Tata Motors has showcased the latest variant of the Tata Nano using the platform provided by the 2012 Delhi Auto Expo. The latest Nano is powered by CNG, which makes the car more environment friendly. The CNG variant of the Nano is going to be made available to customers within a very short time, although the exact date of its launch has not yet been confirmed.
However, a revelation by the Vice-Chairman, Tata Motors, Mr. Ravi Kanth, who graced this occasion, can disappoint a lot of Tata Nano fans. He has said that the diesel variant of the Tata Nano is not going to be launched for at least another year.
Group Chief Mr. Ratan Tata rued the Nano wasting an early opportunity due to certain problems but has assured that the manufacturer is going to make all possible efforts to remove the tagline of the Nano being a ‘poor man’s car’.
He has also said that the very concept with which the Nano has been formulated is very robust as is evident by the number of recent launches by other auto makers in this particular segment.
Mr. Ratan Tata has also said that the company is not going to wage a price war with the other small budget car manufacturers in the market.
On being asked about the problems that had bugged the Nano including incidents of fire as well as the replacement of its starter motors recently, Mr. Ratan Tata said that the issue had cropped up because of the fact that had sourced parts from multiple vendors.
He has, however, said that the recent upgrade received by the Nano is going to help solve this problem. This is because the issue pertaining to problematic vendors is going to be eliminated. The upgrade is also going to take care of other problematic issues as the entire process has been undertaken based on feedback of the customers. A number of model variants are also being conceived by the car maker so that the vehicle can climb the value chain ladder.
Answering a specific query, Mr. Ravi Kanth said that the company was on track to break even as far as the Tata Nano is concerned, in terms of numbers.
Answering another question as to whether the company again had chances of restarting business in West Bengal, Mr. Ratan Tata said that the company had not changed its stance regarding the same. If and whenever the hostility towards the company ended and the company is given a good reception, Tata Motors is definitely going to think over re-starting business in that state.
