Bajaj-US agency combine develops hydrogen-run auto

AN Indo-American business alliance forged under the United States-Asia Environmental Partnership (US-AEP) has developed a three-wheeler powered by hydrogen fuel. The vehicle, being exhibited at the annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), is one of the two such demonstration models in the world.

The development of the vehicle is a step in international efforts to mitigate climate change through a future hydrogen economy, a US Embassy release said here today. The Energy Conversion Devices of Troy, Michigan, and the Pune-based Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) have worked together to make the prototypes a reality, the release said. The vehicles perform at levels equal to those of conventional Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) three-wheelers, the release said.

The next step for the hydrogen transportation initiative includes exploring fuel availability, fuelling infrastructure, and safety codes and standards that would raise performance to the level of a gasoline-fuelled vehicle. The other existing demonstration vehicle is now on the streets of Troy, Michigan, near its American developer.

The Indian model is housed at the Bajaj headquarters in Pune. Another key partner in the effort is the US Department of Energy, the release said, adding that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) also provided funding of $500,000.

GM to launch 'Aveo-UVA' with smaller engine capacity

General Motors India on Thursday said it would launch its hatchback model 'Aveo-UVA' by November/December with scaled-down engine capacity to get the benefit of excise duty cut announced in this year's budget.

"We expect to launch a 1.2 litre petrol engine driven Aveo-UVS by November-December this year," GM (India) Vice President (Corporate Affairs) P Balendran told reporters here on the sidelines of ACMA annual conference.

"This model would get us the benefit of excise duty cut announced by Finance Minister P Chidambaram," he said, adding that the company was looking at launching two variants of the model one which may be in petrol or diesel engine.

He also said that the company's small car 'Chevy Spark' is expected to be launched by April next year and will be rolled out from its facility in Halol in Gujarat.

Balendran said the company's new plant at Talegaon in Maharashtra is expected to start production by October 2008 and will produce the small car with an initial capacity of 1,40,000 units.

Dodge Hornet

For its unusual and attractive looks, Dodge's Hornet attracted loads of attention at the Geneva Auto Show in March this year.

The car is such a stunner that its production strategy has triggered feverish speculation in the Autoville. Will the car be made in China.
When it debuted at the Geneva show in March, the Dodge Hornet created quite a buzz.

Not just because of its rather different looks, but also because of the production strategy that Chrysler was likely to crank out for this entry-level car.
The car, smaller than the Caliber, has a 1.6 liter supercharged engine with 170 hp and 165 lb-ft (224 Nm) of torque (both at 4,000 rpm); the intercooler is visible from the grille, and includes a functional hood scoop.

The transmission is a six-speed manual. The body features frameless windows and more glass than current models.

The seats have thinner, but still comfortable cushions to provide more interior space and make folding easier. It is designed to accommodate both left- and right-hand drive.
Four months on, that buzz has turned into a din. The Hornet is an exciting car for Chrysler. The Hornet is the smallest car that Chrysler has ever made.

Partly because it will help the company attack a whole new segment in North America and Europe, and partly, because it will give the company fresh foothold in Asia.

It is smaller than the 2007 Dodge Caliber and was targeted at both Europe's sub-compact market as well as the growing American interest in hatchbacks

he latest speculation over this rather unusual looking vehicle is over its productionising. Both European and American media have talked about Chrysler negotiating with as many as three potential partners to produce the Hornet.

The names include Volkswagen and Chinese company Chery. Chrysler officials have in the past indicated that the company is talking to a number of potential partners to assemble the Hornet for the US market.

In separate interviews, Chrysler top bosses have indicated that VW is a potential partner given its expertise in the segment that the Hornet will attack.
Analysts say Chrysler is looking to tie-up with a company that already has architecture expertise in the small car segment.

VW's Jetta and Polo platforms make it a potential candidate as does Chery's small car platforms. It is currently not clear who the third player is, though indications are that it's an Asian company.

Will the Chinese or German-built Dodge Hornet take the American market by storm? Would Chrysler use this product to get into the fast-growing hatch market in Europe and Asia?

Would Chrysler expand this assembling arrangement for a larger component and platform swapping relationship? Watch this space for more details on this one.

LML takes rough ride to BIFR

NEW DELHI: Ailing two-wheeler maker LML has turned into a BIFR case. The Kanpur-based company has informed the stock exchange that its net worth as on August 31, 2006 “has been completely eroded, and consequently it has become a sick industrial company under the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions Act) 1985”.

