With the mercury soaring to 47 degree Celsius in cities like New Delhi, Maruti has decided to step in with a cool campaign to reach out to its customers. The company will host its "Beat The Heat" campaign this weekend, which will offer Maruti car owners a range of services including free check up of the air-conditioning system, free top wash, TrueValue evaluation of vehicles and their exchange deals.

The "Beat The Heat" free check-up camps will be handled by Maruti Suzuki's service team, who will inspect the air conditioning systems in the cars and suggest remedial measures as required to achieve optimum cooling performance and maintain a comfortable cabin temperature.

Maruti Suzuki's Beat The Heat campaign will be held between May 25 and 26 across its entire national service network consisting of 3,000 service workshops in 1,400 cities in India.

Speaking on this mega initiative, Mayank Pareek, Maruti Suzuki's Chief Operating Officer (Marketing and Sales) stated, "At this time, with summer at its peak, customers obviously want air-conditioning in their cars to deliver top performance. We want to address this for as many customers as we can, as soon as possible. We are, therefore, using the entire national service network of Maruti Suzuki to service customers over a single weekend. It is also our way to sensitise customers about regular maintenance at Maruti Suzuki network, for a comfortable and satisfying use of our cars."

Maruti Suzuki will also capitalise on the Beat the Heat campaign by promoting its current model range and offering test drives, offering extended warranty packages along with a range of accessory options for its cars.

"In the last 3 decades, customers have highly valued the cost of ownership, service and maintenance of Maruti Suzuki range of cars. We will continue with our resolve to bring best value to our customers in terms of total ownership experience. We thank our customers for their continued trust and for ranking Maruti Suzuki as Number One in "Customer Satisfaction every year, for last 13 consecutive years," said Pareek.

Japanese carmaker Nissan Motor India has recalled 22,188 of its Micra hatchback and Sunny sedan produced at its Chennai plant to replace the master brake cylinder.

Nissan India would carry out the replacement of the faulty component free of charge and has informed its dealers on the same. "Nissan plans to begin notifying individual customers in May. Nissan dealers will replace the master brake cylinder at no cost to the customer. Nissan is committed to a high level of customer safety, service and satisfaction and is working with its dealers to promptly address this issue," the company said in a statement.

Nissan India also said that no accidents, injuries or deaths have been reported so far and the company is undertaking the voluntary exercise to maintain high level of customer safety and service. The company has recalled a total of 67,089 Micra and Sunny vehicles covering its market in Africa, Asia and Europe that were also impacted by the same faulty brake cylinder.

The Japanese carmaker has also globally recalled nearly 2.5 lakh units, but said that recall is not part of the India exercise and pertains to the fuel rail pressure sensor used in direct injection type engines of some of its models. Though this global recall includes 9,600 units of its small car Micra, being manufactured at its Oragadam plant near Chennai in Tamil Nadu and was sold in Europe.

Nissan, which plans to roll out its low-cost brand Datsun in India next year, had earlier announced a bigger recall affecting 841,000 cars worldwide due to a glitch with the steering wheels. The models: March(K12) and Cube(Z11) produced in Japan and Micra(K12) vehicles produced in UK had been sold in Japan, Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, Latin America and Middle East and would have to undergo a tightening of the steering wheel fixing bolt to the correct torque. The company said that repair would take about 40 minutes.

The company said. "This will not effect India and the vehicles are not manufactured in India."

"I have never seen new cars are driven over lemons as they are rolled out of showrooms. I feel it's just a traditional thing in India," a bemeaning Boris Becker said during the launch of a new Mercedes-Benz GL-Class in Mumbai.

Boris, a regular commentator on tennis for European media networks, is charmed by the fleet of foreign cars on Mumbai roads. "I feel there is a great demand for luxury cars in India, which I believe is one of the largest car manufactures in Asia."

