A decade of romance with a 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer. Long term ownership review.

My daily commute to work lasts about 45 mins one way. Add to that another 30 mins of evening drives here and there and I can safely say that 2 hours of my daily life are spent inside the car. No wonder its an important part of my life. So to give credits where they are due, the Mitsubishi Lancer SFXI petrol has served me as a good friend for more than 10 years now.

After finishing school, college to me like everybody else was a dream come true. New clothes, New friends, new adventures, new love and what not. But above all for me it was the car that came into my life. I turned 18 and got my drivers license. The next obvious step was getting a car.

With two bikes parked in the garage, the choice was definitely not easy. But the hunt began. We looked at the Maruti-Suzuki Esteem, Chevrolet Optra petrol, Skoda Octavia, Hyundai accent, Opel Astra Club,  Honda City V-tec, Ford Mondeo and the Mitsubishi Lancer. I read everything there was to these cars and got test drives again and again.

The first choice came out to be Ford Mondeo. The 2003 Ford Mondeo was the biggest car in our selection and obviously the most expensive. Spacious and fun to drive it almost ticket all the boxes. The car was also a looker back in 2003. But the issues with stereo and electric power seats and lack of availability of spares (imported from Belgium) marred the otherwise excellent car. The brand killed the resale further and hence I had to let go.

Naturally, the next best car was the Skoda Octavia. The new entrant had taken the luxury car market by storm with its space and power. German engineering was a plus. This was the second most expensive car of the lot. Due to a relatively new name, we let go of this option.  Sadly, the company launched a VRS version with a 1.8 TPI engine with 150 BHP on tap and lots of goodies on offer in just six months after our purchase of the Lancer SFXI.

The third car on the list was the Stonker of a vehicle. The Honda City 1.5 Vtec. It was the most powerful car in its segment and the quickest amongst those on sale. The problem was with the dealer. Being the only dealer in town, he had resorted to bad selling tactics and many honda owners had problems. Also, at the time, a new honda city had already entered the market with only 77bhp on tap to cater to the Fuel efficiency fans. This was the closest competitor to the Mitsubishi Lancer SFXI back in the day and trumped in most factors.

The fourth car also belongs on the list of my favorite cars. The Opel Astra. The Germans were the first to give India a taste of what the hoopla about german engineering is. The Astra had many firsts during its time. The list includes, hood scoops, sunroof, Dual tone metallic paint job, spoiler, alloy wheels and a display computer. But the downsides were the launch of the Chevrolet Badge replacing the opel. Astra was also on its last legs in India and Europe had already seen the second model replacement of the Astra. High maintainence and low resale marked this car out.

As mentioned above, that the Chevrolet brand was replacing the Opel Astra, The company had just launched the Chevrolet Optra. A rebadged Daewoo the car was the perfect replacement for the Astra with its spacious and feature packed cabin. The car had a powerful 1.6 petrol engine, sunroof, leather seats, spoiler alloy wheels and a comfortable ride. But the car was not a looker and I did not like the dull driving experience. So it was ruled out.

Hyundai Accent features here only because it was the cheapest option and made a sensible choice. The GTX Tornado and the Accent Viva  were the powerful petrol cousins. I did like the way the Accent Viva looked with its Notchback design a la the Octavia. The car was easy to maintain, didnt look that bad and still had enough bells and whistles. This car being the jack of all trades was second on the list of confirmed buys after the Lancer.

The first time I saw the lancer, it was at a display stall at a shopping mall. The glistening red car completely decked with body kit took my heart away at first glance. I reached the dealership for a test drive and they were prompt with their service. The HM-Mitsubishi of 2003 was at the end of its best levels of quality service and cars. I was impressed with the car in the first test drive itself. Though not exactly a sales topper, the car still had what it takes to win hearts. It was no Mondeo to drive but the Handling beat the Ford Hands down. It was no Octavia VRS but had enough bodykit and accessories to win the heart of the boyracer. The car was no 0-100 champion like the Vtec but was stable even at 160 kmph thanks to the Evo VI chassis. The result was the cheque written in favour of the three pointed diamond star.

