Be it the name, the design and communication campaign and the engagement processes being imagined between the brand and its buyers, the company is casting its cars in a new mould, reports T E Narasimhan.
Passenger vehicle sales in India could hit a record of over 38 lakh units in FY23 but the strong growth momentum is not expected to carry over to 2023-24 with pent-up demand already been released, according to Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles managing director Shailesh Chandra.
'Battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell and hydrogen ICE, could be the three technologies which have the potential of being zero emission and that are what we will have to work on,'
This will ensure its vehicles reach dealers much faster and delivered to buyers in a maximum of three days, reports Shally Seth Mohile.
India's rapidly ageing truck fleet, with 42% of vehicles over 12 years old, is set to trigger a replacement-driven growth of 3-5% annually over the next five years.
The business will also see a change of guard. Shailesh Chandra, president of EV and corporate strategy, will replace Mayank Pareek as president of PV business, including EV, with effect from April 1. Pareek will be superannuating from the company after a six-year stint at the end of February 2021. Chandra and Pareek will work on transition over the next few weeks.
Among the cars unveiled at the Auto Expo on Wednesday was Mahindra and Mahindra's e-KUV for Rs 8.2 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi. With a single charge range of 150 km and a 55 min fast charging upto 80 pc, it was both a head-turner and a conversation-starter.
The entry level car, brainchild of Ratan Tata who envisaged giving a safer and affordable alternative to families riding on two-wheelers, received lacklustre response from the Indian consumer. Tata Motors to bid adieu to Nano from April 2020.
Tata Motors, India's largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, is looking to launch a first-of-its-kind sub-600 kg small commercial vehicle, aiming to cater to the growing demand for efficient last-mile delivery solutions, an area currently witnessing a surge in interest from e-commerce giants. This new entrant is set to be positioned just below the marquee Tata Ace, which is popular across the country as "Chota Haathi".
The challenges of transition to stricter emission norm BS-VI from BS-IV and compliance to new safety norms thereby making vehicles costlier are lurking around the sector.
Passenger and commercial vehicle prices are expected to rise as automobile companies invest in upgrading vehicles to meet stricter emission norms that kick in from April next year. The Indian automobile industry is currently working to make their products meet the second phase of Bharat Stage VI, equivalent to Euro-VI emission norms, in real time driving conditions. Four-wheeler passenger and commercial vehicles will need more sophisticated equipment to be added to meet the next level of emission standards.
BS-VI emission norms and the COVID-19 lockdown impacted the dispatches.
While hybrids, CNG and biofuels found favour in 2018 among many carmakers including Maruti Suzuki, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and Honda, others such as M&M and Tata Motors have shown full faith in electric vehicles.
New regulatory rules, softer freight rates and a liquidity crunch at non-bank lenders are among the reasons.
Companies expect recovery in second half of fiscal as BS VI approaches, claim banks and NBFCs showing greater interest in financing.
Maruti has announced it will phase out diesel variants from April 1, 2020, when stringent BS VI norms take effect
Companies also said confidence was yet to return among buyers, with many holding back their decision to buy cars.
From Hyundai to Tata Motors, automakers are staring at a bleak future. With no succor provided in the Budget, the pain for companies is likely to continue for the next two quarters.
Dealers of Tata Motors in most parts of the country have stopped placing orders for this small car in the last three-four months and the showrooms are displaying contemporary models such as Tiago, Tigor, Hexa and Nexon.
A steady climb in volumes has helped the company double its market share in the segment to 5 per cent in the first six months of the financial year from the year-ago period and it has now set its sights on a 10 per cent share in the next two years.
An increase in sales across all categories in the automobile industry, has made need for higher working capital inevitable.
For deciding which vehicles are to be scrapped, the setting up of fitness centres and regulating them would be a humongous task.
Passenger vehicle sales continue to drop in June; Maruti, Hyundai, Tata Motors, Toyota witness decline. Mahindra & Mahindra, however, reported a 4 per cent growth.
Other players who have declared no production days in the recent past, and during this month, include Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, Bosch, Jamna Auto, Wabco and Sundaram-Clayton.
The industry said if the policy was announced, it would have taken 28 million vehicles bought before March 2005 off the road.
Among the stocks that have seen the largest cut by MFs, the DVR shares (shares with differential voting rights) of Tata Motors have seen a cut of 243 basis points (bps) in MFs' stake.
However, notable absentees from the expo will be Honda, Toyota, Ford, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Volvo and Jaguar Land Rover along with two-wheeler majors Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor Co.
Only five of India's top 20 car models have seen a reduction in wait times over the past year.
Cumulative sale at India's top six passenger vehicle (PV) makers dropped 0.7 per cent to 267,000 units, from 269,000 a year before.
Maruti's exports in May were down 2.4% at 9,089 units
The lockdown in Maharashtra will have a catastrophic impact on April sales, as dealers will not be able to realise the potential of festivities like Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, Baisakhi and Poila Boishakh.
According to research by IHS Markit, for an ecosystem still grappling with infrastructure issues -- the high cost of EVs and a greater OEM (original equipment manufacturer) focus on electrifying two-wheelers and commercial vehicles first -- the share of such vehicles is expected to be 4 per cent by 2030, reports Pavan Lall.
Automobile dealers' body FADA said the Budget lacked immediate demand boosters for the automobile industry.
Ministries such as road transport and heavy industries are learnt to have objected to NITI Aayog's attempts to become an implementing body for the EV programme.
Buying a car, particularly a diesel-powered one, is set to pinch the customers' pockets even more from the next financial year, as the second phase of Bharat Stage VI (BSVI) emission norms kicks in. The rules require cars to be compliant with real driving emission (RDE) norms, which measure pollutants emitted by cars while they are being driven on the road, unlike in a laboratory test. The norms may increase the cost of producing diesel vehicles by nearly Rs 75,000 to Rs 80,000, and petrol-powered ones by Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000, analysts said.
The impact of the ban will not be limited to sales.
