Top Ten Cars in India

16 October,2012: Maruti Suzuki India’s people’s car, Maruti Alto 800 is finally out with a price tag of Rs.2.44 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi). Maruti has rolled out three standard variants-Alto 800 Base, Alto 800 LX and Alto 800 LXi and three CNG variants -Alto 800 CNG Base,Alto 800 CNG LX and Alto 800 CNG LXi. Maruti Suzuki India received about 10,000+ bookings for the Alto 800 even before the company announced the prices. Alto 800 comes with wavefront design and sloping window lines with a swaying roof. The headlamps are petal shaped and comes along with stylish grille and bumper. The Rear end of this people’s vehicle is Jewel finish with lamps and the designing is attractive. Coming to the interiors the central console is spacious and easily accessible, the steering wheel is three spoke. The 3 cylinder F8D engine is 796cc and comes with 12 valves plus the engine is computer controlled which generates 47.5bhp peak power and 69Nm torque and comes mated with a five speed manual transmission gearbox. Maruti has introduced all new Cable type gear shift mechanism for smooth gear shifting with Detent Pin Technology, Diagonal shift assist and Flat torque to avoid frequent shifting. The mileage figure offered by Maruti Alto 800 standard variant is 22.74kmpl for standard and 30.46kmpl for CNG ones. Maruti Alto 800 is definitely going to change the entry-level hatchback segment and has all the features to go straight in the top ten bestseller vehicle's list. 

20 September,2012: Mahindra India has expanded its utility vehicle portfolio with the launch of Mahindra Quanto aka Mini Xylo which is tagged at a price of Rs.5.82 lakh (ex-showroom Mumbai price). This compact SUV is launched in four guises namely Mahindra Quanto C2, Mahindra Quanto C4, Mahindra Quanto C6, Mahindra Quanto C8.Mahindra Quanto is the first sub four meter SUV in the segment yet can easily seat 7 people. This compact SUV is powered by a the 1.5-litre, 3-cylinder, twin-turbocharged CRDi diesel engine which is christened as mCR100 in Mahindra’s language. The engine comes coupled with a five-speed manual transmission gearbox, and this amalgamation is able to churn out the maximum of 100bhp power and 240Nm of torque. What grabs the attention is the mileage figure of this compact SUV which is claimed to 17.21kmpl as Mahindra has given the vehicle a twin scroll turbo engine which is the smallest turbo engine in the world and explains the high mileage figure. If this was not enough to lure the buyers, the company has added features like ABS, 2 Air bags, reverse park assist, micro-hybrid start-stop technology plus the top end variants Quanto C6 and C8 are adorned with features like Drive seat height adjust and Integrated Audio system. 

29 September 2012: Renault India following the trend of the Indian car market has announced the price hike for its recently launched top selling SUV, Renault Duster. The price hike is going to be effective from the month of October and will range from Rs.30,000 to Rs.40,000 across India. Renault Duster was launched with an introductory price of Rs 7.19 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi) for its base variant and received an amazing response with clocking in over 20,000 bookings. The diesel variant houses  a 1.5 litre, dCi, K9K diesel and boasts of a fuel efficiency of 20.45 km/litre (ARAI figures) which is  gonna see a price hike of Rs.40,000 while the petrol variant which is powered by a 1.6 litre engine churns our 104PS and gives a fuel average of 13.24 Km/litre prices are going to be raised by Rs.30,000.

15 October,2012: Ford India has finally released the refreshed version of its hatch Figo with a price tag of Rs.3.85 lakh for base petrol variant and Rs. 4.82 lakh for the base diesel variant (both prices ex-showroom New Delhi) which is exactly the same as before. Ford claims to have introduced 100 changes with 10 styling introductions without charging a penny more from the consumers. Although the American Auto major has not tweaked the powertrain and the engine specifications remain to be same as before. Ford Figo hatch which changed the American auto manufacturers fortune in India,celebrated its second birthday this year and has finally been overhauled to emerge as the 2012 version.2012 Ford Figo boasts of features like refreshed headlamps, steering mounted audio controls, newfangled tail lamps, freshly introduced alloy wheels, refreshed front bumper and new fabric upholstery. Apart from these Ford has also introduced two new colurs-Kinetic Blue (taken  from the Fiesta) and Bright Yellow. Also  the sporty red dashboard plastic colour has been replaced by cool navy blue.