I have driven the lancer for more than 10 years now and the car has saved my family from a disastrous accident, won the heart of my girl for me and cheered me up on the long drives when life acted like a bitch. The car still retains the orginal paintjob and runs like a charm returning 13kmpl in city and touching 17kmpl on the highway.

The car has seen two tyre changes
Stock tyres 185/60 R14 MRF ZVTS
Michelin XM1+ 185/65 R14
Goodyear Assurance 195/60 R14

A suspension change replacing stock gabriel Oil Struts to KYB Excel G gas struts.

And a stonker audio update
Pioneer 7950UB with USB with wireless remote control
Rockford Fosgate Prime co-axial speakers
Soundstream xtc 6.5" components
Soundstream Picasso Pw12L DVC sub
Bassworx sub enclosure
Soundstream Lil Wonder 4.480 4channel amp.
Connecxion 8-guage amp wiring kit.

What I liked
- Reliability
- fun to drive factor
- robust engine
-  Awesome ergonomic interiors.Everything falls into hand and seating position is perfect
- Still commands attention
- Good ground clearance makes it easy to take on bad roads.
- precise and well weighted steering
- Chilling AC
- slick gearbox but with normal ratios

What I dont like
- Mediocre power
- premium rear space
- low seating a problem for parents
- Company support and  dealership service problems
- Weak power windows
- Cabin sound insulation

What I miss today
- New age dashboard.
- Stereo Mounter audio controls
- Fuel efficiency details meter
- All windows one touch power down

Ten things Tata should do to turn into a global manufacturer Part II

I had written about  the problems at Tata motors back in September 2011. Tata motors although a major fighter for the second spot after Maruti in the Indian market back then, was already losing its edge over competition.  Today  Tata Motors has fell to fifth place and might soon fall to sixth if things don't improve.

 Here's an article I wrote in 2011 that all is not well in Tata Motors.

http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2011/09/ten-things-tata-should-do-to-turn-into.html

Mr.Ratan Tata, an avid car lover at heart (Parsi genes you see..) has during his tenure put everything in the company to keep it fighting fit. Now post his departure Tata motos has tried to rope in the MD of GM, India Mr. Karl Slym who has started working right away at trying to arrest sales, but minor facelifts have not work for Maruti, Ford, Honda or Tata ever. What else can Mr. Slym do for Tata Motors remains to be seen.

1. Image: Is your next car going to be one from Tata Motors? A majority will say No without hesitation.  Tata Motors has an image of a cheap truck and car maker. Customers buy Tata cars mostly because it is the cheapest in the segment or because they expect the product to withstand abuse.  In the Indian Market where people do not trust their own nations products, Tata has an uphill battle. Constant quality niggles make things worse.

Logo: The First and foremost thing Tata Motors should do is design a desirable Logo. The current logo has an industrial feel to it. Another major step in image upgrade is to renovate dealerships. Subway sandwich chain of restaurants have the same cooking stove, same breads, same wallpapers, same chairs and tables and menu all over the world. This is something that goes a long way in building an image.

Brand Ambassador: Chevrolet used Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherji, Renault uses Anil Kapoor for its Scala, Nissan used Ranbir Kapoors services, Mahindra used the services of Jimmy Shergill for its Verito. Tata needs to do the same. An actor who is smooth and refined will do wonders for the brand. Amir Khan is a known as a perfectionist and is already endorsing Titan brand for Tata.

Pricing: Pricing the car decides the impression it will create on the masses. A Tata Manza with more features and space is still viewed as a cheaper car than Honda City or Chevrolet Sail. Especially at a time when Tata Motors has taken a hit and is revamping its product portfolio, now is the best time to reposition their cars. A company that doesn't make profit is not doing business but charity. Tata can Price higher end models with more features over segment leaders in a bid to take away a chunk of their market share. With the use of Brand ambassadors, the company should target ads right at segment leaders.

