Autocar Professional’s August 1 (South India Special) rolls out

Autocar Professional’s annual South India Special has rolled out of production. This made-in-India 88-page edition is a microcosm of all that the region represents to India’s automotive industry – tough, dynamic and innovative.

And it's set to get better as seen in the host of component industry news and features in this issue.

It’s this vision along with future challenges which Vikram Kirloskar, deputy chairman (Southern Region) of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and vice-chairman of Toyota Kirloskar Motor, reveals in his exclusive interview. He has also called for South India to promote more Tier 2 cities and to develop more plug-and-play clusters.

We also speak to Hidehiro Ishiura, director-general in Chennai for the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), on the many initiatives it is driving, particularly in the auto industry. He also points out that if India improves the ease of doing business, then there’s a flood of Japanese SMEs waiting to invest in the country.

Even as the government puts its shoulder to the wheel of electric mobility, we reveal how Mahindra Reva’s new growth strategy as a powertrain supplier just might give it a new charge.

Be it cars, two-wheelers or commercial vehicles, the indelible march of electronics content is getting stronger by the day. That is just what the doctor ordered for Visteon Automotive Systems India whose Chennai plant, Visteon’s largest in South East Asia, is keen to capitalise on the Indian two-wheeler sector’s graduation to electronic instrument clusters.

Autocar Professional is the first publication to visit Toyota Industries Engine India’s brand new engine plant at Jigani in Bangalore. Find out why the company is bullish on growth and could also consider manufacturing smaller diesels than the 2.4 and 2.8-litre GD engines it is producing for the latest hit in the town – the Toyota Innova Crysta.

India is the engine of growth for many global component suppliers and the upcoming BS VI emission norms are turning into a huge opportunity for them. Read what Murali Vaidyanathan, managing director of the Chennai-based Hanon Systems India, has to say on the growing demand for powertrain cooling and HVAC products.

Coimbatore-based Tier 1 supplier Pricol Ltd has embarked on a new phase of growth with a new set of strategies for the domestic and global markets. Our cover story uncovers the full details.

Connecting rods major Sansera Engineering is riding a wave of demand for its products, both in India and abroad. We reveal that the company, which has Rs 300 crore worth of new business in the bag, is now targeting a Rs 1,500 crore turnover within three years.

South India’s component giant, the Rane Group, drives into this issue through Rane (Madras) which manufactures steering, linkage and diecast products. This company, which posted sales of over Rs 800 crore in 2015-16, is consolidating its domestic business, aggressively driving exports and innovating to achieve speedier growth.

If you thought robots are the sole preserve of only large corporations, then Universal Robots will prove you wrong with its cobots or collaborative robots. Get the full information on this company’s small and versatile cobots which can be used for a host of light jobs and are ideal for SMEs in the Indian auto industry.

Car buyers today are increasingly looking at improved interiors and a pleasant cabin ambience. German filter major Mann+Hummel Filter is currently working on developing anti-bacterial and anti-allergic cabin air filters to shut out bacteria and hazardous gases. We visit the company’s R&D Centre in Bangalore to know the latest on the products.

Hungry for more? You got it. The exciting News section packs a punch and more. Do you know that the TVS-BMW G 310 R motorcycle will ride on Michelin tyres when it rolls out of TVS Motor Co’s Hosur factory later this year? Or that Union Minister Nitin Gadkari open invitation to Tesla Motors to set up a plant near a port in India could materialise? Or how 3D printing technology has enabled Mercedes-Benz Trucks to make spare parts on demand – even if it is a single piece?

There’s lots more still but that would be letting the cat out of the bag. Read the one-of-a-kind South India Special – and also share it with your team. 

Where to buy?

Autocar Professional magazine is available through all good newsagents and for download from Magzster.

You can also buy one-off copies of Autocar Professional magazine – contact Ganesh at ganesh@haymarket.co.in.

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