Tata Motors likely to drive in mini-SUV - Times of India

The author has posted comments on this articlePankaj Doval, TNN | Feb 25, 2013, 06.45AM IST NEW DELHI: The line-up of mini-SUVs is likely to get stronger. Battling mounting losses and declining sales, Tata Motors is considering to upgrade existing vehicles while looking at new launches that could include an all new sub four-metre SUV to take on models like Mahindra Quanto and soon-to-belaunched Ford Eco Sport. Tata Motors, which saw net profit crash by 52% in the third quarter of this fiscal, is looking at a variety of new vehicles in the utility vehicle and SUV space to cash in on the rising popularity of such models. "We definitely have lost a bit of ground but we will get back with new products. There are lots of proj ects in the pipeline and we want to be a significant player in the UV segment," said Ashesh Dhar, head, UV product group, at Tata Motors. Dhar, who has been with the company for around one year after joining from rival Mahindra & Mahindra, said Tata Motors is looking to work out new strategies to boost the UV business. "We are quite aggressive in UVs, and are looking at building on it further." Sales of Tata Motors' UV portfolio of Sumo, Safari, Aria and Venture range fell by 3% in the April-January 2012-13 period at 41,166 units against 42,354 units in the same period last fiscal, according to numbers at the company's website. Asked whether the new vehicles could include a new sub four-metre entry SUV, something on the lines of the Mahindra Quanto, Dhar told TOI, "Wherever there is growth, we will not neglect that... We are looking at many, many SUVs. We see the industry growing very strongly across categories." Tata Motors was perhaps the first auto company in India to drive in a sub-four metre version of an existing bigger vehicle when it truncated the Indigo sedan for a shorter variant. A sub-four metre vehicle gets a near 50% reduction in excise duty, helping companies price them aggressively . Other companies looking to drive in compact SUVs include Hyundai, Maruti Suzuki , General Motors and Toyota . Dhar said the company is aware of rising comp etition. "Definitely, we have to come with something that is market competitive." Newer models like Renault Duster and Mahindra XUV500 have also impacted the fortunes of Tata Motors, which is now considering to tap into group luxury brand, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), for developing newer products, some in the high-volume sub-Rs 12 lakh segment. Dhar said Tata Motors can have a lot of "learnings" from JLR and these will be used in the development of new products. The Safari, one of the company's long-running SUV, was recently given an upgrade with a new variant 'Storme'. "We have seen volumes of the Safari range pick up after the upgrade ," he said, adding that the model accounted for 2,000 units in January. via Business - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNHu7PGJyVaI_BDJ3R5DJEjmRk2I1A&url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Tata-Motors-likely-to-drive-in-mini-SUV/articleshow/18668225.cms

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