Welcome to Episode 1 of Season 2 of the Thrill of Driving podcast! In this reboot, we’re doing things differently — giving news a pass and instead talking about things that the Indian car enthusiast wants to talk about! To get this series of the ground, we’re going to start by telling you everything you need to know about the Volkswagen Polo in India. In this free flowing conversation, Sirish Chandran and Aatish Mishra go back to even before the Polo was launched in India to when the media drives first happened abroad. They then trace the launch of the Polo in India, the various updates and engines it has had over the years, the launch of the GT variants, and everything else right up to the BS6 era when it got its latest update with the 1.0 TSI engine. They also talk about the possibility of the new MQB-based Polo coming to India! As an Indian automotive enthusiast, this is not an episode you want to miss!
Things are looking up says Veejay Nakra, CEO of Mahindra’s Automotive division as he talks about manufacturing re-starting, dealerships opening up and new products that are in the pipeline. We also talk about new engines, EVs, motorsport, Veejay’s 25 year career at Mahindra and much more
Talking about the new normal in the luxury segment of the Indian automotive industry, with the president of the Lexus India. We talk about hybrid powertrains, how Lexus has only petrol engines in its range, expansion of the dealer network from 7 to 11 this year, local production of the ES and NX and the response to it and the synergies of Lexus India with Toyota.
Talking about the state of the Indian automotive industry, re-opening of dealerships, demand pickup, transfer of demand & more with the sales & marketing boss of Maruti Suzuki on the #evoConversations
Talking sport exhaust systems with the most iconic brand in this space, Akrapovič. We’re talking about how a performance exhaust system is developed, crafting exhaust systems out of titanium and now ceramic composites, the race activities, road car exhaust systems, distribution in India, how do you make a great sounding exhaust system and much more!
A 7-seater SUV, facelifted Compass, new sub 4-meter SUV and "two iconic new products" – that's what is in store for Jeep India over the next years. Partha Datta drops hints on the upcoming models and also insists that the Fiat brand is not exiting India (which could hint at the new Fiat 500 electric) coming to India. All this and more in the latest episode of evo Conversations with editor Sirish Chandran. Head over to our website evoindia.com for an analysis of the new model hints Partha has dropped
In the latest episode of #evoConversations Parveen Agarwal shows us around (and fires up!) his collection of sportscars and luxury cars including the only McLaren 570S Coupe in India (that he bought from Bangkok), Lamborghini Aventador S, the Bentley Continental GT, Rolls-Royce Ghost and many more!
How is Tata Motors dealing with the lockdown, the new Click to Drive online buying initiative, santising dealerships post lockdown and new social distancing norms and more in this episode of evo Conversations. We of course speak about the Auto Expo show stoppers, the Sierra concept as well as the HBX concept, the latter which is set to hit Indian roads very soon (though now delayed due to Covid19). Vivek Srivatsa also talks to editor Sirish Chandran about the new Tata cars and SUVs, the BS6 migration, demise of some model lines and the HBX.
The state of the Indian automotive industry and the efforts taken to deal with both the lockdown and the new normal post the lockdown is what Tarun Garg, VP, sales, marketing & after sales at Hyundai India talks about in conversation with editor Sirish Chandran. We also talk about the turbo-petrol engines spreading across the Hyundai India lineup from the Venue to the Creta and now Grand i10 Nios, Aura and the recently updated Verna.
Talking to the founder and chief designer at Motormind on how to setup your own car design studio and the various car styling kits they have developed. Shahid Haq talks about the Hyperion 1 concept that was showcased 4 years ago at the AutoExpo. He tells Ed Sirish Chandran about how the sports car was designed and developed and the ongoing work to get it into production, including sharing - exclusively for the first time out here - pictures of the final production sports car in this episode of #evoconversations with Rowe Motoroil India
Dilip Chhabria, the man who put Indian car design on the map, talks about his journey. Starting with the 1994 Karma based on the Tata Sierra, DC talks about his massive body of work, his design philosophy, the work he has done for global OEMs like the Aston Martin concept, the Renault Twizzy concept, the Mini Clubman concept and much more. He also talks through the customised interiors for the Innova Crysta, Kia Carnival and other MPVs that are now in huge demand along with custom jobs on vanity vans for Bollywood. In this episode of #evoConversations with Rowe Motor Oil India, DC exclusively reveals to Ed Sirish Chandran that the Avanti will return in two years as an electric sports car. Development is currently underway in Switzerland, the price target is Rs 40 lakh and it will be based on the TCA concept.
What's it like to grow up in a storied motorsport family and not go racing? We talk to TV presenter and former cricketer Suhail Chandhok on growing up around cars, ratting out older brother Karun Chandhok when handbrake turns went belly up, the struggles of a family trying to raise sponsorship, forging his own part and much more. A fun conversation on the other side of racing, with his dad Vicky Chandhok chipping in on the eye-watering sums it costs to go racing these days!
