Latest Car News in India

Honda Brio Automatic launch on October 18?

India is all set to be switching from the manual gears to the automatic on the October 18 as on this day, the Honda Brio Automatic launch will happen. Notably, there has been an uptrend in the demand for automatic cars in India and one or the other car makers are adding the automatic version to their existing model lineup. The Brio hatchback has done incredibly well for the car maker and the automatic version will ensure increase in popularity in the segment. The Honda car is seen as a more than hatchback as it offers class leading comfort and convenience apart from 90 bhp power. Though, the company hasn’t come up with any indication of the launch.

The Brio launch has ensured a comeback for the brand that was fading due to the all petrol offerings when the Indian car market is switching to diesel aggressively. The Brio Automatic launch will sweep the special segment to its side as there are only a couple of offerings in place. The car will have the same 1.2 L engine powering it and Honda will be putting in the smaller five speed gearbox. The rivals Hyundai i20 Automatic and Maruti A Star automatic have four speed automatic gearboxes matched to the engine and thus the Brio Automatic will have an upper hand in the segment.

The Brio Automatic price will be around Rs 50,000 more than the existing manual gearbox variant. Another important thing about this new Honda car variant is that it will have an ARAI certified 6.5 kmpl mileage which will again give it an edge in terms of sales. The only worry is that the Brio is on petrol option only and it is said that petrol prices are all set to go for another Rs 4 to Rs 5 per litre sprint soon. If that happens, it is sure that however best the offering is, the entry level market for petrol cars will be almost shut.