Tuesday, April 10, 2012
The new Honda City arrives
Honda to launch small car in 2009
On the outside, what you get is its quintessential radical exterior style, which is primarily characterized by its sleek look. The all-new City comes with what is called the 'Arrow Shot Form' design that lends the car its dynamic look. The car undoubtedly exudes a great amount of road presence on account of it now being longer, wider and sturdier. From the front, the first thing that strikes you about the car is the new rakish grill and the headlights that lend a distinct new identity to the car.
Honda Siel's power products unit shifts plant
It also boasts a shortened rear end and with sleekly designed aerodynamic looking combination lights that now enhance its sporty looking tail design. While the new City comes with the same ground and head clearance, the car's height has been lowered by 15 mm to 1480 mm to enable the car to have a sleeker and sturdier body shape giving the City an extremely refined driving position.
Nissan NV200
With the NV200, Nissan wants to take the Toyota Innova head-on. The
NV200 will be the first product of the Nissan and Ashok Leyland joint
venture to manufacture minivans in India. An eight-seater, the NV200
seats passenger in a 2+3+3 layout. Styling is more commercial van than
MPV and this appearance is not helped by the NV200’s sliding rear doors.
It will be powered by the same 105bhp 1.5-litre K9K diesel that also
does duty in the Renault Fluence. Pricing is likely to be in the range
of Rs 7.5-12 lakh.
Factfile:
Engine: 1.5-litre diesel
Power/Torque: 105bhp/24.4kgm
Kerb weight: 1269kg
L/W/H: 4400/1695/1860mm
Expected: Early 2012
Price: Rs 7.5-12 lakh
Renault Duster
Renault wants a presence in each segment of the car market and will be
ready with its Duster mini-SUV by July next year. The Duster shares its
platform with the Logan (now Mahindra Verito), so should be able to
take a fair bit of abuse. But this is no off-roader in the true sense
and will be sold in India in a two-wheel-drive avatar only. Interior
space is impressive and, just like on the Logan, ride quality is nice
and supple too. The Duster will have 1.6 petrol (105bhp) and 1.5 diesel
(90bhp) engines. A more powerful 107bhp 1.5 diesel with reduced turbo
lag will also be on offer. Expect prices to start at Rs 7 lakh for the
base petrol-engined Duster.
Factfile:
Engines: 1.6-litre petrol, 1.5-litre
diesel, 1.5-litre diesel
Power/Torque: 105bhp/15.1kgm,
90bhp/20.4kgm, 107bhp/24.5kgm
Kerb weight: 1205kg
L/W/H: 4315/1822/1695mm
Expected: July 2012
Price: Rs 7-8 lakh
New Porsche 911
It may not look radically different from its predecessor but this is
the all-new sixth-generation 911. The car will go on sale in India soon
after right-hand-drive sales commence globally. It will initially be
sold in rear-wheel-drive Carrera (3.4 litre) and Carrera S (3.8 litre)
coupé guises. Cabriolet and four-wheel-drive variants will follow in
2012, and pave the way for a range-topping 523bhp Turbo in 2013. The new
911 will sport a new seven-speed manual gearbox — a first for a series
production road car. Apart from increased power and improved emissions,
the new 911’s chassis has also been worked on for improved ride and even
better dynamics.
Factfile:
Engines: 3.4-litre petrol,
3.8-litre petrol
Power/Torque: 345bhp/39.8kgm,
394bhp/44.9kgm
Kerb weight: 1455-1470kg
L/W/H: 4491/1808/1295mm
Expected: September 2012
Price: From Rs 90 lakh
Renault Pulse
Auto Expo 2012 will be the venue for the launch of Renault’s first
hatchback for India the Pulse, (earlier codenamed B58). The Pulse shares
its platform with the Micra and will be built alongside it at
Renault-Nissan’s Chennai plant. Dimensions are be near-identical to the
Micra and likewise should weigh less than a tonne, which will reap huge
dividends in terms of economy. While the two cars will share many
components including engines, the Pulse is easily identifiable as a
Renault . However, the two cars share the dashboard design as tooling
for a new dashboard entails considerable expense. Pricing should be at
par with the Micra, so it will be interesting to see if the Renault can
eat into Nissan sales.
Factfile:
Engines: 1.2-litre petrol, 1.5-litre diesel
Power/Torque: 75bhp/10.6kgm,
63bhp/16.3kgm
Kerb weight: NA
L/W/H: NA
Expected: January 2012
Price: Rs 4.5-6 lakh
Renault hatchback will be similar to the Nissan Micra.
Renault L58
Renault’s new midsize car (codename: L58) will be to the Nissan Sunny
what the Pulse is to the Micra. The cars will share the same platform,
engines and, in all likelihood, the same interiors. However, exterior
styling will be quite different. Engine options will include a 105bhp,
1.5-litre petrol and an 86bhp, 1.5-litre diesel. Renault will price the
car aggressively, so expect this exciting new saloon to cost between Rs
7-9 lakh when it is launched in September 2012.
Factfile:
Engines: 1.5-litre petrol, 1.5-litre diesel
Power/Torque: 97bhp/13.6kgm,
85bhp/20.4kgm
Kerb weight: NA
L/W/H: NA
Expected: September 2012
Price: Rs 7-9 lakh
New Volkswagen Touareg
There is an understated elegance to the Touareg that Volkswagen hopes
Indian buyers will appreciate. The sober cousin of the Porsche Cayenne,
the Touareg will be launched at the Auto Expo 2012 and prices are likely
to start at Rs 55 lakh. You can identify the Touareg as a VW from a
mile away and the styling on the whole is quite handsome. There is an
abundance of space inside and quality should conform to VW’s global
standards. India is likely to receive a 3-litre diesel engine.
Additionally, VW could bring a 3-litre petrol-electric hybrid to promote
its green credentials. Question is, will you pay so much for a VW?
Factfile:
Engines: 3-litre diesel V6,
3-litre petrol hybrid
Power/Torque: 205bhp/40.8kgm,
380bhp (including 46bhp electric)/59.1kgm
Kerb weight: 2297-2315kg
L/W/H: 4795/1940/1709mm
Expected: January 2012
Price: Rs 55 lakh
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)