25 May, 2012: Maruti Swift emerged as the top selling car in Indian automobile market in April, 2012. The sales of this premier hatchback outpaced highest selling model Maruti Alto in April, thanks to the diesel variants of Swift. 19,484 units of Maruti Swift were sold in April as compared to 17,842 units of Alto. Although Maruti Swift diesel price ranges from Rs 5.53 lakh to Rs 6.76 lakh (ex showroom Delhi) which is much ahead of entry level Maruti car-Alto, people preferred former over petrol powered Alto. The extraordinary gap between petrol and diesel price (Rs 30/Litre currently) has resulted in this outpacing activity where Swift has dethroned 7 years champion Alto. The grip of latter is expected to lose with time with people’s tilt towards diesel wagons.

11 October,2012: Mahindra XUV 500, the Cheetah inspired SUV’s AWD (All Wheel Drive) variant is soon going to be out for grabs. Mahindra and Mahindra the utility vehicle giant has opened the bookings for the Mahindra XUV 500 AWD with an amount of Rs.40,000.Mahindra XUV 500 previous bookings figure reached 32,000+ bookings in June and 25,000+ bookings in February this year, the company is expecting no less this time. In all the fun and frolic, the one thing that  puts a set back to the happy atmosphere is the fact that the customers may have to wait for as long as 2-3 months before deliveries start taking place.Mahindra XUV 500 have already proved its worth in the market and the AWD option can further amplify XUV 500 position in the market against its arch rivals like yet to launch Tata Safari Storme,Tata Aria and old players like Toyota Fortuner and Ford Endeavour.

16th-Jan-2012: Rs 2.98 lakh is the ex-showroom Delhi price quoted for the LPG version of base model of Hyundai EON i.e. D-lite+. Hyundai India has today, silently slipped in three new LPG variants of its cheapest hatchback-EON. Hyundai EON LPG price for all three new variants- Hyundai EON D-Lite+, Hyundai EON Era+ and Hyundai EON Magna+ is kept around Rs 27,000 higher than their petrol counterparts. Along with the factory-fitted separate 32 litres petrol tank and 34 litres LPG cylinder, new features coming aboard are air-conditioning, gift shift indicator, body coloured bumpers and power steering in D Lite+, front power windows and central locking in Hyundai EON Era+ for Rs 3.12 lakh, 2-Din audio system with USB, Aux-in support in Magna+ model for Rs 3.42 lakh. A two-year warranty is being offered by the company with LPG cylinders. All said the most interesting part of this value addition is that one can go over 12,000 km with a full tank of LPG and petrol. This proves that Hyundai EON mileage has been enhanced considerably in new LPG variants.

28th-Mar-2012: Hyundai India has finally slipped in the next generation Hyundai i20 priced at Rs 4.73 lakh. The i-Gen i20, available in 12 variants comes in both petrol and diesel variants. The i20 petrol variants range from Rs 4.73 lakh to Rs 6.65 lakh; the diesel variants range from Rs 5.96 lakh to Rs 7.44 lakh and the automatic variant is priced at Rs 7.67 lakh. A new refined 1.2 Kappa petrol engine with Dual VTVT mechanism is seen on-board now which delivers 84 Ps of peak power. The diesel variants now are affixed with fresh 1.4 litre CRDi diesel engine with 6-speed manual transmission. The automatic petrol variant Hyundai i20 Sportz delivers 100 Ps power and 13.9 kg-m of torque. Rear Parking Camera with display in the cabin mirror, Electro Chromic Mirror, Clean Air-Cluster  ionizer, Auto Headlight Control Function, 6 Airbags, Rear Disc Brakes, Supervision Cluster and Rain Sensing Wipers are the segment first features debuted in 2012 Hyundai i20.

