[airbender]

http://auto.economictimes.indiatimes...folio/60791407


The design teams are also working on a range of cars including an entry-level hatch to be positioned below the Tiago and a full-size sedan above its compact offering - Tigor.

[greenhorn]

Uh, isn't that what the nano was?
My guess is there will be more work on the marketing side than technical

[condor]

Actually, the news is not very new. See this web-clip from last year:

https://www.motorbeam.com/tata-motor...level-segment/

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/a...w/52399204.cms

http://forum.maxabout.com/t/tata-mot...vel-hatch/1761

And could be the Pelican:
https://www.team-bhp.com/news/tata-n...erior-revealed

[Ironhide]

Originally Posted by airbender

http://auto.economictimes.indiatimes...folio/60791407


The design teams are also working on a range of cars including an entry-level hatch to be positioned below the Tiago and a full-size sedan above its compact offering - Tigor.

That's encouraging news. But what happens to Nano?

When I read about Nexon's specs, the first thought that came to my mind was that the engines could do well in a proper sedan, and Tata already have a robust platform available for exploitation - that of the Manza. The money saved from not having to pay royalty to Fiat for engines will go into a reducing the price for what I surmise should be a competent sedan.

Going by the style, quality and features that Tata has been bestowing their cars with, we should see a worthy competitor to Ciaz / City. Now only if they could launch it sooner, and not endlessly test them for millions of kilometres like they did with Nexon.

Cheers !

[mn2363]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

Uh, isn't that what the nano was?

Originally Posted by Ironhide

That's encouraging news. But what happens to Nano?

Maybe they are working on NanoXL with the Pixel skin/ design cues (the concept they previewd a couple years back, not Google Pixel).

Something similar to Mini Clubman and Fiat 500L.

Nano was good product, particulary the last iteration, but marred by lack of aspirational value for the target market.

So a reskinned, repositioned product could work. And based on the Hexa and Nexon, the company sure does know how to do its homework well.

[IshaanIan]

Honestly I feel they shouldn't do this. The priorities of the market looking to buy a car cheaper than the Tiago, are completely different. One won't be able to play the features game in that price bracket. It is all about reliability and ease of ownership both areas which Tata hasn't yet mastered in the private car sector. Leave this game to the Alto and simply don't bother. Even the mighty Hyundai couldn't steal the segment away from the Alto with its arguably better Eon. Simply because this segment leans completely to the properties best fulfilled by Maruti for whatever retarded or sensible reasons it may be.

Also, anyone who experiences a Tiago is simply blown away by how awesome it is especially given its price. It is a breath of fresh air from Tata and if they have this as the most basic car in their portfolio, customers' mindset toward the brand will completely change for the better; which I feel is a more strategic advantage that Tata needs to work towards at the moment.

[narayan]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

best fulfilled by Maruti for whatever retarded or sensible reasons it may be.

Also, anyone who experiences a Tiago is simply blown away by how awesome it is especially given its price.

Your point is valid. But adding another angle to this. These projects are typically 2-3 year atleast in the horizon. The Tiago being fairly successful will go through product refresh and model changes over time and typically these result in moderate price increases. In fact, the Tiago has already gone through some price hikes since launch. With this, a price point will open up below it for them to cash in on. Tata motors also needs that to further write down costs across higher volumes. They just can't survive as a 10-15k cars per month player for long. Their cost base is much bigger. And volumes will only come from lower segments.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

Uh, isn't that what the nano was?

Originally Posted by condor

And could be the Pelican

Originally Posted by mn2363

Maybe they are working on NanoXL

If we go by news reports, there is no way Tata is going to put anymore money into the Nano project. In fact, there have been boardroom debates, with one side (including Cyrus Mistry) strongly pushing for killing the Nano project altogether. It's only been a money pit so far.

If Tata is indeed working on a new car below the Tiago, it'll be a more conventional hatchback. The Nano was too cheap & too different to succeed.

[Su-47]

Originally Posted by narayan

And volumes will only come from lower segments.

If one looks at at the latest sales data, the bulk of volume is in 5L-15L segment (Baleno, Brezza, i20, Creta). Alto sales are impressive, but the likes of Kwid and Tiago are managing to do 7K units while Baleno, Brezza and Creta are consistently doing 10k+.

Assuming that the margins in the premium hatch segment are better than entry level, Tata is doing the right thing by going for an image makeover with products like Nexon and Tiago. IMHO, the Indian buyer is looking for the best value (and not the cheapest), so, investing NRE in a product positioned below Tiago doesn't appear like the best idea.

[abhishek46]

Tata already has an entry level car, below Tiago.
It's called the Nano.

Why don't they just make it, a little more acceptable?

• A 3Cyl Engine, OR maybe, an electric unit?
• Slightly Wider and Lower Cabin, like the SmartCar
• Better brakes
• Wheels, befitting a Car

[greenhorn]

Originally Posted by Su-47

If one looks at at the latest sales data, the bulk of volume is in 5L-15L segment (Baleno, Brezza, i20, Creta). Alto sales are impressive, but the likes of Kwid and Tiago are managing to do 7K units while Baleno, Brezza and Creta are consistently doing 10k+.

