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Honda Jazz - First Honda on Discount Ever! |
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Written by Abhinav Sharma
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Thursday, 21 January 2010 17:48 |
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Pune: Okay here is Honda sitting on its hands in India trying hard to sell its Jazz. Yes, the indian customer has finally caught up with Honda's Jazz showing them that they will not take the Honda badge for granted. Even if it means, pricing a very good car at 7.99 lacs On Road Pune. Jazz is now with 40K off on its price and the loan can be had for as low as 5.8% compared to the industrial average of 11% odd. Honda could barely sell 500 Jazz's last month which was a new low for this model when rest of the car market grew exponentially. Another point to note is that this is the first Honda on a discount. Honda sales have always been strong through-out the model range and its the Jazz that spoilt the party. The car which though is an excellent one comes with no automatic climate control and a puny 1.2 iVTEC engine. Even the new launched Beat LT comes with climate control at just 4.6 lacs on road Pune, and it has had a good number of bookings. Another Honda that sells in not even single digits but the binary numbering system is the CRV. Yes, believe it or not, it has been a while since it sold in either 0 or 1 numbers. The lack of a diesel and solid oil burners from the competition like the Toyota Fortuner, Ford Endeavor and Chevy Captiva has killed this otherwise good soft roader. The all new Honda City is the only car averaging consistent 4000 cars a month because the Accord too has been toppled by the the new Superb for the top slot. The key was the pricing here and S-Class features for 3 lacs less than the Japanese and an awesome 1.8 Turbo petrol unit. Huh enough Honda. Get your pricing straight because you are hanging with a very thin string called the City in the indian market. One futuristic looking car with an awesome engine and you will be toast. Will the next gen Fiesta do the trick, only time will tell. SX4 for sure won't.
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Last Updated on Thursday, 21 January 2010 18:09 |
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What's Wrong With FIAT India? |
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Written by Abhinav Sharma
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Saturday, 02 January 2010 22:40 |
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Yes I agree that December is a slow month and the slowness is offset only by massive discounts thrown in by manufacturers like Ford every year and Chevrolet and Tata this year but still this is a little too much to expect from a brand which has a premium hatchback in it's line up with three engine options and the gorgeous looking sedan which is awesome value for money (too long this sentence). Anyway FIAT India sold just and I say again...just 1008 cars this Decmeber, which is scary. They sold 1965 cars in November which was down but still okay. This is a little unexpected but I still do not have the separate figures for Linea and Punto. FIAT should be thinking what to do now because their partner in the Indian market TATA sold 20706 cars in November and was down to 14654 cars in December. Manza is selling comfortably about 5000 units of this month. December was about 5000 units and November was 5900 units which is not a decline considering its the end of the year. FIAT needs to get this straightened up and get the product quality in line with others. I have seen enough Linea's with half the alphabets of the badging EMOTION missing from the boot lid. The chrome strips fall off soon and the dumb looking mud flaps that TATA dealers drill (yes you read it right, they are drilled into the car) into the bumpers of these cars are not a pleasant scene on the roads. They need to get some more liveliness into the brand and launch a small car sooner. The Linea T-Jet should also come in January with a good price too but before all that please fix the after sales service issues and the dreaded seat lever which is made of diseased plastic or something. I bet you will think the same when you sit on the drivers seat of a Punto.
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Last Updated on Saturday, 02 January 2010 23:03 |
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The Unthinkable Has Happened - VW + Suzuki (Worldwide) |
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Written by Abhinav Sharma
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Friday, 11 December 2009 17:38 |
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Okay this is an important piece of news but very strange at that as well. VW goes and buys 20% of Suzuki Motor for $2.5 Billion. I was a little disappointed hearing that because VW makes solid cars which are German and all and nicely engineered which is exactly not what Suzuki is. Suzuki makes small commuter cars which are barely screwed up together in one piece. VW cars are solid with doors as heavy as a few Suzuki cars themselves. Suzuki's are rattle prone from the first day you drive one out of the showroom. The Swift will be ready to set an example for this feat. What VW can not do is make small cars. I am not talking about Fabia or Seat Ibiza. They are still large cars compared to what emerging markets want. Suzuki is the master in small cars. The world is changing. People want small cars and VW needs to change if they want to be competitive (though they are already number 1 in volume this year). Developing economies are demanding small cars and VW has been developing the UP which is still a concept but I am sure now it will be powered by a Suzuki engine when it comes to India in 2012. Also VW launches its major attack on the indian market in January 2010 with the launch of the Polo hatchback which is their most important car so far for India. They are here for a long haul and the Suzuki alliance is aimed squarely at the Indian market. GM take note. Let's see what you do with SAIC alone. 
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Last Updated on Monday, 14 December 2009 10:26 |
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Delhi Auto Expo is Here - Which Cars to Expect? |
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Written by Abhinav Sharma
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Monday, 14 December 2009 10:19 |
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The Delhi International Auto Expo is just around the corner and starts on the morning of January 5th and continues till 11th in Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. The event which occurs once every two years promises to be an event to look out for and is very different from the smaller events that have been held in Mumbai like the Autocar Performance Show and the works. This will be an international standard motor show with almost every manufacturer in India (or not) participating and showing the latest cars that they offer for each segment. So it is large scale. What is more significant is that we will be able to see those cars which are not yet launched and are in the coming soon status. Many of these cars are very important strategically for the manufacturers and for us as customers because they promise to change the face of Indian Motoring really soon. So if you are planning to buy a car soon or want to know what the Manufacturers have in store for us in the immediate future, head there straight but read this article before. Read the Full Article Here. 
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Last Updated on Saturday, 02 January 2010 23:00 |
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Trouble-Free Motoring on Indian Roads - The Definitive Guide |
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Written by Abhinav Sharma
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Tuesday, 01 December 2009 19:12 |
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Ever wondered why some people drive their cars for years together just doing the regular services and munching miles with super reliability and the others are stuck in the garage almost every weekend with the 'friendly' neighbourhood mechanic ( I am going to call him Vincent for some reason) parting with 2000 bucks every fortnight. Well it is a simple give and take situation between you and your car and there are so many points I wonder which one to start with. "You take care of the car and she will take care of you" is a phrase that is easier said than done. I am trying to list down these points in this article which will hopefully help out everyone and also those so many first time buyers who do not know words like Engine Oil, Coolant, Oil Filter, Regular Servicing etc. 1. You need to ask yourself if you drive the car as it is meant to be driven. Do you subject it to more wear and tear than it is made to take. Well, all cars are made differently. Some are more robust and durable than the others. Still, almost everyone I see on the road driving is either too rough with the car or too careless. The third possibilty is ignorance which I will address here (Others can think they are driving tanks who cares). No matter how much faith you have in your car in this aspect and your opinion about how much abuse can it take, our roads overwhelm the machines most of the time. Our roads are just too bloody horrible to even take the car out and if you are careless or carefree, you will have those "friendly mechanic" visits lined up very soon. Full Article Here 
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Last Updated on Friday, 11 December 2009 17:51 |
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