[C300]

Kudos to NM and GJ. Well done!
MH is way behind in pro-active administration. Pune-Mumbai industrial belt is losing its sheen because of pathetic Infra. Hinjewadi is a classic example. MH politicos are only pro-active in putting their plastic smiles on hoardings all across the city.

[kvish]

Wherever it opens, its good for the country as a whole and for us car lovers.
Am sure in the next 2-3 years we'll have the biggies like merc,bmw manufacturing cars very soon

[libranof1987]

This is good news; glad there's a proactive CM somewhere in India!

Originally Posted by aryasanyal

The other Indian city that I think comes close is Poona with Tata, Bajaj, Kinetic (now Mahindra), etc.

How do you forget Mercedes Benz?! It's located in Chakan; some distance from Pune.

Pune also has quite some auto-allied industries.

[VW2010]

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post one-liners that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the overall quality of this forum.

Please read our rules before proceeding any further.

[blackasta]

I read this -felt great as an Indian - but sad as a Bengali. Things could have been so different if the nano plant came up in Singur.

[sajo]

Originally Posted by C300

politicos are only pro-active in putting their plastic smiles on hoardings all across the city.

Actually, a couple of small and medium sized industrialists I know are already shifting some of their manufacturing to Rajkot and other areas. They say the extortion trouble in MH is much widespread than is reported.
Kudos to the people of Gujarat and NM !

[SunilM]

Now you know why we keep electing Mr Modi again and again At least he gives his best amidst all adversities. I am happy that Ford cars may cost a little less in Gujarat!

Originally Posted by aryasanyal

Yup, you are missing the Asian Motor Works truck manufacturing facility in Bhuj -

Integrated Manufacturing at AMW: Maximising fast deliveries and world-class quality. | Asia MotorWorks

Bombardier also has plant in Gujarat (Nr. Baroda), just to add to the list. I now they are not a car company per se, but it is a transport company with big presence in Aircraft and Railways.

Originally Posted by aryasanyal

Detroit is a city and Gujarat is a state - so comparisons are unfair. If any city has to come close then I believe that it's Madras that still holds the sway over other cities in India with respect to automobile manufacturers.
...
The other Indian city that I think comes close is Poona with Tata, Bajaj, Kinetic (now Mahindra), etc.

Agree with both points. Ahmedabad/Gujarat has a very long way to go. Chennai undoubtedly takes the top spot in India followed by Pune.

[aravind.anand]

Oh great! Ford seems to be really interested in our market! Hope that the Fiesta would be the last of the 8 new models before mid decade, that would be priced optimistically though

[aryasanyal]

Originally Posted by blackasta

I read this -felt great as an Indian - but sad as a Bengali. Things could have been so different if the nano plant came up in Singur.

I quite agree and feel the same. Things would have been much much different if Singur had seen the light of the day.

Wild imagination - Singur at one end and Hind Motor at the other - a great auto-engineering economy working away employing thousands of folks from all over.

As I mentioned earlier, only if wishes were horses. Sigh!

[vw19d]

Originally Posted by aryasanyal

Detroit is a city and Gujarat is a state - so comparisons are unfair. If any city has to come close then I believe that it's Madras that still holds the sway over other cities in India with respect to automobile manufacturers.

The following auto plants are Madras-based -

Hyundai Motor Company :: About Hyundai Motor India Ltd.

Ford India - Contact Us

Chennai Car Plant (CCP) - Thiruvallur*

Automotive Manufacturing Plant | Automotive Assembly Plant

http://www.nissan.in/en/web/nscuploa...oter_11541.htm

Renault Customer Service Centre, Renault Car Service Centre, Renault Car Service Centers in India.

Tafe:: corporate

Not sure, but I may have missed out some others.

Apart from the above, you also have the huge Integrated Coach Factory (Railway works) at Perambur in Madras. All this says a lot about the existing auto-economy of the southern city. And if you consider the number of people associated with this auto-engineering economy, then I believe Madras far exceeds Detroit.

The other Indian city that I think comes close is Poona with Tata, Bajaj, Kinetic (now Mahindra), etc.

Ford's new plant in GJ is a good news to hear & clearly shows how Ford is eyeing the Indian market post the financial crisis of 2009. But, definitely, GJ has a long long way to catch up with Chennai. In fact, there's also a Daimler plant in Oragadam, Chennai in addition to all those mentioned here. Apart from the OEMs, there are numerous Tier 1 & Tier 2 suppliers - Visteon, Wheels India, Brakes India, Rane to name a few.

As an ex-employee of Ford, I'm totally delighted . It was such a nice place to start my career and those were the days when we worked pretty hard to lauch the Fiesta!

[Fordmanchau]

After the Gujarat riots, Narendra Modi has worked hard to shed his Hindutva image and tried to make amends by focussing on the growth and prosperity factor.
I think he has done good, to come out of that ghastly event. And inspite of such a background, his election again as Chief Minister of Gujarat only shows that people trust him, that his amends and effort to create a new vibrant Gujarat is honest.
But what a contrasting picture the BJP leadership of Karnataka & Gujarat presents.Bangalore is going down the drains.
Great work NM and keep it up. And I hope all manufacturers achieve good level of localisation to give us competitively priced cars. Looking forward to those times.

Originally Posted by vw19d

As an ex-employee of Ford, I'm totally delighted . It was such a nice place to start my career and those were the days when we worked pretty hard to lauch the Fiesta!

I recon now you are a Volkswagen employee ?

[vw19d]

Originally Posted by Fordmanchau

I recon now you are a Volkswagen employee ?

Haha!! No mate, switched field. Own a VW & hence my handle

[GTO]

Originally Posted by aryasanyal

If any city has to come close then I believe that it's Madras that still holds the sway over other cities in India with respect to automobile manufacturers.

We have a lovely thread on the topic in case you want to read some more : Chennai, the Detroit of India.

Originally Posted by blackasta

Things could have been so different if the nano plant came up in Singur.

Conversely, things will be so different now that Nano production moved out of WB. No auto manufacturer is going to come anywhere close.

[paragpatankar]

The difference I see in Gujarat is the ability and speed of execution of the plans. Grand plans are announced by politicians in every state, but most just stay on paper. Earlier this year I was traveling in a tribal area in Gujarat, and the quality of the road surface(this was a district road-not even a state highway), was an order of magnitude better than most of Bangalore city roads. 15 Years ago when I was studying at Ahmedabad, I remember in 2 years we had just one power cut, having stayed in Gurgaon and Bangalore since then, I have suffered from regular load shedding due to power shortage, a few drops of rain or gusts of wind are enough to cause an outage lasting hours.For Industry it is much worse--contrast this with Gujrat where the state is willing to sign a Legal power supply agreement guaranteeing power availability at the sanctioned load, with penalties if the delivery is not done.

[rajneeesh]

At the rate Gujarat is courting the automobile industry, it is a matter of time before it reels in Chennai and Haryana and then opens up a lead. Businessmen now know that Gujarat means business. Decision-making is fast and on sound basis, infrastructure is great, industrial relations are good.

With their frequent strikes and labour unrest, Haryana and Tamil Nadu are losing out to other locations like Gujarat.

However, with the way Ford has priced the new Fiesta, they will have their task cut out to utilise the capacity of the plant once it is set up. I hope they wake up and smell the coffee.