With the festive season upon us, October will see the launch of as many as five cars. While most of these will be at the premium end of the market, there are a couple of mass-market models, too.
New Kia Carnival
October 3
The Kia Carnival will be back in its latest generation after the previous model was discontinued last June. It promises to be even more spacious and luxurious than the earlier model, and will be offered in two trims initially – Limousine and Limousine Plus. At launch, the new Carnival will only be available as a 7-seater (2+2+3) – the second row will feature captain's seats, while the third row will be a bench seat. It will be powered by a 193hp, 2.2-litre, four-cylinder diesel engine mated to an 8-speed torque converter automatic that sends power to the front wheels. Being brought in as a CBU initially, it is expected to be priced over Rs 50 lakh; local assembly is expected to begin a little later.
Kia EV9
October 3
Alongside the Carnival, Kia will also be launching the EV9 electric SUV as its new flagship offering here. The India-spec EV9 will come with a 99.8kWh battery pack that will offer an ARAI-certified range of 561km. It will get dual motors (one at each axle), giving it all-wheel drive capability. The motors produce a combined 384hp and 700Nm. The EV9 will be available with a 6-seater layout as standard – the second-row seats will be captain's chairs with features like electric adjustment, massage function, and adjustable leg support. This, too, will come as a full import and is expected to be priced at around Rs 1 crore (ex-showroom). At this price point it will rival luxury electric SUVs such as the Mercedes EQE SUV, BMW iX and the Audi Q8 e-tron.
Nissan Magnite facelift
October 4
Four years after its launch, the Nissan Magnite will receive its first mid-lifecycle update this October. Spy shots indicate that it will get a reworked front bumper and grille, and possibly reprofiled headlamps with new LED daytime running lamp signatures. Nissan has also teased a new alloy wheel design for the facelift. While the interior has not been previewed yet, sources tell us that tweaks will be limited to new trim pieces and some additional features. The existing 1.0-litre petrol engines will be carried over unchanged: the 72hp, 96Nm naturally aspirated unit and the 100hp, 160Nm turbo version. The 5-speed manual and AMT, and the CVT gearboxes will be carried over as is, too. Expect a slight bump in prices as well.
BYD eMax 7
October 8
The eMax 7 is a facelifted e6, which was BYD’s first model in India in 2021. The electric MPV will get new headlamps and tail-lamps and new bumpers with more chrome elements. On the inside, the dashboard will remain mostly unchanged, but the biggest update will be a larger 12.8-inch floating touchscreen, up from the 10.1-inch unit in the e6. The BYD eMax 7 will have three rows with 6- and 7-seater configurations. It will also have new features like a panoramic sunroof and an ADAS suite. Internationally, the eMax 7 gets two battery pack options: a 55.4kWh unit with a claimed range of 420km and a 71.8kWh unit with 530km range, but it's not known which spec will be brought here. We expect it to be priced at around Rs 30 lakh-33 lakh (ex-showroom), and take on the Toyota Innova Hycross.
New Mercedes-Benz E-Class
October 9
The sixth-gen long-wheelbase E-Class (V214) is expected to be priced upwards of Rs 80 lakh, and rival the recently launched BMW 5 Series LWB. The new E-Class is considerably larger than its predecessor, and a lot more techy on the inside, especially with its superscreen layout. We have already had a chance to see the new E-Class up close, and you can read more about it here. Under the hood, two 2.0-litre four-cylinder engines will be on offer: a 204hp turbo-petrol and a 197hp diesel. Both engines get 48V mild-hybrid systems, and come mated to a 9-speed torque converter sending power to the rear wheels. A point to note is that none of the variants will get air suspension at launch. Deliveries for the new E-Class will commence by the end of October.
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