Meet the world’s least expensive car, the Nano.
The car costs only $2,500, gets 50 miles per gallon and is supposed to bring the gift of rapid transportation to the world’s poor. It also looks a lot like Biggs’ car, which we often tease him about.
Made in India, the manual transmission Nano, created and designed by Tata, has a 33 horsepower, two-cyinder engine and enough room to hold four people. It’s the product of five years of R&D, with designers from all over the world (but primarily from India) chipping in. In total, more than 500 people worked on it.
Tata plans to introduce to other lower income areas like South America and Africa within the next four years.
Tata Nano, world’s cheapest new car, is unveiled in India [The Times via Drudge]
If its a two cylinder engine, won’t they have to mix the gas? If so, that’s a pretty serious inconvenience for any engine, let alone an automobile. I can’t imagine gas stations carrying pre-mixed fuel.
WTH are you talking about? My 2001 atv that’s still worth more than this does mixing automatically. One tank for gas, one for oil, it does the rest (and you can “manually” adjust it too! – “the miracles of modern science, I tell ya what”).
Yes, but its still an inconvenience. That must be a pretty high end ATV to be worth more than $2,500 after six plus years of use.
Two cylinder NOT Two Stroke. The two are different. This has a 4 Stroke Just it has 2 cyl. Being 4 stroke has nothing to do with the number of Cylenders. There are 4 Stroke 1 cyl motorcycle engines. The oil mixing id only needed for 2 stroke engines which this is not
well said
no oil gets mixed into fuel. its a 2- cyl. 4 stroke engine. only 2 stroke need oil mixed in.
You’re right, can’t believe I got those mixed up…long day. My bad.
Its a 2 cylinder ( piston) not 2 stroke engine which require oil to be mixed with gasoline. This is a 2 cylinder 4 stroke engine horizontally opposed as in a Subaru
Two cylinders is not 2 cycle. The article above mentions 2 cylinders which is probably still a 4 cycle engine and would not require mixing gas and oil.
it is a 2 cylinder motor, not a 2 stroke engine,
it easily can be a 4 stroke, 2 cylinder motor,
that wouyld use regular gas…
DAN
this will be a 4 stroke engine not a 2 stroke,even if it was a 2stroke it would have oil injection no mixing of oil and gas
That’s two Cylinder.. not Two Cycle, or Two Stroke.. it’s still 4 stroke.
No mixing of any gas required.
Two cylinder, not two cycle you dope.
Sorry, do some homework. 2 cyclinder is way different than a 2 cycle. Hey guy with the ATV, your stupid for not knowing that!!
I do know that. I was explaining that even lowly atv’s have the ability to mix and that “pre-mixed” fuel was way off base (not referencing the above vehicle in any way). Thanks for not being a 12 year old asshole there, Gus.
It’s a two cylinder, Not a two stroke
TWO CYLINDER NOT TWO STROKE. GENIOUS
It’s “genuis.” Genius…
Two cylinder, not TWO CYCLE
You are mistaking a two cylinder motor for a two cycle motor. The motor is a 4 cycle,no mixing of oil and gas, has fuel injection and a catalytic convertor and very low emissions.
Look at those “air intakes”.
This car probably has no emissions controls and I can only imagine the pollution generated from an entire country full of them.
Does anyone have stats?
Note: Someone should do a demolition derby or bumper cars with these.
Mr Paul,
Tata Nano complies with Euro-IV emission standards for your info. And please sell off your gas guzzling SUV and switch to small car if you are so concerned about pollution. Set example before you preach
Any vehicle that burns fuel at that rate cannot be worse for the environment than one that burns 20 or 25 mpg, whatever the pathetic US Standard is. Check out Pheonix motors in California, a 100 mile per charge quad cab pickup TRUCK with a ten minute charge rate and a batery life of 250K miles. Look at Apter with their 300 MPG hybrid, both vehicles slated for production late THIS YEAR. These are new companies, yet the Chevy VOLT isn’t slated for another TEN YEARS. My $75/week ($4000/year!!!!)commute could be as little as $10/wk ($520, minus oil changes). The technology is here. Get with it folks. The major car companies are not our friends! Be brave, Lobby for electric.