Becker, who is regarded the youngest ever to win the men's singles at the Wimbledon, has a passion for cars. "I spotted an opportunity with Mercedes-Benz in the late eighties and I immediately invested. At the time, investing in three Mercedes dealerships in Germany despite knowing nothing about the automobile market was a massive risk. Now, I feel after so many years that it was my correct 'business decision', the German superstar, considered one of the greatest tennis players of all-time, said.

"My association with Mercedes-Benz goes back to more than two decades. I identify with the values of the Mercedes-Benz brand - fascination, perfection and responsibility."

At 40 plus, Becker doesn't want to be a day younger. "I never decided to go under the surgeon's knife in an attempt to maintain my fresh-faced look," was his frank confession.

The hunger to obtain stardom and to climb to the top of the heap was never his motto. In fact, the huge fame never undermined his personal life.

"It makes it difficult but that doesn't mean impossible. I am very much comfortable in my life," he added.

Becker seemed to be too fond of media attention, as he picked up a fresh yellow lemon and hung it on to an iron wire of the showroom. "Good luck," he waved to the crowd before he walked off.

End-2009: the US and Europe are reeling under a financial crisis, which has dampened demand for virtually everything, including cars. China races in from behind to overtake the US as the world's largest car market. That's when it dawned on Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Nissan Motors, that he needed a focused, distinct strategy to squeeze growth out of emerging markets. That also explains why the Japanese carmaker has chosen to resurrect the Datsun brand which was phased out in 1986 specifically for emerging markets.

"He [Ghosn] asked me if I could give it a shot," recalls Vincent Cobee, head of the Datsun project for Nissan globally. Cobee, a former programme director for the V platform (on which cars like Micra and Sunny have been built) at Nissan, agreed to spearhead the project because, like Ghosn, he too witnessed the shift. "We saw China explode," says Cobee. "We realised something was happening and we weren't prepared for it."

In China, while Nissan is the most successful Japanese auto company, its portfolio of cars addresses just 60 per cent of the market there. "It was not just the number we also realised it was a business growth issue for us," adds Cobee. He hasn't looked back since. Over the past three years, he has put together a plan, a strategy and a team to help Nissan get a grip on the emerging markets. Datsun is the third global brand besides Nissan and Infiniti under the Nissan umbrella.

There are many reasons why Nissan is launching a separate brand for the emerging markets. One, growth in the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) cluster is driven by a new class of customers. The company believes these customers in each of these countries have unique needs and requests, which must be addressed through a separate model line-up. Two, as Cobee says, "you don't try to sell in India the regulatory norms of the US".

So the strategy is to decrease features without cutting down on those relevant for these markets. The first three letters of the brand Datsun stand for Dream, Access and Trust, the three pillars on which the brand is being built. Datsun cars, consistent with the label's heritage, will have modern styling, be affordable, have best-in-class fuel efficiency with emphasis on durability, safety and low cost of ownership. "Datsun was a great car for the emerging middle class then [1914-86]. That's exactly what it will be again," says Cobee.

The BRICS Dreams:

Emerging markets are difficult and require a very different strategy. "We realise that winners in each of the emerging markets are different," says Cobee. Maruti Suzuki dominates India. Toyota dominates Indonesia. Lada is doing well in Russia.

"This is because no two emerging markets are similar and hence what works for one does not work for the other," says Cobee. Emerging markets also require very different kind of cars vis-a-vis the mature markets. Motorisation typically kicks in when the per capita income is hovering around $3,000 mark. The three economies which Datsun will ride into Russia, Indonesia and India have either hit or are very close to hitting that sweet spot. Nissan also plans to launch Datsun in South Africa, which will serve as a beachhead for the African markets.

Each of these markets is structured very differently in terms of customer demand and competitive intensity and requires separate handling. For example, in India close to 70 per cent of the market is still small hatchback, Maruti's stranglehold. Nissan today has zero presence in the mass sub-Rs 4 lakh segment in India. In Indonesia and South Africa this sub-Rs 4 lakh segment does not exist.

