Page 5 - Vehicles

India major centre of gravity for automotive major Stellantis: Co official

India has become a major 'centre of gravity' for global automotive major Stellantis as it expands internationally, especially with digital and software hubs in the country supporting the organisation's technological future, according to a senior company official. Stellantis, which came into existence after the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the French PSA Group in 2021, currently sells its Jeep and Citroen brands in the country. It has three manufacturing plants, two R&D centres and two ICT hubs in India. "We have got 4,000 employees in the region (India and the Asia Pacific), and the vast majority of those employees are right here in India. We're creating jobs here, two R&D centres and two IT centres. It's not only creating for India, but it's also creating for the world," Stellantis, India and Asia Pacific (IAP) Region, Head of Sales, Marketing and Regional Operations, Billy Hayes told PTI. The validation for the vehicles sold outside of India is done here, given ...

Scrapping more than 15-years-old vehicles to cost Goa Rs 95 cr: Minister

The implementation of a policy to scrap vehicles that are more than 15 years old will cost Goa Rs 95.85 crore, state transport minister Mauvin Godinho said in the Assembly on Friday. There are 520 vehicles belonging to the Centre, state government, civic bodies and transport undertakings that are more than 15 years old, he said. "The Registered Vehicle Scrappage Policy was notified on May 10, 2023. The estimated cost of replacing these (520) vehicles is Rs 95.85 crore," he said during the Monsoon session of the Assembly. Godinho said the policy is an intervention for climate change, he added.

Ola denies receiving flood warning over viral video of 350 drowned cabs

The ride-sharing company issued a statement on the viral video that shows 350 submerged cabs. The company claims that it hadn't received any notice from the government authorities

All-new Toyota Fortuner leaked ahead of debut in 2024, details below

Toyota's new Fortuner is expected to launch in early 2024, no official confirmation yet. According to leaked reports, the Fortuner has a sharp LED headlamp cluster with integrated LED Daytime lights

Toyota Kirloskar Motor hikes vehicle prices by 1% due to rise in input cost

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) on Thursday said it has hiked the prices of its models by around 1 per cent in order to offset the impact of an increase in input cost. The company, which sells models like Innova Crysta and Fortuner, has realigned the prices of its models with effect from July 5, 2023, TKM said in a statement. The increase was necessitated to partially offset the rising input cost, it added. "As a customer-centric company, we remain committed to cater to the ever-evolving needs of the market and all efforts have been made to ensure that the impact of the cost increase passing on to our customers is minimal," it noted.

1,000 vehicles denied entry on Samruddhi Expressway due to worn out tyres

Nearly 1,000 vehicles were denied entry to the Samruddhi Expressway over worn out tyres between April 1 and June 30 this year, an official said. The expressway, operational on a 601 kilometre stretch from Nagpur to Nashik, was the site of a horrific bus accident on Saturday in which 25 persons were charred to death. As per the action taken data shared by Maharashtra's Road Safety Cell, teams of eight RTO offices counselled 21,053 motorists and prohibited entry to 973 vehicles for worn out tyres on Samruddhi Expressway since April 1 this year. "The teams were from Amravati, Aurangabad, Washim, Buldhana, Jalna, Shrirampur and Nashik RTOs. A total of 234 motorists were caught for speeding, including 77 through a computerised mechanism installed on the route, which has a design speed of 150 kmph and limit of 120 kmph," an official said. Bharat Kalaskar, deputy commissioner (road safety) said action was taken using RTO interceptor vehicles as well as the computerised system, adding that

Mercedes-Benz accelerating drive to bring top-end vehicles to India

German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz is accelerating its drive to bring top-end vehicles priced above Rs 1 crore to India, with demand even from non-metros growing at an accelerated pace, according to a senior company official. The company, which on Thursday launched the premium new AMG SL55 MATIC+ roadster model with prices starting at Rs 2.35 crore ( all India ex-showroom) -- its fifth launch of the year -- will bring another model in the top-end vehicles (TEVs) segment, which account for 25 per cent of its total sales in India. The Mercedes-Benz SL55 4MATIC+ features a petrol V8 engine with twin turbo charge and offers a top speed of 295 km/hour, the company said. "The non-metros, from a percentile basis are even bigger than metros but their base is small...Metros still contribute close to 70 per cent (of TEV sales) and the balance 30 per cent comes from non-metros...," Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Santosh Iyer told PTI here in an interview. Still, he said the contribution ..

Nearly all Tata Motors vehicle dealers turn profitable after a decade

Tata Motors' diversification into multiple electrified models, which are priced on average Rs 3-3.5 lakh higher than traditional internal combustion engine models, has increased profit margins

Restrictions on number of vehicles on Manali-Rohtang pass to continue

Restrictions on the number of vehicles from Manali to Rohtang pass in Himachal Pradesh will continue, as the National Green Tribunal has refused to modify its 2015 order limiting them to 1,000 per day. The apex environment watchdog said the adverse impact of vehicular pollution on glacier, climate change and environment does not allow any let up. "Data of air quality merely because of restricted number of vehicles situation is better cannot be ground to presume that increased number of vehicles will be sustainable. The opening of Atal Tunnel or availability of parking space does not change the situation which led to passing of earlier orders by this Tribunal. "Opinion of some expert relied upon can not be treated as conclusive to revisit the orders passed on consideration of entirety of material based on reports of experts and on due consideration, after contest between the parties," a bench headed by NGT Chairperson justice AK Goel said. The NGT's order came on a plea seeking ...

