India’s third Datsun, the redi-Go (codename – I2) will launch in India by March 2016, said Nissan Motors India Managing Director Arun Malhotra, while speaking to Economic Times.
Showcased as a concept at the 2014 Auto Expo in Delhi, the low-cost redi-Go will be based on Renault Nissan’s flexible CMF-A (Common Module Family-Affordable) platform, which also underpins the upcoming Renault Kwid. This will be the CMF-A’s second application after the Kwid, but the redi-Go will be clad in completely different clothes, with all-new styling to be centred around the signature, trapezoidal Datsun grille.
The redi-Go is also expected to share the Kwid’s all-new, BR-8, DOHC petrol engine, all of 3 cylinders and 800 cc. Developed by Renault-Nissan’s technical center at Chennai, the compact engine employing basic engineering will reportedly output 57 bhp, the most powerful car in its class. Fuel efficiency, promises the maker, will also be the best in class.
The redi-Go will also be heavily localized, with levels of localization expected to be in the region of 97-98% – pretty much like the Kwid. While the Renault, launching this Diwali, will retail for INR 3-4 lakh, the Datsun is expected to retail for even less! Watch this space.
Nissan plans to have exclusive 60 Datsun showrooms by 2016, up from the current 21, as part of its overall plans to open 300 showrooms in the country.
Source : ETAuto