Tata Nano rival car from Bajaj faces tough time

The Tata Nano looks set to to retain its crown of being India's cheapest car. A potential rival to the car, from the alliance of Bajaj-Renault-Nissan, appears to have run into rough weather with rising differences between the Indian partner and the western car companies led by Carlos Ghosn .

Renault recently sounded non-committal on its engagement and said it may back out of the project if the car -- conceptualised, designed and manufactured by Bajaj Auto -- does not match its standards. "If it matches our DNA, we will go for it. If it does not, we will find other solutions," Renault India MD Marc Nassif said.

Nassif said Renault is not obliged to buy the car that Bajaj develops. "As such, there is no joint venture. If the quality of development matches with the promise, we will go for it." Asked what would be the company's strategy if it decided against buying the car from Bajaj, he said, "We will do something different. We will have more opportunities."

This is not the first time that differences have come out in the open between the partners. On an earlier occasion, even Nissan has cast aspersions on the project. On the other hand, Bajaj Auto has also sounded a little less perturbed by the concerns of the partners, saying it was developing a four-wheel goods carrier (as part of the ultra low-cost project) and the same platform would be used for developing the car.

With rising differeces, it appears certain that the Nano will maintain its price advantage in the market for some time to come.