You could go to Dunkin Doughnuts and get a spare.
yet another idiot american whose arrogance and ignorance go hand in hand. india will rise. we invented numbers, sanskrit (mother of all european languages). without us, the industrial revolution wouldn’t exist. you accuse us of stealing your jobs, yet hotmail, bose, sandisk, sun microsystems and many socalled ‘american’ companies were founded or cofounded by indians!
dunkin donuts will do better than your trailer park, that’s for sure
I think the idiot here is you for calling him American Idiot!
In any case, your comments are weak, making reference to a couple of Indian Nationals (probably US citizens by the way), who created companies out here…. Think about how many Indians there are vs Americans…and how many more Nobel prize winners, successful companies there are that are from the USA vs India. You may have invented numbers and Sanskrit, but you did nothing with it. The US and Europe, with their high levels of innovation brought world development to the levels that we see today.
Don’t fool yourself, the only reason why India is becoming a player on the world economic scene, is thanks to its cheap service labor, and fluency in English.
Idiot. Indians didn’t do anything with numbers or Sanskrit. Infact, I bet you don’t even know Sankrit. And what’s next? If India invented the 0, do you also claim to have invented half the computer? Truly an idiotic comment.
lava, your illustrations are right but flawed. These people succeeded in US and else where but not in India. Ask why we can’t nurture talent in India itself.
Finally I can see some R&D picking up in India and hats off to RATAN TATA for producing a tool for masses with 54MPG and Euro 4 emission compliant.
BTW I won’t mind getting spare from Dunkin Donuts, most of them are owned by gujjus (Western Indians) anyways.
the car is euro iv compliant, and is meant for city roads i presume
Hi, thebonafortuna:
No need to mix gas and oil in the Nano, because it’s a two CYLINDER engine, not a two STROKE engine.
The Citroen Mehari (based on the 2CV) had a 2 cylinder engine (I had one for my first car, and I LOVED it), so did the Honda and Subaru minicars of the 60’s and 70’s.
cheers
Speedbird
I love it! I live in Southern Cal and it seems like I live on the road, I would drive a motor cycle but…not really interested in becoming an organ donor at this time. This seems like a nice compromise especially if you are generally the only person in the car.
Only problem is that your motorcycle is probably 5x safer than this ridiculous go-kart…
awsome!
This car will revolutionize the industry. Perfect commuter and urban car size, 50 Mpg and only $2500 new? No one can compete with that.
I wonder about cold climate performance, here in Minnesota, the roads have deep ruts and snowdrifts. English and some German cars don’t have heaters or defrosters capable of doing the job like Detroit models.
This car in current config will never make it to the US / europe because of the tough euro norms and safety standards. sales would primarily be focused in ASEAN / AFRICAn and South american markets
This car, as long as it is a four-wheeler, will never get DOT permission to drive in America. No roll cage, no airbag, no crash resistance. HOWEVER, if you importend them at that price and widened the front suspension and replaced the rear suspension with a single swingarm, making it a three wheeler, you could make a killing selling them legally as motorcycles, with the additional benefit of ridiculously low insurance rates. A genuine get-rich-quick scheme.
I’d rather buy a used car for $1000 that is twice the size and weight.
The car is revolutioning the world not India, even $2500 is too much for many Indians.
will it ever hit the streets of the US?
if it does, what do you think the US will jack the price up to?
i would like to pick up a couple of them.
this car is not meant for Minnesota or for that matter anyplace which gets considerable snowfall . it should be a wonderful change to a middle class indian family who will upgrade to the car from the dangerous family 2 wheeler. Hats off to TATA and good luck with the car.
