[parsh]

I thought WagonR came quite close to this. Just a bit extended and it will surely fit in this category, WagonREx. BTW, was it Doblo, or Diablo? I remember seeing a different version in UK with the eyes sunken in kind of design. Or as some suggest a compressed Xylo would probably fit in this category. Another B+ segment. Would surely find some market here.

[anoopash]

GM India’s parent company GM has a 50-50 deal with a Chinese company called SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp.) in China. This joint venture has done both the brands magic in china with SAIC taking care of the low cost market and GM the uptown. since this JV has worked so well GM India has decided to strike a similar joint venture with SAIC to sell its cost effective vehicles in India.
The deal is on the verge of a public announcement and once that goes through GM India would launch SAIC’s low cost products starting with its commercial vehicle wing Wuling’s LCVs as the demand in this segment is ever growing. GM India would also be able to play around with Wuling’s fleet to people carrier vans.

[shimoo]

All these are mini vans/ vans and not panel vans. Panel vans are those which have metal panels instead of windows (hence the name) to facilitate goods transport.

Maruti had a panel-van version of the omni called omni cargo(i think).



Panel van

[justwheels]

Originally Posted by FlyingSpur

While the cars in this "segment" really challenge and stretch the ability of a customer to accept a wonky design, the utility and practicality offered by them does ask for a second thought. I've seen some of these in Europe a long time back. I wonder if they would really click in India though. I think looks are an important criteria in India.

Rightly said, infact that was the very point when I brought live this discussion. I myself am not a very great fan of a few designs in this segment but the utility part keeps me interested. With utility I don't necessarily mean cargo utility but also family utility. Tweak the design may be and bring it on!

Originally Posted by designersf

Yup. Bring them on

The speculated vehicle Nissan NV200 should make a good choice. It is the only panel van coming to India probably next year. It isnt quite as stylish as the ones above but should win many with its space.

I am not sure if this design is more of a panel van or a complete MUV (in the sense of an Innova). And also not sure if Nissan is really in any mood to introduce this before getting its dealership network on track.

The ford one shown in one of the post above is more closer to the winger concept, thats a full grown up van. Now you might not have families buying full grown vans in India, but the berlingo or the doblo make a lot of sense. Even the voting has 70% people for a yes. That surely says something.

Also the SAIC van shown is more closer to the Eeco which is basically a peoples carrier, although it sells as a family vehicle too.

[shankar.balan]

yes these should make sense for medium business owners
but the trouble is that our market has not yet matured enough which is why small and medium business owners still prefer to rent when necessary and if they own, they buy things like that Tata MAGIC and APE and Mahindra and so on.

[justwheels]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

yes these should make sense for medium business owners
but the trouble is that our market has not yet matured enough which is why small and medium business owners still prefer to rent when necessary and if they own, they buy things like that Tata MAGIC and APE and Mahindra and so on.

Yes shankar, you are absolutely right, but I wonder why we can't have these as family variants. May be the right kind of marketing can do wonders here. Why I am so hell bound on having these launched a family vehicle because then they would heat up the competition in the right way. People can buy cars beyond hatches and sedans for sure. Omni sold a lot as family vehicle also, but it was the best fit as a cargo van. But the utility and space factor made a decently successfully family van.

[KALINGA]

Originally Posted by shimoo

All these are mini vans/ vans and not panel vans. Panel vans are those which have metal panels instead of windows (hence the name) to facilitate goods transport.

Maruti had a panel-van version of the omni called omni cargo(i think).



Panel van

IMHO TATA Winger is better then this VAN.

@ designersf :- The Nissan NV200 looks excellent.
It can be a good option against INNOVA / XYLO

[arvi86]

Having started the topic of Panel Vans and the passenger variants derived from them, it's surprising that we all have left out what is probably one of the very best panel vans launched in the last couple of years.

Yes, I am talking about the Ford Transit Connect, a global sales success for Ford and also the recipient of North American Truck of the Year award in 2010. Additionally, Transit Connect is going to replace the old Crown Victorias as taxis in major cities of USA. I would be so glad if Ford launches this in India, but in reality its not going to happen.

Attached are pictures of a Transit Connect panel van and its passenger version. (Pic Courtesy: Autoblog — We Obsessively Cover The Auto Industry)

[clevermax]

I love these kind of vans! Want to drive one badly!
The only vehicle that comes close to these vans is the TATA Winger in India.

[justwheels]

Originally Posted by arvi86

Having started the topic of Panel Vans and the passenger variants derived from them, it's surprising that we all have left out what is probably one of the very best panel vans launched in the last couple of years.

