In this issue

Autocar Professional’s January 1, 2023, issue is out

This 140-pager is power packed with news, features, interviews and technology articles that will keep you up to date on developments in the Indian and global automotive sector.

Cover Story

While the global automotive passenger car industry was struggling in 2022, India’s markets were on the rise. In fact, the country is ahead of Japan and Germany now. We have the details of this.

How Indian automotive brands have overtaken Koreans for the first time.

Production of Hyundai Motor Group models reached an all-time high in the country.

Sectorwatch
Tractor export boom from India.

2023 Auto Expo

The biennial event is back and we share a curtain raiser of OEMs and component players.

Focus
Road accidents and fatalities

Technology
5G will digitally drive the automotive industry.

Green steel from Kalyani's Pune plant

SAARLOHA ADVANCED Materials (Saarloha), a Kalyani Group company, has introduced locally manufactured ‘green’ steel from its electric arc furnace plant in Pune, Maharashtra.

1 min

Gulf Oil fluids for Altigreen e3Ws

GULF OIL LUBRICANTS India, a Hinduja Group company, has signed an exclusive partnership with Altigreen for supply of EV Fluids like brake and gear oils. As a result of this tie-up, Gulf Oil will manufacture customised EV fluids for commercial electric vehicle maker Altigreen.

1 min

Under Phase-II of FAME India Scheme, 7,66,478 EVs benefited

THE GOVERNMENT'S Phase-II of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India) scheme that was launched for a period of five years in April, 2019 with a total budgetary support of Rs 10,000 crore has almost completed 80 percent of its original tenure (2023). However, the scheme was extended till 2024.

1 min

Kinetic to revive Luna moped as e2W

PUNE-BASED KINETIC Engineering Ltd (KEL), famous for its under 100cc gearless Luna mopeds and gearless Kinetic Honda scooters in 80s will be returning with EV products soon.

1 min

Tata Motors to complete Ford's Sanand plant acquisition by January 10

TATA MOTORS, INDIA'S third largest car maker on Friday announced that its subsidiary Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEML) will complete its acquisition of Ford India's manufacturing plant in Sanand, Gujarat, on January 10, 2023.

1 min

TAFE pays Rs 400 cr for Faurecia's Indian interior systems business

CHENNAI-BASED TAFE (Tractors and Farm Equipment), a international tractor major with a well-established engineering plastics business, supplying exterior and interior automotive engineered plastic components to the automotive industry in India, has acquired global major Faurecia's Indian interior business of French automotive supplier Group Forvia.

1 min

Apollo Tyre factories wheeling towards eco-friendly and sustainable solutions

IT'S NO SECRET that climate change and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have been posing significant challenges for companies, governments, and society at large.

1 min

Hero-Yamaha to jointly make e-cycle drive units for both brands

HYM DRIVE SYSTEMS, a joint venture between Hero Motors and Yamaha Motor Co, Japan, has set up a new plant to manufacture electric drive units for cycles at Hero E-Cycle Valley in Ludhiana. Hero E-Cycle Valley is an integrated, high-end plant that manufactures premium push bikes for the global market.

1 min

Eicher Motors acquires stake in Stark

This investment of €50 million will get the latter a place on the Board and the investment will pave the way for a long-term relationship in collaborative practices and research in electric mobility for Royal Enfield.

3 mins

Gogoro moves forward with India business plan

Metalman Auto has been contracted to make the e-scooters for Gogoro India, writes Ketan Thakkar.

2 mins

Karnataka HC restrains Classic Legends from using Yezdi name

Until the liquidation process of Ideal Jawa India is officially completed and due labour payments and liabilities are cleared, the Yezdi trademark cannot be used by anyone else.

3 mins

Production milestone at Hyundai Motors

A HYUNDAI TUCSON N Line was the 4 millionth car to roll off production line at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Czech (HMMC) plant recently.

