Tata Motors has entered the compact sedan segment with the new Aeris and retired the Tigor name. At the launch, we spoke to Anand Kulkarni of Tata Motors about why the company chose a new nameplate, who the car is aimed at, and whether an Aeris EV is on the cards.
Kulkarni says the compact sedan segment sells around 3.5 lakh units a year, about 65 percent of it to personal buyers, and has only four players. The Aeris targets these private buyers, mainly hatchback owners looking to upgrade. Fleet buyers will continue to be served by the Xpres-T, including its EV version.
He also explains the features Tata is using to stand out, including ventilated seats, a built-in dashcam, a 360-degree camera and a rear seat reclined to 27 degrees. On CNG, the Aeris gets Tata's twin-cylinder iCNG setup, which keeps more boot space and lets the car start directly in CNG mode.
Although the Aeris platform can take an electric powertrain, Tata says there is no EV for now because it already has three EVs at this price point.
In this interview:
• Why Tata dropped the Tigor name
• Who the Aeris is built for
• Fleet vs personal buyer strategy
• CNG demand and production planning
• Is an Aeris EV coming?
• Taking on the segment leader