Branded Performance divisions, stock performance cars

1. Nismo (Nissan): Abbreviated for NIssan MOtorosports International, the branch of company takes care of taking the cars to the gym for beefing up. A seperate entity now under Nissan the company was formed in 1984 with the merger of Special Car Testing division and Publication Division 3. The first car built under Nismo was the Saurus.

What followed after the Saurus was Nissan's global success, the GT-R Skyline.

The company provides spoilers and diffusers, alloy wheels, engine and suspension parts for all Nissan, Datsun and Infiniti cars. An annual Nismo fest is also held to show off the Nismo designs every year.
website: http://www.nismo.co.jp/

 2. Abarth (Fiat): Abarth was created as a separate entity than Fiat in 1949 by Austrian Italian Carlo Abarth. After years of successful racing results Fiat finally decided to buy out the performance company in 1971 after which Porsche and Simca did not get the performance support and Fiat was the sole benefactor. Some models built by Fiat or its subsidiaries Lancia and Autobianchi were co-branded Abarth, the most famous being the Autobianchi A112 Abarth, probably the most popular "Boyracer" vehicle of its time on account of its lightness and low price.

 For comparison, a 2007 Fiat 1.4 500 makes 100 horses and 130nm of torque from its stock engine. Abarth engineers unveiled to the market an Abarth Assetto Corse 500 with 200 horses and 300nm of torque.

The brand did see a dip in market recognition during the 1990's and 2000's but Fiat relaunched it in 2007 looking at the compeition with a Fiat Punto Abarth. www.abarth.it

3. STI (Subaru): Subaru Technica International is the motorsports division of Fuji Heavy Industries Car brand Subaru. The company specializes in the preparation of a variety of vehicles for the Subaru World Rally Team which competed in the World Rally Championship (WRC). Formed in 1988 Subaru's STI was one of the last entrants in the field from Japan.

Traditionally "Cherry Blossom Red", as it's called in the US or "Rubine Red" as it's known in Australia (both of which are actually rather pink) is used as STi's signature color. It is seen as a masculine colour in Japanese culture. STI also provides parts for racing and street applications in Japan. In the US, STI parts are distributed and sold by SPT (Subaru Performance Tuning) although increasingly they are being made available under the STi name. http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp

 4. F (Lexus): The newest performance division from Lexus was formed in 2006. The "F" stands from flagship and Fuji Speedway which is the main testing site for Lexus performance cars. The company started operations by launching the Lexus IS-F model in 2006.

The company launched a production supercar in 2010 to compete directly with Nissan GT-R and Lancer FQ successfully with a4.8 L 1LR-GUE V10 engine.

The accessory line from 'F' series is branded as F-Sport and the company is currently working on "F" versions for the complete Lexus lineup. www.lexus.com/f-sport

5.MazdaSpeed (Mazda): MazdaSpeed began life as Mazda Sports corner in 1968 through a local Japanese dealer for his performance and racing team. In 1991, Mazdaspeed car won at Le Mans, a feat no other Japanese team has managed.

Mazda took over complete ownership in 1999 of what was now MazdaSpeed. The predecessor of Mazda 3, the Protege was the first actual car to have the MazdaSpeed treatment.

Mazdapseed is now applied to the complete lineup from the company and a dedicated racing tournament is also held. www.mazdausa.com

6. AMG (Mercedes-Benz): Formed in 1967, the company was then known as AMG Engine Production and Development, Ltd. The letters "AMG" stand for Aufrecht, Melcher and Grobaspach. In 1990, Daimler-Benz AG and AMG signed a contract of cooperation, allowing AMG to leverage Daimler-Benz's extensive dealer network and leading to commonly developed vehicles. On 1 January 1999 the company acquired 51 percent of AMG shares, and AMG was renamed to Mercedes-AMG GmbH. On 1 January 2005 Aufrecht sold his remaining shares to DaimlerChrysler, and since then it has been a wholly owned subsidiary.

AMG is only one of the few company performance divisions that handle complete engine changes. AMG is also the supplier of engines for the Pagani's Zonda supercar.

While AMG remains the company arm, Brabus, Renntech and Kleemann also specialise in only Mercedes-Benz performance cars.www.Mercedes-AMG.com

7. SRT (Chrysler): Short for Street and Racing Technology, SRT was formed in 2004 with the merger of performance arms for Plymouth and Dodge Viper. Unlike with other companies, SRT is used by chrysler for all Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles.

The number that follows the "SRT" prefix denotes the number of engine cylinders the vehicle has. For example the Chrysler 300C has a 5.7L Hemi V-8; Therefore the SRT version is known as the Chrysler 300C SRT-8, which has a 6.1L Hemi V-8. Similarly, the Dodge Viper SRT-10 along with the Dodge Ram SRT-10 have an 8.3L V-10.

