The Logan is a low cost car built by French car maker Renault and Romanian manufactuer Dacia. Dacia is a subsidiary of Renault.
This car is marketed as either Dacia or Renault depending on the country.
The Logan project came about in 1999 when French President Jacques Chirac and Renault CEO Louis Schweitzer noted that at Lada and Renault dealerships, the 6000€ Ladas were selling very well but the 12000€ Renaults struggled to get sold.
Quoting Renault CEO
"Seeing those antiquated cars, I found it unacceptable that technical progress should stop you making a good car for 6,000€(3.6 lakhs) ." (He later revised this target to 5,000€(3.0 lakhs) ). "I also drew up a list of specifications in three words – modern, reliable and affordable – and added that everything else was negotiable.
In the end, the price is about 6000€ with the high end versions going upto 8500€(5.1 lakhs) depending on the optional equipment.
Renault had no plans to sell this car outside Eastern Europe but began selling a more expensive version of the car starting at 7000€(4.2 lakhs) in Western Europe. And it was a huge success as people wanted to buy a car which was cheap, reliable to run and easy to repair.
As of now, Renault dont have plans of introducing the car anywhere else as the demand is far ahead of supply.
India is the first right hand drive market for the Logan. Renault has teamed up with Mahindra and Mahindra Limited to make the car in India.
Mahindra and Mahindra will hold 51% stake in the Rs 700-crore joint venture project, while the foreign partner Renault will hold the balance 49%.
The joint venture will be called the Mahindra Renault Ltd.
The car will be priced around the 4-6 lakhs range and is sure to be a success. Most of the cars in this segment are old cars and the Logan will be like a breath of fresh air. The car will mostly be launched in April 2007.
The Logan doesnt look very good though. It looks very traditional. Many Indian cars are better looking. But the trump card of the Logan isnt the looks. IT is the features and safety equipment at that price point.
As of now, Mahindra plan to bring in two engines for the Logan. A diesel engine and a petrol engine. But the specifications of the engines and the other details are not revealed yet.
In the international market, the Logan comes with 3 petrol engines and a diesel engine.
1.4 litre engine producing about 75 bhp.
1.6 litre engine producing about 90 bhp.
1.6 litre engine with 16V producing about 105 bhp.
1.5 litre diesel engine producing about 70 bhp.
It is not clear which engine is coming to India. It is almost certain that the 1.5 litre diesel engine is coming. And I dont think the more powerful engines will make it to Indian shores. The Logan is for the budget buyer and I dont think Mahindra will want to compromise on the fuel efficiency.
But there are rumours on the net that a diesel engine with 110bhp could be offered !!
The Logans in India are undergoing testing in various parts of the country and are being spotted by many automobile enthusiasts.
The most important thing for Mahindra right now is to firm up their spares and service network and price the Logan at the same price as the Indigo or just a little bit more.
The success of the car depends on the pricing.
Stay tuned !! This car sure will shake up the Indian market. WIll post all further updates in this thread as and when details are revealed.
Some pictures of the car:
UPDATE on 9th Feb 2007:
It has been confirmed that the Logan will be released in April 2007. IT will be released with 3 engines.
1.4 litre petrol producing approximately 75 bhp, 1.6 litre petrol producing approximately 90 bhp and a 1.5 litre common rail diesel engine producing approximately 75 bhp.
But it is not immediately clear if the diesel engined Logan will be launched at the same time as the petrol engined version.
The low end 1.4 litre model will be priced between Rs4.5 and 4.8 lakhs. The diesel variant will be priced close to Rs 5.5 lakhs.
There will be 3 variants of each petrol engine with different levels of optional equipment. The high end versions will have ABS and airbags.
The diesel on the other hand will have 5 different levels of trim.
The future may also see Mahindra Renault releasing station wagon and hatchback versions of the Logan.
As of now, Mahindra is putting in place the distribution and after sales network. According to the Mahindra Renault, it will have a distribution base of 196 dealerships and 104 authorised service centres across the country.
UPDATE on 4th April 2007
The car was launched yesterday. Prices are (ex-showroom)
4.3 lakh - 1.4ltr petrol base version
5.7 lakh - 1.6ltr petrol
6.5 lakh - 1.5ltr diesel
Thanks to Blade_runner.
Updated Specifications:
1.4 litre petrol engine:
1390cc displacement, 75 bhp@5500 rpm, 112Nm of torque @3000 rpm
1.6 petrol engine:
1598cc displacement, 90bhp@5500rpm, 128Nm of torque @ 3000rpm.
1.5 diesel engine:
141cc displacement, 65 bhp@4000rpm, 160Nm of torque @2000rpm.
The specs of the 1.6 litre petrol engine look good..... IT looks like a good performer.
The diesel is a bit of a disappointment. 65bhp is very low. Torque seems to be good though. But whether it can make up for the lack of power remains to be seen.
The car has been launched in 3 Petrol engined variants and 2 diesel variants.
Petrol variants:
GL/GLE (1.4 litre petrol) and GLS for 1.6 litre petrol.
DLE/DLS for the diesel Logan.
The Logan will be built at M&M's Nasik plant which has an annual production capacity of 50,000 cars. As of now, the engines are being imported from Romania and Spain but the joint venture already has put forth in motion plans to localise the engines as well.
The petrol engined car is priced between 4.28 and 5.69 lakhs. the 1.5 diesel engine is priced between 4.35 and 5.76 lakhs.
These are ex-showroom prices. Expect the top end Diesel and petrol models to be closer to 7 lakhs.
The prices are a wee bit disappointing. I hope that the prices will change once the engines start to be manufactured in India itself.
But M&M have warned that these are just launch prices and the prices may increase if there is an increase in input costs.
The financing of the car will be done through M&M finance and also through the Renault bank, a vehicle financing arm of Renault. Cars will be available through joint outlets bearing badges of both the companies.
The company will launch the vehicle in a phased manner across the country, starting with Mumbai where the vehicle will be available from April 9 followed by Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore on April 14 and ten more cities by the end of that month. During the period of April-August 25 more cities would be added followed by 120 dealers by November end.
Mahindra Renault Logan launched at price varying from 4.3 lakhs to 6.5 lakhs
Anyways the Logan isn't here to win any beauty contest, we'll leave that to the Aveo's, Linea's, etc. Bottomline is that this car is cheap, realiable and has lots of space and has been widely successful in other countries. A tried and tested formulae for success.
