Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Auto, in New Delhi on Tuesday. Picture by Ramakant Kushwaha

New Delhi, Jan. 8: Two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto pulled a little stunt today: it unveiled the small car that it plans to produce within two to four years from now.

It wasn’t a prototype, but a concept car that had been designed with the help of unnamed overseas designers and rigged out by by its engineers.

The company, which has been wrestling with the idea of a small car for over a decade, says it will roll out its car in collaboration with Renault of France and Nissan of Japan. Neither Renault nor Nissan was part of today’s show — and the car bore a Bajaj badge.

Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Auto, refused to spell out the price of the car. “It certainly will not be a Rs 1-lakh car,” he said.

Last year, Renault had announced plans to introduce a $3,000 car (about Rs 1.2 lakh) in the country and had opened discussions with Bajaj Auto.

“I know Carlos Ghosn (president and CEO of Renault and Nissan) has set a target of 2010 for the Bajaj-Renault car. While it is hard to put any time frame, we expect to have the product ready in two to four years,” Bajaj added.

Bajaj said the car would be powered by both diesel and petrol engines. He added that it would have a “unique transmission” — somewhere between manual and automatic — which left reporters a little bemused.

A new manufacturing plant will be set up at Chakan, in Pune, which in “all probability” will produce the car.

Bajaj said the company was looking to gain expertise from Renault not only in the development of engines but also in the actual production of cars, besides gaining global market access.