DriveBlog

Forgot the Viva?

From rediff.com today:

"As it now stands, the diesel Fiesta is a decent option over the current C-segment king - the Honda City."

I wonder where (and if) the much-underrated Accent Viva CRDi fits into this whole equation.

Ford Fiesta rolls on

Things really do seem to be happening fast for the much-vaunted Ford Fiesta since its national launch only a couple of days ago. Observe, if you will, this sequence of developments that have since unfolded:

• Ford launches the Fiesta amidst much excitement and anticipation. The sedan has been in the news for being their 'global car' launch for developing markets, and India is admittedly one that is very high on their priority. The Fiesta is being seen as pitted against such deserving rivals on Indian roads as the Honda City, the Hyundai Accent, the Maruti Baleno and Esteem and the Chevrolet Optra. From what I've seen of the car so far, it seems like it's more than just your regular sedan and I tend to agree that it would be unfair to pit it against the more entry-level sedan options like the Ikon and the Esteem. The ones that should be worrying are the likes of the Honda City.  Moving on, retail sales are expected to kick in by mid-December with expectations of about 2000 units of the car going off the shelves every month. With sales of the Ikon dipping over the past few months and the Fusion failing to set the market afire, the Fiesta probably couldn't have come at a better time for Ford.
• They then proceed to knock almost everyone off their feet with the price announcements - the base (1.4 litre) petrol version can be yours for a little over 5 and half lakh rupees. That's not much higher than the base version of the Ford warhorse, the Ikon and definitely cheaper than their recently-launched super-hatch, the Fusion. A case of cannibalism? No, say Ford.
• They get current Bollywood wunderkind Abhishek Bachchan to 'Go Fida' over the Fiesta.
• And now, the announcement that the sticker tag on the Fiesta will go up by about Rs. 25000 more in the months to come as the prices being touted right now are only introductory prices.

Well, Ford's never been one to take new launches lightly, so methinks there's going to be plenty to hear from them in the days to come.

Now you know: In the market for a new car and with a budget of between Rs. 5 and 6 lakhs, you'd currently have about 30 options to choose from.

Fiesta your eyes!

The upcoming Ford Fiesta in pictures.

Fiest-ah!

Ford India will launch its premium sedan, the Fiesta, next month. The car looks pretty good and will fill the gap in Ford's product portfolio that currently exists between the entry-level Ikon and the luxury Mondeo. Though there's no official conformation on the price just yet, experts reckon that it will be in the super-6 lakh, sub-7.5 lakh rupee region. The car will be launched with a 1.6 litre petrol engine and a 1.4 litre diesel engine.

Is the Fiesta the much-talked about, codenamed B 376, 'world car' project or is that something else altogether for later this year?

Update: The Fiesta is, in fact, Ford's new global car, to be launched simultaneously in India, Europe and someplaces in Asia.

Also, in case you were looking, there are discounts of upto Rs. 55000 on various variants of the Ikon, for just 2 days more. In case you're looking even harder, here's (the first of many, I'm sure) a roundup of the latest discounts and freebies on cars this festive season.

Also see:
Whither Focus?

Monday Top 5

If you're on the lookout for a car sometime in the very near future and happen to be someone who's determined to get the mostest out of your moolah (who doesn't, eh?), then here are truly five value-for-money deals - 4 sedans and one shoebox on wheels - that you might not want to miss.

Also see:
BS Motoring does the Maruti Versa (Download the .txt)

Let's have ourselves a mela!

I'm whack in the middle of a 'Blog Mela' hangover, thanks to an utterly enjoyable post from over at Yazad's. That being the case, I thought I'd fashion this post of mine on similar lines. What follows therefore, is an attempt to bring you the best of the web from over the past few days on what's been happening on the Indian car scene. So belt up, tilt that seat back, play your current favourite road-tune over in your head, stretch those legs deep into that footwell and enjoy the ride.

