Automotive Updates - 20th May 2014

• German auto giant Volkswagen is considering assembling certain engines in India, with key components produced in the country, as it aims to achieve up to 90 per cent localisation within a few years. 

• As per several reports online, the Maruti Celerio CNG has been launched at INR 4.68 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) and INR 4.92 lakh (ex-showroom Mumbai). The CNG version of the B-Segment hatch is powered by the same 1.0-liter three-cylinder K10B engine that delivers 58 bhp (about 10 bhp down from petrol).

• Toyota Kirloskar Motor said that the new Toyota Corolla has garnered 1,300 bookings in India since the showcasing at the Auto Expo with a near 50:50 split for petrol and diesel variants. Toyota opened bookings for the car at the Auto Expo and said the launch would be held in May.

• Hyundai Motors India Limited (HMIL) has announced that it will enhance the production of its recent launch compact sedan Xcent to reduce the extended waiting period and to meet the requirements of customers. The Indian arm of Korean car maker had launched the Grand i10 hatchback and Xcent sedan based on i10’s platform after the launch of Grand i10 hatchback and sold out 16, 275 units of both the products during the month of April this year. 

• Johnson Controls, the global technology major, and Yanfeng Automotive Trim Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Huayu Automotive Systems Co (HASCO), the component group of Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), China’s largest state-owned automaker, have signed a pact to form a global automotive interiors joint venture. The agreement is a noncash transaction comprised of asset contributions by the two parties that will create the largest automotive interiors company in the world with revenues of approximately $7.5 billion (Rs 44,610 crore). Yanfeng will hold the majority 70 percent share in the joint venture, and Johnson Controls will have a 30 percent share.

•  Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) is working on an ‘aggressive strategy to become a top global automotive brand’ by 2024. Its North American Technical Centre (MNATC), based in Michigan, will play a key role in this ambitious strategy. Engineers at MNATC are already at work on one of Mahindra’s new wave of products. “The North American Technical Centre is working on a new four-wheeler platform for M&M,” says Dr Pawan Goenka, executive director and president - Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors, M&M, who was in Michigan to inaugurate the technical centre on May 13. This platform could be for international markets as M&M does not have any specific plan to enter the passenger vehicle market in US now.

• With the introduction of the Datsun GO, the sales numbers for Nissan have quadrupled in India. Currently, the manufacturer has no plans of selling this tailor-made car for India overseas, but if there is a demand, the carmaker will export it to other countries.

• Indian imports of natural rubber are likely to soar over 70 per cent in the three months that end in June from the same period last year, as a strong local currency and lower global prices prompt tyre makers to snap up cargoes.

• Daimler India Commercial Vehicles Pvt. Ltd. (DICV) and Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, Japan (MFTBC) has now launched DICV-made trucks in Zimbabwe. This is the 4th African market since exports began in May 2013. As part of Asia Business Model, of the first 15 export markets for DICV, Zimbabwe is a potential market in Africa.
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• Images from - zigwheels.com