Diwali Fiesta - New cars

Our Indian auto-industry enjoys one of the best festive season on the eve of Diwali with a plethora of new launches, practically one everyday in the last two weeks!  Well it is less surprising, since Diwali means new products for both producers and consumers.

The most interesting and much awaited entrants were the two SUVs - the Rexton and the Safari Storme. 

Ever since the acquisition of the SsangYong by Mahindra, the next generation updated Rexton SUV was expected. This next generation Rexton is certainly, more contemporary and modern. It is offered in both manual and auto variants with a 2.7 litre diesel drivetrain under the hood. It is priced very attractively between 18-20 lakh mark to tense-up the bestseller Toyota Fortuner and the Chevy Captiva. The new Safari Storme was shown at the Delhi Auto expo last January and is finally here. It is much improved in all terms and refinement levels are exemplary comparing the old Safari. Styling is a bit Land Roverish, but the logic of the company not to mess up the design cult which many loves is  partly justified.

Tata Safari Storme

Tata Motors also offers its updated Manza sedan ('Indigo' prefix is just gone!) with Italian leather seats, new touchscreen navigation and music system, and climate control. Ford has just launched the new face-lifted Figo hatch with the Riviera Blue dash plastic, new alloys, new body colours and a bit engine tweaks. Honda has officially launched the automatic versions of its popular Brio hatch.

 And the much hotly spoken new car this season is the new Alto 800 from Maruti. It boasts a re-worked design ( a bit Figo-ish in front) and is sure to continue the legacy of the car it replaces and records in big-volumes. It is priced around 2.40-3.60 lakhs, which is competitive while considering the Nano, Chevy Spark and the Hyundai Eon. The company's brand value and reputation is might, which automatically ensures a bright future for the car.

Chevrolet Sail U-VA

The brand new cars like the Nissan Evalia, Mahindra Quanto, Renault Scala, Toyota Camry and the Mercedes B-class landed far ahead of Diwali, but the one that enters the market just days before Diwali is the new Chevrolet Sail U-VA. There is no plenty to say about its design and styling, it is a good rival to the Swift nonetheless. It is powered by the 1.3 litre diesel engine, co-engineered with Fiat. Pricing is satisfactory, though not exciting.

And not to forget the BMW's 6 series Gran Coupe launch. At 86.40 lakhs, this BMW coupe is uncompromising and dynamic. What an awesome Diwali this year!!