Automotive Updates - 6th May 2015

• Auto parts manufacturer Pricol Limited has bought 50% stake in the joint Venture in Johnson Controls Pricol Private Limited for $31.5 million, the company informed Bombay Stock Exchange Wednesday.Johnson Controls Enterprises Ltd, UK (JCEL) has exited from the joint venture company Johnson Controls Pricol Private Ltd (JCPPL), established in equal partnership with the Coimbatore- based auto component manufacturer Pricol Ltd.(ETauto.com)

•  Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India (HMSI) on Wednesday said it will start selling its sports bike Honda CBR 650F in India in the next two months.The bike will be assembled at the company’s Manesar plant in Haryana, HMSI president and chief executive Keita Muramatsu said. HMSI already sells the CBR 250R and CBR 1000RR models in India.“In line with the ‘Make in India’ campaign, we have decided to make our flagship model CBR 650F in India for India,” Muramatsu said.(livemint)

• The UNO Minda Group has roped in Laxman Katakkar as its president. Katakkar was CEO and director at the Raymond Group's Ring Plus Aqua before taking up the new role. He had a six-and-a-half-year stint at Ring Plus Aqua, which is a component supplier. Katakkar has experience of around 14 years in the automotive industry. He had also served in Tata AutoComp (TACO) as its European operations head and later held the COO's role in TACO's interior and plastics divison. At Uno Minda, he will be responsible for the Group's overall business growth, as well as expanding into new business areas. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/ring-plus-aquas-ceo-moves-uno-minda-8357#sthash.dquHYJIp.dpuf

• Fiat is working on the next generation of its popular hatchback, the Punto. The upcoming car has been codenamed X6H for internal communication. The car will be launched in Brazil by the end of 2016 and will be launched in other markets later on. The production shall take place in the city of Betim in Brazil. The car would feature a new 1.4-litre GSE petrol engine producing roughly 100 BHP of power and 140 Nm of torque. The recently premiered 1.8-litre engine would also find its way under the hood of the next-generation Punto. It will be based on an all new platform which gives Fiat an opportunity to work on a lot of components.Read more at http://www.motorbeam.com/2015/05/cars/fiat-punto-evo/next-gen-fiat-punto-codenamed-x6h-new-linea-debuts-21st-may/#btBGlRjYUPFZPLGl.99

• The upcoming hatchback from French auto maker Renault, codenamed XBA, has created a decent buzz in the Indian market. The model is scheduled to mark its presence on May 20, and has been in the media coverage for a long time now. Industry experts are of a view that post launch, XBA will be squaring off against the likes of budget offerings by Maruti Suzuki, which include models like Alto K10, WagonR Stingray and Ritz.XBA will be based on the Common Module Family (CMF) platform, and thus will prove to be an affordable car. It is learnt that the same platform will be used by Nissan for its low-cost brand Datsun for its upcoming hatchback, Redi-Go concept.(cartrade.com)

• General Motors, today, announced the celebration of 500 Million GM-branded vehicles built globally over the past 106 years – the most by any automaker. The company is putting its buyers at the centre of the accomplishment as these vehicles have played roles in their countless milestones . “This celebration isn’t about GM’s manufacturing prowess. It is really about our customers and the positive experiences they’ve had with Chevrolet and other GM-branded vehicles around the world,” said Stefan Jacoby, GM executive vice president and president of GM International. Jacoby added: “While we are proud to have built 500 million vehicles, we know we will only earn the right to build 500 million more by putting our customers at the center of everything we do.”(carwale)

• Maruti Suzuki is riding high on the success of the Celerio AMT (Automated Manual Transmission) variant, with almost 50 percent of the hatchback’s sales coming from the same. Maruti also offers the Alto K10 with an AMT unit and the company has been able to capitalise well on the lack of similar offerings from its rivals until the recently announced, Tata Nano GenX AMT. Maruti had earlier revealed its plans that after the Alto, the Wagon R will be getting the AMT unit and it seems that production of the same has started long back as the AMT variant of the Wagon R will soon be up for grabs in Indonesia.Maruti has been exporting its vehicles to Indonesia from our country for quite some time now. The hatchback may even become the cheapest automatic car in Indonesia, the tag which is currently held by the Daihatsu Ayla. Two variants of the Wagon R are set to receive the automated transmission, one being the top-end variant of the regular Wagon R and the other being the Stingray version (not sold as Stingray in Indonesia). Therefore, with the Indonesian launch nearing, the Wagon R AMT’s launch in India is also very close.Read more at http://www.motorbeam.com/2015/05/cars/maruti-wagon-r/maruti-wagon-r-gets-amt-in-indonesia-india-launch-soon/#bZ1ukPqvKxhiq3fx.99