DRIVE

‘Toughman’ to increase battery life

SHIRAJIV SIRIMANE

Dr. Akiya and Narangoda Picture by Sumanachandra Ariyawansa

MN International Marketing introduced a breakthrough technological ‘Toughman-k’ solution to Sri Lanka to increase the battery life.

The founder of the product, Dr. Akiya Kozawa from Japan was in Colombo last week to introduce this product and said that a ‘tablet and the solution’ would increase battery life by over eight years. “This would be a great saving for motorists,” he said. “One dose annually of ‘Toughman-k’ extends your life of the battery by six to eight years,” he added. This battery activator would also give additional power to the battery which gives the option for larger battery uses to switch to small ones.

Sanwa Transportation Co., in Tokyo tested our organic activator for their 200 trucks for 5 years starting in 2000.

The company’s record is shown in Figure 6 for the number of battery replacement trucks among the 200 trucks. Our activator addition started in the year 2001. The activator added was initially 15 cc/cell of 5 per cent organic activator solution. All 200 trucks completed the activator addition by the end of 2002.

The batteries for the trucks are two 150 Ah batteries for each truck.

Managing Director, MN International Kelaniya, Shantha Narangoda said that they already have a good response for the product.

Auto makers in India claim 2008 worst year ever

Mumbai - 2008, a year marked by economic slowdown, inflation and credit squeeze, has turned out to be ‘annus horibilis’ for the Indian auto industry.

Auto makers have always regarded India as their long-term target, anticipating robust demand from there and spotting opportunity in their low-cost manufacturing, but in November the auto industry reported its lowest car sales in 8 years with sales figure falling by nearly a fifth (83,059 in November 2008 from 103,031 a year ago).

And, according to Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the sales figures of commercial vehicles (trucks and buses) and two-wheelers were no better. While sales of trucks and buses in India, the world’s fourth largest market for such vehicles, slumped by nearly 50 percent from a year ago, steeper than a fall of 48.6 percent in January 1998, two-wheeler sales fell nearly 14.7 percent to 567,502 units.

“In our history, all segments have never been down so badly together in a month,” Dilip Chenoy, director general, SIAM, said. “The complete lack of consumer finance and high interest rates [are] putting off consumers from buying vehicles.” Some 95 percent of trucks, two-thirds of cars, and at least 40 percent of two-wheelers sold in the country are bought on loans. If this trend continues, Chenoy said, SIAM would revise its annual forecast for “very, very low single-digit (percentage) growth” in February.

Auto makers agree, blaming the decline on scarce and expensive auto loans, the result of a hawkish monetary policy adopted by the central bank till mid-October and rise in prices of auto components.

But India is not alone. The US auto market witnessed 37 percent drop in care sales in November, the lowest level since 1982. In Japan, care sales were down 27 percent to the lowest in 39 years while in China and Russia, sales were down 10.3 percent and 15 percent respectively.

The decline in sales have credit squeeze have now forced Indian auto makers to rethink their strategy. Despite the central bank lowering key interest rates since mid-October to inject liquidity into the system, banks have been slow in passing on the rate cuts to customers, and auto loans remain highly priced.

As a result, auto makers have been forced to offer finance to their customers to revive flagging sales.

And, in December, after the government announced $4 billion of additional spending to steer the economy into high growth trajectory by cutting a central value-added tax (CENVAT) rate by 4 percent, auto makers promptly said they would pass on the tax cut benefits to customers.

Car and two-wheeler makers are also offering huge year-end discounts to customers in their attempt to reduce their inventory.

But that is not all. Nearly all auto makers have resorted to cutting down on production and some of them are downsizing on their contract workers as well. India’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki said last week it may consider another round of production cut if the market situation does not improve. Maruti Suzuki has already reduced its production in November by 6 percent at 63,431 units against 67,690 units in the same month last year.

Generally, Maruti Suzuki has beaten market odds because of the large range of cars it can offer to customers at various prices but in the April-November period of 2008, the company’s sales growth witnessed a negative growth of 3 percent compared with the corresponding period last year. In November alone, the sales figure was almost 25 percent less than the year ago period (from 57,554 units to 43,258 units). Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) managing director, Shinzo Nakanishi said the slowdown was a global phenomenon and the Indian market was no different.

“We are focusing on the network stock (in India). If the network stock overflows, then we will have to readjust our productions,” he said, adding that the company would produce a “few percent” less in December compared with the same month last year.

A company official, on conditions of anonymity, said Maruti Suzuki has witnessed a steep decline in the sales of Maruti 800, Omni and the Versa models and, if inventories pile up at dealers end and the company decides on another round of production cuts, these models will be affected the most.

“Probably,” the official said, “the company may even consider stopping production of these models altogether.” MSIL has already commenced an eleven-day long maintenance shut-down on both its plants in Gurgaon and Manesar starting December 24, he said, adding that though the company undertakes maintenance shut-downs twice annually in June-July and December-January, the current shut-down is longer by around 4 days. ibtimes.com

Ford unveils 2010 Shelby GT500

Ford Motor Co. is showing the world that it’s capable of investing in high-end performance — at a time when competitors are cutting back — with the introduction of its redesigned 2010 Shelby GT500.

While Ford released photographs of the new vehicle to the public today, the sports car is to be on display at the 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, which begins Jan. 11.

With an eye-popping 540 horsepower, the new Shelby GT500 is the top-of-the-line model in Ford’s Mustang family. It’s what industry experts call a halo vehicle, meaning it generates attention that translates into sales of the manufacturers’ less-expensive models, as well as overall respect for the brand and company.

In addition to increased horsepower, the new vehicle also features an aggressive new exterior design, as well as a variety of performance improvements.

“The ability to produce a niche vehicle is almost a statement to the rest of the world saying, ‘We can do this. We are not chopping models. We are creating models,’ “ said Karl Brauer, editor in chief at Edmunds.com.

Ford, which lost $8.6 billion through September but still has $29.6 billion in cash and credit on hand, is regarded as the healthiest of Detroit’s automakers.

Brauer said that spending money to build a niche sports car will only help Ford further distinguish itself from General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC, which are in the process of getting federal assistance to survive. “The Mustangs represent the tried-and-true dependable aspect of Ford’s product lineup — a rear-drive performance coupe that is a pretty good value for the money,” Brauer said.

Currently, Ford sells 14 versions of the Mustang, ranging from the Mustang V6, which starts at $20,430, to the Shelby GT500KR for $80,510.

Ford has not released a price for the 2010 Shelby GT500, but the current Shelby GT500 sells for $43,125. When Ford’s next generation GT500 reaches dealership showrooms next spring, it will help Ford generate attention and excitement at about the same time that crosstown rival GM plans to re-enter the muscle car segment with the highly anticipated Chevrolet Camaro.

Erich Merkle, lead auto analyst at Crowe Horwath in Grand Rapids, said increased competition in the muscle car segment is good for the industry because it generates a competitive buzz both for the companies and buyers that these days is usually reserved for pickups.

“You get a lot of that rivalry going that you have never really seen in cars since the late 1960s and 1970s,” Merkle said. Through November, Ford sold 87,224 Mustangs, while Chrysler sold 91,953 Dodge Chargers and 14,821 Dodge Challengers, according to Autodata Corp. Both Ford and GM say the muscle car segment will remain vibrant and may even expand — despite the attention that fuel efficiency and hybrid vehicles gained in 2008.

Jamal Hameedi, chief nameplate engineer for the Shelby GT500, said he believes the U.S. sports car market is becoming more like the one in Europe.

Despite high gas prices in Europe, he said, consumers still buy sports cars, and that market is still “very active and healthy.”freep.com