TESTING IN INDIA

042 Automotive Testing Technology International June 2009

 TESTING IN INDIA

For car companies in India, vehicle testing is all about

thinking big – without losing sight of the details
Words By Nick Kurczewski

Automotive Testing Technology International June 2009 043

TESTING IN INDIA

India’s car makers are well aware of the notion

that you have only one chance to make a first
impression, and they’re determined to make it a
good one when they launch their products in western
markets. Indeed, companies such as Tata Motors and
Mahindra & Mahindra subject their domestic vehicles to
testing standards that meet – and sometimes exceed – levels
in the West. Gruelling test tracks, extreme temperatures, an
occasional cow or camel in the road, and even technical
input from former Formula 1 drivers now goes into testing
and refining the cars and trucks built in this country of
more than 1.1 billion people.
As India’s largest vehicle manufacturer – also the owner
of the Jaguar and Land Rover brands – Tata Motors could
never be accused of being short on ambition. Sales of the
company’s ultra-low-cost Nano city car have begun in India.
In its base form, the no-frills Nano retails for a mere £1,300
(US$1,960), though European sales of a more powerful and
luxurious version are planned by 2011. Ratan Tata, chairman
of the Tata Group and also CEO of Tata Motors, has even
promised that a US version will follow the launch of the
European-spec model.
In the quest to keep costs down without sacrificing
quality, the steel platform of the Nano was pared down to
the bare essentials through extensive CAD/CAM work. At
the moment, there is no separate opening for the luggage
compartment. Tata engineers say that adding a hatchback
would have upped the cost, weight, and complexity of the
car. High-strength steel and various reinforcements that
come with adding a boot opening meant the idea was
dropped in the design phase – although engineers confirm
that a hatchback is being engineered for future models.
Mahindra & Mahindra, a company that specializes in
rugged all-terrain vehicles that are the complete opposite of
the tiny 35bhp Nano, plans on arriving in the USA as early
as by the end of this year. The Mumbai-based company is
hedging its bets that US consumers still have a hefty appetite
for sport utility vehicles, as long as value and fuel economy
now come along for the ride.
The Mahindra Scorpio SUV and pickup arrive in the
USA powered by diesel motors said to be capable of
delivering 30mpg (12.75km/liter). The trucks have been
tested around the world, from the urban sprawl of India to
the highways of the USA. This global testing regime, and
the resultant ‘real-world usage profile’ (RWUP), has helped
to influence everything from the US-spec model’s fuel
economy and dashboard layout, to small details such as the
size of the cup holders.

Ratio-Test®
Test cylinder
 TESTING IN INDIA

“Once we are satisfied

ABOVE AND LEFT: Clive Hickman, managing director of Tata Motors’ (UK-
India’s safety and based) European Technical Centre and head of engineering
emissions regulations
are several years
for Tata Motors, explains that any engineering activity must
behind current first begin with a careful feasibility assessment.
requirements in “This assessment is in the form of production feasibility
western markets, but and engineering feasibility,” says Hickman. “The feasibility
export considerations
are upping the ante is determined through extensive mathematical modeling
for Indian vehicle [CAE and CAM].”
manufacturers Sometimes simple common sense can play an equally
important factor, as evidenced during the Nano development.
Plans for a three-door model were axed, despite studies that
found that Indian drivers rarely used the left-side passenger
door. The reason was simply that customers are less likely to
purchase an odd-looking car, no matter how low its price.
that the concept is
feasible, we undertake
detailed product design
and CAE of all
components, systems,
and the whole vehicle”
Hickman says that, back in the lab, Tata’s modeling takes
into consideration a long list of factors, such as performance,
durability, structural integrity problems, metal forming,
and production process confirmation.
“Once we are satisfied that the concept is feasible, we
undertake detailed product design and CAE work for all
components, systems, and the whole vehicle,” says Hickman.
“Our objective is to produce a vehicle in 3D form and to
assess all features of the vehicle numerically before we make
any prototypes. Prototypes are made for validation purposes
rather than development, although inevitably, as with our
European competitors, some iterative work is necessary.”
Being a relative newcomer to automobiles – Tatas’ first
car, the Indica, went on sale in 1998 – can also be an asset.

Customised - And Yet Ready-Made.

We are able to customise your standard
test cylinder for the most demanding
tests.
Why:
Ř6WURNHDQGSLVWRQGLDPHWHUFDQEH
selected individually!
Ř0RUHLQVHQVLWLYHDJDLQVWWUDQVYHUVH
forces
Ř0D[LPXPSRVLWLRQLQJDQGUHSHWLWLYH
accuracy
Ř3URYLGHGZLWKDOOUHTXLUHGDFFHVVRULHV
such as sensor and valve technology
 DQGPRXQWLQJSDUWV
Ř$OOSDUWVFRPLQJIURPWKH+†1&+(1
modular system
…for exactly adapted forces with
high dynamics, for a noticeable re-
duction of the operating costs.
7KHVH DUH DGYDQWDJHV ZKLFK KDYH D
direct influence on the productivity.
+†1&+(1ŎVLPSO\WKHEHWWHUVROXWLRQ

