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The Auto Expo2016 that is scheduled to held from February 5 - 9 is set to witness a record number of product launches, with 85 passenger cars, utility vehicles, two-wheelers and commercial vehicles waiting to be introduced at the biennial event. That will be five more than the last edition in 2014 and nearly twice of 2012.
Of these, almost 20 will be global launches as well. With so many vehicle launches and participation from a large number of automotive companies, the organisers, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), is expecting an average daily crowd of 100,000, which it claims will be the biggest among all auto shows globally.
One of the most awaited launches is the Vitara Brezza. The country’s largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki, will make the global premiere of the compact sport-utility vehicle at the auto show. T Suzuki, president of Suzuki Motors, Japan, will be among the global auto industry leaders attending the Expo in Greater Noida.
According to industry sources, Maruti will also showcase the Ignis – a compact car with the design language of an SUV – to take on Renault’s Kwid. The French car maker, in turn, is looking at stepping up its attack on the market leader’s best-selling small car, Alto, with a clutchless AMT version of the Kwid and another variant of the car with a 1-litre engine. Renault would also take the covers of an upgraded version of the Duster SUV.
Indians will have their maiden tryst with Chrysler’s Grand Cherokee and Wrangler (the sports utility vehicle that heralds the brand’s entry into the country), Tata’s Nexon, Honda’s BR-V, Datsun’s redi-Go, a global SUV from Mercedes GLC and Tivoli from the stables of Mahindra & Mahindra’s South Korean subsidiary Ssangyong.
Also slugging it out for attention will be Korean giant Hyundai, which will showcase the new Tucson, Japanese auto major Toyota which will unveil the new Innova and M&M’s new Quanto. Industry insiders say Tata Motors may also unveil the multipurpose vehicle Hexa along with the Nexon compact SUV.
US-based General Motors will have on offer an upgraded version of the Beat small car and a new premium sedan, Cruze. Fiat is likely to showcase the Tipo, a model which is widely expected to replace the ageing Linea sedan.
Volkswagen, which has been in the news on account of emissions controversy over its diesel cars, is expected to hit the headlines with an entry-level sedan based on the Polo platform.
Tata Motors, which made a comeback in 2014 with the Bolt and the Zest, is expected to showcase the Sway sedan. For the luxury buyer, Tata group company JLR will bring in the new sports saloon Jaguar XE. Also on display from the JLR stable will be SUV F-Pace. Audi will showcase the new R8, Audi Prologue concept and the Audi A8 L.
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