Tata Nano made all the headlines when it was first launched, mainly because of its minuscule size and even tinier price tag. It soon became a household name but then had to endure a sad demise. It was affordable and it was cute! Tata Nano was an extraordinary product from Tata Motors and we couldn’t be more thrilled to announce that the Electric version of the Nano has been spied.
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Now, don’t get too excited. It’s not the Tata Nano exactly. Tata Motors along with its collaborator, Jayem Automotives, way back in late 2017 announced their partnership and to develop and launch an electric version of the popular Tata Nano, which would be under the Jayem Neo brand.
And if you look at the spy shots, apart from the design which is a replica of the Nano, it doesn’t carry any Nano or Tata badges. Instead, it carries a Neo branding. Interestingly though, the story that inspired Mr Ratan Tata to build the Nano is equally as good as the product. He witnessed a family of 4 on a single motorcycle in heavy Mumbai Rains and that’s when he decided to develop the most affordable Indian passenger car and despite the costs involved, He kept his word and launched Nano in 2008 for INR 1 lakh. A moment to appreciate this gentleman!
Talking about the Tata Nano EV / Jayem Neo, it draws power from a 17.7 KW which translates 23HP, 23V electric motor which is supplied by Electra EV which interestingly enough, supplies under the hood powertrains for the Electric Tiago and Tigor as well. The maximum range woud be around 203 km and a top speed of 85 Kmph.
Tata Nano was unfortunately discontinued in April 2019 due to low demand. The safety norms were getting stricter and Nano’s cost of upgrading to new norms and its sales figure didn’t align and hence, it was discontinued. However, if the Nano is launched now, it has to be equipped with the mandatory safety features like Driver-side airbag, seat belt reminder, ABS and reverse parking sensor.
On top of that, if it’s launched after April 2021, it has to include co-passenger side airbag too. If it’s launched before April 2021, by June it has to comply with the dual Airbag safety norm. It remains to be seen if it’d be launched as Tata Nano electric or Jayem Neo.