Following the highly successful introduction of the Continental GT Speed coupe in 2007, Bentley has launched the Bentley Continental Flying Spur in India. 

Powered by a 5998 cc, 6-cylinder, 600 bhp engine, the Continental Flying Spur Speed develops 15 per cent more torque and nine percent more power than the standard Flying Spur, while engine efficiency is optimized by the use of lower friction, lighter-weight components and a new engine management system. The resultant performance is exceptional, with a top speed of 322km/h, a zero to 60mph sprint time of just 4.5 seconds (0-100km/h in 4.8s) and effortless overtaking capability. 

The most powerful four-door Bentley ever made, the Flying Spur Speed blends understated design cues to distinguish it from the Flying Spur. Its front grille and lower air intakes are dark-tinted chrome, while at the rear wider rifled sports exhaust tailpipes hint at the potential of the Speed model. The luxury saloon is priced an approximate Rs 2.5 crores.

M&M has received an order for 500 Logans from South Africa. This is in addition to the 500 Logans exported to South Africa earlier, taking the total number of Logans exported to 1000 units. 200 Logans were despatched to South Africa last month. 

The Logan model exported to South Africa is the GLSx petrol , which features several state-of-the-art features such as Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), anti-rust warranty and a sophisticated Driver Information System that provides the driver with detailed information including average speed, mileage, fuel consumption and distance the car can travel with existing level of fuel.

After a painful exit from Singur in West Bengal, Tata's most exciting project yet, the much talked about small car Nano has settled for Sanand in Gujarat. After facing violent protests at Singur, it was in early October 2008 that Ratan, Chairman, Tata Motors announced the pullout from Singur after a meeting the West Bengal CM, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and minister in charge, department of commerce and industries, Nirupam Sen. If Tata had expressed anguish over the heightened level of agitation and hostility by the opposition parties in West Bengal over the Nano project, and which would result in a concern for the physical security of their staff, contractors and vendors, the mood in Sanand after the formal announcement by Ratan Tata and Gujarat CM Narendra Modi was that of celebration. 

Interestingly, the 1,100 acres of land sanctioned to the Nano project will have an initial capacity of 250,000 cars and which would be expanded to 500,000. Adjoining the mother plant will be a vendor park even as the industry experts hinted at vendors setting up shops in the industrially active belt of Rajkot, not very far from Sanand. While Modi announced that the land for the project was issued at the prevailing market rate, Ratan Tata expressed his happiness at the speed at which the infratstructure and facilities were made available. 

He added, “The site in Gujarat, already under the possession of the state government, will help Tata Motors establish a new dedicated mother plant with the shortest possible time lag and least possible incremental project cost. This is Tata Motors’ maiden venture in Gujarat, and will broad-base the company’s manufacturing footprint. We are happy to contribute to Gujarat’s strong industrial progress by creating an auto cluster, which will have a cascading impact on the state’s economy”. 

While the Sanand plant is expected to take a year to complete, the Nano, claim sources close to Tata Motors, would be made at Tata's Pantnagar and Pune plant to reach the market within the time interval announced earlier.

Hindustan Motors and Mitsubishi Motors, launched Mitsubishi Outlander SUV recently. Assembled at HM's Chennai plant, the Outlander is priced at Rs 20 lakhs (ex-showroom). A modern and stylish looking vehicle, the Outlander combines Mitusbihi's rally and sporting experience. It is powered by a 2.4 litre, 16 value MIVEC ( Mitsubishi Innovative Value Timing and Electronic Contols system) Petrol engine that does 170PS of power and 226 Nm of torque. Drive is through a electronically governed all-wheel drive system. 

A monocoque construction, the Outlander's interior has been designed for maximum ease of space and convenience. The remote folding rear seats can be tumbled from the tailgate when loading large items, at the touch of button. The vehicle can accommodate five occupants with relative ease. Its smart key enables locking or unlocking of the doors and tailgate, and turns on or off the ignition without inserting a key. The SUV also comes fitted with customized speaker and 650 Watts Rockford Fosgate Music System. 

Other features include dual stage front and co-passenger air bags, automatic climate controls a/c, reverse parking sensors, cruise controls, multi information display system, security alarm, power and heat seat engine immobilizer and over a dozen big and small storage spaces.

The curtains came down on Singur on the evening of 3rd October, 2008 as Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Motors announced his company's decision to withdraw the Nano project from Singur. Addressing the media post the announcement of the pullout, Tata expressed anguish over the heightened level of agitation and hostility by the opposition parties in West Bengal over the Nano project, and which would result in a concern for the physical security of their staff, contractors and vendors. “Through the two years we have faced enormous destruction, and assault and intimidation on to some of our people. By taking all things into account, mainly the well being our employees, the security of our contractors and in fact our vendors also, we have taken the very regretful decision to move the Nano project out of West Bengal”, he added. “There is responsibility to our shareholders, we cannot let lie something in limbo, cannot let our investment lie….and I do hope that where ever we move we can look back and learn a lesson a congenial environment will be there for such a project to prosper”. 

Prior to announcing the decision, Rata Tata had a meeting with the West Bengal chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and minister in charge, department of commerce and industries, Nirupam Sen. With the exit from West Bengal certain, the Nano is now expected to roll out from Pantnagar where Tata already makes the Ace LCV, followed by Dharwad where Tata is said to have just started the rollout of Marcopolo buses. If West Bengal would ever be a part of Nano project in the future, it is expected to be a satellite facility, and part of an arrangement that would resemble “hub and spoke”. Again depending on the situation then. The question at present is how much would the Nano project get delayed and what would be the cost implcations. The answers to which are expecte dto be announced in the coming days.

Visitors at the Paris Motor Show this year will notice the absence of Chinese players like Great Wall and Landwind, which put up huge displays at the 2006 show. Only two Chinese players, Brilliance and China Automobile France, made an appearance this year. The reasons attributed to the absence of a large number of Chinese players is the combination of tough European conditions, a focus on serving the fast-growing China market, and difficulties in adequately meeting European emissions and crash-testing standards, all of which are said to have dissuaded the Chinese from making a major play for Europe right now. 

And while some of the manufacturers, notably Great Wall, drew praise for some of their designs, they have yet to sign up any distributors in major European markets. Brilliance is already selling cars in Europe, and is rolling out a range of models in a number of markets, but progress has been slow, and a poor EuroNCAP score has done its image no good. The same problems – especially a much-publicised independent crash test – has sent Landwind back to the drawing board. The company now plans to wait until it has more suitable models before making a play in Europe. 

