The government has now given more clarity on the new Goods & Services Tax (GST) structure after releasing the rates for 98 categories of goods, including those for the automobile sector. Under GST, most vehicle categories will come under a standard 28 percent tax rate, along with a provision to separately levy an additional variable cess on any vehicle category.

“The rates are as per the expectations of the industry and almost all segments of the industry have benefited by way of a reduced overall tax burden in varying degree,” said Vinod Dasari, SIAM president.

The sub-four-metre small car segment will now attract a 1 percent cess for petrol models (less than 1,200cc) and 3 percent for diesel cars. This changes their effective GST rates to 29 percent and 31 percent, respectively, which is a slight increase from before and consumers might see a minor price increase in this segment. Taxation for mid-size cars and SUVs (length more than four metres, engines smaller than 1,500cc) will remain more or less unchanged at net rate of 43 percent. There is good news, however, for consumers in the market for large cars and SUVs (engines larger than 1,500cc) as there is now considerable reduction in indirect taxes from an earlier 50 percent to now 43 percent (GST of 28 percent plus cess of 15 percent).

In what seems like a bid to encourage the sale of electric vehicles, GST has been kept in a lower tax band of 12 percent; this includes two-, three- and four-wheelers as well. Surprisingly though, hybrid vehicles have been kept in the highest rate bracket there is, of 28 percent with an additional 15 percent cess (total of 43 percent), thus attracting the same amount of tax as a luxury car. This is especially significant since the government has been pushing to popularise clean and efficient vehicle technologies. This also seems like a setback for manufacturers like Toyota, Lexus and Hyundai, which have already committed significant investments towards hybrid technology.

"We were expecting some positive inputs towards hybrid vehicles but with the absence of that, and with the current taxation structure, there could be big challenges towards bringing in feasible hybrid technology. Luxury cars will definitely become cheaper by quite a bit. The impact on small cars will be negligible," Rakesh Srivastava, director (sales & marketing), Hyundai Motor India, told Autocar India.

Ownership costs of vehicles, too, are expected to rise, with auto parts now falling under the 28 percent tax slab of GST. This, along with 3 percent increase in the tax rate for services which now in total stands at 18 percent, could mean that vehicle servicing will cost more.

GST is expected to replace as many as 17 indirect central and state tax levies. The government has committed towards a deadline of July 1 for its rollout.

Courtesy : Autocar

It receives an upgraded engine, greater downforce, and a revised suspension.

The Volkswagen Up GTi has been revealed and, with 115hp, it packs more power than the original Golf GTi.

Set to go on sale in international markets in early 2018, the new Up GTi is the latest member of what Volkswagen officials recently suggested to our sister publication, Autocar UK, will become a larger and more prominent line-up of powered-up GTi models in future years. It arrives well into the latter half of the first-generation Up’s planned seven-year life cycle, providing the German carmaker with its first serious rival to the likes of the Fiat 500 Abarth and Vauxhall Adam S.

The new model receives an upgraded engine, greater downforce, and a revised suspension – all claimed to see it rise well above regular Up models in outright performance and handling terms.
Power is provided by a 115hp, 1.0-litre, three-cylinder, turbocharged, direct-injection petrol engine. It is backed up by 199Nm of torque between 2,000-3,500rpm.

Volkswagen is taking up the technical specification of the Up GTi’s engine, which also resides in the entry-level version of the recently facelifted seventh-generation Golf. Along with a stop/start and energy recuperation system, it receives a particulate filter that enables the compact three-cylinder to meet the new WLTP (Worldwide harmonized Light vehicles Test Procedure) emission standard.
A further development adopted by the new range-topping Up model is a so-called sound actuator. It provides a synthetically generated exhaust note aimed at enhancing the aural qualities of the 999cc unit.

Power is sent to the front wheels via a closely stacked six-speed manual gearbox. Volkswagen claims a 0-100kph time of 8.8sec and a top speed of 196kph.

A series of stylistic upgrades transforms the look of the Up, providing it with many of the classic GTi cues used by Volkswagen down through the years. Included is a new front bumper with additional cooling vents, round fog lamps with cornering light function and a plastic honeycomb grille insert. Above it is a GTi badge and the characteristic horizontal red feature line in the space between the headlamps.

