Tata's Nano, a Bigger Blockbuster than Apple's
by David Sassoon - Aug 8th, 2008
Say the word "Nano" in America, and most people will think of a music player; say the word in India, the world's largest democracy, and people there will likely think of a car. The music player is Apple's, the car is Tata's.
You might think comparing the products with each other -- just because they're both called Nano -- is like comparing Apples to tandoori chicken -- but after reading Scott Carney's eyewitness report on the car (in the current issue of Wired), it's time for a rethink. Both Nanos are measures of corporate vision and success. Which is of greater significance?
Tata's Nano is a $3000 car with a roomy interior that accommodates a family of four. For a 1300-pound car, it's got a powerful engine that gets 47 miles to the gallon. And Tata could sell 30 million of them in India alone. Huge markets in Africa and South America await as well.
When some survivor one day writes the history of this current era of global transition and recalibration, Apple's Nano will likely get nary a mention. It's a bauble, merely, a trinket. Tata's Nano, on the other hand, will come to own the word. The car and the concept it embodies is world-changing. It also redefines a coveted piece of the American dream and makes it available to everyone, with no emigration necessary. A final chapter of the outsourcing story.
If you don't believe me, listen to what Scott Carney had to say when he got to sit behind the wheel of Nano.
Carney travelled to Tata's Engineering Research Center in the city of Pune and gained access to the top-secret mega-warehouse usually off-limits to outsiders. There, he met Nano, the car.
The engineers won't let me take it for a test run, but I'm allowed to settle into the driver's seat. The pedals feel good under my feet, and I imagine working them as I dodge Pune traffic. Since the engine is tucked next to the rear axle, I can comfortably fit my 6'2" frame behind the controls. That's unusual for any Indian car, let alone a cheap one.
And that's when it hits me. I had expected something like a matchbox with a motor. But this is a real vehicle. More than that, it's a cool machine. My reaction is visceral: I want one. And that's precisely the response the Tata group is counting on. The Nano is the kind of product that transforms a company from a massive global conglomerate into a massively cool global conglomerate.
My reaction is visceral: I want one. If Carney's reaction turns out to be universal, the Tata Nano could be the leading wedge of a re-imagination of personal transport. And much else.
After reading Carney's account, I couldn't help noticing the irony of last week's front page news about the American auto industry. A fall in US vehicle sales of 13%. A stunning second-quarter loss of $15.5 billion for GM. Cash reserves running low at all the big US automakers, now facing potential extinction. Really. Finally, they are racing against time to revamp product lines away from big vehicles, toward small.
But Tata, and India, are already beyond small, on the brink of Nano.
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The Nano will be a big deal. I can't wait to see a million of them on the roads. Just one thing, the picture you included isn't of a Nano, I think that might be a smart car (but am not sure). The Nano has four doors and doesn't come in convertible.
thanks scott
I've corrected it
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