- A team of 500 people worked on creating the Nano - Tata aims to prove that India can compete on the world market as an innovative car maker.
It is 3 metres long, seats four comfortably or five at a squeeze, does 65mph and aims to revolutionise travel for millions. The “People’s Car” is also the cheapest in the world at 100,000 rupees (£1,300) – the same price as the DVD player in a Lexus.
The Nano, from Tata, the Indian conglomerate bidding for Jaguar and Land Rover, was unveiled at the Delhi Auto Expo yesterday to music from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Ratan Tata, the company chairman, harked back to the first flight by the Wright Brothers and the Moon landing as he revealed the cute, snub-nosed hatchback that will allow millions in India’s emerging middle classes to buy a car for the first time.
“I hope this changes the way people travel in rural India. We are a country of a billion and most are denied connectivity,” he said. “This is a car that is affordable and provides all-weather transport for the family.”
The aluminium shell contains a rear-mounted 33bhp two-cylinder petrol engine and weighs about half a tonne. The standard version comes with the vital features: brakes, a four-gear manual transmission, seatbelts, locking, wind-down windows and a steering wheel. A small boot could store a duffel bag. It lacks a passenger-side mirror and has one windscreen wiper. The deluxe version will have air-conditioning while extras such as a radio and an airbag could be added.
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