Current and Upcoming Affordable Cars With AMT in India
While there are some car manufacturers who have already taken the leap, there are others who are waiting patiently in the wings to bring out their products to woo the customers. We take a look at the present and future offerings in the world of affordable AMTs.
The segment of affordable automatic cars has gained interest recently. Looking at the growing traffic conditions in India, the trend of people wanting to drive automatic cars is increasing. But there's no denying that cars with automatic transmissions are expensive but there are car manufacturers who have found Automated Manual Transmissions to be the best and affordable solution to this problem.
While there are some car manufacturers who have already taken the leap, there are others who are waiting patiently in the wings to bring out their products to woo the customers. We take a look at the present and future offerings in the world of affordable AMTs.
Current Products
Tata GenX Nano
Tata Motors recently launched the GenX Nano with much fanfare and justifiably so. There are a bunch of changes that Tata Motors has made to this car. It now comes with a more up-market cabin, slightly updated engine, bigger fuel tank and exterior changes.
While the 2015 Tata Nano's exterior and interior look slightly different, the addition of an automated manual transmission and openable hatch are the two most significant changes given to the hatchback. The 5-speed AMT is the same unit that we find in the Zest.
AMT Mileage: 21.9km/l Price: Starts from Rs. 2.69 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi)
Maruti Suzuki Alto K10
Maruti introduced its automated-manual transmission - better known as AMT - in the K10 model of the Alto last year and though not a completely new product, the car does look slightly different than the existing Alto K10 and its overall length has been reduced by 75mm. It's bolder than before and more contemporary. Also Read: Maruti Suzuki Alto K10 Review
The Alto has always been a fun car to drive and adding the AMT transmission has only made it better. This new Alto K10 is perkier on performance also due to its reduced weight - it's almost 75 kilograms lighter than the regular model so the engine has lesser weight to drag. The gearbox is responsive in city driving and does perform well in traffic.
The Maruti Suzuki Celerio was among the first small cars to be made available with an Automated Manual transmission in India and the compact hatchback has been well received by Indian customers. Since its launch in February, the company has so far received a number of bookings and a big chunk of that has been for the AMT variant. In fact, Maruti Suzuki has been playing catch-up to the number of bookings on the variant to reduce the waiting period. MSI has worked on addressing three key issues associated with automatic transmission cars - high cost of acquisition, low fuel economy and maintenance hassles. Mileage: 23.1km/l Price: Rs. Rs. 4.14 lakh and Rs. 4.43 lakh(ex-showroom Delhi)
Tata Zest
Tata entered the field of AMTs with the Zest. The compact sedan was the first all-new product based on Tata Motors' 'DesigNext, DriveNext, ConnectNext' philosophy. The car has been designed with inputs from the three design studios of Tata Motors - Pune, Conventry (UK) and Turin (Italy). Also Read: Tata Zest Review
The Zest gets new Tata signature grille with the new 'Humanity Line', which flows into the head-lamps. Other fascinating design elements are projector head-lamps with chrome accents. But it is the diesel variant which comes with the AMT. The car is now easy to drive in traffic conditions and is better looking than the other cars in the line-up, however, the design still harkens to the Indica.
Maruti Suzuki received an overwhelming response for the Celerio with the AMT, so much so, that they had to double their order for the auto-box which is sourced from Magneti Mirelli. Maruti Suzuki has already started testing the car and there is a chance we'll see it soon. The Wagon R has seen a big fan following and though its boxy looks are a bit out dated, the tall boy design actually provides for exceptional interior space. Mileage on the current car stands at 20.51km/l and with the AMT, Maruti Suzuki will make sure that remains untouched.
Renault Kwid
Renault announced this new car recently and it will take on the likes of the small cars from the Maruti Suzuki stable. The new Renault Kwid hatchback is built on an all-new small platform - the CMF-A - developed by the Nissan-Renault Alliance. It will also come with a new 800cc, 3-cylinder, petrol engine that has also been developed by the alliance and according to the company, the car will return the best-in-class mileage, but a clear stunner would be if Renault packs it with an AMT, which could just be the master stroke of Carlos Ghosn's plan for the Kwid in India.
Considering that Maruti Suzuki already has plans to equip more AMTs in their line-up, the plan would be to have it in every segment and hence the Swift hatchback and the Dzire would be the obvious choice as they have been bestsellers for Maruti, all these years. It's likely that the diesel variant of the Dzire could get an AMT to tackle the likes of the Tata Zest.
Mahindra Quanto
At the 2014 Delhi Auto Expo, Mahindra showcased the Quanto with an AMT which they called autoShift. The Quanto will be the first compact SUV to come with this transmission and it is likely that this is part of the 9 cars the company plans to launch this year. The Quanto facelift is also one of the products to be launched this year and we might see the car come with an AMT.
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