Automobile retail sales up 14% in March; post 21% YoY growth in FY23

All vehicle categories, except tractors, post double-digit growth for March and the full financial year

Centre extends mandatory fitness testing of vehicles till Oct 2024

The government has extended the date of mandatory fitness testing through a registered Automated Testing Station (ATS) for heavy goods and passenger motor vehicles by 18 months to October 1, 2024. Earlier, the Road Transport and Highways Ministry (MoRTH) had said that fitness testing for heavy goods vehicles and heavy passenger motor vehicles through an ATS will be mandatory from April 1, 2023. However, in the case of medium goods vehicles, medium passenger motor vehicles and light motor vehicles (transport), the MoRTH had said the requirement will be made compulsory from June 1, 2024. "Now, in view of the present status of readiness of the Automated testing Stations (ATS) across the country, MoRTH has decided to extend the date for mandatory testing through ATS in respect of Heavy Goods Vehicles/Heavy Passenger Motor Vehicles, Medium Goods Vehicles / Medium Passenger Motor Vehicles and Light Motor vehicles (Transport) to 1st October 2024," the ministry said in a statement. An ...

Steelmakers press for higher auto contract prices after three quarters

Spot steel prices have been rising both globally and at home since December; a hike of over 12% in the domestic market would have been the basis of negotiations for the upcoming contracts

63 police stations don't have vehicle, 285 have no mobile phones: Govt

As many as 63 police stations in the country do not have any vehicle, 628 police stations do not have telephone connection and 285 police stations don't have a wireless set or mobile phone, Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday. Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said there are 17,535 police stations operating in the country now. A total of 63 police stations don't have any vehicle, 628 don't have any telephone connection and 285 don't have a wireless set or mobile phone, he said in a written reply to a question.

Growth momentum in sale of passenger vehicles continues: Siam data

SIAM has said that BMW, Mercedes and Volvo Auto data is not available while Tata Motors data is only available for April-December

Mercedes-Benz to increase prices by Rs 2-12 lakh across models from Apr 1

Luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz India on Thursday said it will increase prices of its vehicles ranging between Rs 2 lakh to Rs 12 lakh across different models from April 1, to offset rising input costs specially the adverse impact of foreign exchange. This will be the second time in three months that the company is increasing prices of its vehicles. The ex-showroom price of the company's model range will increase by up to 5 per cent from April 1, 2023, the company said. Mercedes-Benz India Managing Director & CEO Santosh Iyer told PTI that the company has been tracking the Euro and the Rupee has depreciated against it in the past few months. "In October it (Euro) was around 78-79 (to a Rupee) and now it is at 87. It is really putting pressure and if we don't take this proactive step now, it will deteriorate our overall business model in India," he said. As a result, from April, prices of the company's A-Class limousine will go up by Rs 2 lakh and GLA SUV by Rs 7 lakh for the top-end

Process to scrap Delhi govt vehicles older than 15 years started: Officials

The Delhi government has started the process for scrapping its vehicles that are older than 15 years and sought their details and registration numbers, officials said on Thursday. In a meeting earlier this month, Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar had directed all departments to scrap government vehicles that were older than 15 years. He had asked the general administration department to ensure that the process is done according to the policy of central government. "The Delhi government onboarded on the national portal for establishing registered vehicle scrapping facilities," Delhi Transport Commissioner Ashish Kundra said in a tweet. The Centre has asked states and union territories for scrapping government vehicles older than 15 years, the officials said They said all such vehicles will not be able to remain operational as their certificate of registration will expire. Different departments have been asked to furnish details of such vehicles so that the next step can be take,

Consumers willing to pay premium for next vehicle amid inflation fears

Indian consumers are willing to pay a premium for purchasing their next vehicle despite fears of inflation, with a large portion of them looking at automobiles in the Rs 1,025 lakh price bracket

Adishwar introduces Benelli Bikes, launches new model of Keeway Superbike

Hyderabad-based Adishwar Auto Ride India (AARI) on Wednesday introduced the Italian bicycle brand Benelli Bike in India and also launched Superbike Keeway SR250 at Auto Expo 2023

Hyundai Motor India to increase vehicle prices from January 2023

Hyundai Motor India Ltd on Thursday said it will increase prices of its vehicles across models from next month citing rising input cost. The company joins the likes of market leader Maruti Suzuki India, Tata Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Renault, Kia India and MG Motor, who have also made the year-end announcements to hike prices from next month to partially offset the impact of rising input costs. In a statement, Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) said, "The company has continued to absorb rising costs, however (it) will now pass on a part of the input cost increase through a revision in prices across its model range." New prices for HMIL model range come into effect from January 2023, it said but did not elaborate the quantum of the proposed price hike. HMIL said it will "continue to make consistent internal efforts to minimise price impact to customers".

40% of all vehicles sold will be electric by 2030, says Bain & Co report

Report estimates that 4-5 million EVs will be sold across segments in 2026