25 May, 2012: Maruti Ertiga, the life utility vehicle from the stables of India’s most trusted brand Maruti has set a recording of clocking in 32,000+ bookings in just a month from its launch. The reason behind the increase in demand of this MUV is cited as the cost at which it is available in the B+ hatchback segment.  Interestingly Maruti Ertiga MPV's 70% booking is for the diesel variant. At present Maruti manufactures 6,000 units monthly and this massive demand of the vehicle has increased the waiting period up to six months. Maruti Ertiga MPV is being manufactured at the Maruti Suzuki Gurgaon production unit but the auto major is trying to find other manufacturing units to assist the production in order to fulfill the rising demand of this MPV. Maruti Ertiga's price is expected to hike in coming time; when Maruti India launched Ertiga the price quoted of the car was between INR 5.89 lakh for petrol and INR 8.45 lakh for diesel.

25 June, 2012: Maruti Suzuki for a while has been testing a new 800cc engine for their bestseller Maruti Alto.The test mule with Alto 800 badging has been recently caught on lenses giving the market a hint about what to expect with the revamped car. The overhauled Maruti Alto will come with an all new front fascia that features small grille and laid back headlamps. The lower grille has adopted a hexagonal shape and is akin to the grille offered by Ford Figo.The new Alto 800 has also gone taller and offers more headroom space. New Maruti Alto 800 seems like a fresh breath of air and represents Maruti India’s new design philosophy. However, the profiling still resembles Alto’s sibling Maruti A-Star,  as the new 800 Alto has got the same old-school boot-lid and rising beltline. The market is also expecting that Maruti Suzuki might even tweak the 800cc engine for not just better fuel efficiency but also for better performance.

9 May, 2012: Maruti has yet again raised the price of diesel powered Maruti Swift Dzire by Rs 8,000-Rs 12,000. The nearly 2% hike in prices has been done for the second time after Union budget. Maruti played smart by launching Maruti Swift Dzire at luring introductory prices to garner maximum bookings. However, soon the company has landed back to the actual pricing of the sedan to cut respectable profits. The brand image of Swift Dzire sedan has heightened till that extant that people do not give a second thought to buy it, however, it remains to be seen if the car continues its 15,000 sales mark from next month onwards. Maruti Swift Dzire LDI price is now Rs 5.99 lakh starting the diesel range while Maruti Swift Dzire VDI price has been increased to Rs 6.52 lakh. The range topper Maruti Swift Dzire ZDi gets pricier by Rs 12,000 and now costs Rs 7.34 lakh (all prices ex-showroom, Delhi).

4 September, 2012:  Along with lowering down the sedan counterpart Vento, Volkswagen India is going to follow the same procedure with the hatch Polo meaning the high end variant Volkswagen Polo Highline prices too are going to go down by Rs.20,000 to Rs.50,000.Volkswagen Polo Highline petrol prices are going to be slashed down to Rs. 5,84,400 from the current price of  Rs.6,24,409and the diesel variant will give you a relief of around Rs.42,000 and is tagged at Rs. 6,94,400. The refreshed Polo will now come loaded with features like black headlamps, new design alloy wheels, leather wrapped steering wheel, RCD 310 music system with USB connectivity, multifunction steering wheel, and Bluetooth device. The top end variant, Volkswagen Polo Highline garners 40-60% of the overall sales of the Polo lineup.

