Honda to boost Amaze production from November 2013

Waiting periods for Honda Cars India's Amaze compact sedan could reduce in the coming months. The Japanese car maker will add a third shift to the production line at its Greater Noida factory from November 2013. On an average, Honda is selling 5,500 units of the Amaze each month while the order backlog stands at 20,000 units. 

The impending festive season could further inflate the order book and push up waiting periods. At present, Honda produces 440 cars each day, through 2 shifts at its Greater Noida factory. The third shift is expected to be shorter than the first two shifts. For now, Honda has not revealed the exact numbers by which it plans to boost numbers of the Amaze sedan.

The third shift is expected to cut waiting times for the Brio-platform based Amaze compact sedan by 2 months. Currently, certain variants of the Honda Amaze command waiting periods of 4-5 months, which will be cut to 2-3 months once the new shift is added. 

Turbo diesel engined variants on offer and a high degree of localization leading to competitive pricing, have been two important factors contributing to this car's success in India. A comeback model for Honda, the Amaze has gone on to become a best seller for the Japanese car brand. The car is available with petrol and turbo diesel engine options.

Digging into its parts bin, Honda has outfitted the petrol powered Brio with the 1.2 liter i-VTEC motor while the diesel engine is an all new affair in the form of the 1.5 liter i-DTEC turbo diesel unit. The 1.5 liter i-DTEC "EarthDreams" diesel engine is a derivative of the 1.6 liter i-DTEC that Honda uses in the Euro-spec Civic and CR-V models. 

The light weight diesel engine is an all-aluminium affair. A 5 speed manual gearbox is standard on the Amaze and a 5 speed automatic gearbox is offered on select variants of the petrol engined model. The Amaze competes head on with the Maruti Suzuki Dzire, India's best selling sedan.

The Honda Amaze has been one of the bright spots in the Indian car market for 2013, even as car sales in India continue to be very subdued. The Amaze is the second car to be spawned out of the Brio platform. Next year, Honda is expected to launch an MPV based on the Brio platform in India.

The Maruti Ertiga rivaling MPV will be the third car under the Brio platform for India, after the hatchback and sedan models. The Brio-based MPV is expected to share its engine and transmission line up with the Amaze. High local content is likely. Primed for a launch in Indonesia first, the car will be officially unveiled at this year's Indonesian International Motor Show. 

Source TheHinduBusinessLine