Maruti Suzuki Autocar Young Driver 2010 hunt to begin soon

Maruti Suzuki-Autocar Young Driver 2010 programme, a nationwide search for India’s best young driving talent, is set to begin shortly. Maruti Suzuki - Autocar Young Driver 2010 tests the competitors' knowledge of traffic rules, awareness of road safety along with their real-world driving skill. This contest is open to all individuals, between the age of 18 and 30, with a valid Indian driving license. The winning finalist will be adjudged as the winner and awarded the Maruti Suzuki A-star as a grand prize. He will also be the ambassador of safe driving and promoted by Autocar India and Maruti Suzuki on numerous platforms.
Season One of the Young Driver of the Year saw a total of 3,07,665 online visitors who had checked out the contest and over 4,000 drivers were competing for entry into the second round. Eventually 35 contestants made it to the Grand Finale held at the Institute of Driving Training and Research (IDTR), New Delhi.
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Renault-Nissan to inaugurate Oragadam plant on 17th, 2010

Renault Nissan Automotive India plans to inaugurate its Rs. 4,500 crore passenger vehicle joint venture plant at Oragadam on March 18 this year. PTI had earlier reported that that Renault-Nissan Automotive India’s MD Akirai Sakurai met Tamil Nadu deputy chief minister M. K. Stalin in Chennai and urged him to inaugurate the plant. It is widely believed that Nissan's first made-in-India car-Micra or March-will roll off the production line on 17th March, 2010. As a preview to the plant opening ceremony, Carlos Ghosn would be addressing a press conference on Tuesday, March 16, 2010 at 5:30pm at Hotel Trident, GST Road, Chennai to provide an overview on the business and growth strategy of Renault-Nissan alliance in India.
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Volvo Cars associates with cricket in India for 3 ODI tournaments

In line with its long and enduring partnership with sports events around the world, Volvo Auto India today announced its association with cricket in India. The man of the series in the India vs. South Africa 3 - match ODI tournament will be presented with the recently launched ‘Volvo S80 twin - turbo diesel’. The Volvo S80 is going to be the most luxurious car ever to be presented to a cricketer in India. The car would be on display inside the stadium at all three venues selected for the series - Jaipur, Gwalior and Ahmedabad on February 21, 24 & 27 respectively.
Paul de Voijs, managing director, Volvo Auto India said, “In India our association with sports has been a vital part of our sponsoring strategy – it gives us inspiration as well as exposure. Tournaments serve as an ideal platform for us to showcase our brand and interact with our potential customers. He added, “This time we take our association to the next level by presenting the new Volvo S80 twin-turbo Diesel to the man of the series, adding to the excitement that cricket already attracts in India.”
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Hyundai India rolls out 'Miles & Smiles Rally 2010' in New Delhi for its i20 customers

Hyundai Motor India has announced that it has rolled out the ‘Miles & Smiles Rally 2010’ for its i20 customers in New Delhi. Covering a distance of approximately 81 km, the rally was flagged off from Hotel Crowne Plaza, New Friends Colony and culminated at the same point. Sponsored by the Indian Oil Corporation Limited and Wynn’s Mekuba (as associate sponsor), the rally garnered a phenomenal response with as many as eighty (80) Hyundai i20 cars – both 1.2 litre petrol and 1.4 litre diesel variants - customers and their families participating with gusto.

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Abhisekh Mishra-Hanumant Singh duo win Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm 2010

The Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm rally culminated in a grand finale today with Abhishek Mishra-Hanumant Singh winning in the Xtreme category for cars and Jes David claiming the trophy for bikes. Raj Singh Rathore took home the prize in the Ndure category, while Sanjay Takale converted his steady lead into a victory in the Xplore run.
The last and deciding competitive stage, 67 kilometers long, consisted of driving in an open area of undulating plain. Amartej Buwal, who was also in the contention for winning the Xtreme trophy during the early hours on Friday, drove his car into a pond, while negotiating a sharp bend.

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Audi A1 supermini launch not for India at the moment

Audi India, which has achieved a remarkable growth in the last few quarters, has said that it has no plans to introduce the A1 supermini in next few years. It was reported pretty recently that Audi India’s parent company has revealed the details of its A1 model and is also going to unveil the model at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show. The sales of the initial 3-door A1 model are anticipated to start in continental Europe in the summer of 2010, followed by the United Kingdom in September 2010. A 5-door A1 Sportback model is also expected to be launched later. As a newcomer in the compact segment, it appeals to a modern customer group – a young, urban, lifestyle-oriented public. A1 customers – many of whom are expected to be women – are interested in design, music, fashion and sports. The entry-level model will be priced at around 16,000 Euros.