17 October,2012: Mahindra Ssangyong Rexton, the first offspring of the Mahindra India and South Korean auto major Ssangyong is finally out on Indian roads at an introductory price of Rs.17.67 Lakh for RX5 manual variant and Rs. 19.67 lakh for the RX7 automatic variant(both prices ex-showroom Mumbai). The third generation of the Ssangyong Rexton W SUV is brought in through CKD route and is manufactured at Mahindra India’s Chakan facility.Mahindra Ssangyong Rexton W is offered in both 5-seater  and  7-seater trims. The SUV derives its energy from a 2696cc diesel engine which comes with 5 pots and is offered in two set of tunes. The manual variant which is dubbed as RX270 XDi’s engine cranks out 162bhp @ 4000 rpm and 340Nm torque at a range of 1800-3250rpm whereas the Automatic variant’s engine yields 184bhp @ 4000rpm and 402Nm torque @1600-3000rpm, stating a difference of 22bhp power and 62Nm in manual and automatic variant. Mahindra has priced Rexton extremely competitively with a difference of Rs.2 lakh less than Fortuner and Endeavour, however the catch here is these prices are just introductory.

18 October,2012: Honda Brio much talked about automatic transmission variants are finally out at a starting price of Rs.5.74 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi).Honda Brio automatic transmission option is made available with two variants Honda Brio ‘S (O)’- the mid range variant and ‘V’-the top end variant. Honda Brio has also introduced one new manual variant with the the two automatic ones which is dubbed as Honda Brio EX MT that comes fraught up with features like 1 DIN audio system with four speakers, body colored ORVMs and door handles and Door CTR Sash tape that enhances the styling of the hatch and makes it more alluring to the buyers. The Honda Brio AT version is equipped with 4 pots 1.2L i-VTEC engine that offers power output of 86bhp @ 6000rpm and 109Nm @ 4500rpm. The car is also affixed with 5 speed transmission gearbox in case of automatic variants and six speed in case of manual transmission gearbox. The engine plus manual/ automatic transmission gearboxes delivers mileage of 19.4kmpl for the MT gearbox and 16.5kmpl for the AT one. Honda Cars India has also introduced safety features like dual SRS front airbags, Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD), front pre-tensioner seat belts to prevent sudden jerks in case of a  crash and impact-mitigating headrests.

17 October, 2012: The much awaited and talked about sports utility vehicle from the renowned Indian manufacturer Tata Motors, Tata Safari Storme covers are finally lifted.Tata Safari Storme has come out in four guises which are dubbed as Tata Safari Storme LX ,Tata Safari Storme EX,Tata Safari Storme VX,Tata Safari Storme VX 4WD which are priced at Rs 9.95 lakh, 10.77 lakh, 12.37 lakh and 13.66 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi).Tata Safari Storme aka Tata Merlin was showcased at the Auto Expo this year was apparently supposed to launch this early July, then in September; however the car launch kept on delaying as Tata Motors wanted to hold its card close to itself  and was watching the competition bring in their vehicles. Also the company was fine tuning the vehicle so that Tata Safari Storme is at par with the competition in terms of design and specifications. Tata Safari Storme is largely spawned on  Tata Aria’s platform and no doubt is a better product that its inspirer. The SUV is powered with a 2.2L DiCOR engine that comes coupled with the 5-speed manual transmission gearbox. The 2.2L diesel engine is capable to generate the 138bhp peak power and 320Nm torque value the two-wheel drive option which returns an impressive 14kmpl for the 2WD option, while the 4wd offers 13.2kmpl. The interiors have been done in pseudo wood finish, while the high quality upholstery further adds more charm to the SUV. The wheel arches on the exterior have been done beautifully with new wheels, which come out to be the USP of the car. 

3 September,2012: The facelifted version of the best selling hatchback from the stables of Hyundai India has been spotted doing test runs in the country. This newfangled and heavily camouflaged test mule of the charming Hyundai i10 seems to have gone through quite a few cosmetic changes overall. This new Hyundai i10 is expected to be showcased at the upcoming Frankfurt Automobile Show, which will be held in 2013. This new version seems slightly bigger than the prevalent version and there are speculations that it will also have the incredibly amazing fluidic design as well. According to the spy shots on the interweb, this latest hatchback seems to have got a set of classy alloy wheels as well. There are also rumors that this refurbished hatchback will be offered with a 1.1 litre diesel engine with the acclaimed common rail technology along with a refined 1.0L kappa petrol power train as well. Both these engines are being said to be extremely fuel efficient and will perform much better than the existing 1.1 litre petrol mill.

