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Launched at Auto Expo 2008: GM India brings in Chevrolet Captiva

Chevrolet Captiva India

GM India plans to hold a 10% share in Indian Automotive market by 2010 and towards that end they launched the much talked about urban SUV Chevrolet Captiva at the Auto Expo 08. With a Delhi ex-showroom price tag of 17.74 lakh rupees, Captiva will mainly be competing with Honda CR-V (current segment leader) and other SUVs like Suzuki Grand Vitara, Ford Endeavor, Hyundai Tucson and Mitsubishi Pajero.

This Chevy can seat 7 passengers and in addition to all the luxury and safety features a car of this class is expected to have, Captiva has an edge over the CRV with its diesel engine. This 2.0-liter VCDi modern diesel engine is the one from Optra Magnum but with a VGT turbo and setup to produce 150 bhp power and 320 Nm torque. Sadly though, it lacks the 4WD.

Chevy Captiva India

This trailer video has 1:26 mins of footage showcasing the Captiva.

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Launched at Auto Expo 2008: Tata Sumo Grande 2.2

Tata Sumo Grande
Image source: Economic Times

The new redesigned Tata Sumo has been launched at the 9th Auto Expo 2008 and is now called Tata Sumo Grande. With a longer wheelbase, Sumo Grande has the same 2.2l DiCOR engine from the Tata Safari but tuned to produce 120 bhp power and 250 Nm torque.

Tata says this MUV is designed and setup for better urban runabouts and combines the best of the worlds of an SUV and a family car. With 3 variants to choose from and priced from Rs 6.5 lakhs to Rs 7.5 lakhs, its geared at Toyota Innova and will hit the showrooms in February.

Here’s the video presentation with some good footage of Tata Sumo Grande’s features that was showcased at the Auto Expo ’08

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And heres what Tata says in their press release:

TATA Sumo Grande
The new Sumo Grande combines the looks of an SUV with the comforts of a family car. It has been specifically designed to satisfy the needs of city customers in the areas of driveability, maneuverability and fuel efficiency. The Tata Sumo Grande sports an all-new styling with clean, chiselled looks matching with flowing contours. The tall aggressive stance is complimented by large, clear headlamps, and a cutaway air dam in the front. The clean, rear look, with the spare wheel tucked under the body, is accentuated by attractive taillights and a chrome overlay.

Designed with a longer wheelbase of 2,550mm (existing 2,400mm), the Tata Sumo Grande sports comfortable 3-row seating with best in class third row seats. Beige interiors are complimented by fire and stain resistant fabric upholstery. Dual HVAC with roof-integrated louvers ensures personalised climate adjustment for the occupants in each row. Power steering, power windows, motorised ORVMs, height adjustable driver’s seat and a state-of-the-art CD / MP3 music system further add to the comforts and convenience of a family travelling in the Sumo Grande. The vehicle is powered by the new generation 2.2-l direct injection common rail (DICOR) engine, fitted with a variable geometry turbocharger creating a perfect blend of performance and fuel efficiency. Maximum power and torque of 120ps and 250nm, coupled with high-torque levels over a wide RPM band enhance driveability in stop-start city traffic. For a vehicle of its size, the Tata Sumo Grande is extremely maneuverable with the turning circle radius of 5.25m, similar to a small car.

The Tata Sumo Grande will be available in 3 variants – Lx, Ex and Gx — all of which have two seating configurations: 6+1 and 7+1. The vehicle will be available in seven colours, including four new shades: sunset orange, zephyr green, mineral red and marine blue. The Tata Sumo Grande range is priced in the range of Rs6.55 lakh to Rs7.49 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). It comes with an enhanced warranty of two years or 75000kms. (whichever is earlier). An additional two years’ warranty can be availed through the extended warranty option. The vehicle will be available in showrooms across the country from the first week of February 2008.

another rant on Tata Nano – the one lakh car

Tata Nano India

Never have I seen a simple small car get soo much attention from the press and that’s not just the Indian media but the entire global press has been curiously awaiting the unveiling of Tata’s 1 lakh car now called TATA nano. Surf through any news channel on TV its nano, pick up a newspaper and its Tata nano on the frontpage, visit any news website and its nano, automotive communities online and the blogs have gone berserk – its utter frenzy everywhere. This hysteric event went live not just on Indian tele but all over the world.

Watching and listening to Mr Ratan Tata gave me goose flesh… Made me feel proud it was Tata that made the impossible possible as it was sworn by many automakers around the world. We just witnessed a monumental landmark in the history of the Indian Automotive Industry, the birth of a completely new segment of cars.

Tata Nano rear

Some specs and details of TATA nano if you haven’t heard or read already. With the engine mounted at the rear, nano is rear-wheel driven and engine is a two-cylinder, 623 cc petrol that makes 33 bhp power and 48 Nm torque. The expected fuel efficiency is 20+ kmpl. The 1-lakh tag is the ex-showroom price and on the road it’d cost around Rs 125000 in Delhi.

On the inside, it has a simple dashboard with center mounted instrument cluster. Driver and passenger seats have integrated headrests and rear seats can be folded for additional boot space.

Comparing it to the Maruti 800, nano is 9 inches shorter in length but 2 inches wider and 7.5 inches taller. With these dimensions it manges to be 21 % more spacious than the Maruti.

  Maruti 800 Tata Nano
Length 3335 mm 3100 mm (-9.2 in)
Width 1440 mm 1500 mm (+2.3 in)
height 1405 mm 1600 mm (+7.6 in)
Power 37 bhp 33 bhp
Torque 59 Nm 48 Nm
Fuel economy 20 kmpl 20+ kmpl

Nano will be up for sale by the end of 2008 in September – October and will be offered in 3 variants namely standard, deluxe and luxury. The standard version has no AC or body coloured bumpers.

Like all big things the nano had some bricks thrown at it too. The environmentalists have voiced their opinions about how this would add to the road congestion and step-up the pollution. They do have a point about the congestion in urban areas but IMO that is not something a buyer or an automaker should be concerned with as much as the government should be with the infrastructure. And about the pollution, Mr.Tata says Nano meets Bharat 3 and Euro 4 emission norms and pollutes lesser than some of the 2-wheelers in the market today. He also adds that 85% of the Indian population is in the rural parts and not just the metros.

The competition and critics have expressed some safety concerns and without the price in the equation, I doubt if any car enthusiast (myself included) would appreciate the car by itself. Nano fits right in the middle of the wide gap that exists between the conservative two-wheeler market and the entry level Maruti 800 and mind you, this is aimed at the two-wheeler market and the closest it can be compared to another car is the Maruti 800. Perhaps, a person living or who has lived in India would better understand what nano means to the intended buyer.

more photos after the jump.

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Super sports Yamaha YZF R1 now in India

yamaha r1 india

Yamaha motorcycles India is officially the first to bring in their super bikes to India – the YZF R1 and the MT 01 have been launched with an ex-showroom price tag of 10.5 lakhs and bookings are open at their authorized dealerships in four cities.

I have come across many people looking for the changes specific to the 2008 model. The Yamaha YZF-R1 for 2008 and 2007 are the same – the only difference being, ’08 R1 has new graphics. Check out the image below the post comparing the two models.

more images & details after the jump.
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2.2 mhawk engine for Mahindra Scorpio Vlx

mahindra scorpio 2.2 mhawk front

After all these days of wait and speculation, Mahindra finally launched a new Scorpio variant Vlx with the new 2.2-liter engine. Rumoured earlier to be named eagle, its now branded as mHawk.

more pics after the jump

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