In early 2008 the news magazine Newsweek identified the Nano as a part of a "new breed of 21st-century cars" that embody "a contrarian philosophy of smaller, lighter, cheaper" and portend a new era in inexpensive personal transportation — and potentially, "global gridlock". The Wall Street Journal confirmed a global trend toward small cars, which includes the Nano.
"Nano" means "small" in Gujarati, the language of the founders of the Tata Group. "Nano" from the SI prefix for one-billionth is derived from the Greek νᾶνος, meaning dwarf, and is sometimes used to mean "small" in colloquial English.
History
Nano
The introduction of the Nano received media attention due to its targeted low price. The Financial Times reported: "If ever there were a symbol of India’s ambitions to become a modern nation, it would surely be the Nano, the tiny car with the even tinier price-tag. A triumph of homegrown engineering, the $2,200 (€1,490, £1,186) Nano encapsulates the dream of millions of Indians groping for a shot at urban prosperity." The car is expected to boost the Indian economy, create entrepreneurial-opportunities across India,as well as expand the Indian car market by 65%. The car was envisioned by Ratan Tata, Chairman of the Tata Group and Tata Motors, who has described it as an eco-friendly "people's car". Nano has been greatly appreciated by many sources and the media for its low-cost and eco-friendly initiatives which include using compressed-air as fuel and an electric-version (E-Nano). Tata Group is expected to mass-manufacture the Nano, particularly the electric-version, and, besides selling them in India, to also export them worldwide.
Critics of the car have questioned its safety in India (where reportedly 90,000 people are killed in road-accidents every year), and have also criticised the pollution that it would cause (including criticism by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change chairman Rajendra Pachauri). However, Tata Motors has promised that it would definitely release Nano's eco-friendly models alongside the gasoline-model.
The Nano was originally to have been manufactured at a new factory in Singur, West Bengal, but increasingly violent protests forced Tata to pull out October 2008. (See Singur factory pullout below.) Currently, Tata Motors is reportedly manufacturing Nano at its existing Pantnagar (Uttarakhand) plant and another plant has been proposed has also agreed to match all the incentives offered by West Bengal government. The upcoming plant at Sanand, Ahmedabad is to release the first lot of cars on 1 May 2010.
Design
Rear
A Tata Nano in silver
Ratan Tata, the Chairman of Tata Motors, began development of the world's least cost production car in 2003, inspired by the number of Indian families with two-wheeled rather than four-wheeled vehicles.The Nano's development has been tempered by the company's success in producing the low cost 4 wheeled Ace truck in May 2005.
Contrary to speculation that the car might be a simple four-wheeled auto rickshaw, The Times of India reported the vehicle is "a properly designed and built car".The Chairman is reported to have said, "It is not a car with plastic curtains or no roof — it's a real car."
To achieve its design goals, Tata refined the manufacturing process, emphasized innovation and sought new design approaches from suppliers.The car was designed at Italy's Institute of Development in Automotive Engineering — with Ratan Tata requesting certain changes, such as the elimination of one of two windscreen wipers. Many components of the Nano are made in Germany by Bosch, such as fuel injection, brake system, Value Motronic ECU, ABS and other technologies.
The Nano has 21% more interior space (albeit mostly as headroom, due to its tall stance) and an 8% smaller exterior compared to its closest rival, the Maruti 800. Tata offered the car in three versions: the basic Tata Nano Std; the CX; and the LX. The CX and LX versions each have air conditioning, power windows, and central locking. Tata has set its initial production target at 250,000 units per year.
Cost cutting features
The Nano's trunk does not open. Instead, the rear seats can be folded down to access the boot.
It has a single windscreen wiper instead of the usual pair.
It has no power steering.
The base model has only three lug nuts on the wheels instead of the usual four.
The base model has only one side view mirror.
Some use of plastic and glue in place of welded steel
Manually operated side windows
Air conditioning/heating not part of base model
Airbags not part of base model
Engine is much smaller (623 cc)than the other cars but is suitable for city driving.
Price
Wikinews has related news: World's least cost car launched in India, will go on sale in April
Tata initially targeted the vehicle as "the least expensive production car in the world" — aiming for a starting price of 100,000 rupees or approximately US$2000 (using exchange rate as of 22 March 2009) 6 years ago,[when?] despite rapidly rising material prices at the time.
