Car Articles

Mitsubishi is not falling back when other competitors are rolling in their own products in India. Mitsubishi sensing a sudden demand for luxury sedan here in India is all set to roll in its new model, Lancer Evolution X. This car always had been a hot favourite of the World Rally Championship drivers. Though the speculations were rife that this turbo-charged car would be here in India in 2009 itself, Mitsubishi had held back its plans to lauch the car in 2009 and will be for sure launching this beast in 2010. Evolution X will be locally made at the Mitsubishi's Chennai facility and will be unveiled in India in 2010. This sports sedan will have a 2.0-litre, twin cam, four-cylinder engine, with a twin-scroll turbocharger that generates an impressive 217kW of power at 6500rpm and 366Nm of torque at 3500rpm. This car is expected to come with front and rear Brembo brakes for that effective braking of this humongous beast. Since this car will be locally made, we can expect Mitsubishi to cut costs. Four-piston callipers in front and two-piston callipers in the rear are used by the car. The aluminum roof, bonnet and front guards impart the car an exotic look. Evo X might be priced around 20-24 lakhs.

The Italian car maker has just hit the right track in India after launching its popular model, the Fiat Linea. After the disastrous previous outing of the company here in India, Fiat seems to have learnt all the tricks of the trade with panache in its second outing. Fiat, according to many auto pundits, has plunked in underpowered engines in the Linea. But this statement soon will be the thing of the past when Fiat brings in its two new variants of the Linea, Linea-Multijet and T-Jet that will further rejuvenate the Fiat brand in India. The 1.6 Multijet will feature a 1599 CC engine, while the T-Jet would feature a 1.4-litre Turbocharged engine. The well sculpted Italian design will be the USP for the Fiat products this time around with the Fiat trade mark of sturdy-build and safety not being compromised with these two new models of Fiat. Linea is the only car in its class to offer an air convent. Linea Multijet and T-Jet variants promises of excellent ride quality with spacious and superb interiors. Linea T-Jet would be the only model to have a turbo charged petrol engine. The prominent features that would be present in the new two Lineas are anti-lock braking system and Electronic brake force distribution system apart from other features the Lineas will offer. We expect Fiat to price Linea Mutijet around 10-12 lakhs while T-Jet would command a price tag of 9-10 lakhs.

Green is in, in a big way and echoing this sentiment is Toyota Motor Corporation which will bring in its Hybrid-Car, Prius in India through its subsidiary Toyota Kirloskar Motors. Hybrid cars are the things of future and they clearly command a presence over the fuel-based cars. Hybrid cars are those cars that use both petrol and an electric motor to run. They are environment-friendly and more fuel efficient than the ones which run on conventional fuel, i.e. petrol or diesel. Toyota Prius is one of the most successful products of Toyota which sold over 1.2 million units in the U.S in 2009. Prius is a four-door hatchback that can seat five adults comfortably. The hybrid powertrain of the car consists of a 1.8-liter gasoline engine that produces 98 horsepower and 105 pound-feet of torque. Both the electric and petrol powerhouses work in unison to give that extra power when fully accelerated. However, the Prius alternates between the two, mostly running on battery power alone in lighter road conditions. A regenerative braking system converts energy, normally lost as heat, into electricity, which charges the car's battery pack. Toyota is expected to price the Prius around18-22 lakhs.