Cyrus Dhabhar was born and brought up in a motorsport family and cars run deep in his blood. As a passionate founder and head of a classic car club in Mumbai and an avid part of the vintage and classic car scene in the country, Cyrus prefers his cars older and simpler. That said, he loves everything on four wheels and the occasional two-wheeler as well. Cyrus currently is the Assistant Editor - AUTO for the NDTV Group.
BMW is all set to differentiate its flagship models in every segment from the other cars it makes with a new black and white logo. The new BMW logo will feature only on the class leading models like the 7 Series for the sedans and the upcoming X7 for the SUVs. The new logo will also feature on the current i8 and i8 roadster along with the upcoming BMW 8 Series, 8 Series Gran Coupe and the M8. This is the first time in the history of BMW that the German automaker will be using a two logo system on its cars other than the famous blue and white roundel that it has become synonymous with.
What is possibly the most awaited car of the year, the Mercedes-AMG Project One has made its debut on the eve of the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show. The Project One is as close to a Formula 1 car for the road than any other car in production today and even features a 1.6-litre turbocharged V6 engine similar to the Mercedes-AMG F1 car. The Project One also gets four electric motors in total to produce a power figure of 1000 bhp! And since the car weighs just 1000 kg, the Project One gets a 1:1 power to weight ratio (hence the name).
On the eve of the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show is when the Volkswagen group brings out it's big guns at the Volkswagen Group night. And this time around, the message is clear. The Volkswagen group wants to put its Dieselgate woes behind it and move towards a cleaner electric future. "By 2025, 1 out of every 4 Volkswagen cars sold around the world will be electric", said Matthias Muller, CRO, Volkswagen, at the 2017 VW group night. Considering the fact that in 2016 Volkswagen sold 10.09 million (1 crore 9 lakh) vehicles globally and is forecast to sell even more this year, 25 percent of VW sales in 2025 could easily be over an estimated 3 million electric cars sold every year!
The Frankfurt International Motor Show is the largest and most important auto show of the year for most automakers. Currently in its 67th year, the motor show (that happens every alternate year) is expected to have its share of conventional automobiles with a shifting focus towards electric and hybrid cars from every manufacturer. With globally relevant automobiles expected to make its debut at the show this year from SUVs to hatchbacks and form your family sedan to ridiculously expensive high-powered hypercars, there is something for everyone. We also take a special look at all the upcoming cars and upcoming SUVs that will make it to India soon.
Tesla has unlocked extra range on some of its older base 60 and 60D Model S sedans and Model X SUVs in order to facilitate easier evacuations for those in the path of Hurricane Irma. The older 60D and 60 Model S and Model X usually get 210 miles of range, which is about 338 kms. The updated range is now 240 miles or about 386 kms. The increase in range was done remotely through Tesla's servers for all Model S and Model X 60 and 60D variants.
An electric version of the Tata Tiago has been unveiled at the 2017 Cenex LCV (low carbon vehicle) show in the United Kingdom. The Tata Tiago EV is expected to make it to India soon with the vehicle already very close to a production stage according to some insider sources at Tata Motors.
Tata Motors has launched a new XM variant of the Tigor subcompact sedan priced at Rs. 4.99 lakh. The new Tata Tigor XM variant is available with both petrol and diesel engines and sits in between the base XE and the mid-range XT variant.
Whether we like it or not, the electric car is the future and is here to stay. Even the Indian government is strongly pushing for an all-electric fleet by 2030. And with incentives like lower tax brackets on electric cars we might soon see a few globally recognised electric cars launched in India.
Just a few weeks ago, Bajaj and Triumph shocked the Indian motorcycling world by announcing a joint partnership in order to develop new motorcycles in the mid-capacity or 250-500 cc range. These new bikes will be built by Bajaj and will be badged Triumph giving both two wheeler manufacturers an advantage. The outcome of the joint partnership will let Triumph operate in a new and more mass market oriented segment that it currently does not have a product in while banking on Bajaj's forte as a low-cost and high margins bike maker. And just a few weeks after the announcement of the joint partnership the first vehicle to showcase something from each brand has now been spotted!
Tata Motors would use current or future internal combustion platforms to integrate with electric technology. Unlike Jaguar that has introduced a brand new and standalone platform that will underpin the I-Pace, Tata Motors will not have a standalone electric car platform. This platform integration is mainly due to the fact that Tata Motors would have had to invest a huge amount of money into a brand new standalone platform - money that they do not currently have. The new AMP platform will also most likely be used on electric cars in the future even though the first car on this platform is said to be a premium hatchback that will be launched in 2019.