Also included are GTi badges within the trailing section of the front fenders, adhesive stripes along the lower section of the doors, high-gloss black exterior mirror caps, standard 17-inch ‘Brands Hatch’ design wheels, and red painted front brake calipers. At the rear, there’s a uniquely styled spoiler atop the tailgate, together with a redesigned bumper featuring an altered valance within its lower section housing a single, round chromed tailpipe.

Along with the three-door version, Volkswagen has confirmed the Up GTi will also be available in five-door guise. Buyers can choose between five exterior colours – Tornado Red, Pure White, Dark Silver, Black Pearl and, new to the GTi line-up, Costa Azul. With the exception of Black Pearl, the new Volkswagen will also be available with an optional contrasting black roof.

The interior features a unique ‘red pixel’ trim within the dashboard, plaid check fabric upholstered front seats, a black roof liner, a multi-function flat-bottom steering wheel with red stitching, along with number of unique touches.

Among the standard equipment for the new Volkswagen model are a Composition infotainment system with six-speakers, a USB interface, air conditioning, heated seats, as well as electrical adjustable and heated exterior mirrors, and the aforementioned fog lamps with so-called static cornering lights.

Just a couple of days before the Supreme Court’s ruling came into play banning the sale of BS-III vehicles across the country, Yamaha India announced the launch of its 2017 model year fleet which meets BS-IV emissions norms. After this announcement, the company’s all motorcycles and scooters sold in the country will adhere to the more stringent Bharat Stage IV norms and will come with a mild update as well.

Speaking about updated features, all of Yamaha India’s two-wheelers come with AHO (Auto Headlamp On), which is just a fancy term for always-on headlights. This comes in light of a mandate set by a Supreme Court-appointed safety committee which put forth this feature to increase visibility of two-wheelers on Indian roads. With no on-off switch anymore, the headlights will be switched on automatically as soon as the engine starts and will continue to stay on until the engine is killed.

Coming back to Yamaha’s 2017 fleet, the updated models include all of the company’s Blue Core-powered motorcycles such as the FZ series (which features the FZ-S FI, FZ FI and Fazer FI), as well as the SZ-RR. These bikes retain all their features and do not come with any mechanical changes in this update. The FZ series continues to be powered by the 149cc, single-cylinder, air-cooled and fuel-injected SOHC motor that makes 13.2hp of peak power and 12.8Nm of torque. The SZ-RR too continues to be powered by a 149cc carburetted engine good for 12.1hp of power and 12.8Nm of torque. Yamaha’s 110cc Saluto RX, launched last year, was already BS-IV compatible to start with.

The company’s scooters now follow BS-IV norms as well. Again, there are no mechanical changes to the scooters and the Fascino’s and Cygnus Alpha’s 113cc engine and the V-belt variomatic transmission are untouched in any other way. Power and torque figures remain at 7.1hp and 8.1Nm, respectively. However, the Fascino gets a small visual update in the form of a two-tone paint scheme.

Courtesy : Autocar

Chinese carmaker Qoros has joined forced with Koenigsegg to develop a new four-door Super EV concept which will make a debut at the Shanghai motor show later this month. The concept’s also been dubbed 9 Qlectriq. However, its official name will only be announced at the event.buyreplicawatches.co.uk

According to a report by CarNewsChina, the EV concept has a 0-100kph sprint time of 3sec, and a range of 500km. Neither Koenigsegg nor Qoros has clarified the capacity of the battery pack or the power output.

A carbon-fibre monocoque makes up the car’s architecture, with four doors and four seats. The murky teaser images which have been released show a rakish but chunky coupé silhouette, with short overhangs and a similar layer surfacing appearance to the BMW i8.

Qoros showed an electric concept, as well as a cam-less-engined concept at the Guangzhou motor show late last year. But the 500km range of the Super EV dwarf’s that of the Qlectriq concept from the show.

Koenigsegg has previously stated on social media that it plans to look further into electric vehicles, although it’s not yet known if this latest concept is penned for production, or is an exploratory car. 

Courtesy : Autocar