"Tata small car set to offer 25 kmpl mileage"!!

19 December 2007 - 11:00am — blrsri

KOLKATA: Ratan Tata and the Tata group have for months zealously kept a tight lid on the details of the Rs 1-lakh car that is slated to roll out of Tata Motors’ Singur factory in June 2008. But on Tuesday, the shroud came off in singular circumstances. “It’s an eco-car with a 25 km-per-litre mileage on petrol, meets every international standard and specification, including Euro-4 norms. Acceleration wise, it’s the same as a Maruti 800.” That’s exactly how RA Mashelkar, former CSIR director general, who is now an independent non-executive director on the Tata Motors board, chose to describe the Rs 1-lakh small car on Tuesday. He was recounting his recent ride on the prototype at the Tata Motors’ Pune plant. “It’s a tool for inclusive growth,” Mr Mashelkar said in Kolkata on Tuesday. He was speaking here on ‘Resurgence of Innovative India: The Phenomenon and the Consequences,’ organised jointly by East India Pharmaceutical Works and The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture. Mr Mashelkar also revealed how the small car concept first struck Ratan Tata, who’s now in the race to acquire two iconic British brands — Jaguar and Land Rover. “You know how ‘Ratan’ (Ratan Tata) thought about this small car. He talked to me on several things. One day, he was going on the road and saw a family of four getting soaked in the rain. That was when he decided to create a small car for all,” he said. “Just a month ago, I was at the Tata Motors’ factory in Pune, talking to their engineers and their fantastic team there. It was there that I had the privilege of sitting in that small car — the Rs 1-lakh car that they plan to roll out at Singur. It is incredible,” said Mr Mashelkar. “I sat in that car by the way, and it was amazing,” he said. “I am a six footer and it’s spacious both in the front and in the rear. In terms of acceleration, it is equivalent to a Maruti 800 and has an incredible design finished by indigenous Tata Motors’ engineers,” Mr Mashelkar added. Talking on the potential of economics of this car, the top-notch scientist said: “It will create a paradigm shift in low-cost transport and the whole world is looking forward to a car that efficiently runs 25 km on a litre of petrol and offers international specifications. These kind of fuel-efficient cars will be in demand as pollution is on the rise, climates are changing and fossil fuels are running out. People are looking at a new global eco-car and I have a feeling that this can be the new eco-car not only in the country but elsewhere — in other countries. I feel a sense of pride that it will be manufactured in India.” “In a bid to reduce weight of the car, Tata Motors’ engineers have used more plastics. The car does not use too many bolts which also helps in reducing weight. Instead, it’s all a new kind of welding — a new technology altogether,” said Mr Mashelkar when asked on the specifics of the design. “I got into a prototype and they had asked me to drive it, but I was a little scared as I have not been driving all these days. They wanted to show me their innovation as I am involved in innovation. The project is extremely close to my heart,” he added. Mr Mashelkar further said, “Every other company manufactures products for the top of the income bracket pyramid and I am concerned about middle, lower middle and the bottom of this pyramid. The issue is how do we create products for them and, therefore, the Rs 1-lakh car is like the dream as far as I am concerned.” About the general scepticism that the car would initially be priced at Rs 1 lakh which could later be raised, Mr Mashelkar said: “The way their engineers have been able to design it and style it to meet specifications — it is absolutely incredible. It does not look like the Indica and they have styled it differently, it has a sloping front. It can bring a transformation in low-cost transportation around the world. These days people are looking for products that will meet standards, safety norms and still offer comfort. With great concerns on climate change, depleting fossil fuels, pollution more green and clean products will come from India. Products that meet performance standard and price expectations will succeed.” ----------------------------------------------- Implications for the Bangalore roads?? I cant imagine! Btw the car sounds like the 'Dolphin', does anyone remember the old car? think was made in Bangalore. Sounds like the 'model T', where the production line would produce onlyblack/white cars to meet the demand..also looks like the auto's will go off the road soon!