Doubt it will comply with UNECE crash test regs and would probably get a .5 star in consumer crash test programs. May have some safety benefits for the third world by reducing motorcycles and clogging roads (travel speeds will drop dramatically) but would be a disaster for road trauma in western countries
Well despite not being able to pass any kind of meaningfull crach test the Indian Electric car Riva is wildly popular in Britain. With stuff like congestion charges and parking charges c car like this makes some sense. In india When we say that a lot op people die in Accidents we mostly mean pedestrians die. Usually in india people laugh as seatbelts cause cars mostly drive at about 10 to 15 mph
You shall go back and read the specs carefully. This car passes frontal and side crash test successfully. Why ur finding it difficult to digest that a < $2500 car can be produced or you are skeptical because its done in India.
Haha, typical reaction from a European American. You discredit the achievements of Indians in the USA because of jealousy. How many times have you kissed German ass, calling ‘Bose’ a German company? Trust me, I know some ignoramuses who were arguing with me that Bose was a German guy without even going to his website.
Your Nobel Prize doesn’t mean anything to me because its a western propaganda. Everything the Europeans achieved were from looting, stealing, barbarism, genocide…look at the history of American, Australia, Nazi Germany. There is nothing to be proud of. That is barbarism at its best. Arun Netravali (father of HDTV), Vinod Dham (father of pentium processor) all hail from India. You can insult us, talk about working in 7-11, etc. You can talk about your ‘achievements’ but we laugh and take comfort in the fact that Japan is far ahead of you in technology. “Oh the Japs copy”…yeah that’s why they have 2nd highest number of patents…I didn’t know you could get a patent by copying! You guys need lessons in Geography. No point in taking Europeans’ side because many Europeans have evolved and are smarter than European Americans who are ignorant and still live in racist, Eurocentric past..Just look at your redneck president! LOL!
Hey brother, U forgot to tell them,
that ‘America’ is a ‘mistake’ by an Italian half-wit sponsored by greedy Spaniard monarchs searching for India to ’share’ some of her fabled wealth!
that you white ignoramuses call the natives ‘Indian’ while the country referred to is half a world away!
that you now feel threatened we are reclaiming our position in the world! (and hence these wise cracks)
that inspite of knowing English, all Indians (atleast those living in India) also speak atleast their native language! V R gonna beat U playing your game by your rulez!!!!
I’m sure it will hit the US market. They’ll put auto and AC in, and bounce the price up to around $5K. Importers will jump on this car because they’ll see all the profits that they can make!
…and in doing so they’ll waste so much of the car’s limited horsepower that it’ll be useful primarily as a golf cart.
I want at least one of them. When will they be offered in the U.S. ?
I would be proud to drive one! When and how can I get one in the US. If anyone finds out how to purchase one PLEASE let me know!!!
I live in Dallas Texas….land of the Bigger is Better Universe. Hell No…I am not a native …DA!
Stephen
Hopefully we’ll see them in the US and if so, hopefully it’ll prompt the domestic and Asian manufacturers to come to their senses and lower their prices. If this unit proves to be reliable, how can anyone go wrong especially at 50mpg and $2500.00 They would be excellent for commuting, errands and for the grocery store. Just think you could park it anywhere and not have to worry about dents and scratches and it would pay for itself within the 1st 3 months of ownership, especially if one paid cash for it.
These aren’t intended to be cruising vessels, they were invented and designed for the purpose of cheap, economical transportation and if they arrive here and prove to be reliable I’ll purchase one with cash just to runaround in.
Good for the middle class in India…
http://tinyurl.com/2ln9hr
Actually guys you should give credit to engineers who involved in this car. It will change concept of commutes within city. Car has passed European emission test which means it is will not generate pollution + economical + passed safty test too. Car cost is $2500 and if we add more futures to make it compatible for western road then it will reach max $4000 though it is cheap. Currently in Europe and US SMART Car launced which is cost $16000 and give 40 miles per gallon and people crazy for this. So think if NANO launched in US it will make news…
If fatalities in India are 8% of total worldwide and only having 1% of the cars, wouldn’t having 5% of the cars bring their fatality rate up to 40% worldwide?
The engine is made by Bosch.
