Garmin in talks with Indian carmakers for OEM fitment

Garmin Ltd, part of the Garmin Corp of the USA and a satellite navigation product developer, is in talks with carmakers like Maruti Suzuki India, Honda Cars India, Hyundai Motors India and Tata Motors for introducing its 2014 PND product portfolio as an accessory in their existing and new cars and mini SUV models.

The three new PNDs that it is rolling out this month are the nuvi 55LM, nuvi 65LM and nuvi 2567 LM navigation devices priced at Rs 10,990, Rs 14,990 and Rs 17,990 respectively.

Garmin is already a big supplier to the Volkwagen Group and in 2013 sold almost 15,000 units of various navigation devices for its cars in India, comprising both VW and Skoda brands. A couple of months ago, it tied up with Maruti Suzuki for its heads-up display navigation system to be used as an accessory.

Now Garmin is pushing its six-inch display screen – nuvi 2567LM – will facilitate access to live information with a connection to smartphones via Bluetooth. This will help users access weather and real-time traffic information to avoid traffic-congested routes, leveraging it on the nuvi 2567LM. Some of its features include one-search bar search by POI and addresses, quick search list, lane assist, up-head, advanced highway mode, natural guidance, map tools and hands-free calls.

With easy turn-by-turn directions and off-board maps to direct him/her through a city and travel routes, it would be easier for a driver to embark on long journeys, says Ali Rizvi, national sales head, Garmin India. The company says it will provide four map updates at no extra cost. Garmin is targeting both the OE segment as well as the aftermarket for its products.

“We are targeting both the B+ and C passenger car segments with our navigation devices, adds Rizvi. So far the company has introduced about 6-7 navigation products for the automotive market in India since it entered the auto segment three years ago. But plans are to extend this range on a yearly basis through its existing network of 27 distributorships and 800 retail outlets. These will be scaled up further to around 1,100 outlets and 40 dealerships by end-2014. 

Among the new navigation devices that are being launched, the nuvi 55LM  with a 12.7 cm display will keep the device up-to-date with the latest maps. Features include lane assist with a junction view that displays upcoming junctions and uses brightly coloured arrows to indicate the proper lane. The device also offers an Up-Head feature which renders it easier to find places like restaurants, fuel stations, ATMs and shops without leaving the map.

The nuvi 65Lm with a 15.24 cm dual orientation display is compatible for a tyre pressure monitoring system and monitors air pressure and real time tyre pressure. The TPMS sensor detects the tyre status every 3.7 seconds and sends out information every 15 seconds.