Nano

Tatas Nano has received a lot of press in the UK. I do not know whether it was intentional (a planned PR strategy) or just plain straight forward news reporting.

Whatever the underlying reason, a lot of people here have heard about it. I have had 3 to 4 instances where people have asked me about Nano (presumably, just because I’m Indian). Most people have completely bought Ratan Tata€™s logic of cheap small car. I too am very proud of it not because someone made a 1-lakh car, but as an ambition it is truly spectacular.

I remember a year or so ago, reading an interview with Soichiro Honda, the top guy at Honda. He scoffed at the concept of Tata’s small car as trash. Such a statement coming from a Japanese company was quite ludicrous. In the 60’s when Japanese car makers such as Daihatsu, Nissan, and Honda etc wanted to enter the UK car market, they were ridiculed by British car makers such as British Leyland. Japanese cars at the time were horrid looking mash of European designs. So poor was their reputation that no one at the time considered that Japan could make cars, forget being a world leader. However, in the present day in the UK, Honda is one the top car companies by sales.

I am not saying it’s a miracle which will happen with Tata as well. However, I do think the possibility is truly endless. I do not even know if Nano is going to be successful commercially. Petrol prices are very high and are not going to be cheaper ever. Running and maintaining a car is not the same as maintaining a scooter. Maybe people will run it on LPG. Tata is probably not having a big profit margin. I would guess it would be somewhere around 5-10K, being very optimistic. Would this mean they will make up for that with expensive spares? 

And environment ? Pah, I dont even believe in Global Warming.

At the moment all looks well. Go! Tata.