Auto Mall, Mumbai - 5th to 7th March 2010.

[Team-CCI]

With the Auto Expo gone by a couple of months ago, and car manufacturers reportedly cutting down on publicity budgets, the Auto Mall at Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai was a much smaller affair. Although most manufacturers showed up, the cars on display were quite less. Although some manufacturers like Mercedes showed up with all their might, others seemed to think of the show as an afterthought. Let's get to the main course, shall we?

Chevrolet

Chevrolet had their new launches at the stand, with both the Petrol and Diesel Cruze being present. We will be posting reviews of both of them and the Beat shortly. For the meanwhile, enjoy the interior shots of the Diesel Cruze and the Beat.

College Projects

Right upon entering the show, you are greeted by a stand on the right showcasing the projects of various engineering colleges around the city. The students who were showing off their respective projects seemed like an interesting bunch and it was fun to chat with a group of guys who were passionate about building cars and racing them.

Fiat

Fiat is first in a list of many manufacturers who were present with a meagre quantity of cars and show. There was a single Linea and Punto at the stall.

Ford

Ford showed up with a few Figos and the customary Fiesta and the new-look Endeavour. The Figo was getting a lot of attention from the public, showing that the hatchback market in India is still far away from saturation point. In these pictures, you can check out the red interiors of the Figo that I had been ranting about a few days ago. The rear seating area seemed to be enough as long as the driver isn't too tall. Upon pulling the seat back completely for my height of 6'1", the rear seemed quite cramped.

Honda

Honda had neither the hatch concept, nor the CR-Z concept on display. Only their regular models, the City, Civic, Accord and Jazz were on display, and none of them were getting a lot of attention.

Hyundai

Just like Honda, Hyundai showed up with their regular cars with none of the concepts that were shown at the Expo in sight.

Mahindra

On display were 2 Xylos and a Scorpio.

Maruti

The cars on display at the Maruti stall included snazzy versions of their hatchbacks, the A-Star, Swift and the Ritz, and their mid-size sedan, the SX4. Also on display was John Abraham's Gypsy.

Mercedes

With the biggest display area of the show, Mercedes were eager to show off all their models, though none of them were accessible to the general public. They had the CLS and SL 63 AMGs on display. Apart from those two starrers, their regular fare consisting of C, E and S Class luxury saloons were also on display.

Navnit Motors

Navnit Motors showed off various cars from the different brands that they sell through their dealerships. On display were the Beemers, a Rolls Royce Ghost, the Land Rover Free Lander 2 and the Volvo XC90 and the Volvo S80 sedan.

Nissan

Nissan's stall consisted of their 2 offerings that are currently being sold here in India, the Teana and the X-Trail SUV.

Others

Apart from the mainstream manufacturers, the show also had a stall taken by the VCCCI (Vintage & Classic Car Club of India) to show off their vintages. Also on display were 2 concept bikes by a couple of design studios.

Skoda

On display were two Lauras, a Fabia and a Superb. The Lauras were getting most of the attention with a small crowd building up to check out the interiors and details.

Tata

Tata, perhaps, had one of their smallest showings in recent times, with just the Tata Manza and a Sumo on display. Their Aria MPV was surprisingly absent at the show, which is surprising considering the fact that the car is definitely going to gather a lot of attention and sell in huge numbers around the country.

Toyota

On display were their regular offerings, the Camry, Corolla Altis, the new-look Innova and the Fortuner. The Fortuner was getting a lot of attention, though the rest of the cars seemed to be ignored by most.

Volkswagen

Volkswagen showed up with their newest launch, the Polo 1.2 Petrol, along with the Passat and the Jetta. A full review of the Polo will be posted shortly, though you can have a look at the interiors. The car feels great and will hopefully go on to sell well.