As of August 2008, material costs had risen from 13% to 23% over the car’s development, and Tata faced the choice of:
introducing the car with an artificially low price through government subsidies and tax-breaks
forgoing profit on the car
using vertical-integration to artificially boost profits on cars at the expense of their materials industries
partially using inexpensive polymers or biodegradable plastics instead of a full metal-body
raising the price of the car
Model versions
Base model
At its launch the Nano was available in three trim levels:
the basic Tata Nano Std priced at 123,000 Rupees has no extras;
the deluxe Tata Nano CX at 151,000 Rupees has air conditioning;
the luxury Tata Nano LX at 172,000 Rupees has air conditioning, power windows, fabric seats and central locking
the Nano Europa, European version of the Tata Nano has all of the above plus a larger body, bigger 3-cylinder engine, anti-lock braking system (ABS) and meets European crash standards and emission norms.
The base model will have fixed seats, except for the driver's, which will be adjustable, while the deluxe and luxury models will get air conditioning and body coloured bumpers.
Technical specifications
The interior
According to Tata Motors, the Nano is a 35 PS (26 kW; 35 hp) car with a 624 cc rear engine and rear wheel drive, and has a fuel economy of 4.55 L/100 km (22 km/L, 51.7 mpg (US), 62 mpg (UK)) under city road conditions, and 3.85 L/100 km on highways (26 km/L, 61.1 mpg (US), 73.3 mpg (UK)). It is the first time a two-cylinder non-opposed petrol engine will be used in a car with a single balance shaft.Tata Motors has reportedly filed 34 patents related to the innovations in the design of Nano, with the powertrain accounting for over half of them.The project head, Girish Wagh has been credited with being one of the brains behind Nano's design.
Much has been made of Tata's patents pending for the Nano. Yet during a news conference at the New Delhi Auto Expo, Ratan Tata pointed out none of these is revolutionary or represents earth-shaking technology. He said most relate to rather mundane items such as the two-cylinder engine’s balance shaft, and how the gears were cut in the transmission.
Though the car has been appreciated by many sources, including Reuters due to "the way it has tweaked existing technologies to target an as-yet untapped segment of the market", yet it has been stated by the same sources that Nano is not quite "revolutionary in its technology", just low in price. Moreover, technologies which are expected of the new and yet-to-be-released car include a revolutionary compressed-air fuel system and an eco-friendly electric-version,[26] technologies on which Tata is reportedly already working, though no official incorporation-date for these technologies in the new car has been released.
According to Tata, the Nano complies with Bharat Stage-III (similar to Euro-III) and can also meet Euro-IV emission standards. Ratan Tata also said, 'The car has passed the full-frontal crash and the side impact crash'.Tata Nano passed the required 'homologation’ tests with Pune-based Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI).This means that the car has met all the specified criteria for roadworthiness laid out by the government including emissions or noise & vibration and can now ply on Indian roads. Tata Nano managed to score 23.6 km per litre during its ‘homologation’ tests with ARAI.This makes Tata Nano the most fuel efficient car in India. Nano will be the first car in India to display the actual fuel mileage figures it recorded at ARAI’s tests on its windshield. According to ARAI in the tests the Nano conformed to Euro IV emission standards which will come into effect in India in 2010, yet it was only homologated to the Euro III level.
Rear mounted engine
The use of a rear mounted engine to help maximize interior space makes the Nano similar to the original Fiat 500, another technically innovative "people's car". A concept vehicle similar in styling to the Nano, also with rear engined layout was proposed by the UK Rover Group in the 1990s to succeed the original Mini but was not put into production. Once the project was taken over by BMW, the new Mini was much larger and technically conservative. The independent, and now-defunct, MG Rover Group later based their Rover CityRover on the Tata Indica.
Tata is also reported to be contemplating offering a compressed air engine as an option.
