Having already surpassed France, the UK and Italy and establishing itself as the sixth largest automotive market in the world, India is now expected to become the third largest by 2020.

That’s the prediction of a special report entitled “India Automotive 2020: The Next Giant from Asia” released by JD Power and Associates. It highlights that more than 2.7million light vehicles were sold in India in 2010, compared to just 700,000 in 2000 and with increased economic activity and a widening population this number is expected to reach 11million by 2020. This would make it the third largest behind China (expected to reach 35million in 2020); and the USA (17.4million).

The report highlights that India’s government has pushed policies that support the development of its automotive industry.

Among the policies it has introduced has been a reduction on the sales tax of small cars and financial incentives for car makers to build and export vehicles overseas. As a result, many car makers have switched production operations to the country and designed vehicles specifically for the market.  During 2010, close to 80 per cent of all new passenger vehicles sold in the country were either mini cars or subcompact passenger cars – this compares to just 24 per cent in China and three per cent in the USA.

Nevertheless, the report highlights that there are some challenges ahead. India is still seen as having three deficits – international trade deficits; chronic government budget deficits; and an underdeveloped power generation and distribution infrastructure. As such, the country’s lagging infrastructure is seen as the biggest obstacle to growth but the Indian government has set aside billions for investment in power generation and road/rail networks.

The Beijing Municipal Government has issued several new measures aimed at tackling traffic congestion in the city.

Effective immediately, buyers of automobiles that are replacing old vehicles may continue to use the previous license plates and won’t be subject to its first quota system for new plates. Under its regulations, the issue of new license plates will be otherwise subject to a quota published annually by the municipal government with 88 per cent allocated to first-time individual buyers and 12 per cent to business buyers on a monthly basis via a lottery system. The quota for the coming year will be 240,000 – 20,000 per month.

In addition, there will be increased parking fees in certain areas and a cap on the number of automobiles that can be purchased by government agencies.

It has also been indicated that further measures may follow to restrict the use of motor vehicles in main congested areas within the city during peak traffic periods.

According to Hetong Guo, the chairman of Lentuo, the largest non-state owned automobile retailer in the city, the measures may adversely affect the growth of the automobile retail market but there is still optimism about market potential. He estimates that new car sales in 2011 will be significantly below the record number of approximately 800,000 in 2010 but believes a substantial amount of sales will be made to non-first-time buyers who buy new cars to replace their older vehicles.

He believes this development has been factored in by buyers who have stepped up purchase activities in the days prior to the publication of new measures with dealerships receiving a significantly higher number of orders in December, 2010 – far exceeding the normal rate in previous periods.

Data from the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association has reported that automobile production in Japan dropped by 6.7 per cent year on year in November to 802,009 units.

According to the statistics, passenger car production suffered a steep drop of 8.2 per cent to 689,808 units led by a 30.3 per cent decline in small cars to 165,866 units. Similarly, mini car production – that is vehicles with a displacement of less than 600cc, dropped by 4.2 per cent to 108,394 units.

By contrast, the production of standard cars with a displacement above 2.0litres rose by 3.7 per cent to 415,548 units; while truck production was up 3.3 per cent to 101,853 units. Bus production also rose by 11.7 per cent to 10,348 units.

It appears the problems affecting the auto industry are far from over after figures for new car registrations in the EU27 were revealed for October.

Registrations fell to 1,027,036 units – that’s a 16.6 per cent drop compared to October, 2009. Indeed across the 10months of the year so far, demand for new cars has fallen by 5.5 per cent.

All major markets fell in October by double digit figures – 18.5 per cent in France; 20 per cent in Germany; 22.2 per cent in the UK; 28.8 per cent in Italy; and 37.6 per cent in Spain. By contrast, October 2009 marked a 12.1 per cent increase compared to 2009 when figures were down 14.9 per cent compared to October, 2007.

Across the year so far, Ireland has enjoyed the biggest surge in demand, up 53.2 per cent, with the UK up 4.8 per cent and Spain up 9.4 per cent. By contrast, the largest drop has occurred in Bulgaria, down 35.6 per cent; while the likes of Germany (down 26.8 per cent), Italy (down 7.0 per cent) and France (down 1.4 per cent) have also suffered notable falls.

By contrast, across the Atlantic in the US, October sales of light duty vehicles were up 13.4 per cent compared to the previous year and from January-October US sales are up 10.6 per cent.

It may have been in financial ruin just a year ago, but the new General Motors is bouncing back from the mire in style.

The company announced second quarter 2010 results with revenue of $33.2billion and net income attributable to common stockholders of $1.3billion. This means that earning per share reached $2.55 and second quarter earnings before interest and tax were $2.0billion.

