The very renowned motorcycle maker Bajaj Auto Ltd after achieving enormous success in the two and three wheeler segments, is finally gearing up to try its luck in four-wheeler segment of Indian industry. The carmaker has been developing its first car RE60 for a long time but some legal disputes have been hindering the launch of this Bajaj car in the country. RE60 was first displayed more than three years back at 2012 auto expo and has been flaunted as a low-speed four-wheeler intra city transportation vehicle.
The launch of the vehicle is delayed as the government is not allowing quadric-cycles hound on Indian roads. So till the time the segment gets nod from Ministry of Road and Transport, GOI, Bajaj has to wait to bring in its first car. Well, as of now, the company is displaying the vehicle at the Ceylon Motor Show being held in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In India, we can expect the car to roll out by the end of this fiscal.
If experts are to be believed, the upcoming Bajaj car will give competition to Tata Nano but the company denied the fact saying RE60 is not a car, infact it will be a passenger vehicle with seating capacity of 4 people. Bajaj explains the upcoming car as a substitute of three wheeler rickshaw with enhanced interiors and exteriors. The car is actually aimed to be a budget city mover that can unravel the problems of jam-packed traffic of Indian roads.
In terms of mechanical specs, the car would be powering by a 216cc single cylinder, water cooled engine competent to generate low emission as 60 gm/km. While the engine can make the vehicle attain top speed of 70kmph, the mileage is claimed to be around 30 kmpl.
As far as price is concerned, Bajaj RE60 quadricycle is likely to carry a price tag of Rs. 1.4 lac and its CNG variant is expected to be tagged at Rs. 1.8 lac. Detailing more about government’s policy on quadricycles, they have to put Q’ sticker to display their category and should have seating capacity of 4 passengers. Plus, there should be wipers and hard top and it shall be limited to use only in cities, towns and villages and highway with some limits on them.
Such vehicle runs on petrol, LPG or CNG. Looking at these specification, it is pretty clear that Bajaj RE60 complies with all the norms. So with the full policy coming into effect in some time, we can suppose the car to roar on Indian roads very soon and offer the masses a safer and comfortable approach of commuting.
Speaking about something on Bajaj entry in the segment, Renault- Nissan was at first interested in the Bajaj plan but unfortunately, no positive result came out. And later on, the company announced to first see Bajaj doing its part and then take final decision.
Coming to Bajaj’s operations in India, the maker manufactures three wheelers at its Aurangabad facility and the RE60 is likely to be produced from the same plant. With such a price tag, the upcoming car will be a matchless vehicle in the Indian auto industry. As per company, two variants of the car will be rolled out. One would be base model and other would carry some upmarket features. The car has already taken 4 years in its development and designing and now we wish to see the cute piece on roads soon. On export plans, Bajaj will ship the car to Bangladesh, African and Latin American countries and Sri Lanka.