2. Model perception: When tata launched the Upgrade to its Sumo, the Sumo Grande, the excellent car could not bring in customers. The problem was not with the model but with the image associated with Tata Sumo. The marketers were quick to rebrand it as just the Tata Grande but the damage was done. Today while the Innova sells in huge numbers, Tata Grande has been a tame seller.

The same issue has plagued Tata Indica Vista and Tata Indigo Manza.  The rebrand came too late for both the cars. The Manza is still seen as an upgrade to the Indigo and that is where the image of the car takes a huge hit. A strong awareness campaign needs to be put in place differentiating between the cars. Indigo Ecs (entry level compact sedan around 5 lacs), Indigo XL(re brand it lounge XL removing the INdigo name) (mid-size sedan around 7.5 lacs) and Tata Manza (c-segment at 8+ lacs). The same also holds true for the Nano, Indica and Vista and the Sumo and Grande.

3. Corporate grille:  What is common in a Chevrolet Beat, Sail and Cruze cars or Hyundai I10, i20, Verna, Elantra and Sonata cars? The grille and headlights that make up the front have a generalized design making it easy for customers to recognize the cars with the brand. Tata cars lack such a similar uniform grille and Headlamp combination. It brings a company brand recall when they see the look on many cars.

PS: A honecomb design with led taillights is a rare combination and should help Tata motors step up its image.

Also helpful would be bringing uniforms for sales staff, uniform brochures and catchy coloured led lightings that brighten up the showroom and look welcoming enough. Half the battle is won if the customer walks into the showroom.

4. Tata Nano: When Tata Nano was launched in India in 2008, it was the most talked about car in the world. But today, the car averages 1000-2000 units a month. In contrast, hyundai eon and i10 cars average 8000 units a month. Maruti Alto Averages 20000 units a month. So what went wrong? The car is much smaller than the models it competes with. To add insult to injury Tata motors decided to price it cheaper than the competing cars leading to lack of any image for this small wonder. Those who cannot afford a car still see Nano as a car and those who can have image issues.

A quick and extremely effective remedy will be to have a cheap base model but raise the price of other models with added features to compete with competitors at the same price. Targeting the college going youth will also add to the cars personality. Some extremely well marketed kei cars are  the Mitsubishi-i,  Toyota IQ and the Smart car. A custom accessories program where customers can customize the car for different colours, alloy wheels, upholstery, stereo etc will also help strengthen the cars appeal. Also instrumental to the cars success is a doze of premiumness like a 2-seater convertible. DC designs has shown a nice convertible concept based on the Nano recently.

PS: A fasttrack edition Nano?

5. Comeptitive pricing and segmentation: Hyundai as a carmaker has successfully played the pricing card over time. The initial models of Hyundai (Accent, Santro) were priced below competition to lure in sales. But over time Hyundai has increased the prices of its cars slowly and gradually. Now Some of their cars are also priced higher then segment leaders. For e.g. When Honda City used to sell at 8-10 lacs price range, Hyundai sold the Accent at 6-8 lacs price range with competitive features. The accent replacement (Verna) saw prices rise higher at 7-9 lacs. The latest Hyundai Verna is now priced on par with Honda city and even higher. Correct compeitive pricing is an important aspect as it helps the carmaker make the customer see how they have envisioned the car and the level at which it is targeted.

Tata's flagship Aria falls in a no mans land. While most people compare Xuv500 to Safari Storme. Aria sales are also dismal. This is a big opportunity for Tata to peg the Aria straight into the Ford Endeavour/ Ssangyong Rexton/ Toyota Fortuner territory. Although Quality levels and feature list needs to be improved. This will help the company command better profit margins and enter the premium market.