Apart from SRT, Dodge cars also use R/T monikers (Road and Track) for their cars. www.drivesrt.com

8. Quattro (Audi)- Quattro was initially the All wheel drive system derived by Audi to compete with BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Later a sports car was named by Audi as Quattro in 1980. Finally Audi took over Quattro as the name of its performance division in 1983.

Quattro primarily specializes in producing high performance Audi cars and components, along with purchaser specified customizations. While not marketed openly, Quattro GMBH is also responsible or high performance Audis like the RS4, S and the R8. Also Quattro is not allowed to sell directly to the public like other performance arms. However, it does now sell 'quattro GmbH' branded lifestyle products and accessories via Audi franchised outlets.

A similar operation called "Volkswagen Individual GmbH", founded February 2003, is provided for Audi's VW Group sister company Volkswagen Passenger cars at Wolfsburg. Volkswagen Individual GmbH produce the Volkswagen ".:R" series of cars, including the Golf R32 and the latest Passat R36, and are also able to provide purchaser requested customisations under the "Volkswagen Individual" label, similar to "Audi exclusive", during the initial factory manufacturing process. This service is also offered routinely to purchasers of Volkswagen Passenger Cars 'flagship' models - the Phaeton and the Touareg, at their respective plants.
www.audi.com, http://microsites.audi.co.uk/microsites/SLine

9. SVO/ SVT (Ford): SVO stands for Special Vehicle Operations under Ford Motor Company. Founded in 1981, SVO was one of the pioneers to design and develop performance parts and accessories related to the company's racing programs. The first ever car built was the Mustang SVO. The SVO Mustang was designed to compete directly with European sports sedans like BMW 3 Series.

Lately, Ford has let the SVO brand stay in the background, but a Ford Mustang 2015 version is to debut under SVO plate. Under the absence of SVO, Ford has let Special Vehicles Team (SVT) take to the forefront. Ford is planning to globalise their SVT operations.

Speculation suggests that as a result of Ford's plan to globalize their vehicles, SVT and the European RS division will merge, thus aligning all American and European performance vehicle activity together. www.fordperformancegroup.com

10. M-BMW: BMW M, also known as M-Technik or just "M" (for Motorsport) was initially created in 1972 to facilitate BMW’s racing program, which was very successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Later, BMW M began to supplement BMW's vehicles portfolio with specially modified higher trim models. These M-badged cars traditionally include modified engines, transmissions, suspensions, interior trims, aerodynamics, and exterior modifications to set them apart from their counterparts.

Vehicles which have been modified by BMW Motorsport, but are not full M Cars, may feature "M" badges, whilst full M Cars will have "M" badges with the model number. In recent years, there have been M-badged accessories available on non-M cars, usually as factory options

Cars under the Mini Cooper Brand and Rolls Royce brand do not use the M lineup of parts. Like Brabus, BMW supplies cars to Alpina for performance enhancements which operates independantly. http://www.bmw-m.de.com/

Special Mention
Mustang- Shelby:  While there are performance brands for multi brands or complete brand line-ups, one car stands out. The Shelby Mustang has its own charm that wins against any other Mustang version or Shelby tuned car. The Shelby Mustang grille replaces the running horse logo with that of a Cobra which is now equally recognized over the world. www.shelbyautos.com

Ralliart (Mitsubishi): Founded in 1984, Ralliart is the only Company performance division which was as well known as the company itself. The operations were scaled down in 2010, but Ralliart brand will be continued on performance vehicles after the loss making company was hit badly during the recession. Licensed by the Ralliart division, Mitsubishi's UK arm builds a special version of the Lancer Evolution which is more powerful than any of its siblings badged as FQ (which stands for Fucking Quick) . The FQ models have been tested to be better performing than Super-cars like the Koeniggsegg, Ferrari and Lamborghini. www.ralliart.com

*- Information sourced from various articles including www.wikipedia.com

Ten things Tata should do to turn into a global manufacturer

Tata has long been a major player defining the Indian car market. Currently the second largest car maker including trucks, TATA has worked hard to make the Middle class Indian mobile with the Nano and the Indica. But more than two decades of experience has not helped TATA reach the mantle of a global carmaker apart from the Jaguar Land Rover acquisition. Here are some important changes the company needs to focus on to appeal to a wider audience.

