NiTS.in » Automobiles

F1 cars to battle it out in our country

NiTS — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:35:53 +0000

India will witness the glory of Formula One in just about a year from now.
Preparations for the grand event have already started and Jaypee International Race Circuit is to host the 2011 Indian Formula 1 Grand Prix.
The big day has been scheduled for in June 2011. Representatives of Jaypee Sports International (JPSI) have taken the initiative of organising this event. Mark Hughes, VP operations for JPSI, has been involved with motorsport for the last 15 years, during which he has seen the passionate side of rallying with the World Rally Championship.
India does not have a strong culture in Formula 1, which could sound an alarm bell for many given that revenues for track owners in the current F1 scenario come only from the tickets sold.
Sameer Gaur, MD and CEO of JPSI, is aware of all this. But he trusts that Indians enjoy the festive atmosphere of a good sporting event, as long as they can afford it.

Hyundai to increase car prices in September

NiTS — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 09:42:09 +0000

Hyundai will increase car prices in September in India by 1.2% due to a rise in the input costs. The price of Hyundai`s small cars, namely Santro and i10, would have a Rs. 3,500 price hike in the basic models. Whereas Sonata Would go up by Rs. 10,000.
The Hyundai Motor India’s director (Marketing & Sales), Arvind Saxena, said, “We have tried to absorb as much of the cost as we can, but there has been consistent increase in the commodity prices that forced us to pass some of it to the customers.”
Maruti also raised prices by around 1.5% from August 1. It had hiked the price of all its models by up to Rs7,500, except its entry-level product Alto.
Japanese carmaker Toyota Kirloskar Motors also announced price revision of its products across categories from October this year. Toyota Kirloskar Motors deputy MD (marketing) Sandeep Singh says, “Input cost pressure is very high and the fluctuation in Yen is also affecting us. We will review the prices of our products in October.”

Another Nano In flames in Delhi

NiTS — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 07:33:29 +0000

At a parking lot in Aurobindo Marg, Delhi on Friday a Nano went up in flames at a parking lot in Aurobindo Marg on Friday. And this happned Just after three months of Tata Motors citifying Nano as “absolutely safe”.
This car belonged to a Supreme Court advocate who had just pulled into the parking lot around 11.30am when driver Patrick John noticed sparks coming from the rear, where the engine is located. John says ” I was waiting in the car, having just parked it, when sparks started coming out.” Thankfully he managed to get out on seeing sparks; in all of two minutes, only a charred frame remained.
This has been the third case of a Nano burning after the Two similar incidents in Vadodara and Mumbai earlier this year following which Tata Motors launched an inquiry.
editor-inchief of Zigwheels , Adil Jal Darukhanawala said, “It is possible that the car had been tweaked to add some features like power windows or a fancy audio system where the wiring was not done properly.”

A makeover for Honda Jazz

NiTS — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:04:12 +0000

Honda`s Jazz with a composite makeover will make its world debut at the Paris Motor Show in September, bringing lower emissions and improved fuel economy to the sporty looking car loved by many.
With Honda’s environment friendly Civic Hybrid which is no longer being sold in India, Honda is now showcasing the world’s first B-segment Jazz at the Paris Motor Show in September. Featuring the practicality and flexibility of the present Jazz, but with reduced CO2 emissions and improvements to fuel economy, the hybrid version of the hatchback will go on sale in the UK in early 2011.
This new Jazz will feature the same engine as Honda’s Insight hybrid; a 1.3-litre i-VTEC engine combined with a CVT gearbox, with an electric motor sandwiched between the two to create a parallel hybrid system.
This new beautified version can be distinguished by revised headlights with a blue surround, clear rear lights, new front grille, restyled bumpers and a chrome tailgate garnish. Interior has also been given a fresh look, with a darker single colour dashboard, which contrasts strongly with the blue lighting of the dials and dashboard instruments.

Now CNG options in the popular Maruti cars

NiTS — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:55:13 +0000

Maruti Suzuki has announced CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) variants for five of its most popular models. For now the variants however will be available only in Delhi NCR, Mumbai and Gujarat.
Including the new i-GPI (intelligent Gas Port Injection) technology, the company has claimed that the CNG variants will reduce running costs by 60 percent. The company fitted system also adds a large degree of reliability and safety. With a larger palette to choose from now, we would not be surprised CNG catches the fancy of private vehicle owners too.
Although the sporty and urban Maruti models including the A-Star, the Swift and the Ritz – have been kept from the CNG conversion.
The 5 models to includu the CNG system are, Alto F80 Std, Estilo Lxi, WagonR Lxi, Eeco 5-seater AC and Sx4 Vxi which with the system are priced at Rs 3.23 lakh, Rs 4.05 lakh, Rs 4.11 lakh, Rs 3.64 lakh and Rs 7.47 lakh respectively.

