The wait is finally over. Hyundai Motor India has lifted the wraps off its i20. The car which follows the hugely succesful i10, is a premium compact model that has been developed to meet the increasing customer expectations in terms of styling, features and safety to global standards.

With the global slowdown showing its frightening face Korean car maker Hyundai is planning to issue the pink slips to a handful of temporary staff in India.

German car manufacturer Volkswagen will roll out its next generation Polo in India next year. According to industry sources, the new VW Polo 2009 has been built drawing inspiration from the car maker’s earlier model VW Scirocco, a three-door coupe.

Toeing the lines of many other car makers in India, luxury car major Audi India has also gone ahead and cut prices of its models. The price cut announced is to the tune of Rs. 2.79 lakh.

Luxury car giant BMW is mulling over the possibility of rolling out its luxury small car Mini in India in the near future.

Two-wheeler major Bajaj Auto has hiked its stake in Austrian motorcycle manufacturer KTM to 25 per cent from the current 14.5 per cent.

Unveiling the first ever coach with a multi-axle configuration in the country, Volvo Buses India has rolled out a special edition of its Signature series buses.

Emerging economies including India will have their first taste of Honda’s small car in the next three years time. With this, Honda will join the likes of car makers who are fast readying their small cars.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor will launch a CNG version of its Toyota Innova in end-January 2009. The CNG Innova will cost Rs 75,000 - Rs 90,000 extra, including warranty and installation costs.

MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited) has acquired a fleet of Reva electric cars for their technicians.

German luxury car maker is expanding presence in India, of late. The latest addition to Audi’s presence in India is Ahmedabad. The car maker has said that  Audi Ahmedabad would be the ever first exclusive dealership for Gujarat.

Plans by Hyundai Motor to roll out buses on Indian roads seem to be not taking off for the moment.  The South Korean auto major has reportedly put its plans to sell buses in India on the backburner.

After the success of the Jaguar and Land Rover brands in Russia and China, Tata Motors is now looking at emulating it in India too.

The Nissan Motors - Renault SA combie have decided to temporarily hold their auto manufacturing production projects in India. The reason, as we know, is the current sate of the economy.

The good old Amby will now cost less – much less than you thought. Following up on the Centre’s economic stimulus package, Hindustan Motors has come up with a price reduction on its Ambassador models.

Automotive giant Toyota Kirloskar Motor is pumping in a capital investment close to Rs 32 billion in its second plant in India. The second plant, which is said to be getting ready to go stream in year 2010, will boast of an initial annual production capacity of around 100,000 vehicles.

Automotive major Mahindra and Mahindra’s much-anticipated Xylo, earlier codenamed Ingenio, will debut on the 13th of January. Mahindra has said it has started production of the Xylo as scheduled. The company plans to open customer bookings for its latest offering by January 14, 2009.

The slowdown that has affected all sections of the industrial spectrum seems to have left Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) alone. The company has shown an increase in the sales by 40 per cent this November compared to the same month in year 2007.

Bajaj Auto, one of India's top two wheeler manufacuturers, is planning to source and build motorcycles in China. It is believed that initially, the new motorcycles would be on sale only in China and Nigeria.

This January, India’s two-wheeler behemoth Bajaj Auto will unveil a range of new motorcycles in India. The plan is to push up sales numbers that have been plummeting of late.