1.  Better Engine Platform Utilization: Over the years Tata has developed a lot of engines in both Petrol and Diesel configuration. To add to the range for competing better in the market Tata has also sought Fiat's help (Fiat India is a 50:50 venture) for holding a wider range of engines and gearboxes.  Including Jaguar, Land Rover and Fiat acquisition Tata at the moment has

Tata Indica/Indigo/XL/Marina Platform
Tata Vista/Manza platform
Tata Nano/Pixel/MagicIris/ Ace Platform
Tata Safari/ Aria/ Grande/ Xenon platform
Tata Sumo/TL platform
Tata Winger platform ( based on Renault Trafic design)
Tata Venture platform
Jaguar XJ
Jaguar XF (Ford platform)
Jaguar XK
Land Rover Defender
Land Rover FreeLander (Ford Platform)
Land Rover Discovery/ Sport platform
Land Rover Evoque paltform
Range Rover Platform
Fiat Linea/ Grande Punto Platform
Fiat Palio Stile platform
Fiat 500 platform

In Total Tata has 18 platforms in its kitty to maintain including the luxury brands and the fiat venture. While major car makers today are cutting down on platforms to increase the margin, Tata has an huge number of platforms at its hand. The company needs to reduce the platforms for a better capacity utilization and economies of scale. Also more car designs such as a coupe and convertible are needed too.

The current generation Sumo/ Spacio has been outdated and is being outsold by competition. Just like VW uses the same platform for VW, Skoda and AUDI vehicles Tata can utilize Land Rover platforms for its Utility vehicles including the Safari, Grande, Aria and other vehicles. The upside for Land Rover will be the economies of scale helping profitability and increased margins while helping Tata minimize the build quality issues, uneven panels and ergonomics and low brand image.  The defender platform is apt for Tata Sumo, Spacio, venture and winger models. The Freelander will make a nice platform for Xenon pickup and Grande. Finally the Safari and Aria can be based on the Discovery Platform. This will help the company erase its biggest weakness which is the public perception. Here the point is not to kill the platform the merge two platforms for a more economic and competitive single platform.

A similar exercise needs to be undertaken by TaTa by where the Vista/ Manza platform needs to be slowly outsourced on the Fiat Linea/ Punto platform . Fiat is having a hard time making sales targets. Sharing more than engine and gearbox will help both the companies just like the Land Rover Tata situation where economies of scale help in profit margins. Tata already has a lot of engines too.

4.4 Diesel V8 (Land Rover)
3.0 Diesel V6 (jaguar/ Land Rover)
3.0 Disel (Sumo, Safari)
2.7 Diesel V6 (Jaguar/ Land Rover)
2.2 Diesel (Land Rover)
2.2 Diesel (Grande, Aria, Safari, Xenon)

2.0 Diesel (winger, Sumo, Safari, TL)
1.4 Diesel Dicor (Venture, Indica, Vista,Marina, Indigo, XL, venture, )
1.3 Multijet (Vista, Manza, Fiat cars)
.6diesel (Iris, nano, Pixel)



.6 petrol (Nano, pixel, Iris))
1.2 petrol (Indica)
1.2 Petrol (Fiat Cars)
1.4 Petrol (Indica, Marina, Indigo, XL)
1.4 petrol (Vista, Manza, Fiat cars)
2.0 Petrol (Land Rover)

2.1 petrol (safari)
3.2 Petrol I6 (Land Rover)
3.5 petrol (Silhoutte)
4.2 Petrol V8 (Jaguar)
5.0 Petrol V8 (Jaguar/ Land Rover)


2. A stronger and sharper brand image: Tata is looked at more like a utilatarian car maker. More individual buyer marketing for Xenon and TL (Thar and Gateway for example)is necessary. The products do not show on the Tata Motors website. Grande MKII also needs to be provided with more features and a better image so that it can fight with Scorpio while the new Safari Merlin replacement can take the fight to the new Scorpios premium car. This will also aid in pulling Aria at a higher price segment. Pulling Grande MKII up the price ladder will also create a space for pitting Winger platinum againast Innova and Xylo and Tavera.

3. An easy to use website: Internet has fast caught on as a medium which provides immense information for car buyers. Tata Motors will not generate any business with a better website but it sure helps in providing a lot of information. Loads of models are not provided and information is scarce too. It also helps to include Merchandise (watches, sunglasses and pen, Mobile phone) to be retailed on the website. The merchandise products can be Tata brands itself such as Titan watches, Fastrack sunglasses etc.

4. Choice of alternative fuels: With the corruption catching up in petrol companies in India, prices have risen explicitly even though quality is still lacking. In such a scenario, buyers are fast looking at the alternatives. Diesel is one field where Tata Motors has a strong presence. But the company needs to catch up with CNG LPG options fast. Brands like Maruti and Chevrolet have provided their complete line ups with CNG and LPG options to cater to the increasing demand for non petrol vehicles.

 Also Mahinra and other international care makers are betting high on electricity as the alternative source. Tata needs to prepare for the onslaught. For those who are not aware Tata Motors has put in enormous R&D for oneCAT and has also succesfully prepared electric Indica and Ace models in the past. Tata has also bought Miljøbil Grenland/Innovasjon which is an alternative energy company for the same. But any updates are yet to be made public by the company. Succesfuly prototypes of Tata Vista and Nano have also be caught on test grounds.

