Decoding Tamo RaceMo In 5 Points

Tata becomes the first Indian manufacturer to introduce a sub-brand, Tamo, and that too with a bold move as it plans to launch a two-seater sports coupe as its debutant vehicle! 

An affordable sports car – cars that fall in the vicinity of Rs 15-20 lakh (converted) globally such as the uber famous Mazda Miata (MX-5), Toyota GT 86, and others – is perhaps an alien term in the Indian market. Manufacturers don’t offer such cars in the Indian market because these are relatively low volume products, which don't encourage automakers for local assembly and this results in their exorbitant pricing (high import tax). But then if you don’t offer something, how will you get to know the market’s penchant for it. Indian buyers, till this date, are not acquainted with the concept of an affordable two-seater sports car. And we feel that Tata is about to change this! Let us see five interesting facts about the upcoming Tamo RaceMo! 

First car from Tata’s new sub-brand, Tamo 

What Lexus is to Toyota, Acura is to Honda and Infiniti is to Nissan, Tamo is to Tata. With the launch of Tamo, Tata became the first manufacturer in the country to introduce a sub-brand. Tamo saw the light of the day nearly a month before its global debut at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show with its debutant car, the RaceMo, in March. The RaceMo is a harbinger of what next to expect from Tamo! As seen in the RaceMo’s official video, its modular platform can spawn a hatchback, a crossover, and maybe other types of vehicles. Check out the video below.  

India’s first connected car 

Soon after the introduction of Tamo in February, Tata announced its strategic agreement with Microsoft India for connected car tech. And the Tamo RaceMo becomes the first connected car in the country. Earlier in January at this year’s CES (Consumer Electronics Show), Microsoft showcased its Connected Vehicle Platform, which is built on its Azure cloud storage system. 

Tata will use a similar tech with the RaceMo. Microsoft's Connected Vehicle Platform has the following attributes – predictive maintenance, improved in-car productivity, advanced navigation (geo-spatial and mapping), over-the-air updates, and others. Tata says that RaceMo owners can access the in-car connectivity and connected tech through the three screens in its instrument console.

Might become the most affordable two-seater sports car in the world! 

Now comes the interesting part – its pricing! As most of the head honchos in the automotive space say: if you can succeed in India, you can succeed anywhere! Taking into account Tata’s recent launches, it seems that it does know how to make competitive cars with spot-on pricing nowadays. The RaceMo has generated a lot of anticipation in the market, and plenty of people are looking forward to this sports coupe. 

Looking at the pricing of the global entry-level sports cars, the world’s bestselling two-seater convertible sports car, the Mazda Miata, retails roughly at $25,000 (nearly Rs 16 lakh) and the Toyota GT 86 is priced at just over $26,000 (nearly Rs 17 lakh). Now, considering the RaceMo’s sub-4m dimensions (yes, it measures under four metres) and its 1.2-litre turbocharged and intercooled, three-cylinder petrol engine (probably borrowed from the Tiago and the Tigor), make it tax-friendly in our country! We can expect its prices to start in the vicinity of Rs 15 lakh, which might give it the tag of the most affordable sports car in the world!      

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Market introduction likely at the 2018 Indian Auto Expo 

Tata has certainly tested waters with the RaceMo, as Indians have appreciated its efforts behind this two-seater sports car. In fact, the RaceMo has created shockwaves at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show and enticed foreign media as well. Though there is no official word from Tata/Tamo about its Indian market introduction, the RaceMo is likely to make its home country debut at our biennial auto show – the 2018 Indian Auto Expo.   

Might be a limited-run model  

As the Geneva show car was flaunting triple digit numbers on several of its body panels (check out '001/002' in the images), it seems that the RaceMo will have a limited run in the market. Although there is no official word from the automaker, the RaceMo could have a limited production number (maybe 999 units as the triple digit numbers on the Geneva car indicated).    

Check out more details and specs of the Tamo RaceMo here: Meet Tamo Racemo, Tata’s New Sports Car!