Maruti Suzuki Ciaz Launched With New 1.5 L Diesel Engine

Maruti Suzuki has finally launched the much-awaited new diesel Ciaz sedan. The new Ciaz comes with the all-new in-house developed 1.5 L turbocharged diesel engine replacing the outgoing 1.3 L Fiat-sourced diesel engine. The Ciaz has been the market leader in the sedan segment of the Indian automobile market having a huge popularity and a very good sales track record. The Ciaz is often considered by many to be the best package when it comes to overall comfort, space, efficiency and reliability. The immense success of the Ciaz against competitors such as the Honda City, Hyundai Verna has made it the preferred choice amongst buyers who are looking to buy a sedan for the urban environment.

  

    The new Maruti diesel engine known as the DDiS 225 is a 1.5L turbocharged diesel producing 95 bhp and 225 nm max power output. With this new engine the Ciaz now gets an additional 5 bhp and 25 nm of power.  The new engine will be mated to a 6-speed manual transmission, hence enhancing the efficiency and performance. The outgoing 1.3 L diesel unit on the Ciaz was a slightly noisy and audible. Maruti claims its new 1.5 L diesel engine scores well on refinement. In an interesting change Maruti has done away with the SHVS (Smart Hybrid Vehicle System), a mild-hybrid system which was used on the outgoing Ciaz. The new diesel Ciaz uses a conventional fuel-based system.

    

    An in-house developed diesel engine is a very important landmark for Maruti Suzuki. This engine will eventually be used across the range, there by reduce costs, streamlining the production process and improving overall efficiency and quality. What is even better for Maruti is the fact that this new engine is compliant to the soon to be implemented BS-VI (Bharat Stage VI emission standards) standards. With prices starting at Rs.9.97 lakh, Maruti has made the Ciaz an even stronger proposition ready to work its charm over the market once again! 

Bugatti La Voiture Noire - The World's Most Expensive New Car

Bugatti needs no introduction, it is a brand which is world-renowned for producing high-performance sports cars. The French automobile giant has created world-beating cars such as the Bugatti Veyron, Bugatti Chiron which have achieved legendary status in recent years. Bugatti cars are known for their beautiful design, performance on the race track and their ever-present pursuit of speed. Time and again Bugatti is a common feature in the global record books with their cars pushing the benchmark for achievement above everyone else. At the recently concluded 2019 Geneva Motor Show, Bugatti set a new world record – Bugatti launched the La Voiture Noire hypercar. The Bugatti La Voiture Noire is the worlds most expensive new car!

    

     The Bugatti La Voiture Noire is a one-off hypercar produced as a tribute to the legendary Bugatti Type 57 SC Atlantic. The Atlantic as it is more commonly referred to was designed by Jean Bugatti (Jean Bugatti was the son of company founder Ettore Bugatti) and is one of the most beautiful cars ever designed. The Atlantic also happens to be one of the most valuable and rare classic cars of all time with only 4 being produced, 3 of them survive to this day. In French La Voiture Noire means ‘The Black Car’. One glimpse of the car makes you realize you are viewing something special! The design team at Bugatti has taken a slightly different approach towards styling and design with this latest car. Starting at the front you will see a more aggressive and more noticeable front grille. When compared to those of the Veyron and Chiron the grille of the new Bugatti is much more detailed and well highlighted. The LED headlamps sweep back over the front wheel arches given it a very beautiful aesthetic appeal. The La Voiture Noire retains the coupe-like design of the Atlantic. The design to say the least is just remarkable, a true work of art! The way the roof integrates the windows, over the cabin and into the rear of the car is automotive design at its very best. Being a Bugatti, you can rest assured this car will be a very powerful machine. Bugatti in an official statement said the La Voiture Noire is made out of carbon fiber and completely by hand.  Powering the La Voiture Noire is a mammoth 8.0 L 16-cylinder engine producing a breath-taking 1500 bhp of power.

   

    The La Voiture Noire has already been sold to an anonymous Bugatti enthusiast at a price of €16.7 million (Rs.133 crore). This price makes La Voiture Noire the most expensive new car ever. Yes, this is an absurd amount of money for a car, however, that’s the price you have to pay for a true work of wonder! 

Who Is MG Motor?