Engine: 2 cylinder petrol with Bosch multi-point fuel injection (single injector) all aluminium 33 horsepower (25 kW) 624 cc (38 cu in)
Value Motronic engine management platform from Bosch
2 valves per cylinder overhead camshaft
Compression ratio: 9.5:1
bore × stroke: 73.5 mm (2.9 in) × 73.5 mm (2.9 in)
Power: 35 PS (26 kW; 35 hp) @ 5250 rpm
Torque: 48 N·m (35 ft·lbf) @ 3000 +/-500 rpm
Layout and Transmission Rear wheel drive
4-speed manual transmission
Steering mechanical rack and pinion w/o servo
Turning radius: 4 metres
Performance Acceleration: 0-60 km/h (37 mph): 8 seconds
Maximum speed: 105 km/h (65 mph)[2]
Fuel efficiency (overall): 23.6 kilometres per litre (4.24 litres per 100 kilometres (66.6 mpg-imp; 55.5 mpg-US))
Body and dimensions Seat belt: 4
Trunk capacity: 150 L (5.3 cu ft)
Suspension, Tires & Brakes Front brake: 180 mm drum
Rear brake: 180 mm drum
Front track: 1,325 mm (52.2 in)
Rear track: 1,315 mm (51.8 in)
Ground clearance: 180 mm (7.1 in)
Front suspension: McPherson strut with lower A arm
Rear suspension: Independent coil spring
12-inch wheels
Supplier Part/system
Texspin Clutch Bearings
Bosch Oxygen sensor, Gasoline injection system (diesel will follow), starter, alternator, brake system
Continental AG Gasoline fuel supply system, fuel level sensor
Caparo Inner structural panels
HSI AUTO Static sealing systems (Weather Strips)
Delphi Instrument cluster
Denso Windshield wiper system (single motor and arm)
FAG Kugelfischer Rear-wheel bearing
Ficosa Rear-view mirrors, interior mirrors, manual and CVT shifters, washer system
Freudenberg Engine sealing
GKN Driveshafts
INA Shifting elements
ITW Deltar Outside and inside door handles
Johnson Controls Seating
Mahle Camshafts, spin-on oil filters, fuel filters and air cleaners
Saint-Gobain Glass
TRW Brake system
Ceekay Daikin/Valeo Clutch sets
Vibracoustic Engine mounts
Visteon Air induction system
ZF Friedrichshafen AG Chassis components, including tie rods
Behr HVAC for the luxury version
Dürr Lean Paint Shop
Variants
Tata Nano Europa, for Europe
Diesel
A website has reported that the Tata Nano might be made available with a 690 cc diesel engine by September 2010. Tata motors have not confirmed this yet have hinted that a diesel version will be introduced in the future. "As of now the Diesel variant is not offered. It will be offered only in Petrol now"
Compressed-air engine
Tata Motors is working with a French firm on using compressed air as an energy source. The company has tied up with Moteur Development International (MDI) for this purpose.
[edit]Electric drivetrain or electric-version
Tata is also believed to be making an electric version of the Nano, called the E-Nano (reportedly with attached or sideby solar panels as well)
Hybrid
Leftlanenews reported that "a hybrid version [of Tata Nano] is also likely, although it is not yet known whether the electric motor will be paired with a gasoline or diesel version."
Nano Europa
Tata Motors unveiled a version of the Nano mini-car called the Nano Europa at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show. The car will be coming to mainland Europe and the UK and will have a number of improvements over the standard Nano. The Nano Europa has an increased wheelbase, a new 3-cylinder engine and improved interiors and exteriors. The Nano Europa will be more expensive, heavier, and less fuel efficient than the standard Nano with prices said to be around the US$ 6000 mark. The Nano Europa was heavily modified to meet EU safety and emission standards.
Tata Nano EV
In 2010, at Geneva Motor Show, Tata unveiled the EV-version car uses super-polymer lithium-ion batteries and has a range of 80 miles (130 km), which might well turn out to be the "world's cheapest electric car" which is more eco-friendly and has many enthusiasts and media for its support. It's supposed to be as cheap as the conventional combustion version (gasoline). Tata is making the Nano compliant with export market regulations and plans to export such a car worldwide, particularly to the UK and the rest of continental Europe, the US (approx. $5,000 ) ,and Australia.
The Economic Times reported that the "electric Nano" "would still make good sense for economic, clean and green personal mobility in countries around the world." According to the Hamburg-based newspaper, Auto Bild, the E-Nano would be built in cooperation with the Norwegian electric car specialist, Miljøbil Grenland AS.
