Four cars GM will launch in the next 12-24 months: A prediction

General Motors has a very busy two years ahead. By 2013, the company plans to introduce six new products in the Indian market, while phasing out at least four of its older products in the same time, taking its total product portfolio from eight vehicles at present to 10 by the beginning of 2013.

The eight products GM currently produces in India include the Chevrolet Spark, Beat, Aveo-UVa, Aveo, Optra Magnum, Cruze, Captiva and the Chevrolet Tavera.

What are the six new products that General Motors has lined up?

The company is obviously tight-lipped about it, saying that four of the six will be passenger vehicles, while two will be commercial vehicles. Of the four passenger vehicles, one is a small car, one is an SUV and the other two are mid-size sedans, probably in two different price segments. Besides these four launches, there will also be some shuffling of products, with engine and model changes.

CarToq brings you the likely line up of the four passenger cars from General Motors over the next two years, and the car’s that are going to be phased out.

Chevrolet Spark 800 cc

The first of the new introductions could be the Chevrolet Spark 800 cc which is already on sale in Europe. This Spark is reminiscent of the old days, when it started life as the Daewoo Matiz, which was also an 800 cc car. The introduction of the Spark 800 will allow General Motors to reduce the price of the Spark further (it’s currently available for as low as Rs. 2.95 lakhs) and compete more effectively with the Maruti Alto, which is India’s largest selling car. The Alto sold over 25,000 cars in May, while only a little over 3,000 Sparks were sold.

The 50-bhp, 800 cc Chevrolet Spark is likely to be priced at about Rs. 2.5 lakhs to Rs. 3.3 lakhs. It may be launched by the end of the year. Also read: Upcoming small car launches between now and December 2011

Targeted at: Alto, Santro buyers

2012 Chevrolet Captiva

The next launch from General Motors is likely to be the new face-lifted Chevrolet Captiva, that’s again already on sale in Europe. The 2012 Chevrolet Captiva will get a spruced up 2.2 litre CRDI diesel motor that produces 163 bhp of maximum power and 350 Nm of maximum torque.

The new Captiva could be offered with both manual as well as automatic transmission. The newly developed 6-speed automatic transmission can also act as manual gear box via the Driver Shift Control (DSC) feature. It will also feature all-wheel drive and electronic stability control.

The new Captiva is likely to be launched in January, at a price of between Rs. 20 lakh and Rs. 22 lakh.

Targeted at: Fortuner, X1, Santa Fe buyers

2012 Chevrolet Sail sedan

The next launch from General Motors India could include one of the first products from its Chinese partner SAIC. This is the Chevrolet Sail sedan which could probably be a replacement for the Chevrolet Aveo in India. The Sail has GM’s trademark split grille and bowtie, and has some modern angular styling that takes its cues from the Cruze. On the inside the Sail has a twin cockpit design. The car is currently sold in China with a 1.4 litre engine, that puts out 95 PS of power and 129 Nm of torque, mated to a five-speed manual transmission. This same configuration could come to India as well.

This car is likely to see an India launch in the middle of 2012 and will compete with the likes of the Swift Dzire, Fiesta Classic and Toyota Etios. Prices are expected to range between Rs. 5.5 lakhs to Rs. 7.5 lakhs.

Targeted at: Swift Dzire, Fiesta and Etios buyers

2012 Chevrolet Sail Hatchback

Once General Motors launches the Sail sedan in India, it will also bring in the hatchback. This is likely to be a replacement for the Aveo U-Va that’s currently sold in India, but doing very poorly on the sales charts. In April and May, the Aveo U-Va sold just 148 and 135 cars respectively. Competitors like the Maruti Swift and the Hyundai i20 have sold over 12,742 cars and 7,370 cars respectively, just to give you an idea of the segment’s potential.

The Sail hatchback is likely to come with a 1.2 litre engine that puts out 75 bhp of power. It will likely be priced against the new Toyota Etios Liva and the Maruti Swift, between Rs. 4.5 lakhs to Rs. 6 lakhs.

Targeted at: Etios Liva, Swift buyers

Chevrolet Baojun 630-based sedan

Another interesting car that may make its way to India after its launch in China is the Baojun 630. This car could give GM a fillip in the space where the Chevrolet Optra currently sells. The 630 is a fusion of Korean, American and Chinese design and engineering. The sedan, which stands on a Korean car platform, has a body designed in China with inputs from GM while the engine is developed by SAIC’s UK R&D centre.

From the front, the Baojun 630 has a thick chrome strip bordering the grille from all sides except the top. The prominent headlamps are similar to the Maruti SX4. The side profiles have proportions similar to that of the Chevrolet Cruze. The rear of the 630 sedan has a slight bulge on the top of the boot lid (similar to the Dzire’s boot) and wraparound tail lamps. The 630 measures 4,595 mm in length and 1,795 mm in width, making it similar in size to the Chevrolet Cruze.

The Baojun 630 will be powered by a 1.5-litre engine that puts out 105 bhp of maximum power and 135 Nm of maximum torque. It could compete with the global Ford Fiesta and the Hyundai Verna, priced at between Rs. 8 lakhs and Rs. 11 lakhs.

Targeted at: Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Verna buyers

End of road products

Four products from the present portfolio are likely to get the axe in the next two years. These include the Chevrolet Aveo and Chevrolet U-Va. These two will be replaced by the Sail. The Chevrolet Optra is also in GM’s crosshairs, which could be replaced by the Baojun. And then there’s the little 1-litre Spark that will  be discontinued in favour of its smaller sibling.

So, this is most likely the line-up of vehicles from GM in the next two years. There has been speculation that the company will also bring in the Chevrolet Camaro and the Chevrolet Malibu. However, the Camaro, even if launched in India will be a completely built unit, while there is no definitive plan for the Malibu for India as of now.