How quickly will the Indian auto industry bounce back after the lockdown? What will Mercedes-Benz India's launch schedule look like? Re-jigging of the model launches including GLS, A Class Limousine, GLA et all. Efforts being implemented at the dealerships. All this and more in our conversation with one of the top executives of the Indian automotiove industry, Santosh Iyer In this episode of evoindia Conversations, Santosh talks to ed Sirish Chandran about how car ownership is set to increase, the fate of electric cars, efforts being undertaken at M-B India to deal with the Covid19 pandemic, the massive growth in AMG volumes in India, the best-selling AMG, and most importantly the new e-commerce platform being developed to enable you to buy a Mercedes from home MercFromHome. A veteran of the auto industry, Santosh also has tips for youngsters. "Don't start with an MNC. Try your hand at entrepreneurship and take risks early in life", he says in this episode of evo Conversations with Rowe motor Oil India
India's first F1 racer and the World's Fastest Indian talk about his journey, from the MMRT in Chennai way back in 1992, to being the first Indian to go and race (and win!) in Europe, the struggles, the highs, the regret at not winning Macau F3, making it to Formula 1 with Jordan, testing with Williams F1 (and going faster than Nico Rosberg!), the difficut years with HRT F1, racing the Indian Grand Prix, Le Mans series, wheel-to-wheel racing in American in the Indy series, and his subsequent move to Japan where he continues to win, taking victory at the last DTM x Super GT Super Race narain Karthikeyan 's story is inspirational and he laid the path that every other Indian racer has followed. And he continues to win races, continues to set lap records, continues to stay race fit and at the top of his game.
Shana Parmeshwar takes us through her automotive journey starting with a hot Rover in the UK, a Tata Safari in India and then dives into her passion for Porsche, the GT4 that she then upgraded to the GT3 RS, the Unity Car project, taking part in the Cannonball rally in Europe, trackdays in India, the 4x4s in her garage including an old Discovery, Land Cruiser, Ford Ranger, Mitsubishi Pajero, et all. We also talk about her dream cars, the Mitsubihi Evo 6.5, Audi RS6 Avant and more!
The Bren Garage is the most exotic, desirable and drool-worthy collection of supercars and sportscars in India and we get an exclusive walk around the ten collectors' specials that make up the Bren10 👉 Ferrari 458 Speciale 👉 Porsche Cayman GT4 👉 Porsche 911R The above three are the 2015, 2016 and 2017 Official evo magazine Car of the year ecoty all in one garage and right here in India 😲 👉 Aston Martin DBS Coupe 👉Lamborghini Aventador SVJ 👉 Porsche GT2 RS 👉 Ferrari 488 Pista 👉 TechArt GT Street R based on the 911 Turbo S 👉 Lamborghini Huracan brenacan 👉 Mercedes AMG GT R We also check out his Ducati, the Yamaha RX100 that he rode in college and he talks to ed Sirish Chandran about his epic love affair for cars.
Pratap Bose, VP design at Tata Motors talks about the career options in an automotive design studio even if you aren't a car designer. In this episode of #evoConversations with Pratap Bose talks to Ed Sirish Chandran about: 1. Studio Engineering 2. Design Project Management 3. Clay Modelling 4. CAS Modelling 5. Design Visualisation 6. Colour & Material Design 7. Design Perceived Quality 8. Colour Production Design A must watch for anybody interested in car design, even if you aren't a designer!
Joel Joseph is the man behind the fastest drag car, fastest ITC race car and some of the fastest tuned street cars in the country. Ed Sirish Chandran caught up with the founder of Race Concepts to talk: 👉 How he built the all-conquering turbo-charged Honda City VTEC for the ITC races 👉 Building the 400bhp (at the wheel!) turbo-City for the street 👉 The 180bhp Zen modification, and what all can be done to the Maruti Suzuki Zen (Esteem engine is best, he says) plus the costs 👉 Working on a turbo for the KTM390Duke 👉 Turbo-charged Accord for the drag races 👉 Souping up a Tempo Traveller! 👉 Restoring old cars like the VW Beetle and E30 3 Series 👉 Plans for the R2-spec Cedia for rally 👉 Brake, suspension and body upgrades to handle increased power 👉 And much more A must watch for car and bike enthusiasts, just to learn what all can be done to your road car to make it faster, safer and much more fun!
"Watch this space" says Toyota India's senior VP for sales and aftersales when Ed Sirish Chandran asks him about the possibility of the Supra launching in India. Naveen also highlights why India should focus on hybrid power trains and revert to the pre-GST tax structure, talks about the demise of the Etios, Liva and Corolla Altis, hints at a new variant of the Yaris to give Etios customers an upgrade, the progress of the Suzuki-Toyota partnership and much more. After the lockdown was extended by another 17 days and that can only mean more stress for car dealers but Naveen says they've made every effort to ensure that "Covid is not a bad word for our dealers". He details the efforts made by Toyota on this front.
The man in the driver's seat at MG Motor India talks to us about product plans including: 👉 Gloster that is coming to India around Diwali and hinting at pricing anwhere between Rs 40 to 80 lakh 👉 G10 MPV that is plannned for next year 👉 Hector Plus which is coming soon 👉 Delays due to Covid19 that will delay launches by 4-6 weeks 👉 Compact sub-4 meter cars planned for next 2-3 years 👉 Enormous reception to the ZS EV 👉 Plans to bring a small, compact sportscar to connect with MG's heritage 👉 Address the China issue ("leaving politics to the politicians") 👉 And much more! Products, the business, support to dealers ("we want to be their friend in tough times") and much more in this InstaLive with editor Sirish Chandran