Expectations
According to one report, India as well as some European nations, have great expectations from the Nano and are keenly awaiting it, especially the electric version of the Nano, making it in all probability the "world's cheapest electric car" officially on record. The car itself is expected to boost the Indian Economy as well as expand the Indian car market by 65%, according to rating agency CRISIL.
The Nano, already in production, has already been listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's lease cost production car.
India's leading automotive portal Carwale.com tested the Tata Nano for more than 7,000 kms across the Golden Quadrilateral project. The principal sponsor of the event - Gulf Oil also successfully tested its range of Engine and Gearbox Oil on this run.
[edit]Potential effect on Indian economy
The Economic Times quotes:
“
Tata Nano’s launch could expand the Indian car market by 65%, according to rating agency CRISIL. The low price makes the car affordable for families with incomes of Rs 1 lakh [100,000] per annum, the agency said. The increase in the market is expected to push up car sales by 20% over the previous year. “The unveiling of Tata Nano, the cheapest car in the world, triggers an important event in the car market. Based on the statement by company officials, CRISIL Research estimates the consumer price of the car at around Rs 1.3 lakh. This brings down the cost of ownership of an entry level car in India by 30%,” the company said in a report.
”
Comparison to the Model T
Many have compared the Nano with Henry Ford's Model T launched exactly 100 years earlier, in 1908. While the Model T initially cost $850 (equivalent to $20,091 today), Ford refined the assembly line process and by the 1920s, the price of Ford's Model T had fallen to $290 (equivalent to $3,191 today), comparable to the release price of the Nano at US$2,171 as of October 2009.
Livemint said:
“
Ford Motor Co. is rich because Henry Ford used the assembly-line to produce the Model T in 1908. Ratan Tata is a late entrepreneur, making the Nano in 2008.
India is 100 years behind. But we are waking up to the possibility of catching up. I just hope our planners wake up soon.
”
Times of India also compared the Nano to the Model T:
“
This raises the question: How have the Tatas accomplished such a task? Pursuing this question a fascinating story unfolds that reminds one of Henry Ford's Model T that was built exactly one hundred years ago (September 1908). Ford wanted to make a car for the multitude, not for the elite, with the best material and the best design that the technology of his time could devise, and he wanted to make it, above all, at a price that was affordable. This is the example that Ratan Tata has followed with determination. When he announced the price of his car in an interview to the Financial Times during the Geneva Motor Show, his colleagues were 'aghast', but he had set his goal.
”
Tata Motors in 2009 announced that they are going to bring the Tata Nano to the United States sometime in 2011. In order for it to meet U.S. safety and emissions standards the roof would have to be reinforced among other changes in the headlight pattern etc. The price tag would go up from $2,500 sold in India to around $8,000. There is talk that the U.S. version will get a larger displacement engine but much of the information is proprietary and Tata Motors had not officially released any of the details yet.
Singur factory pullout
Main article: Tata Nano Singur controversy
After much speculation, Tata Motors announced on May 19, 2006 that it will be manufacturing Tata Nano from Singur, West Bengal. However, within a week protests were started by a few farmers in the area against the acquisition of their lands by Tata. The cause was taken up by Mamata Banerjee, the leader of Trinamool Congress. The situation escalated with Tatas threatening to pull out, and disruption of compensation for farmers who had volunteered to sell their land by anti-acquisition activists. This was followed by a state-wide bandh by Trinamool Congress in October. The government banned political parties from holding meetings or processions at Singur and installed a huge police force there. There was widespread violence in the clashes between the police and the farmers on December 2, 2006.
On December 4, 2006 Mamata Banerjee entered into a hunger strike. A 48-hour strike was later called by her to protest the death of Tapasi, a Save Farmland Committee campaigner, whose burnt body was found at the Nano plant site in Singur. Two CPM activists were later convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder. On the 24th day of her strike, Banerjee was given oxygen support and finally called off her fast after appeals from the then President Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
As the protests over the land continued in 2007, Ratan Tata accused that the competitors had a role in the controversy. The acquisition of land was initially criticised in February 2007, but later approved by the Calcutta High Court in 2008. As political unrest and rains hampered the construction, Tata Motors delayed the launch of Nano to September 2008.
