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      2020 Bangkok Motor Show starts tomorrow – Bajaj, KTM, Royal Enfield to participate

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      Management committee of Bangkok Motor Show have decided to go ahead with the exhibition
      While automotive shows all over the world stand cancelled for this year, and to some extent, next year (there is not gonna be a 2021 Geneva Motor Show), the 41st Bangkok Motor Show is set to take place between July 15 to 26. The shows organizer Grand Prix International Public Company says that the high-profile international event will be conducted “in accordance with the new normal way of life”.

      Thailand is slowly turning back to normalcy, allowing the economic activities to resume. The Bangkok International Motor Show (BIMS) which takes place at Challenger Hall, IMPACT Maung Thong Thani, has traditionally been a huge catalyst for domestic automotive sales.
      The show always garners significant number of new vehicle booking, thus making it an unmissable event for automotive manufacturers, dealers, component makers and other stakeholders. This year’s edition will comply with preventive measures set forth by the government to tackle the corona virus pandemic.

      2020 Bankgok Motor Show
      Brands participating at 2020 Bangkok Motor Show
      According to the organizer, several car and motorcycle brands have confirmed their participation in the event including Ford, Suzuki, BMW, Rolls Royce, Aston Martin, Maserati, Nissan, Honda, Toyota, Audi, Lexus, Porsche, Jaguar Land Rover, Volvo, Kia, Lamborghini, Royal Enfield, Bajaj, KTM and many more. There will also be a virtual motor show, an online event, to give the new car buyers an additional avenue to stay updated about new launches.
      Theme for 2020 Bangkok Motor Show
      The theme for this year’s edition is “Inspiration unlocks the future”. The visitors will be screened at the entrance and are mandated to wear masks. They are also required to clean their hands with alcohol sprays every time they enter a show car. The IMPACT arena management has arranged screening points for the Thai government’s COVID-19 app (Chana) and body temperature checks. The organization has also purchased a specialized robot to sanitize the venue on regular basis.

      File photo from 2019 Bangkok Motor Show

      In a further effort to reduce crowding, the main gang way has been widened from 6 to 10 m. The width of the alleys between two adjacent stalls have been increased from 3 to 6 m as well. A dedicated area with seating capacity of up to 5,000 seats has also been arranged to facilitate car makers interact with prospective customers who are interested in placing orders.
      Grand Prix will also offer virtual auto show experience with e-catalogs and live chat services for those who choose to follow the events at the comfort of their houses. Given the international significance of BIMS, organizers of other similar international events with mass attendance would be keeping a close watch on the level of success. Bangkok Motor Show has the potential to become the model for a public event in the new normal era. More

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      in Electric Cars

      Tesla Model 3 buyer in India gets positive reply from Elon Musk

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      For years, Indians have been dreaming over the idea of Tesla making its Indian debut – This is not the first time Elon Musk has hinted India launch is near
      Over the past few years there have been multiple incidences which indicated that Tesla was not finding the Indian market apt for a debut. There have been innumerable flip-flops to Tesla’s India plans. In August’19, Tesla’s Boss, Elon Musk had stated that Tesla didn’t find Indian taxation & administrative rules conducive for an entry into the market, at least not at that point of time.

      However, in latest turn of interesting events (technically in a latest Twitter conversation), Elon Musk has indicated that Tesla might be making its Indian debut, soon. It is to be noted that the ‘soon’ is open for interpretation.
      It all started when Tesla’s official Twitter handle posted an update on Q2’20 deliveries and vehicle production details on 3rd July’20. Mr. Arvind Gupta, a Delhi based Twitter user replied to the same tweet on 10th July by tagging Elon Musk and asking for an update for a Tesla which he had booked 4 years ago. Surprisingly, Elon Musk decided to revert to the query and tweeted ‘Sorry, should hopefully be soon!’.

      Screenshot from Twitter
      It isn’t the first time that Elon Musk has shared his intent to launch products in India. Earlier in March’19, he had confirmed that Tesla will start selling products in the Indian market by end of 2020. However considering the progress till date, it looks difficult if Mr. Musk will be able to meet his promise.
      It is to be noted that over the last 1 year, 3 respectable EVs have been launched in the country. These include the Hyundai Kona, MG ZS EV and the Tata Nexon EV. We have had EVs in the past too but those models had questionable range and seating capacity. However, the 3 models mentioned above have decent range and seating capacity to be considered as primary vehicles for commute.
      Sales of the 3 models have been decent. The Government & OEMs both have been doing their part to increase the EV Charging infrastructure as well. Multiple other electric vehicle launches are also planned in the near future. The recent developments clearly show that the Indian market has been warming up to EVs.

