Indian (as in "Third World") Motorcars!

egkelly

Has India EVER exported automobiles to the west? I recall seing that India now has a respectable indigenous automobile capability-as a nation of 1 billion people, certainly they have a large enough domestic market. But, have the Indians ever ventured afield? I ask the question, because most Asian nations have attempted to follow japan-that is, build up a domestic auto industry, then export their best product (to enable them to invest and modernize). Has anybody in the West come across an Indian-built car?

bigbozer

Indian car's build quality is so poor that they have never been exported to the West. Except for infield Motorcycles and some Ambassador cars to England for the diehard 50s fans. Some Maruti/Suzuki cars were exported to Africa and the Middle East, but never to the west. Once I complained to a Japanese executive of Maruti/Suzuki about the problems with my car in Bomb ay. He turned round to me and said "If you buy a Suzuki made in Japan you will not have this problem". I wonder if the C class Mercedes Benz cars assembled in India are as good as those made in Germany??

Mr_Shiftright

I have run into an occasional India-made car in obscure swap meets, but only on two occasions in 20 years...one was called, I believe a Hindustani, and resembled something British from the 60s or 70s.

I don't think India is anywhere near ready to export to America...in addition to quality control issues, and even if they borrowed Japanese technology (like Hyundai did), they would still need to set up a dealer and service network...this requires massive investment and prodigious marketing skill. Even France and Italy are quite shy of trying this, so I don't expect India to steup up to the plate anytime soon. But you know, the country is huge, the people are skillful, and the span of time is long....maybe someday....I can recall even in my own lifetime when the term "made in Japan" meant "junk" in American colloquial language.

jay_75

India's gov't has such tight regulations on importation and implementation of technology that there is no monetary incentive for building cars there....domestic or otherwise.

If you've ever been to India, you can see the incredible age of any auto running there...its a prime example of beauracracy to the n'th degree......a nation that cripples itself in the name of patriotism

Mr_Shiftright

I can think of some European countries who do that, too!

India is an amazing place...it's hard to believe that it works at all, that the whole thing doesn't just disintegrate...but somehow, it survives and in some areas, flourishes...hard for a Westerner to grasp really.