Automotive Updates - 18th and 19th March 2015

• In the current market scenario, making customers wait for long may lead to losing them to a competitor. That's why Hyundai Motor India is set to ramp up the production capacity of its bestseller, the i20 hatchback. The current monthly production capacity of the model is 10,000 units. Rakesh Srivastava, senior VP - marketing and sales, Hyundai Motor India, says "The plant is producing (the i20) at full capacity. It will be ramped up by a few more thousand." As of March 16, Hyundai received 468,184 enquiries and 103,960 bookings for the i20. Srivastava says that the car has a waiting period of two-and-a-half months. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/hyundai-ramp-i20-production-capacity-7980#sthash.s6zx6qiz.dpuf

• On Tuesday 17th March, Mr Ratan N. Tata (Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons), Mr. Cyrus P. Mistry (Chairman of Tata Sons) met with Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya the Chairman and Founder of WMG at the University of Warwick and unveiled the foundation stone of the new £150 million National Automotive Innovation Centre on the campus of the University of Warwick.The National Automotive Innovation Centre will be the largest automotive research centre of its kind in Europe. It is funded by Jaguar Land Rover, Tata Motors, The University of Warwick and the Government's Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The 33,000m2 complex will provide space for 1,000 engineers, designers and academics to work together, from apprentices to senior managers. Teaching facilities will support the education of tomorrow's engineers with the Centre being open to students from the WMG Academies for Young Engineers to work on real world applications.(Auto-samiksha)

• Jaguar Land Rover Ltd on Friday said it is recalling nearly 36,500 Range Rover Evoque sport utility vehicles (SUVs), after local media reported the British luxury carmaker used faulty gearboxes. Jaguar Land Rover earlier apologised for gearbox issues via its microblog after being criticised by state television on Sunday along with peers Volkswagen AG and Nissan Motor Co.Read more at: http://www.livemint.com/Companies/DguvlwrSyQgzjO2nxHrJkM/China-asks-Jaguar-Land-Rover-to-recall-Evoque-SUVs.html?utm_source=copy

• T V Sundram Iyengar & Sons (TVS & Sons), the holding company of the $ 6.5 billion TVS group, has appointed Suresh Krishna, 78, as its chairman with effect from March 18, 2015.He succeeds R Ramachandran who was the chairman of the company till 2004. The company has been without a chairman since 2004 when Ramachandran passed away. Krishna is the chairman and managing director of Sundaram Fasteners Ltd., is also the grandson of the TVS group's founder.(Etauto.com)

• Chassis Brakes International India (CBII), the local arm of one of world’s three largest manufacturers of automotive foundation brakes and foundation brake components, Chassis Brakes International, has entered into a technical agreement with Barcelona-based J Juan Group for developing braking systems to tap the growing requirements of the Indian two-wheeler market. Under the technical agreement, Chassis Brakes International India (erstwhile Kalyani Brakes) will source technologies from J Juan Group, a known supplier of braking systems and associated components to BMW Motorrad, Ducati, Triumph Motorcycles, Harley-Davidson and many others, for designing and developing hydraulic disc brakes and master cylinders for two-wheelers up to an engine displacement of 200cc. Interestingly, this would cover exports from India as well. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/chassis-brakes-int-ties-juan-2w-braking-systems-india-7977#sthash.lDMg0Jnw.dpuf

• Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV) has announced that it has sold more than 20,000 vehicles since it started operations in September 2012.Sales of BharatBenz trucks registered a growth of 72% in the first two months of 2015 as compared to same period last year. DICV sells trucks ranging from 9 to 49 tonnes. (teambhp)

• Japan's Nissan Motor Co plans to launch its cheapest model in India, a sub-$5,000 compact under the Datsun brand, a senior company executive told Reuters on Friday.

• The unnamed small car will be launched within 18 months and be priced lower than Nissan's current cheapest model, the Datsun GO, which is sold for as little as 324,000 rupees ($5,193), Guillame Sicard, president for Nissan India, said"It is a smaller car than the Datsun GO and will be more competitive," he said, without committing to a price. "It will be a cost-effective positioning."(Etauto.com)

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