The Hindu Business Line : The Ninth Auto Expo 2008 — From people’s cars to gods of speed

The biannual Auto Expo held in the country’s capital is an opportunity for the domestic automobile industry to showcase its best products, new technology and emerging trends.

This year, the ninth edition of the Auto Expo, arguably the biggest ever, was a celebration of the emergence of the Indian automotive industry as a global technology and manufacturing hub.

The ongoing 9th Auto Expo 2008 is also unique compared to the previous editions, as it has brought together the most diverse range of products and technologies that are the very latest and not a few generations old. The Auto Expo has also always been a platform for launching new cars and some of the most loved and most successful Indian vehicles were first unveiled here.

Here, too, the current Auto Expo will set a record of sorts with the amazing range of cars, bikes, commercial vehicles and other products that were debuted. The cars and bikes that were launched at the Expo this year straddled both ends of the price spectrum, ranging from the affordable scooter to super-premium, super-performance bikes, and from the ultra low-cost, ‘Rs 1-lakh’ car to the super-luxury Rs 1-crore vehicles.

The Auto Expo has always been a big draw, not just for the business visitor looking for local partnerships and buyers, but also for the general visitor, drawn by the glamour of new cars and bikes.

Nano, a great hit

This year’s expo was overwhelmed by the huge expectations surrounding the Tatas’ Rs 1-lakh car, and the Nano lived up to it. Though the Nano was clearly the biggest attraction in the ultra affordable small car space at the Expo, there were equally interesting attractions in the top-end luxury passenger cars segment.

BMW opted to launch its M-Series cars at the Auto Expo. The cars from BMW’s M-Division are considered the ultimate expression of luxury and performance. The M3 coupe, the M5 sedan and the M6 coupe are all being launched, priced at Rs 75 lakh to Rs 1.25 crore.

On the other side of the German pavilion at the Expo, rival Mercedes Benz launched its much-awaited new C-Class sedan. The new C-Class is bigger, more luxurious and better equipped than its predecessor. The Indian arm of the German car major has also launched the CLK-Class, a sporty and luxurious cabriolet that joins the company’s portfolio of imports.

Tata Motors, which unveiled the Nano, the most-awaited car launch of recent times (dare we say even worldwide) at the Expo, also pulled the wraps off three other new products. The new generation Indica, the Indigo CS (compact size) and the new Sumo Grande were all showcased at the massive Tata pavilion, that the company shared with Italian alliance partner Fiat.

Fiat had also brought in the cute Fiat 500, the Grande Punto and the Linea at the Expo. All three cars are likely to be launched in India, with the Punto and the Linea to be manufactured at the joint Tata-Fiat plant in Ranjangaon and the 500 or Cinquecento to be imported from Italy.

GM, which is participating at the Expo after a hiatus, also had a big presence at the Expo, showcasing some of the best products from its global portfolio, including the Hummer H3 and the Cadillac CTS. GM also launched the Chevrolet Captiva, its new premium sports utility vehicle, priced at about Rs 17 lakh.

Bajaj, which has also been partnered by Renault for exploring the possibility of a ultra low-cost car similar to the Tata Nano, also unveiled its own prototype. The Bajaj mini-car, built on a new LITE platform, has been developed in-house and could be taken forward further by both the partners later this month.

Cool concepts

This year’s Auto Expo will also be remembered for the number of new generation concept cars that such companies as Hyundai, Honda and Maruti Suzuki unveiled.

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) unveiled three concept cars at the Expo, the A-Star, the Splash super hatch and the Kizashi, a platform for a potential D-segment sedan. The Kizashi signifies the Suzuki intent to be present in every segment of the global car market, including premium sedans.

The A-Star was the most interesting of all the concepts on display and it was designed and developed by a joint team of Indian and Japanese engineers from Maruti and Suzuki. The concept A-Star is Maruti’s boldest brush with design, and features a number of design elements that draw inspiration from Indian themes.

The exterior features a floating grille, teardrop shaped daylight openings, headlamps that draw inspiration from an elephant’s eye, boomerang-shaped LED tail lamps and brake lights that come alive with an inviting pink glow, panels with embossing that feature the Indian paisley design and alloy wheels embellished with pink embossing.

Hyundai Motor India, on the other hand, showcased two of its latest international concept cars — the QarmaQ and Veloster, which involve innovative new applications of plastics. Hyundai also used the Auto Expo platform for debuting the LPG version of its popular Santro Xing.

Two-wheelers

In the two-wheeler space, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India launched its new scooter — the Aviator, targeted at male riders and priced at Rs 39,500.

The other big bike launches at the expo were from Bajaj, which unveiled plans to manufacture and import high-powered sports bikes along with its two partners KTM and Kawasaki.

In the meanwhile, Suzuki’s two-wheeler arm and its Indian subsidiary Suzuki Motorcycle India are showcasing the concept bike Biplane for the very first time in India at the Expo.

The Suzuki Biplane is a motorcycle that looks like it can fly. It’s powered by a V4 engine of undetermined size. Beyond that, this particular design study is aircraft-inspired in that the intent is to give the rider the same feeling as being in an open-canopied Biplane. The stylish, neat, extreme fast-looking and sleek Biplane, with a yellow shell, was earlier showcased at the Tokyo Motor Show 2007.

Overall, this year’s Auto Expo will be marked as one that acquired a local and global flavour, with a clear focus on high technology, and where Indian manufacturers and Indian talent found unprecedented representation.