The other Chinese exhibitor, the French division of China Automobile Deutschland, a controversial German company that caused a major cry at last year’s Frankfurt Show, when it upset a number of manufacturers by showing cars that were blatant copies of established models, including the BMW X5 and Toyota RAV4, showed two new original models – a leisure-oriented lightweight 4x4 called the Kiff. This is made by Shanghai Xingyue Power Machinery co, and is powered by a 812cc three-cylinder Chery petrol engine. It’s on sale now, priced around £8,000. The other was a cute electric city car called the Chika. This prototype was designed by China’s best-known car stylist Li Shi Guang Ming, who is working on a range of original designs for China Automobile.

Armed with a $500-million investment outlay, Ford Motors has set early 2010 as the target to launch a small car in India, start its new engine-making unit and double the assembly line capacity, a top official said in Chennai. The US-based giant will also unveil its refurbished Ikon by next month to expand its range of offerings in the country that includes Fusion, Endeavour and Fiesta, said Michael Boneham, Managing Director and President of Ford India. "Ford now has a presence in only 30 per cent of India's automobile market segments. We are entering other segments too. 

These are exciting times," Boneham told a news agency at the company's factory at Maramalai Nagar on the outskirts of the Tamil Nadu capital. "We are also commissioning a new engine manufacturing unit. It will serve both the domestic and global markets. It will have the flexibility to produce diesel and petrol engines. The idea is to go for higher localisation in the months to come," he added. 

Speaking about the small car project, the Ford official said it was being designed and developed specifically for India by a global team. "It will meet the needs of Indian conditions - like water wading, air-conditioning and emission standards," he said.

Germany-based automobile major Audi announced the local assembly of its new model, Audi A4, at its Aurangabad plant in Maharashtra, the company said in a statement. "Audi A4 is our second Audi model to be produced at our group plant in Aurangabad after the Audi A6," said Frank Dreves, Member of the Board of Management for Production at Audi AG. "By 2015, we will have over 11,000 Audi A4 and 7,000 Audi A6 models on Indian roads. The investment would be over 30 million euros (Rs 1.68 billion) for our Indian production site," he added. 

Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member, Board of Management for Marketing and Sales, said India was one of the most important future growth markets for his company. "Compared to last year, the sale of our cars this year has gone up by over 190 per cent to 700 units," Schwarzenbauer said. Audi aims to sell about 1,000 units of the whole model range this year, 3,000 units per year by 2010 and 10,000 units per year by 2015, the company said.

The Powertrain R&D Center of Hyundai Motor Company has completed development of a new, more fuel efficient and cleaner diesel engine for compact passenger vehicles. Displacing 1,582cc, the U2 is an inline four cylinder engine which utilizes second generation common rail diesel injection system to deliver class-leading performance, a fuel economy rating of 4.7 L/100km, low emissions (125g CO2 /km) and is compliant with the latest Euro4 emission standards. 

By combining their advanced engineering know-how with state-of-the-art technologies such as a variable geometry turbocharger, a variable swirl control system and an electronically controlled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) cooling system, the U2 development team was able to successfully optimize the ports and combustion chambers. The optional particulate filter reduces particulate matter to Euro 5 standards which take effect next year. The first car to have the U2 engine installed will be the successor model of the Getz, the all-new i20 sub–compact. The i20, due to be launched in Europe towards the end of 2008, will be produced at Hyundai Motor Co’s Indian subsidiary in Chennai.

Kuka Robotics (India) has launched a new arc welding solution. A 100 per cent subsidiary of Kuka Roboter GmbH of Germany, Kuka India displayed the new arc welding solution at the recent Automation 2008 fair held in Mumbai and based on its KR 16 model. The KR 16 was displayed with the Kuka Positioner DKP-400 (which can carry a job of around 400 kg for welding). The robot and the positoner work in sync to get the job welded effectively and very fast. This is a typical application and Kuka has proved its technical superiority of this application worldwide over and over again. 

At Automation 2008 the company also displayed a KR210 applied in a typical material handling application (a most common application in every industry worldwide), and is the same as the widely used robots at Tata Motors and other OEM’s. Kuka, which is claimed to have received a order from Volkswagen for its plant at Chakan near Pune has supplied its solutions to a number of automakers in India. The company has managed to install 600 robots in a span of two years. 

To provide the needed support and service, Kuka, a year ago established a training centre at Pune, which is considered to be one of the best facilities outside Germany. Kuka's clientele in India includes a number of leading auto and other industrial corporations like M&M, Reliance industries, Ashok Leyland, Bhel and Hyundai India. While Hyundai is also said to have been supplied with robots for its new plant at Sriperambudur, the company, supplied 300 industrial robots to Tata, which aid the manufacture of a range of new products. Especially the New Tata Indica, Sumo Grande and the Xenon. 

With the new solutions displayed at Automation 2008, Kuka (India) aims to establish its strong position in the Indian Market, which is one of the world’s fastest growing robot markets. Customer and market proximity are a requirement and key to the success of Kuka Roboter GmbH. This is the only way of establishing relationships that lead to the innovative solutions for the future. The Kuka product range extends from a payload capacity of five to 1,000 kilograms. Courtesy the KUKA modular system, six basic models can currently be produced in more than 250 variants tailored to the customer’s requirements: with longer or shorter axes, for example, or as a shelf-mounted robot.

Hyundai Motor India has upped the production at its Sriperambudur plant by 62 per cent to meet the rising demand for its cars, especially the i10. The company has started the third shift of operations at its new plant, which started in February this year, and is dedicated largely to the production of the i10. 

Since its launch in October 2007, sales of this popular compact car have reached 172,000 units in less than one year of its launch and, with the third shift in operation, the daily unit production has gone up from 800 to 1300, a 62 per cent jump, to help meet demand.

The International Automotive Components Group (IAC) has entered India by announcing the setting up of a manufacturing facility in Pune. The ground breaking ceremony for the plant in Chakan was held recently, and construction will soon begin for a 150+ thousand square foot manufacturing and engineering operation. 

“IAC is now the third W L Ross company with a meaningful presence in India,” said IAC Group Chairman Wilbur Ross. “We are delighted that IAC has been invited into India to supply Mahindra & Mahindra and Volkswagen. Pune is an ideal first location for IAC and we hope that future business opportunities will cause us to put factories in the two other major automotive centers, as well.” 

The new facility, which will represent a capital investment of approximately $25 million, will manufacture vehicle interior components and systems, including instrument panels, cockpits and door assemblies for Indian domestic market passenger cars and medium/heavy duty trucks. The manufacturing and engineering operation is scheduled to be completed by the third quarter of 2009, at which time it will immediately begin supporting development and production programs for customers. IAC was awarded several new contracts to supply interior and exterior components to a future Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) utility vehicle, a Mahindra Navistar Automotive Ltd. (MNAL) medium/heavy-duty truck program and a Volkswagen Polo small car program – all of which will be supported at this new location. 