      Entry of Tesla will certainly be a big deal for the Indian market. However, success for the brand will still be majorly governed by pricing of its products because India continues to be a highly price sensitive market. The Covid-19 outbreak has further dented the overall economic growth, leading to lesser funds with individuals to splurge on discretionary expenses like a fancy means of transport to commute to work. More

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      in Electric Cars

      Three new Mahindra EVs to launch in 2020 – KUV100, Atom, Treo Zor

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      Mahindra Atom electric spied
      Mahindra Electric had showcased all its current and upcoming EVs in either production or concept format at Auto Expo 2020

      Mahindra Electric, the EV division of Mahindra & Mahindra group, plans to launch three new products by the end of the current fiscal (31 March 2021). This includes the Mahindra eKUV100 ‘micro-SUV’, Atom quadricycle and Treo Zor cargo three-wheeler.
      Mahindra Electric is one of the leading players in the country’s budding EV market. Last year, the company sold 14,000 electric vehicles in the country. A good majority of the sales were contributed by the Treo and e-Alfa three-wheelers.
      Mahindra Electric had showcased its full line of products in either production or concept avatar at Auto Expo 2020, held in early February. The biennial automotive event also became a venue to debut the Mahindra eXUV300 albeit as a concept. The all-electric subcompact crossover will be a direct rival to the Tata Nexon EV. Over the months, we have shared multiple spy shots of the vehicle doing test runs.

      Mahindra KUV100 electric
      Mahesh Babu, CEO of Mahindra Electric, shares that there is a high potential for EVs in the commercial vehicle market. With the rise of e-commerce businesses, small emission-free means of logistics are witnessing increased demand. Still, sales remain on the lower side due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis but much better than the initial lockdown phases. Mahesh Babu states that demand for electric three-wheelers has recovered by almost 50 per cent that of usual or pre-COVID trends.
      Prices of the Mahindra eKUV100 were already revealed at Auto Expo 2020. The raised hatchback comes at a starting price of Rs 8.25 lakh ex-showroom. Powered by a 40kW (~54bhp) electric motor, the eKUV100 produces 120Nm of torque from zero RPMs. Claimed range figures cross 145km on a full charge. Using a DC fast-charger, the battery can attain 80% charge in around an hour’s time.

      Meanwhile, Mahindra has discontinued the regular KUV100 diesel variant ahead of BS6 era. The current 2020MY Mahindra KUV100 is available only in a 1.2-litre NA petrol format making 82bhp and 115Nm while mated to a 5-speed manual transmission.
      At the moment, there are limited choices in the electric four-wheeler market. Popular names include the Hyundai Kona, MG ZS EV and Tata Nexon. On the other hand, the Indian two-wheeler market (especially scooters) has a wide range of products lacking a tailpipe. It is worth mentioning that electric scooters make more sense than a conventional petrol-CVT example in several scenarios — know more.
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      No registration of BS4 vehicles sold after March 31 – Supreme Court recalls order

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      BS4 Honda Activa. Image for reference
      The earlier order stated that sales of BS4 vehicles could continue for 10 days after the lifting of the nationwide lockdown

      It may be recalled that the Supreme Court of India had set the date at 1st April 2020 for bringing in BS6 emission standards into effect. The ruling cited that there would be no sales of BS4 vehicles post 31st March 2020 but the COVID-19 pandemic hit in mid March followed by a 21 day lockdown.
      The initial ruling gave dealerships leeway to sell off 10 percent of their unsold stocks for 10 days post the lockdown but this ruling was not valid for dealers in Delhi-NCR due to rising levels of air pollution. Supreme Court had on March 27th announced that it would permit sale of 10 percent of unsold BS4 compliant vehicles for 10 days after the lifting of the lockdown. Now, noting some discrepancies in the figures of BS4 vehicles sold, the Apex Court has recalled this order.
      The bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra and Justices S. Abdul Nazeer and Indira Banerjee have recalled this order. They state that auto dealers violated this order and continued to sell BS4 vehicles during the lockdown in the last week of March 2020 and after March 31st as well. Hence no registration will be granted to any BS4 vehicles sold after March 31st.

      Screenshot of a chat between Regional Manager of an OEM and dealers, from last week.
      Slamming the Federation of Automobile Dealers’ Association of India (FADA) for committing fraud, the Apex Court stated that only those vehicles which have been registered with VAHAN portal would be protected and had asked FADA to furnish such details. These figures were then corroborated with sales data and information available on the VAHAN portal. It was then found that there were over 17,000 vehicles sold which were not registered on the VAHAN portal and it was on the basis of these figures that the fraud came to light.
      The SC noted that FADA had sold more vehicles than what was permitted by the SC and have hence recalled the order. Now no BS4 vehicle will be registered, if sold after March 31, 2020. These vehicles were sold online with hefty discounts ranging from 3-40 percent after the said date. It was noted that while the court had permitted sale and registration of 1.05 lakh units of BS-IV vehicles, a total of 2.55 lakh vehicles were sold.

      FADA, represented by Senior Advocate K.V. Viswanathan, argued that the court had allowed registration in March and has sought relaxation of the order so as to permit registration of these BS4 vehicles. The Bench has posted the matter for a further hearing on July 23. More

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      in Electric Cars

      Mahindra Atom electric features teased – New spy shots show road presence

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      Mahindra Electric has now officially teased its upcoming quadricycle, the Atom. As the name suggests, Atom happens to be a pretty compact vehicle, which can seat 4 including driver. Mahindra intends to promote the product for last-mile connectivity. The same was spied on test by automotive enthusiast Sudharsan in Chennai. Mahindra is planning to launch […] More