The net worth erosion was necessitated by the fact that a deferred tax asset (DTA) provision had to be reversed. The company informed BSE that “in the context of the continued lock-out of two-wheeler operations, the present prevailing condition of the company, the uncertainty of generation of profits in near future” it has decided “to reverse the provision of DTA”, which completely eroded its net worth.

Although there have been no confirmations from the management, there have been persistent reports about LML looking for a strategic or financial partner. Auto analysts have at various points named several local and MNC two-wheeler companies that have reportedly considered an alliance with LML.

LML’s fortunes dipped when the market moved away from scooters to motorcycles. Despite balance-sheet problems, it managed to get several motorcycle models out on the market like the Freedom in 110 and 125 cc versions and the 150 cc Graptor. It even embarked on a financial restructuring exercise to clean up its balance sheet ahead of an expected turnaround just over a year ago. It rescheduled around Rs 180 crore worth of debt and substituted some of the old debt to bring down interest costs.

It also invested in its motorcycle business including Rs 70 crore in product development and announced plans to invest another Rs 100 crore over two years to take its bike capacity to 600,000 a year, geared scooters to 100,000 and gearless scooters to another 100,000 a year.

Bajaj Pulsar DTS-i 180 V3

According to our sources at Bajaj Auto, Bajaj is launching there Pulsar DTS-i 180 Upgrade in few days.

Here are the final specifications:-

1. Current Pulsar Headlight

2. LED AC / DC tail lamp.

3. Back lit, Non contact switch assys. Use of electronics, which would make
the switches last longer.

4. Self cancelling Turn Indicators.

5. Low maintenance battery.

6. All new clutch & gearbox

7. Modified camshaft, & CDI to match the new valve timing & redefined
Ignition timing.

8. Twin layered Air filter & a modded carb.

9. New Silencer to match the change in Valve timing for better mid range
drive ability

10. All new Chassis

Everything else is same as current Pulsar 180 Dtsi. There maybe a Digital Speedo too, but we are not sure.

TVS to tap Philippines

NEW DELHI: TVS Motor on Thursday said it will come out with an IPO in Indonesia in the next 2-3 years to fund expansion plans in the region.

"We will be tapping the Indonesian market in the next 2-3 years," TVS Motor Managing Director Venu Srinivasan told the media on the sidelines of the SIAM summit.

TVS is currently setting up a manufacturing facility in Indonesia through which it hopes to cater to the demands of the ASEAN region.

"We are setting up a 300,000 unit capacity in Indonesia, which will begin production from April next year. Through this we look to cater not only to the local market but also to other countries like Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam," Srinivasan said.

Asked on the reasons for the IPO, he said it would add value to the company's operations in the country as well as give it recognition as a local company.

TVS Scooter wins women vote

NEW DELHI: Preity Zinta endorsing scooterettes seems to be bang on target. When it comes to scooters, women are definitely the happier lot. In the first TVS Scooter Satisfaction survey, women have emerged as more satisfied with their scooters than men. Women are almost 8 points higher on the total customer satisfaction index.

The study reports that stark difference has been observed in the sales satisfaction index. The total customer satisfaction index is a sum total of aspects of brand image, cost of ownership, quality index and design among others.

Contrary to popular belief, motorcycle rather than scooter is the mass vehicle. According to the survey findings, the income profile of scooter owners is more affluent than motorcycle owners.

More than 31% of motorcycle owners reported their monthly income to be about Rs 10,000. On the other hand 19% of scooter owners reported their monthly income falling in that slab. Also more than 11% scooter owners reported their income to be more than Rs 30,000 per month, while there were far lesser proportion of motorcycle owners in the high income category.

“The profile of a scooter consumer has changed a lot. From a time where scooters were the only vehicle in the family. Scooters are now being bought as a second vehicle for short distances by affluent families,” says Pradeep Saxena, senior veep, TNS Automotive.

Quality remains a concern though as most scooter owners in the survey were not satisfied with the quality of scooters. In almost all segments of scooters—geared scooters, ungeared scooters and scooterettes, quality satisfaction saw a drop with increasing duration of ownership. The scooterettes saw the biggest drop with the quality index dropping nearly 28 points with ownership up to years.

The upgradation trends for both gender saw a strong inclination to upgrade to a car. However men also showed a strong inclination for motorcycle. Almost 80% women reported scooters to be their first two-wheeler but for 20% men it is a second two-wheeler.

TNS Scooter satisfaction had a sample size of about 2,000 people of which 688 were women. The survey was conducted across 20 cities which were major two-wheeler markets.