Car News That Mattered This Week (Sep 18-23): Tata Punch Camo Edition Launched, Volvo Updates Line-up, BYD Atto 3 Launch Date And More

Toyota Glanza will soon get CNG variants and rear seatbelt reminders to become standard in all cars 

This week had a couple of new launches from Tata and Volvo, prices of top Mahindra SUVs were hiked, Mercedes opened bookings for the EQS 580 and more. 

Here’s a rundown to get you caught up on everything that happened this week:

Launches: 

• Tata Punch Gets A Camo Edition: Tata has added the Camo edition to the variant list of the Tata Punch based on the mid-spec Adventure and Accomplished trims. It sports a new finish for the exterior and interior and ‘Camo’ branding too. The Camo edition comes at a premium of Rs 15,000.

• New Tata Nexon XZ+ (L) Variant: To celebrate the roll-out of Tata Nexon’s 4,00,000th unit, the carmaker introduced the new XZ+ (L) variant which replaces the XZ+ (O) variant. It lies just under the top-spec XZ+ (P) and borrows some of its features like ventilated front seats, an air purifier, a wireless phone charger and auto-dimming IRVM. 

• MY2023 Volvo India Lineup: All Volvo cars now have mild-hybrid powertrains as the Swedish carmaker has updated its entire Indian lineup, including the pending facelift for the XC40, to MY23 specifications. To read more about the feature updates and prices click here. 

• Updated Audi A4 Launched: Audi India has updated the 2022 A4 by adding a flat-bottom steering wheel and a 19-speaker B&O 3D sound system. The luxury sedan has also got two new colours on offer: Manhattan Grey and Tango Red.It also received a price hike and is now priced between Rs 43.12 lakh and Rs 50.99 lakh (ex-showroom).

Mahindra Hikes Prices Of XUV700 And Thar

The XUV700 and the Thar have received their third price hike of 2022. Since January 2022, the prices of XUV700 and Thar have increased by a total of Rs 1.8 lakh and Rs 1.2 lakh, respectively.  

Toyota Glanza To Get CNG Variants

A Type Approval Certificate issued by the Delhi RTO revealed that the Toyota Glanza will soon get CNG variants. The Glanza is currently offered in four trims: E, S, G and V. All of its manual variants will get a CNG option except for the base-spec Glanza E. This could make it the first premium CNG hatchback in the country. 

Bookings Open For The Mercedes-Benz EQS 580

Mercedes has revealed the launch date for the EQS 580 and has commenced bookings for the same at a token price of Rs 25 lakh. The electric sedan gets a 107.8kWh battery pack with a range of 676km and it can be charged in just 31 minutes using a 200kW fast charger. 

More Honda Hybrids Coming

Honda has hinted that it will launch more strong-hybrid models in India after the City Hybrid and its next model could be a hybrid SUV. Since the strong-hybrid SUV segment only has two contenders, the Grand Vitara and Hyryder, a third one would give customers more options and help Honda boost the sales. 

(Image used for reference)

Rear Seatbelt Reminders To Be Standard Soon

Recently, a draft notification has been issued by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to make rear seatbelt reminders a standard safety feature in all cars. This rule will be applicable for all front-facing seats, including the third row and passengers found not wearing rear seatbelts could soon attract a fine.

Cars Spied This Week:

• Citroen C3 EV: The upcoming Citroen C3 EV was spied for the first time in the country. The spy shot hints at a charging port flag on the camouflaged front fender. The all-electric Citroen C3 is likely to debut in December 2022.

• Hyundai Ioniq 5: Hyundai’s upcoming premium EV offering, the Ioniq 5, has been spied again in the country, this time in Chennai. Hyundai is planning to launch it by the end of this year at an expected price of Rs 50 lakh (ex-showroom) onwards.

• BYD Atto 3 EV: BYD’s next offering, the Atto 3 electric SUV, was spied testing in Chennai without camouflage. Its October launch date has also been announced. The Atto 3 is expected to have a 50kWh battery pack with a WLTP-claimed range of 345km. It could be priced from Rs 30 lakh (ex-showroom) onwards.

Read More on : A4 Automatic