For last fiscal, Tata Motors registered a huge decline of 30% overall. Recently, Tata Motors announced an investment of INR 1,500 crores for new products and technologies in its commercial vehicle segment. The company has been suffering severely due to prolonged slowdown and reported a 49% decline in sales to just 23,990 units in February 2014.
On the passenger car front, Tata Motors have announced a new series of turbocharged petrol engine range under the Revotron nameplate. The first of these engines, a 1.2l four cylinder will be first seen on the Zest sedan and Bolt hatchback. Both these cars were showcased at the 2014 Delhi Auto Expo and will be launched later this year.
Tata Motors has recently launched 10 new trucks in their Prima LX range and announced fresh investment to the tune of INR 1,500 crores. This new investment is to be spent on development of new products, fresh designs and the latest in technologies, all of which will go a long way in strengthening their portfolio in the commercial vehicle segment.
The new Tata Motors Prima LX range of trucks are 20% cheaper than those launched by the company in 2009 and range from INR 18.5 lakhs to INR 32.5 lakhs as against their earlier range which was priced between INR 23 lakhs and INR 65 lakhs. Tata Motors is also planning a range of buses in the coming year to cater to the needs of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) while new variants of Light Commercial Vehicle Ultra is also being developed in four to five variants.
Tata Motors is working along with engine partners Cummins for development of new engines for these upcoming vehicles and hope to be ready when commercial vehicle markets comes out of the doldrums and gains momentum. Tata Motors will however have to contend with competition from other key players such as Eicher with their Pro range, DICV with new BharatBenz and Volvo with UD range of trucks and buses.
Source Economic Times
