About Sameer Contractor
Sameer ContractorConnect with this authorWith an unquenchable thirst for everything automotive, Sameer has always been the go to auto guy that his friends needed. So, it isnt exactly surprising that he chooses to do what he does. A Batman fanatic, Sameers wants to go roof-scaping on the Tumbler, while the Bat motorcycle is certainly on the cards and he plans to build one himself. An avid foodie, he has a road trip in order that will be taking him across the world in search for the best roads and the best cuisines. While his stress buster involves taking aimless motorcycle rides, do not get offended by his sarcasm.
Articles of Sameer Contractor
2019 Tata Nexon Kraz Edition Teased For The Festive Season
Tata Motors is all set to reintroduce the Nexon Kraz edition for the upcoming festive season, and the company has tweeted a teaser for the soon-to-be-launched special edition model. A lot of our readers will remember that the Tata Nexon Kraz Edition was introduced last year during the festive period, and the company is all set to bring it back with a funky new colour scheme. The teaser video reveals little about the special edition model but we get a glimpse of the orange and black paint scheme that is likely to feature on the subcompact SUV.
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F3: Jehan Daruvala Bags Podium In Feature Race In Round 7
Mumbai-based racer Jehan Daruvala secured a podium finish in the first race of the seventh round of the FIA Formula 3 Championship in Monza. The 21-year-old had a disappointing qualifying session that saw the driver start in 10th place on the grid. However, an impressive run in the feature race led to Daruvala bagging the second place on the podium in a hard-fought finish. Prema Racing's Robert Shwartzman won the race, inching closer to the championship title. Jehan continues to hold on to the second place in the driver standings.
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F3: Driver Alex Peroni Walks Away From Dramatic Crash After Going Airborne
The dangers of motorsport are evident and yet we have young talents from all over the world going and ahead achieving incredible speeds in those blisteringly fast machines. However, there is no denying that motorsport comes with a life risk and crashes do happen time and again. Fortunately, for Alex Peroni, the Formula 3 driver walked away from a nasty crash on Saturday during the qualifying session at the Monza circuit in Italy. The Campos Racing driver went airborne at the Parabolica, doing two flips and landing upside down on the fence. Alex encountered a sausage kerb around the bend that sent him airborne. The incident occurred just a week after the death of Formula 2 racer Anthoine Hubert, who passed away in a tragic crash at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit.
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WRC2: Arjuna Awardee Gaurav Gill Set To Participate In Rally Of Turkey
Rally racer Gaurav Gill will make his first appearance in the FIA World Rally Championship 2 (WRC2) with the upcoming Rally of Turkey. The racer recently became India's first-ever motorsport athlete to receive the prestigious Arjuna Award, in what is not only a big push for his career but a massive leap for the sport in the country. The Rally of Turkey will be held between September 12 and 15, 2019 and will see the rally driver enter his second season in WRC2 after making his debut in the championship with MRF last year. Earlier this year, Gill announced his collaboration with JK Tyre Motorsport and will be spearheading a new programme, under the association.
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Okinawa PraisePro Electric Scooter Launched In India; Priced At Rs. 71,990
Gurugram-based Okinawa Autotech has introduced the new PraisePro electric scooter in the country, positioned below the flagship iPraise in the company's stable. The new Okinawa PraisePro is priced at Rs. 71,990 (ex-showroom, India), which makes it substantially cheaper than the flagship offering and more affordable in comparison. The manufacturer says that the PraisePro e-scooter promises a low running cost of 20 paise/km, which makes it substantially cheaper to run than a conventional ICE scooter. The new offering will lock horns against a number of 125 cc scooters including the Honda Grazia, TVS NTorq 125, Suzuki Access 125 and the likes.
