The auto markets across the globe is about to witness strong competition in the segment of compact SUVs. Most top car manufacturers across the globe are willing to register their presence in this segment. The latest among all these key manufacturing giants that has jumped into the fray is Honda Motors. The company is undertaking aggressive efforts to design a suitable vehicle that could compete with the Nissan Qashqai, a car which has performed appreciably in European auto markets. The question that is arising in the minds of Indian auto lovers is whether Honda is specifically designing this vehicle for the European market or is it going to suitably follow it with plans for the Indian auto market as well.
The only information that is till now available with Indian Drives is that the CEO of Honda Motors, Takanobu Ito commented vaguely on the success achieved by the Nissan Qashqai. This has given birth to a lot of speculations. Honda Motors is equipped with a diesel engine of 1.6L that would prove very useful in powering this SUV. Although the Nissan Qashqai would be its only major competitor in the European market, the Indian auto market is already witnessing a lot of brands cropping up. The US auto giant, Ford Motors has nearly equipped itself to announce its latest Ford EcoSport. The largest car manufacturer of India, Maruti India is also ready with its concept compact SUV that is going to be showcased at the upcoming Delhi Auto Expo 2012.
Nissan and Renault are both going to be ready with their respective versions of the Duster SUV within mid-year 2012. This makes it all the more imperative for Honda Motors to have its representation in the segment of compact SUVs in the Indian market. The Nissan Qashqai is referred to as the Nissan Dualis in the Japanese and Australian markets and comes in both diesel and petrol variants. This could probably be the reason that Honda Motors has thoughts of having a diesel variant in its proposed compact crossover. However, the time is quite early for making inference on proposed pricing or detailed engine specifications that the latest Honda SUV will be provided with. Honda has numerous petrol variant vehicles running in the market. The entire car range offered by Hero India, in fact, runs only on petrol.
