[E63]

Moderator Warning: Do NOT TROLL on Team-BHP. If you don't have anything nice to say, it's best not to say anything at all.

[F150]

Originally Posted by GTO

Disagreed. A good part of Uber's customer base is from non-car owners.

I have to disagree, 90% of my team members(if I can consider that as a sample size) prefer OLA & Taxi For Sure to Uber. Most of them don't own a car, and apparently only I prefer Uber. The trend is clear at least in the corporate offices.

[Sahil]

From a business stand point - Great move by Tata to rope in several of the conglomerates verticals to milk this deal from every angle.

From a customer POV: I hate Tata cars. They have a horrible build and get rattling in no time. Now, if Tata can also rope in JLR into this deal and offer the XE/XF for the UberExec and XJ for the UberLux to take on OlaLuxury offering; I would be a happy customer

[VeluM]

Originally Posted by F150

I have to disagree, 90% of my team members(if I can consider that as a sample size) prefer OLA & Taxi For Sure to Uber. Most of them don't own a car, and apparently only I prefer Uber. The trend is clear at least in the corporate offices.

Not sure about Pune, but my experience is quite the opposite in Bangalore. Almost all of my colleagues prefer Uber, with the exception of the ones who take Ola Autos. I've had poor experiences with Ola and Taxi For Sure in Bangalore, and so have several colleagues and my family members.

From this I could conclude that people only choose other operators if Uber is unavailable, but that would not be valid because my sample size is minuscule and I still see a lot of Ola cabs running around with passengers.

Originally Posted by Sahil

From a customer POV: I hate Tata cars. They have a horrible build and get rattling in no time.

From the Manza/Vista onwards owners have appreciated Tata cars for their decent build, features and reliability. They have a fully depreciated range of products that aren't bad because they are not very technologically complex, and now have decent engines. They work very well in the urban environment and even today cab owners say that they are reliable and cheap.

These were their bread and butter, and if this agreement helps them sell more cars to support the development of their universally appreciated next generation products like the Tiago, then brilliant.

[NiInJa]

Disagree with bhpians saying Indica and Indigo should be shelved.
Keeping the Indica/Indigo sisters alive makes a lot of business sense.
Typing this post sitting in my office and staring out of the window (Photography not allowed ), All I can see is Indicas and Indigos ready to drop employees to their respective destination.

For a cab operator, The cost of owning a Tata Indica/Indigo is less compared to say a Hyundai Xcent or Nissan Sunny/Micra, moreover, local garages that you find on highways have most of the spare parts available for Indica (along with technical know-how) so maintenance is not an issue. I say this because there are lots of these crude garages near my house (which is on NH4) and they are all booked with Tata cabs for service.

Think of Tata Indica as an Autorickshaw, they are there for a specific purpose and are pretty good at it, so why have something new unless there is no option ? Have we seen any facelifted/re-engineered Autorickshaw in the last 15 years ?

[STraiTDriVE]

Yes Tata vehicles are really worthy for the value they draw and are always the preferred choice for those getting into a taxi business. Am knowing many people who have successfully started their businesses by owning an indica/indigo as there first vehicle and later on built up by buying a Dzire or may be even an Innova. For many, even physiologically it’s always a safe and trusted brand to start with.. They are low on maintenance and awfully convenient to maintain. The rear seat offers a 1BHK kind of space specially in a vista or manza ...mean it’s very spacious and comfortable compared to other cars for that value.

While they are ticking many boxes now one thing they really need to work upon is there approach towards after-sales service.. If they are able to replicate something like what Maruti is able to do, they will surely bring their golden days back.

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by VeluM

From the Manza/Vista onwards owners have appreciated Tata cars for their decent build, features and reliability. They have a fully depreciated range of products that aren't bad because they are not very technologically complex, and now have decent engines. They work very well in the urban environment and even today cab owners say that they are reliable and cheap.

As mentioned in my post, its my POV (Point Of View) and you can have a different opinion. Frankly Tata's cars don't appeal to me and hence you seldom will ever find me comment on a Tata car related thread.

My problem with Tata cars are not their lack of tech and great on reliability. As a passenger sitting in a Tata cab, I am NOT pleased with the build quality as the interiors feel cheap and rattle. Frankly, no passenger cares about how reliable the engine is or how much technology the car has or doesnt. I am looking for comfort and space is an important criteria but not the only one.

[Contrapunto]

I am an extensive Uber user, and have a long commute home, so end up spending chatting a lot with the drivers.

Originally Posted by GTO

Fleet cab owners are incredibly price sensitive, hence if Tata offers them heavy discounts, it could be enough to sway a good number of customers away from the competition.

While this is true, they are also getting sensitive to lifetime ownership costs, as opposed to just initial capital outlay- a sign of a maturing market I suppose. As a result, these days I regularly encounter a number of pre-owned petrol Corollas. As explained by their owner drivers - these are purchased a far-less-than-Indica prices and run at Uber X (mid sized) car charge-outs, and the recoveries apparently more than make up for higher variable costs of petrol (they do mostly airport runs, so FE is higher than average). All these drivers told me "never a Tata car" very, very explicitly.
One of them has recovered his investment (3L) in an year and has bought- you guessed it- a diesel Etios !

So while Tata's move sounds right in theory, it would be interesting to see how the numbers pan out in real life. But best of luck to Tata.