24 May, 2012: Hyundai Verna Fluidic has spent more than a year on Indian roads and the growth curve for this modernistic sedan has been tremendous. According to Hyundai officials, Verna is the segment leader among C segment cars in India, thanks to its top notch fit and finish and futuristic design. In another attempt to push sales, Hyundai will bless the sedan with automatic gearbox option with the trim version of Hyundai Verna 1.6 Litre Diesel. By providing automatic transmission, Hyundai will remove airbag and alloy wheels from the variant, which in turn will cut down the price from Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 75000. As of now, Hyundai India is offering four speed automatic transmission in Verna’s top end SX (O) variant. Also, the carmaker is offering reversing camera (usually offered on high-end cars) as standard across all the variants. The camera works only when the reverse gear is active and helps in parking mostly. This is a much better feature compared to reverse parking sensors present in rival cars.

30th-Jan-2012: New Chevrolet Beat diesel is now accorded the title of ‘Most fuel efficient car’ by delivering 25.44 kmpl, thus surpassing the Tata Indica eV2  which was until now claimed to be the small car associated with highest mileage of 25 kmpl in the country. The body International Center for Automotive Testing (ICAT) has acknowledged Beat diesel as the most fuel efficient car in India after the auto major has endowed the car with a minor engine overhaul to see such a huge improvement in the mileage numbers from the original 24 kmpl to 25.44 kmpl. It is more or less the similar case as seen with Tata Indica eV2 which was later introduced with a similar improvement in the 1.4 L diesel engine to emerge out to be the most fuel efficient car. Earlier, Chevrolet India raised the price of Beat Diesel by Rs 50,000.

27 September,2012: Toyota India in order to gain attention and give a competition to the new entrants in the MPV market, have launched a limited edition of Toyota Innova  christened as Toyota Innova Aero in both 7 and 8-seater options at a price of Rs 12,25,677 and 12,30,207 respectively (ex-showroom Delhi). Toyota is going to roll out 1200 units of Toyota Innova Aero and the car will be sold till December 2012. Toyota Innova limited edition has come out around the festive season plus also when the MPV has lost its top position to the new entrant Toyota Innova. The new features to get on board includes Dual tone front bumper spoiler, Dual Tone Rear Bumper Spoiler,Side Skirt  and new Roof Spoiler. The New Innova Aero is offered in the GX Grade and is available in options of a 7 seater and an 8 seater and is available in Euro III and Euro IV. The Aero kit is specially designed to enhance the overall appearance of the vehicle giving the car a refreshed looks and new appeal. The New Innova Aero is offered in two exclusive colours - Super White and Silver Mica Metallic.

7 September,2012: The French auto major, Renault launched Sunny’s  twin sister Scala sedan in the capital city of India Delhi with a price tag of Rs.6.99 lakh for the petrol variant and Rs. 8.69 lakh for the diesel variant(both prices ex-showroom New Delhi). In all there will be four variant Renault Scala RxE and Renault Scala RxL in petrol and Renault Scala RxL and Renault Scala RxZ for diesel.The Petrol variant is powered with the XH2 whereas the diesel one houses Renault’s frugal K9K diesel engine. The 1498cc XH2 petrol engine cranks out 97.6bhp @6000rpmwith a torque value of 134Nm @ 4000rpm  that delivers a mileage of 16.95kmpl and the frugal 1461cc Renault K9K diesel mill generates more pulling power with 200Nm @ 2000rpm and a power figure of 84.8bhp which  offers you a mileage figure of 21.64kmpl . The engines performance is enhanced and supported with the 5 speed automatic and manual gearbox in petrol whereas in diesel it’s going to be just the manual one. The dimensions of this French finery are 4425mm x 1695mm x 1505mm with a wheelbase of 2600mm and a ground clearance of 161mm. The boot space is of 490 liters with a seating capacity of 5 people.

