Mahindra and Tata target the west

The biggest drawback of Indian automakers has been their inability to build world class products with respect to their quality. While the Indica and Scorpio look good, they had no chance of success mainly because of the way they fared against their rivals from the west. Now though, the situation is changing and the Tatas and Mahindras have gathered enough courage to take on the west. We reveal their story

Pavan Kant, MD Tata Motors has revealed that Tata is planning an entire line of models. “We need to be selective but seven or eight types of vehicle would be about right,” said Kant. The present Indica Vista and  its sedan will go on sale sometime this year in Europe once a proper distributor was sorted. Also confirmed is the Nano Europa that will go on sale in Europe in 2011 and Tata’s flagship Aria crossover.

Tata’s boss also indicated that the cars would be changed for Europe: “We would be engineering cars that are not just for India, we want to put the philosophy of the Nano into effect,” he said, referring to the huge engineering changes being applied to the ultra-low budget Nano to enable it to comply to European and US regulations.” He also indicated that Tata will be positioning itself as a maker of high value for money cars.

While the Nano will virtually face no competition in Europe, we are skeptical about the success of the Manza and Vista. While the Vista is a decent hatchback, their Manza, we feel will have a tough time in Europe. There are many great hatchbacks available in Europe in the same category and this will heavily affect the Manza which looks odd. We are also not sure as to how the Aria will be positioned. There is a whole class of softroaders that cost less than the Aria but offer more bang for your buck. So these are key regions that Tata has to tackle. Lets wait and watch what eventually happens.

Mahindra’s plan

Mahindra, on the other hand have a strong presence in many countries in Africa and Italy. However, Mahindra is eyeing USA as their main market for its huge volumes. The US is top of Mahindra’s target list, company boss Dr Pawan Goenka told “We want to be a global player in utility vehicles,” .

Mahindra are planning to launch a thoroughly reengineered version of their best selling Scorpio in the US market later this year. Presently, they will be assembling and selling through their network of 300 dealers. “If volumes are good we will think about making cars in the US and then we will be looking at Europe with a higher focus,” said Goenka.

We are also aware of Mahindra’s new world SUV that is Mahindra’s first monocoque design that is under development. It will sport a 4X4 and be the best Mahindra ever. It will be launched in 2011 and then taken to USA later. Goenka has revealed that the firm will never venture into passenger sedans. “We never intend to be in passenger cars on our own, it’s too crowded and competive a market,” he said. The Logan that they make in partnership with Renault is a catastrophic failure in India.

We feel Mahindra is in a far better position than Tata to sell its products abroad. Its styling is well received and not as odd looking as the Aria and the Manza that Tata make. Looking at the current situation, we bet our money on Mahindra. Good luck to both these manufacturers!