Mercedes's baby car comes to India

New Delhi:They say good things come in small packages. Here's how you could soon buy the Smart in India. It's all of 2.5 metres long but you simply can't miss it in a crowd.

DaimlerChrysler's Smart is a popular model in Europe and might drive into India soon, though not right away. DaimlerChrysler India says Smart will make a unique style statement.

Managing Director & CEO, DaimlerChrysler India, Wilfried Aulbur said, "It would be a niche application for people, who has a clearly defined personality, character and lifestyle."

Although a final decision on India has yet to be made, it's moving into the world's largest car market, the US in 2008 and might cost $13,000.

DaimlerChrysler has already lost about $5 billion on the Smart project. Now it will need to enter new markets to boost volumes, if it is to make it a profitable proposition. And with crude prices shooting up, this fuel-efficient model might find more takers in the US right now.

With archrival, BMW, already in India, it might be to DaimlerChrysler's advantage to have one-more product on Indian roads.

But don't decide on buying the Smart as yet, because Swedish carmaker Volvo is gearing up to drive into India with its range of premium luxury cars - the Volvo S80 and the Volvo XC-90.

So, get ready to shell out anywhere between Rs 25 lakhs to a crore for these beauties.

Swedish carmaker Volvo will drive its luxury cars into India by the end of the year. The new subsidiary, Volvo Car India, will have its head office in Delhi.

It will establish three dealerships in 2006 and the Volvo S80 and XC90 will be the first to be marketed in India. These cars will come in through the fully built import route.

And that is not all. Volvo plans to launch its entire range of cars in the market, including the S40 sedan, XC90 SUV and the C70 convertible.

With Ford picking up Volvo, the cars in India will be sold by Ford Motor India. A Volvo official said, that the company will have around 10 dealerships next year and expects annual sales of 500 to 600 cars in India.

And interestingly, the sports utility vehicle - XC90 - one of the two models to be launched in India, was presented to the Pope at the Vatican.