$2,500 Tata Nano in news

[Project84]

Found as headline at yahoo.com

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080110/...ultracheap_car

I figured this is the type of thing that would make for great discussion here.

Thoughts?

Feelings?

[Erdrick]

The biggest compromise that I would be willing to make would be going with a Polo TDi. That car is as small as is practical in my opinion. Driving a kei car in Japan has taught me a thing or two about cheap cars -- the first being that they are garbage. I personally would rather bike or walk than drive a super econo car. The medical bills that you end up paying for getting a bad back are not worth it. That and you most definitely put your life on the line getting into a car like the Tata Nano.

I look to cars like the Aptera, Polo, and 1liter car by VW for the future. These are the cars that will work. The Nano may be ok for places like India, where owning a car in and of itself is a luxury, but I doubt if they ever catch on (or become legal) anywhere else.

We don't need cheap cars, we need the exact opposite. Cars that are really light due to their being constructed from things like carbon fiber. Less cars being made, cars that last longer, and cars that are more efficient off the line are what we need. Outfit the entirety of China and India with cars and you will end up with big problems. Well, mainly for everyone except for the actual producers and those tied to the producers.

[GasSavers_Dust]

I found a stipper 3L lupo on Yahoo auctions japan, and almost bought it. If it had some power stuff I would have been all over it. 3L per 100 KM on the highway sounds really nice, and is much better than my wagonR.

[jadziasman]

That Tata Nano has a 600 cc engine with a "claimed" top speed of 60 mph. I guess it's possible with one person in it but the folks in India probably would want to fill that little Nano to the gills effectively making its top speed more like 40 mph tops. It gets 50 mpg too. You have to wonder how Tata can make a profit on the stripped down version. Maybe it's their loss leader and they plan to sell most of em with options - A/C being a popular one in the steamy southern part of India. If a few hundred million Indians each buy one, then how much is gasoline gonna cost!

[GasSavers_Dust]

Look at this another way. Why can’t they buy a car? Everyone(other countries) else has one. It’s a luxury, the market can now afford it, blah blah blah, god/allah given right if I may.

[jcp123]

I'm actually glad to see a stripper car. The more I get into old-school hot rods, the more I appreciate manual steering/brake cars with carpet delete and no radio. They're lighter, more reliable, and cheaper. I've gone from being a Cadillac fanatic to an el-strippo model fiend. Unfortunately, most carmakers are abandoning stripped-down models.

[StorminMatt]

Originally Posted by jcp123

Unfortunately, most carmakers are abandoning stripped-down models.

This actually is true. MANY people talk about how cars are SO much more expensive than they were 20 years ago. But this is really not true in the absolute sense. The fact of the matter is that the most stripped down car today has AT LEAST as many amenities as the most expensive car did 20 years ago. For instance, A/C is, for the most part, standard, while it was a VERY pricey option 20 years ago. And if you compare the cheapest Honda Accord today with the priciest one 20 years ago, you will find that the new Accord has ALL the options that the old one had (except a moonroof), is bigger, has more HP, and costs about the same in current dollars (less in actual dollars!). The fact is that you just can't get a car with NOTHING anymore. The automakers basically stopped making them because VERY few people actually bought them.

[101mpg]

I believe in order to cut down the cost it has features like "intermittent brakes", etc. =)

Seriously - no passenger mirror, won't survive US freeway speed crashes, they will not even let reporters sit in it, etc. means that if it's in a rural area (with well-paved roads) and you don't go fast, and there are NO large vehicles around to hit - well, it is likely as safe as any motorcycle or 3 or 4 wheeler. Except those may be bigger.

If EVERYONE had one of these, and we didn't have semis - then the roads would be a lot safer. I tend to believe these are just plain not safe for the US market. Maybe a lot safer in areas where bicycle traffic is the norm - but not here, unfortunately.

All that said, automakers for the industrialized world make big gas hogs that are heavy on useless features. The Insight and other ultralight vehicles ought to be produced more.

[GasSavers_SD26]

Originally Posted by 101mpg

All that said, automakers for the industrialized world make big gas hogs that are heavy on useless features. The Insight and other ultralight vehicles ought to be produced more.

Well, it's a consumer driven economy isn't it?

The Insight and all those vehicles didn't out sell Camry's or F150's even with tax incentives and high fuel economy, which directly means fewer road taxes paid. Neither have the Fit, Yaris, or others out sold the consumers demand for cars that actually fit their buying demands.

Useless features, while appearing useless, can reduce the need to change production runs, additional parts manufacturing, etc. That keeps overall costs down so individual manufacturers can be competitive.

[GasSavers_SD26]

That can also allow manufacturer to build and market loss leaders too.