Bajaj Auto announced the launch of its new three-wheeler based on the gasoline direct injection (GDi) technology developed by the R&D team of the company.The new technology will reduce carbon emmission while offering more power and greater fuel economy, R. C. Maheshwari, head, commercial vehicles, Bajaj Auto, said today."As the availability of alternative fuel like CNG or LNG is limited to a few cities in the country, a need was felt to develop a new engine that will run on gasoline but meet the strictest emission standards while offereing improved performance on power and economy," Maheshwari said.Maheshwari said the vehicles will be manufactured at the company's Waluj plant near Aurangabad, Maharashtra, and the estimated production will be 300 per day.The company has launched about 150 vehicles with the new engine, and is planning to start selling them from January. The new autorickshaws will be available across the country in about a year's time, Rajiv Bajaj, managing director, Bajaj Auto, said, adding that it will be introduced initially in Pune, Trivandrum and Mangalore.There will be two models - one with basic features and another with additional features like electric start, twin head lamp or a dashboard. The products would be priced between Rs 92,000-1 lakh, Maheshwari said.Bajaj Auto currently makes 25,000 three-wheelers per month, and about half of them are exported to markets like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Africa and South America.Click here to read the official release
