Tata Track: 2009

Friday, February 13, 2009

2010 Tata Nano - What's the Big Idea?

There is a chance - just a chance - that this odd-looking little bubble of a car, with its dime-size wheels and tiny tailpipe and weird two-cylinder whir, might turn out to be the Ford Model T of the twenty-first century. True, there's plenty that might prevent the new Tata Nano from causing the seismic shock that some predict it will inflict on the global car industry. But like other transformative cars, it has a quantum-leap quality. The Model T revolutionized how cars are made, the Mini rethought how they're laid out, and at $2500, the Nano turns upside down our previous ideas about how much cars should cost.What you, me, and everyone else who cares as much about a car's dynamics as its dollar value wants to know is how the Nano drives: surely a whole car that costs less than some upholstery or audio upgrades must be terrible, right? Not remotely, and we're in a unique position to tell you. We haven't driven it, but we've been to Tata's test track in Pune, India, and scored a ride in the Nano. Nobody else outside Tata has experienced it "in action." Tata is very protective of its new baby, and it didn't mean for this to happen and isn't very happy that it did. It won't happen again for a while.But before we tell you what we thought, it's worth seeing this car in context. Tata Motors might have grabbed the world's attention in 2008 with the unveiling of the Nano and its purchase of Jaguar and Land Rover, but it has been making trucks in India for more than fifty years. When Ratan Tata took over as chairman of this family-owned, 140-year-old, impossibly diverse, tea-to-IT conglomerate in 1991, he decided to make cars, too. From scratch, he built Tata Motors into India's third-biggest carmaker in a market which, although now slowed by the same economic misery as everywhere else, has seen sales skyrocket from 40,000 in the mid-'90s to nearly 2 million today. When growth resumes, billion-strong India will dwarf European markets and join the United States, China, and Japan as an automotive superpower.Tata Motors' lineup might seem pretty freaky by Western tastes, but the company has grown by understanding exactly what its customers want. It already does cheap very well. The Tata Magic is a 700-cc minivan with fabric bodysides that sells for about $5800. It has eight seats but typically carries far more and is exactly what rural Indians need - very cheap, with room for the whole family.

[ Via: Automobilemag ]
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Monday, February 9, 2009

Tata shooting for 80,000 Nanos by March of 2010, diesel in 2011

The troubles that Tata Motors has had in getting its Nano microcar off the ground have been well documented. After a series of protests turned violent over a land dispute between local farmers in West Bengal and the Indian automaker,, production was moved to Tata's Pantnagar facility. Despite the massive setback (Tata had almost completed construction of the main plant before moving), the Indian automaker reportedly believes that it can assemble 80,000 Nanos by March of 2010. By that time, a second plant in Sanand should be ready to go, and that would quickly become the main facility for the inexpensive car (though Pantnagar would still supplement the larger operation).
What's next for the ongoing saga that is The World's Cheapest Car? By the end of 2011, the Nano's will get a diesel engine option in addition to the standard 33-horsepower 625 cc twin-cylinder gas unit that will be powering all Nanos at launch. Also on the future menu will be such sybaritic options as air conditioning and an automatic gearbox.
[ Via: Indian Autos Blog ]
[ Tag: Pantnagar, tata, tata motors, tata nano, tata nano diesel, TataMotors, TataNano, TataNanoDiesel ]

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Tata Indica celebrates decade of sales with special edition

This cute little guy is the Tata Indica Vista, a special edition created to celebrate ten years of Indica sales. The Indica has perennially been one of India's best selling cars, as well as being Tata's prime mover. Given credit for greatly lifting the fortunes of the company, the Indica walks off with 78% of sales among the cars built on its platform (like the Indigo and Marina).
With design elements that might be generously taken from Ford's European design language, the Vista's changes from the regular Indica are all cosmetic. It will get a specially designed number plate, an interior with better materials and design, an integrated audio system and double-stitched seats. It will come in a selection of colors and a variety of wheel options, and if you're keen on the Vista, you can even read a review. For the rest of you, the full press release is after the jump. Let's hope Tata can create the same magic with Jaguar and Land Rover after ten years of ownership.

[ Via: Indian Autos Blog ]
[ Tag: hatchback, india, indica, indica vista, IndicaVista, special edition, SpecialEdition, tata, tata indica, tata indica vista, TataIndica, TataIndicaVista ]

Monday, January 5, 2009

Tata Motors sales plunge by nearly half

Filed under: Car Buying, Trends, Etc., Earnings/Financials, India, Tata

Even when you (intend to) make the cheapest brand-new car in the world, you can't escape an economic downturn. Global jitters and year-end hemming and hawing have conspired to slice Tata's December sales figures nearly in half compared to a year ago. December is a traditionally slow month for auto sales as buyers try to put off expenditures until the next year (when incentives are more attractive on existing stock), but even accounting for the bargain hunters, this is a major drop.

Everyone, everywhere is down, and Tata Motors stock has taken a beating thanks to the economy and costly external issues like plant troubles. That said, recent interest rate cuts have buoyed company shares in hopes that the Nano (not to mention Saint CarBuyer) will soon arrive, and if nothing else, they still have the Indica's longevity to celebrate.

Gallery: Tato Nano - Live from Geneva