Datsun launches Go at Rs. 3.12 lakh

Japanese auto major Nissan's low-cost nameplate Datsun on Wednesday began its comeback journey with the launch of its maiden small car Go priced between ₹ 3.12 lakh and ₹ 3.70 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) in India.

Developed in India, Go will compete with Maruti Alto and Hyundai Eon. While the 800cc Alto 800 is priced between ₹ 2.37 lakh and ₹ 3.52 lakh, the Alto K10 is priced between ₹ 3.15 lakh and ₹ 3.31 lakh. Hyundai's Eon costs between ₹ 2.83 lakh and ` 3.85 lakh (all prices ex-showroom Delhi).

Small cars account for 75% of the total Indian car market.

The Datsun brand, revived for markets like India, Russia, South Africa and Indonesia, would launch two more cars by 2016 including Go+, a seven-seater multi purpose vehicle based on the Go, later this year and a car smaller than the Go. Nissan expects Datsun to account for 33-50% of its sales in India.

"With Datsun we are entering a segment which we can't address with the Nissan brand," said Kenichiro Yomura, MD and CEO, Nissan Motor India. "With Datsun we will utilise our full capacity of 400,000 units at Oragadam and expand it to 480,000 units for future."

Go benefits from being developed on a bigger 1.2-litre petrol engine and longer platform, resulting in more space and better performance than rivals.

The car has no airbags or ABS on offer even as an option. The entry-level variant does not even have power steering and AC.