Exports in August were up 10.3 per cent to 12,472 units from 11,305 units in the same month of previous year.
The strong domestic growth for new vehicle sales during 2008-12, which witnessed a compounded annual growth rate of 14 per cent, led to an increased inventory of used cars, thanks to trade-ins.
Fiat India Automobiles Ltd, a 50:50 joint venture between Italy-based Fiat SpA and domestic auto major Tata Motors, plans to position the car in the premium hatchback segment along with Maruti Suzuki's Ritz, Hyundai's i20, Skoda's Fabia and to be launched Honda Siel's Jazz, the company said.
Japanese automobile company Mitsubishi Motors may launch a compact car in the B segment in the country. The car is expected to hit the roads in three years. Though Mitsubishi sells Pajero SUV and Lancer sedan in India, they have not generated adequate volumes for the Japanese automobile company. The compact car will take on Maruti Swift, Hyundai Getz, Skoda Fabia, Fiat Palio, Chevrolet U-VA and Ford Fusion
Maruti Suzuki posted a marginal increase in January and the likes of Hyundai, Ford and Mahindra & Mahindra reporting a single-digit growth.
Maruti will showcase its first concept electric vehicle, the e-SURVIVOR; M&M it's six new EVs, including two futuristic concepts
Demand for passenger vehicles has been driven by new models, especially in the SUV category with the likes of Maruti Vitara Brezza and Hyundai Creta clocking good numbers
Riding on the success of Ford Ikon and Ford Fiesta, in the mid-size sedan segment, Ford plans to roll out the new car by March.
A day after leading car makers Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai Motor decided to cut vehicle prices in the wake of a reduction in taxes, Mahindra Renault on Tuesday said its Logan sedan will be offered at a discount of Rs 60,000.
Jagdish Khattar, Maruti Suzuki's managing director, talks about the need for small cars, global players expanding in India, and why his company will prosper.
Maruti, Honda and Tata Motors posted highest sales growth during the month
The Italian car company Fiat's much-awaited launch of the year, Grande Punto hatchback, which is expected to take on Maruti Suzuki's Swift and Hyundai's Getz, will not be priced close to the two models.
According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, significant growth is being witnessed in the multi-axle trucks segment, which has posted 112 per cent growth in the year 2006-07.
The second-generation Tata Indica will be called Indica Vista. The car that was previewed for the public at the Auto Expo, New Delhi this year will carry the new tag to differentiate itself from the Indica that is currently in production.
The growing impact of inflation on car sales is clearly reflected in the dismal growth in domestic sales of the country's three leading auto-makers - Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai India and Tata Motors - which constitute more than 75 per cent of the car sales.
Besieged by rising steel prices, the domestic passenger car manufacturers are gearing up to raise prices again. Barely a month ago, Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai Motors India, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and Honda Siel had effected price increases of Rs 6,000 to Rs 30,000 across models.
The third party premium has been increased from the current Rs 700 to Rs 2,500, a 257 per cent hike for private cars, where the cubic capacity of the vehicle exceeds 1,500 cc.
Volkswagen is planning to roll out a variant of its popular car, Polo, in by 2009. The car will be pitted against Maruti's Swift, Hyundai's Getz and Tata Motor's Indica.
Japanese automaker Honda Motors is rolling out its small car in India by the last quarter of calendar 2009.
New car launches in the past six months have driven sales growth despite a hike in vehicle financing. In April, new launches accounted for 17 per cent of over all sales.
The new cars which have been launched in the last six months include the Zen Estilo from Maruti, Hyundai Getz diesel, Spark from General Motors, Logan from Mahindra Nissan and Fiat Palio Stile.
The partnership will look to expand Ford's reach in the fast-growing Indian market and improve M&M's access to global markets
In the seven months between April and October this year, the Chevy Spark has managed to sell less than 12,000 units, or an average of 1,700 units a month, while its peers Alto and WagonR (Maruti Suzuki) , Indica (Tata Motors) and Santro (Hyundai) have had average monthly sales of 10,000-18,000 units.
Auto Expo's Twitter handle (@AEMotorShow), with a follower base of 16,000, is abuzz with activity. The Facebook page of Auto Expo has about 158,000 followers.
The auto industry has had a mixed month. The build up to Dhanteras and Diwali was good but the demand tapered off subsequently.
Besides being budget-oriented these cars also offer fantastic performance and mileage.
Zest buyers are forced to wait up to six weeks for the automated manual transmission version, available only on this car in the compact sedan segment.
The two petrol models of the Logan are priced between Rs 428,000 and Rs 644,000, while its diesel model's price range is Rs 547,000 to Rs 651,000. The range overlaps the pricing of the premium hatchbacks as well as of mid-size cars.
Leading carmaker Hyundai Motor India Ltd on Monday announced plans to roll out a CNG version of its bread-and-butter hatchback Santro by this year-end or early 2008.
Sales of passenger vehicles in India are likely to grow at 14.9 per cent each year to touch the 2.1 million mark by 2010.
Boosted by Maruti Udyog Limited and Hyundai Motor India's sales of compact models, the domestic market posted 24 per cent growth in car sales to 1,04,488 units last month compared with 84,235 units in January 2006.
After GM's India exit, Ford-Mahindra 'strategic alliance' under spotlight.
Auto major General Motors India on Friday launched its premium hatchback car, the 1.2 litre petrol Chevrolet Aveo U-VA at Rs 3.99 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).
Eight months after it was phased out from the market, Maruti on Tuesday unveiled the new Zen sporting an all-new look and under a new name 'Estilo', pricing the base variant at Rs 3.19 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).
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