Assuming that the margins in the premium hatch segment are better than entry level, Tata is doing the right thing by going for an image makeover with products like Nexon and Tiago. IMHO, the Indian buyer is looking for the best value (and not the cheapest), so, investing NRE in a product positioned below Tiago doesn't appear like the best idea.

Agreed, Going further below the tiago will only hurt its margins, while not giving significantly higher volumes. I think the other direction - a city/ciaz clone with slightly more euro looks (like the tiago) and corolla ish space ( a typical Tata USP) on the Manza platform and the nexon engine should yield much better results.

In the meantime, I am going to wait for the sport version of the bolt's successor with the nexon 108 bhp engine which should be ready in another 3-5 years

Another possibility is, to follow the maruti swift/ritz strategy, and launch another hatch with a different target segment on the same platform, and have staggered facelift schedules so that both platforms have a useful life, but they always have a recent model, and increase the odds of getting into a customer shortlist

[narayan]

Originally Posted by Su-47

If one looks at at the latest sales data, the bulk of volume is in 5L-15L segment (Baleno, Brezza, i20, Creta). Alto sales are impressive, but the likes of Kwid and Tiago are managing to do 7K units while Baleno, Brezza and Creta are consistently doing 10k+.
.

5-15l is not one segment. Aggregating multiple segments would definitely give a high volume. And it's not a homogeneous segment in terms of vehicles, buyers, feature sets etc.

There will continue to be a 30k volume new car segment below the Tiago and a much larger used car segment. No harm in trying for a share of that pie. As I said, for Tata's cost base, they have to increase volumes quickly.

[airbender]

Originally Posted by condor

Actually, the news is not very new. See this web-clip from last year:

That at best is only a rumor. This is confirmed news coming from a executive of the company.


Tata needs more mass selling models to break even. They have a lot of over capacity(thanks to Nano) and also need to produce more cars on their AMP platform. Costs involved will not be very high as this product will be on AMP and will share a lot with Tiago. Good move i would say.

Also, they should consider a performance compact sedan(not RACEMO) with Nexon engine. They already have the platform ready in Tigor.

[DriverR]

As per a Tata Motors spokesperson, production of the Nano will continue for some more time. So they may be considering a new variant of the Nano as the new entry level vehicle, but i doubt it. At least not unless they totally redesign the Nano.

Tata Motors to continue production of Nano for some more time

Tata Motors has said it would continue the production of Nano cars for some more time as the vehicle has an “emotional connect” with the Tata Group.

“Nano plays an important role in our PV (passenger vehicle) strategy because it is our only product in the entry hatchback segment, which is a very important segment from a first time buyer point of view,” a Tata Motors spokesperson told PTI in an email reply.

“We regularly review our product strategy and will certainly give an update in the months to come. Till that time, we continue to produce Nano catering to customer demand in key markets,” the spokesperson said.

There have been discussions lately with regard to the future of Tata Nano, which was the brainchild of chairman emeritus Tata Sons, Ratan Tata. “There have been a lot of discussions around the future of Nano and the emotional connect with the vehicle, leading to several conclusions. No decision has been taken on Nano yet as this cannot be done in isolation. Decisions regarding any product will be taken in context of the entire passenger vehicle strategy,” the official said.

Meanwhile, Mayank Pareek, president of passenger vehicle business unit, Tata Motors, said that by the end of next year, the company’s aim is to be among the top 3 PV players in the domestic market. Pareek was in Hyderabad on Monday to launch Tata Motors’ latest SUV Nexon.

“With the entry into newer segments and the launch of market leading products, our aim is to cover 95% of the market by 2020,” Pareek said. Tata Motors passenger vehicle sales has been witnessing a positive growth trajectory, with company sales growing at 22% in FY17, while the industry growth stood at 9%.

In the five months of the current fiscal (2017-18), the market grew by almost 6-7% whereas the company grew by 11%, he said. To a query on foraying into electric vehicle segment, Pareek said Tata Motors European Technical Centre PLC (TMETC), a subsidiary of Tata Motors in UK, has already built electric versions of Tiago and Bolt.

According to Pareek, electric mobility preparedness will play a critical role in achieving sustainable growth of the automaker.

[Reinhard]

While nano is a cute & good car for the money, I think no matter what Tata does, this car will not see the sales going higher than current numbers. Its a wonderful city run about and always seen in plush bungalows as the 2nd car / grocery shopping car.

The way the platform is designed - it is hard to make it into a conventional looking car. Sadly they'll kill it sooner or later I suspect.

Also - wasn't Tata saying that they are going to rationalize their portfolio into a 3-4 platform one with all kinds of cars based on these platforms? In that case, I don't see the NANO platform surviving.

Logically it should be a lesser detailed car based on the Tiago platform. Not too many lavish features, not too much detailing. More of utilitarian approach. Something like the original Indica. Most bang for the buck but not "luxury" per say.