General Motors' new mini car is ready to roll out in India by end-2009. General Motors currently has Spark and Aveo U-VA in its small car product portfolio. It will soon add a third model to its kitty this year which will be based on the Beat concept. This concept was showcased in the New York Motors Show two years ago. The new Mini will be available in diesel as well as petrol variants.
The new mini car from GM will be, however, a premium segment car which will be pitted against Skoda Fabia and Honda Jazz. The car will be made locally and will not be kit-assembled in India.
General Motors plans to make India as its export hub for small cars. It is expanding its base in the Indian sub-continent as well. It also sees India as a promising market in the coming years. The new mini car will rollout of our Talegaon plant near Pune. With this new factory, our capacity will exceed domestic needs for the first time. India will be the export hub for the new mini car,” said Karl Slym, President, GM India.
“We are moving away from the completely knocked-down kit assembly, with this product. The engine and transmission will come from our new power train facility and the new stamping plant in Talegaon will cater to this project," he further added.
