Destiny Takes Tata Motors On Same Path

Ever since Tata Nano was showcased in 2008, it has set many hearts fluttering in many countries. Tata Nano has made innovation and price limit synonymous with each other.  It is being hailed as the brightest idea in the recent times for automotive industry of the world.

Tata Nano is a car that is small in size only in name. For Tata Motors it is the most ambitious project. But this is not the first time that Tata has introduced a low cost car. There was also the Tata Indica which revolutionized the way people travelled in India.  It has been more than a decade that Tata Indica hit the roads and Tata still sells them in good numbers.  The earliest Tata Indica was priced just above Rs 2 lakh making its affordable to many car buyers in India. The same is available in two avtaars as Tata Indica V2 and the luxurious Indica Vista.

Just like the Nano, Mr. Ratan Tata, in 1995 had dreamt of making a car with the internal space of Ambassador, the exteriors size of Maruti Suzuki Zen and M800’s pricing. In 1998 he launched the dream car called Indica. Mr Tata had the opportunity and resources to make a fully running car- Indica the first indigenously designed car in India. It became a huge success.

Again Mr. Ratan Tata Nano in 2004 spoke of a dream car. He announced the Rs 1 lakh price of the car much before the work on the car started. After four years the car was displayed retaining the same price tag. There was a huge gap in the time that Tata had announced the price and it was launched, but the price remained the same. Mr Tata said that a promise was a promise.

It has to be noted that the development of Tata Nano began at the same time as global commodity prices rose. People assumed that Tata would not be able to make a car in that price range. However, Tata Motors made some startling innovations in the car and price bracket was maintained.

The Tata Nano and Tata Indica were both launched at the time when the country was under economic strain. But since Indica became a success then, Tata expects Nano to become a success too. Look at how the company fared at the time of launch of both these cars.  Just prior to Tata Indica launch, the company had reported a massive loss, its first worst experience since 1945. In 2008-09 it has again reported a 50 percent loss in profits.

The launch of Tata Indica signified the change of path from commercial vehicles to passenger cars. The launch of Tata Nano is symbolic of opening new markets and new entry level prices for car buyers in India.

Indica's launch signified the metamorphosis of a commercial vehicle manufacturer to a passenger car manufacturer. The launch of Nano symbolizes creation of a new price point and a possible new market segment in the industry. Unlike Indica, Tata Motors does not want to allow Nano cars as cabs this time. It may pave the way for a new future for Tata Motors and the Indian automotive sector.