Tata Nano To Be Revamped And Launched As A 'Smart City Car' Next Year

AHMEDABAD: Tata Nano, once a symbol of aspiration for two-wheeler owners, will be revamped next year and launched as a 'Smart City Car', Girish Wagh, senior vice-president, Tata Motors, said on August 13.

The car suffered from an image problem leading to lower sales.

"We are carrying out multiple interventions to improve the product as well as its image to ensure that the Nano lives up to its promise," Wagh said on the sidelines of launch of Zest, a compact sedan from the Tata stable with 29 new product features.

The adulation around the Nano brand disappeared when deliveries were hit owing to delay in the project. Cases of the car catching fire dampened the consumer sentiment around the brand. "Although fire incidents were either caused by foreign objects in the exhaust system or external manipulation with the car's electrical systems, over the period, we have rectified them," he said, adding that the company has refocused on the safety aspect in its subsequent model Nano Twist.

Tata Nano suffered from an image problem leading to lower sales.

The company realized that there were significant number of cases where people would test-drive, book their Nano and then, drop out owing to negativity around the brand. "Social circles would dissuade them," Wagh said adding that the company is hoping to see a change in Nano's fortunes, post rebranding, including possible export to international markets. Tata Nano is manufactured at the company's Sanand facility on the outskirts of Ahmedabad.