Automotive Updates - 22nd December 2014

• Snapdeal.com, an online marketplace, on Thursday announced a partnership with Hero MotoCorp Ltd to sell the company’s two-wheelers and expects its automobile category to generate Rs.1,000 crore of business in next six to 10 months. Snapdeal.com, run by Jasper Infotech Pvt. Ltd, gets Rs.15 crore of business in the automobile category currently in terms of gross merchandise value (GMV), or the value of goods sold on the site. The company expects to close the fiscal year ending March 2015 at Rs.300 crore GMV from the auto segment. Read more at: http://www.livemint.com/Companies/vieeqyvGz9bcAHYmKGe6zO/Snapdeal-expects-online-auto-sales-to-touch-1000-crore.html?utm_source=copy

• Ahead of its official launch in January 2015, Tata Motors has initiated online bookings for the much-awaited Bolt hatchback. One can book the Bolt at a token amount of Rs. 11,000. It will be the second all new car under the company’s HORIZONEXT portfolio.The Tata Bolt hatchback is claimed to be equipped with best-in-class features and in-car infotainment system. The vehicle has been designed with the help of three Tata Motors design studios – Pune (India), Coventry (UK), and Turin (Italy). Showcasing the company’s brand new design philosophy, the new hatchback gets floating roofline and blackened C-pillar.(cartrade.com)

• Renault has confirmed that it will launch the Lodgy for the Indian market in 2015 and has accordingly released the first image of the MPV. It was launched under Renault’s Romanian subsidiary Dacia in late 2012 and went on sale a few months later. This vehicle will be Renault’s foray into the premium end of the highly competitive MPV segment. (carwale.com)

• Ford Motor Credit Company, the finance arm of Ford Motor Company, is set to begin operations in India. Its arm, Ford Credit India has been granted a licence by the Reserve Bank of India to operate as a nonbanking financial company in India and plans to begin dealer wholesale inventory financing in the first quarter of 2015. Consumer retail financing will follow later in 2015, the company said in a press release. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/ford-finance-arm-begin-dealership-inventory-financing-india-q1-2015-7168#sthash.RMDxKA8k.dpuf

•  French car maker Renault is expanding presence across smaller towns in the country as it prepares to tap the mass market segment with its upcoming entry level car next year. The company, which is set to launch its first multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) 'Lodgy' in India next year, is seeking to strengthen its sales infrastructure in the high-growth smaller towns of the country. "We are looking to increase our presence in tier II-IV markets which will play a key role in growth of automobile industry in India, and our A-entry (small car) will play a key role in meeting this objective," Renault India Country CEO and Managing Director Sumit Sawhney told PTI. (ETauto.com)

• Toyota Boshoku Corporation, Aisin Seiki Co and Shiroki Corporation  have agreed that Toyota Boshoku will acquire the mechanical seat frame component business operated by Aisin Seiki and Shiroki (customer: Toyota Motor Corporation in order to enhance the competitiveness of automotive seats.Toyota Boshoku believes that it is imperative to enhance engineering capabilities and expertise in the manufacturing of seat frames to become a seat supplier that is able to rival world-class seat manufacturers. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-international/toyota-boshoku-acquire-mechanical-seat-frame-component-business-aisin-seiki-shiroki-7160#sthash.6vYN0549.dpuf

• One of the chief two-wheeler manufacturers in India, Suzuki Motorcycle India has its targets fixed for the last quarter. Just when it seemed that most of the manufacturers had done the hard work through the calendar and decided on settling down to have a relaxed last-fifteen days of the year, Suzuki has made a startling decision. According to the company, it has the idea of opening approximately 70 fresh dealerships across the country in the pipeline. Suzuki will try to achieve this target within a period of the last four months of the running fiscal.(cartrade.com)