Among those who have the most to lose from India's haphazard policies are dealers selling cars made by Toyota, Mahindra & Mahindra, Daimler AG's and Tata Motors' luxury arm, Jaguar Land Rover
India's electric mobility goal, which has so far been riding on two wheels, is all set to graduate to four wheels. At least, the journey has begun. Hyundai Motor India said it would invest Rs 4,000 crore till 2028 to launch half-a-dozen electric vehicles (EVs) in India. It would eventually straddle premium and mass segments. The first of these - the electrified version of an internal combustion engine (ICE)-powered model - will go on sale as early as next year.
Amid better semiconductor chip supplies, the Indian automotive industry posted an 8 percent growth in production of vehicles across categories for the month of May, with three-wheelers (20 per cent) and passenger vehicles (16 per cent) leading the pack. Exports, however, dipped 21 per cent at an industry level. The industry also recorded its highest-ever May wholesales of domestic passenger vehicles (334,802 units), riding on high demand for sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and better supplies of semiconductor chips.
Leading automakers Maruti Suzuki India, Hyundai and Tata Motors reported a double-digit increase in dispatches to dealers in April as the demand remained robust especially for the sports utility vehicles. The country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) said its domestic passenger vehicle wholesales rose 13 per cent to 137,320 units last month as against 121,995 units in April 2022. Sales of mini cars, comprising Alto and S-Presso, fell 18 per cent to 14,110 units as compared with 17,137 units a year ago.
Maruti Suzuki India and Hyundai reported single-digit sales growth in July with the sports utility segment continuing to drive overall demand in the market. Mahindra & Mahindra witnessed a 29 per cent increase in passenger vehicle dispatches while Tata Motors saw a marginal increase in the wholesales last month. Maruti Suzuki on Tuesday said its total domestic passenger vehicle sales stood at 152,126 units last month as compared to 142,850 units in the year-ago month, a growth of 6 per cent.
Battered by the Covid-19 pandemic, the maker of the Fortuner and Innova models is staring at a steep loss in the ongoing financial year.
The stock of the country's largest passenger vehicle maker, Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), has been hitting successive all-time highs over the past three trading sessions. The rally in the scrip has helped it notch over a 21 per cent gain since the start of February, outperforming the National Stock Exchange Nifty Auto Index. The gains for the leader of small passenger cars have been more recent, as the company still trails the Nifty Auto over one- and two-year periods.
Japanese chief cabinet secretary Katsunobu Kato declined to give details but said Japan would make every effort to protect the Games from possible hacking attempts.
Indian Oil Corp is ranked highest at 161st in the Fortune 500 list.
Automakers Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra and Kia reported robust growth in their vehicle dispatches in the domestic market for August buoyed by festive demand and easing of semiconductor shortage woes. Other manufacturers like Hyundai, Toyota and Skoda also reported growth in wholesales in August as compared with the same month last year. The country's largest automaker Maruti Suzuki India said its domestic passenger vehicle dispatches increased by 30 per cent to 134,166 units in August as compared with 103,187 units in the year-ago month.
Car makers are trying hard to boost sales in India.
The 2016 Ford Endeavour 2.2 is a beast of a vehicle which though is a bit down on power as compared to its 3.2-litre version but it is a monster in itself nonetheless
The China auto show saw some amazing models being rolled out, some for the first time. Rajesh Karera/Rediff.com picks the best of the lot.
Hyundai Motor and Toyota Kirloskar Motor have announced the suspension of manufacturing operations at their respective plants amid coronavirus outbreak. On Sunday, various automakers like Maruti Suzuki India, Honda Cars, Mahindra & Mahindra and Fiat announced a temporary halt in manufacturing operations at their respective facilities.
The recall will affect 2,910 units of the sedan version of Sail and 1,090 units of compact car variant of the model.
Another downgrade for Tokyo Olympics that have their pomp and public spectacle overshadowed by COVID-19
Many say Tata Motors has perhaps paid the price for being too ambitious.
'More than one brand in a showroom is too risky because customer loyalty in this market is low. Most people don't drive different cars made by the same manufacturer for a lifetime, they experiment.'
Tata Motors, Ford, Nissan, Maruti Suzuki, Toyota Kirloskar, BMW, Renault and Isuzu have also announced price hike from next month citing impact of increase in commodity prices and foreign exchange rates.
The previous May peak was observed in 2018 when the domestic PV wholesales stood at 301,238 units.
