This Independence Day we are not going to talk about the rich automobile legacy that India carries and it has developed and is perhaps the fastest nation to become the fourth largest carmaker in the world. India and Pakistan started together and alone when it comes to India, the country has been able to develop a 3 lakh crore market attracting top global automakers to come and Make-In-India. Various automakers including global giants like Renault–Nissan, Hyundai, Volkswagen, Toyota and Suzuki make in India for the world.
Hindustan Motors laid the foundation of the strong Indian carmaker with the iconic Hindustan Ambassador that has seen seven generation and was in production from 1954 to 2014. It has carried politicians, babus and even celebrities owned one. In the later phase of its lifecycle the car was used as taxis carrying the regular citizens with the same pride.
Also read: Ambassador car’s India return! 8 things to know about Hindustan Motors’ crown jewel
As the global automakers turned to India, the rich legacy failed to live up and with no upgradation lost out to Japanese and Korean carmakers. But, the Ambassador is all-set to return in India in an all new avatar wearing a French badge.
French automaker PSA Groupe owner of Peugeot, Citroen and DS Brands has now partnered with C K Birla group the owners of Hindustan Motors to manufacture cars and SUVs in India. Both the company’s plans to invest about Rs 700 crore to establish a manufacturing plant. The company is already in the final stages of construction for its engine and powertrain plant located in Hosur, Tamil Nadu that has an annual capacity to build 2 lakh units.
PSA Groupe and C.K Birla will rollout its first product in 2020. The company will have a range of products from compact SUVs to hatchbacks.
The French automaker, PSA Groupe further spent Rs 80 crore to acquire the ‘Ambassador’ brand name. It is still not clear that Ambassador will make a comeback in which segment. Will it be a sedan or a SUV avatar will also be interesting. The company’s product planning and official launch dates are still under wraps and officially there has been no word on Ambassador revival, however, huge investments indicates the Icon’s return and also a PSA Group spokesperson was quoted saying, “You can imagine us adding this name (Ambassador) for a brand for PSA, which is not so famous in India as the Ambassador is.”
It’s also not just the Hindustan Motors’ Ambassador, it’s just a matter of time that Hyundai Motor India announces that its AH2 codenamed small car will be the revival name of the new 2018 Hyundai Santro, The company is celebrating its 20th year in India and what better way than Santro coming back to Indian market. This will not just disrupt the small car market in India but also add a whole new charm in Hyundai’s showrooms. Hyundai Santro is set to make its market launch in October 2018 during the peak of festive season and expect the car to come with new technologies including an AMT gearbox.
While the new 2018 Hyundai Santro will be the first of the iconic Indian car to make a comeback, the new Honda Civic that set the tone for Honda in the premium sedan space will also return in a much more sporty avatar. It will also be for the first time that Civic will get a diesel engine in India. The new Honda Civic India launch is scheduled in the first quarter of 2018 (Jan-March 2018).
Earlier, we had exclusively reported that Maruti Suzuki Zen is likely to comeback and the Future S concept SUV will take the shape of the successful Zen hatch. Maruti Suzuki has already tasted success by bringing back the Baleno in the hatch avatar and the same could do wonders if Zen makes a comeback. However, we don’t expect the company’s small SUV to launch in India before 2020-2021 financial year. The overall proportion of the Concept Future S fits well for the Indian market as it’s compact in size, has a tall stance with modern design and will appeal the new age buyer. The production version of this SUV has a good potential to make a profitable car in the sub-compact space.
The other big speculation that could do wonders for the Japanese automaker Mitsubishi is the revival of the iconic Lancer brand in an-all new SUV avatar. Post joining the Renault–Nissan Alliance, Mitsubishi has been on an offensive mode and while not much has hanged in India, the company has confirmed the introduction of a C-Segment crossover for the international markets and will take on the likes of Hyundai Creta, Renault Captur and Mahindra XUV500. Tsunehiro Kunimoto, Corporate Vice-President, Head of Design, Mitsubishi Motors had said that “Our main preview image shows how it could evolve into a new Lancer hatch. “Just because it’s C-segment doesn’t mean it has to be a very conventional hatchback.”
So indeed the history will repeat itself and as India gears up to take on more growth, expect these iconic cars to play its part in brand building and certainly making jobs easy for the marketing guys with the kind of reputation it has. With new automakers like Kia and M.G Motors entering India along with PSA Groupe it is certainly interesting times ahead.
