The French auto maker Renault seems to be preparing for the launch of its sub-Rs. 4 lakh car XBA in the Indian auto market. Codenamed as XBA, it is anticipated to compete against the likes of Hyundai Eon, Chevrolet Spark and Maruti Suzuki Alto. Although the launch date of this car is quite far, sources have hinted that the auto maker will reveal XBA much before its official date. When asked about the same, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Renault India, Sumit Sawhney told Indian Autos Blog, “You’ll hear very soon about that from us.”
Notably, the company’s redi-Go based small car, which is expected to launch next year, will be also based on the platform of XBA. It is believed that post launch, XBA will be counted among the volume pulling products for Renault, after Duster and Lodgy. Experts anticipate that this model will help the company in increasing its market share from present 2 per cent to 5 per cent. On the technical front, the car is likely to come equipped with an 800 cc three-cylinder petrol engine, which will be mated to an option of either manual gearbox or Automated Manual Transmission (AMT).
Speaking on the design of XBA project, Sawhney was quoted as saying, “Our design center in India has played a fairly significant role in that product.” It is being learnt that in a price range of sub-Rs. 4 lakh, XBA will be positioned below the current generation Pulse. As it will be designed on the modern CMF-A modular platform, XBA will be rolled out globally. Sources have hinted that the third model of Datsun in India, codenamed ‘I2′, will be also underpinned on the same platform.
