After the Nano on road, all the companies are behind making the ultra low-cost cars. Renault/Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn on Sunday said the company was committed to develop a budget car in partnership with Bajaj Auto despite some differences and difficulties on the project. 

The car is expected to be on the roads soon. Though prices are not yet revealed or said that whether the price would be on a par with the Rs 1-lakh Nano. The car is not only for India but globally. 

Ghosn said that the entry price point, which will be $2,500 is still very important for the market, not only for India, but also for lot of emerging markets and we have to bring in the car with basic feature, basic functionality at a very affordable price.

He, however, declined to comment if their proposed small car would stick to the earlier announced price point of $2,500. "..(whether) it is going to be $2,500 or $2,800 or $3,000 (not sure)... (but) I am stuck into making customers happy and satisfied. But it is not going to be very far of ...," Ghosn said when asked if project is stuck due to differences with Bajaj on issues like price point as well as branding. The company is aware about the competitors like Tata that has already put the car in the market ... its moving on. They will also continue to work to bring in this car (with Bajaj) into the market. 

The Indian car market is booming with moving from two million cars a year to six million cars a year, this is very appealing to global carmakers and Ghosn is also aware about it. 

Ghosn also lauded India's capability in frugal engineering and frugal product planning and said it was crucial in the backdrop of the global downturn and shift towards small and lower-priced products.

He said, “The products that are selling the most are the products affordable but with just necessary features and I think Indian engineers are second to none in this segment,” he added.”

Ghosn also said the plant at Chennai, where Renault and Nissan had jointly announced to invest Rs4,200 crore to produce four lakh cars annually, is likely to start production in the early part of 2010. The car is expected to be coming to India first to your surprise! So, wait and watch.

Related News:
Nissan to Built Tata Nano like Small & Cheap V-Car
Nissan’s ‘Scratch Shield’ paint to be applied to mobile phones
Nissan Starts Registration for Handraisers of Nissan LEAF EV
Nissan’s another addition in India: Murano

Related Books:
How to Build a Successful Low Cost Rally Car
Development of an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle
Vehicles

Add a comment

Posted by Naresh Koshti on 11 November, 2009 11:48:33 AM IST #