[Dr.Suraj]

This is the precise consolidation Tata Group needed 5 years ago.
I remember wondering why Tata dealers (Concorde) did not have Tata AIG in their list of insurance providers - especially since back then Tata AIG was one of the only ones offering the 'Pearl' Zero Dep schemes.
This was 5 years ago.
Now with CPM at the helm, making some aggressive moves, trying to get a grip of the sheer breadth and variety of the business - FINALLY some GOOD news.

This is a good move because:
1. It benefits more than 1 company in the portfolio
2. Brings in 'rolling' numbers for all those involved
3. Helps in strengthening brand image again
4. Keeps everything in-house - playing to the strengths
5. Since - years people kept criticizing Tata for being a 'taxi' brand - during which time everything from a Honda City, Nissan Sunny, Hyundai Xcent, i10, Maruti Ritz has been sold to the taxi market - especially models to be phased out 'Santro, i10, Ritz' - and no one batted an eye - so why should Tata not play to their strengths.

Atleast they will survive as a company, make some money, pump it in better R&D (Tata Motors is the biggest spender on R&D in India - article on TeamBhp) and bring better products for the consumers.

Indica Vista or Indica eV2 - Indigo eCS or Manza - all are quite comfortable as Taxis.
They have variety of options - Diesel, CNG, Petrol.
All are tried and tested - in fact - in a way perfected over the years.
The eV2 & eCS have Z-tronic gearboxes since last 2 years, integrated bluetooth and better suspension since their last iteration 2 years ago. Both are quite heavy and feel solid on the highways. The rock hard (& heavy) clutch is no more to be found.

I remember reading an interview of RNT - where he expressed that he wanted the Indica & Indigo badges to be 'platforms' like the Corolla and Camry. So I don't think they will ever be 'killed' - they will keep finding better avatars & generations. If Toyota can sell the same car for 10 years+ - regularly - then why shouldn't Tata try to emulate the same.

Although, frankly I am a little sad to see the Zest & Bolt with yellow number plates - there is a silver lining to it.
1. People will get to experience the 'newer' cars - which otherwise they would not - since the sales figures are not so great and poorer so in the metros. So gives them a chance to witness the improvement 1st hand
2. The fact that the Zest & Bolt have both been picked up by the taxi operators shows that maybe Tata hasn't lost it's fan base entirely
3. Dead inventory gets moved out - making way for the facelift and new stock - so IF (moderately large IF) - the private customers do like the cars they are being ferried in - and opt to recommend them - then buyers will have some newer versions to choose from.

Lastly, good news for the share holders.

[landcruiser123]

Good move by Tata. They killed 2 birds with one stone.
1. They are bound to get more sales and can also clear existing inventory. I'm sure the Zest hasn't met the internal sales target.
2. They'll capture the a good fraction of the small commercial vehicle market. I've heard many drivers complain about how Toyota's dealers don't give many discounts for the Etios and Liva.

Originally Posted by Viju

Can't think of any other OEM making a tailor-suited taxi

It's the same precise reason that Tata's aren't popular with the private buyer- 'Taxi Image.' The only Tata car that doesn't have a Taxi image is the Safari.

[ashutoshb]

Uber Delhi has started sending out messages to its partners for Tata cars. Upto 75k in discounts for Indica, Indigo and Bolt. Do note that these would be petrols, since new registrations of diesel cabs is now banned.

[NiInJa]

Originally Posted by ashutoshb

Do note that these would be petrols, since new registrations of diesel cabs is now banned.

Is the Tata Indica/Indigo still available in petrol ? I think they stopped manufacturing petrol Indica long back.

[rattanw]

IMHO, this could well be a brilliant move by Tata.

Simply because, when the going gets tough, which has been the case for Tata Motors since many years, it takes an awful amount of grit and guts to stay relevant and stay in the game. By doing this, Tata Motors stays in the game and its vehicles continue to roll off the line in some decent numbers, while the company gets some well needed impetus to try out options for other different classes. By conceptualizing and implementing such a multi-tower, cross-platform deal, other Tata group companies benefit as well while also giving the entire Industry an entirely new kind of engagement, which other companies may well rush to emulate.

Why did they leave TCS out of the deal? Maybe TCS could also get a $ 10 Mn contract to develop and maintain a new kick-a$$ e-commerce platform for Uber? Maybe its the next annoucement on the cards

[RSR]

I got a text message from Tafe Access (Tata dealer in Chennai) about a new Uber offer for Tata cars. They seem to have taken my number out of their database from my Indica Xeta days.

Tata & Uber have basically come up with a special offer for individual cab operators who want to sign up for Uber. One can pay Rs. 35,000 or Rs. 40,000 or Rs. 45,000 as down payment and drive away in a brand new Indica or Indigo or Bolt respectively, linked to Uber but registered in one's own name. I guess there must be some arrangement to pay the remaining instalments from the operator's Uber earnings.

I hope most of the operators opt to pay 45k rupees and take the Bolt. There's no use in flogging the Indicas & Indigos anymore. The Indi__ pair deserve a graceful retirement.

I don't know why the Zest & Nano were left out. Zest could have been offered for 50k rupees down payment & the Nano for 25k bucks. But Uber needs to create a separate category for the Nano first - something like the Ola Micro category.

By the way, Uber's office in Chennai seems to be located somewhere in Alandur: