Automotive Updates - 06th October 2014

• Maruti Suzuki India, the country's top car maker, on Monday launched its first new sedan car in seven years. Maruti has priced the new Ciaz sedan at a price range of Rs 6.99 lakh-9.80 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).While the petrol variant pf Maruti Ciaz is priced between Rs 6.99 lakh to Rs 9.34 lakh, the diesel variant will sell for Rs 8.04 lakh to Rs. 9.80 lakh.Maruti aims take a second stab to break into a segment where it has had little success previously. Maruti Suzuki's previous car in this segment, SX4 sedan - launched in 2007 - has faced tough competition from rivals.

• Mahindra Two Wheelers, the two-wheeler arm of Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), is set to become a co-owner of Peugeot’s scooter business. An announcement to this effect is likely to be made later this week. According to sources, the Indian company is set to acquire a majority stake in the business with an option of having full ownership later. It may be noted that M&M entered the two-wheeler industry with a similar step. It acquired an 80 percent stake in the Pune-based Kinetic Motor Company. (Autocarpro.in)

• Tata Motors’ flagship product, the Aria, has been a slow seller for the company. In a bid to make the car seem more attractive, the company introduced a revised version of the Aria in May this year. And now, to further push sales of the people carrier, Tata is offering a price cut of INR 1 lakh on the Aria. The base LX 4×2 variant which had a starting price of INR 9.95 lakhs, now carries a price of INR 8.95 lakhs.(indianautoblogs.com)

• Suzuki is developing a small capacity 800cc engine and it has been reported on several occasions. Now, it seems like the Japanese company is developing a new four-cylinder 1.5-litre diesel engine for the Indian market.The new engine might be built on two capacities - 1.5-litre and a 1.6-litre. The 1.5-litre derivative is mainly targeted at India to avail of the tax benefits, whereas the 1.6-litre engine will be for Europe. (carwale.com)

• After witnessing one of the longest spells of slowdown, the medium and heavy commercial vehicles (MHCV) segment has now started showing some canonical signs of a turnaround. Over the past five months, the segment has been witnessing improvement in fleet utilisation, freight rates and resale price; all of them considered to be indicators of a recovery.Volumes for heavy trucks - having capacity of more than 16 tonnes - grew more than 18% between April and August. Truck manufactures cite fleet-replacement demand for the trend and are confident that the industry won't witness yet another year of falling sales, which would have been the third in a row.(ETauto.com)

• Arun Malhotra, who has quit from his role as head of international sales and marketing at Mahindra & Mahindra, may join Nissan Motor India. Sources say Malhotra may join Nissan Motor India as its managing director. The move reflects Nissan’s strategy to build a strong team to take care of its sales and marketing operations. The Japanese OEM had earlier outsourced the distribution, sales and marketing operations of Nissan vehicles to Hover Automotive India. The partnership was called off in February this year. (Autocarpro.in)

• The Government is taking positive steps towards improving road safety and traffic discipline in India. In the upcoming winter session, the new Government is about to introduce a new Road Transport and Safety bill, which proposes much needed changes in the archaic Motor Vehicles Act followed in India. If the new bill is passed in the parliament without any hiccups, driving an uninsured vehicle may cost you dear. According to the new bill, If a motorcyclist is caught riding without an insurance policy, the penalty will be Rs 10,000 while owners of light motor vehicles and auto-rickshaws will have to cough up Rs 25,000. (motorids.com)

• Japanese car manufacturer, Honda has unveiled the new Jazz, CR-V facelift and HR-V compact crossover at the 2014 Paris Motor Show. Out of the three vehicles, the company will launch new Jazz and CR-V facelift in the Indian car market next year. Honda is also contemplating a compact SUV for India, but the company hasn't revealed the name of the product.(cartrade.com)