The groundbreaking follows a series of recent expansion initiatives by IAC into Asia. In early 2008, IAC established a 12,000 sq ft. engineering and administrative facility in Pune. Previously, IAC added two engineering, program management and sales locations in Yokohama and Nagoya, Japan, as well as Asia headquarters operations in Shanghai, China. Each IAC location in Asia is within 200 miles of customers’ facilities. The Nagoya facility is managed in partnership with IAC’s joint venture partner, Mitsuboshi Belting Kaseihin Co., Ltd. – one of the largest instrument panel suppliers in Japan.

Auto major, Ashok Leyland has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Tamil Nadu for acquiring 380 acres of land at Pillaipakkam, 40 kms from Chennai, for setting up a plant to produce LCVs in a joint venture with Nissan. The plant will house, among other things, a powertrain manufacturing facility and a technology development unit. The first vehicle is likely to roll out in 2010-11. 

Ashok Leyland also announced its expansion plans in respect of its MDV capacity under the MoU with the Government of Tamil Nadu. The company has committed further investments at Ennore, Hosur and new locations including a Greenfield site near Chennai. These investments will create integrated facilities for engines, gearboxes, press shops, chassis and parts. The combined investments for the two projects will be over Rs. 40 billion. Taken together, the new facilities will create more than 4,000 new jobs in these companies.

Toyota has launched the Corolla Altis. Replacing the Corolla, the Corolla Altis is wider, dynamic and thus more spacious inside. The doors open wider making ingress and egress easy. The GOA safety structure of the car has seen strengthening of areas around the passenger room whereas the active safety features include ABS and EBD. While the multi-function steering wheel is electrically power assisted, power is had from a 1.8-litre, 4-cylinder DOHC 16-valve VVT-i petrol engine that does 130hp and 17.3Kgm of torque. 

With prices starting at Rs 10.83 lakhs, ex-showroom Delhi, the Corolla Altis offers features like 6 CD audio, 8-way power driver seat adjust, auto air-con, tilt steering, HID lamps and abundant storage spaces. A four-speed auto (sequential shift) transmission model is also offered. Toyota is targeting sales of 2000 units per month in the year 2008.

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath said that auto exports from India should reach 25 billion dollar in the next decade. He was speaking at the 'Making India a Global Automotive Export Hub' conference at the annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) in New Delhi. He said the government will play its part by providing the "enabling policy framework" and added that the auto sector should take advantage of these and leverage their strengths for expanding to other parts of the world. Kamal Nath further stated that by the middle of the next decade, India should be the destination of choice for design and manufacture of automotive components and vehicles in the world. 

The minister said: "The Indian automobile industry today is all about scale. Maruti hopes to have a capacity of one million cars by 2010, Hyundai is looking at 600,000 cars in another year, Toyota is talking about 200,000 cars by the year end, the Nissan Renault venture is planning a capacity of 400,000 cars, General Motors and Honda are setting up new plants, as is Tata for its Nano." 

During his address, he underlined that the employment in the automotive sector would go up three times and exports should go up nine times. "The future challenges for the Indian automobile industry would be to develop a supply base with emphasis on lower costs and economies of scale, develop technical and human capabilities, overcome infrastructural bottlenecks, stimulate domestic demand and exploit export and international business opportunities," he said.

Global auto industry leaders at the 48th SIAM Annual Convention in Delhi stressed upon various challenges and factors driving the industry. Inaugurated by Union Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Sontosh Mohan Dev, the highlight of the convention was the discussion on small cars and innovation. With the Tata Nano shifting paradigms and challenging existing engineering principles in auto manufacturing across the globe, many auto players are re-thinking strategies and focusing on the small car segment. During a key panel discussion during the convention, a general consensus among panelists seemed to point at the increase in demand for small and medium size cars that the global auto market was witnessing. 

Fritz Henderson, president and COO, General Motors, emphasized that the small car may not be the solution for all geographies. He stated that the US was undergoing a major shift in demand patterns now and that it would seek small and medium segment cars with high technology and safety features and high fuel efficiency. Therefore, there is was need to reconcile cost, technology and power, he added. 

Ratan Tata, chairman, Tata Motors, reinforced the need for a small car in developing economies, especially in a country like India. India, he said, will be a dominant market for a low cost small car, while the USA would demand a small car loaded with accessories and packaged efficiently with power and technology. He also stated that the demand for bigger cars will remain in developed markets; though it may marginally reduce. Shen Yang – president, SAIC-GM-Wuling Company, China, stated that the demand in China for small cars was likely to exponentially increase in the near future due to legislation and policy measures being undertaken by the government such as reduction in subsidies for gasoline. He predicted that Chinese demand for small cars could go up by 12.1 per cent year-to-year from now till 2017. 

Dr. Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat Group and Automobiles, Italy, said different sub-segments of the small car may have varying profit margins, but overall, small cars do not spell lower profitability. He added that with dead markets such as the USA opening up to small cars and slated to grow, there is promising potential for the segment across the globe. While Henderson added that the key factor for profitability was also getting the right price for the right sub-segment, Tata remarked that the overall issue was not of profitability but that of scale, in a country like India. He said industry players would need to find commonalities across variants in order to optimise scale and therefore margins. However, having said this, he wholeheartedly agreed that India was a bright and potential destination for sales and production of small cars. 

At the convention, SIAM unveiled two new initiatives— Fuel Consumption Consumer Information and Fuel Economy Information brochure. This was announced by Ravi Kant, SIAM president and managing director of Tata Motors. Pointing at the shrinking demand, rising inputs costs, rising fuel prices, inflationary pressures and climate change threats, Kant said though the automotive industry contributed to about 10 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions, the sector was aware of the need for a holistic and an integrated approach to negate its effects. The Fuel Consumption Consumer Information will be displayed at the point of sale of passenger cars and two-wheelers by all SIAM members and this would be supplied to all customers along with the documentation of the vehicle. SIAM hopes to commence this by January 2009.

SB LiMotive Co Ltd, a 50:50 joint venture between Bosch and Samsung, has started operations and would be concentrating on the development, manufacture and sale of lithium-ion batteries for automotive applications. The start of series manufacturing of highly efficient lithium-ion battery systems customised to automotive requirements is planned for 2011 on a global basis. To achieve this, the joint venture partners will jointly invest between US $ 300 and US$ 400 million in the next five years. 

The new company will be led by Youngwoo Park (Samsung SDI), who will be in charge of finance, production, sales, and purchasing, and Dr. Joachim Fetzer (Bosch), who will be responsible for engineering and quality.