The United Kingdom has a very rich and varied automotive heritage. The UK has been renowned as the birthplace of leading premium/luxury, motorsport brands which have been at the very forefront of the global automobile industry right from its early days. On the one hand car makers such as Rolls Royce, Bentley are at the pinnacle of the automobile luxury; while on the other car brands such as Lotus, McLaren who have made a respectable name for themselves on the global motorsport arena. The UK has also given us the mighty all terrain conquering Land Rover which has been a pioneer in the SUV, 4X4 category of vehicles. India is one of the largest car markets in the world, quite a few of UK’s car giants have already made their way to India. MG Motor which hails from the UK is all set to enter the Indian market later this year. MG Motor though a very prominent and popular brand from the UK is not quite well known in India, read on to find out who MG Motors are!

  In 1924, the MG Car Company started off like a sports car manufacturer. Under the care of Cecil Kimber, the general manager of the company, MG Cars produced saloons, coupes and 2 seat open cars. William Morris the owner of the company transferred ownership to his holding company Morris Motors Limited. In 1933, MG was the first non-Italian car company to win the prestigious Mile Miglia (1000 Mile) with their K3 Magnette, hence announcing themselves on the world motorsport stage. After the end of the second world war, the British government restructured the British motor industry. This led to the creation of the British Motor Corporation (BMC) – a UK car manufacturer which was a merger of Austin & Morris Motors. Britain has been home to some of the most beautiful cars ever produced, cars the likes of the Jaguar E-Type are products of beautiful UK car design. In 1955, MG introduced the MGA; this car is arguably the most beautiful one to come out of the MG stable. Its great popularity saw over 100,000 units sold. It was in the year 1957, that MG proved its commitment to speed, engineering on the world stage by breaking the land speed record (i.e. highest recorded speed achieved by a human in a vehicle on land) in an MG EX181. The car was driven by the legendary Sir Stirling Moss and the speed achieved was 245.64 mph (or 395.31 kmph). Two years later in 1957, MG beat its own record this time achieving a speed of 254.91 mph (or 410.23 kmph). In 1962, the all-time best-selling MG – MG MGB was introduced. The MGB was the most modern car to be produced by MG at the time featuring firsts such as a monocoque suspension. In 1968 British Leyland was formed following the merger of Leyland Motors and BMC, now under a unified company, MG Motor worked alongside Jaguar, Rover and Triumph. In 2001, BMW the then owners of MG (the Rover Group was the successor to British Leyland) sold the Rover Group to the Phoenix Consortium. The newly formed company MG Rover Group set out to give the car line up a new lease of life by introducing the MG ZR, ZS, ZT all these cars were based in hatchback and saloon platforms of Rover. These cars continued to perform decently and gave good hope for the revival of the MG brand. On 22 July 2005, Chinese automobile giant Nanjing Automobile Group purchased the rights of the MG brand along with its assets in the UK for £53 million. After the merger of the Nanjing Automobile Group and Shanghai Automobile Industry Corporation (SAIC) the MG division was renamed MG Motor, the brand as we know it today. Under Chinese stewardship, MG launched the popular MG 6 the first all-new MG product in over 16 years. SAIC has breathed new life into the MG brand hence bringing them back of the global car market. With the huge resources of SAIC current MG cars – MG 6, GT, 3, ZS, HS are competing globally with bigger brands and are on par with respect to cutting-edge tech, quality, performance etc. MG Motor has a lot of focus on EVs and hybrid cars, with a lot of their car range being sold globally as hybrid/EVs.

   This year MG Motor is all set to enter the lucrative Indian market. With the launch of their first car for India the MG Hector SUV in mid-2019, MG Motor would be raring to grab a slice of the Indian market. MG with the Hector SUV will be competing with cars the likes of the mighty Jeep Compass, Tata Harrier – these cars are very well packaged and will give stiff competition to the MG Hector. With an advantage of economies of scale, heavy localized production, technology, the quality on par with global standards MG Motor is an exciting proposition for India. Add the arrival of Kia to the Indian market and you have Indian customers spoilt for choice! How MG performs in the market is something we will have to wait and watch out for…but exciting times ahead for the Indian automobile industry for sure! 

After A Gap Of 7 Years Honda Finally Reintroduces The Civic For The Indian Market

Honda India has launched the Civic sedan for the Indian market. The Honda Civic is one of the most exciting and highly anticipated car launches for 2019 in India. First introduced for the Indian market in 2003 the Civic took the Indian market by storm! The low ride height, a design which was futuristic and years ahead of the cars in the Indian market coupled with a great petrol engine and superb driving dynamics made the Civic one of the most popular Honda cars of the time. Honda’s decision to bring back the Civic after a gap of 6 years (Honda discontinued the Civic for the Indian market in 2013) brings a lot of excitement in the market particularly the executive sedan segment. Honda has certainly lost ground in this segment due to the absence of a product in the executive sedan and hope that the latest generation Civic will perform well to gain all-important market-share, customers.

