[LINK] "Hopes Fade for Rivals to India's Tata Nano"

[rfmcdonald]

Interesting, this. I note that no North American car companies are listed as potential competitors of Tata. Doesn't this say something about their grim grim future when they don't seem able to imagine breaking into such a potentially lucrative market?

As the buzz surrounding low-cost cars subsides, though, there are no signs of the competition. The diminutive Nano's closest rival for the potentially lucrative and mostly untapped market for cars that cost less than a few thousand dollars is a joint venture where Bajaj, an Indian two-wheeler manufacturer, and the Nissan-Renault alliance would share the remainder. The companies announced their plans for a Nano-killer in May 2008, and Bajaj showed the mock body of a prototype the day before the Nano was unveiled in January 2008. Back then the hype was so huge that even the empty shell of the unnamed car made the front page of Indian newspapers, and Nissan-Renault chief Carlos Ghosn predicted the $2,500 car would be ready by 2011, with the joint venture expecting to build a 400,000-unit plant just for that car.

Since then, however, few details have emerged, and it isn't clear the companies will be able to meet their self-imposed deadline. Two Bajaj executives, speaking on the condition of anonymity, tell BusinessWeek the company is finding it difficult to persuade suppliers to do the kind of aggressive research and development required to push down prices without a clear guarantee that it would produce a sizable number of cars, especially without an approved final design. A Bajaj spokesperson declined to comment. Nissan's executive vice-president for Africa, the Middle East, and Europe, Colin Dodge, said last week that Nissan's input in the car is now minimal. "The project itself is very difficult," says Dodge. "Doing this car for around $2,500 and getting motorbike drivers to jump into four-wheel vehicles [is] very challenging…[but] the car is coming along." Dodge declined to comment on when the car will be released or if it will be badged as a Nissan, Renault, or Bajaj.