Business on its home turf of North America was particularly prosperous with second quarter figures of $1.6billion up from $1.2billion in quarter one. GM Europe meanwhile suffered a loss before interest and tax of $0.2billion, although this was a slight improvement on its loss of $0.3billion in quarter one.

Its cash flow reached $3.9billion from operating activities with free cash flow at $2.8billion.

The world’s largest automotive market appears to be losing its faith in vehicles with smaller engine displacements if recent results are anything to go by.

During July, the market share of new vehicles sold in the country with engine displacements of 1.6litres or less dropped below last year’s average for the fifth month in succession.

In fact, there were 1.24million vehicles sold during the month, a 14.4 per cent increase compared to the previous year according to the China Association of Auto Manufacturers. However, the figures were down 11.9 per cent from June and sales growth from January to July slowed to 42.65 per cent from 47.67 per cent.

Sales of small cars accounted for 65.38 per cent of the overall vehicle passenger sales, totalling 946,200 units over the month. However, this represented a decline of 1.42 per cent and dropped below last year’s average of 69.5 per cent. Similarly, the market for China developed cars, most of which fit into the small car category, also saw a decrease. Indeed 377,700 self developed passenger vehicles were sold during the month, falling 4.5 per cent compared to June.

According to the China Association of Auto Manufacturers’ executive vice chairman and secretary general Dong Yang, the impact of the green car subsidy programme hasn’t so far had an effect. It provides 3,000yuan per unit to 71 fuel efficient models with engines of 1.6litres or less – more incentives are planned.

It may be leading the electric car push, but Nissan has not turned its back on larger vehicles including sport utility vehicles (SUVs).

According to a report in the Nikkei, the Nissan Motor Company will add a third shift to its UK production line for SUVs in a bid to raise output by around 30 per cent to nearly 24,000 units a month.

The Qashqai SUV is made at the Sunderland plant and a third shift to extend production through the night will be added.

The move reflects Nissan’s remarkable sales success in Europe. Even though sales on the continent fell for the first time in 11 months in April, Nissan’s sales in Europe went up by 41.8 per cent on the year to 31,000 vehicles and now the company wants to strike while the iron is hot with its most popular models.

Having enjoyed environmental benefits and relief from the number of heavy traffic jams, Beijing will now extend its vehicle restriction rule.

The rule was initially implemented by the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau one year ago and bans private cars in Beijing’s urban areas one work day a week. Now the new rule will mirror the current one and be implemented on April 11, immediately following the existing rule’s expiration.

According to a recent Horizon research survey, 90 per cent of residents, which included 1,549 car owners and 1,013 who didn’t own a car, supported the restriction. It is also reported by the Beijing Transportation Research Centre that the average driving speed during rush hours in the city has increased by 15 per cent.

The Green Piece Column. Tuesday 23 February 2010

Steeped in tradition, having been established in 1905 and now set for its 80^th edition, the Geneva International Motor Show has always been one of the highlights of the automotive calendar.

Regarded as a level playing field for the world’s car manufacturers as Switzerland lacks an automotive industry of its own, exotic supercars usually steal the spotlight at the event but this year, after turbulent times for the industry, the focus is on green cars and the future of the business. With that in mind here we look at the top 10 most exciting green cars expected to be unveiled at the show.

1. BMW Concept ActiveE

Making its European debut in Geneva, the BMW Concept ActiveE is a fully electric drive vehicle based on the BMW 1 Series (see article). It features a specially developed motor that delivers 125kW/170hp with a maximum torque of 250Nm.

It is capable of accelerating from 0-60mph in 8.5 seconds and has a range of 100 miles on a single charge.

2. New 2011 Ford Focus

Already unveiled to North American audiences in Detroit in January, the 2011 Ford Focus will make its European debut in Geneva with fuel consumption savings of 10-20 per cent compared to outgoing models (see article).

The new Focus is expected to include the next generation Focus ECOnetic technologies including automatic stop-start, smart regenerative charging and low tension front end accessory drive to bring emissions down to a targeted 99g/km with fuel economy at 74.2mpg.

3. Citroen DS High Rider

A brand new hybrid concept, the Citroen DS High Rider hopes to capitalise on the higher efficiency of a diesel combined with an electric motor and is capable of operating by diesel or electric power separately dependent on the conditions (see article).

Details of fuel economy and emissions of this exciting prototype are remaining under wraps until the Geneva Motor Show opens its doors.

