Or brushes past your vehicle ‘nudging’ your side-view mirror with a stupid grin / apologetic look?

Or keeps honking away to glory even when there’s no way forward?

Or is driving the wrong way on a one-way street and gives YOU a dirty look as you give a questioning look?

Or merrily continues at 15-20kph on a road with fast moving traffic, not allowing you to pass inspite of getting indications to do so?

I guess there are incidents similar to the above and many more that we all face during our daily commute. What gets to me even more is just sitting there helplessly in the car, being unable to do anything or even vent my frustration / anger at such people besides hurling abuse only me or my co-passengers can hear. (I’m not talking about road rage here, that’s totally different)

Wouldn’t it be great if cars had something like an instrument panel / console through which we could type out / say a message so that it shows up like a display or a 3D projection and the offender + others also see it?

This is something quite similar to the HUD available in aircraft cockpits, and could probably look like this…

Nothing like a good, witty message or rant to vent your feelings AND ensure your message gets across… especially during traffic jams.. or even a graphic, with the middle finger! :p

Would be good fun also, no?

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The model, launched by Maruti in the early ’80s, will bid farewell to Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Kanpur, Ahmedabad, Surat and Agra.

Other cities will follow suit by 2015-16, so this model is still likely to be around for the next five years or so. Frankly, it’s high time the company decided to stop production of the M-800.

There is a limit to how much you can flog a dead horse and though this car will have sentimental value of crores of Indians, sales of this model have been on a steady decline (down 55% in the 10 months ending in January 2010, total sales – 27,088 cars). There are newer and better models on the road now and the consumer is definitely spoiled for choice.

Cars made by Maruti have for long held only a cost advantage, as the inbuilt features and quality of parts were average at best. The company is now facing an assault on its “entry-level carmaker” tag by companies like Tata Motors, which launched the Nano last year. 

The Maruti Alto may still be the largest selling car in India, but the Tata Nano is cheaper by almost Rs.2 lakhs, a big deal in a country like India, where owning a car is still considered a luxury.

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Someone from their design department has been really busy as this new Civic comes with stylized smokey headlights and rear octo combo lights. The front bumpers have been restyled and it now sports a curved 5 point metallic front grille.

Pic: Honda Website

The Civic has an advanced 1.8L SOHC i-VTEC 4 cylinder in-line engine that seeks to combine power (132 PS @ 6,300 rpm) and excellent fuel efficiency (claimed ~ 13.1 km/l), with a fuel tank capacity of 50 litres. The car is available with a 5 speed manual transmission as well as a 5 speed auto tranny with paddle shift, grade logic control and shift lock.

There is a cruise control function which helps maintain a set speed above 40 km/hr without keeping your foot on the accelerator pedal, though it should be used carefully.

Another nice feature is DBW (Drive By Wire) where accelerator motion is conveyed to the throttle valve by electric signals and not by a mechanical cable,  ensuring the throttle valve is controlled precisely.

Honda Siel is also offering an additional two-year warranty in addition to the existing two years.

How much does all this come for? Well… in Pune, the prices are;

Civic 1.8S MT : Rs.12,17,500/-
Civic 1.8V MT : Rs.13,10,100/-
Civic 1.8V AT : Rs.13,86,300/-
Civic 1.8V Elegance : Rs.34,000/-(Additional, without Fog Lamps)
Civic 1.8S Elegance : Rs.50,000/-(Additional, with Fog Lamps)
Civic 1.8V Inspire : Rs.69,000/-(Additional, without Fog Lamps)
Civic 1.8S Inspire : Rs.85,000/-(Additional, with Fog Lamps)

All these prices are of course, ex-showroom and you can head over to Deccan Honda near Ruby Hall for a dekko…

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Image: Hyundai.com

Looks like there’s no stopping the guys at Hyundai, huh !!

After dishing out variants of the i10 and i20, the company has now announced a zero emission all-electric avatar of its i10 hatch, marking a change from their earlier stance in favour of hybrid and hydrogen fuel cell technology. This new i10 Blue Drive will be unveiled to the public at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this month.

The i10 Blue Drive is a 2-door 5-seat hatchback with a 49 kW electric motor powered by a 16 kWh lithium-ion polymer battery. The battery cells are provided by LG Chem and weigh 30% lesser, offering a 12% greater efficiency as compared to nickel hydride batteries. The car can be driven upto 160 kms on a full charge and boasts a top speed of 130 kmph. The battery has an intrinsic liquid thermal management system, and the car will offer an 85% 15-minute quick charge option at 413V. A full 100% charge can take up to 5 hours.

Due to the prohibitive cost of the batteries (~ 10,000 euros – more than the current car cost !! ), it is likely to be offered only on lease for now. There also don’t seem to be any plans of offering it in India as yet, and Hyundai plans to begin low volume fleet leasing of the vehicle in Korea starting in 2010 and full scale global production in 2012, one of the big reasons for the hurry being the tax incentives being offered for electric cars in Korea.

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When I saw the trim of the Sportz model, I instantly fell in love with it and knew I just had to have it. I was told this was available in only two body colours, Black and Red. No guessing which one I chose !

I had initially approached Sanjay Hyundai and the guys there kept on changing the actual amount payable each time I approached them. At times they said insurance was free, at other times they said it was a limited period scheme which was over etc etc. They also didn’t appear too proactive in terms of offering other freebies, so I went over to Kothari Hyundai to see if they were any different.

The guys at Kothari Hyundai were equally lazy and it was a frustrating experience to keep visiting their showroom at Tilak Road for every little thing.