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Car Car Car Yelnodi Car

Vasanth - 19 Dec 2007 - 9:23pm

Car Car Car Yelnodi Car - This will become the slogan for most of the Indian cities. Even now, used M800, esteem and zens are available within 1 Lakh - but it is the mileage which is going to make the big difference. I don't know what will be the fate of Bangalore with so many cars coming on roads of Bangalore along with the existing mixed traffic of 2 wheelers, autos, buses and trucks. Imagine Bannerghatta Road, imagine Old Madras Road, imagine mall traffic on weekends with all these cars. Economic reform which increased the average earning capacity of Indian is only choking our infrastructure which lead people to migrate from small cities (especially from other states) to Bangalore and ultimately blaming Bangalore. The attitude of a good earning professional in Bangalore is to have a fancy car, drive to work place , roam around the city with A/C and music system on enjoying life, go to fancy malls on weekends, zoom to nearest cities during weekends breaking the speed records.Most of the people say 'Car is the safest - why don't you bring one / why don't you use car daily for those who are using office transport / Why are you using 2 wheeler, it is not safe'. With this kind of thinking more number of cars are getting onto Bangalore roads. Ofcourse, it is needed for a family drive along with kids and during emergencies. Actual fact and my experience with my car is - city driving is too slow with a car and a mere fuel waste. To my office my car consumes almost 2 litres of petrol a day for 22 kms - a whooping 100 rupees. On the other hand, with my fuel efficient bike it costs only 15-20 rupees saving of almost 1.5 litres of petrol and nearly 80 rupees. Coming to timing, on my bike I reach office comfortably within 25 minutes and in a car it takes whooping 45 minutes with hits on my car by bikewalas, rikshawalas most prominently. Daily fights on the way and by the time I reach office, I will be an angry man. In the office also, lot of parking space is occupied by cars with around 45-50 cars occupying the space of almost 400 2 wheelers. Recently my company started transport and I have started using that which is the most comfortable forgetting the traffic and it costs only 500 rupees a month compared to car which is 500 rupees a week. It is the people who have to get their thinking right and come out of this 'Car Manufacturer's' attractive traps.

For God's sake, Give India a break

gowda - 19 Dec 2007 - 9:53pm

I don't feel the policy makers at Tata have any other thing on their mind except making a quick buck. At a time when people are buying cars when the average cost is around 3 lakhs, do you think a 1 lakh car would serve any other purpose than clog the already messed up roads. Yesterday there was a segment on CNBC (USA) on if/how people can make money by investing in India. Bangalore and Infosys was mentioned in the same breath and Infosys apparently spent around $8 mil ferrying its employees. One of the sticking points, you guessed it right, was the amount of time people spent in traffic (about 4 hours). Now i know you can't stop companies like Tata from making cars cheaper or stop people from buying cars but companies like Tata; being the grand daddy of them all; should be more responsible. If they (or any indian car company) come out with a hybrid car i bet there would be more excitement among the consumers, more revenue for the company and spare the environment. It is a win-win situation for everyone. The government should reduce the allowable emissions every couple of years and challenge the companies to adhere likewise. Anyways I don't think there are active policy makers/politicians from our generation to make it dynamic.

Hybrid car will reduce only emission but not congestion

Vasanth - 19 Dec 2007 - 10:00pm

Hybrid car will ofcourse reduce emission, but not the congestion of our roads - It may add instead. As discussed by everyone in the blog, we need effective and environmental friendly guided public transportation and people should use it effectively by leaving their vehicles at home. Ofcouse, all the cars in future needs to be made hybrid to reduce emissions. Probably hybrid buses on BRTS lanes would be the best option for smaller unchoked cities.

Exactly

gowda - 20 Dec 2007 - 12:35am

That's exactly what i meant. Having "public friendly" transport will not happen overnight nor can you stop people from buying cars. If (and that's a big if) car makers come out with Hybrids at the very least there would a reduction in pollution.

Of Small Cars & Big Woes

tsubba - 20 Dec 2007 - 4:45am

Small Cars, Big Woes of Bangalore
C S Hemanth, DH News Service.

			Bangalore City, which has one of the highest vehicular growth rates in the country with close to 1,300 vehicles being registered every day, witnesses scores of new small cars queuing up before its 10 Regional Transport Offices (RTO) for registration. According to RTO officials, of the 1,300 vehicles which are being registered every day, 1,200 are two-wheelers and the rest are four-wheelers of which a majority are small segment vehicles. “With more and more small cars entering the market there has been a shift from two-wheelers to small segment four-wheelers. Around 75 to 100 cars are registered daily and they are mostly small segment cars,” Syed Shafi Ahmed, secretary, regional transport authority said. Among small segment cars, the tried and trusted Maruti 800 is the most preferred choice of Bangaloreans, followed by Alto, Swift and Wagon-R models. “Small segment cars contribute most to the 2,500 to 3,000 models we sell every month. Mid-segment cars come next, followed by luxury models and SUVs,” said a Maruti sales executive. Small cars from Hyundai Motors like Hyundai Santro account for 60 per cent of its monthly sales. “Every month around 1,200 new cars from Hyundai Motors hit the road and Santro is the most preferred car. Small cars are generally what buyers are looking for. In the last two weeks since the launch of Hyundai i10, we have received over 300 bookings, while a high-end luxury car like Hyundai Sonata sells only two or three units every month,” said a senior marketing official of a Hyundai Motors showroom in the city. Similarly, among Tata Motors’ sales, it is the Tata Indica which stands first as it is the most preferred vehicle used by cab operators to ferry one and all from tourists to IT employees. Dr Pachauri’s concern on how small cars would imperil environment at a time when the world is running out of time to cut down emissions is only a tip of the iceberg. But Bangalore sure has a disaster staring it in the face as the City is ranked the seventh most polluted city in the world, according to a 2005 study.
Also read: Nobel Cause