I would also strongly suggest the company to launch Magic Iris to help Nano compete with the 800/Alto/K10, Eon and Spark cars. I've mentioned before on numerous occassions how maruti has succesfully played the two car card for each competing segment. Alto-Astar, Estilo-WagonR, Ritz-Swift are strong examples. Hence Magic Iris can help Nano increase the product visibility and bring in volumes.

PricingAria higher brings Storme right into the XUV500 territory which is selling like hot cakes. Another excellent opportunity to increase profit margins. Tata Aria has not been able to sustain sales against the XUV500 but Tata Safari is a succesful platform and commands respect and legacy. This will help Safari storme rake in higher sales by eating into the XUV500 sales. It is given that Safari needs to be kitted to the gills just like the XUV500 to keep the fight strong.

Similary Tata Grande MKII should be targeted at Mahindra Scorpio (both have similar size and engine power and tall UV stance), maruti Ertiga and Renault Duster. while Tata Sumo should be targeted at Mahindra Bolero and Maruti Eeco.

To tap into the potential customer market, Tata motors should Bring in Tata Winger in retail sales to compete with the likes of Chevrolet Enjoy, Nissan Evalia, Toyota Innova and Mahindra Xylo. Similarly Toyota Venture should be introduced to compete with Mahindra Quanto and Maruti Omni.

It is visible how the stress is more on Mahindra Cars mostly and then Maruti cars. The reason is both Tata and Mahindra are basically UV makers and hence their vehicles share lots of segmentation. While maruti on the other hand is the largest car maker with presence in most segments.

6. Timely Innovations: To beat competition, you have to excel the competition. Tata motors has offlate only played catch up with other companies. Whether its adopting a Common rail engine or climate control features, navigation functions or automatic transmission. I had mentioned two years ago how Tata motors strongly needs an Automatic transmission in its portfolio. Even today the company doesnt have an AT gearbox while all other carmakers including Archaic Maruti Suzuki and Mahindra also have one. Tata needs to pay attention to certain necessary points such as

-. Turbopetrol configurations: Turbopetrol engine are becoming the norm since carmakers are restricted by government to stick to smaller engines. Turbochargers provide higher power and fuel efficiency at the same time. Succesful cars are Fiat Linea T-jet, Ford Ecosport, Skoda Laura, Vw Polo GT and Vw Jetta. THis should help Tata motors compete with competition on power and fuel efficiency figures. Also minor upgrades to the engine weights and performance will go a long way in helping the company get back into consideration of the family car buyers.

-. Weight control: All Tata cars weigh higher than competing cars affecting overall performance of the cars. With ABS and Airbags becoming the norm, Steel guage is no more the measure of safety. The company needs to control weight on all its cars from Nano to Aria.

-Advanced transmission boxes: Newer cars are coming up with 6-speed gearbox, the higher ratios helping cars achieve better fuel efficiency figures. In such situation Tata should take the first step towards bringing 6-sp manual boxes to the entry level cars such as Indica and Vista. The company has recently announced a 6-sp Automatic transmissions for its Aria. Tata can easily achieve higher sales by introducing an automatic with its diesel engines for hatchbacks, a segment where Automatics are completely absent.

- Newer grille designs and bumper designs are no considered innovation and car manufacturers should accept that fact quickly. Blacked out headlights are a thing of the past. Better Try honeycomb lights with led bulbs, sunroof and adjustable rear seatbacks.

7. Design: Humans define beauty by what they see. Apart from Tata Safari Storme, no other car is commended for its looks. Also disrupting sales is the fact that the Manza, XL and ECS and Indica and Vista look very similar. The Tata Nano has a very unique design but its association as a cheap car is washing up any benefits it should receive. It might cost the company huge investments to get help from a reputed design house but refreshing designs are the need of the day.

 
 Fine tune performances to match the market leaders including the European car makers to match fuel efficiency and performance figures. weight loss for each model. One cannot beat a deadbat and expect it to fly in daylight and the same applies to the outdated models in the lineup such as ECs, Indica and Indigo XL. Snazzy colours and Designs, upholstery. Hyundai has creatively used the Accent to fill in the void of a sedan below its Verna till date.

