India's most affordable car Nano from Tata Motors shall not be temporarily produced at Sanand plant in Gujarat. Company has decided to shut down production activity citing routine maintenance activity. Production for Nano shall be stopped for about 35 – 40 days, the temporary stoppage shall be utilized as an opportunity to launch the new Nano with the AMT option and an openable boot. An official statement received from Tata Motors, states that, "As with all our plants, the Sanand facility is closed as per annual planning for routine upgrades, maintenance and adding of tooling flexibility for new variants. The periods for this kind of maintenance work may vary and range from 3-6 weeks. The Nano CX and LX will continue to be manufactured in Sanand."
Magnetic Marelli, the renowned Italian company has developed the AMT unit (Automated Manual Transmission) for Tata Motors new F-Tronic range of cars. The technology is primarily a manual transmission that comes with an automatic clutch. This feature is aimed at providing comfortable in-city driving experience. The current lot of Nano is mated to a four speed gearbox, whereas the new AMT gearbox which will be featured in the Nano Twist F-Tronic is mated to a five speed transmission. This newly developed Automated Manual Transmission could also be seen in the recently introduced Tata cars like the new Bolt hatchback and Zest sedan. The headlamps appear to have received chrome accents and the front mesh has been redesigned to give it a 'Smiley' appearance. The fog lamps have been repositions and are stated to be improved further n comparison to the previous version. The rear bumpers have also been redesigned to give it a cheerful appearance.
The Interiors in the upcoming Nano Twist F-Tronic is expected to remain more or less the same like the recently launched Nano Twist. As seen, the production version may also receive Faux wood inserts this time around. Tata cars have always been known for space, the same lineage is passed on to the F-Tronic as well with ample headroom and legroom for its occupants. Moreover, with the inclusion of Electric Power Assisted Steering, driving around within the city has become more enjoyable. Given the technological developments, Tata Motors seems to aim at shifting gears in the Indian automotive industry with its new F-Tronic range of cars.
The Sanand plant has a capacity of producing about 2.5 Lakhs units per annum and was stated to be under utilized as the Nano model has not been in much demand recently. As per sources, the company had only been working for about 2-3 days a week to deliver small production numbers. In recent times the small car with an upgraded transmission has been spotted undergoing test on multiple occasions, thereby indicating on a possible launch sometime soon.
Source: ET
