Here arrives Nano

REPUBLICA
KATHMANDU, June 27: Tata Nano, one of the most-awaited cars in the Nepali market, has been launched in the market on Sunday. Sipradi Trading, the authorized distributor of Tata vehicles for Nepal, launched the vehicle at a function. The prices for the vehicles have been disclosed.

The lowest variant or Nano standard costs Rs 769,800 in the Nepali market. Nano CX and Nano LX will cost Rs 998,000 and Rs 1.178 million respectively.


The company has now started taking bookings for the vehicles at Rs 10,000 for Nano standard, Rs 20,000 for Nano CX, and Rs 30,000 for Nano LX. The monthly instalment for Nano purchasers will be Rs 11,111 a month for five years. "Bookings for the car will be open for 10 days. The vehicles will be delivered to the customers by the end of July," said Siddhartha SJB Rana, the executive chairman of Sipradi Trading, the authorized distributor of Tata vehicles for Nepal.

The company is planning to sell Nano from 14 distribution points around the country. It is also providing exclusive warranty offers to its customers of four years or 90,000 kilometers, whichever comes first.

Nano boasts of giving a mileage of 23.6 km per liter and ground clearance of 180 mm which are the most attractive factors of the car. Three versions of the car will be available in the market — Nano, Nano CX and Nano LX. Nano is available in colors like Racing Red, Ivory White and Summer Blue. Nano CX is available in colors like Racing Red, Ivory White, Summer Blue, Champagne Gold, and Lunar Silver. Similarly, Nano LX is available in colors like Sunshine Yellow, Champagne Gold, and Lunar Silver.



Nano, the basic model, has features like digital fuel gauge, front room lamp, integrated front seat headrest, sun-visor in driver and co-driver, driver seat with slider and recliner, front assist grips, fuel indicator lamps, temperature buzzer, and rear seat belts. Nano CX has all the features of Nano and additional features like cooling system, integrated rear seat head rest, co-driver seat with slider and recliner, rear assist grip and booster assisted brakes. Nano LX has other additional features like body colored bumpers and door handles, front fog lamps, rear fog lamps, instrument cluster with trip meter, power windows, cup holder and central lock with key.

Nano has already been able to establish itself in the Indian market and is getting a good response in Sri Lank where it was introduced about a month ago.

"Nepal has a huge chunk of people who fall into our target group"



Johnny Oommen, chief of International Business, Passenger Car Unit, Tata Motors, was here to attend the function. Akanksha Upadhyay from Republica caught up with him and asked about the company´s expectations from Nepali market for Nano.

How are the sales and response to Nano in India and Sri-Lanka?

In India, Nano has already been able to establish a stable market. We are currently selling Nano from 217 distribution points. But because we have realized the need for more selling points for Nano, we are in the process of bringing into operation 310 more exclusive Nano outlets this year.

Why do you think Nano will become popular in the Nepali automobile market?

Nepal has a huge chunk of people who fall into our target group. The ones who want to upgrade themselves from two-wheelers to four-wheeler will find Nano the best choice for their first car. We are also targeting those new families who are looking for an entry level car. Nano can be one of the best options for those who already have a car and are looking for second car. So, since the Indian market and Nepali market are not very different from each other, we believe that Nano is the right car for the Nepali market.

What are the challenges you faced in the Nepali market to bring Nano?

We were scared of the liquidity condition in the market. But, banks of Nepal were more than ready to provide finance to our customers. About 10 banks are ready to finance our customers. Apart from that, we haven´t realized any other challenges yet.

Do you have any future plans for the Nepali market?

Let´s wait and watch for the market response to Nano. The vehicle will be introduced nationwide in all the three variants. Currently, we´ll focus on fulfilling the market demand for Nano as our dealer for the Nepal market has informed us that they received about 5,000 enquiries last month.