Tata Motors was founded in 1945, as a locomotive manufacturer. Tata Group entered the commercial vehicle sector in 1954 after forming a joint venture with Mercedes-Benz of Germany in which Tata developed a manufacturing facility in Jamshedpur for Daimler lorries.[10] By November 1954 Tata and Daimler manufactured their first goods carrier chassis at their Jamshedpur plant with 90-100 hp and capacity of 3-5 tons.[11]
Tata launched the Indica in 1998. A newer version of the car, named Indica V2, later appeared. Tata Motors also exported cars to South Africa.[12]
In 1999, Tata Motors had a setback and decided to sell the car business. US auto giant, Ford was seen an ideal candidate. Officials from Ford came to Bombay House to talk with Tata. During the meeting at the Tata headquarters, American company evinced interest in buying out the business. To take the deal forward, Ratan Tata and his team flew to Detroit, USA to meet with the Ford's chairman, Bill Ford. The meeting lasted for three hours. During the meeting, Ford humiliated Tata by saying that they should have never started Tata Motors when they didn’t have a clue about manufacturing cars. Recalling this incident Tata group veteran, Praveen Kadle who was in the meeting said, that Ford told them, "You do not know anything about passenger cars, why did you start the passenger car division at all? We are doing a favour by buying your car division".[13][14]
This incident made Ratan Tata to step back from the deal and concentrate on the Tata Motors' car division.[13][14]
Later in 2008, during the Great Recession, Ford verged on bankruptcy. Tata offered to buy their Jaguar Land Rover for $2.3 billion. Ford chairperson thanked Tata by saying "You are doing us a big favour by buying JLR."[13][14]
In the 2000s, Tata Motors made a series of acquisitions and partnerships, acquiring Daewoo's South Korea-based truck manufacturing unit,[15] a joint venture with the Brazil-based Marcopolo, Tata Marcopolo Bus,[16] Jaguar Land Rover.,[17][18][19][20] Hispano Carrocera,[21] and an 80% stake in the Italian design and engineering company Trilix.[22]
On 12 October 2021, private equity firm TPG invested $1 billion in Tata Motors' electric vehicle subsidiary.[23]
Operations
Tata Motors has vehicle assembly operations in India, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Thailand, Spain, and South Africa. It plans to establish plants in Turkey, Indonesia, and Eastern Europe.
Tata Motors Cars is a division of Tata Motors which produces passenger cars under the Tata Motors hood. Tata Motors is among the top five passenger vehicle brands in India with products in the compact, midsize car, and utility vehicle segments.[24] The company's manufacturing base in India is spread across Jamshedpur (Jharkhand), Pune (Maharashtra), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Pantnagar (Uttarakhand), Dharwad (Karnataka) and Sanand (Gujarat). Tata's dealership, sales, service, and spare parts network comprise over 3,500 touchpoints.[24] Tata Motors has more than 250 dealerships in more than 195 cities across 27 states and four Union Territories of India.[25] It has the third-largest sales and service network after Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai.
Tata also has franchisee/joint venture assembly operations in Kenya, Bangladesh, Ukraine, Russia, and Senegal.[26] Tata has dealerships in 26 countries across 4 continents.[27] Tata is present in many countries, it has managed to create a large consumer base in the Indian subcontinent, namely India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Tata is also present in Italy,[28] Spain,[29] Poland,[30] Romania,[31] Turkey,[32]Chile,[33] South Africa,[34] Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Iraq, Syria and Australia.
Tata Daewoo (officially Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle Company and formerly Daewoo Commercial Vehicle Company) is a commercial vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Gunsan, Jeollabuk-doSouth Korea, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors. It is the second-largest heavy commercial vehicle manufacturer in South Korea and was acquired by Tata Motors in 2004. The principal reasons behind the acquisition were to reduce Tata's dependence on the Indian commercial vehicle market (which was responsible for around 94% of its sales in the MHCV segment and around 84% in the light commercial vehicle segment) and expand its product portfolio by leveraging on Daewoo's strengths in the heavy-tonnage sector.