But the most important addition would be of a 650cc two cylinder or a 975cc three cylinder diesel motor for use in Tata Nano and Tata Indica. Chevrolet has succesfully pulled this feat off in the latest Chevrolet Beat Diesel.

 5. Automatic Transmission: Fact: No Indian Hatchback on sale today has a diesel automatic option. Mahindra was quick to develop an Automatic option for its Scorpio diesel. Maruti  and Hyundai have been offering automatic transmission in their A-Star and I-10 hatchbacks. This makes Tata only car maker in the top five domestic car makers to not have an automatic transmission. With increasingly congested traffic situations an Automatic Manza against Honda City/ Verna/ Vento/ Fiesta will help bring customers to the Tata showroom and sell more cars.Not to forget that an Automatic Tata Vista will be the only car in the market in the diesel segment. While Jaguar Land Rover cars have automatic transmissions, Tata can also source automatic transmission from Fiat just like they sourced the manual transmission for Tata Vista.

6. Tata Customization programme: With increasing awareness and competition in the market, carmakers offer more and more models to cater to a wider audience. While custom car packaging has caught on outside the country, this concept is yet to make it mainstream in India. Mahindra for starters has begun providing customer with such custom vehicles. Volkswagen also provided a similar custom programme for its Polo hatchback on launch. I remember how on my purchase HM-Mitsubishi had offered me to provide wth a car in my colour with my choice of upgrades in three weeks. The same confusion was taken care of by the dealer when I wanted my Basic Honda Jazz to be kitted with aluminum wheels over steel wheels. I still missed out on the USB port for the audio. In addition engine upgrade options should also be provided. Tata Motors has a common engine platform for most cars. Selling engine upgrade spares via dealerships will provide Tata with a better brand image through spare availability and let users decide what engine configuration they are interested in. A 1.4 Tata Indica with DOHC head from the XL family can take the fight to Polo and Fabia in the 100bhp hot hatch game.

7. Technology upgrade- Tata cars while growing leaps and bounds in quality still leave a lot to be desired in features across the range. Most car makers today have provided ABS, EBD and Airbags across the range. In comparison Tata has these features only in Safari, Aria, Manza and Vista.Those who have demoed the 'My tata connect technology' will also agree that buyers will be willing to pay for 40K premium even in the most basic of cars like the Tata Nano. Connectivity is the buzz word in the markets today and even a fledgling car maker like Saab (just entered bankruptcy) has shifted to Android UI for its cars. Connectivity and communications integration in cars will lead to much efficient transition when the electric car wave hits the market in the near future.

8. Efficient capacity utilization: Tata motors has found it tough to increase the sales compared to market leaders Maruti and Hyundai. This has also led to plant efficiency falling to below 70%. Tata motors is already exporting to Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, South Korea, Thailand, Spain, Italy, Poland, Turkey and the United Kingdom but its major presence is still found on the Indian subcontinent namely India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. It is an excellent opportunity to dump the slow moving stock in the international markets for competitive prices joinyl with some strong marketing and promotions. This will lead to Tata building a strong customer base worldwide and keep the plant efficiency above 80-90%.

9. Enter Rally Racing: At a time when Bajaj was selling Pulsar unchecked by competition TVS brought its Apache face to face and has changed the game. Customers are now buying TVS  motors Apache motorcycle as much as the Pulsar. This was made possible by TVS motors racing team which followed the motto 'race on Sunday, sell on Monday.' This is not the first time a car maker has taken to this slogan. Nissan, Ford, BMW, GM, Chrysler, Mitsubishi, Mazda, Subaru and many other car makers have followed the practice in history. It is a known fact that while not every customer buys a car to race, racing pumps adrenaline into everybody's minds. Hence racier looking cars always catch more fancy. A successful sales strategy by HM with the Lancer in the late 1990's had given the company so much leverage, it was one of the best selling cars. Tata need not go outside their stables for more success stories of racing and car selling. When Tata introduced the Tata Silhoutte sports car based on the Indica platform, enthusiasts all around the country thronged discussion forums to know more about it and buy if it was in their reach. Tata needs a strong presence in the INRC and other national rally championships where it stands a better chance to survive considering the cheaper spares and maintainence and stronger build.

10. Annual design refresh: The first Tata Indica appeared in the market on 1998. Indica V2, Vista and Vista V2 have followed in what has been the lifespan of 13 years. In comparison Suzuki's Alto (800/Alto/A-star) has seen more than 20 refreshes in 20 years. Ford's Fiesta has seen 10 refreshes in close to 7 years and Honda Civic has seen 4 refreshes in five years. With the sales spurts Tata has witnessed along with launching a refresh, it is quite evident that such tatics help the company keep the car abreast with competition even though it may only include an upholstry change, grille redesign and headlight changes. To make some buzz or the other in the market has become the necessity since the market is now crowded with more than 25 manufacturers.