SIAM, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) organized INDO-Bangla Automotive Show from 2nd to 4th February 2017.
This was the first time an automotive show bringing all Indian automotive and bike manufacturer dealerships under one roof.
Our team visited the show on 4tth February to bring our readers some key insights of the event.
We started off by visiting the Motorcycle hall, where some newest 2017 motorbikes to be introduced were on display. In this hall the bike and the pavilion that got the most visitors was Honda,because they had the most unique bike ever to be displayed in Bangladesh
Honda has got themselves to display 2016 MotoGP Champion Marc Marquez’s 1000CC Honda RC213V with Repsol Honda Team livery in their pavilion.
Moving on from HONDA we stopped by Team Bike Bd. Mr Wasif Anowar, founder of BikeBd greeted us with a warm welcome and we spent some at their stall. Bike BD is the first motorcycle blog in Bangladesh. Everything from user reviews to all information about the newest bikes is available in their website. They have around 500,000 + members and followers on social media and Bike BD were the official partner for SIAM for the show.
ACI Motors is now the official importer and seller of Yamaha motorbikes Bangladesh. They had their YAMAHA FZs V2 at display and outside the ICCB premises parking lot they have made arrangement for a test drive track for Yamaha bikers. The ICCB has a very good parking premise which is ideal for arranging such a show and it was very interesting to see this setup organized for all visitors.
Like every other automotive show we visited we always hoped to find something interesting at the parking lot and so we found this mini cooper.
Moving on from the motorbike section of the show we entered the automotive manufacturer’s hall. Mahindra the largest SUV market of India has been in our market for some time now and have been selling their commercial market targeted small pickups and trucks. The NUVO SPORT is a small crossover SUV from Mahindra which is a completely new line up for Mahindra. It has a 1.5ltr turbo diesel engine with twin 2stage turbo that gives out around 250nm of torque at 1500rpm. Alongside the Scorpio 2017, the TUV the NUVO sport is the brand new 2017 model. The car has a very good ground clearance and thanks to its boxy proportions has ample leg and head room and as well a bigger trunk space.
Uttara motors Bangladesh, was there with their 2017 Suzuki line up. For the first time we saw the Ertiga, which is a small MPV hatchback and the completely redesigned facelifted Suzuki Alto. We really don’t find Indian automotive designs much appealing and specialy by today’s standards their 2017 cars still look like they are from 2000s. However among all the suzukis we loved the styling of the Suzuki CIAZ. It comes with either a 1.4ltr and 1.6ltr petrol or a 1.3 diesel. We don’t expect it to perform like our 1nzfe of Toyotas but we did like the interior as well. The seating position was very comfortable and the interior accents and the dashboard design looked very premium.
Before we all headed out of the show we stopped by NITOL motors, the distributor of TATA vehicles in Bangladesh. TATA displayed 3 brand new TATA NANOs in their pavilion. The TATA NANO GEN X was the newest Nano line up with a face lifted front and rear and with a new Automatic transmission. The car has 2 cylinders producing 38bhps and 51nm of torque. What more could you possibly expect from a 624cc engine?. Surprisingly the car has an independent lower wishbone in front and independent semi-trailing arm rear axle in the back with drum brakes in front and rear. But don’t expect superior handling performance because this car weighs around 765kgs and would do a top speed of 105Km/h.
From passenger cars to bikes and commercial trucks and busses, all were there at the show. Our automotive industry is still dominated by Japanese manufactures but it was very interesting to see the good number of dealerships that already exist in the market offering such a wide range of vehicles. The bigger market however is still the bike industry but checking out the cars being displayed, we did feel that the Indian made cars are doing very well in Bangladesh, and the price they are being offered as brand new is a very good bargain compared to the rest in the market.
Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) and SIAM displayed their cars in the event. Indo Bangla Automotive Show supported by India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI), The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), Bangladesh Automobile Assemblers & Manufacturers Association (BAAMA), Bangladesh Motorcycle Assemblers & Manufacturers Association (BMAMA).
Check our video review of the event below
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