For example, the cheapest car available in Indonesia is around Rs 7 lakh. So the demand at the bottom end -- from the emerging middle class is not there. In Russia, the Nissan-Renault alliance has a strong presence in the affordable segment (hatchbacks, compacts and sub-compacts) through the Lada brand. In all these markets, Nissan aspires to launch Datsun to stoke demand from the emerging middle class.

Nissan's New Way:

Nissan hopes to notch a market share of 10% in India by 2016-17 and a global share of 8% in the auto industry. This ambition requires the Japanese carmaker to rejig its organisational DNA and find a new way of doing business. "The next decade is about local products and global capabilities," says Cobee.

So the most important thing for the MNC will be for Japan to stop specifying what needs to be done, and to let the countries India, Indonesia and Russia in this case drive and shape what's to be done in these markets, with help from the headquarters. That's exactly how the Datsun brand and products are being developed. And that has resulted in new ways of doing things. For example, it typically takes 3-4 years for a company to move from the 'first intention' to the concept stage. The Datsun team took just six months to do it. "We have managed to crunch the timeline," says Ashwani Gupta, programme director, Datsun business unit, Nissan Motor Co.

Five models are slated to be launched: two in 2014 and three later. The first one to be launched is codenamed K2. The Randamp;D team in India is working closely with its peers in Japan in developing the car. All Datsun cars, when launched, will be local from day one in terms of production. "The biggest challenge is how do we localise and maximise local parts," says Hidetoshi Imazu, executive V-P and member of the board, Nissan Motors. Since the beginning of the project, Nissan has been working with vendors in India to localise.

Cross-country Team:

The Datsun project, headed by Cobee, is being steered by a core team of around 15 Nissan executives drawn from different parts of the world. While each of the focus countries (Russia, Indonesia and India) has a representative on the project, there are two Indians -- based out of Yokohama -- playing a critical role. Gupta is the Datsun programme director and is leading the global charge in establishing the new brand. Krishnan Sundararajan, earlier in India at the Renault-Nissan Technical Center, recently relocated to Nissan's Technical Center in Japan.

"I have handpicked each of my team members," says Cobee, a Frenchman who joined Nissan in 2002. While the specifics of the car have not been revealed, a broad sketch of the consumer profile gives a flavour. In India, a Datsun customer would typically be a first-time car buyer, a part of the emerging middle class that looks at his future with optimism and aspirations. He would be looking for a reliable car, which offers peace of mind, has good styling, modern engineering. The car would announce an upgrade in the buyer's lifestyle. But then the Datsun range is hardly going to be a headturner. Cobee can live with that -- reliability for Datsun comes before flashy features and promises.

"You can't play heads and tails with somebody's two years' income," says Cobee. To be sure, the person buying a Datsun car will be probably making the biggest purchase in his life ever, unlike, say a higher net worth individual who wouldn't think much before forking out Rs 15-20 lakh for a swankier model. "We want it to be a celebratory step in his life. So everything the car, customer handling at the dealer, after-sales service must make him feel good about his choice of car," says Cobee. The advantage Datsun would have is that it is entering India after Nissan and it would gain from Nissan's mistakes and experience.

Vetting the Model:

That Nissan, a Japanese MNC, is doing this is hardly surprising. Headed by Ghosn, a non-Japanese, it is the most global Japanese auto company in terms of top management. Its top 100 executives come from 22 different countries and half of its 10-member executive committee is non-Japanese. Nissan, despite being a late comer in India, has moved fast to get its initial strategy right of being export-led to get quick scale, says Deepesh Rathore, MD (automotive), IHS Global Insight, a consultancy.

"It now needs a product that will rival mainstream competition like Maruti," he adds. Datsun's approach to looking at each emerging market separately is a good idea as no two emerging markets are similar, says Rakesh Batra, partner, Ernst andamp; Young. GM's hatchback Beat, in contrast, was developed taking inputs from all emerging markets in an attempt to make it relevant for the emerging markets. "But at the end it became a compromise product with no great appeal in any of the markets," says V Ramakrishnan, MD, Frost andamp; Sullivan India.