8. Cost saving: Saving costs is a crucial part of a business. Tata motors has also seen loss pile up year over year affecting sustainability. The company should use unofirm parts for multiple platforms to save costs and work on improving Panel gaps and interior quality. Steering wheel coloums on the Aria, Sumo, Safari, Grande and Winger and Ecs, XL, Manza, Indica, Vista and Nano cars should be a start.Similarly Safety belts, Tyres, Emblems, Upholstry material can be used effectively.

9. Marketing: Only sales cannot sustain sales for a company. Tata motors need to put in place a strong marketing strategy. Tata motors has a huge existing customer base so it can be utilized via customer loyalty to boost sales. As suggested before Tata motors needs to cover the higher margins with competing cars but needs to keep a similarly equipped cars priced marginally low. Hold customer loyalty events and reward them with non automobile related gifts such as titan watches or Tata Steel stocks. Tie-up with non auto premium brands like Titan watches and Tanishq jewelry .

10.  Business: No company is a business if it is not making profits. Loss making operations and manpower needs to be trimmed. The company needs to think profits first and customer service later.No fixes can take care of sales in the short term but being prepared for the fight when the recession is over will help the company survive in the long run.

Random thoughts

A 1400CC Dicor SUMO?
A 6-sp AT Safari Storme (along with the Aria)?
A Turbo Vista Petrol (from the Fiat T-jet)?
A mini Aria to fight the bigger hatchbacks with a 1.3 Multijet?

Oldest Nameplates still in production part V: Volkswagen Beetle

This is the fifth edition of a series. Previous articles can be found on the links below.


http://www.boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/06/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/04/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/02/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/02/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html

Few Mainstream cars have managed to create a legend as popular as the Volkswagen Beetle. The car is actually the only longest running car made on a single platform for the longest period of time. A total of 2500000 plus cars have already been sold since its inception.

The first idea

The car began its life on the drawing board as a small economy car for the masses. Commissioned by the historic leader of the Axis armies, Adolf Hitler himself, the car was planned in the early thirties. Even more notable fact was that the Beetle was designed by Ferdinand Porsche himself. The initial models were lost to the world war and hence the work had to begin from scratch .  Ferdinand Porsche decided to use the Porsche type 12 design as influence for this peoples car. A major requirement for the peoples car was to be able to cruise long distances over 100 km/hr on the autobahn seamlessly. A rarely known fact is the help of Daimler-Benz in building this car. The car was earlier named Type1 and then by four digit numbers like 1200, 1300, 1400, 1502 etc. The Beetle name came after the Germans started calling the car Kafer (Beetle in German.). Consequently the car became the Beetle worldwide.

The Beetle became the inspiration for many other small cars from Fiat and Morris motors at the time. But the Bettle turned out to be more reliable. The car also became a best seller in the US where People only bought well advertised products.

Apart from inspiring small rear engine rear wheel drive family cars like the Mini and Fiat 500, the Beetle was also an inspiration for another legendary car, the Beetle Type 2 mini bus. Also notable is the fact that the Beetle was built on the same platform and chassis for the longest time and is a record in itself.

Finally in 1994,Volkswagen engineers and designers decided to give in to the increasing trend of  front wheel drive cars and the concept One was born which was made on the Golf platform . The second generation beetle was put on sale in 1998. The car was awarded as the most influential car of 20th century behind Ford Model T, the Mini and Citroen DS.

Ironically, the Beetle being a family car still always had two doors to save costs. While the basic design of the car has remained unchanged, the car has received 93000 design updates till 2012. The car was designed to be as simple as possible mechanically, so that there was less to go wrong.