1 min

Polestar gets $1.6 bn financing from Volvo Cars and investment

POLESTAR AUTOMOTIVE HOLDING, the Swedish electric performance car brand has announced that it has received further commitments for financial and liquidity support from its two major shareholders.

1 min

Auto giant Stellantis activates aggressive acquisition mode

The multi-brand conglomerate has finalised a deal to purchase aiMotive, a developer of advanced artificial intelligence and autonomous driving software and hydrogen solution expert Symbio.

2 mins

5G adoption to accelerate drive to digital factories

With machine-to-machine communication becoming faster on private 5G networks, the latest connectivity technology is set to give a fillip to smart manufacturing, writes Mayank Dhingra.

4 mins

Honda finds a winner in VR apps

Japanese automotive brand's Honda will design its all-new electric vehicle portfolio using both state-of-the-art virtual and augmented reality technology and traditional development applications.

2 mins

Rajesh Khatri takes charge as CEO of Tata-Fiat joint venture

Khatri will steer the Ranjangaon factory which accounts for over 25 percent of Tata Motors total sales. The JV plant also produces Nexon SUV and Jeep products, writes Ketan Thakkar and Shruti Mishra.

2 mins

National sales head of motorcycle maker Royal Enfield quits

JAYAPRADEEP VASUDEVAN, THE national sales head of Royal Enfield has exited the company. Vasudevan who was also called as Jaypee within the company had served Royal Enfield across various functions for over a decade and a half.

1 min

Kirloskar System appoints Manasi Tata as Director

KIRLOSKAR SYSTEMS (KSPL) has announced the appointment of Manasi Tata as Director on the Board of KSPL's joint-venture companies, including Toyota Industries Engine India (TIEI), Kirloskar Toyota Textile Machinery (KTTM), Toyota Material Handling India (TMHIN) and Denso Kirloskar Industries (DNKI).

1 min

Schaeffler India appoints new CTO

Schaeffler India has announced the appointment of Madhurisha V as the company's new Chief Technology Officer where she will be responsible for research and development work.

1 min

Hyundai will enter the mainstream EV market by 2025 with Creta SUV

Creta EV to challenge Maruti and Toyota EV planned around the same time. Ketan Thakkar has the story.

3 mins

Toyota to bolster entry SUV-MPV segment in 2023 with new models

Ertiga-based Toyota MPV and Glanza-based Toyota crossover are in the works, writes Ketan Thakkar.

3 mins

Maruti Suzuki readies Mahindra XUV 700 and Tata Safari rival

The new three-row SUV will be built at the new Kharkhoda plant in Haryana and will sit above the Grand Vitara and along side Toyota's Innova HyCross.

2 mins

Kia plans a lifestyle compact SUV with an EV powertrain

Kia's third SUV for Indian consumers will be made in India for both domestic and export markets. The new model will be slotted between the existing Sonet and the Seltos SUVs.

2 mins

India ahead of Japan in the global passenger car race

For the first time ever, India's car market has successfully overcome various hurdles to emerge into global prominence and is now the third largest light vehicle market in the world.

6 mins

SUVS race ahead of hatchbacks

With an estimated sale of 1.5 million, the SUV is now India's biggest-selling body style, writes Ketan Thakkar.

3 mins

Breaking the price barrier

In a maturing Indian market, the average retail price of passenger vehicles has crossed Rs 10 lakh for the first time. The popularity of SUVs has allowed OEMs to realise higher prices, writes Ketan Thakkar.

5 mins

Tata Motors EV business to cross $1 billion in revenues

Led by the new Tiago electric variant, Tata Motors, India's largest electric car maker, is aiming to double its monthly EV volumes to about 8,000 to 10,000 units a month, writes Ketan Thakkar.

6 mins

'FTAs can open up big markets for India to expand'

Maruti Suzuki India chairman RC Bhargava strongly bats for Free Trade Agreements for competitive exports and lower taxation to help boost domestic demand for cars, writes Ketan Thakkar.