21 August, 2012: Maruti Suzuki India has rolled out a limited edition of its hatchback Wagon R, called Wagon R PRO. The limited edition of Wagon R Pro will come with a host of up-gradation and features like double-din music system with speakers, a rear spoiler, bumper protectors, body graphics, seat covers and side mouldings. Maruti Suzuki India offers this accessories at its authorized dealerships at a price of Rs.30,000. However with this limited edition one can buy these accessories at Rs.20,000 only translating into a saving of Rs.10,000.Maruti Suzuki India is trying to lure the potential buyers with the limited edition as the Indian car market has apparently titled towards diesel powered cars. Also, a facelift version of Maruti Wagon R is due to arrive in early 2013. Stay tuned in for more updates.

3 September, 2012: Maruti Suzuki India has introduced a newfangled version of its hatchback, Maruti Ritz Diesel with a price tag of Rs.5.31 lakh (ex showroom Mumbai). The 2012 Maruti Ritz comes with 52 exciting new features namely an all new front fascia, two-tone interiors, multi-information display on instrument panel, new audio system with USB, electrically operated ORVMs and body side moulding. This is not all; the company has also introduced an all new variant Maruti Ritz ZDI, the high end variant of Maruti vehicles which comes with top of the line features such as Alloy Wheels, Dual Front Air Bags and steering audio controls. On top of it the fuel efficiency has been increased by 10% which translates into a figure of 23.2kmpl from 21.1kmpl. The improvement on the fuel efficiency levels is the result of 1248cc DDiS engine which cranks out torque figure of 190Nm@ 2000rpm and unmatched power of 73.9bhp@4000rpm.

26-March-2012 : Nissan Motor India is expected to launch an automatic version of Nissan Sunny by February 2013 . The Nissan Sunny Automatic will be equipped with a basic Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) box and will be available only with the petrol engine. Generally a CVT box keeps the costs down and provides pricing advantage in Indian markets. We recently saw the same happen with Maruti Swift Dzire AT when it was equipped with the cheapest automatic four-speed transmission box in the market on the petrol variant. Automatic Nissan Sunny price is expected to be only Rs. 80,000 more than its manual petrol engine variant.

23 October,2012: Honda Cars India has launched the new tweaked 2012 Honda Cityvariant which is compatible with the CNG bi-fuel option. The new altered Honda City CNG will go compatible with the CNG bi-fuel option in India who are looking forward to a alternative fuel option as petrol and diesel prices are both on a high. One can get the CNG kit installed with an additional payment of Rs.50,200. The new CNG variant will come in V grade and the CNG can be affixed at the 45 Honda Dealerships across India. To increase the efficiency Honda has optimized the 1.5L, 4 cylinder i-VTEC drivetrain and the suspension has been tweaked to give more stability to the car so that the CNG cylinder could be accommodated. Apart from introducing the CNG kit Honda has introduced 1.5V Leather with AVN(Audio Visual Navigation)which features ultra-premium-one-class-above features like Touch Screen, Audio Visual Navigation, Bluetooth, DVD player in addition to CD Player, USB/I-Pod/Aux-in connectivity and Leather upholstery with Leather wrapped steering wheel and Leather wrapped Gear Shift Knob (in MT).The complete range of Honda City now includes- Corporate, E, S MT/AT, V MT/AT, V (Leather with Sunroof) MT/AT, V (AVN) MT/AT (new) and V MT modified for CNG kit fitment (new).

25 May, 2012: Mahindra Scorpio SUV is going under scalpel and W105 is the code name given to Mahindra’s facelift project. The refreshed version of Mahindra Scorpio is likely to arrive in the year 2014. The all new Mahindra Scorpio is likely to lose weight and the auto major has designed a special project called T026 to reduce down the weight of the car by 260 kilograms with the incorporation of fibre parts which is going to increase the efficiency level of the car and is going to make it more frugal. Mahindra is likely to add an all-new heart to new Scorpio; the 2.2L engine from the Cheetah XUV 500 that churns out 140bhp-330Nm torque is likely to go under the hood of Scorpio. To increase the legroom space in the middle row, Mahindra is eyeing to increase the wheelbase.