Global carmakers to go greener, bigger at India auto show

Fuel-efficient cars and a slew of new SUV models will be unveiled at India's Auto Expo later this week as global carmakers continue to rev up their activity in one of the world's few growth engines despite a recent slowdown in sales.

Around 50 new models will be presented to hundreds of delegates and half a million visitors as carmakers look to move on from a year of sluggish sales due to high interest rates and rising costs and fuel prices in Asia's third-largest economy.

The debut of South Korea's Ssangyong, owned by India's Mahindra & Mahindra, and product launches from Toyota Motor Corp and Renault SA will underline the country's importance to the world's biggest carmakers.



"The overwhelming feeling is that this current sales slowdown is a temporary phenomenon and global carmakers are certainly betting on India to bounce back. There's no slackening of interest here," R.C. Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki , India's biggest carmaker, told Reuters.

"Everybody is working on hybrid, fuel-efficient and green technology vehicles. There's an exciting race to find a small, cheap hybrid car for India, which will certainly be a winner."

Jaguar Land Rover, owned by India's Tata Motors, will skip the overlapping North American International Auto Show in Detroit to focus on the India event, while Ford Motor Co said it will make a world-first announcement in New Delhi.