What would you say to a car that offered features like ABS, airbags, power-assisted steering, remote-controlled central locking, electric windows, and CD player as standard features? You might long for it but wouldn?t expect to get it all without spending a lot of money. Now what would you say if the same car were to cost Rs 2,75,000? A quick calculation ? what do you get for about Rs 2,75,000 in India? Answer: The Maruti 800, the Alto LX and little else. But before everybody starts thinking of it as a new, face-lifted Tata Indigo, here?s the disappointing bit ? it is not an Indian car at all. It?s a Dacia Logan and it?s just been launched a few months ago.

Ever heard of Dacia? It?s a Romanian car manufacturer, which has been making cheap and solid cars with the assistance of Renault of France since the 70s. In 1999, Renault took a 51 per cent stake in Dacia and today, Dacia acts as a Renault arm that handles Central and Eastern Europe. That?s the unglamorous part of Europe where economic conditions are rather different to the West. Which means that the automobile markets in these parts are more geared towards sturdy, reliable and economical cars ? just like India. In fact, in some ways, Dacia could be likened to India?s own Tata Motors ? both companies are committed to giving consumers robust, value-for-money, reliable and modern cars.

Coming back to Dacia and the Logan in particular. The Logan is the result of a five-year Euro 489 million project that had a single brief ? to build a Euro 5,000 car. At the current conversion rate, 5,000 Euros works out to approximately Rs 2.75 lakh.

The Logan was designed in France at Renault?s Technocentre near Paris around the platform of the new Nissan Micra. In fact, many of the components used in the Logan have been sourced from existing Renault cars like the Clio. This common parts bin approach has helped to ensure both economy and reliability. Renault has an ambitious programme for the Logan ? sales in 35 countries by end 2005, and five production centres around the world by 2007.

So what do Romania and the Logan have to do with India except perhaps, that the Indian consumer demands cheap and reliable transport? There is a very good chance of the Logan making it on Indian roads and challenging existing car manufacturers.

Looks-wise, the Logan is just like any other budget saloon seen on roads everywhere ? the front and side profile looks a bit like the Indigo while the rear is a bit Ikon-esque. Where the Logan scores is that it looks like a pure saloon and not a hatchback with a boot added on later. The Euro-spec car?s facia is very clean and the instrument panel is very well laid out.

So how does the Logan compare with cars already plying on Indian roads? Well, the first point of comparison: the dimensions. The Ikon, Esteem, Indigo and Corsa are 1.63, 1.57, 1.62 and 1.60 metres long respectively while the Logan is 1.7m long. With a width of 1.7m, the Logan is wider than the Indian cars while wheelbase figures respectively are 2,486m, 2,365m, 2,45m and 2,443m for the Ikon, Esteem, Indigo and Corsa ? the Logan has a wheelbase of 2.63 metres, which implies more internal space available for the occupants.

In terms of engine power (and comparing the Logan 1.4 with similar-engined Indian cars), the Logan does not have the best of it with just 75PS on tap ? the Esteem, Indigo and Corsa are all well over 80bhp with the Corsa having the most powerful engine. In torque terms, however, it is a very different story ? with 112Nm, the Logan is well ahead of the ?opposition? and that advantage will result in better driveability at the low end.

The boot volume of the Logan measures up to 510litres ? that?s bigger than the boot in an Ikon or Corsa or Esteem or Petra. So the Logan is well suited to the traditional Indian family that likes to travel lock, stock and barrel. However, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating and that is only if the Logan does come to India.

It will be difficult to keep the price at the 5,000 Euro level for India because of the various taxes. However, if the price can be pegged to around 50 per cent more than its original price, the Logan would be a tough competitor for not just the Indigo, Corsa and Esteem but also for the Ford Ikon and the Hyundai Accent.

Renault already has a presence in India via the petrol engines powering the Mahindra Scorpio as well as the CBU-imported Nissan X-Trail. However, the Logan would be the ideal vehicle for the French company to make an entry. That is what the Dacia arm is for ? to provide economical, budget-oriented yet high quality cars which in turn allow the company to have a fighting chance in developing markets like India where price is an overriding factor.

Road rage

Mamata Shankar,
danseuse/actress

What really annoys me on the road is when drivers don?t switch their engines off during a jam as cars and buses belching out fumes at a traffic signal don?t really improve the air we breathe. But then, the psychology here is very different. Instead of each one doing his or her own little bit, we just look at what the other is doing and follow suit. We don?t cross roads where we should, buses don?t stop at the right places and of course, auto-rickshaws are as careless as ever.

Yet another thing that I can never reconcile to is that despite paying road tax, the condition of Calcutta?s roads is pitiful. Potholes and ditches are a given on almost every road save for those that boast of a minister?s residence. These particular roads are always maintained extra well. So much so, that I think the only way to improve Calcutta?s roads is to have the ministers shift residence every three months or so