Friday, May 8, 2009

Tata Nano - The World's Cheapest Car


The Tata Group multinational conglomerate based in India. Tata Group is the largest private corporate group in India and has interests in steel, automobiles, information technology, communication, power, tea and hotels. This is the company that purchased Jaguar and Land Rover in2007 from the Ford Motor Company.
The Tata Group have unveiled a $2500 USD car billed as the world's cheapest. This is a ground breaking event similar to the introduction of the Model T in the U.S. The Model T launched the automobile revolution in the United States and the world. It put more people in cars....the assembly line originated by Ford is now the world standard for car assembly.
"The launch of the Tata Nano was a landmark in the history of transportation, like the first powered flight by the Wright brothers or the first lunar landing", said 70-year-old tycoon Ratan Tata, head of the Tata Group.


The Tata Nano is a rear engine four passenger car initially aimed at the Indian market. But, Tata anticipates exporting the car to the rest of the world by 2011. It will have to be modified to meet the safety requirements in Europe and the U.S. Pricing to reflect the safety and emissions requirements will increase the cost.
The car gets great gas mileage at 78 mpg on the highway and about 92 in the city. The sales of the car will begin in July 2009, with a starting price of Rs 115,000 $2500 USD, cheaper than any other car in the world. "
My take is what we are seeing is the automobile landscape changing substantially. The advent of China and India will make a big splash onto the automobile landscape. I am of the opinion that at this price Tata will sell millions of them.

8 comments:

  1. Peter, thank you for telling us about this car. I do not think that we will get one. Not after driving the "smart car" It hates the wind ( you get blown all over the road). It does not like the snow. We get a lot of it. For some people it will be a great car. It is just not for us. It is still good to read about it. Thank you for what you search out to share with us.
    Dan and Deanna "Marketing Unscrambled"

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  2. Hi Dan & Deanna,

    I agree with you that it would not be a car that I personally would be interested in!

    My thoughts are that it will sell well in India and much of the third world. You could even describe it as a "world car".

    My concerns about a car that size is the safety issue! We have had some people killed in small cars here that should have been ok. So, cars like this and the Smart Fortwo.

    I brought this up since this was such a ground breaking car!

    Thanks for commenting!

    Pete Baca
    The Car Enthusiast Online

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  3. Hi Pete .. great you've given us some info on the Nano .. I think it's a great development .. as is the Smart ..

    The Nano is definitely aimed at the Indian upcoming middle class .. giving them something for the future .. - presumably the same will apply to China in due course/shortly ..

    These small cars have been developed for the urban populations, low mileage .. though we see the Smart cars bombing happily along the motorways here .. doing 70 mph

    They'll find their niche markets in the western world, and be a huge uplifting boom to the Indias and Chinas of this world .. like we've had here since the war - I was unusual having a car at 17, but now 'everyone' at 17 has one ..

    A changing life .. thanks for the post ..
    Hilary Melton-Butcher
    Positive Letters

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  4. Hi Hilary,

    Thank you for your comments! Your background gives us a different view, which I appreciate greatly.

    Your comment about this car is for the Indian middle class is perfect. That is the market that they are going after! I am of the opinion that they will succeed in Indian market and go on to the rest of world.

    They will probably be a niche marketer in Europe and the U.S., but at that price point they will still sell a lot of cars.

    Thank you for your super comments!

    Pete Baca
    The Car Enthusiast Online

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  5. Pete,
    Amazing!! I spent more on my lawn mower, and it doesn't look half as good? But I'll bet this car does not cut grass???
    Thanks for the post!
    Dr. Moulas

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  6. Dear Dr. Bob,

    The only thing I can say is that you have one heck of a lawn mower! You must have one of the riding lawn movers...but you also must have a big lawn!

    Thanks for your comment!

    Pete Baca
    The Car Enthusiast Online

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  7. Hi Pete,

    It reminded me when I visited Tata for 9 times in 6 months in 1996. Indian technology is now solid and this car looks good. I hope they can give new market trend to the car market.

    Thank you for your sharing.
    Shaw Funami
    Fill the Missing Link

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  8. Hi Shaw,

    Tata is a large company these days! I am sure that a lot has happened in the last ten years.

    I think that this car will stimulate India's economy even more! The Form Model T put people on wheels here in the U.S., the Tata Nano will do the same in India.

    The latest information on India is that they are booming...their stock market also has recovered and is increasing.

    Thanks for commenting!

    Pete Baca
    The Car Enthusiast Online

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