An awesome development for people living in developing countries like myself needing cheap affordable personal transport who don’t get Hummers and F150 on a cheap lease with zero percent financing for the first year and a cash back.
The engine is not made by Bosch. It’s Tata Motor’s own design. Bosch has supplied only the fuel injection system. get your facts right!!
God that thing is ugly.
ambivalent,
let’s not get carried away. this car is a marvel. who can make something like this so cheap yet make it a CAR? also, india is not prefered just because of cheap labor, its also the skill set of the ppl. mr. kava was only reacting to some dufus bringing the boring old dunkin donuts trick (jealous that indians are doing well business wise, i guess). get over your ‘west invented technology’ mentality, ever since 4th quarter of 20th century, japan has been a key player and developer in technology, and is way ahead of america in electronics and automotive design. ever wonder why american car plants shut by the 100s in the US recently? i’ve tried lexus ls460 and there’s absolutely no car like it…mercedes and bmw don’t come close to it. ok alexander graham bell invented the phone, so what…jagdish chandra bose invented wireless radio…now back to discussion! CONGRATS MR TATA! YOU DA MAN!
How much does a Lexus 460 cost?
Dis is an ideal car 4 any student. Jst imagine 18′ inch wheels on it nd a wicked colour skim. I wil b definetely gettin more botty !
I’m glad to hear you’re in school, because buddy, your communication skills suck.
What is the speed limit on the nano?
About 45MPH, so you really can’t take this thing on the highway.
only i can say – CHAK DE INDIA… you are really superb… RATAN TATA
CHAK DE RATAN TATA…
With the margin so low, how long TATA can afford to sell this. I hope Rupee appreciation will make it cheaper to import components and raw material. BTW Rupee appreciated 15% in last 15 months against dollar.
Can anyone tell wat all taxes extra to be borne in India to ge this???
There is a 12 percent value added tax and about INR 2000 (USD 50) in insurance. That is about it. So it will add about about 300 dollars more to the price of USD 2500, and the final on-road price will be 2800 USD. Some state govts in India are talking about abolishing the VAT for this car.
INDIA……………INDIA!…!…..!
624 CC. …26 K.M./LTR.
IT’S A SILENT & CUTE CAR!
the u.s. oil companies wont let this thing be sold here ….i would like one but lets face it …..the vice prez.is the or was the ceo of haliburton the largest oil well service company in the world …and the prez. owns stock int he oil companies and part of rowan drilling ..come on now ……they’l never let it happen it’s to good ….we americans cant handle something so simple
The USA would not ever let this auto come state side as the gas companies and the BIG FOUR (the car companies) would collaspe. Even though I hear people say they wouldn’t drive it, I think if it was avalible it would sell and US companies would fail or come up with a auto that could compete…. but that would make them(the companies) look like deceivers as they have been in bed with the oil companies for years…and only make bigger, gas guzzling autos for huge profits for themselves..Maybe we, as the comsumers should srat asking for a car priced for the masses andfuel ecomony…
there is nothing new in technology or invention here. All they did is make it smaller and that is good. I wish something like this in America, inexpensive, low fuel, and personal. It would be great just for me to go back and for to work during the week, and then use my nicer bigger car on weekends. That would be good for the environment, but also for my pocket. I am tired of giving too much of my hard earned money to the oil companies. Oil companies will campaing against these type of cars because it is not in their interest, and with the power they have this oil companies will prevail. That is what disgust me about this American system: profits come first, the hell with environment, suck the most u can from working class.
This is from an American.
Rolando, I appreciate your thoughts but your opening statements “there is nothing new in technology or invention here. All they did is make it smaller and that is good”, are incorrect. They have filed 34 patents for this particular product and you can file patents only for inventions. Read what the CEO of Bosch (one of the vendors who is providing the fuel injection system components of the engine) has to say about Tata Motor’s vision and why Bosch decided to join the project?
I know this thread is about 2 cylinders and not 2 strokes. But I am going to add my 2 cents with a different spin on it. Its not about Indians and American either. So I think and Indian guy writing some offensive language is pretty bad.
