23 March,2009 05:49 PM IST | | MiD DAY Correspondent
The Tata Nano, which was officially launched today in Mumbai, is all set to steer India into automotive history. The car is manufactured for the middle class population of the country who desire to have a safer means of transport at an affordable cost.
Few predict the snub-nosed Nano will not only be able to turn around the company, which has been beset by flagging sales and high debt, but also change the scenario of the automotive world.
Explaining the big impact of the small car, a blogger on latestcarblog.com says, "Prices of second-hand cars, mainly compact ones, have fallen 15-20% in the last few days. Call it the Nano effect. The demand for used cars in the country has fallen by as much as 25-30 per cent after Tata Motors' announcement of the launch date of the 'People's Car'." The blogger also adds that the sellers of new cars are being forced to cut rates as the demand is expected to fall further.
Another blogger too agrees with it and says, "The price will definitely replace the used cars. Used cars are just a pure consumption of goods for the middle class population. Now, with the introduction of Nano, the demand for used cars will certainly reduce."
With Bangalore and Mumbai being a corporate hub for many international companies, there is a huge demand for car rentals. With an economical price of Tata Nano, it is expected to take over the industry of car rental, he adds.
Not just the small cars and used cars, some day the launch of Nano will definitely have an impact on the two-wheeler market too.
A blogger on comfort-bike.blogspot.com says, "My views are that it will have some impact if not to a very large extent. The price band lies towards the top end bikes available in India, and the people who buy those bikes are the ones who have a fetish for stylish bikes. The other bikes in the range of Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 50,000 are probably not going to be hit as well because Nano is still 3 times more expensive than these bikes."
"Going by the Indians' mindset where car is indeed a big thing in each ones lives, there will surely be buyers who will come out of this Rs. 40-60,000 category to buy a Tata Nano instead. So probably this category of buyers would still use bikes for traveling and Nano as a statement of affluence - a proud car owner indeed," he adds.