Mercedes-Benz has introduced its first luxury intercity coach in India. The coach sports the versatile O 500 R / RF chassis from the Mercedes-Benz stable while the bus body is built by Jalandhar-based Sutlej Motors. Speaking at the launch in Pune, Harald Landman, head of Daimler Buses said, “As the oldest bus maker in the world and market leader in the bus segment, Mercedes-Benz buses will enable people in India to ‘Travel with the Star’. 

The Mercedes-Benz O 500 R / RF is a versatile chassis and has been proven across markets, the world over. Its legendary suspension, reliability and safety will be complemented by the superior dynamics offered by the bus body created locally by Sutlej. We are bullish about the bus business and see this as the beginning of Mercedes’ bus business in India”. 

Dr. Wilfried Aulbur, CEO of Mercedes-Benz India added that the Mercedes-Benz coaches stand for the latest and best of technology, design, comfort, reliability and performance- aspects that have received enthusiastic response from our customers. The first coaches were delivered to Sharma Transports, Neeta Tours and Travels, and Konduskar Travels.

Karl Slym and A M Khan exchange documents as Vilasrao Deshmukh looks on

General Motors (GM) has formalised an agreement to build a new engine plant in Talegaon, in Maharashtra. An agreement to this effect was signed between GM India President and Managing Director Karl Slym and A M Khan, Principal Secretary (Industries), Government of Maharashtra, in the presence of Vilasrao Deshmukh, Chief Minister of Maharashtra, and host of other dignitaries. 

The initial investment in the new GM powertrain facility will exceed US$ 200 million. This is in addition to more than US$ 300 million already invested in the said facility to manufacture vehicles. The engine plant will have an annual production capacity of 160,000 engines, with the capability of being expanded to 300,000 engines per year. The engine and the car manufacturing plant will employ more than 1400 people in the same facility to begin with and going forward, the employee strength will go up depending upon the requirements. 

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Deshmukh said, “We are indeed proud and privileged to have General Motors in our state. The presence of GM in our state once again demonstrates the strengths of Maharashtra as a leading investment destination.” Mr Deshmukh said that the state will continue to extend full support to GM and ensure its success. 

In his speech, Mr Slym said “The new engine facility demonstrates GM’s commitment to India. We cannot remain a global industry leader without a strong presence in the high-growth market of India. This will enable us to capture more opportunities in one of the fastest-growing vehicle markets in the world. 

“The Talegaon engine facility is an important component of GM’s global strategy to establish a strong presence in this market. This is just one of a number of investments, totalling more than US$ 1 billion that GM has made over the course of the last few years in emerging markets around the world such as China, Korea, Russia and India. The decision to build the engine facility also in India further demonstrates GM’s confidence in our future and our commitment to growing the business all across the globe,“ said Mr Slym. 

Mr Slym also said, “The new facility will enable us to continue expanding our product line-up in India. We have been scouting for a suitable site to set up an engine facility for the past six months. We chose Maharashtra largely because of its outstanding logistics and the pro-active approach demonstrated by the state leadership and the officials in the course of building our car manufacturing plant at Talegaon which is getting commissioned on Tuesday next. It also offered advantages in terms of its employment base, costs, infrastructure, geographical location, etc. After a detailed due diligence and thoughtful consideration, we felt that Maharashtra was the right fit for the new facility.” 

The engine facility is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2010.

Hyundai Motor India has been adjudged winner of the coveted 'CIO 100' award for the third consecutive year in a row. CIO 100 is the most acclaimed recognition in the enterprise IT space at USA, constituted by IDG Media Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore. The award will be presented on 5th and 6th September 2008, at Jaipur. 

CIO 100 Awards, a twenty-year-old tradition of honoring exceptional work that began in the US, has now become the most prestigious recognition among CIOs Worldwide. Theme of this year's award was 'Bold 100'. Hyundai has been adgudged winner of this award for the innovative ways and new ideas practiced by it at its Business and Industry, setting the bar higher for the competitors. 

While acknowledging the honour, H.W. Park, Executive Director, HMI, said the achievement speaks of the culture that Hyundai has developed in its pursuit to innovate ways with championing ideas to meet challenges.

For those who want to incorporate hydraulic or pneumatic suspension components, a detailed gearbox model, or sophisticated controls in MBS simulation environment, ITI could have the answer. ITI, at the Fisita 2008 will be showcasing its SimulationX3.0 package. 

Claimed to be the world's first fully integrated 1D/3D simulation tool, SimulationX allows the combination of 1D and MBS models into one simulation model. This allows users to choose the degree of detail for each model part independently, according to the necessary task. SimulationX offers various benfits to the users. 

Benefits like sophisticated and validated libraries for automotive power transmission and fluid power applications; versatile MBS and vehicle dynamics libraries; multi-domain modelling within one model avoiding the pitfalls of co-simulation; numerical solvers, tailored for multiphysics systems; straightforward model object development for customer libraries; non-linear frequency domain simulation (steady-state), natural frequency and system analysis and generic model export and import in terms of C code for model exchange with other simulators and real-time environments.

The stamp unit is moved and positioned by a movable bridge (gantry) across the vacuum area.

Specialists for developing vacuum clamping solutions for difficult applications, Witte has successfully developed a complex clamping unit destined as a component of a gantry machine — a large size CNC milling machine with a bridge which moves in X-axis. 

The equipment includes a 2x7 meter large vacuum area, which is divided into 32 automatically monitored, individually switchable sections. A hydraulic stamp is integrated into a bridge type system above the clamping chuck, which presses the aluminum sheets down segment by segment onto the chuck. The vacuum areas are sequentially activated as the stamp progresses along the sheets. The stamp can start at any position and press down sheets up to 16 mm thickness. 

The number of stamp processes depends on the size of the part and is programmed individually. The entire unit including complete electronic cabinet is integrated into a milling machine.

AutoForm Engineering GmbH has opened a new branch office in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong office will enable AutoForm to be even closer to customers in China and provide them with an even higher standard of service. The Asian market is developing rapidly and offers an excellent business environment for growth. AutoForm is expanding its activities in the Asia-Pacific region and has chosen Hong Kong – one of the Four Asian Tigers – as the location for its new office. Hong Kong is one of the world’s leading financial centres and has the greatest concentration of corporate headquarters in the Asia-Pacific region. 

With this new office, AutoForm strengthens its presence on the Asian market. Primarily, it will enable customers across China to work in close collaboration with highly qualified AutoForm specialists and benefit directly from AutoForm’s leading-edge software solutions.

Tata has launched the new Indica, which was first shown at the Auto Expo 2008. Called as Indica Vista, the car is completely new and does not share anything with the earlier generation model. 3.8m long, 1.7m wide and with a wheelbase of 2470mm, the Indica Vista is bigger, mature and dynamic in its looks. The longer wheelbase has the car competing with the likes of Fiesta and Verna in the areas of space. Employing higher strength steel panels and tailor welded blanks, the monocoque of the Indica Vista is stiffer. 

