Bajaj RE60 wants to Steal the Title of the World’s Cheapest Car from Tata Nano

You may never have heard of Bajaj Auto, but the Pune-based company is a major Indian vehicle manufacturer that dates back to 1945. It operates in some 50 countries and built its 10 millionth vehicle in 1995.

Now, the “auto” in its name has taken in the broader sense of the word since up until now, Bajaj has been manufacturing mainly three-wheel models and passenger carriers along with motorbikes.

Today, at the 2012 Auto Expo in New Delhi, it unveiled its first four-wheel car, the RE60 that according to managing director Rajiv Bajaj, is aimed mainly to owners of three-wheelers who want to upgrade their ride.

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Tata Motors Recalling World's Cheapest Car, the Nano, to Upgrade Starter

Tata Motors, the Indian automotive giant that owns the Jaguar and Land Rover brands, has issued the biggest ever recall action in India, concerning a little over 115,000 Nano city cars to replace the starter motor.

However, the company prefers to use the term "upgrade" instead of "recall" as it claims there is no safety hazard associated with the old starter motor.

The maker of the world's cheapest automobile said the installation of the new starter motor began in October this year and that it has already replaced the starter in 50,000 Nano cars.

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Tata Launches 2012 MY Nano with More Powerful and Fuel Efficient Engine [Video]

India's Tata Motors announced today the introduction of the 2012 model year Nano, which perhaps not too surprisingly, looks identical to the outgoing version. However, even though the design remains the same, the Indian carmaker claims to have made a host of improvements, the most important of which is a revised engine. Read more »

Tata Nano: World's Most Affordable Car Receives a $4.6 million Gold Treatment [with Videos]

When Ratan Tata revealed the $2,500 Nano mini car in India in January 2008, the owner and Chairman of Tata Motors, made headlines the world over with the world’s cheapest car.

Three years later the Nano has faced a spontaneous-combusting debacle while despite the booming Indian car market; its sales have dropped significantly. So Tata decided to do a little publicity stand in order to bring its car once again into the spotlight.

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As Nano Sales Fall, Tata Motors Invests on Jaguar and Land Rover to Raise Profits

When Tata Motors bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford in 2008, it had great plans for both brands. Driven by sales of the sub-$5,000 Nano, the Indian conglomerate would have enough funds to secure their future. Now it seems that the tables have turned, and it's the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) unit that may have to bring in the profits. Read more »

Geneva 2011: Tata Pixel, a Four-Seater City Car Concept for Europe

Tata, the Indian maker of the Nano, made its way to Geneva with a new concept city car called the Pixel. At just over three meters in lengths, Tata claims the Pixel is "the most package efficient four-seater in the world," being able to "comfortably accommodate four adults".

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Tata Nano Sales Rose by 1,136% in December

In an effort to boost sales of its US$2,900 Nano micro car, India's Tata extended the warranty and offered easier financing in December, while it also launched a new advertising campaign that included a TV spot.

It turns out that this was a smart move, as sales of the Nano spiked reaching 5,784 units, which represents a 1,136% increase over the 509 units the company shifted a month earlier. This is still below the 9,000 monthly sales record achieved in July, but it seems that the Nano is back with a vengeance for 2011.

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VIDEO: Tata Tries to Boost Nano Sales with New Ad

As previously reported, Tata Nano sales in India have dropped significantly in the past few month, with just 509 customers opting for the US $2,900 micro car, down from 9,000 in July. It seems that Indian buyers have higher aspirations and are moving away from the Nano, as the nation’s market is booming. Reliability issues and a few spontaneously combusting units didn’t help sales either.

To mend the situation, the automaker has extended the car’s warranty and launched a new TV ad, depicting the Nano as the most lovable thing of Earth. Hit the jump to watch the commercial.

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India's Car Market Booming yet Customers Show Little Love for Tata Nano

Sometimes being cheap and cheerful just isn’t enough. Production delays, land debates and questions over occupant safety are killing the Tata Nano faster than an unexplained engine fire. India’s people car is struggling in spite of the nation’s booming car market and a low asking price of just US$2,900, half of what its nearest rival costs.

With economic growth at a staggering 9% per annum and a 22% year-to-date increase in car sales, Tata must have felt it was onto a sure thing. Things started out good, with 200,000 advanced orders for the sub-subcompact before its 2009 launch.

However, sales have been flagging these past four months with the Indian carmaker selling just 509 Nano’s in November, down from 9,000 in July.

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Piaggio NT3 Concept targets the TATA Nano

At this week's 2010 Milan Motorcycle Show (EICMA), Piaggio presented the NT3 Concept, a three-seater four-wheel mini that could become the TATA Nano's biggest competitor in emerging markets like India or Vietnam.

Despite its small size (it only measures 2.4 meters in length), the NT3 is a highly versatile vehicle, with multiple cabin configurations, also made possible by the center driving position. It uses a spaceframe architecture with crashbox, meaning that it's safer than it looks. Power comes from internal combustion engines or a hybrid powertrain.

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Flame on! Fifth Tata Nano Bursts into Flames...

Another Nano, the fifth from since 2009, has gone up in smoke, this time in Gujarat, western India. For reference, the last one toasted itself in Mumbai in late March, 2010. According to Business Week, an email from Tata states that "the car belonged to the company and has no design flaw."

Bursting into flames due to "faulty switches that caused smoke and plastic parts to melt" seems like a possible design flaw to me.

As for an update regarding Tata's Mumbai victim (Tata still can't determine the cause of the fire), Satish Purshotam Sawant wants some compensation for putting him and his family in danger...in the form of Rs 15 lakhs (1,500,000 Rupees or ~$33,700 US) and a Fiat Punto. Tata says no dice: it's either a new Nano or a full refund.

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Spontaneous Combusting Nanos? Another Tata Goes up in Flames

Tata Motors' Nano city car is once again making headlines in India, but not for the reasons you might think. Following three separate cases in 2009 when owners of the Nano in Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Delhi reported seeing smoke and flames coming out of their vehicles' dashboard, another Nano caught fire. Only this time, Tata's much-vaunted 'world's cheapest car' literally went up in flames.

According to Indian news sites, the particular Nano was owned by insurance agent Satish Sawant who had just bought the car from a dealership in Prabhadevi, Mumbai, that provided him with a chauffeur as he -surprise, surprise- didn't know how to drive.

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