Auto Expo 2010 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi to see new car and bike launches

It is that time of the year when Auto Expo 2010 news starts coming in. We remember how it was during the last Auto Expo – the Tata Nano was undoubtedly the star of the show, bringing in countless viewers and thousands of news reports from around the world.

We have seen some ads for stall girls for the 2010 Auto Expo already. It seems if you can hang out, well dressed, at the auto manufacturers’ stalls, you could make around Rs 4000 to Rs 6000 per day! Not a bad deal at all for smart college students I suppose.

Remember all those stories in the newspapers about booth girls and models at the 2008 Auto Expo and how everyone was ogling them? I went to the Auto Expo, and did not see much of that happening. Obviously, if you are leaning against a car, people would look at you! Beyond that, I saw people seriously focused on the sexy cars – not the bored and tired models, often telling them to get out of the way so they could get a clear snap of the car instead! I suspect the journalists on the other hand were immune to the cars and therefore, thought the girls were the star attractions. Not so. The Indian male probably is a lech, but at the Auto Expo 2008, he was focused on the cars and bikes. We are improving, dudes!

The Auto Expo 2010 will take place at the Pragati Maidan between January 5-11.

On the to the real stars of the show, then. The new cars and bikes that will be displayed during the Expo.

Maruti is believed to be working on a made-in-India small car, code-named YP8. It is likely that this car would be unveiled at the Maruti Suzuki pavilion at the Expo. As it is entirely designed and manufactured in India, we expect costs to be kept really low. So far, we think the car would be based on the Maruti Suzuki Ritz platform and would use the 1.2 K series engine.

Reva NXR and NXG electric cars

These two cars, designed by Dilip Chhabria, would also be unveiled to the Indian public at the 2010 Auto Expo.

The Reva NXR and NXG generated serious interest when the cars were unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show. They are definitely, way way ahead of the current Reva available in the Indian market. For one, both will use lithium ion battery packs, thus seriously extending the range of the car per charge.

The Reva NXR is expected to go into production in early 2010, while the Reva NXG is a sporty two seater model meant for 2011. The NXR is a four seater, three door car that offers 104 kmph top speed and a range of 160 kilometer per charge. Normal charging takes eight hours, while there is a fast charging facility (probably at extra cost) available which can charge the car fully in 90 minutes. There is a quick charge option which can charge the car enough to go 40 km in just 15 minutes too.

There would be public interest in these two cars no doubt. But the critical part is the pricing strategy, and there is no information available on that at this time. We don’t hear about any new government tax cuts or subsidies at this point, and lithium ion battery packs are not cheap.

There are also rumours of the Mitsubishi EVO making an appearance at the Auto Expo. However, we have no confirmation on the same.

Bajaj Auto is expected to showcase their KTM motorcycles at the Auto Expo 2010.

Other rumoured new cars and bikes for the Expo:

Nissan 350Z

Chevrolet Beat

Volkswagen Polo

Chevrolet Cruze

Suzuki Kizashi

Kawasaki Ninja 250R

As soon as we get some confirmation on the names of car and bike manufacturers appearing at the 2010 Auto Expo, things will be a lot clearer.