Car Car Car Yelnodi Car....

City.Zen - 20 Dec 2007 - 4:57pm

Vasanth's switching from car to bike to company transport reminds me of a Team Leader here who switched from car to bike to cycle-geared bicycle, pedalling some 12+12 Kms both ways every day, from Banaswadi to Koramangala. He said coming by motorbike used to take him 20-30 minutes whereas cycling took 45 minutes at the most. He also cited statistics to prove that cycling was safer than bikes and cars. How about introducing a hefty charge of say 100K for new cars registration plus levying some 5K per month as congestion tax for all old and new cars and utilizing part of this collection to people who switch over to cycles for their daily commuting?

City Zen

No tax please..

blrsri - 20 Dec 2007 - 5:03pm

Rs 600 Cr, or Rs 30,000 Cr? V M Madhu, Managing Director of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd answers on behalf of the state - "It took some time, but I know the figure is about Rs 600 crores. The cess is being used by the State government to fund its share of Rs 1,960 crores." Rs 600 crores - the amount the government has collected from the people. But here's the problem - prominent citizens dispute this claim alleging that the amount is much, much higher. Michael Saldanha, a former judge of the Karnataka High Court, says: "One of the most embarassing questions that is facing Bangalore is what has happened to the over Rs 30,000 crore that has been collected in the course of the last one decade, under the guise of a cess for putting up a mass transportation system. When I was judge of the High Court two years back, I had issued notice to the government and asked them to explain as to what has happened to that money - the answer given was that it has been expended on doing research into what sort of commuter transport system Bangalore should have." ------------------------------------------------ We will never know how big is Bakasura's hotte!

tata's to run cars with 'air'

blrsri - 10 Jan 2008 - 2:50pm

We have now seen the 1L car..I should say its a beauty! On the sidelines, was thinking how this was going to effect our economy which is dependent on imported fuel.. and then there was a news.com article that I came across today where tata was again involved with something bigger..really big if it comes good! The company website says: ..Compressed air technology allows for engines that are both non polluting and economical. After ten years of research and development, MDI is prepared to introduce its clean vehicles onto the market... http://www.theaircar.com/... Tata will run cars with just air! Would like to cheer for this visionary!

small cars

tsubba - 10 Jan 2008 - 6:39pm

blr sri, i find the designs of all these small cars very humanizing. (take a look at MDI's car) they seem to be light and un-intimidating. being light, i also imagine they cannot do great speeds. but that is exactly what is needed within city. a nice comfortable speed. do you know if buses and minivans can be similarly made light? specifically, is there any reason why the lower part of these vehicles have to be so rigid?

Well you are just looking at

pbanavara - 10 Jan 2008 - 11:40pm

Well you are just looking at Urban India and the Congestion that Nano would cause. There would be congestion in Urban India irrespective of Nano's launch. On the contrary, it's the rural India that will benefit from this car and mostly the lower middle income families. So yes it would introduce congestion in rural India, but look at rural India's infrastructure - the government will have no alternative but to improve roads and to provide ample parking. How they'll do it - it's a wait and watch game. Regarding hybrid cars - The cost to manufacture a hybrid car is much higher and the manufacturing process has a much higher environmental impact. The needs of Indian market are different, when the Nano can achieve 50 mpg almost equivalent to that of a Prius at 55 mpg, why do we need a hybrid car ? Being judgmental about a company, which has strived by making profit on a social cause, using indigenous low cost manufacturing techniques, tells us how much we actually know or appreciate their effort. When Toyotas and Hondas achieve something similar everyone including us applaud them. At the minimum, we should have some appreciation for Ratan Tata, who achieved a feat deemed impossible by the entire auto industry and he did it with panache.

