Tata Motors today announced a tie-up with Coimbatore-based Jayem Automotives to develop performance vehicles. The partnership will focus on enhancing the performance and appearance of Tata Motor's vehicles and will eventually become a whole range of products. The vehicles will be developed under JT Special Vehicles Pvt. Ltd – a 50:50 joint venture between Jayem Automotives and Tata Motors.
The development of the vehicles with enhanced performance will take place in a phased manner at a dedicated assembly facility, currently being explored at Coimbatore, where Jayem Automotives currently develops race and rally cars.
Tata Motors says the development work will be done swiftly and will include design, assembly, testing facilities and precision machining, all of which will take place under one roof.
The company will first modify the newly introduced Tigor and the popular Tiago. The Tata Nexon is likely to be next. The focus will be on the petrol engines initially and power is likely to be bumped up to 90-95hp, from the current 85hp (Tigor and Tiago). Interestingly, raising power output to 110hp could be the next step. The suspension will also be tuned to make the cars sportier. The ground clearance could be lowered, springs will be made stiffer and dampers will gain a sportier edge as well. Visual upgrades are likely to include a spoiler and a sportier grille. Bumpers are also expected to be tweaked at a later stage. The modified vehicles, which will be assembled in Coimbatore, could cost anywhere between Rs 60,000 or Rs 1,00,000 lakh more than the standard car.
Jayem Automotives has previously collaborated with Tata Motors on multiple occasions. One such example is the Bolt Sport which was showcased at the 2016 Auto Expo. The vehicle was a performance-focused variant of the Bolt hatchback and featured upgrades including a modified turbocharged 110hp, 1.2-litre petrol engine, revised suspension, performance-calibrated electric power steering and a high-flow exhaust system.
The company is also known for souping up the rather modest Nano into a 233hp track car. Dubbed ‘Super Nano’, the car swapped its stock engine for a super bike 1.3-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and also had a six-speed sequential gearbox with paddleshifters.
The last few weeks for Tata Motors have been quite eventful. The carmaker recently unveiled a two-seat, mid-engine sports coupe Racemo, under its exclusive sub-brand Tamo at the 2017 Geneva motor show. The new future mobility brand, Tamo, will focus on bringing low-volume, low-investment car models to the market. Where it differs is that while Jayem will only focus on modifying existing products, Tamo will develop all-new products.