4. Peugeot SR1

A new concept car by Peugeot, the SR1 uses the Hybrid 4 technology that is expected to be launched in the Peugeot 3008 in 2011. A 1.6litre THP petrol engine is combined with a rear electric motor that develops 70kW and with the two powertrains operating simultaneously the SR1 can deliver power as high as 230kW.

Its combined fuel cycle performance is 58mpg, with CO2 emissions at 119g/km.

5. New 2011 Audi A1

A new super-mini from the German carmaker, the Audi A1 boasts CO2 emission figures as low as 102g/km according to preliminary figures (see article).

 

Though Audi is shrinking in size to meet green car market demand, the A1 retains its signature sleek, streamlined look and can develop 160Nm of peak torque that enables it to race from 0-62mph in 12.1 seconds with a top speed of 111mph and fuel efficiency in the region of 55.4mpg.

6. New 2011 Bentley Continental SuperSports Convertible

As part of Bentley’s ongoing commitment to biofuels, the manufacturer will debut its flex-fuel capable Continental SuperSports Convertible at the event (see article).

With flex-fuel in full use, CO2 emissions fall by as much as 70 per cent and yet the vehicle still produces remarkable sports car figures, racing from 0-60mph in 3.9seconds and with a top speed of 202mph.

7. New 2010 Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion

Simply one of the greenest cars to date, the new Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion will be the second cleanest conventionally fuelled diesel on the market (behind the Smart ForTwo) with emissions at just 91g/km and fuel efficiency as high as 80.7mpg (see article).

This remarkable small car has certainly stood the test of time but with a new advanced 1.2litre TDI engine, automatic stop-start technology and regenerative braking, it takes the carmaker to an all-time high in fuel efficiency.

8. Vauxhall/Opel Flextreme

The Vauxhall/Opel Flextreme is a diesel plug-in hybrid car that can travel 34miles on its lithium-ion batteries before a small diesel engine starts to charge the batteries (see article). This range-extended concept is a rebadged version of the Saturn Flextreme first introduced in 2008 and is expected to emit 40g/km of CO2 or less based on European test procedures for range extended vehicles.

Its total range is expected to be more than 300miles with average fuel consumption at 174mpg.

9. “5 by Peugeot”

Another Peugeot debutant at the event will be the “5 by Peugeot”, a new concept car that expresses the carmaker’s desire to establish itself in the luxury sector (see article).

With Hybrid 4 technology it has an overall maximum power of 200bhp with super low fuel consumption at 74.3mpg. Its CO2 emissions, although not yet confirmed, are expected to be a meagre 99g/km placing this car right at the top of its sector.

10. New 2011 Lotus Elise

With all the hallmarks of a super car, the new Lotus Elise certainly isn’t the average green car, but thanks to a number of technological advances it manages to combine performance with efficiency (see article).

Thanks to a new 1.6litre engine that is 200cc smaller than the previous Elise model but still produces similar power at 160Nm at 4,400rpm, it has the lowest CO2 output of a petrol sports car in the world with emissions at less than 155g/km of CO2 and fuel economy at 38mpg. Nevertheless it still manages to race from 0-60mph in 6.0seconds with a top speed of 124mph.

The Geneva Motor Show opens to the Press on March 2 and to the public on March 4. We’ll bring you all the latest information from the event in our news section.

Faye Sunderland

China has been the ‘one to watch’ in the automotive industry for some time, having already established itself as the largest car market in the world ahead of the USA. However, now the central government plans to implement a new policy to encourage consolidation and to push Chinese-brand passenger vehicles into the mainstream.

According to an official from the Ministry of Industry and Information technology, it is hoped that Chinese-brand passenger vehicles will comprise “at least” half of vehicles sales by 2015 and that saloon cars made by domestic automakers will comprise around 40 per cent of the nation’s car market.

Data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers shows that 4.58million Chinese brand passenger vehicles were sold last year – around 44.3 per cent of the total – and sales of domestic saloon cars hit 2.22million units, around 30 per cent of the segment.

The policy aims to accelerate consolidation between car manufacturers in the country and could lead to reshuffling according to industry insiders. There are currently more than 130 car manufacturers across the country, most of which are just small enterprises with sales below 10,000 units a year. Indeed only five had sales exceeding one million units in 2009 with the country’s top 10 manufacturers making 11.89million vehicle sales and accounting for 87 per cent of overall sales.

The leading car manufacturers in China include SAIC Motor Corporation, FAW Group, Chang’an Motor and Dongfeng Motor. Meanwhile the second tier is made up of the likes of Guangzhou Automobile, Sinotruk, Chery, Geely and Beijing Automobile.