India's flagship motor show Auto Expo 2023 kicked off on Wednesday with the global unveiling of Suzuki Motor Corporation's concept electric SUV 'eVX' which is slated to hit the market by 2025. The company's Indian arm Maruti Suzuki India is among the major manufacturers participating in the show that has returned after three years. The Concept eVX is a mid-size electric SUV concept designed and developed by Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC), Japan. It will be powered by a 60 kWh battery pack offering up to 550 km of driving range on single charge.
Hero MotoCorp, Honda Motorcycles, Scooters India, TVS, Honda India, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Ford, Nissan, Ashok Leyland are all giving the Auto Expo a miss this time.
There was not a dry eye in sight as 3,024 beneficiaries of a slum rehabilitation project were overwhelmed by emotion as Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi handed them the keys to their new homes at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
Leading carmakers Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Tata Motors reported robust dispatches to dealers in May on the back of strong demand for passenger vehicles across regions, even as the global semiconductor shortage continued to impact production. Mahindra & Mahindra, Kia India, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Honda Cars and Skoda also witnessed strong demand for their models last month. The month of May also witnessed Tata Motors race ahead of Hyundai in terms of domestic wholesales.
There are few firms that are applauded for managing a healthy top line growth along with an impressive brand image that inspires most companies.
The limited availability of flexible (flex)-fuel vehicles in the Indian market and the slow rollout of ethanol-blended petrol by oil-marketing companies (OMCs) remain major obstacles to achieving widespread use of biofuels in the transportation sector in India. Recently, two Union ministers have emphasised India's biofuel potential, arguing that it has the capacity and potential to lead a transition towards widespread biofuel adoption. Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari signalled that this transition is well underway and urged car manufacturers to quickly adapt and introduce new biofuel-run vehicles, lest the government resort to taxing diesel vehicles.
Modi is courting Japanese investment in an ambitious industrial "corridor" to run between Delhi and Mumbai.
Driven by strong demand, the overall passenger vehicle dispatches crossed 3.35 lakh units in February as automakers, including Maruti Suzuki India, Hyundai, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra, reported robust sales during the month. The dispatches of more than 3.35 lakh units last month marked an 11 per cent over February 2022. It was also the highest ever overall wholesales in the month of February. The country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India on Wednesday said its domestic wholesales rose 11 per cent to 155,114 units in February as compared with 140,035 units in the same month last year.
India is a market for low-priced cars with low running costs. The global majors don't have models that fit the bill; only Maruti and Hyundai have successful entry-level models, observes T N Ninan.
The new Duster will go head-to-head with popular models like Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Volkswagen Taigun, Skoda Kushaq, Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder, MG Astor, etc in the highly competitive mid-size SUV segment.
Experts attribute the high valuation of Indian auto makers to the faster growth in India compared to the rest of the world.
The next edition of the country's leading automobile show, the Auto Expo, will be held from January 13-18 next year, having been cancelled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The last edition of the biennial automobile show took place in February 2020 amid fears of the spread of the coronavirus across the world. It was supposed to take place in February this year at Greater Noida but was postponed due to the worsening COVID-19 situation.
Tokyo has mostly delivered on that hope, despite some early teething problems.
The global semiconductor shortage hit passenger vehicle sales in September, with major manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Mahindra & Mahindra reporting a decline in sales on Friday. Kia India and Honda Cars also reported a dip in wholesales last month as compared with the year-ago period. Carmakers like Tata Motors, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Nissan and Skoda, however, reported an increase in passenger vehicle dispatches last month despite supply chain issues.
The company, which currently sells a range of vehicles from Alto to S-Cross, said it has taken the decision to hike prices due to an increase in input costs. The weighted average price rise, with effect from April 18, in ex-showroom prices (New Delhi) across models is 1.3 per cent, it added.
http://im.rediff.com/money/2023/jul/20uv.jpg
'Some of the launches may get deferred due to the semiconductor shortage, which is unlikely to get resolved before the second half of 2022.'
India is sceptical that Tesla might import into the country cars made in China. Tesla executives were in India last month and appear to have proposed a factory in the country. But do not be surprised if that does not happen in a hurry.
After a long delay, Thailand opened its twice-postponed Bangkok international motor show to the public as coronavirus restrictions eased, with nearly all attendees wearing masks and face shields.
The deadly coronavirus has forced us to adopt new ways of life.