Controversies
Like all conspiracy theories it is argued that Hitler stole the idea for the Volkswagen Beetle from Ganz's "May Bug," which he saw in 1933 at an auto show. These cars had some of features of the later Volkswagen Beetle, such as the tubular chassis, rear-mounted engine and independent wheel suspension with swing axles. While the Volkswagen Beetle was produced in its millions after World War Two, the name of Josef Ganz was largely forgotten.

The Austrian car designer Hans Ledwinka was a contemporary of Porsche working at the Czechoslovakian company Tatra. In 1931, Tatra built the V570 prototype, which had an air-cooled flat-twin engine mounted at the rear. The rear-engine, rear-wheel drive layout was a challenge for effective air cooling, and during development of the much larger V8 engined Tatra T77 in 1933 Tatra registered numerous patents related to air flow into the rear engine compartment. It was these patents which led to the lawsuit with Volkswagen over the Beetle. Just before the start of the Second World War, Tatra had ten legal claims filed against VW for infringement of patents. Ferdinand Porsche was forced into paying for settlement but Adolf Hitler took care of thing during his occupation of Czechoslovakia. Tatra was forced to stop manufacturing cars and only concentrate of making trucks. The matter was reopened by the British and Americans after the world war victory and Volkswagen was made to pay tatra 3000000 Deutche Marks in 1961.

Super Beetle and decline

In 1971 the Beetle was beefed up with a better suspension. Officially named 1302 and 1303 the car had a longer bonnet but a tighter turning radius.Various other major changes included bigger windows and other technical changes. But with modern changes and stiffer competition, Japanese car makers started picking up pace. Honda,Toyota, Suzuki, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Mazda started building competitive small cars which were more reliable and fuel efficient while being cheaper to buy.

Second Generation

Looking at the glowing Success Volkswagen Beetle enjoyed over the years and in popular culture like movies and media, Volkswagen decided to build a newer generation based on its succesful A4 platform on which it built cars like Audi A3, VW Jetta and Golf. The car retained the looks of the original car but had a front wheel drive setup with a front engine.

The original concept was displayed in 1994 at the North American International Auto Show and put on sale in 1997. The newer car was much bigger than the original alongwith bigger engine options as it was based on a larger platform. The car continued production until 2010.

Third Generation

The second generation Volkswagen Beetle had to be phased out along with the production cease of the A4 platform. The third generation Beetle ebuted in 2011 on the A5 platform . The platform is again shared with Audi A4, VOlkswagen Golf and Volkswagen Scirocco. This third generation for the first time featured curves matching the latest trends while retaining the basic shape of the Volkswagen Beetle.

Ironically while the Beetle has again grown in size, the engine capacities have come down in keeping with the latest trends of smaller engines delivering better fuel efficiencies.

Oldest Nameplates still in production part IV: Chevrolet Corvette

This is the fourth edition of a series. Previous articles can be found on the links below.

http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/04/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/02/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/02/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html

Few Sportscars have the distinction of having a long run of more than two decades. A simple reason is the need for these lifestyle cars to excel on style, performance and innovation. Even more distinct is the fact that only a handful sportscars from mainstream brands can compete with supercars from niche manufacturers and live to tell the tale. Chevrolet Corvette has a tale to share, one that spans six decades.

First Generation (1953-1962)

Designed by Henry Earl in 1953 as a concept car, the car was an instant hit amongst the Americans and visibly rushed into production to bank on its successful design. The first generation Corvette was called the C1. The frist batch Corvettes had white colour and red interiors as standard. To rush the production General Motors started making Corvettes on a makeshift truck production line while constructing a dedicated production line at the same time. The initial batches used fibreglass in large quantities as steel was still not easily available after the world war.

Sales slid after initial response and kept sliding over the years. Corvette nameplate got a new lease of life when a new V8 engine was added to the car alongwith a manual transmission which put the car in line with sports car from Italian manufacturers. Also important was the launch of the the Thunderbird nameplate by Ford to compete against the Chevrolet Corvette.