The biggest worry, though for Datsun is that of potential brand confusion. The Nissan label is barely established in India today. And the rebadging of Nissan Micra and Sunny by Renault as Pulse and Scala is already creating some confusion. "When Nissan itself is not an established brand here, bringing another brand may add to the confusion," says Mohit Arora, executive director, JD Power (Asia Pacific).

The other challenge is that India is already awash with affordable cars, with most manufacturers worth their market share having a significant presence in this segment. "India is in the lowest band of the price spectrum among all emerging markets. It is one of the toughest markets in the world," says Vikas Sehgal, MD Global (auto), Rothschild. But look at it another way, if Datsun is able to muscle its way into the crowded mass segment, Nissan would be well on its way in India.

In a bid to replicate its global leadership position in India, Toyota is considering a slew of measures including building a presence in the fast-growing small car segment and the compact SUV segment.

However, before launching any new models in India, Toyota is adopting a wait and watch strategy until the government announces a clear decision towards fuel policy and import tariffs. Based on the government's policies, Toyota will decide on setting up a diesel engine plant in India and the launch of new hybrid vehicles in the country.

Toyota has not announced which models it plans to launch in India in the small car market at the moment. As for a compact SUV, the company does not have one in its current global line-up which means there should be a model undergoing development at the moment.

Toyota Motor Corporation Managing Officer Satoshi Ohiso is quoted by PTI as saying, "If you look at our portfolio in India, we have just one small car, Liva. We need more if we have to have big volumes in a fast growing market like India."

Ogiso also said that the prime focus of the company is the fast growing compact SUV segment.

After the launch of the Etios sedan and the Etios Liva hatchback, the company has also realised that the Indian customer demands contemporary vehicles that are on a global playing field in terms of quality and technology. The next range of vehicles launched by Toyota in India will seek to cater better to market demand.

Toyota Motor Asia Executive Vice President Bernie O'Connor was quoted by PTI as saying, "Globally we are leaders; if you look in other Asian countries like Indonesia, the Philippines as well, we are leaders. Definitely, we have an ambition to be the number one in India as well in the long term."

The company is also awaiting the government's decision on the EU FTA agreement, which if materialised would mean that Toyota could consider importing certain vehicles produced in Europe to India that suit the market here.

The Centre on Wednesday decided to allow manufacturing and plying of a new category of four-wheeler on Indian roads andmdash; the 'quadricycle'. The issue andmdash; which sharply divided the auto industry in recent months, with small car makers and some two-wheeler companies against the idea while others rooting for it andmdash; has now been settled with the road transport and highways ministry announcing that the quadricycle will be allowed to ply as a transport (commercial) vehicle carrying both passenger and goods within city limits and on rural roads.

With this, the government has put a lid on the controversy, at least for the time being. The issue would have snowballed into a major problem if the quadricycle was allowed as a personal vehicle, a demand that was pursued by Bajaj Auto. The two-wheeler major has invested Rs 550 crore in developing the platform and created enough capacity to produce 5,000 quadricycles a month and will likely launch its product (RE60) soon after the government notifies its decision.

"A separate category has been proposed for notification to include quadricycle with specifications adopting present norms notified in the three-wheeler category of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR), or the European Union quadricycle, whichever is more stringent," a road transport ministry statement said. For example, the vehicles need to be registered as commercial vehicles, the driver has to have a valid driving licence and every such vehicle must have a first aid box. In Europe, there is no such norm.

Transport secretary Vijay Chhibber, who chaired the meeting to discuss the issue, said the new category of vehicle is being seen as an improved and safer version of the ubiquitous auto-rickshaw. "The idea is to provide a safer option for intermediate public transport for last mile connectivity to people, but at the same time not to create more stress in the already stressed small car market in the country," he added.