Added to this was the fact that the two guys I was dealing with didn’t seem keen on letting me know about other formalities to be completed and each time, I had to call them and ask what was the next course of action. Eventually, everything was sorted out, and I finally went ahead with the purchase. It felt great to drive though of course, I still had to return to the showroom for getting the number plates fitted along with the mudflaps, reverse horn, steering cover, rubber floor mats etc etc that were part of the deal along with Rs.150 worth of fuel (yeah I know, not much !!)

Here are some more pics of the interiors…

I did get a lot of feedback from friends about whether the automatic transmission was a good choice, and all I can say right now is… Yup, it certainly was. How it fares in the long run is something only time can tell. Will post more details and actual driving experiences as the days go by, along with stats on mileage etc… So stay tuned

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All the booking applications will be subjected to a computerised random selection procedure. Within 60 days of the closure of bookings on April 25, Tata Motors will announce the allotment of 100,000 cars in the first phase of deliveries, scheduled to commence from July onwards.

The Nano can be purchased by taking a loan for a seven year period as compared to the normal maximum tenure of five years.

Nice way to get some extra cash, huh?

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Image: Tata Nano website

All the hype surrounding the Tata Nano continues unabated, and what’s more, the car, launched on March 23, can now be booked online as well, a first in the Indian auto industry. The bookings will commence on April 9 and will go on till April 25.

They are offering a discount of Rs.100 per form if booked online, as opposed to offline forms available at SBI branches, Westside, Croma and Titan showrooms. Customers need to pay only Rs.2,999 as a booking fee, and financing is available from 15 NBFCs.

The Tata Nano will be priced between Rs.1.34 lakhs and Rs.1.85 lakhs (ex-showroom Mumbai). Some points to note:

Online Booking

• The cost of the Online Form is Rs. 200/-
• Fill out the application form online and proceed to make an online payment
• Your application will then be directed to a third party payment gateway site
• You will then submit your payment through net banking
• The amount to be paid is the Cost of Application Form plus the Booking Amount
• The site will confirm your payment by generating a transaction ID
• You will be returned to the Tata Nano website where a Unique Identification Number (UIN) will be generated
• Booking is now complete, you can take a print of receipt, an email is sent to you with the receipt
• Credit cards will not be accepted for payment of booking amount.

Offline Booking

• Buy an application form for Rs 300/- from any of the following locations
  - Select SBI branches
  - Tata Motor Delearships
  - Croma Outlets
  - Westside stores
  - Tata Indicom Exclusive Stores
  - World of Titan Showrooms
• The application form will have 3 copies (Applicant’s copy, the bank’s copy and TML’s copy) Please fill all of these copies before submitting it
• You can submit your Booking Forms at the following locations:
  - Select SBI Branches
  - Tata Motors Dealerships
  - Croma Outlets
  - Westside Stores

Pretty cool, though I’m at a loss to understand why credit card payment is not allowed, considering it is a standard feature offered by all payment gateways.

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Image: Hyundai Website

As expected, Hyundai has launched the Hyundai i20, first unveiled at the Paris Motor show in October, thereby delivering on their intention of rolling out the i20 even as 2008 draws to a close.

This new five door premium hatchback comes in three variants – Magna, Asta, and Asta (O), and seven colours – Berry Red, Black Diamond, Crystal White, Dark Gray Metallic, Silky Beige, Sleek Silver and Sparkle Blue. It is being offered at an introductory price: Rs.4.80 lakh – Magna, Rs.5.6 lakh – Asta and Rs.5.82 lakh -Asta(O). All these prices are ex-showroom, Delhi.

All the i20 variants have AC/heating, tilt & telescopic steering, 60:40 split folding rear seats, dual tone beige interiors, 2 DIN CD + MP3 Music System, front & rear power windows, refrigerated glove box, a multi information display (which includes trip distance, engine running time, calendar, clock, temperature and audio display) and tachometer, as standard equipment.

The top-end model comes with fully automatic A/C, leather wrapped steering wheel and TGS knob, steering mounted audio control, foldable key with keyless entry function, alloy wheels, height-adjustable driver seat, electrically foldable and adjustable outside mirrors and the category first six airbags.

The i20 has also taken safety to new levels with the use of high-tensile steel and latest generation anti-lock brakes (ABS) with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), and hold your breath… as many as six airbags which is a first for a car in this segment in India.

Hyundai plans to replace the Getz with the i20, but the i20 uses the same 1.2 litre Kappa petrol engine as the i10 Kappa, unlike the 1.3 litre SOHC petrol engine or the 1.5 litre CRDi VGT in the Getz. There is no news if the i20 will have a diesel variant as yet. However, in terms of size, it is larger than the Getz, 3940 mm long and 1710 mm wide, as compared to the 3825 mm length and 1665 mm width.  of the Getz. The fuel tank capacity remains the same as the Getz, at 45 litres.

The engine delivers maximum power of 80 ps at 5200 rpm and a peak torque of 11.4 kgm at 4000 rpm, and is mated to a 5-speed manual transmission. There is also no word on an auto tranny yet. There is also a difference in the tyre sizes among the variants – steel wheel 175/70 R14 tubeless for the  Magna, and alloy wheel 185/65 R14 tubeless for the Asta and Asta (O).

I’m definitely planning to go for a test drive, probably this weekend. Will post more on first impressions etc.. Will I buy it? Too early to say, but probably not, as my mind is pretty much made up on the i10 Kappa Sportz.

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