Business

Reduce Your Turning Radius

The people's car that raised the aspirations of the common man is out. Will you buy it?

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Reduce Your Turning Radius
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The Challenges
Keen on the Nano?
  • With acquisition and running costs three times higher, it will be difficult to convince two-wheeler owners to switch loyalty overnight
  • Depressed second-hand car prices may discourage potential buyers
  • Nano is identified with low cost. This could go against aspirations of buyers who see a car as a status symbol.
  • Nano works out to be cheaper than an autorickshaw but running costs will be higher. Lack of luggage space will prove to be a disadvantage.

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Test Drives
Front-seat Driver
"I

—Editor of a leading auto magazine. Drove the Nano in mid-March.



Back-seat Driver

"I went to see the Nano with almost no expectations. Once I got into it, I found that the quality of interiors and plastics was that of a proper city car worth £6,000. It was very cleverly engineered. I am 6 feet tall; I could sit comfortably and drive it. The passenger seats were comfortable as well. We had four people inside and it had sufficient power to run at relatively high speeds. The engine is small but not unnecessarily noisy. The quality of the ride was good despite the wheels being small. I really didn't see anything missing in it. For making a car at that price, you would have to take off several things. In the Nano, they hadn't."

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—Ben Oliver, contributing editor, CAR Magazine, London. Test ride in December '08.



Competition Ahead

At home: Bajaj Auto’s $2,500 small car due in 2011; last week, Mahindra said it’s looking at launching a small car
Global majors: Ford, Toyota, Volkswagen, Honda and Fiat are planning to launch small cars in India


Environment Concerns

"This represents a failure of policy and lack of an effective alternative to public transport. Nano is going to increase emissions exponentially and add to the congestion."

—R.K. Pachauri IPCC chairman & DG, TERI



What’s On Offer

The Nano will initially be available in three models: base, mid-level and top-end. It is expected to have an on-road price of Rs 1.25-1.3 lakh for the no-frills, base version. Its high-end version will cost approximately Rs 1.7 lakh. and will come with a warranty of 18 months or 24,000 km. Nano Europa, built for the export market, is fully loaded and will cost over £4,000.

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