On the inside, the Vista is thus more spacious and comfortable. It is also better built and flaunts better fit and finish standards. A centrally arranged instrument panel and soft touch dashboard dials in an upmarket feel. Top-end models get a two-DIN music system and various other thoughtful touches like the height adjustable driver's seat and tiltable steering. Power comes from a 75bhp 1.3-litre Quadrajet common-rail diesel engine and the 65bhp, 1.2-litre continuously variable cam Safire petrol engine manufactured at the new Fiat-Tata joint venture at Ranjangaon near Pune. There's also the choice of 1.4-litre turbo-diesel (TDi) engine. Transmission is a five speed with improved shifting and feel. 

While the existing Indica continues to be sold with a choice of Tata's 1.2-litre petrol (Xeta) engine and 1.4 Dicor common-rail engine, launched in 7 variants, the Indica Vista (basic) is priced at Rs.3.49 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi for the 1.2-litre petrol Safire. The top end 1.3-litre Quadrajet is praiced at Rs.4.88 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi. The TDi version comes at nearly the same price as the outgoing existing Indica V2 version. The company will launch an ABS, airbags execution in the domestic market at the time of the car's debut in international markets.

After an absence of nearly half a decade, Concorde Motors is back. A wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors, the company has set up a dealership at Prabhadevi. Spread over 4900 sq ft., the Concorde dealership adheres to the Tata-Fiat car dealer identity norms and has the distinction of being the sole showroom for the Fiat 500 and any other Fiat CBU imports that will follow. 

In keeping with its mandate, the Mumbai dealership will focus on customer satisfaction and corporate sales and will strive to be the preferred destination for Tata-Fiat customers. Concorde Motors, which has a strong network in South India is working towards opening a 3S (Sales, Service & Parts) dealership in Cochin.

ContiTech AG has launched power transmission belts in India. The Hannover, Germany-based tier supplier is the world's largest specialist for rubber and plastics technology in the non-tire rubber sector. It develops and produces functional parts, components and systems for the automotive industry and other important industries. Having a workforce of around 24,000, in the year 2007 the company posted sales of around Euro 3.1 billion. 

A division of Continental Corporation, one of the top automotive suppliers worldwide, with targeted sales of more than Euro 26.4 billion in fiscal 2008, Contitech entered India in August 2008. The launch of power transmission belts, held in Delhi saw the participation of key customers from across India and was presided over by key officials from ContiTech (Germany) and India. Speaking on the occasion, Regina Arning, Head - Industrial Business Unit promised to offer the ContiTech global quality products to Indian customers from now onward. 

Ever since ContiTech acquired erstwhile Roulunds Rubber in India in May 2006 the inputs were made on specifications, raw material, process and machines, human resource training and systems to manufacture this global quality from Indian manufacturing operations located at Kundli, Sonepat in Haryana. With ContiTech entering the Indian market, customers in India will now have availability of complete product range of ContiTech power transmission products in India.

In yet another development, Continental has concluded a far reaching agreement with the Schaeffler group. The key points of the agreement include Schaeffler KG increasing the offer price to 75 Euro per share and guarantees to compensate possible disadvantages in an aggregate amount of up to 522 Mio Euro. The current strategy of Continental will be continued. Detailed investment agreement regulates future role of Schaeffler as shareholder. Schaeffler KG guarantees to limit its position to a minority shareholding until 2012.

Mahindra’s Farm Equipment Sector has signed an agreement to form a Joint Venture (JV) in China with Jiangsu Yueda Yancheng Tractor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (Yancheng Tractor), a leading Chinese tractor manufacturer. The tractor related assets and current liabilities of Yancheng Tractors will be transferred to this JV. The value of net assets transferred to this JV will be RMB 335 million (USD 50 million approx.). 

Mahindra will hold 51 per cent (outlay approx. USD 26 million) in the JV through its subsidiary, Mahindra Overseas Investment Company (Mauritius) Ltd. (MOICML). The transaction is subject to receipt of necessary approvals. This would be the second tractor venture of Mahindra in China, in addition to Mahindra’s current tractor business namely, Mahindra China Tractor Company Ltd. (MCTCL). Yancheng Tractor’s Huanghai Jinma brand is the no. 3 tractor brand in China in terms of tractor volumes in 2007.

The Ceat Mumbai Xpress Rally 2008 concluded in Mumbai after traversing the rough terrains of South Central and Western India—from Chennai to Mumbai. With participants from 10 different countries – India, Britain, America, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Germany, Norway, Hungary and Spain, vying for the winning position, the Xpress Rally 2008 saw 18 teams and 39 participants (Autorickshaw drivers) including 7 women competing under tough climatic and road condition. 

Covering a distance of 2000 kms spanning over 14 days, the rally focused on raising money to improve the lifestyles and educational opportunities of India’s children, promote road safety, and raise the profile of the growing trend of adventure tourism.

Indian automotive manufacturer Argentum Motors announced it has signed definitive documents for acquisition of a controlling interest in French automaker, Heuliez SA. The commercial court of Bressuire approved the 'safeguard plan' proposed by Argentum and Groupe Henri Heuliez and Heuliez SA. As part of its proposal, Argentum Motors will invest up to 25 million Euros for an initial stake of 60 per cent in the French company. CDC (Caisse des D et Consignations) has also committed an investment of 5 million Euros into Heuliez. 

In a broad restructuring plan Heuliez will be spun off into three companies - Heuliez Electric, Heuliez Engineering and Design and Heuliez Manufacturing. While Heuliez Electric will build electric vehicles under the Heuliez brand for the global market, Heuliez Engineering will work closely with Argentum Engineering to integrate Heuliez expertise with Argentum delivery capability.

Bosch Electrical Drives India Pvt. Ltd., a 51: 49 joint venture between Robert Bosch Investment Nederland B.V., and Igarashi Motors India Limited, inaugurated a manufacturing facility in Chennai recently. The plant will have an annual capacity of 3 million DC motors. 

Commercial production of motors for wiper system and window lift system will commence in September. Further, manufacturing of motors for engine cooling systems for automotive applications will commence in December 2008.

The annual convention of the Society of Indian Auto Manufacturers would take place in Delhi on 4h September 2008. The convention will bring together global automotive industry leaders and other stakeholders in India to deliberate on future challenges. The theme of this year’s convention would be “India's Automotive Industry: Challenges for Leadership - 2016 and Beyond.” Focus would also be on issues influencing Indian automotive industry’s competitiveness and its integration with the global economy.

Bharat Forge, the flagship company of the USD 2.4 billion Kalyani Group and a leading global supplier of forged and machined components, has commissioned India’s largest commercial open forging press at its Mundhwa facility in Pune. The facility was inaugurated by Azeez M. Khan, Principal Secretary, Industries, Government of Maharashtra. 