Regardless...

gowda - 11 Jan 2008 - 12:45am

Are you saying that this car is suitable for rural India?!? You need a car like Ambassador or Willis jeep to last long on our rural roads and not a fragile car like this. I know i am jumping ahead of myself (little premature as i don't know the specs) here but c'mon when you have a car which costs 1 lakh you can't expect the panels and other elements to be of great quality. Don't you think its a little too much on Governments to handle not only Urban expansion but Rural expansion (as per your theory)? Yes i am being judgmental and i would have said the same thing if Honda or Toyota would have come up with a "cheap" car. I am not against Tata's, infact i am proud that an Indian car company is now on the international radar with the Jaguar/Land Rover deal but IMHO i don't think this is the need of the hour. Anyways the original point i made is totally being missed here. If Tata's had come up with this car in the 90's (remember Maruti's people car) then it would have really been something. The immediate need is not a cheap car but a eco-friendly car.

heavy vehicles..

blrsri - 11 Jan 2008 - 10:23am

I think the problem lies with the load carrying abilities..hence they go for a stronger underframe and this will make them heavy.. Also there is the factor of the vehicle being 'planted' while cornering..this is for the cars too..hence lighter is not always the solution but a optimum weight is what needs to be achieved considering the CG.. However, they have come up with Hybrid busses/trucks..they are already running in few parts of the world..! The Hybrids scene is set to change drastically with the 'separion' equipped batteries.. Finally the world seems to be changing to more cleaner options!

random thoughts on the people's car

tsubba - 11 Jan 2008 - 5:38pm

i mostly agree with asj http://bangalore.praja.in... before anything else, i would like say it is a great engineering effort. i mean to topple all perceived notions, and accepted truths of engineering and to uncart an industry worth of notions is something. perosonally, lighter, slower, more human cars are really the way to go. screw the impalas. kudos to Ratan tata for his vision. i started with fears on congestion. but then today, after reading some of the reports, i realized that even if there is now a car at the lowest price point, the number of such cars that can possibly be on the road is lmited by resource constraints. That is, TATA cannot connot make these cars at a rate at which i fear will cause sever bottle necks. From what ever i read even if TATA doubles its production it would still be in single digit % point of the expected growth in two-axle-four wheel vehicle growth. safety & associated issues. as many others have noted much safer than a family of four on a two wheeler. no contest. i only hope that a city car is not mistaken to be a highway car. infact, this brings me to a better appreciation of what vikash has been saying along. pub trans for long haul. irrespective of how wide you make the roads, there is no way priv trans can haul you over long distances efficiently on urban streets, even if fuel is 1 paisa/litre. just to put a number to a point, cities in US designed with 8 rs/liter economy have somewhere around 30-60% of city space dedicated to roads and parking. there is no way bangalore can afford that kind of space to transit in general forget roads for cars. nova as auto... i doubt it. not going to happen. limited production capabilities, consumer perception etc etc., will make it highly undesirable for the marketing team of TATA to pursue auto industry. if you look at their website, they seem to be geared at young adult and a young family. autos not really sure. though it will be something if BMLTA says, ok TATA, here is an order for 70,0000 vehicles, to replace autos, provided you do a LPG car. pigs can fly and tarle can dream.

The final words on small car, congestion, and environment

City.Zen - 14 Jan 2008 - 6:55am

http://timesofindia.india... Unfortunately, the only way such tough policies can be expected to be formed and implemented is if Gujarat happens in Delhi - Gujarat: The land of Gandhi, Sardar Patel, and Modi. http://www.dnaindia.com/r...

City Zen

another ad !

bangalore-guy - 18 Jun 2008 - 6:59pm

Admins pls delete the above post by nick. This sure is an ad for the link to double glazing website. He has been on praja for just 32 mins !!

http://clean-and-green.bl...

we need some of these

narayan82 - 18 Jun 2008 - 7:08pm

I don't see why India isn't thinking ahead? Are we being monopolized by other petroleum country's.

This product from Honda the FCX Clarity is very encouraging.

We need to be a city that thinks ahead. For all our good! We need to encourage alternative more efficent meens of transport.

As stated elsewhere in this forum, building Elevated Roads and Flyoveres is hardly a solution. Else, we can forget in investing in those fancy child education loanns - they will hardly be a planet for them to live in!

Narayan Gopalan
User Interaction Designer
Bangalore

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