Tata is known for its integrity and good products. And this indigenous product coming from INDIA that is to say without collaboration. It is however to be applauded that TATA has broken many MYTHS relating to (Car Building) process vis-à-vis cost. Which so far only Japanese automakers have been able to achieve.
So is it a good car?, then the answer is, not for Matured market like Europe, N America. Its a car for emerging economies, and mostly for city driving. Not that it wont work on the Highways. For example in USA. minimum speed on the highway is 55 MPH that’s close to 90 KMPH and Safety Standards like Air-bags , even heating and cooling are mandatory and prudent. Hence it is not meant for such conditions. Maybe it can work for someone in NY CITY, barring the parking cost. I read somewhere and not sure how that works , but they said the Mobiltity increase productivity and hence the more economic success. If that case then , NANO will work for emerging countries.
All in all, as a challenge in car making, this is a break through. To harness the power of the car , there is much thinking needed. That is to say the India’s infrastructure of roads is not great , so many NANO’s on the road may have some problems.
It would be an nice car for example: for PARIS, NY CITY or ROME, where they wont allow big cars in the city but rent these cars for a few dollars a day to use them in the city.
But imaging No Limos in NY city would be shocking. I mean why become rich, if you cant flaunt it.
and for all the people talking about the environmental impact of a flood of cheap cars: the emissions from a million Nanos would be less than the pollution created from the US bombardment of Iraq. nuff said.
I would like to get more information about the Nano automobile that we seened on CNN TV. I got the size,how many miles per gal. of gas,things like that. But I would like to know if a person could order it direct from India? What it would cost to ship it to the USA ? Like to Indianapolis IN or Evansville IN ? Also I would like to know which car company here in the USA will be selling them? I would like to know what kind of oil it uses and how often you change it? Could you send me more information on the car like a manual for everything. I sure would like to get that information.
Mr.& Mrs. James C. Sanders P.O. Box 41 Shoals, IN 47581
Check their website:
http://www.tatamotors.com/
Please visit
http://www.tatapeoplescar.com and make your own car.
Good Luck
Who cares, it will never be in the USA, especially for less than 8k after tarrifs
I drove a Maruti 800 in India – minimal safety! I had paid 160K for that – so, 4000 US dollars. The doors were thin steel, and cardboard inside. First crash from a drunken guy shoved my car inside the truck ahead of me at the red light .. YIKES! .. and the repair took forever and everyone made money out of my misfortune.
Fast forward to US – friend of mine got rear-ended at very low speed (10 MPH) and his beloved Honda Civic, all of 2 years old, with a ton of safety features and airbags and seatbelt and 550 sensors got totaled! That makes my ZERO safety Maruti a better bet? I don’t think so ..
All said and done – Indian traffic conditions would make this new toy a pretty cannister pockmarked with cow horns, flying debris, Bajaj scooter handle nudges, push cart handles and a myriad such things.
THAT STILL DOES NOT TAKE AWAY THE WONDER OF A CAR PRODUCED FOR THE MASSES AT $2500 .. KUDOS!
PS. Enough bickering already – stop it guys and act your age.
Everyone seems to forget that the $2500.00 figure is the base model (no A/C or radio, in the warm climate of India!) Add transport to the US, tax stamps, cost of testing for EPA and DOT compliance, and the cost will be twice as high even before adjustment for the drop in the dollar’s value. Bottom line: don’t expect it here anytime soon. And it helps to have a dealer network and parts distribution set up in advance! A great achievement, but not one we’ll share in soon, sad to say.
My question is: If it can’t come State side then why dosen’t the US companies make a car for the masses? I will tell you why they are making so much profit from car sales and the oil companies $$$$$ big profits for them. If the big 4 car companies did come up with a car for the masses they would find a way to price it up…. The comsumer must stasrt taking control and stop buying the biggest gas guzzing car they can manage to afford and start to demand for fuel… real fuel efficiently… maybe they would come up with something for the people
EVER NOTICE EVERYTIME SOMEONE TRIES TO CUT INTO OPEC (A REPUBLICAN GROUP OF WEALTHY TESTICLES), THAT ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE…THEY DONT WANT YOU GETTING 50 mpg !!!! CUTS INTO THEIR
LARGE STEAKS, DRINKS, MISSTRESSES, AND EVEN SOME ILLEAGE PARTIES..
