Known for offering affordable and frugal cars the home grown auto maker, Tata Motors is readying to roll out a premium SUV. Tata Motors is developing a new premium SUV in joint venture with Jaguar and Land Rover. The SUV will be a new entrant in entry level premium SUV segment which currently includes cars like Ford Endeavour, Hyundai Santa Fe and Toyota Fortuner. Tata is likely to price this SUV between Rs 20 lakh to Rs 25 lakh.
Codenamed Q5, the SUV could be launched in India by 2016 or 2017, this would be a seven seater SUV which is expected to be offered in 5+2 layout. The vehicle could adorn Tata badge, or could also be sold under a joint badging. Tata’s foray into premium segment with Aria priced above Rs 10 lakh did not work well. Despite minor makeovers and price revisions the vehicle could not make a place for itself in the domestic market. Therefore, the company needs to contemplate whether it would offer the SUV under Tata badge of will it affix a joint badge on the vehicle.
Tata’s SUV could be conceived on Land Rover Freelander 2 provided the project passes techno-commercial parameters of the company. However, the SUV will get sea changes to suffice the conditions in domestic market.
The SUV will have DNA of Freelander 2 and JLR’s premium stamp, yet the new premium SUV will be massively different from Freelander 2. Company insiders opine that the under development SUV will be around 50% to 85% different from Freelander 2.
The project is being headed by Karl Heinz Servos, around 45 engineers are working on this project. Originally, the project was started by former CEO of Tata Motors, Carl Peter Forster, later the project was being looked after by Tim Leverton and late Karl Slym. The company has not shared any details regarding the project.
Source: ET
