Ajanta Group working on e-car for India: Zindabad!!!

The Ajanta Group, which already sells electric scooters in India under the Oreva brand, claims it will soon launch its electric car in the country. Though technical details are not available at this time, Rakesh Nathwani, Oreva’s national marketing head, claims that the car will be able to run 200-250km on one full battery charge.

It is ironic that Tata Motors have finally chosen Sanand village in Gujarat where the Nano will be made, because the Oreva electric car – which is also expected to be priced at around Rs one lakh – will also be made at Morbi, in Gujarat. Ajanta/Oreva already manufacture their e-scooters at their facility in Morbi, and will also launch their e-car from the same factory.

Tata Motors to introduce Air Car

India's largest automaker Tata Motors is set to start producing the world’s first commercial air-powered vehicle. The Air Car, developed by ex-Formula One engineer Guy Nègre for Luxembourg-based MDI, uses compressed air, as opposed to the gas-and-oxygen explosions of internal-combustion models, to push its engine’s pistons.

i-MiEV Jadi Taksi di Tokyo

Jika Anda pergi ke Tokyo sekarang, dan ingin naik taksi, kini ada pilihan taksi listrik. Setidaknya jika Anda sedang berada di distrik Otemachi, Marunouchi atau Yurakucho siang hari.

Adalah perusahaan Hinomaru Pramutamu yang kini menggunakan Mitsubishi i MiEV untuk armadanya, membuatnya menjadi yang pertama di Jepang yang menggunakan kendaraan listrik untuk disewakan.

Seperti dilansir Autoblog, Senin (22/3/2010) tarifnya juga tidak berbeda dengan perusahaan taksi lainnya, yaitu 710 Yen untuk 2 km pertama, dengan area lokal dan informasi pusat-pusat wisata.

Tidak hanya sekedar ramah lingkungan, kenyamanan pelanggan pun sangat diperhatikan, dengan menggunakan sopir wanita, serta penyajian minyak aromatik yang menyenangkan untuk membantu Anda rileks di dalam kabin.

Diberi nama The Zero Taxi Service, i MiEV taksi ini akan secara resmi diluncurkan hari Kamis minggu ini, di gedung Mitsubishi di Marunouchi, dimana nantinya media diberikan kesempatan menjajal taksi listrik ini gratis.

Di Tokyo, i MiEV akan mendampingi mobil ramah lingkungan lainnya seperti Prius yang menjadi armada taksi.

LIPI Lebih Memilih BUMN Untuk Produksi Massal Mobil Hybrid Made in Indonesia

Lembaga Ilmu dan Pengetahuan Indonesia (LIPI) berharap ada Badan Usaha Milik Negara (BUMN) yang tertarik pada mobil hibrida garapan LIPI dan berniat untuk memproduksi mobil itu secara masal.

LIPI sendiri selama ini sudah bekerja keras untuk membuat mobil konsep yang ramah lingkungan dan juga hemat dalam penggunaan bahan bakar sejak 2005 hingga saat ini proses pengembang terus dilakukan.

Hal itu diungkapkan Deputi Ilmu Pengetahuan Teknik LIPI Syahrul Aiman di Bandung.

"ATPM mobil tentu susah karena mereka sudah concern pada produknya. Nah yang kita harapkan ada BUMN yang tertarik memproduksi massal mobil tersebut," ujar Syahrul.

Kenyataan itu tentu berat bagi LIPI, sebab persaingan mobil di zaman sekarang tentu ketat karena setiap produsen mobil dituntut untuk menciptakan mobil yang layak.

Menanggapi hal itu Syahrul menyatakan kesiapannya untuk membuat mobi tersebut bersaing dengan mobil hibrida lainnya.

"Kita tentu siap bersaing dengan yang lain," yakinnya.

Sebelumnya LIPI telah berhasil mengembangkan mobil konversi listrik dari sasis Toyota Kijang.

Satu lagi mobil hatchback atau si bungkuk yang saat ini pengembangannya terus dilakukan untuk mendapatkan titik maksimal. Si mobil hibrida hatchback itu mengadopsi mesin berkapasitas 160 cc.

Mobil Texmaco Macan MPV

Macan, Kendaraan sejenis MPV dengan kapasitas mesin 1.800 cc dari PT. Texmaco, dengan menggandeng Mercedes Bens PT. Texmaco mengeluarkan kendaraan ini, dan satu unit prototype sudah dipamerkan di arena pekan Raya Jakarta pada pertengahan tahun 2001

Mobil Super Irit UGM

Marussia B2, Jati Diri Supercar Rusia

Russia unveils 20-billion-dollar plan to save car industry

The government unveiled a plan to invest almost 20 billion dollars over the next decade to transform the embattled Russian car industry into a major global player.

Some 584 billion rubles (19.6 billion dollars) of state funds will be invested in the car industry to 2020, Industry Minister Viktor Khristenko said after a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

"Our end goal is to have in this country a modern auto industry which includes the whole supply chain up to the end product," Putin said, according to a transcript of his remarks on the Russian government's website.

"We need to work hard to make the national auto industry more competitive," he added.

Russia's auto market, before the global financial crisis considered to have the best growth prospects in Europe, shrunk 49 percent in 2009. It has begun to stabilise but in January, it was still down 37 percent compared with a year earlier.

Worst hit by the crisis has been Russia's biggest carmaker Avtovaz, builder of the Lada car and employer of more than 100,000 people, which officials admit has been pushed to the brink of bankruptcy by the crisis.

Putin praised Russia's success in attracting virtually all the world's top auto manufacturers to invest in the country and manufacture their brands at Russian plants.

Including investment by foreign auto companies, the government expects a total of up to 1.2 trillion rubles (40 billion dollars) to be invested in the auto industry by 2020, Khristenko said.

Eritrea may buy buses from Mowasalat

Eritrea may buy buses from Mowasalat as part of a co-operation agreement that is expected to be signed soon by the two sides.

Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki, during a visit to Mowasalat headquarters yesterday expressed interest to strengthen co-operation with the company to promote the public transport sector in his country.

Afewerki was in Doha in connection with the Darfur peace agreement that was signed here on Tuesday.

The President was received at the Karwa headquarters by Mowasalat chairman and managing director Jassim Saif Al Sulaiti, its business development director Ahmed Al Ansari and other senior company officials.

More than 120 Eritrean drivers working with Mowasalat greeted their President waving the Eritrean flag. Afewerki toured the various facilities at the new Karwa City that is getting ready at the Mowasalat premises in the Industrial Area.

“The visit came on the initiative of the President himself. This marks a continuation of our partnership in the public transport sector. We have a number of Eritreans working as drivers and other staff in our company. We hope the visit would help expand this co-operation to more areas,” said Al Sulaiti, addressing a press conference at the end of the visit.

“We are looking forward to signing a co-operation agreement with Eritrea in the public transport sector,” he added. He hinted that Eritrea may buy a few buses from Mowasalat as part of the partnership.

“The scope of our co-operation is wider than the purchase of a few buses. It would expand to the IT sector, public transport systems and models. The President was deeply impressed by the range and quality of our services,” added Al Sulaiti.

Tunisia to sell Morocco-made cars

Tunisia will begin selling a Moroccan-manufactured automobile, Trade Minister Reda Ben Mesbah said in Tunis on Friday (January 8th). The deal to market the "Renault Logan" comes nearly three years after the Agadir Agreement exempted cars made by member states Tunisia, Morocco, Jordan and Egypt from customs tariffs, MAP noted.