WISE UP AMERICA,, THEY ARE OUT FOR THEMSELVES… F U
Currently drive American econo-box to work, the thought of getting 1.6x gas mileage is lighter than air. I don’t need air cond. or a radio, need to get to work. Hurrah for those people.
hope it comes to the us soon, perfect for local stuff like, spa, shopping,going
to work, worship & taking kids to schools, movies, etc. Who cares what the
hell it looks like (personally I think its cute!)
I have read a lot of the buzz about the Tata Nano, its $2500 dollar price, and the around 54 MPG (I am betting that’s best case). What makes me smile, is it seems they have re-invented the 35 year old car I own. It gets 55 MPG on the road and 35 MPG around town. If it had todays technology, I’m sure it would do even better. On sale, the car was offered for $1450 brand new, plus tax, license, and dealer prep. I am talking about the 1972 Honda Coupe. Here are a couple of sites that give the low down. http://www.honda600coupe.com/Auto_Car_August_1972.pdf
http://www.honda600coupe.com/Motor_Trend_Jan_1972.pdf
$1450 in 1972 is not the same as $2500 in 2008 – therein lies the difference.
I have it on good authority that the design of this vehicle was stolen from the great Pakistani people. The actual designer was Raja Mal and plans were stolen by Indian terrorists. Please give no praise to the supposed Indian designers, as they have stolen from us once again.
Flame .. utter flame.
Don’t speak of stolen or looting. You bas…. have lloted our land and living it it proudly calling it Pakistan.
All these Rednecks with their comments, dudes, US dollar is collapsing so fast that it is no longer accepted in international tourist sites. ( Fox news : US dollar no longer accepted in Indian tourist sites )
Soon you will find this car expensive, and gas even more expensive; and for those who talk about pollution ( does bomb smoke cause global warming?) , we do read the news about oil floating around in Lousiana ; Florida everglades being destroyed , rain forests disappearing and a ton of laundry detergent and lawn chemicals that the average American dumps down their toxic mercury filled waterways.
They should rename it the “150 dollar a barrel” car, because that’s what we’ll be paying for oil if this thing becomes a big seller.
If the car was available in the US, I would buy one immediately provided that I would fit in the car 6 foot 3 inches tall, 220 pounds? It would be a second car great for short trips.
If Wal-mart had half a mind they could set the tone for the next 20 years. Wal-Mart has the ability to market and distribute this car to the masses. As Patrick said “it helps to have a dealer network and parts distribution set up in advance!” Well Patrick if that is all it takes, I for one think Wal-mart could and should do it. Cars should become a non durable good that we exchange as easily as we now change your car stereo, rims or tires. All someone needs to do is hard wire in a great stereo, cell phone, video game player GPS Map and PC into it, and the youth of the world would drive this car any where they were told to.
The next logical question I asked myself was; How long would one expect a $5000.00 car with these options last? I think that 3-5 years is 2-3 years longer than my 16 year old daughter or son could stand to keep it with out running it into the ground. This concept of car only needs to last as long as the payment, and in this new way of thinking that means the car would last for a life time. It would be great to think that I could put and keep my kid in a new car for $2500 down and $100.00 month.
The reason that you don’t see a picture of the engine compartment is because the engine and transmission are still in development. The car presented to the press moves around using a temporary electric motor.
This really needs to be put into the hosting market place in the USA. There are plenty of cpanel hosts who are more than willing to make this car available to their own hosting customers.
I imagine that there will eventually be a host of accessories to go with this car, especially after a year or two of marketplace presence…
http://www.trickmytata.com
We US hatters India HatterS iT’S A GOKART