The new facility, which has a large 4000T open die press, will produce ingots ranging up to 70 tons and would primarily cater to the Wind Energy, Oil & Gas, Steel, Power, Gear, Cement Ship building, Pressure Vessel, Petrochemical & Sugar Industry. Shafts for the Wind Energy & Power Generation sector, Well Heads & X-mas Tree parts for the Oil & Gas Industry and Pinion Shafts, Gear blanks etc. for the Capital Goods sector are some of the parts that will be manufactured at this new facility. 

Speaking on the occasion, B N Kalyani, Chairman & Managing Director, Bharat Forge Ltd., said, “Today is a landmark day in our company’s history. It marks a very significant step that we have taken into a new area of business – manufacture of critical components for the non-automotive sector. Bharat Forge in the last 15 years has successfully implemented a global strategy based on technology leadership and innovation, in its automotive business. We intend to replicate our successful automotive business strategy to attain a global leadership position in the non-automotive sectors”. 

“To support this goal, we have made substantial investment both in terms of capacity & capability creation as well as backward integration. We aim to provide our customers with value added service to complement their strategies and we will strive to maintain the pace of innovation.” he added.

Geometric Limited, a leader in Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions and technologies, announced the signing of a contract with Ford Motor Company to provide production support and software maintenance work. Geometric will provide application management services (AMS) to Ford for production support of its engineering applications suite, which comprises of over 140 integrated applications. The management services will cover issue analysis, investigation, resolution, code fix, software vendor coordination, testing, packaging, validation and global release at various Ford Consumer Business Groups.

Commenting on the contract, Dr Ravi Gopinath, Managing Director and CEO, Geometric Ltd. said, “Ford is a strategic customer for us, and this contract represents an important milestone in our six-year relationship.” Currently, Geometric has a team of close to 100 engineers at Ford's Dearborn facility (USA) and the Ford Technology Services center in India, supporting various projects in the PLM space. 

The US-based Federal-Mogul Corp announced that it would set up a new facility near Chennai for manufacturing friction components for original equipment and after-market segments. The plant is scheduled to begin production of light vehicle brake and friction components, commercial vehicle and railway friction products by September 2009.

Federal-Mogul's Ferodo brand friction products have been manufactured in India since 1995, although the new friction facility will be the first in the Chennai region. The company will cross swords with two other Deming award-winning brake-lining manufacturers in Chennai - Rane Brake Lining and Sundaram Brakelinings. Federal-Mogul's wholly-owned subsidiary in India recently signed a memorandum of understanding with New Chennai Township Pvt Ltd to buy 10 acres on which it will build the 6,000-square meter facility. 

The plant will be built in three phases and is expected to create nearly 500 jobs. “Products manufactured at the new facility will be for both local vehicle manufacturers and for exports,” said Federal-Mogul President and CEO Jose Maria Alapont. 

Post the acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover for approximately US$ 2.3 billion, Tata is planning a slew of launches. While the launch of the Nano later this year is expected to take centre stage, there are a range of introductions lined up, according to industry sources. 

The company, which reported a 14.4 per cent increase in revenues (net of excise) to Rs 6928.44 crores on a stand-alone basis for the quarter ended June 30, 2008 compared to Rs 6056.82 crores in the corresponding quarter last year, is expected to introduce the world truck and the Marcopolo range of buses in the commercial vehicle (CV) range. 

A small, 0.5-tonne commercial vehicle as well as a 1-tonne variant of the Ace (shown at the Auto Expo '08) is also said to be on the cards. In the passenger car and utility vehicle market, the company is expected to launch the Xenon pickup shown at the Auto Expo '08 and the new Indica. 

From the Fiat stable, with whom Tata has a strategic tie-up, the Linea and Grande Punto are expected later this year. In the current range, the recently introduced compact sedan, Indigo CS has contributed handsomely to the passenger car sales of the company. Tata's market share in the entry mid-size segment grew by 38.6 per cent during the first quarter of 2008-09. The domestic sales of passenger vehicles (including Fiat) at 52,450 units were however flat. The domestic sales of CVs increased by 15.9 per cent to 71,049 units

Ceat has appointed Sunil Sapre as its Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Sapre will be based at the Ceat headquarters in Mumbai and will head the overall responsibility of finance and accounts.

ElectroMech has announced plans to build a facility in Chennai. The plant will accrue an investment of Rs. 10 crores, with a capacity to manufacture 200 cranes per year which can be upgraded to 500 cranes. With India’s largest crane manufacturing facility at Pirangut (Pune), ElectroMech’s current manufacturing capacity is 2000 cranes annually and will boost up to 2500 cranes with the new state-of-the-art facility in Chennai. This facility will be built on 8000 sq.mts with built up area of around 4000 sq.m, and will manufacture various industrial cranes like single girder, double girder, stacker and goliath cranes. 

The project is scheduled to be completed in February 2009. The Chennai facility is expected to help ElectroMech to better serve its increasing count of clients in South India. A few notable installations in this part being Saint Gobain Glass in Sriperumbudur, Hansen in Coimbatore, and a whole host of Korean automobile ancillaries situated around Sriperumbudur.

Peter Kronschnabl, President, BMW India, with Neeraj Kumar, MD & CEO, OAIS

BMW India signed a co-operation agreement with ORIX Auto Infrastructure Services Limited (OAIS) for leasing services of BMW cars in India. The leasing services will be offered to customers through the BMW dealership network across India. Additionally, OAIS will also support BMW through its existing business network. 

Through this agreement, OAIS will offer unique services to BMW group customers. Further, the products will be customised to cater to the special requirements of BMW customers. With this agreement, BMW and OAIS aim to deliver hallmark quality of service through all BMW dealerships and BMW corporate customers across the country. 

Commenting on the development, Peter Kronschnabl, President, BMW India said the agreement reflected BMW's commitment to set new benchmarks in service quality and customer care in India. Neeraj Kumar, MD & CEO, OAIS said “Our focus has always been value creation and through this tie up, OAIS will be able to provide a value product for the Indian market. Customers can experience superior products and avail the benefits under value added lease.

Chennai-based infrastructure development company, Consolidated Construction Consortium Ltd (CCC) has bagged a Rs 1.4 billion order to build the Renault-Nissan vehicle plant at Oragadam near Chennai. CCC has also won a project worth Rs 1 billion to build a global automotive centre for the National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project (NATRIP) at Oragadam. 

With these orders, the company's total order backlog is Rs 31.8 billion, which is to be executed over a period of 18 months. "We are consolidating our presence in the auto plant construction sector," company CEO R Sarabeswar said. CCC has earlier built buildings for Hyundai Motor India and Toyota Kirloskar, and currently is constructing the Mahindra Automobile plant at Pune as well as the automobile research plant for the Mahindra group at Chennai.

