India’s struggling Tata Nano, launched in 2009 as the world’s cheapest car, unveiled a new, pricier variant of the jelly-bean shaped car on Monday featuring power-steering in a bid to boost flagging sales.
The latest model, called the Nano Twist, targets young people. It has power steering along with remote keyless entry, a four-speaker music system with bluetooth and a higher ground clearance for rough terrain.
Ranjit Yadav, president, passenger vehicles business, Tata Motors, said it was “loaded with trendy features” to make it a “smart city car to hang out with”.
The purple-coloured Nano Twist will be sold for `2.36 lakhs while the base model costs around `1.5 lakh.
When Tata Motors launched the Nano in 2009, analysts had said it would revolutionise how millions travelled in India. But after poor sales in recent years, it became clear the car’s unique selling point (low price) had backfired as aspirational Indians shied away from buying a vehicle tagged the world’s cheapest.
Tata Motors was seeking to reposition the car by adding features and making it trendier. In December, Tata Motors sold just 554 Nano cars, down 75 per cent from 2,202 cars a year earlier.
Tata Motors officials said Monday some 45 per cent of Nano drivers are between 18 and 34. Former Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata said shortly before his retirement in December 2012 it had been a mistake to market the Nano merely on its low-price, saying “various stigmas have been attached to it”.
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Nano with a Twist gets pricier
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