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Adrian Sutil takes over for Force India in Jerez

Force India's Adrian Sutil took over the VJM03 for the penultimate day of testing at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit today. In hugely improved weather conditions, Adrian completed 69 laps of the Spanish track as he worked through a programme of long and short runs, weight distribution and race preparation.Tonio Liuzzi will resume driving duties tomorrow for the final day of the four day test.
Adrian Sutil said, "Today was our first proper shot at dry running this test and it went pretty well. In the morning we did a few short runs and some set-up work and then in the afternoon moved on to longer runs and getting more information on the new tyres.
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Volkswagen to make India its export hub for auto components

Following its cues from other global auto biggies like General Motors, BMW and other Volkswagen AG is also jumping on the global sourcing bandwagon as the German luxury carmaker has decided to source auto components in huge sums within the next couple of years. As reported earlier, that Wolfsburg-based company has already set up its International Purchase office (IPO) in the country and is currently evaluating several component manufacturers in order to identify potential suppliers. But now, media reports suggest that it has already started sourcing components for our global operations — particularly for plants located in Russia and some European countries — in a small way Furthermore, VW aims to earmark India as an export hub for components to Europe in the next fre years.
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Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm 2010 promises to be even tougher

The 8th Edition of Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm 2010 which was flagged off by Shashank Srivastava, chief general Manager (Marketing), Maruti Suzuki, from Noida, promises to be tougher than ever before as the terrain is worse and the distances are longer this time around. This year is witnessing the highest ever participation by motorsport enthusiasts. The 250 rallyists with 100 odd cars and 20 bikes will be traversing over 3,000 km through the interiors of Rajasthan and along the Gujarat coastline before culminating at Udaipur in Rajasthan.
Compared to the last edition of the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm where rallyists have had to drive 20-30 km of tough terrain at each leg, rallyists will now be driving through at least 100-200 km of rough tracks every day. While it will put the vehicles and the drivers under tremendous stress, the rallyists with their cars and bikes are undeterred.
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Mahindra First Choice in talks with auto companies to procure used cars

Mahindra First Choice Wheels, India’s largest multi-brand pre-owned car company, is reportedly in talks with car manufacturers like Tata Motors, General Motor, Maruti, Volkswagen, Skoda, Ford to source pre-owned cars. It is to be mentioned that Mahindra First Choice is the country’s preferred pre-owned car mart and is India’s only organized multi-brand player, with 100 plus outlets in over 60 towns across India. The company plans to expand this number to 300 outlets in the next three years. This implies that customers will soon be able to choose from a range of certified pre-owned cars throughout India, including the metros and tier-2 towns and cities. As part of it transparency efforts, the company would also be launching a new mathematical pricing model on its portal soon. It registered a turnover of Rs. 220 crore last fiscal and expects to close the current fiscal with around Rs. 400 crore.
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All-new Volvo S60 to premier at 2010 Geneva Auto Show

The all-new Volvo S60 has its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show on the 2nd of March. It makes its entry into one of the automotive world's toughest segments backed by an extrovert attitude never before seen in Volvo showrooms. The all-new S60 is built at the Volvo Cars factory in Ghent, Belgium. The first cars will be delivered to customers in early summer 2010.
"The sporty design delivers a visual promise of enthusiastic driving characteristics and I can assure you that the all-new S60 truly lives up to that promise. Its driving properties are better than those of any previous Volvo. What is more, the car's innovative new technologies help you become both a better and a safer driver," says Volvo Cars President and CEO Stephen Odell.

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Toyota Corolla Altis CNG variant available in Delhi, NCR and Mumbai

Toyota Kirloskar, which has recently launched CNG variant of Corolla Altis sedan at the Auto Expo, has confirmed that the model is now available at all dealership outlets in Delhi, NCR and Mumbai. Also displayed at the recently held Toyota ‘Q World programme’ in Mumbai, the Altis will sport CNG kits fitted at the dealership level. Although there are no interior and exterior changes, a 12kg CNG cylinder in addition to the 55-litre fuel tank is fitted in the boot that takes up about ¼ of the 475 litre boot space, as revealed by company sources. The CNG vehicles will cost Rs. 80,000 over MRP of the petrol versions and is also expected to be available in other cities as well. It is to be mentioned that the Corolla Altis CNG features a 5-speed manual VVT-i 4cylinder 16-valve 1.8-litre petrol engine with a power output of 132 bhp and 17.3kgm of torque.

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Mahindra XYLO Mileage Marathon winner Khattar gets mileage of 27.7 km/litre of diesel

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M), the market leader in the utility vehicles segment in India, recently organised a unique XYLO Mileage Marathon, a special Mahindra Top Gear club initiative, for its customers in Delhi. Intended to highlight the vehicle's superior mileage feature, the drivathon saw participation from 60 XYLO families and engaged them in an effort to generate enhanced customer acceptability and endorsement.
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Force India's Paul Di Resta and Tony Liuzzi at VJM03 testing in Spain

Inclement weather conditions again played a starring role in testing at the Circuito de Jerez, Spain. With the heavy rain showers and high winds that have so far characterised the testing showing no signs of abating, Force India was obliged to modify its testing schedule slightly to allow the race drivers the best chance of the forecasted better weather later this week, with Paul di Resta getting another half day testing in the VJM03 before Tonio Liuzzi took over in the afternoon.
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Commercial production of Tata Nano to at Sanand by April this year

Tata Motors is gearing up to begin the commercial production of Nano at its mother plant at Sanand by April this year. Media reports have already indicated that the vehicle maker is already carrying out trial runs of the aforesaid car at its aforementioned plant in Gujarat. At present, the company produces Nano from its Pantnagar facility in Uttarakhand in which about 180 Nanos are being assembled daily with engines produced in Pune. It may be recalled that after pulling out of Singur, the company was forced to use the interim plant in Pantnagar, Uttarakhand, for a large part of this year, where the Ace pickup is also produced. Tata Motors is expected to produce around 40,000 Nanos this fiscal though numbers will increase four-fold to over 1.7 lakh units during 2010-11.

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