Tata Nano (2008): first official pictures

By John Sootheran

First Official Pictures

10 January 2008 09:33

Shove over a bit Henry Ford, Ferry Porsche and Alec Issigonis, because as of this morning there's a new entrant for the People's Car Hall of Fame.
 
The first day of the Indian Auto Expo 2008 in Delhi, saw Ratan N Tata (yes, the fella who's leading the bid for Jaguar and Land Rover) reveal his much vaunted 'one lakh' car (that's 100,000 rupees or a measly £1300).
 
Despite being the Chairman and CEO of one of the world's biggest corporations, Ratan Tata admits to being a nervous presenter, so much so, that the initial information was presented by his hologram! When he did appear, it was behind the wheel of one of three 'one lakh' cars being driven onto the stage. The 3000-strong audience of press and VIPs went beserk amid scenes of euphoria last witnessed at the Clinton comeback in New Hampshire. With no spy shots to whet our tastebuds, this was the first time anyone outside Tata had seen the car, and the crowd was loving it.

 
Tata has christened his baby Nano, and revealed that his company has been working on the project for four years, after he saw a family of four travelling in the rain on a single moped. 'I wanted to provide Indian families with an all-weather means of safe transport,' he says, and you get the sense that he really did build this car for the people. To be fair, at £1300, it's unlikely to be for the profit.

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By John Sootheran