NEW WHEELS

1. 4-wheeler with hard top, doors andamp; wipers
2. Fuel: Petrol, CNG andamp; LPG
3. Max speed 70 kmph
4. Seating capacity for four
5. Registration as commercial vehicle only
6. Mass andamp; noise emissions, brakes, controls andamp; indicators to be better than 3-wheeler standards
7. A big 'Q' written on the body or a colour code

KEY ISSUES

1. Whether drivers need commercial licence
2. Collision protection/rear collision andamp; pedestrian safety aspects
3. Movement of vehicle and permits to be decided by states

WHAT REMAINS TO BE SEEN

Whether 3-wheeler manufacturers will push the product when these will end up replacing their own auto-rickshaws.

Now who could have conceived this -- of the Swift DZire compact sedan beating its hatchback sibling the Swift on sales? But that's exactly what has happened when in April 2013 Maruti sold 19,446 units of the sub four meter sedan -- 2,916 units more than sales of the Swift hatchback during the same period.

What's more, the DZire's sales were just 401 units less than the country's bestselling car, the Maruti Suzuki Alto 800, which racked up a sales figure of 19,847 units during April 2013. This officially means that Maruti Suzuki's compact sedan is now the second highest selling car in India. In all, the company sold over 2 lakh units of the current Swift DZire since its launch in February 2012.

As we know, the Indian customer has always had a soft spot for the three box sedan that in their minds plays the prestige card. And the introduction of Maruti Suzuki's new DZire sub four meter compact sedan with a lower price tag and a choice of diesel and petrol engines made a strong case for itself for itself, something that has now been proven on the sales charts.

Mayank Pareek Maruti Suzuki COO (marketing andamp; sales) was quoted by ET saying, "When we conceived DZire, few years back it was thought as a complete package of a sedan coming at the price of a hatchback."

The DZire's strong sales comes as a surprise especially since it all happened in the same month as the launch of its biggest rival yet, the Honda Amaze. Armed with Honda's strong reliability and quality levels, the Amaze has been considered as a serious threat to the Swift DZire.

The Honda Amaze has not had the time to prove its place on the sales charts just yet, but can the overwhelming demand for the Maruti Suzuki Swift DZire be considered an indication of the times to come?

Sure, Honda cannot match the sheer presence of Maruti Suzuki's sales and after sales network throughout the length and breadth of the country but the Honda is just as good a car, if not better.

As for the sales charts, the compact sedan segment looks to be on the way for bigger success in the future with vehicles that offer comfort, style and practicality in an affordable, economical and easily manoeuvrable package that is indeed very attractive on our ever crowded roads.

]]> 0 Abhishek Chaliha http://www.zigwheels.com/news-features/news/maruti-swift-dzire-is-now-indias-no2-selling-car/16430/ 2013-05-22 20:33:12 Rahul Basu http://www.zigwheels.com/news-features/news/mini-countryman-rolls-out-of-bmws-chennai-plant/16435/

The cheaper MINI One Countryman petrol model will sell for Rs 23.50 lakh (ex-showroom)

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In April we informed you about BMW's plans of starting with the localized production of its Countryman model at the 40 acre BMW Plant in Chennai. The good news from the MINI camp is that work seems to be very much on schedule and in just over a month since making the announcement the German car maker has just rolled out its first locally assembled MINI Countryman model.

The cheaper MINI One Countryman petrol model will sell for Rs 23.50 lakh (ex-showroom). The other petrol variants of the MINI Countryman - MINI Cooper S Countryman and MINI Cooper S Countryman High will continue to be imported in India as Completely Built-up Units (CBU) along with all of MINI's other hatchback (Cooper) models.

Below is the complete price listing of MINI model range selling here in India:

MINI Cooper :26,60,000
MINI Cooper S :29,90,000

MINI Convertible
MINI Cooper Convertible :32,50,000

MINI Countryman
MINI ONE Countryman* :23,50,000
MINI Cooper D Countryman* : 25,60,000
MINI Cooper D Countryman High* :28,90,000
MINI Cooper S Countryman : 34,20,000
MINI Cooper S Countryman High :37,50,000

]]> 0 Rahul Basu http://www.zigwheels.com/news-features/news/mini-countryman-rolls-out-of-bmws-chennai-plant/16435/