Category: Auto

BMW X3 launched in India, priced at Rs 49.99 lakh

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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BMW India has launched the 2018 BMW X3 starting at Rs. 49,99 Lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi, for the Expedition trim and Rs 56.70 Lakh for the Luxury Line trim.

In this price range, the X3 braces itself for a tough battle in this middle space crossover segment against the Mercedes-Benz GLC, Audi Q5, Jaguar F-Pace and Volvo XC60. This new SUV retains its distinction of being a driver focused car and is hoping to match its rivals in terms of comfort and off-road capability.

The SUV is available in two diesel engine options; a 2.0-litre diesel engine in the new xDrive 20d avatar churns out 190PS of power and 400Nm of torque, while the more powerful 3.0-litre, six-cylinder diesel engine offers 265PS of power and 620Nm of torque.

The additional power and torque figures help propel the car from 0-100 kmph in 8.0 and 5.8 seconds, and record a top speed of 213 and 240kmph respectively.

This third-generation X3 is 55 kilos lighter than its predecessor, owing to lighter aluminum components that have been used to build components of the engine and suspension.

The front kidney grille is noticeably larger and sports reprofiled LED headlights and larger air-intakes on the redesigned front bumper.

The ‘infotainment’ system sports the iDrive 6.0 operating system with gesture control, that offers Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity as standard.

The 2.2-inch longer wheelbase in the new model creates more space inside the cabin, which comes equipped with a panoramic sunroof and automatic-climate control.

BMW India, which had opened bookings for the X3 earlier this month, said deliveries will start soon.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Uber doubling down on India investments after exiting Southeast Asia

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Ride-hailing giant Uber Technologies Inc is “doubling down” on its investments in India, one of its biggest markets, after its recent exit from Southeast Asia, its chief operating officer said.

India accounts for more than 10% of Uber rides globally and the U.S. company has a more than 35% share of the taxi market there, according to Counterpoint Research, but it is yet to make money in the country.

COO Barney Harford said investments in India are made using funds from profitable markets. However, the sale in March of Uber’s business in Southeast Asia to Singapore’s Grab Holdings, in exchange for a 27.5% stake, has given Uber more firepower to compete with its Indian rival Ola.

“The recent merger … has freed up resources which we are going to invest across people, products and partnerships to better serve this country,” Harford told reporters in New Delhi.

“We are doubling down on our investments in this country like never before,” he said, adding that India was a core market for the San Francisco-based company.

Harford did not say how much Uber is likely to invest in India but said it would “considerably expand” its technology resources to develop products for India and the world.

Uber’s India head Amit Jain said the company has no major plans to expand to more cities in India.

Uber operates in about 30 Indian cities while Ola is in 110 cities and has more than a 45% total market share, according to Counterpoint Research.

Uber and Ola are backed by a common investor, SoftBank Group, which pushed behind the scenes for the merger between Uber and Grab. It is not clear whether the Japanese investor plans to spur consolidation in India as well.

Executives from Uber and Ola met at least twice over the past 12 months and, among other things, Uber brought up a potential merger between the two companies with Uber in the driver’s seat, sources have told Reuters.

Harford said that while Uber was always open to having conversations with potential partners, it had no interest in entering into minority deals in India or other countries in which it operates.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

China to allow full foreign ownership in auto industry

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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China has announced plans to allow full foreign ownership of automakers in five years, ending restrictions that have strained relations with Washington and other trading partners.

The Cabinet’s planning commission said, it will lift limits on foreign ownership of electric vehicle producers this year, followed by similar action for makers of commercial vehicles in 2020 and passenger vehicles in 2022.

The announcement by the National Development and Reform Commission said, “following a five-year transition period, all ownership restrictions will be lifted.”

That would end rules requiring foreign automakers in China to work through local state-owned partners, an arrangement that forced them to share technology with potential competitors.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Tesla ‘temporarily’ shuts down Model 3 production

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Tesla Inc has temporarily suspended its Model 3 assembly line in what the company said on Monday was a planned production pause, as the automaker continues to face challenges ramping up its new sedan.

It was the second time since February that Tesla has temporarily shut down its production line for the Model 3 at its Fremont, California plant.

“These periods are used to improve automation and systematically address bottlenecks in order to increase production rates,” a Tesla representative said on Monday.

BuzzFeed, which first reported the news, said workers were expected to use vacation days or stay home without pay during the four- to five-day production pause.

After repeated delays in production of its Model 3 sedan, Tesla is now trying to catch up to a target of building 2,500 vehicles per week by the end of the second quarter. Problems within its heavily roboticized assembly line have complicated those efforts.

On Friday, Musk acknowledged for the first time that he had overrelied on automation in the Model 3 assembly line, a stunning concession from Tesla’s leader who has previously scoffed at competitors’ manufacturing prowess and bragged about creating an “Alien Dreadnought” within the Fremont factory by 2018.

“Yes, excessive automation at Tesla was a mistake,” Musk tweeted on Friday. “To be precise, my mistake. Humans are underrated.”

He also tweeted on Friday that Tesla would be profitable and cash flow positive in the third and fourth quarters, with no need to raise money.

Many analysts dispute this analysis, which hinges on a rapid rise in production of the Model 3 sedan. Delays and lower-than-expected volume have postponed revenue from cars being delivered to customers from reaching Tesla’s bottom line.

Shares did not move after hours after falling 3 percent on Monday, pressured by Musk’s acknowledgement, a report alleging that Tesla undercounted worker injuries – which the company denies – and an amended lawsuit originally filed last year that alleges Musk misled investors about Model 3 production.

In February, Tesla suspended production of its Model 3 for four days in what it said was planned work to adjust equipment in order to improve automation and address bottlenecks. It warned of possibly more periods of downtime in coming months.

Automakers generally do stop or slow production of new models to iron out problems with the production system, although Tesla took shortcuts with the testing of its production line in order to get to market more quickly, shortcuts that some experts say have resulted in early manufacturing problems.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Car demand in UK and Europe facing multiple headwinds, says LKP Securities

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Tata Motors stock is under pressure on reports of Jaguar-LandRover (JLR) cutting jobs at its UK plant.

Ashwin Patil, Research Analyst at LKP Securities discussed the impact, said “There is a lot of slowdown, Brexit effect is there and also some regulatory impositions on diesel vehicles have been led, so these factors are already leading UK to put not so good kind of growth.”

“In the first three months, JLR has reported a drop of about 26 percent. Also in Germany, Europe’s biggest car market, has slumped by about 32 percent in the same period. We are seeing that a negative impact is overall there in the European and the UK market,” he said.

“The company in order to save cost or cut cost will have to cut the employee cost of about 1,000 workers which were on contract basis. Going forward if things improve and as it is their investment plan is in place, they may recruit engineers at higher levels, they may get back things quite on track,” he added.

“In order to maintain their profitability, they have taken this step,” said Patil.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow