The ten cheapest cars in the world - #7 - Tata Indica
Tata Indica: India. $8,500.
The Indica has always been the ugly duckling in the European market, where it survives because there's nothing cheaper available (well, the latest Fiat 600 can sometimes be found for under 6,000 EUR). The car is also sold in South Africa, where it's a huge success.
The Indica is driven by a 1.2-liter engine or a Xeta 1.4-liter I4, good 70 HP, or a 1.3-liter DICOR diesel (newer versions will be sourced from Fiat). You can even get an Indica converted to run on Compressed Natural Gas. Sadly, The Indica doesn't have many good green credentials. The most popular option, the Xeta 1.4 version, has decent-but-not-great mileage, delivering 33 mpg in mixed cycle and 23.5 mpg in city usage. Tata claims that the Indica models produce 158 g/km (diesel) and 167 g/km (gasoline) of CO2.
Gallery: Tata Indica
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Avinash machado 4:39AM (3/04/2008)
The DICOR is a Tata in house engine, not sourced from Fiat. The next generation Indica will have a Fiat diesel engine.
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linnylu 5:59AM (3/05/2008)
I see nothing wrong with the forward styling of this vehicle. Why is something that seems a bit original considered an 'ugly duckling'? I do not know how this vehicle runs, but it has style and grace and does not look like all the other assemblyline bumblebees. if it were available in the USA and used biofuel I would strongly consider.
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Xavier Navarro 6:47AM (3/05/2008)
To Avinash: Error fixed (it was a simple transcription mistake)
To Linnylu: The term "ugly duckling" didn't refer to its aesthetics. The car is not the worst looking hatchback in the market, it's just that it's sometimes so cheap it's overlooked.
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