BMW rolls out the locally assembled 2014 X5 from its Chennai plant

BMW India has rolled out the locally assembled X5 from Chennai. This is the third generation of the SUV that was launched on May 29 in the presence of legendary cricketer and brand Ambassador for BMW, Sachin Tendulkar.

This new BMW X5 gets changes to both exteriors and interiors. The car gets a tall upright stance adding to its sporty character and the fascia shows the traditional BMW kidney grille which is broader than the outgoing model. The vehicle features new headlamps with LED inserts and revised two piece tail lights.

The overall dimensions of the car have changed than its predecessor, making it

1. 1938mm wide(5mm wider)
2. 4,886mm long (32mm longer) 
3. 1762mm high (14mm taller). 
4. Wheelbase is 2933mm.
5. Boot space of 650 litres.

Inside, the automaker has given a wooden treatment around the dash, door pads and the gear lever. The instrument panel gets four round gauges and the cabin features a freestanding 10.5-inch iDrive control display monitor. The other standard features include self-leveling rear suspension, electronic damper control, four-zone climate control and cruise control with braking function, etc. Another highlight in this X5 model is that it gets lane departure warning, road sign information, head-up display, night vision with human and animal detection, 360 degree surround view parking assistance and collision warning.

The new generation BMW X5 is powered by a 3.0-litre six-cylinder, turbocharged diesel engine producing 258bhp of power and 560Nm of torque. This mill comes mated to an eight-speed ZF automatic gearbox and the power is sent to all the wheels. The car does the 0 to 100kmph run in just 6.9seconds and reaches a top speed of 230kmph.

The car was first unveiled at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo and was launched at price of Rs 70.90 lakh last month. The deliveries for the BMW X5 will begin by the end of this month. The waiting period for the car may extend to three months, and to meet the growing demand the manufacturer might step up the production.

All the specs of BMW X5 are here

2015 Hyundai Solaris (Verna) unveiled.

The 2015 Hyundai Verna has been launched in Russia at 4.73 lakh Rubles (Rs 8.26 lakh). Sold under the ‘Solaris’ moniker in Russia, the facelift adopts the Fluidic version 2.0 design philosophy, making it closely resemble its elder brother, the Sonata.

The new Verna is a facelift of the current car and gets some prominent cosmetic changes influenced by the 'Verna RB concept'. The Russia-spec Verna is very similar to the Hyundai Rena, which is sold in China, though the front grille gets two chrome slats and the headlamp design has also been altered. The lower bumper has also been redesigned and gets a different design for the fog lamps. The rear gets new tail lamps with LED lights and a reflector on the lower bumper.

The interiors of the new Verna have remained almost same, though it now gets an all-black centre console and cabin. Safety features include six airbags, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) and ABS with EBD.

The Verna is currently offered with four engine options and we expect the same to be retained for the facelift. Both the petrol and diesel-powered variants are offered with either a 1.4-litre or a 1.6-litre unit. While the petrol variants come with a five-speed manual gearbox, the diesel variants come with a six-speed manual gearbox. A four-speed automatic gearbox is also available in some high-end variants.

The current second-generation Verna was launched back in May 2011 and is one of the Korean manufacturer’s best-selling cars in India. Hyundai recently updated the car with redesigned alloy wheels, projector headlamps and daytime running lamps, though the threat from the new Honda City, Sunny facelift and the Fiesta facelift is too big to be ignored. While the sales numbers have remained pretty consistent over the past few months, the City has shown that there is a lot of untapped potential in this segment. We can expect the facelift to be launched by the end of this year.

2014 Ford Fiesta launched starting at Rs 7.69 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi)

Model Available: 

1.5 TDCi Diesel Ambiente
1.5 TDCi Diesel Trend
1.5 TDCi Diesel Titanium

Colors Available:

Panther Black

Diamond White

Golden Bronze

Smoke Grey

Paprika Red

Moondust Silver

Ford has launched the 2014 Fiesta today for a price tag starting Rs 7.69 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). The good-looking sedan will be available in three variants namely 1.5 TDCi Diesel Ambiente, 1.5 TDCi Diesel Trend, 1.5 TDCi Diesel Titaniumand with a single engine option of  1.5 TDCi Diesel with some changes.

The new Fiesta gets Ford’s new trapezoidal front grille and wraparound headlamps. The bonnet gets a power-dome hood design that looks impressive. The tail lamps get more detailed to be in sync with the stylish front end. Inside the Fiesta gets an in-car entertainment system inspired by the logic of the modern mobile phone. The interface is easy to use and have been placed for optimal ergonomic positioning.
The sedan retains the 1.5-litre Duratorq TDCI diesel engine. This engine is mated to a five-speed manual gearbox.

‘‘The Fiesta has a very special role in Ford India’s product portfolio and is for the pure driving enthusiasts who are known for their distinct choices and opt for nothing but the best,’’ said, Nigel Harris, President, Ford India.

“2014 Fiesta, with its best-in-class driving dynamics, design and in-car technology, is a complete package that delivers much more than the expectations of customers in this segment. What’s better is its attractive price, making our premium sedan an even more compelling option for discerning enthusiasts,” he added.

Tata might be Working on turbocharged petrol engine for Nano.

Tata Motors not giving up on the Nano yet, the sales of the Nano might be flagging, but the company intends to change that. According to a source the Indian car major is working on a turbocharged version of the Nano. The interesting bit is that the turbocharged Nano might make it to markets this year during the festive season.

The turbocharged Nano project could be a strategy by Tata Motors to re-position the Nano as a ‘smart city car’ from the current ‘cheap car’ image it has been tagged with. Along with this the company is also rumoured to be working on an electric variant of the Nano to be called the Nano ‘e-rev’.

A company spokesperson said “Tata Motors is constantly working on upgrades, new variants, and new projects. We continue to look at new and refreshed products to be launched across various segments and, of course, test these vehicles and the same is applicable to the Nano.”

The source adds, “While we have high degree of technology-readiness and the programme offers several competitive strengths, it is difficult to predict the exact timeframe needed to create the right ecosystem for this to be a market-viable project.”

While Tata may wait for favourable policies for the electric and hybrid vehicles before it launched the Nano ‘e-rev’. We can expect the turbocharged vehicle facing not too many delays before it’s available in the showrooms. These are still early days to predict the cubic capacity of the engine or the number of cylinders the turbocharged Nano will use, all we can say is – it will be huge improvement in performance over the current model. The Nano is also the cheapest rear-wheel-drive car on sale in India today.

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