The first day of the Delhi Auto Expo saw a host of showstoppers hog the limelight and wow audiences as major brands set foot in India, many looking to crack the code in one of the world's most promising markets. Joining the gleaming metal beauties were stars from the film world, adding glam quotient to the show that runs for the next six days.
Triumph also forayed into India, driving in seven models priced between Rs 5.5 lakh and Rs 22 lakh. "We take our first steps into one of the most evolving motorcycle markets in the world. Our market entry is perfectly timed as Indian riders have been longing to be given the power of choice," Triumph Motorcycles India MD Ashish Joshi said.
The love of Indians for cruisers and superbikes has seen many of them queue up for the likes of Harley Davidson, Ducati, Honda and Yamaha . Triumph has lined up famed models like Bonneville (Rs 5.5 lakh), Tiger 800XC (Rs 11.4 lakh), Street Triple (Rs 5.75 lakh) and Rocket III Roadster (Rs 22 lakh) for India.
Another company to watch out for at the Expo is French carmaker Peugeot, which returns to the market after nearly a decade. The company , mindful of its absence from one of the world's key markets, has decided to import cars till its factory in Gujarat comes up by 2014. "We will start with import of fully-built cars next year and then follow it up with Peugeot508, which will be locally assembled and thereafter move to different segments," company's India head Frederic Fabre said.
Adding to the buzz is domestic heavyweight Maruti Suzuki, which unveiled a concept for a new SUV that the company hopes to launch in India sometime in the future. The company, that has failed to taste much success beyond its bread-and-butter small car models , is making a bold attempt at the fast-growing SUV segment as it unveiled the compact SUV 'XA Alpha' , built using Maruti and parent Suzuki's engineers.
Maruti is hoping to target the "young urban" population through the XA?, the 'Alpha' represents trendiness that the youth connect to. "We expect customer preferences to become more diverse," company MD Shinzo Nakanishi said.
Hyundai, Maruti's closest rival in India, also had a 'global unveiling ' in the Hexa Space (code named HND-7 ), a multi-purpose concept. The vehicle features eight hexagonally shaped seats that fit together like puzzle pieces, maximizing internal space while minimising vehicle width. From actual honeycombs to the use of this shape in architecture, the hexagon is an optimum shape for space efficiency.
For the green brigade, the Nissan Leaf makes an entry. The Leaf, a pure electric vehicle, comes packed with a lithium-ion battery, a full charge of which delivers a range of 175km. "I hope we will be able to introduce the car to India sooner rather than later ," Gilles Normand, Nissan's VP for Africa, Middle East and India, said.