Tata Motors has been riding high on the back of the success of its Forever Range of cars launched in January 2020.

The market share of the company rose to 8.2 per cent in 2020-21 from 4.8 per cent in 2019-20. The market share stands at 10.3 per cent as of July this year. The company is now at No. 3 in the pecking order.

Tata Motors is now betting on the rural market to sell its new crossover vehicle, the Tiago NRG. Based on the Tiago platform, the Tiago NRG comes with a higher ground clearance than its hatchback counterpart.

While crossover traditionally with their plastic claddings and elevated ground clearance has not seen much sales success, Tata Motors is banking on rural India for sales given the good monsoons and higher productivity.

“Tiago is the entry-level hatchback and the Tiago NRG will upgrade our portfolio with a crossover that will be an ideal vehicle for the rough roads in rural India. Traditionally, hatchbacks have been preferred for their fuel efficiency combined with their flexibility and accessibility. The Tiago NRG will offer all of this together with a bit offroading capacity that will help rural commuters to negotiate the roads of suburban and rural India,” said Vivek Srivatsa, marketing head, passenger PVBU, Tata Motors.

The Tiago has a 4-star safety rating by GNCAP and will retail at a starting price of Rs 6,57,400, ex-showroom Delhi.

Semi-conductor crisis

The semi-conductor shortage continues to plague Tata Motors as well as other car maklers and the company is working on strategies on this issue.

“The shortage of semi-conductors is impacting us and is likely to continue for some time. We are having to do better planning and manage with what is available,” said Srivatsa.

Meanwhile, Volvo Car India has rescheduled the launch of Volvo XC40 Recharge because of the “global shortage of semi-conductors”. The bookings and launch of the EV has been deferred to early next year.

“The company believes in giving a committed delivery date to customers once they book,” said Malhotra.