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Retro-Themed Hyundai 45 Concept Teased Ahead Of Frankfurt Motor Show Debut
The future is 8-bit. At least that's what Hyundai's new '45' concept suggests that was recently teased, ahead of its debut at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show. Inspired by the automaker's first model in the 1970s, the 45 fully-electric concept car will act as a symbolic milestone for Hyundai's future EV design, according to the company. The car that the automaker speaks of is the Hyundai Pony that was introduced in 1975 and was the first mass-market car in South Korea. The Hyundai 45 concept not only pays homage to the Pony but also takes a retro design cue or two for its EVs.
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Government To Push Scrappage Policy As Soon As Possible: Nitin Gadkari
The Minister of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Nitin Gadkari says that a scrappage policy will be announced soon. Gadkari was speaking at the 59th Annual Society for Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) convention today and said that the government is working on introducing a scrappage policy as soon as possible. The announcement comes at a time when the auto sector is reeling through a major slowdown that has catapulted with over 300 dealers shutting shop, 15,000 job losses. Over one lakh jobs are said to be on the line, according to ACMA estimates.
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Volkswagen India Announces 5 Year Warranty As Standard On All Diesel Cars
Volkswagen India may phase out diesel cars in the future, but the company is ensuring peace-of-mind for customers that bring home its diesel cars in the next couple of months. At the launch of the facelifted Polo and Vento models, the German automaker announced a standard five-year warranty across diesel vehicles in its volumes segment. The petrol versions, meanwhile, will continue with the standard four-year warranty that was introduced in January this year. VW becomes the second manufacturer after Maruti Suzuki to introduce a five-year warranty period for its diesel cars.
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Volvo XC90 Hybrid Excellence Lounge Console Launched In India; Priced At Rs. 1.42 Crore
The Volvo XC90 Excellence Lounge Console brings more grandeur to the Swedish SUV with a three-seater layout and lots of luxurious features.
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Kia Seltos Makes Strong Debut With 6200 Units Sold In First Month Of Launch
The Kia Seltos was launched in August this year at a highly competitive price of Rs. 9.69 lakh (ex-showroom, India). The compact SUV has been a long-awaited model and marked the South Korean carmaker's entry in India. While the model garnered over 32,000 bookings at the time of launch, the first sales report is out for the Kia Motors India and the brand sold 6200 units of the Seltos in its first month of sales, according to the date reported to SIAM. That's an overwhelming number for the SUV and the automaker, which has managed to outsell a number of old players including Ford and Renault.
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Mahindra MD Pawan Goenka Brings Home The XUV300; His First Car In 26 Years
Mahindra & Mahindra Managing Director Pawan Goenka is a proud owner of the XUV300 subcompact SUV. While Dr. Goenka heads one of the largest auto companies in India, and has had access to a number of products over the years, both in pre- and post-production form, the top boss finally decided to bring home the Mahindra XUV300, his first "self-owned" car in 26 years. The Mahindra boss took delivery of the new XUV300 in the dual-tone Red Rage shade on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, and shared images of his new prized possesion on Twitter.
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Maruti Suzuki Service On Wheels Initiative Launched
The Maruti Suzuki Service on Wheels Initiative aims to expand the automaker's presence across India, while offering a more convenient ownership experience to customers
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F3: Jehan Daruvala Moves Up To 2nd In Driver Standings After Round 6
India's Jehan Daruvala moved up in the driver standings to second after a promising weekend in Round 6 of the FIA Formula 3 championship in Belgium. The racer secured his sixth podium of the season finishing third in the feature race on Saturday at the Spa-Francorchamps, while the sprint race on Sunday saw the driver finish fifth, scoring crucial points in both races. The cumulative total has helped Daruvala to move to second in the driver standings with a total of 129 points, 23 points behind championship leader and Prema Racing teammate Robert Shwartzman.
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Revolt RV400 Electric Motorcycle Sold Out For September & October
Gurugram-based Revolt Intellicorp launched India's first AI-enabled electric motorcycle last month. The company introduced the RV 400 in the market, which has been sold out for the months of September and October this year. Revolt announced that the electric motorcycle sold out in Delhi and Pune, where the bikes are on sale currently, for deliveries till the end of October. Instead, prospective buyers can sign up for the second batch deliveries between November-December 2019. The company, however, has not shared the number of bookings it has received for the first batch.