Second Generation (1962-1967)

The second Generation of the Corvette was confirmed when sales touched 10000+ units in 1960. Known as C2, the car was also called Chevroley Corvette Stingray after the Q-concept for Corvette was conbined with another sports car concept. The new car was a radical upgrade with all drum brakes replaced by All disc brakes, a compact coupe design, independant suspension and edgy square shapes replacing the rounded chrome designs thanks to extensive wind tunnel testing and the new design philosophy. The most distinct design element was the divided rear window.

The new car was able to put down power more efficienctly thanks to the new stiffer and shorter chassis and suspension setup putting Corvette right in the middle of the sports cars wars started by Italian niche makers like Ferrari and Lamborghini. The Stingray was an immediate success selling 20000+ copies in 1962.

Third Generation 1967-1982

The third generation Corvette was more of an effort to keep the sales register ringing despite the C2 Stingray version selling 25000 copies a year. While the engine and chassis were a carryover from the C2, the Interiors and design elements were redone to stay competitive. The C3 also went on to set sales records for a sports car of its era selling 53000 copies a year in 1979.

The success of the C3 was due to the new Mako Shark design concept. The new design by Larry Shinoda was able to give The Corvette its new design mojo without losing its familiar look. The Stingray name returned in 1969 to bank on its success. While the newer emissions were killing the power figures, GM decided to make the car and engine lighter to stay competitive shedding 120 kgs in 1979.

Fourth Generation 1983-1996

The C4 was the first completely redesigned Corvette in 15 years. The new Corvette was more practical and modern and reliable than older versions. GM also came out with newer engines which met emission norms but were still powerful.

GM had put most of the money in perfecting the old but loved features while replacing the outdated with new technology. The most evident of these parts was the cabin where digitization had taken over. The legendary status was stamped when the ZR-1 'King of the Hill' broke speed records. This specific car was developed with the help of Lotus Engineering UK.

Fifth Generation (1996- 2004)

The fifth generation or the C5 was again redesigned. A simple reason for this exercise was the rapidly changing technology and the onslaught from foreign competition, mainly the Japanese.

GM decided that the Corvette had to be all new from Scratch to stay on top. The squeaks and rattles that were a major issue in the older vettes was completely taken care of in the C5. High tech systems such as Heads up display and Drive by Wire were introduced in the car and a welcome relief for vette owners.

GM was also quick in releasing a successor to the ZR-1 King of the hill codenamed Z06. The Z06 made less horsepower but was tuned by engineers to best the ZR-1 in each and every aspect before launch.

Sixth Generation 2005-20012

Plumetting fortunes and stiffining competition sent GM into a frenzy when it came to launching the C6. Many reviewers were of the opinion that the Vette C6 borrowed a lot from the Ferrari design philosophy. The most visible change in the C6 is the huge power bump over older vettes to compete with the stiffening compeition. The prices rose from $4000 for the C1 to $100000 for the C6. Also visible are the new exposed headlamps not seen on Vette's since 1962.

Seventh Generation (C7) (2013- onwards)








Post Bankruptcy, the beauraucrats were removed from the GM board. A newer, bolder and more effiicient Corvette was unveiled by GM in 2013. This is also the first version to bear the Stingray name. Also the new C7 will be the first Corvette to be manufactured in RHD format since 1953. The new car also sees a front engine rear wheel drive layout to keep costs low.

Oldest Nameplates still in production part III: Fiat 500

This article is a followup to
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/01/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html
and
http://boyracer.blogspot.in/2013/02/oldest-nameplates-still-in-production.html

When Germany was busy building large cars along with Ford in US post world War II, Italy started building small cars albeit with style essences only the Italians or French can enthuse in a car. The 500 or the Cinquecento as it is often called has been a runaway success for the company.

First Generation (1936-1955)

Fiat began production of the Fiat 500 'Topolino' in 1936 and was the smallest car in the world at the time. Equipped with a 569 cc four-cylinder, side-valve, water-cooled engine, the car redefined the word small in the car industry. The car was sold in two door coupe, two door cabriolet and 3-door stationa wagon versions of which 525000 copies were sold.

