Tata Motors to introduce AMT in commercial vehicles
AMT expected to provide better fuel efficiency than manual transmission
Tata Motors plans to introduce automated manual transmission (AMT) in its commercial vehicles, in efforts to improve fuel efficiency and consolidate its market share.
“We are looking to provide AMT technology in products like the Prima trucks, Xenon XT pick up truck and light commercial vehicle Ultra. These are expected to hit the market in the next financial year,” said Ravi Pisharody, Executive Director Commercial Vehicles at Tata Motors, quoted in PTI.
Tata Motors executives say the AMT will be an improvement from the traditional manual transmission.
AMT “gives better fuel efficiency than a manual transmission and clutch life also increases, which leads to more savings for the consumer. Also it is great for drivers,” said AK Jindal, Tata Motors Head Engineering Commercial Vehicles.
The Indian manufacturer is working on developing the technology indigenously in order to reduce costs, it was reported.
“We could have done it with imported aggregates but we are developing the technology with our suppliers so that we can provide it at an affordable cost,” Jindal added.
The company is also looking at developing liquefied natural gas and dual fuel vehicles which can run on both CNG and diesel, Jindal said.
Tata Motors, which recently celebrated 60 years of manufacturing trucks at its Jamshedpur facility, sells vehicles across the Middle East in UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Turkey. Commercial vehicles sold include trucks ranging from 1t to 47t and buses from 28-seater to 81-seater.
The brand also recently launched the Prima truck in the Middle East, which Truck & Fleet ME reviewed in May.
