Author: GTO

This Analysis has been jointly prepared by GTO & Vasudeva. Many thanks to Vasudeva for his support.

Abbreviations used : MOM (Month on Month) and YOY (Year on Year).

The New Year brings with it cause for celebration within the Indian automobile market. Passenger car sales shot up a massive 32.28% YOY and 26.57% MOM. Indians bought 1.5 lakh cars (hatchbacks & sedans) in January ’10. This does not include the UV segment that is having quite a celebration of its own, what with a mega 54.67% increase in YOY sales!

Both, the B hatchback segment and C sedan segment, continue their upward climb of about 39% YOY. But its the executive segment (10 lakhs and up) that has grown at nearly 60%.

We also have a change in order; the Manza has taken Tata to the No.2 spot in overall sales (ahead of Hyundai).

Attachment 284764

Attached Images

 

Some car owners from my lane were in for a rude shock on Saturday morning. As with most people in Mumbai (and some other cities), a dedicated car wash chap was cleaning their cars, cars that were parked in the residential lane. This is a practice that has been in place for a couple of decades.

At about 0700 hours, BMC’s "clean up marshalls" called them down one by one and fined them Rs. 1,000 (with receipt) for washing their cars on a public road. Cars that were being washed inside a building compound (e.g. mine) were NOT fined.

An old article on the same:

As our area car wash guy later commented, "dhaanda khalaas (end of my business)".

Going through Tejas’s OTR report, one 4×4 caught my eye. Actually, it left me drooling.

The Endeavour was always a butch looking SUV. Yet, this Endy is at an entirely different plane; my jaw dropped on seeing its profile!! Reminds me of the LC 80 & 4runner in some ways.

She’s running 35 incher tyres, an ARB bumper, a body and suspension lift. Taste, sheer taste. Job well done, Mkraft.

Now, imagine this kind of a setup with a 3.0 Thunder engine 😀

Attachment 281190

Attachment 281191

Attachment 281192

Attachment 281193

Attachment 281194

Attached Thumbnails

 

 

 

 

 

A BHPian – Vivekji05 – has only just released a new car magazine in the market. You guys will remember his threads:

The 1.6 Twins

500 BHP Skoda RS

Accord V6 Test

Well, I hope to see the same passion & straight forwardness in the magazine as well. With most car magazines retailing for between 60 – 100 bucks, Zigwheels created quite the flutter with its 10 rupee pricing (Link to related discussion). Vivek takes it one step further…..Quarter Mile is entirely free! It’s currently circulated within a set database of car owners. Of course, one can also register on the quartermile website for copies. Challenge? With free distribution, the revenue model depends entirely on advertisements. Keep those reviews unbiased, Vivek. Find your USP, it’s a crowded marketplace out there. Your paper & picture quality are good to start with, content covered has got to be more comprehensive and go beyond 50 pages.

Good luck, man!

Attachment 275898

Attached Thumbnails

 

What you’ll like:

• Robust build and construction
• Interiors more comfortable than chief competitors i10 & Swift
• 1.4 Diesel’s proven driveability and fuel efficiency. No turbolag
• Mature big-car-like ride quality
• Ford’s DNA in the on-road behaviour and quick steering
• Class-topping 284 liter boot space

What you won’t:

• Lacks the modernity of recently launched hatchbacks
• Either engine is lacking in outright performance. Neither engine can exploit the car’s dynamics
• No true top-end variant (tilt adjustable steering, rear power windows, MID etc.)
• Average backseat legroom. Not in the league of, say, an Indica Vista
• Ford’s sub-par dealership experience

NOTE: Click any picture to open a larger higher-resolution version in a new window.