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Two-Wheeler Sales August 2019: Royal Enfield Registers 24 Per Cent Drop
Chennai-based motorcycle maker Royal Enfield reported a decline of 24 per cent in monthly sales for August 2019. The manufacturer sold 52,904 units last month, as against 69,377 units in August last year. RE's volumes have been on a consistent decline, having fallen below 50,000 units in July this year, for the first time in three years. While sales have improved month-on-month, the volumes are still alarmingly low for the company. With respect to year-to-date sales, parent company Eicher Motors reported a sale of 290,798 units between April-August 2019, a 20 per cent dip in volumes over 363,801 units dispatched during the same period last year.
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Auto Sales Downturn In August 2019 Worrisome: SIAM President
The auto industry continues to face the heat of the economic slowdown that has affected the sector for nearly ten months. The sales reports of August 2019 saw a major drop in volumes with major players including Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Hyundai reporting a drop of 34.4 per cent, 58 per cent and 16.58 per cent respectively. The top six manufacturers dispatched a total of 171,193 vehicles to dealerships in August this year, registering a 34 per cent drop in volumes, when compared to the 259,925 vehicles that were dispatched in August last year. Meanwhile, top two-wheeler makers Hero and Bajaj have registered a plunge of 20 per cent and 13 per cent respectively in sales. The manufacturing figures and the piling inventories are alarming and has been described as worrisome by SIAM President, Rajan Wadhera.
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Two-Wheeler Sales August 2019: Hero MotoCorp Registers 20.6 Per Cent Decline
India's largest two-wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp reported a decline of 20.6 per cent in sales for August 2019. The company sold 543,406 units last month, as against 685,047 units sold in August last year. While the company registered a 1.5 per cent increase in volumes over July this year (535,810 units), the lower year-on-year sales are a result of the economic slowdown that is giving the auto industry a hard time. While sales have been restricted, Hero has commenced a number of after-sales and service initiatives to keep customers happy.
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Car Sales August 2019: Tata Motors Registers 58 Per Cent Drop In Passenger Vehicle Volumes
The slowdown in the auto sector is gravely affecting manufacturers and Tata Motors is the latest OEM to announce a massive decline in volumes. The company registered a drop of 58 per cent in domestic passenger vehicle sales for August 2019 with 7316 units as opposed to 18,420 units sold in August last year. The company's total sales (domestic + exports) for last month stood at 32,343 units, a decline of 48 per cent in volumes over 62,688 units sold during the same month last year. Tata Motors has reported its lowest sales in nearly two decades.
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F1: Leclerc Beats Hamilton To Secure First-Ever Win In Belgian GP
Scuderia Ferrari's Charles Leclerc bagged his first-ever Formula 1 win in the Belgian Grand Prix, after a dramatic start to the race. The Ferrari rookie managed to convert his third pole start of the season into a victory amidst a competitive grid, beating Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton for the top spot. The victory also marks the team's first this season after a couple of close calls and podiums finishes in the first half of the year. Leclerc dedicated the win to his friend and Formula 2 racer, Anthoine Hubert, who passed after a tragic accident during the feature race at the Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday. Completing the podium were Mercedes duo Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, while Ferrari's Vettel finished at P4.
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Car Sales August 2019: Toyota Sales Dip 24 Per Cent Amidst Slowdown
Toyota Kirloskar Motor registered a sale of 10,701 units in August 2019, witnessing a decline of 24 per cent in domestic sales, as opposed to 14,100 units sold in August 2019. The automaker continues to register the dip in volumes amidst the overall slowdown in the Indian auto sector that has affected both car and two-wheeler makers. The company's exports, however, nearly doubled last month with the company shipping 843 units, as against 481 units in August 2018. Toyota's total sales (domestic + export) for the previous month stood at 11,544 units, witnessing a drop of 14,581 units over the same period last year.
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