latest updates from Tata
Source: Moneycontrol.com
Tata Motors which has been struggling in the domestic passenger car business, with sluggish sales and declining market share, on Wednesday launched as much as 8 new upgraded products in the market, including compressed natural gas variants of its cheapest car Nano, Indica hatcbback and Indigo sedan.
The Nano, which has been clocking sales well below what the company had expected, has been revamped with new features like remote keyless entry, twin gloveboxes, and four-speaker music system with bluetooth and USB. The new Nano, which will be available from next month, will also come in new colours and there will also be four personalisation kits, the company announced on Wednesday.
Apart from the Nano, Tata Motors has also launched upgraded versions of its compact sedan Indigo eCS, and its long running utility vehicle Sumo Gold.
The Indigo eCS now has a refined engine, new suspension, and external noise reduction, while the Sumo Gold has new features like dual AC cooling and USB/bluetooth.
Tata Motors also launched the explorer edition of its Safari Storme SUV, which itself was refreshed last year. The company claims, the explorer edition "further builds on the utility, ruggedness and off-roading characteristics," of the Safari Storme. It will also have accessories like Blaupunkt infotainment system, and adventure gears like camping kits, backpack etc.
"These products clearly indicate the significant improvement we are bringing in our product quality. While we are working towards our next-generation product pipeline, today we are bringing best-in-class vehicle experience across different passenger car categories to enhance some of our great existing brands," Ranjit Yadav, president, passenger vehicle business unit, said.
The company appointed Karl Slym as its MD in August 2012 to help revive the passenger car business. Since then Tata Motors has refreshed most of its existing passenger vehicles, including Indica Vista, Manza and Safari.
Slym has said on several occassions that the company will launch brand new products and new platforms in the long-term in the competitive passenger car market. However, a brand new product is only expected in 2015. Till then, it will have to continue with refreshes of its existing portfolio.
Apart from the upgraded products, Tata Motors also launched a customer focused strategy called Horizonext on Wednesday.
"While the Indian automobile market has become intensely competitive, our goal is to enhance our market leadership in commercial vehicles and move to a strong podium finish in the passenger vehicle market. Horizonext is the next step in line with the company's mission to be passionate in anticipating and providing the best vehicles and experiences that excite our customers globally," Slym said.
Its interesting to note that Tata Motors is focussing on the customer experience with their Horizonext initiative