History Of Indian Automobiles

Introduction

The automobile industry in India is the tenth largest in the world with an annual production of approximately 2 million units. India is expected to overtake Chinaas the world's fastest growing car market[1] in terms of the number of units sold and the automotive industry is one of the fastest growing manufacturing sectors in India.[2] Because of its large market (India has a population of 1.1 billion; the second largest in the world), a low base of car ownership (25 per 1,000 people[2]) and a surging economy, India has become a huge attraction for car manufacturers around the world.[3Automobile History in IndiaWhile automobiles were introduced to India in the late 1890's, the manufacturing industry only took off after independence in 1947. The protectionist economic policies of the government gave rise in the 1950's to the Hindustan MotorsAmbassador, based on a 1950's Morris Oxford, and, is still ubiquitous in the roads and highways of India. Hindustan Motors and a few smaller manufacturers such as Premier Automobiles, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Ashok and Standard Motorsheld an oligopoly until India's initial economic opening in the 1980's. The maverick Indian politician Sanjay Gandhi championed the need for a "people's car"; the project was realized after his death with the launch of a state-owned firm Maruti Udyog which quickly gained over 50% market share. The Maruti 800became popular because of its low price, high fuel efficiency, reliability and modern features relative to its competition at the time. Tata Motors exported buses and trucks to niche markets in the developing world.The liberalization of 1991 opened the flood gates of competition and growth which have continued up to today. The high growth in the Indian economy has resulted in all major international car manufacturers entering the Indian market.General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai and others set up manufacturing plants. Rolls Royce, Bentley and Maybach are examples of the few high end automobile manufacturers which entered India in the recent years. The Tata Nanois at the lower end of the price range costing approx US$ 2,500 and Bugatti Veyron at the other with a price tag of over US$ 2 million.India's love affair with the automobile is famously embodied in the 1920's Rolls Royce collections of the erstwhile maharajas. The growing middle class aspires for the automobile for its convenience and as a status symbol. Upper middle class and wealthy car owners employ full-time chauffeurs to navigate the aggressive and seemingly lawless traffic patterns of most cities. The construction of expressways such as the Mumbai-Pune expressway have opened up new touring opportunities. The expected launch of a Formula One circuit in New Delhiis expected to spark public enthusiasm for a motor sporting industry.

List of automobile manufacturers in India.

Hindustan Motors

Hindustan Motors is one of the oldest Indian car manufacturers. It is best known for the Ambassador which has been virtually u

nchanged for about 30 years. It is still very popular as a taxi and is widely used by Indian politicians. Many people have come to associate India with Ambassador and is a prominent part of the Indian l andscape

.Trekker (discontinued)Landmaster (discontinued)Contessa (discontinued) - 5th Generation Vauxhall VictorAmbassador - a version of the 1950s Morris Oxford.

Premier Automobile

Premier AutomobilesWalchand Hirachand started Premier Automobiles Ltd (PAL) in 1942. They were the first to kick off the automobile revolution in India by assembling De Soto andPlymouth cars in 1946 in association with Chrysler from the United States. They also manufactured the famed Premier Padmini which was a version of the Fiat 1100.
Padmini (discontinued)118 NE (discontinued)Premier Sigma
Mahindra & Mahindra Limited

Mahindra & Mahindra Limited. The automotive section of Mahindra started off when a first batch of seventy five Utility Vehicles (UVs) was imported in CKD condition from Willys in 1947. It has come a long way, not just manufacturing Jeeps but also agricult ural equipment and light trucks.

Armada (discontinued)Voyager (discontinued)BoleroCommanderCLMaXXScorpioMahindra and Mahindra Classic This was an open jeep with good off roading capabilities, a 4*4 and 4*2 option, huge headlamps and roof mounted lights.

Force Motors(B AJAJ TEMPO)

Force Motors(B AJAJ TEMPO)Force Motors, formerly Bajaj Tempo (owned by the Firodia family) is a Pune-based manufacturer of the following commercial vehicles:3-wheeled gas-cylinder carrierMatador, a version of Daimler-Benz D-301 van and light-truck (1.5 tonne payload)Tempo-traveller, Indian version of Daimler-Benz T-1 transporter

Man-Force Trucks, licenced version of MAN AG trucks

UV's copied from Daimler-Benz .
Ashok Leyland

Ashok Leyland is a commercial vehicle manufacturing company based in Chennai, India. In 1948, Ashok Motors was set up in

what was then Madras, for the assembly of Austin Cars. The Company's destiny and name change d soon with equity participation by British Leyland and Ashok Leyland commenced manufacture of commercial vehicles in 1955. For over five decades, Ashok Leyland has been the technology leader in India's commercial vehicle industry, mouldinthe country's commercial vehicle profile by introducing technologies and product ideas that have gone on to become industry norms.Ashok Leyland has six manufacturing plants - the mother plant at Ennore near Chennai, two plants at Hosur (called Hosur I and Hosur II, along with a Press shop), the assembly plants at Alwar and Bhandara.From 18 seater to 82 seater double-decker buses, from 7.5 tonne to 49 tonne in haulage vehicles, from numerous special application vehicles to diesel engines for industrial, marine and genset applications, Ashok Leyland offers a wide range of products.Now a days Ashok Leyland tie up with Nissan motors to manufactured high end truck models.

Tata Motors

Tata Indica was the first successful passenger car completely designed and manufactured in India

.





