New Car Launches in the Next 2 Months

Snapshot – The Indian festive season is about two months away and in the run up to the time when car sales in India are the highest, a slew of automakers have lined up their wares for buyers. CarToq lists out six such new car launches that will all happen in the next couple of months.

Nissan Sunny Sedan Facelift

The facelifted Nissan Sunny sedan is due in early July. The facelifted car brings a host of improvements to the table, including better interiors, a sharper design on the outside and a few additional features. The Sunny sedan will be sold with petrol and turbo diesel engines, which are carried over from the outgoing version. However, the diesel powered version gets better fuel efficiency than the older version. Nissan India will have to price the Sunny very keenly considering the sharp price at which the 2014 Ford Fiesta Facelift has just arrived. Meanwhile, click here to read CarToq’s first drive review of the Sunny sedan facelift.

Nissan Evalia MPV Facelift

Nissan showcased a mildly tweaked version of the Evalia MPV at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo. The revised Evalia, which features minor cosmetic changes, will be launched in the next few weeks. The 1.5 liter K9K turbo diesel engine that outputs 85 Bhp-200 Nm and the 5 speed manual gearbox will be retained on the revised Evalia and so will the 7 seat layout. The MPV has already been facelifted last year and the latest refresh seems like a move that is mainly intended to keep the Evalia in the news.

Honda Mobilio MPV

Honda’s first product in the people mover space of India will be the Mobilio, whose launch has been confirmed for July 2014. The Mobilio is based on the Honda Brio platform, and consequently shares a host of parts with the Brio hatchback and Amaze compact sedan. The MPV is a direct rival to the Maruti Ertiga, but is larger than the latter. The larger dimensions mean that the Mobilio is likely to be slotted between the Maruti Ertiga and Toyota Innova in terms of price and positioning. 1.5 liter i-VTEC petrol and i-DTEC turbo diesel engines will be offered on the front wheel driven, monocoque Mobilio MPV.

Fiat Grande Punto Facelift

The Grande Punto has gone under the knife to emerge fresher than before. The facelift is an India-specific affair for now. The car will get revised front and rear ends. On the inside, the dashboard assumes a premium form factor, a major departure from the drab insides of the outgoing model. Engines and gearboxes are expected to be unchanged though. Naturally aspirated, 1.2 and 1.4 liter FIRE petrol engines and 1.3 liter Multijet turbo diesel motors available in two states of tune will power the Punto Facelift. A 5 speed manual gearbox will drive the front wheels of the car.

Volkswagen Polo Facelift

Volkswagen India will launch the facelifted Polo hatchback in July. The car will be similar to the Polo that Volkswagen unveiled at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, albeit minus the LED headlamps. Minor tweaks to the styling and dashboard apart, the real change on the Polo Facelift is the arrival of the 1.5 liter-4 cylinder TDI turbo diesel engine in place of the 1.6 liter TDI motor on the GT TDI model. The 1.2 liter TSI turbo petrol engine on the GT TSI will remain unchanged. The Polo GT TDI is likely to get more affordable than before given the lower excise duty that’s applicable on the smaller turbo diesel engine.

Maruti Suzuki Dzire Facelift

India’s best selling compact sedan, the Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire, has been under a constant attack for a while now, with multiple car launches seeking to eat away the Dzire’s marketshare. Yet, the Dzire has continued to dominate proceedings by posting big sales numbers. Maruti Suzuki will seek to protect the Dzire’s turf with a mild facelift that involves cosmetic changes on the outside and additional features on the inside. The 1.2 liter K-Series petrol and 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet turbo diesel engines will be retained and so will the 5 speed manual gearboxes. The petrol engine will continue to be offered with a 4 speed automatic gearbox option.

Tata Zest Compact Sedan

The first of the two make-or-break products for Tata Motors, the Zest compact sedan seeks to banish memories of older Tata cars with top notch interiors, new styling, an emphasis on driving pleasure and a boat load of class leading features. The car was showcased at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo and got tongues wagging for its high quality and well proportioned looks. The Zest will get 1.2 liter REVOTRON turbo petrol and 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet turbo petrol engine options. A 5 speed manual gearbox will be standard on both engines while the diesel variant will also be offered with a 5 speed Automated Manual Transmission (AMT), a best in class feature.

Audi A3 sedan

The affordable luxury end of the Indian luxury car market will see the addition of the Audi A3 sedan. The A3 sedan will be the least priced sedan sold by Audi in India. Based on the Volkswagen group’s MQB platform, the Audi A3 will roll out from Aurangabad, alongside the Skoda Octavia, with which the former shares it platform. 1.8 liter TFSI turbo petrol and 2 liter TDI turbo diesel engines will be offered on the Audi A3 sedan sold in India. Dual clutch automatic gearboxes will be standard on the car. Expect a starting price of about 25 lakh rupees, with a launch slated for August 2014.