Friday, February 01, 2013
By Shilpa Chopra
Datsun low-cost hatchback to hit the Indian shores by mid of 2013
Nissan is ready to capture the Indian car bazaar with some new and fresh products. Datsun, which is low-cost car brand by Nissan is all set to reveal its first small cars in India by the mid of 2013. If reports are to be believed, these will officially hit the showroom by the starting of next year. It is possible that Nissan will make its launch at the 2014 Auto Expo. The price tag of the car is expected to be around Rs. 2 to 4 lakh. If we look at Nissan’s own portfolio in India, it already has a small hatch, Nissan Micra here. And since its launch in 2010, it has been doing quite well here. Launching Datsun low-cost cars might just become a threat to its own Micra. But, Datsun cars are being developed on the older platform to keep a check on the price, therefore, Micra doesn’t face a big threat anyhow.
If we talk about India, Datsun cars might be featuring only petrol engine as diesel ones increase the cost of the car big time. These cars will be competing with Maruti Wagon R, Maruti A-Star, Hyundai Eon and recently launched Maruti Alto 800. Right now, Nissan engineers are working on Datsun cars along with the dealership network.
Nissan has very high hopes from Datsun cars and if everything goes well, these will certainly be a complete hit for the aspiring Indian car consumer. Besides Datsun, Nissan is also planning to bring in Nissan Sylphy sedan to India this year. The car is already going through its test runs. Apparently, Nissan Sylphy will come to India with a heavy price tag of Rs. 12 to 15 lakh. Hopefully, things work out well for Nissan India and Datsun and Sylphy come to India very soon!
