A newer, greener car rebadged as the GM Belchfire 2?? 0-60 in one-half an hour?
GM Belchfire 2?: Tata Nano Hybrid and Hot Rod Coming to Market
The world?s cheapest car is about to get greener and sportier.
A hybrid version of the tiny Tata Nano has been confirmed by Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Motors, according to South Korea?s Maeil Business Newspaper.
The current gasoline-powered Nano ? on sale in India since April ? is hardly a gas guzzler. Powered by a tiny, 35-horsepower 2-cylinder gas engine, the Nano is capable of approximately 50 miles per gallon. A greener variant of this engine (or the larger 3-cylinder motor planned for export markets) could make the Nano the world?s cheapest hybrid.
Mr. Tata did not elaborate as to when a Nano hybrid might go on sale, or offer specifics regarding the powertrain.
More likely to appear first is a hot-rod version of the Nano ? or something close to it. D.C. Design, a car customizer based in Pune, India, is planning to release its modified Nano in early 2010, reports the Business Standard. The transformation comes complete with massive front grill, blistered fenders, alloy wheels and over-sized air intakes. Not since Wayne and Garth cruised Aurora, Ill., in a flamed powder-blue AMC Pacer has there been a more ironic custom car.
?The world?s cheapest car has thrown up a few interesting scenarios,? said Dilip Chhabria, founder of D.C. Design. ?Firstly, we think the world?s cheapest car does have a lot of sex appeal ? in fact its silhouette of one sweeping arc is quite unparalleled and lends itself to customization.?
During my drive of the Nano earlier this year, I praised the cute tortoise shell-like exterior. In comparison, the D.C. Design model appears to have taken inspiration from Darth Vader?s helmet. The outrageous exterior screams high performance, but the engine offers only a mechanical whimper. Accelerating from 0-60 miles an hour takes approximately 30 seconds ? making the Nano 15 seconds slower than the Smart Fortwo, presently the slowest accelerating car sold in the United States.
But according to Mr. Chhabria, Nano customers are looking for design exclusivity on a tight budget. ?Because it is so cheap, it has spawned, we think, a whole new segment,? explained Mr. Chhabria. ?For a customer spending 80 percent value as a D.C. addition, it still is cheaper than other entry level car ? albeit a highly differentiated and exclusive one.?