Speaking on the side lines of the SIAM annual conclave in Delhi, Guenter Butschek, Managing Director of Tata Motors mentioned that after the Tata Nexon launch which will be later this month, the next big launch from the Indian car maker will be this new Tata Q501 SUV that will be built on the older but very capable Freelander 2 platform. The new Freelander 2 based SUV will be launched in India in late 2018 and will be available in two seating configurations - a 5 seater or a 7 seater. The new SUV will be positioned as a 'midsized SUV' according to Guenter Butschek. The new SUV will also possibly be getting all-wheel-drive straight out at the time of launch and should ideally be getting a set of petrol and diesel engines in order to compete with the likes of the Jeep Compass and the Hyundai Tucson along with larger SUVS like the Toyota Fortuner and the Ford Endeavour. We have already seen Tata Motors' ability to go upmarket with the interiors of the Hexa and the Nexon and we expect the new SUV to be packed to the gills with tech and features.
Earlier this year, Tata Motors announced a plan to consolidate vehicle platforms from the current 6 to a mere 2 in the next few years. Each of these platforms would have multiple top structures and the platform will be adaptable to various lengths, widths, suspension setups and even wheelbase differences. The first platform of the two will be called AMP or Advanced Modular Platform and will be used for the next generation of hatchback and sedan applications along with new SUV applications. The first Tata Motors car based on the AMP platform will be launched in 2019 and will most likely be a larger premium hatchback.
The Euro NCAP recently crash tested the left hand drive version of the Jeep Compass and the SUV has scored a 5-star safety rating for the variant tested. The Jeep Compass scored a 90 per cent score for Adult occupant safety whereas child occupant safety was given an 83 per cent score.
In a recent statement that has been put out in the Maruti Suzuki annual report 16-17, R. C. Bhargava, Chairman, Maruti Suzuki has said that the automaker will not hold back on electric vehicles once it has determined that the Indian public is ready to buy them. He also pointed towards the upcoming joint venture between Toyota and Suzuki and how Maruti Suzuki would benefit greatly from the technological solutions in the EV space that Toyota couple provide - including cutting edge hardware and patents. R. C. Bhargava also continued to mention how until the full electric car was a viable solution, Maruti Suzuki would continue to concentrate on the mild hybrid SHVS technologies that are currently being used in the likes of the Ciaz and the Ertiga.
With the recent floods in cities like Mumbai and in several parts of the north-east bringing the daily grind to a screeching halt and causing several crores of rupees in damage and loss in life, there will soon be a spurt of used cars on the market that have been damaged by water. Where in India we rarely see cars that have been completely submerged in water, there are several cases where cars have been driven through deep flooded roads causing as much damage. Apart from having mechanical issues at a later date, these cars can also cause serious health issues to their users eventually.
A few months ago, JLR unveiled the Jaguar XE Project 8 - an insane 600 bhp limited edition version of the standard XE that was made by the Special Vehicle Operations (SVO). The XE Project 8 was limited to a numbered 300 units and cost an insane £1,49,000 (Rs 1.25 Crore before taxes) and was meant to be an uber limited offering to serious Jaguar collectors and enthusiasts. And now it seems Jaguar as at it again creating an even more extreme and an even more powerful Jaguar XE. Recently, a Jaguar XE test mule with a set of very wide rear fenders and a massive ducktail spoiler has been spotted testing extensively at the nordschleife Nurburgring. According to videos that we have seen of the car around a set of bends, it seems to be much faster than your average hot sedan too!
In the future, when you will be either able to own a car individually or share a car with others in your community, the Sayer steering wheel is essentially intended to be the only part of the car that you own yourself. The steering wheel concept will be able to sync to your or the community car and give you a personalised experience as per pre-determined preferences. Looking more like a sculpture or a piece of modern art, the Sayer concept showcases the clean designs in the interior cabin that future cars are expected to have and some cars currently are already moving to.
The Mercedes-AMG Project ONE Hypercar will make its official public debut at this year's Frankfurt Auto show and has been teased by Mercedes-Benz showcasing some revealing aspects of its design and form.
Automotive trends come and go. In the good old days, the easiest way to give your street car some cred was to paint the brand of the tyre in a distinct colour - or as it is commonly known, tyre lettering. The easiest way was to take a can of paint and spend a good afternoon meticulously tracing out the brand name of the tyre with a small 5 number brush. Eventually, the lettered tyre trend sort of disappeared but now in 2017, it is back with a bang! So we check out a tyre lettering or tyre decal/tyre sticker kit from a company called TyreVogue.in to see if it can change our plain and mundane Hyundai Creta test car into something cooler and with a bit more street cred!
Waiting periods for the Jeep Compass are currently at about 2 months with the factory ramping up production to two shifts a day to keep up with demand from the Indian public.