The folks at Autocar India have traded in their old Palio 1.6 GTX for a newer 1.2 nv which they'll be putting through their long-termer test in the months to come. Though they do miss their old, bigger-hearted buddy, it's smaller cousin hasn't done much to disappoint so far.

I wondered aloud a little while ago as to whether the Indian passenger car market had such a colourful history of 'auto recalls' as compared to the West. Well, evidently not - and more so, for a variety of interesting reasons.

There's a new Accent on the horizon - and am I the only one who likes the looks of it?

It seems like the beginning of a SUV-eet summer for sports utility vehicles in India - we just can't seem to get enough of them, their prices notwithstanding. Take your pick: the current hot favourite Honda CR-V, the 'freshened-up' Scorpio Sportz, the just-launched Hyundai Tucson or the upcoming Toyota Fortuner.

Ford India rolled out their 100000th unit of the Ikon sedan earlier this month. And as it is their wont to do everytime they reach a landmark of this kind, Ford's celebrating with a limited period, limited edition offer. This time it's called the 'Josh100' series. For me, Ford sets the bar when it comes to staying top of mind through consumer-driven promos and special offers. Remember the 'Ikon Anniversary' and 'March Masti'?

4 Indian cars - the Alto, the M800, the Hyundai Santro and the Tata Indica - are now in the 'over 100000 units sold in the year 2004-05' club.

A couple of fellow bloggers post on a couple of topics that are right down my alley. Jamshed Rajan of 'Ouch, My Toe!' goes people-watching and introspecting every time he spends 2 and a half minutes at a traffic signal. And Abhi of 'A Tyrovial Pursuit' (honestly, I'm still trying to figure out what kind of a chase that is) reckons that the least desirable part of Indian roads is, well, the people that drive on them.

And finally, would you sign up a deceased family member for one helluva joyride? =)

Good Xings come with small price tags

As it is, March is traditionally a high-volume month for Motown. But smart pricers Hyundai have decided that this time, just the usual year-end rush simply won't do. After raking in mucho moolah with their festival season offer late last year, the Koreans are now rolling out a sans AC, sans Power Steering (and sans insurance) Santro Xing - for only Rs. 2.93 lakhs! Want either or both of the AC and PS? Just pick and choose - your 'custom-fitted' Xing will come for a reasonable few thousands more!

Ford too is cashing in on the year-end excitement with their 'March Masti' scheme - and that means free insurance and exchange bonuses on the Ikon, Rs. 21000 off on the Fusion and free diamond bling-bling worth Rs. 40000 with the Endeavour. All of that if you make that purchase before March 31, 2005.

Maruti's greatest hit!

Talk about your reputation preceding you. Being billed as Maruti's first 'real' launch in over 20 years, the Suzuki Swift seems like it's going to make its debut in a market that's laden with big, big expectations. But by the look of things, Maruti's premium compact (which will put a whole new spin on the whole Getz vs. Fusion battle - one that the Fusion admittedly seems to be winning at the moment) seems like it'll be able to take all that and more well within its stride. And what's more, it seems set to make a rather starry-eyed debut!

Also see:
Autocar reviews the Suzuki Swift
The Swift promises bigger, better, more

Of Vanilla and versatility...

I'm not too sure if any of you who come by here will remember the TV spots for a fairly popular ice cream brand called Go Kool that was around during the late-ish 80s and early 90s. Well, one of the things about the ads that stuck in my head was the line from the jingle that went, "Anything Karega (for Go Kool!)...". So much so that I've actually found myself humming the tune under my breath more than a couple of times over the past few years, completely out of the blue. Talk about unaided brand recall.

What does any of this have to do with a post on cars, you ask? Not much, except that the theme that Ford is using for all its new advertising for the Fusion UAV also happens to be 'Anything Karega', meant to cue the versatility and 'all-purposeness' of the vehicle. And though they'd like me to make the association with the old Kishore Kumar tune, I'd much rather settle for dessert. =)