Berger Paints' acquisition of Poland-based Bolix S.A. will be completed by the third week of August, opening up markets for Berger in European countries and enabling it to sell Bolix's energy-saving paints in India, Chairman Kuldip Singh Dhingra said. "The acquisition will provide synergy benefits to Berger's presence in the region, both in terms of new business opportunities and regional markets. The growth prospects are enormous," Dhingra told reporters after the 84th annual general meeting of shareholders. 

Berger acquired Bolix in April from private equity group Advent International for $34.8 million with its internal resources. Dhingra said Berger also plans to launch Bolix's paints in India, but he refused to provide a time-frame. "The products are doing very well in countries which are conscious about saving energy and we are sure they will be well received in India as well," Dhingra said. 

Bolix, with a turnover of $45.5 million in 2007, is the largest provider of external insulation finishing systems or EIFS in the B2B segment in Poland. It exports to Ukraine, Russia and the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Bolix products have an 80 per cent penetration in the Germany market, 40 per cent in Poland and 3 per cent in Ukraine. 

Meanwhile, Managing Director Subir Bose said the automotive-paint manufacturing plant with a capacity of 24,000 tonnes per annum at Jejuri near Pune, being built at a cost of Rs 50 crores, will be operational by September 2009.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has said that its Board of Directors has approved the acquisition of business assets of Pune-based Kinetic Motor Company Ltd. (KMCL). The acquisition will be done through a new company to be formed. The consideration for the acquisition is a sum of Rs. 110 crores (subject to closing due diligence) plus 20 per cent stake to KMCL in the new company. M&M will hold the balance 80 per cent of the equity. 

The deal will enable Mahindra to design and market a range of scooters, value engineered motorcycles and high-end motorcycles for the Indian and global markets, helping it establish a robust, end-to-end two-wheeler business in every segment of the industry. In yet another development, the Board of Directors of M&M and Punjab Tractors have unanimously approved a scheme of amalgamation of Punjab Tractors Limited (PTL) with Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. M&M owns a majority stake in Punjab Tractors and acquired 63.33 per cent stake in PTL in July 2007. MHFL, a wholly owned subsidiary of M&M, currently holds 1.31 per cent of PTL, and is also in the process of being merged into M&M. 

Under this amalgamation scheme, pursuant to provisions of Sections 391 to 394 and other relevant provisions of the Companies Act, 1956, PTL will be merged into M&M and all its assets and liabilities will be transferred to M&M at book values. Upon the scheme becoming effective, M&M will transfer all the equity shares held by it in PTL to a Trust, of which M&M is the beneficiary. M&M will issue its shares to PTL shareholders as on record date, based on the swap ratio determined by independent valuers.

Based on its recent analysis of heavy-duty truck bearings market, Frost & Sullivan has presented GGB Bearing Technology with the 2008 North American Frost & Sullivan Award for Product Innovation of the Year in the Class 7-8 truck bearings segment. Each year, this award is presented to the company that has demonstrated excellence in new products and technologies within its industry. 

This year's award is in recognition of GGB's development of robust, long-lasting DX(R)10 with DuraStrong technology bearings, and its focus on application-specific heavy truck bearings that perform effectively under the rigors of on-highway and vocational operation, consistently delivering superior return-on-investment and customer value. 

GGB, formerly known as Glacier Garlock Bearings, is the world's largest manufacturer of metal-polymer plain bearings. The company has cemented its position as a leader in product innovation in the heavy truck bearings market through the development of its DuraStrong technology, which it effectively leveraged to design and introduce the innovative DX(R)10 bearing.

India's leading bus and truck maker Ashok Leyland Ltd said it was developing a new range of trucks with a new engine and new cabin. “The modular platform, engine and the cabin will provide the necessary competitive edge for us and also offer good price-performance ratio for the buyers,” Ashok Leyland Managing Director R Seshasayee told reporters in Chennai. 

Asked about the cost advantage of the new product, he said: “There will certainly be advantage for the company as we will be dealing with limited number of vendors and parts. The customers will also benefit because of this. However, I am not in a position to quantify the cost advantage for the company.” 

Under the new platform named as Unitruck, Ashok Leyland will roll out 16-49 tonne trucks from 2010. The trucks will feature a range of gear boxes, with cost effective automatic and automated manual transmission as options on some models. “Unitruck models will also sport a new generation cabin initially before modular cabins replace them,” Seshasayee said. He added that the cabins in the export vehicles would have features that are entirely different from the vehicles sold in India. 

He said Ashok Leyland's 50:50 joint venture project with Finnish company Alteams to make high pressure diecasting aluminium products was progressing well. “The plant will come up in Cheyyur near Chennai. Land acquisition is in progress,” Seshasayee added.

Cinven, one of the leading international private equity firms, has announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire German truck supplier Jost Group. Subject to regulatory clearance, the purchase price is undisclosed. While the transaction will be financed from the fourth Cinven fund which with a volume of Euro 6.5 billion—one of the largest funds dedicated solely to large European buyouts, Jost is expected to present a good growth engine. 

Not only has Jost grown significantly faster than the market over the past five years and has been able to increase annual sales at double digit rates on average to around Euro 445 million in 2007, it recently closed the acquisition of Tridec, which is one of the leading manufacturers of mechanical and hydraulic steering systems. With a presence in Eastern Europe, China, Brazil and India, Jost is now a leading global manufacturer of systems, modules and components for the truck industry.

Hyundai Motor India has announced an exchange and upgrade scheme that allows customers to lower their monthly car-loan payments even as they upgrade to a bigger car. The scheme is targeted at all those users of smaller compacts who would prefer to upgrade to a bigger car but are prevented from doing this by the higher EMI’s of a bigger car. Under the new exchange and upgrade scheme, all they have to do is bring in their smaller compact to any Hyundai dealership and get an evaluation of this done at the dealership and put the value as a down payment to upgrade to a bigger Hyundai car. 

Typically, the Equated Monthly Installment (EMI) value for a 48 month loan tenure works out to be an amount which will be lower than the EMI for a smaller car. The scheme is open for all makes of car and upgrade is possible for the most popular hatchback Santro, the newly launched, award winning i10 or even the bigger cars like the Accent and the Verna.

The Volkswagen Group delivered 3.27 million vehicles worldwide (+5.8 per cent) from January to June 2008, the highest figure ever for the first six months of a year. Group worldwide deliveries in June also reached a new record: compared with the same period last year, the number of vehicles delivered rose by 2.4 per cent to 573,000. As a result, the development of deliveries by the Group both for the period January to June and for the month of June was significantly better than developments on the overall market (+1 per cent from January to June and-5.1 per cent in June). 

