasingly apparent ailments of the elderly Discovery – so Classic Driver takes a look at its trio of special edition models to find out whether it’s worth waiting for Land Rover’s 2015 replacement or not.

Land Rover Defender Special Edition

The enduring Defender is over sixty years old now, which begs the question: why now? Well, Twisted Performance has in fact been producing Defender upgrades for many years, but the company is now held in such high esteem in Land Rover enthusiast circles that it has sufficient demand to gather together numerous modifications into its own special edition vehicle packages. Currently, there are a trio of special editions: Alpine, French and Retro, all of which can be specified in Classic or Sport guise. And what’s more, both 90 and 110 models can be supplied as brand-new vehicles, or transformed by undergoing retro-fitted conversions.

Classic and Sport Specifications

While all three editions have their own individual differences between the Sport and Classic specifications, some enhancements are common across the trio. These include a suspension upgrade for the Sport models (the Classics are given gas B6 dampers), which are also bestowed with AP Racing brakes. All special editions get a front and rear white light kit and a halogen crystal headlight upgrade, as well as a P10+ Performance Kit (adding between 30 and 90HP depending on the donor vehicle), interior leather retrim, and privacy glass from the B-pillar aft. Sport versions are also furnished with leather Recaro sports seats.

The Retro Edition – from £42,510




Those with a love of classic cars will quickly warm to the Retro Edition: designed in homage to Land Rover’s heritage, it’s intended to show how far the Defender has come in its 64-year lifetime. Among the highlights are Sand colour body paint, and a Gloss White powder coat for the roof, mirrors, steering guard, headlamp surrounds, side vents, and five-spoke 18-inch rims. The Sport version specifies Toyo road tyres in place of BFG off-road rubber, as well as Alcantara trappings inside to supplement the Classic’s leather retrim. Both versions also have a polished wood steering wheel.

The French Edition – from £38,902.80

The French Edition is designed for life in the city, providing a stylish alternative to the ten-a-penny crossovers that claim to offer individuality, but do the exact opposite in practice. A Gloss Black coating for the grille, mirrors, bumpers, steering guard, chequer plates and alloys give the off-roader a mean and purposeful look, while the daytime running lights embedded into the bumper are included in both Classic and Sport specifications. Inside, a Black Nappa leather interior offers the sort of luxury usually only associated with a modern Range Rover, and a Momo steering wheel completes the overhaul.

The Alpine Edition – from £40,855.20

Billed as a stylish family cruiser with the ability to go anywhere, the Alpine uses a Gloss White theme for its trimmings (including the alloy roof rack and ladder only included in this edition); however the 20-inch wheels and DRL-housing bumper are painted in Gloss Black, presumably to prevent you losing your car in a blizzard. Again, Black Nappa leather and a Momo steering wheel are present inside. Is it time to trade in the Range Sport for something a little more select?

The Verdict

While we haven’t yet tried out the special editions for ourselves (expect that in the not-too-distant future), we’re already suitably impressed by the triumvirate's lengthy list of modernisations. The company’s experience in Land Rovers is evident, proven not only by the quality of the vehicles shown here, but by the fact that in 2009, the Twisted team held off various other respected Land Rover tuners to take the title of ‘World’s Fastest Land Rover’ – despite a self-imposed constraint of only using parts developed in-house.

But a replacement is on the horizon (due in 2015), so is it too little, too late, for the senior Defender? In a word, no. Classic Land Rovers are as popular as ever, and despite a new headquarters, Twisted Performance is struggling to keep up with demand for its services. The new model may be looming, but perhaps this will only increase Twisted’s workload; after all, with 75% of the Defenders ever made still in use, perhaps the arrival of the successor will only spur on existing owners to give their ageing workhorses a new lease of life? Especially when it means you can have modern Range Rover comfort and performance in a shape as iconic as the Defender.

Source: Classic Driver

2013 Range Rover Images and Details leaked

The new generation of the Range Rover Vogue has recently leaked in an Italian publication, and the model seems to be inspired by the Evoque.

2013 Range Rover

After what seems to be the upcoming Lamborghini SUV, based on the Aventador, leaked not too long ago in QuattroRoute.it, now another publication, this time Top Gear Italy, the February edition, is bringing us the new generation of the Range Rover Vogue. According to the Top Gear publication, the new Range Rover Vogue will wear the 2013 model year and the crossover will be launched this autumn. Our source is also telling us that the upcoming model is based on the same aluminum platform as the Evoque, which now has a longer wheelbase.

The 2013 Range Rover Vogue will be powered at first by a new turbodiesel V6 engine, which in standard version, will be emitting under 200 g of CO2 per kilometer. We’ve saved the most interesting part for the end of our news, and the February edition of Italy’s Top Gear magazine is telling us that a hybrid version of the new Range Rover Vogue will be offered later. The Range Rover Vogue Hybrid will offer a petrol engine and an electric motor, but figures like its performance remain unknown for now.

More Images:


Source: INAUTONEWS

2015 Land Rover Defender and the Tata Aria could share platforms! May be produced in Pune, India!

Tata Motors taking over Jaguar-Land Rover is giving rise to a few pleasantly surprising synergies, with the latest buzz suggesting that the next generation 2015 Land Rover Defender could share its platform with the next generation Aria. That ain’t all, the 2015 Defender could be a made-in-India model exported all over the world as a completely knocked down kit, for local assembly elsewhere. Also, the 2015 Defender is expected to feature a body-on-ladder construction. Does this mean that the next generation Aria also will go the body-on-ladder way?

Land Rover DC100 Sport Concept

It seems like as both the Defender and the Aria are set to share the same platform. Also, the 2015 Defender and the Aria Crossover we hear, could use plenty of common parts, ranging from the engines and transmissions to the interiors and the suspension. The main idea behind building the 2015 Defender in India will be to keep a tight leash on costs, thus making the off roader accessible to a large section of buyers. The next gen Aria will also benefit from this alliance as vast improvements in quality levels could be had, making the Aria an outstanding product in its class.

Land Rover DC100 Sport Concept

The 2015 Defender is said to be closely based on the design of the butch and futuristic looking Land Rover DC100 concept. Tata is also building a new engine plant at Chikli for manufacturing engines for the upcoming Jaguar XF 2.2 diesel sedan. This plant is expected to cater to the 2015 Defender as well, with local sourcing for components to reduce costs. All in all, this move is a landmark one when it comes to demonstrate the finesse in Indian build quality to a worldwide audience and Tata Motors really seems to be using the synergies gained from the JLR acquisition to the fullest potential.

Source: ICB