Like lots of car guys, I have a very specific weakness for one particular class of automobile. For many, that weakness is for fast, powerful, luxurious, high-end exotics; for me, as a side effect of a condition known medically as "being a bit of a moron," it's cars at the extreme low end of the spectrum.
Making cars fast and luxurious and gadget-filled is pretty well explored; the real last new frontier in the car industry is making real cars as cheap as possible.
These are pretty exciting time for bottom-feeders such as myself. Where in previous years I had only offerings like the Dacia/Renault Logan to scrutinize, India has been making some big advancements in ultra-low cost automobiles, first with the Tata Nano and now with the recently unveiled Bajaj RE60, which is expected to sell for even less than the Nano, at a planned $2200.
Bajaj is normally known for making the ubiquitous tuk-tuk 3-wheelers that form the backbone of India's motorized fleet. The RE60 is their first foray into 4-wheeled transportation, which they are oddly reluctant to call a car. In fact, the managing director of the company was quoted as actually saying "This is not a car." Frankly, that's absurd. It's a car. I understand they are likely wanting to avoid direct comparisons between the RE60 and more traditional vehicles, but that doesn't make it not a car. It's an incredibly inexpensive car, and built to cut nearly every possible corner, but come on, Bajaj, have some balls. Besides, I really like that thing you don't call a car.
Let's scrutinize the design with way, way, more attention than any rational person outside of India would give, how about? Click through the photos above to see my thoughts.















