Mr. Ratan Tata with Nano at the Geneva Motor Show

When TATA Nano was shown to the world in the January 2008 Auto Expo, along with all the attention and adulation, it was criticized by some as being an unsafe, pollutant and toy-like vehicle but many more, even in Europe, will see in this car the oppurtunity to move from one place to another with much more comfort and safety than they had before the car made it into the real world. The reason why TATA has decided to show the Nano is this edition of the Geneva Motor Show. The the car wont go on sale in Europe, atleast not yet.

The fact is that Nano is much safer and cleaner running car than its critics would like to believe. According to TATA, the all aluminium, twin cylinder engine is Euro-4 compliant and the car respects all safety rules for crashes that are currently valid in the European Market. The Euro-5 emission rules will make an apperance soon and the crash test rules may get stiffer too and hence it wont make any sense for TATA’s to sell this car in Europe only for a while. Therefore the company has decided to offer it in Europe only from the year 2012 onwards, the time when the next generation of the Nano will make an apperance.

According to Girish Wagh, Head of Tata’s compact car division, “”We will develop a successor model in four years time, which will meet the Euro 5 emission regulations and the crash standards in Europe,” as quoted by the German weekly focus. Another target is to reduce the average fuel consumption, which right now stands close to 20 km/litre.

More pictures from Geneva 2008