Automotive Updates - 31st July 2014

• Launched on 23rd of June 2014, within 7 days of launch, Honda has amassed a total of 8,800 bookings for their Mobilio MPV. Launched at a base price of INR 6.49 lakhs for the petrol variant and at INR 7.89 lakhs for its diesel counterpart, Mobilio competes with Maruti Ertiga and Toyota Innova in the segment.(rushlane.com)

• BMW India have launched a limited edition of their entry-level 1 Series hatchback. The BMW 1 Series M Performance Edition is limited to 111 units pan India, and sales of the car have already started at all dealerships. (indianautoblogs.com)

• As part of its plans to sell over 9,000 units during the current financial year, automaker Honda Cars India would consider exporting its latest mid-size multi purpose vehicle Mobilio to South Africa, a top company official said today. The Japanese carmaker had shipped about 6,000 units in the last financial year, Honda Cars India Senior Vice-President (Sales and Marketing), Jnaneswar Sen said. (economicstimes.com)

• The new Bajaj Discover 150 F (faired) and Discover 150 S motorcycles are scheduled to be launched on August 11, reports Overdrive.in. The duo have already started reaching dealerships across the country.(indianautoblogs.com)

• German automaker BMW will soon launch the updated model of its popular SUV X3 in the Indian market. The luxury crossover was first launched in 2004 and currently in its second generation. The new facelift model was unveiled at Geneva Motor Show this year and since then, it has been speculated that it would soon launch in the market. It is one of the most prestigious model in company’s portfolio, not the most exciting but holds a good reputation of being a fuel efficient and an excellent drivable car. If recent reports are to be believed, BMW India will launch X3 facelift in August. (financialexpress.com)

• M&M sells more than 1,00,000 units of XUV500 in less than 3 years of its launch in India. XUV 500 was launched in September 2011 and was designed entirely in-house at Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) in Chennai.With this, the XUV500 has become the only Indian SUV above Rs. 10 lacs ex-showroom, to cross the 1,00,000 sales mark within just 34 months of its launch. (ETauto.com)

• The UK car industry will take a lead role in the development of the autonomous car within six months, when three government-funded pilot schemes start across the country that will result in 'driverless' prototypes running in large-scale tests in and around our cities. Government Business Secretary Vince Cable has announced £10m of funding to be split between three bids, which will be identified via a bidding process administrated by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Technology Strategy Board. (autocarpro.in)

• Elon Musk led Tesla has announced a new agreement with Japan’s Panasonic for their $5 billion Gigafactory project. To be operational by 2020, this factory of Tesla will be the largest producer of lithium-ion batteries in the world .(rushlane.com)

• Renault India’s managing director, Mr. Sumit Sawhney, confirmed that the company will launch the Duster 4×4 by the end of this year. A tweet from Rohin Nagrani, Senior Editor of Motoring World, says that the launch is most likely to happen in September. (indianautoblogs.com)

• JK Tyre launched its new Steel Wheels showroom here. The Steel Wheels showroom is spread over an area of 1500 square feet, this showroom showcases JK Tyre's new retail identity for its exclusive stores and is located in Sector-16, Central Auto Market.The ambience of the store is designed in a manner that makes buying new tyres, alloys and accessories a convenient experience for consumers.(ETauto.com)

•