2007 seems to have picked up exactly where this past year left off, which is to say with buoyant Indian companies looking to make their mark on the world. We’ve all seen the Mission Impossible inspired TV ads announcing the Mahindra-Renault alliance. M&M is now eyeing the US market, and plans to build an all-new SUV to enter that all-important market.
Looking closer to home, traditionally December is expected to see a slump in car sales. In this case, however, we seem to have done away with tradition. December, like the months before it, saw an increase in year-on-year car sales in excess of 20%. New launches practically everyday are tempting prospective buyers, and attempting to take car sales to even greater heights. Sales rose to an all time high of roughly 1.2 million units in 2006, up by practically 20% over the previous calendar year, which was the first time ever we crossed a million vehicles.
The Rs. 2,500 crore figure seems to have struck a cord with manufacturers – Mahindra has recently announced that it’ll invest this sum in a new commercial vehicle plant in Pune, while Maruti will invest the same magic number in an engine manufacturing unit there as well. Not to be left behind, Honda is in the process of doubling capacity at its plant in Greater Noida to 100,000 units, and has signed a letter of intent with the Government of Rajasthan to set up a new plant there. It seems that you can do no wrong in any segment of the car industry these days, all the way up to the exotics – Lamborghini claims that it doesn’t have enough cars to sell in India – despite no roads to drive them on (they sold their entire allocation of 10 cars within a week of their launch).
All of this means that the pages of this magazine will continue to feature better cars in greater numbers. In this issue, Mr. Murad Ali Baig test drives another one of Maruti’s new offerings, the Swift Diesel – the first time in its history that the manufacturer has gone the diesel route. Mr. Baig also provides advice on the maintenance and replacement of your cars tyres. Additionally, our driving cues you can use return in an effort to make driving safer and more enjoyable, while our News on the Go page brings you up to date with the latest developments in the market. The image you see here is that of the 2006 Maruti Suzuki Autocross – a great event for anyone that’s ever tried the Scandinavian flick.
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