Violence continued throughout 2008 and on September 2, 2008, Tata Motors announced that they have suspended work at Singur.On October 2, 2008 Tata Motors announced that they are pulling out of Singur.On October 7, 2008, it was announced that the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi had signed an MoU with Tata Motors for allocating land for Nano factory in Sanand in Ahmedabad district of Gujarat.
Criticism
Questions of safety
The Nano has an all sheet-metal body made from Japanese and Korean steel, with safety features such as crumple zones, intrusion-resistant doors, seat-belts, strong seats and anchorages, and the rear tailgate glass bonded to the body. Tires are tubeless. However, some concerns regarding passenger safety were brushed away by the results of 40% offset crash test at 56 kph and the side-impact tests at the MIRA crash test facility in Europe, which were performed on a substantially modified vehicle with additional structure and reinforcements in the body and strengthening in the doors, representative of a planned European export version, which will be substantially larger and more expensive.
Mass motorisation
As the Nano was conceived and designed around introducing the automobile to a sector of the population who are currently using eco-friendly bicycles and motorcycles, environmentalists are concerned that its extraordinarily low price might lead to mass motorization in countries like India and therefore possibly aggravate pollution as well as increase the demand for oil. The ecology focused German newspaper die tageszeitung feels that such concerns are "inappropriate" as the Tata Nano has lower emissions compared to the average Volkswagen, and that developing countries shouldn't be denied the right to motorized mobility when industrialized countries should be looking to reduce their emissions and usage of cars. Die Welt reports that the car conforms with environmental protection, and will have the lowest emissions in India.
In crowded metropolitan cities like Mumbai, Ratan Tata has conceived a scheme to only offer the Nano to those individuals who do not have an automobile already. The Nano will also replace many overloaded and worn-out two-stroke polluting vehicles, both two and three-wheeled. According to Anumita Roychowdhury, associate director of the Centre for Science and Environment in New Delhi, "the low-cost cars will be disastrous" in the current policy and regulatory framework.
Used car market effects
The Nano is alleged to have severely affected the used car market in India, as many Indians opt to wait for the Nano's release rather than buying used cars, such as the Maruti 800 (a rebadged older version of the Suzuki Alto), which is considered as the Nano's nearest competitor. Sales of new Maruti 800s have dropped by 20%, and used ones by 30% following the unveiling of the Nano. As one automotive journalist summarises; “People are asking themselves—and us—why they should pay, say, 250,000 Rupees for a Maruti Alto, when they can wait and get a brand new Nano for less in a few months’ time, a car that is actually bigger”.
Post Sales Issues
In March 2010 a Tata Nano caught fire when driven from dealership to the home of its owner Satish Sawant. . Tata Motors responded regarding the fire.
"The incident in Mumbai does not require a recall because it is a stray one-off incident due to a problem in that particular unit,” wrote Debasis Ray, the head of corporate communications at Tata, in an e-mail message. “We are trying to understand what may have caused it. There are close to 30,000 Tata Nanos on the road now and increasing. There are no design or manufacturing lacunae in the cars.“
This case is currently under investigation, Tata Motors have not ruled out the possibility of sabotage.
There have been three cases where Nano's steering wheel assembly produces black smoke, which was attributed to fire retardant material used in the steering column. Tata Motors has since replaced the OEM supplying the fire retardant material as well as the steering column assembly in the sold vehicles.
Competitors
Main article: Economy car
Rival car makers including Bajaj Auto, Fiat, General Motors, Ford Motor, Hyundai and Toyota Motor have all expressed interest in building small cars in India that are affordable to more middle-class consumers in emerging markets. The bulk of demand there is for small cars because people are much more sensitive to fuel prices.
Honda and Toyota are leading the way on so called cleaner gasoline-electric hybrids, and some environmentalists argue getting prices down on these technologies is where efforts should be concentrated. Inexpensive and eco-friendly electric-cars like Tara Tiny (which has an engine producing 4 hp compared to Nano's 33 hp), Oreva Super (both reportedly even cheaper than Tata Nano) and REVA pose even more significant danger to Nano.
[edit]Awards
Tata Nano won the Indian Car of the Year 2010 award at Business Standard Motoring Awards 2010
Tata Nano won the 'car of the year' of Bloomberg UTV-Autocar awards
Source:wikipedia
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