Automotive Update - 5th and 6th September 2015

• French auto major Renault has embarked on a new strategy to significantly grow its light commercial vehicle (LCV) business. One of the pillars of the strategy is new markets. And India could be a new market for Renault's LCV business, though not immediately. Speaking to Autocar Professional, Ashwani Gupta, VP, global head - LCV business, Renault, said that the company is closely monitoring the Indian LCV market. He was speaking after the global unveil of Renault's first 1-tonne pickup truck concept called Alaskan. It will go into production during the first half of 2016. The Alaskan is shown three months after Renault launched the Duster Oroch, a 0.5-tonne twin cab pickup truck. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/renault-closely-monitoring-indian-lcv-market-entry-9198#sthash.9Wv0Fg5n.dpuf

• With regulatory norms in place, country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India expects the delayed minority shareholders' voting on allowing parent Suzuki to own and invest in the Gujarat plant to happen soon."The minority shareholder voting on the Gujarat plant was delayed because we first found that the government had moved some amendments in 2013 Companies Act. We thought it would be imprudent of us to vote on under an Act which is under an amendment," Maruti Suzuki India Chairman RC Bhargava said while addressing shareholders at the company's annual general meeting here. (ET-auto)

• Toyota on Friday announced plans to invest $50 million into building artificial intelligence into cars, an indication it could be joining the race to develop driverless vehicles.The joint research with Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology will take place over the next five years, Toyota Motor Corp. said, emphasizing its interest in technology that could be used by people as they grow old or become less able to drive safely. (live-mint)

• German luxury car manufacturer Mercedes Benz recorded total sales of 1,39,802 units in August 2015, 17.6 percent up from same month previous year.Maximum growth has been achieved in the Asia Pacific region, where sales rose by 34 percent to a new record of 51,307 units in August 2015, when compared with same month 2014. (ET-auto)

• Triumph has added a variant to its Tiger 800 adventure motorcycles in India, the Tiger 800 XCA as its top-of-the-line offering. The XCA will retail for Rs 13.75 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The Triumph Tiger 800 XCA gets the same engine that the rest of the lineup comes equipped with. This engine is good for a maximum power of 93.7bhp at 9,250rpm, and for peak torque output of 8kgm at 7,850rpm. The engine comes mated to a six-speed gearbox, with a shifter mechanism that has reportedly been derived from the he Daytona. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/triumph-motorcycles-india-unveils-tiger-800-xca-rs-1375-lakh-9204#sthash.dAnynYUw.dpuf

• Renault-Nissan, which began its passenger car project in Tamil Nadu a few years ago, may be closer to making another large investment after the Franco-Japanese alliance and the state government sorted out tax refund issues. The state government, preparing for its first global investor summit, is targeting a second deal with the car maker soon. Renault-Nissan is expected to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Tamil Nadu government for an investment of Rs 4,200 crore, according to people aware of the developments. (ET-auto)

• Joining the chorus of industry leaders disappointed by stalemate on GST, Maruti Suzuki India Chairman RC Bhargava said on Friday political establishment must "re-look at measures" that are clearly in national interest."I am sure people at large, who are concerned about the economy, will be very disappointed that due to purely political reasons, with no clear economic considerations being apparent, the GST (Goods and Services Tax ) has not been approved," he said addressing shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in New Delhi. (business today)

• American automaker Ford has reportedly been working on revamping its product portfolio in India. With plans to introduce new models in the country, the company plans on pulling out older models. The company has reportedly stopped the production of Classic, Figo and Fiesta in India. The first one to come as gap-filler to the low selling Classic and Fiesta. Sometime soon the company may also also launch the new Figo hatchback.(cartrade)

• Tata Motors and Tata Technologies today signed a five-year agreement to announce a redefined engagement model, ENGAGENEXT iSourcing, to leverage mutual strengths and capabilities for their strategic priorities, while offering significant career benefits to employees of both the organizations.  The new agreement marks a shift from a staff-augmentation model to a delivery-based model for Tata Technologies engineers, designers and consultants working on Tata Motors programs across all locations in India. This model recognizes Tata Motors’ ambitious plans under HorizoNext as well the deep expertise developed by Tata Technologies in the automotive engineering space across leading global OEMs to handle major execution programs, including whole vehicle development. It will build on two decades of a seamless working environment to optimize mutual capabilities and realize cost efficiencies, streamlined workflows and accelerated development cycles for Tata Motors’ R&D Division. - See more at: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-international/tata-motors-tata-technologies-announce-engagenext-isourcing-accelerate-product-development-9196#sthash.WsFmAvAv.dpuf