General Motors is planning to launch its new small car model Chevrolet Beat on January 04 at Delhi Auto Expo. The car was earlier spied testing on Indian roads. "The Beat is on schedule and is being tested as of now. We will start production for sale on December 15 this year. It will be first displayed at the 2010 Auto Expo in Delhi in January," said the president and MD of General Motors India, Karl Slym.
The car will be a 5-door hatchback model that will be launched in three variants – Base, LS and LT. According to the rumors doing rounds in the business circles, ARAI has given a certification of fuel economy of 18.6 kmpl. This comes very close to Maruti’s A-Star that has certification of 19.6 kmpl. The car will be powered by 1.2L petrol engine with 4-cylinders that churns out a power output of 79 bhp at 6200 rpm. The car has localized content of about 50-60 percent which brings its price in the range of Rs. 4-5 lakh.
“It will be a high-end small car. And although it may overlap with stablemate Aveo U-Va, the two products will not cater to the same customers as the new car will be very different from the design point of view,” Slym added. The new Chevrolet Beat will compete with Hyundai i10, Fiat Palio, Tata Indica, Maruti A-Star.