Yes, I am talking about the Ford Transit Connect, a global sales success for Ford and also the recipient of North American Truck of the Year award in 2010. Additionally, Transit Connect is going to replace the old Crown Victorias as taxis in major cities of USA. I would be so glad if Ford launches this in India, but in reality its not going to happen.

Attached are pictures of a Transit Connect panel van and its passenger version. (Pic Courtesy: Autoblog — We Obsessively Cover The Auto Industry)

Attachment 531689
Attachment 531690

Sorry for missing out on this. Actually the VW/Fiat/Citroen came to my mind first as I see tons of them everyday. I am in germany on office work and happen to spot these panel vans used in all possible sorts. Infact thats what made me thing of their worth in India.

I seriously feel we must have a more diversified category in cars than just hatches and sedans primarily!

[designersf]

As somebody mentioned, the Tata Winger is actually a panel van too, but due to the unpopularity of panel vans in India, we see only its civilian versions

[arvi86]

Originally Posted by justwheels

I seriously feel we must have a more diversified category in cars than just hatches and sedans primarily!

Spot on! But the sad fact is whenever a manufacturer tries to do something out-of-the-box, it fails miserably and nobody dare touch that segment after that. The very best example would be Station Wagons. Maruti, Opel and Fiat tried their level best to popularize that segment with the Altura, Corsa Swing and Siena Weekend/Adventure but we all know the fate of those models. Tata tasted moderate success with Indigo Marina though.

Originally Posted by designersf

As somebody mentioned, the Tata Winger is actually a panel van too, but due to the unpopularity of panel vans in India, we see only its civilian versions

Very true. Tata Winger would classify as a Panel Van in India, but then again the same reason as I stated above made sure that it was not a huge success.

[dot]

Originally Posted by arvi86

Spot on! But the sad fact is whenever a manufacturer tries to do something out-of-the-box, it fails miserably and nobody dare touch that segment after that. The very best example would be Station Wagons. Maruti, Opel and Fiat tried their level best to popularize that segment with the Altura, Corsa Swing and Siena Weekend/Adventure but we all know the fate of those models. Tata tasted moderate success with Indigo Marina though.

Add Octavia Combi to the list. This market segment is simply not there to justify launches in India. I wonder if this is the case in India only or the entire south-east asia and asia-pacific countries. You know, emerging economies, young demographics and excess population. Could there be a correlation? If I try to think of my experiences in Singapore and Malaysian traffic, I dont seem to recall too many station wagons and Panel vans there.

[mxx]

There is some mistake in this discussion.
The pictures posted by the thread starter are not panel vans.

this is definition of panel vans from wikipedia

A panel van (or panelvan) is a form of solid (rigid-bodied, non-articulated) van, smaller than a lorry or truck, without rear side windows

further..

Panel vans are widely used in many parts of the world for transporting cargo

The pictures posted are of passenger vehicles, definitely not cargo.

That said, whatever these cars are called, i think it makes sense, if pricing is right (around 10laks max)

Originally Posted by FlyingSpur

While the cars in this "segment" really challenge and stretch the ability of a customer to accept a wonky design, the utility and practicality offered by them does ask for a second thought. I've seen some of these in Europe a long time back. I wonder if they would really click in India though. I think looks are an important criteria in India.

Xylo, dezire does reasonably well despite its looks, linea does not. looks are not that important in indian market

[justwheels]

Originally Posted by mxx

There is some mistake in this discussion.
The pictures posted by the thread starter are not panel vans.

this is definition of panel vans from wikipedia
further..

The pictures posted are of passenger vehicles, definitely not cargo.

That said, whatever these cars are called, i think it makes sense, if pricing is right (around 10laks max)

Referring to Wikipedia again for the Renault Kangoo,

The Renault Kangoo and Kangoo Express are panel van and leisure activity vehicle produced by French automaker Renault since 1997.

So I do hope when I called Kangoo a panel van, even Caddy, Doblo and others fall in the same category. For sure I agree that the wiki definition of a Panel Van in particular is correct, but I also feel that the ones shown in the start of the thread are merely derived versions of Panel vans. The idea was not too discuss what a panel van looks like but if such a category and its derived versions are worth a launch in India.
But thanks anyways for pointing out the issue.

Originally Posted by mxx

Xylo, dezire does reasonably well despite its looks, linea does not. looks are not that important in indian market

Your point is absolutely correct that although looks matter, but if there is a proven utility in the design, it can work out a good deal. Indigo Marina might not be a success, but it still found its way in the Taxi segment in some numbers."Utility over design"