Would you buy a Tata Nano?

Maintenance/Repairs
41

Okay. I will assume that when the Nano comes to the US in 2012, it shall have a 60hp+ engine. I hope its closer to the 100 bhp Toyota Yaris, as it seems to be in a similiar size category.

Auto taxes in the US are much lower than in India and in Europe. Thus, if it sells for
6000$ in Europe, I think it would sell for around 4000$-5000$ in the US.
Its priced at 6000$ for Europe, with a 60 hp engine.
http://letmeget.com/blog/tata-nano-europa-review-tata-nano-europa-price-specifications

It just might take off then! 4000$ for a 100 hp , toyota Yaris like size.
Reliability of Tata is in between Suzuki and Chevrolet (Source, Indian auto market). Thus, consumer reports would probably rate Tata vehicles as close to Ford in reliability.

Compare this to a 9000$ Hyundai Accent or a 12,000 Yaris. Quality is worse than Hyundai and Toyota, but, 3 Tata Nanos can be bought for the same price as 1 yaris or two Tata Nanos for every Hyundai Accent.

Pretty cool, I would think! Basic , frugal, reasonably safe engineering, for low speed, pottering around the city.

Can you people think of the price pressure this would put on the Chevy Aveos, Cobalts, Cruzes and the like???

Safety: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/5843705/Tata-Nano-safety-boost.html

ALSO:

The Tata Nano might not take off in the Internal combustion engine variant…but may take off as an Electric Vehicle.

With a powerful enough motor, and the additional costs of the battery and the electric system, would get it to ~ 10,000 $. The Chevy Volt would be the next in line at a 40,000 $ price point.

42

More info:

http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/fresh-greens/2009/3/24/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-tata-nano

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2008-05-27-tata-jaguar-land-rover_N.htm

43

Sure I had a Ford Festiva with a whole 63 HP. Took it on many long trips and I got 40+ mpg summer, 35 mpg in the winter. I used the car until it was wore out, they stopped making them otherwise I would have bought another. And I might buy one again now that they starting making them, it all depends on how I fit in it. I’m 6’ 2" 250 pound and I fit great in the old Festiva.

My opinions are subject to change with new facts.

44

Houston, are you doing market research before you apply for a dealership?

45

No, but he might be doing market research for a project sponsered by Rice U. and paid for by Tata.

46

I guess urban driving it would be OK. As I posted earlier, don’t go out of a 50 mile radius of a dealer until these cars go mainstream. Which I doubt they will.

My Father purchased a brand new VW at the Wolfsburg plant in Germany when I was a kid. We drove it all over Europe . When we came back to the “states”, after one trip on the interstate Dad traded in the Bug for a '64 Impala. He didn’t want to be a “squashed bug”

Fellow Firefighters in the adjacent county where I live responded to a vehicle accident. It involved a Smart car and a truck. The body of the Smart car driver was cut in half. There was absolutely next to nothing left of the car.

47

I am a material scientist and nanotechnologist in the new energy field. This is a general question.

cheers.

48

Thanks, houstonrice. This forum forbids any type of commercial promotion, hence the questions from posters. We get “infomercials” all the time here, and they are quickly deleted.

I raised the question of the Tata a while back when gas prices were very high. At that time the Tata had just been unveiled. The reaction was similar; too little power, wheels too small for driving in snow, safety, luggage space.

The conclusion was that it would mainly compete with the Smart Car as an urban runabout.

49

oldwrench, concerning the wreck you mentioned, do you know if the circumstances were such that almost no compact or subcompact would have saved the driver? A head-on with a semi, or even a 5-ton dump, at 65 mph (combined 130) wouldn’t leave much.

50

Yes, I realize that anything small offers very little protection.I refused to let my younger son buy an MG midget. Thats the same reason why my old man sold the Bug.

As I stated in a previous post, city driving is best for subcompacts, as drivers are mindful of scooters, bicycles,motorcycles etc…

51

Ah, sweet memories of my '61 Beetle. Talk about lack of crashworthyness!

52

Hey, folks, NO car can be imported, if it doesn’t meet safety and crash standards-- so, the Nano will be as safe as ANY small car. As far as horsepower: I OWNED an original Beetle-- the first VW’s had TWENTY-FOUR horsepower, later raised to 30 horses, then 36, then 40-- guess what? I drove all over the Los Angeles freeway system with no problem. For some reason, everyone thinks you need 500 horsepower and a monster truck-- which is why we are running out of gas! I would, personally, consider a Nano as a second car, or for commuting to work. I live in a small town in a rural county-- LOTS of guys commute MILES from their ranches, so they drive small cars: Geo Metro, Chevy Aveo, Toyota Prius, Smart Car, MINI, as just some examples. Yes, we own big trucks-- we use them for hauling hay, bring in fire wood, towing trailers… but we ALL have small cars for long-distance and commuting (my small car is a Subaru Impreza-- all wheel drive is a necessity in snow country). So, despite the nay-sayers on this list, I say YES to the Nano… especially when gas returns to over four dollars a gallon (which it will, eventually) and the Arabs put the squeeze on us, a small car will show how SMART you are – doubt it? Gee, the US Military is looking into petroleum alternatives, because of the “inevitability” of gas shortages in the near future.

53

Plus, the US version will have SIXTY HORSEPOWER… that was the MOST horsepower of any factory VW during the last years of the Beetle, and no one said, “VW’s are underpowered”-- and those who did, put Porsche motors in them! I mean, the original settlers had ONE horsepower-- pulling their carriage! And even a 500 hp motor is only USING 20 or 30 horsepower, when one person is in the car, and it’s on level ground-- again, our addictions to power and speed are why we are now in the position of importing 60% of our oil, and thus, funding terrorism. Renew, reuse, recycle… and THINK SMALL! You DON’T need a Hummer to be safe or comfortable.