Volkswagen Passenger Cars, the Group’s highest volume brand, delivered 1.9 million vehicles (+5.8 per cent) worldwide in the first half of the year. Audi delivered 516,000 vehicles (+1.4 per cent) and Skoda delivered 367,000 vehicles (+17.9 per cent). Seat sold 206,000 vehicles (-7.5 per cent), Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles delivered 264,000 vehicles (+12.9 per cent). Bentley delivered 4,700 vehicles to customers, Lamborghini 1,300 and Bugatti 35.

Skoda India has hiked the price of its cars in the range of Rs10,000 to Rs25,000. The across-the-range price hike is attributed to the rise in freight and raw material costs. Commenting on the price hike, Thomas Kuehl, Member Board of Directors, Sales and Marketing, said, “The price hike has been necessitated by a variety of cost push factors like surge in freight costs and raw materials. The company has made efforts to absorb maximum costs to keep the price rise marginal so then impact to our valued customers is minimised.” The company recorded a 69per cent growth in sales in June 2008 as compared to June 2007.

The $75-billion Hyundai Motors, the world's fifth largest automaker, has decided to make India its global hub for small cars, the company's chief executive for the Indian market has said. 

“We have a very clear picture about the Indian market. We want to use India as our small car hub. India will be used for manufacturing and export of our small cars,” Heung Soo Lheem, Managing Director of Hyundai Motors India Ltd said. “Our upcoming i20 model, which will debut in the Paris Motor Show in September, will be solely manufactured in India,” Lheem, whose company is India's second largest car maker after Maruti Suzuki, told a media agency. 

The automaker, which sells its cars in as many as 193 countries, had launched the i10 - its new offering in the 'A' segment - last November. This car, too, is exclusively manufactured in India, he said. The Hyundai executive said i20 is a hatchback sedan offering in the 'B' segment. “This car will hit the Indian market in November,” he said, while rubbishing reports that the company will phase out the Santro and Getz, post i20 launch. Santro, which is sold as Atos in Hyundai's other markets, was used as the launch pad for the South Korean giant's foray into the Indian automobile market over ten years ago. 

The South Korean automobile giant sold 327,160 vehicles in India in 2007 and had doubled its assembly line at the Chennai plant to 600,000 units annually this January. Hyundai Motors India - which counts actor Shah Rukh Khan and tennis ace Sania Mirza as its brand ambassadors - is part of South Korea's Hyundai Kia Motors Automotive Group, formed after the merger between Hyundai and Kia in 1998.

Brembo, the Italian brand of brakes and known for its technology and expertise, has chosen Bangalore-based Methods Automotive as its (India) partner for sales, service and marketing. One of the leading manufacturer of performance braking systems, Brembo is also a supplier to almost every major team and manufacturers into closed circuit racing, rally, rally raid, etc., the world over. The company also makes brakes for some of the best and sought after super car and sports car brands. 

Methods Automotive will provide the channel support to those who want to fir Brembo brake systems through its channel outlets across India. Brembo adds to the other brands like K&N air filters, , NGK Iridium Spark plugs, Remus Exhaust systems, Koni shock absorbers, Eibach Lowering springs and Sparco Racing and street gear, which Methods Automotive markets in India.

Bajaj Auto has launched a sportier Discover 135 DTSi. Aimed at further strengthening the company’s dominant position in the premium segment, the new Discover features 135 cc DTS-i engine, racer breed tank mounted spoilers with integrated indicators, digital speedometer with tachometer and reserve fuel indicator, striking new dual tone graphics, new aggressive front fairing, nitrox suspension and front disc brake (sports version) and a wider rear tyre and racing wheel stripes (sports version). 

Three versions of the new Discover 135 DTS-I are available – sports, electric start and kick-start. Prices start at Rs.45,710 , ex showroom Pune.

After purchasing the first Flowmaster V7 Automotive licence in late 2007, the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) has employed the software tool in its R&D. Flowmaster, which is an industry dedicated fluid and thermal system simulation software tool, was selected after rigorous evaluation as part of ARAI’s overall R&D, Testing and Certification strategy. 

Built on the Flowmaster V7 platform, V7 Automotive combines the same proven architecture and GUI with specific automotive component libraries and advanced automotive systems modelling functionality. Flowmaster’s architecture allows users to integrate with existing design and manufacturing systems and co-simulate with other leading CAE/CFD tools. 

ARAI is supported by Aetos Design & Engineering, the exclusive distributor of Flowmaster in India. Aetos’s Design and Engineering Services Division has a dedicated team of Design Engineers providing technically focused services to OEM and tier one companies, from concept design to manufacturing using best in class CAD/CAM and CAE solutions.

Tata Motors has introduced a new range of coach chassis called Super Milo. Aimed at delivering superior operating economy, the Super Milo range is available in two variants -- City and Highway -- each with customised parameters calibrated for their individual applications. 

Powered by the BS II complaint 697 TCIC 130hp engine, the Super Milo range offers 8 to 10 per cent better efficiency and a comfortable ride. Coming with an engine warranty of 2 years or 2 lakh kilometres (whichever is earlier), and a chassis warranty of 1.5 years or 1.5 lakh kilometres (whichever is earlier), the Super Milo range features radial tyres, organic clutch with booster assist, bigger air intake and a oil change period of 18,000 km for city and 36,000 km for highway.

Jost India, a group company of Jost, which is a worldwide manufacturer of components for truck and trailer, and especially fifth wheel couplings, has commissioned its new facility at Jamshedpur. Supplier to commercial vehicle manufacturers in India and prominently Tata Motors, the plant will manufacture fifth wheel couplings, a crucial component that connects the trailer with the prime mover. 

Housing state-of-the-art equipment, machining centres and a assembly line, the plant, spread over 60,000 sq. m, was built in a very short span of time and includes an E-coat line to ensure that the products are permanently and dependably protected from corrosion. The E-coat line is absolutely solvent-free and health and environmentally friendly. Interestingly, a large chunk of the fifth wheel couplings produced at Jamshedpur would be supplied to Tata, according to sources, as Jost India already has a long-term agreement for the delivery of fifth wheel couplings. 

While the Indian facility will concentrate on the Indian market, in addition to fifth wheel couplings, Jost India has been offering various other components like landing gears, safety towing hitches, etc., for some time now. Sources at Jost India anticipate the number of prime mover-trailer sales to go up several hundred per cent by 2012 or up to over 200,000 units annually.

The launch of the Logan Edge marks the beginning of special editions for Mahindra Renault. The car brings with it innovative features that elevate luxury. Attractively priced, the Logan Edge comes in petrol and diesel versions, new inter