www.haenchen.de
TESTING IN INDIA
“Tata Motors has invested in all of the key facilities that
one would expect any major European vehicle manufacturer
to have,” says Hickman. “Many are state-of-the-art and,
because they are recent investments, are more advanced
than in the European OEMs – for example, our kinematics
and compliance facility is used extensively for quasi-
dynamic suspension geometry development.”
Despite India’s safety and emissions regulations being
several years behind current requirements in western
markets, driving conditions in India can present their own
technical challenges because of India’s road conditions.
“Some of our testing is done to a standard that is greater
than in some other countries,” says David Hudson, head of
NVH for Tata Motors.
Situated alongside its high-speed testing facility located
in Pimpri (roughly 100km southeast of Mumbai) is what
Hudson refers to as Tata Motors’ “torture track”. Full of
treacherous potholes and severe cross-ridges, Hudson says
the extreme nature of the track can shock first-time visitors.
When representatives of Jaguar and Land Rover arrived, he
says, “They were quite horrified by the scale of the track and
the inputs put into the vehicle.”
Tata Motors exports its vehicles to selected markets in
ABOVE: Not a
careless test driver,
but a water ingress
test being carried out
LEFT: A Tata Indica
undergoing crash
test evaluation
BELOW: Tata’s torture
track in Pimpri has
some features so
severe they shocked
Land Rover
046 Automotive Testing Technology International June 2009
Europe (currently Poland, Italy, and Spain), so the company
uses proving grounds in Europe and South Africa to
simulate conditions in those and other export markets.
“We also use cold climate facilities in Scandinavia,” says
Hickman, adding that, although Tata Motors conducts a lot
of testing on public roads, “It is not high-speed dynamic
evaluation, but rather is limited to just low-speed durability
confirmation work.”
This doesn’t preclude the company from seeking the
advice of an expert in high-speed driving heroics. From
time to time, former Formula 1 hot-shoe Narain Karthikeyan
is called upon by Tata Motors to evaluate a new vehicle and
provide his driving feedback.
As well as this F1 connection, there is of course the
luxury nameplate link. However, “There is no plan at this
time to have a crossover between Tata Motors and Jaguar
Land Rover test programs,” says Hickman. “Tata established
its own European Technical Centre in 2005, which provides
design and development input for both domestic and
international markets for Tata. It is fair to say, though, that
Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Motors do use the same facilities
occasionally. For example, both companies use the facilities
at MIRA and other independent test houses.”
 TESTING IN INDIA

Having manufactured SUVs since the late-1940s,

Mahindra & Mahindra has spent many decades developing
its own rigorous methods of testing and development work.
Sanjeev Mohoni, vice president of international products for
Mahindra & Mahindra, even details the acronym assigned
to the process.
“During project evolution various levels of prototypes
are tested, such as engineering prototypes and verification
prototypes, as per our proprietary Mahindra Product
Development Process (MPDS),” says Mohoni. “In addition to
our own facilities, and facilities available within India, test
laboratories all around the world are used for different LEFT: A Tata
procedures. We test in the USA, Italy, Spain, Germany, and undergoing a slope
test at another section
South Africa. of the Pimpri test
“One of the most difficult aspects of any new vehicle facility near Mumbai
program is the fine-tuning required by doing the RWUP
(real-world usage profile),” he continues, “wherein various Egypt. The company is also in a joint venture with French
country-specific demands, homologation requirements, car maker Renault – Mahindra builds and also markets the
and environmental conditions need to be simulated and French company’s Logan sedan model. In India, Mahindra
then designed for.” The vehicles are then tested in the just introduced its first crossover vehicle, the seven-
countries where they’ll be sold. passenger Xylo. Mohoni maintains that, despite breaking
At present, Mahindra exports vehicles to Eurasia, Africa, away from go-anywhere 4x4s, the company’s testing
and South America, and has assembly plants in Brazil and principles have “remained the same”.

LEFT: The headline-

grabbing Nano will
have to be well-
developed if it is to
sell beyond India into
Europe and the US
TESTING IN INDIA

“Technology partners such as Lotus, Bosch, Lear, and
several others have contributed to the development and
testing of their respective systems in countries such as the
UK, Australia, Germany, and Spain,” says Mohoni.
Meanwhile, some of the world’s leading automotive
manufacturers are using India as a proving ground to fine-
tune their own products. General Motors India tests its
prototypes and early production vehicles “to ensure in-
RIGHT: A Logan
sedan‘s wet handling
characteristics being
put to the test
country performance requirements are met”, according to
P. Balendran, GM India’s vice president of corporate affairs.
Although GM’s vehicles are built to meet all international
standards, the extra fine-tuning can bring some subtle
improvements.
The changes are often small, and most consumers would
probably never notice things such as the fitment of heavier-
duty suspension components, or the availability of different
fabrics and trim to better appeal to local tastes. Balendran
says that GM India’s on-road testing is done across the
country, in order to capture a “larger bandwidth of customer
experience and expectations”. However, he admits that the
unexpected can sometimes happen – or even amble across
the road.
“On the fun side, we do encounter cows, buffalo, camels,
and some smaller animals that want to take a closer look at
our beautiful vehicles,” comments Balendran. “But we have
been lucky in all cases not to cause any harm to the nature
and habitat.
“Our engineers enjoy driving across India’s diverse
landscape – from the mountains and snow in the North to
the desert in the West, and traffic in the southern cities such
as Bangalore and Chennai.” ‹

Testing at its Best…

ABOVE AND LEFT:

GM products such
as the Optra and
Captiva are fine-tuned
to local requirements,
with features such as
tougher suspensions

“On the fun side,

we do encounter
cows, buffalo,
…because we have
• very steep and fast curves camels, and some
• extremely long and wide straights
• and many sophisticated tracks smaller animals that
…as well as
• competent and hospitable staff
want to take a
• a great service
• and the highest possible safety standards
closer look at our
ATP
beautiful vehicles”
These are the unique advantages Automotive Testing Papenburg GmbH
that “Testing Technology International” Johann-Bunte-Straße 176
magazine testified. 26871 Papenburg
The result: The first five star rating Germany
for a proving ground. Tel.: ++49 (0) 49 61 / 9 75-315
Fax: ++49 (0) 49 61 / 9 75-453
Test (with) us! www.atp-papenburg.de