Tata Motors, formerly known as TELCO, is

the largest automobile manufacturer in India and commands more than 70% of the commercial vehicle market in India and has also increased its share of passenger vehicle market. It was responsible for developing India's first indigenous vehicle, the Indica. It has proved to be a success in the market after initi al quality problems.






The company also exports the car to many countries. Tata Motors is considered to be the flagship company of the Indian automobile industry.IndicaIndigoIndigo Marina

SafariSumoTL.









Tata Nano is the only very low cost car in the world.it is an small family car in Indian customers.





Maruti Suzuki

Maruti 800Maruti Udyog was formed as a partnership between the Government of India and Suzuki of Japan. It brought India its first "affordable" car, the Maruti 800. It is the bigges

t car manufacturer in India and especially dominant in the small car sector. Then it brought out The Maruti 1000, made by Maruti Udyog was the first ever contemporary sedan-type car launched in India. The car (which Suzuki sold in other countries as the Cultus/Swift/Geo Metro with a 1.3 L or 1.6 L engine) was introduced in October, 1990. Sold at Rs. 3.81 lakh, it was back then the costliest car released in the Indian market. Then the company replaced it with Esteem and from that days on a line of Suzuki cars rolled out in the Indian market.800OmniAltoGypsySwiftSX4WagonR
VersaZen Estilo - First Generation Suzuki MR Wagon
Grand Vitara - First Generation Suzuki Grand Vitara
Swift Dzire-Replacement for Esteem .
Multi-national companies.In several multinational companies are manufacture in India

Ford Motors

Ford entered India in collaboration with Mahindra & Mahindra in 1995 with a major plant in Tamil Nadu

The first model was the Escort.The Ford IKON is another famous model sedan cars in Indian customers.It is fitted with 1.8 litre diesel engines gives better fuel efficiency

.The Ford Fiesta is another upgrade model luxury car good look,high end

model,gives better fuel efficiency.Ford Flair is another sedan model fitted with 1.3 petrol engines,It gives better engine power,performane,easy maintained engines,It is also hitted in Indian customers.

General Motors

General Motors Chevrolet has been one of the most recognized brands in India for several decades. They were made popular as the vehicle of choice of

the heroes in Bollywood movies. The model lineup consists of vehicles from cheaper sister brands like Daewoo. General Motors initially entered India with the Opel brand, but the Opel brand was dropped in March 2006 because sales were at an all time low due to high prices and General Motors wanted to focus more on their Chevrolet brand. Since the Chevrolet brand was introduced in Indi

a, there have been no new Opel products.GM's Indian operations were originally a JV between Hindustan Motors and

GM, with most of GM's vehicles assembled at Hindustan's plant in Halol, Gujarat. Since then, GM India is now wholly owned by GM. Spark and Beat the famous mid size cars in GM

HondaHonda Siel Cars

HondaHonda Siel Cars entered India in 1995. It sells 4 cars in India - the City, Civic, Accord, and CR-V. The manufacturing plant of Honda Siel is located in Greater Noida. The model of Accord sold in

India is the 2003 model. The most inexpensive car from Honda - The City. The most Expensive - The Honda Accord V6.

Hyundai Motors

When Hyundai entered India, the brand was virtually unknown in the Indian market. They signed up Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan and their excellent advertising campaign made Hyundai a household name and helped it reach the second place behind market leader Maruti Suzuki.Santro is one of the famous model in small size cars.

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes Benz has had to cater to the ever growning luxury segment in India, in a much better fashion now, especially after the arrival of the other luxury German manufacturers. Now, Mercedes-Benz cars are launched in India soon after the worldwide launch and homologation as opposed to earlier, when Mercedes-Benz had monopolized the niche Indian market.In 2007 they launched the SLK-Classand CLS-Class.

Mitsubishi Motors

In India Mistubishi Motors tie up with Hidustan Motors to manufacture luxury cars in India.The factory set up in Thiruvallur district Tamilnadu.Lancer is most popular car in Indian roads,Pajero,Montero are high end modls play in Indian roads.

Lancer - Sixth Generation Mitsubishi Lancer

Cedia - Seventh Generation Mitsubishi Lancer

Pajero - Second Generation Mitsubishi Pajero
Montero - Third Generation Mitsubishi Pajero

Škoda

Škoda is an important car manufacturer of India. It recently launched the Laura, the Octavia still continues to exist. Skoda also offers the Superb in India but it's not too popular.

Octavia
Superb
LauraFabia

Toyota

Toyota Kirloskar sells 4 car models in India. It stopped producing the Toyota Qualis to make way for the Toyota Innova, which was launched in India in 2005. The most expensive car from Toyota is a very powerful SUV - The Land Cruiser Prado, which is the best SUV in India, and is of international standards. Toyota Kirloskar Motors LTD is a joint venture between Toyota Motor Corporation and theKirloskar Group.

Audi

In January 2008, Audi started production with the Audi A4 and A6 at its factory in Aurangabad in the state of Maharashtra.

BMW

BMW is manufacturer of prestigious sport sedans that are known for their nimble handling. BMW enjoys good brand recognition in India, thanks to Indian movies and the rich who have been importing these cars for decades. It has set up a plant in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, to manufacture cars locally exclusively for the local market with no plans for export. It set up the plant to circumvent high import duties.

Fiat

Fiat India has struggled in India since its inception. The Fiat Uno was one of the first products to be introduced. The Fiat Palio was later introduced and was initially a big hit with its style and ride comfort coupled with solid build but has slowly lost its sheen due to low fuel efficiency. Other models were introduced such as the Palio Weekend and Siena. Fiat tried re-branding of the Fiat Siena toFiat Petra without much success.