Second Generation ( 1955-1975)

After the success of Fiat 500 Topolino. Fiat 600 was launched by Fiat in 1955. A bigger engine in a small car made it a success and it sold 5 million copies. Also along with making a bigger car, Fiat found space to build an even smaller car for the shrinking city streets and in 1957, Fiat 500 was born again launched as 500 Nuova. This car went on to give Fiat a name on the world stage along with carmakers like Chevrolet Ford, Opel and Toyota.

Considered as the first of the city cars, Fiat 500 measured only 9feet and 9inches and was powered by a 500cc engine (hence the name). The twin cylinder engine was good for 13bhp upto 17bhp for some models. some of the versions also came with suicide doors.All cars had engine in the rear.

Third Generation (1972-2000)

The third generation Fiat 500 was named Fiat 126. It was mostly an amalgamation of Fiat 500 and Fiat 600 platforms. The design had a radical change from the Previous Fiat 500 with Squarish and angular designs replacing Rounded forms. Ironically the better and more powerful cars never touched the record sales units of the previous Fiat 500. The car had many nicknames such as Maluch, maly, duzy, KasZlak, cougher, kikirez, peglica,bolha, pici-poki, kalimero, kispolzski, nagypolzski, Kispolak, torpe-polyak, egerkamion, bambino, polaquito and bototo.

The name 500 was replaced as the car had different engine options bigger than 500. The rear engine rear drive layout was continued as this was technically the same car underneath.

Fourth Generation (1991-1998)

Even the 20 odd nicknames and futuristic design didn't work. This led to Fiat's management quitting the 126 moniker and Reinvented the 500 as Cinquecento.  Designed by GiuGiaro, The Cinquecento replaced the Fiat 126 officially. While the car was named Cinquecento (500 in Italian), the lowest engine was a 700cc going upto 1100cc. The car was now a Front engine Front wheel drive layout but retaining the 3 door layout.

THe CinqueCento also had an electric version named the Elettra. This was also the first of the 5 series generations to have Abarth Performance versions.

Fifth Generation Fiat Nuovo 500 (2007- Present)

The current generation Fiat Nuovo 500 was launched. The car has grown in size over the years and now the car has grown 116 inches to 140 inches. Fiat went all out for this latest car which was to be a make or break model for the company. The car was displayed in major squares of 30 cities. Fiat also turned up with a creative way of selling the car by offering 250,000 options for customization including more than 200 colour options. Also for the first time the car sported a 1.3L diesel alongwith a 1.4L petrol engine.

The company rolled out a millionth model within a span of five years proving to be a success for Fiat. Cashing in on the success of the model, Fiat went ahead with the launch of Abarth version (133bhp), Essesse (160bhp), Abarth opening edition ( 133bhp), Assetto Corse (200bhp), Start and Stop ( 120bhp), PUR-02 (120bhp), By Diesel (fashion Brand) (75hp/120hp), Aria (75bhp), ferrari edition (100bhp), felippe massa edition (120bhp), Barbie ( 120bhp), Tributo ferrari (180bhp), Speedgray( 165bhp), Pink (120bhp), Blackjack (120bhp), Gucci edition (100bhp), 500 first edition (101 bhp), Cabrio Italia (180bhp), 500 America ( 100bhp), tributo maserati ( 180bhp), Competizone ( 135bhp), and many other special editions.

An electric version named Micro Vett was also launched. with a 120kms range.

Sixth Generation (2012- present)

Having finally learnt its lesson, FIAT has decided to use the 500 name for a bigger size MPV naming it 500 L (L stands for Large). The car has been designed to sell in 100 countries. The engine options are a 0.9L, 1.4L (Chrysler), 1.3L D(India),and  1.6L D. THe car is a Front engine front wheel drive.

This is also the first platform built on the joint Fiat-GM small car platform.