Meet the world's cheapest car. The Tata Nano will retail for about $2,500. The Times Onlinecompares the price of the Tata Nano to the price of a DVD player in a Lexus. They say the car's manufacturer Tata cuts costs by minimizing components and by relying on cheap production costs in India. It is also a tiny car - just 3 meters long. But Tata claims they didn't cut corners on safety.
Tata cut costs by minimising components, particularly steel, and taking advantage of India's low production costs. Because of its size, it uses less sheet metal, has a smaller and lighter engine than other cars, smaller tube-less tyres and a no-frills interior. The company has applied for 34 patents to cover its innovations. "We shrunk it, made the engine smaller and used fewer materials but we haven't taken any shortcuts in term of safety or emissions," Mr Tata said.
The car will be sold first in India from the second half of this year, with an initial annual production run of 250,000, but it is expected to be made available in Latin America, SouthEast Asia and Africa. It could find its way to Europe in a few years but enhancements to meet higher standards would raise the price considerably.