  The Honda Civic now in its 10^th generation has not only skipped 2 generations (the 8^th generation Civic was the only one sold in India previously) but it has also evolved greatly both in terms of design, function and technology. The Civic, when launched in 2003, was a true head turner…one the best-designed cars in the Indian market at the time. With a coupe-like design, aggressive stance, sharp character lines & cuts give the Civic a sporty look. The design is sophisticated yet, beautiful. The new Civic will turn heads wherever you take it! The interior of the previous generation Civic for India was by far the best and sportiest in its class. The latest gen Civic shares the same with a dash of added practicality. One of the biggest issues faced with driving the Civic was that it was not an easy car to drive due to the dashboard causing interference with the view outside. Honda has solved this issue by creating a more uniform and practical layout at the same time increasing the viewing area, the added increase in ride height helps a great deal too. With Indian being a major chauffeur-driven market, the backseat space is very crucial. Honda has done a good job with the backseat, providing comfortable seats and good legroom. However, taller passengers will be faced with a headroom issue. The sloping roofline of the car intrudes into the headspace and taller passengers will probably find their head against the roof of the car. The window line on the Civic is quite high…this reduces the viewing angle outside and gives you a feeling of being hemmed in. The Civic comes loaded with features such as rain-sensing wipers, touchscreen infotainment along with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, electric sunroof etc. A very good feature is the fact that Honda has added a lane changing system which allows the driver to see the cars around with the help of cameras while changing lanes safely. The Civic is offered with 2 engines a 1.6 L turbocharged diesel and a 1.8 L petrol unit producing 120 bhp and 141 bhp respectively. The petrol engine is mated to a 7-speed CVT automatic gearbox while the diesel only gets a manual transmission and misses out on an automatic.

 Honda has reintroduced the Civic at an opportune time. Rivals such as the Hyundai Elantra & Toyota Corolla Altis are not performing at their peak. Though this may be a great time for the Civic to stamp its authority on the segment, it faces a lot of competition from SUVs the likes of the Hyundai Creta, Tata Harrier, Jeep Compass as the current trend in the market shows a lot of customers switching over to SUVs. With prices starting at Rs.17.69 lakh the market performance of the new Honda Civic remains to be seen…

India Moves A Step Closer To Electric Vehicles As The Government Gives Nod For FAME II Scheme

The global automobile industry is overly dependent on fossil fuel powered cars such as petrol, diesel, CNG, LPG. Fossil fuels prove to be harmful, polluting for the environment at the same time burdening the limited reserves of natural fossil fuels available on earth. Arguably the closest practical alternative to fossil fuel powered vehicles is electric vehicles (EVs). Governments all over the world are implementing various policies, incentives to both the car manufacturer and customers with respect to manufacturing and purchase of hybrids and EVs. In 2015, the Indian government introduced the FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacture of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles) India Scheme. The FAME India scheme is a part of the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan of the government of India. The FAME India scheme is aimed at encouraging electric vehicles by providing subsidies. The FAME scheme is designed to be rolled out in phases. Phase 1 of this scheme implemented in 2015 with an expenditure of Rs.895 crore.

   The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved Phase 2 of the FAME India scheme. The move by the government comes as great news for the automobile industry as India moves a step closer to electric vehicles. Phase 2 of the FAME India scheme will come into effect from 1^st April 2019 for a period of 3 years till 31^st March 2022. By 2030, the Indian government wants to convert 30% of vehicles to electric powered ones. The FAME India scheme is a very good initiative and will certainly help the government in reaching this objective by 2030. The FAME India scheme has 4 focus areas – Technology Development, Demand Creation, Pilot Projects and Charging Infrastructure. Phase 2 of FAME will have an emphasis on electrification of public transportation which includes shared transportation services. The FAME 2 scheme will catapult India to an electric mobility future. The Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles estimates the sales of EVs will more than double to 2 lakh units in the coming year. The government in a statement said that the FAME 2 scheme is planned to support – 10 lakh electric two-wheelers, 5 lakh electric three-wheelers, 55,000 electric four-wheelers and 7000 buses. A plan for the establishment of about 2700 electric charging stations will is also a part of the FAME 2 scheme.

   India is one of the largest automobile markets in the world. Being a very lucrative market for electric vehicles car manufactures will be looking to enter the market soon as the Indian market evolves and transitions towards adaptation of EVs. The FAME India scheme will ensure the transition process is smoother for both the car manufactures as well as customers.