4 mins

Maruti Suzuki eyes record output of 2.5 mn in FY24

Maruti Suzuki India eyes third consecutive year of double-digit growth and the company has prepared solid plans to regain lost market share with new SUVs, writes Ketan Thakkar.

2 mins

Beyond the stars

Global NCAP is an important measure of safety but it's not the ultimate metric. There is more to road fatalities than a star rating. Hormazd Sorabjee takes a look at the system in the context of India's realities.

4 mins

Decoding the test regime

Both Euro NCAP and Global NCAP tests regimes apply protocols to ascertain the safety capabilities of new cars and both testing regimes are slightly different from each other. We look at the fine points of both.

2 mins

'Our technical centres and R&D departments in India play a key role in our ambitious goals'

Federico Morales-Zimmermann, VP, Global Product Engineering at BorgWarner Fuel Systems shares with Amit Vijay M on how it will use the company's new Technical Centre in Kundalahalli, Bangalore.

4 mins

Indian auto industry back in mega investment drive

As of now the resilient Indian automotive industry is preparing to infuse at least $10 billion in Capex and enhance production capacity from 2.2 to three million cars in the coming years, writes Ketan Thakkar.

5 mins

India is ready to witness a multi-billion dollar EV business

Experts reckon that 35-40 percent of vehicles sold in the country by 2030 will have some form of electric propulsion and that roughly translates to $8-11 billion profit for its makers, writes TE Narasimhan.

4 mins

Mahindra Electric Mobility's big action plan for next year

A leader in the electric three-wheeler space with a 68 percent market share, future strategies include introduction of electric wheelers with swappable batteries in the first half FY24, writes Amit Vijay M.

4 mins

Hyundai Motor Group ends 2022 with a record 1.04 mn units in India

The South Korean company, parent of Hyundai Motor India and Kia Motor is only the second car maker, after Suzuki, to achieve this milestone. Ketan Thakkar brings you the full story.

2 mins

Zooming off the shelves: Indian cars outsell Korean brands

While domestic car models have successfully upped their game and were the second most sought-after Japanese brands in 2022, they also overtook the Koreans in the same year. Ketan Thakkar has the story.

6 mins

'India will be resilient despite global recessionary fears'

India's luxury car market is poised to grow by 40 percent in CY22 and is likely to see its momentum being sustained despite weakening economic circumstances in the West, says Mayank Dhingra.

2 mins

The rise and rise of Kia India

A relatively unknown brand in India barely four years ago, Kia is now a key player and the India operation jewel in the Korean carmaker's crown for export markets, writes Ajit Dalvi.

3 mins

Audi All Set For Electric Game Plan

As of 2026, the brand with the four rings will only launch all-electric models onto the global market, gradually phasing out production of its ICE models by 2033. Autocar Pro News reports.

5 mins

Ready for the road ahead

With solid financial backing, Yulu plans to expand its Mobility-as-a-Service business and also enter into the personal mobility space with established 2W partners like Bajaj Auto, writes Amit Vijay M.

3 mins

India's Components Inc presses the growth pedal

Strong vehicle buying across nearly all segments in the domestic market augurs well for the Indian auto components industry, which is likely to scale a new peak in FY23 and witness resurgence of investments to cement future growth. Mayank Dhingra speaks to India's top suppliers.

10+ mins

Sky is the limit: Huge OEM demand drives sunroof biz

The automotive industry demand for a premium feature like sunroofs is driving the market that expects to cross seven lakh units of sales during CY23, up from five lakh units in CY22, writes Shahkar Abidi.

3 mins

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Autocar Professional Magazine Description:

Autocar Professional is India’s leading automotive B2B fortnightly. Its in-depth analysis of the Indian automobile and components business is a must-read for industry personnel. It is circulated among key industry executives and decision-makers, and provides news, incisive interviews and accurate vehicle sales and production data. Its ability to spot and forecast trends has made it a strategic tool for auto professionals. The pages of Autocar Professional have emerged as a platform for the stakeholders of the Indian auto industry to showcase and share their ideas and vision.