Audi’s latest launch “A7 Sportback”

NiTS — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:33:35 +0000

Audi launched its new Audi A7 Sportback blowing everybody’s mind. The first glimpse of the A7 Sportback concept were seen way back at the 2009 Detroit Motor Show and earlier this year, auto fanatics in India also got the chance to examine the concept up close and personal at the 2010 Delhi Auto Expo. Having been designed along with the latest iteration of Audi’s flagship sedan, the A8, the A7 too gets a similar treatment in its front with the now highly angular headlights and Audi’s signature LED running lights.
Another beauty of A7 is its feature of choice of engine options, namely two petrols and two diesels. Their power output ranges from 204 hp to 300 hp. The new 3.0 TDI with 204 hp and multitronic gearbox is said to deliver an unbelievable fuel economy of 18.8kmpl and putting out CO2 emissions of just 139 g per km.
The interiors too feature many innovations such as a heads-up display that projects driver critical information on the windshield as well as a touch-input system for Audi’s patented MMI (Multi-media interface). The car even features a WLAN hotspot to connect mobile devices as well a UMTS module. This beauty is set to start at 51,600 Euros (about Rs. 31.4-lakh) and as for it coming to India anytime soon.

Maruti`s 5 lakh K-series engines

NiTS — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:12:56 +0000

In only 23 months Maruti Suzuki India Limited unveiled their all new K-series engines, and in this period the company has managed to roll out 5 lakh units.
The K-series engine exits in two forms, the KB10 1.0 litre, 3 cylinder petrol unit and the KB12, which is a 1.2 litre 4 cylinder petrol unit.
With the A-Star that first turned up with the KB10, the other cars in the list include Estilo, WagonR and the recently launched AltoK10.
The K-series engine is very lightweight and has an all-aluminium construction that not just helps in keeping the overall vehicle weight down, but also offers a heightened level of efficiency combined with super performance.
The state-of the-art, fully integrated K-series engine manufacturing facility can be found in the Gurgaon plant. The calibration and testing of the K-series engine was done in India and Japan, where the Maruti engineers worked as part of the Suzuki Engine Design team for designing.

JK Tyre To hike the Prices in Sept by up to 5%

NiTS — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:42:38 +0000

According to JK Tyre there have been a rise in its input costs. To offset this they will increase prices of its products by 4-5 per cent by the first week of September.
JK Tyre Director (Marketing) A S Mehta told PTI, “Natural rubber costs have been going up and we have stated in the past too that we need to increase our product prices to offset it. By the first week of September we may increase another 4-5 per cent increase in tyre prices.” In July the company had increased its tyre prices by 3 per cent, he added.
At present, an average car tyre costs about Rs 2,000, while that of commercial vehicle is around Rs. 12,000. In May this year tyre manufacturers had said they would have to hike product prices by up to 25 per cent to offset rising input costs.
According to the Rubber Board data, in June the average rubber price (RS4) increased to Rs. 18,215 per 100 kg in July from Rs. 17,087.

Interesting facts about automobiles

NiTS — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 16:17:46 +0000

This is for all the auto lovers across the world.

• The first traffic light was put up long before cars came into existence. Installed in 1868 in London, on a corner outside the British Houses of Parliament, the traffic light was basically a set of arms that were used during the day.However, the type of traffic lights that we see on the roads these days came only in 1914 and were put to use in Cleveland, Ohio.
• The first traffic law was created long before automobile were there. It was United Kingdom that first established any kind of law regarding its roads. In 1555, a law was passed asking people to keep the roads in front of their property repaired at their own expense.
But this became unpopular and the people made the roads very narrow, creating problems for horseback riders and carriages.Then in 1756, Parliament passed a law for traffic on London Bridge, requiring all traffic to keep to the left. It wasn’t until 1835 that this law for left-handed traffic was expanded to include the whole country.

Skoda to launch a small car in 2012

NiTS — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 08:45:48 +0000

Skoda said it will introduce a small car in the Indian market in early 2012, with a price tag of Rs 3-5 lakh.
Skoda Auto India Board Member and Director (Sales and Marketing) Thomas Kuehl said,
“We had announced to roll out one new model every year. As part of this strategy, we will enter the volume segment and will launch a small car in early 2012,”
The formation of the car is underway and the company will launch the model in both petrol and diesel versions.
“We have not decided anything about production. We are open to sharing technologies as well as the plant of our parent Volkswagen,” said Kuehl. And he added that the company will also introduce an entry level sedan in the country next year.