Compare the Top Movers & Shakers - Polo, Punto, Swift and Figo - Which one is for you?

With the B-segment flooding with offerings from various manufacturers, a war of hatchbacks to capture the market is just about to begin…


Click here to read the full analysis.

Never before in the Indian car industry have we seen such carnage in a segment. The B-segment is suddenly loaded with quality contenders which not only boast great engineering and features, but incredible pricing as well.

Honda Accord V6 Launched

Honda Siel Cars India has launched its latest version of flagship sedan Accord 3.5L V6 in the Indian market today. The Accord's V6 3.5-liter i-VTEC engine with 275 PS makes it the most powerful Accord ever built by the company.

The new Accord engine features an advanced Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) system that switches between six-, four-, and three-cylinder combustion depending on the driving conditions and thereby delivering maximum power of 275 PS during six cylinder operation. To achieve the same quietness and smoothness, as when running on all six cylinders, new Active Control Engine Mounts (ACM) and Active Noise Control (ANC) systems have been designed to complement the VCM technology.

The revamped new version boasts of enhanced exterior styling with an electric sunroof and few additional luxury and desirable features based on its customers feedback. It also features Ambient Light and Footlight which accentuates the style and enhances visibility during night driving. In addition, the new Honda Accord is also equipped with two sets of Keyless entry for convenience purpose and also has a provision for mobile phone with bluetooth interface.The Footlight and 2 sets of Keyless entry has also been introduced in the Honda Accord 2.4L MT and AT variants.

The new Accord range will come with a price tag of Rs.18,52,000 for 2.4L MT, Rs.19,27,000 for 2.4L AT and Rs 26,15,000 for 3.5L V6. (ex- showroom, Delhi.)

Source: MOTOROIDS

Chevrolet Corvette may soon burn rubber on Indian roads!

There might be very few people who seldom dream about owning a sports car. For the rest, who have the Chevrolet Corvette in the hit list may seem to have a reason to be a bit happier now. The US car manufacturer may soon introduce this sports car in India along with a few other models from its stable.
Business Standard stated recently that Timothy E Lee, President of international operations of General Motors revealed GM’s plans to sell internationally popular sports cars from its stable, in India. He specifically stated that the Camaro and the Corvette would be made available via special boutiques in small quantities owing to the high import duties levied on these CBUs. “The import duty required selling the other kinds of Chevy vehicles like Corvette or Camaro is quite extensive to do it for the buying public. We will have a boutique offering for those kinds of brands but those will never be the volume products for India. Every one of those products will create its own space in India, but it will be very small in numbers,” said Mr. Lee.


The Corvette is one of the sports cars from the Chevrolet division of General Motors. The car originally took birth from its plant in Flint, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri. The present day Corvettes are rolled out from GM’s Bowling Green assembly plant, Kentucky. The sixth and the current generation Corvette built for the 2005 model is the Chevrolet Corvette C6. Its 6.0 liter LS2 V8 heart has the capacity to produce 400 horses at 6000 rpm and torque of 542 Nm at 4400 rpm. If this beast hits the Indian streets, it is bound to burn some rubber. So let’s sit and hope with our fingers crossed.

Source: MOTOROIDS

Ford Figo to be exported to South Africa

The reworked previous generation European Fiesta, in the form of the new Ford Figo which was launched in the country just yesterday, will also be exported to South Africa as announced by Mr. Michael Bonehan, Managing Director, Ford India at the launch.



Ford Motors has infused an investment of US $ 500 million to double the annual production capacity to 200,000 units at its Chennai manufacturing facility making it a regional centre of for small car engineering and production. This facility will also produce diesel and petrol engines for local market and also will export to the Asia Pacific and Africa region.
 
Source: MOTOROIDS

Ford Figo launched, prices unveiled!

A couple of months back we got our hands on the Ford Figo and returned impressed with Ford India’s new creation. You can read our first impressions here. Today however, we have a new reason to be impressed – not because the small car has finally been launched today, but because we simply love the competitive price tag that the Figo boasts of. Here’s the reason for our smile:

 

The 1.2-litre petrol engine produces 71.35 PS @ 6250 rpm and 102 Nm @ 4000 rpm which isn’t exactly class leading. Ford further claims that the petrol mill will return 15.6 kmpl with its ideal gear ratios developed for Indian traffic conditions. The 1.4-litre Duratorq diesel engine from the other Fords in the lineup will be available for Figo with outstanding fuel efficiency of 20 kmpl. Power is rated at 69 PS @ 4000 rpm while the torque is equally impressive with 160Nm @ 2000 rpm.

 

Everyone is claiming the Figo to be a game changer for the market segment that its going to cater to (which is largely dominated by the army of Maruti Suzukis). But the Figo’s success won’t rest on pricing alone. Ford India’s legacy may turn down a lot of prospective customers of this segment. What Ford needs is the right kind of ASS (after sales service) backing up their vehicles (Ford claims that they are jacking up the number of service stations and dealerships to support the Figo). If the cards are played right, the Figo has the potential to be a game changer for Ford India’s future operations atleast, if not the market as a whole.

1.2-litre Duratec (Petrol)

LXI – Rs. 3,49,900
EXI – Rs. 3,81,900
ZXI – Rs. 3,99,900
Titanium – Rs. 4,42,900


1.4-litre Duratorq (Diesel)
LXI – Rs. 4,47,900
EXI – Rs. 4,72,900
ZXI – Rs. 4,96,900
Titanium – Rs. 5,29,900


Source: Motoroids

Suzuki eyes on getting full control over Maruti

Suzuki Motor Corporation now owns 55% stake in Maruti Suzuki, which has triggered speculation about the Japanese firm’s intentions of taking full control on its Indian subsidiary. As per the Indian rules and regulations relating to stake acquisition, a foreign company is allowed to increase its stake unto 5% each year. As such if the foreign company achieves a stake of 55% and beyond then it can make a direct offer for another 20%.

Suzuki's website is yet to reflect the revised stake holding of its company and several emails sent to Suzuki by media persons remained unanswered. However, a person close to the company said that "Any change in the stake holding will only come up before the board at the statutory board meeting scheduled for the third week of April”.

Chennai born Karun Chandok confirmed for F1 this season (2010)

Karun Chandok has just been confirmed as the official driver for the Hispanic Racing F1 Team (HRT) formerly known as Campos Racing in Spain for the 2010 F1 season! He will now partner with Bruno Senna, with whom Karun had already shared the team space in the 2008 GP2 season. Chandhok will be presented to the public at the Murcia unveiling, which is set to confirm the team's new identity and its plans for 2010. 

Colin Kolles, HRT's team principal, said: "I am very pleased to use the Murcia site to officially unveil our car livery today. We also complete the driver's team line-up with the Indian Karun Chandhok at the wheel of the car for our first ever season. We have been very impressed with Karun's performance in GP2. India is a great country. It will be great for the sport to have an Indian driver on the grid for the first Indian Grand Prix. Murcia is part of the roots of the team."

 

The Chennai born Karun, started racing in 2000 and ultimately joined GP2 in 2007 where he did quite well to let the whole world and especially the F1 teams know his standard of driving. He was presented with the ‘Best Driving Style’ award in 2008. With this deal, Karun Chandok now is the second Indian driver to race in F1. The first one was Narain Karthikeyan who spent a single season at Jordan five years ago.