The auto sector carmakers are getting ready to launch a number of varieties of cars in India during 2014. 2014 promises to bring along quite a handful of new cars to our ever expanding car bazaar. Here, in this article we present before you a list of new cars that are headed our way in 2014.
- AUDI Q7
– Launch: December 2014
– Engine options: 3.0 Petrol, 3.0 Diesel, 4.2 Diesel
– Price: INR 65-100 lakhs
Audi has been busy with the development of the next gen Q7 and the upcoming generation of the popular Audi crossover would make its public debut sometime in mid 2014. The biggest news, however, is that the all new Audi Q7 is India bound and is most likely to be launched here by the end of 2014!
The next gen Q7 will be underpinned by VW Group’s MLB Evo platform, which has been tailor made to suit cars which are tall. The new platform would make the car upto 300kgs lighter than the current model and along with the new platform, also making its debut with the next Q7 will be the carmaker’s all new design language. Engine options are likely to be carried over from current model.
- BMW i8
– Launch: November 2014
– Engine options: 1.5 Petrol + electric motor
– Price: Rs 1.4 crores
BMW’s flagship ‘i’ vehicle is headed your way and the new i8, which is high on both performance and technology, would enter car market towards the end of next year. Only seven units of the BMW i8 have been allotted to India and the launch of the electric hybrid supercar will be basically a brand-building exercise. The BMW i8 plug-in hybrid supercar comes with a powertrain that consists of a 228bhp 1.5 litre petrol engine and a 129bhp electric motor. Further, the car benefits from lightweight carbon-fibre and aluminium construction. Don’t be surprised if you find celebrities and the business tycoons lapping up the seven units of the i8.
- BMW X4
– Launch: October 2014
– Engine options: 3.0 Petrol, 3.0 Diesel
– Price: INR 43-57 lakhs
India is a SUV-loving market and quite obviously, the X4, the latest crossover from the Bavarian auto maker is headed your way. The BMW X4 will find itself slotted between the X3 and the X5 and will be to the former, what the X6 is to the latter. This simply means that the X4 will appeal to those who have been waiting for a more stylish X3 and the upcoming model will play the perfect baby brother to the highly successful X6 crossover-coupe.
- CHEVROLET BEAT FACELIFT
– Launch: June 2014
– Engine options: 1.2 Petrol, 1.0 Diesel
– Price: INR 3.75-5.5 lakh
Expected to launch around the middle of next year, the Chevrolet Beat facelift will infuse some freshnesss with the fast ageing brand. Beat is the funkiest looking hatchback around but the advent of newer rivals has ensured that the Beat, which is sold as the Spark abroad, has lost some of the excitement that surrounded it. The Beat facelift will sport a revised grille, updated front bumper, re-profiled headlamps and taillapms, new fog lamps, spruced up interiors and probably a longer features list. The fairly potent petrol and the frugal diesel engine will be carried over from the pre-facelift.
- FORCE MOTORS
– Launch: July 2014
– Engine options: 2.2 Diesel
– Price: INR 10-13 lakhs
Force Motors will be seen jumping into the large MPV segment sometime in the middle of next year. The upcoming Force Motors large MPV, will be more spacious than the Innova, and should appeal to fleet owners and joint families. It could also make for a really comfortable office fleet shuttle. Other than using the bodyshell, the Force MPV will also found a Mercedes heart, as it would be powered by a 139bhp, 2.2-litre, OM611 common rail diesel engine. The upcoming Force MPV could very well initiate a new sub-segment in the MPV market of our country.
- HONDA JAZZ
– Launch: October 2014
– Engine options: 1.2 Petrol, 1.5 Diesel
– Price: INR 5-7.5 lakh
The Honda Jazz is planning a re-entry into the ever-growing hatchback segment of our car market. And this time, the car will be equipped with the quintessential diesel engine option. The engine options are not the only new bit here. Rather, the whole car is all-new and is basically the next generation model of the Jazz we all know of. Expect more features, more space and all the traditional Honda strengths. The car will also have a petrol engine option, that of the 1.2 litre IVTEC four pot motor. This is the same engine that powered the earlier car but safely expect it to get a re-map for the new gen model. Having burnt its fingers with the pricing of the Jazz previously, expect Honda to price the new gen model ultra competitively.
- I20
– Launch: November 2014
– Engine options: 1.2 Petrol, 1.4 Petrol, 1.4 Diesel
– Price: INR 5.25-8 lakhs
The next gen i20 will feature a more modern (and striking) exterior design and could come with some first-in-class features. It is expected that the 2015 Hyundai i20, which will be based on a new platform, will borrow its engine options from the current model. It would be interesting to see the new gen i20 and the new gen Jazz locking horns on battleground India.
- LANDROVER DISCOVERY
– Launch: July 2014
– Engine options: 3.0 Diesel
– Price: INR 1-1.11 crores
Tata owned British premium car maker Jaguar Land Rover will launch the Discovery facelift in India next year. Visually, there is nothing much to differentiate the updated car from the pre-facelift model. However, the updated Discover features some really small details that hint at JLR’s future of launching Discover as a sub brand of Land Rover (akin to how Range Rover is the premium brand of Land Rover). The updated Discover could infuse some more excitement with the fast growing British brand of premium SUVs in India.
- NISSAN X-TRAIL
– Launch: October 2014
– Engine options: 2.2 Diesel
– Price: INR 21-26 lakhs
It is no secret that the current X-Trail could never set the sales charts on fire in India. However, all this could change with the advent of the next gen model. Slated for an end-2014 launch, the new gen X-Trail would be a direct rival to the new Hyundai Santa Fe and the Toyota Fortuner. The new gen X-Trail is underpinned by the manufacturer’s new CMF (Common Module Family) platform and is powered by a 2.2 litre common rail diesel engine.