Tata Motors has jointly worked with Tata Daewoo to develop trucks such as Novus and World Truck and buses including GloBus and StarBus. In 2012, Tata began developing a new line to manufacture competitive and fuel-efficient commercial vehicles to face the competition posed by the entry of international brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and Navistar into the Indian market.[35]
Tata Hispano Motors Carrocera, S.A. was a bus and coach manufacturer based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors. Tata Hispano has plants in Zaragoza, Spain, and Casablanca, Morocco. Tata Motors first acquired a 21% stake in Hispano Carrocera SA in 2005,[36] and purchased the remaining 79% for an undisclosed sum in 2009, making it a fully owned subsidiary, subsequently renamed Tata Hispano. In 2013, Tata Hispano ceased production at its Zaragoza plant.[37][38]
TML Drivelines
TML Drivelines Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors engaged in the manufacture of gearboxes and axles for heavy and medium commercial vehicles. It has production facilities at Jamshedpur and Lucknow. TML Forge division is also a recent acquisition of TML Drivelines. TML Drivelines was formed through the merger of HV Transmission and HV Axles.
The British engineering and design services company Incat International, which specialises in engineering and design services and product lifecycle management in the automotive, aerospace, and engineering sectors, is a wholly owned subsidiary of TTL. It was acquired by TTL in August 2005 for ₹4 billion.
In 2017, TAL, a subsidiary of Tata Motors, manufactured India's first industrial articulated robot for micro, small, and medium enterprises.[38]
European Technical Centre
The Tata Motors European Technical Centre (TMETC) is an automotive design, engineering, and research company based at WMG, University of Warwick on the campus of the University of Warwick in England. It was established in 2005 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors. It was the joint developer of the World Truck.[39]
In September 2013, it was announced that a new National Automotive Innovation Campus would be built at WMG at Warwick's main campus at a cost of £100 million.[40][41] The initiative will be a partnership between Tata Motors, the university, and Jaguar Land Rover, with £30 million in funding coming from Tata Motors.[42]
Tata Marcopolo is a bus-manufacturing company which was established as a joint venture between Tata Motors (51%) and the Brazil-based Marcopolo S.A. (49%). The company manufactures and assembles fully built buses and coaches targeted at developing mass rapid transportation systems. It uses technology and expertise in chassis and aggregates from Tata Motors, and know-how in processes and systems for bodybuilding and bus body design from Marcopolo. Tata Marcopolo's low-floor city bus is widely used by transport corporations in many Indian cities. Its manufacturing facility is based in Dharwad, Karnataka State, India and Lucknow, India.
In December 2020, Marcopolo and Tata Motors came to an agreement, whereby Tata Motors would purchase the 49 percent stake held by Marcopolo in the bus-making joint venture for ₹100 crore, bringing curtains to the 14-year old partnership and paving the way for a smooth exit for the Brazilian company. The deal was completed on August 29, 2022.[43] The deal allowed Tata Motors to continue using the ‘Marcopolo’ trademark for a minimum of three years with a non-compete provision in India for a corresponding period.
Jaguar Land Rover PLC is a premium British automaker headquartered in Whitley, Coventry, United Kingdom, and has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors since June 2008, when it was acquired from Ford Motor Company of USA.[44] Its principal activity is the development, manufacture and sale of Jaguar luxury and sports cars and Land Rover premium four-wheel-drive vehicles.
JD Power, of the US, rates Land Rover and Jaguar as the two worst brands for initial quality.
[45] The Jaguar F-Pace made Consumer Reports February 2019 list of the 10 Least Reliable Cars. The editors cited "electronics, drive system, power equipment, noises and leaks" as problematic aspects.[46]
The Jaguar Land Rover subsidiary was struggling by 2019 and Tata Motors wrote down its investment in JLR by $3.9 billion. Much of the financial problem was due to a 50% drop in sales in China during 2019, although the situation was improving. Still, Tata was open to considering a partnership with another company according to a statement in mid-October, as long as the partnership agreement would allow Tata to maintain control of the business. The company ruled out the possibility of a sale of JLR to another entity.[47]
In July 2023, Tata announced its plans to invest £4 billion to build an electric car battery factory in the UK, which will be one of the largest of its kind in Europe.[48][49][50] The factory will be the company's first battery production facility outside India.[50] Located in Bridgwater, Somerset, the factory will supply Jaguar Land Rover's future battery electric models, including the Range Rover, Defender, Discovery and Jaguar brands, with the potential to also supply other car manufacturers.[38] Production at the new facility is due to start in 2026.
Joint ventures
Fiat-Tata
Fiat-Tata is an India-based joint venture between Tata and Stellantis' Fiat which produces Jeep and Tata branded passenger cars, as well as engines and transmissions. Tata Motors has gained access to Fiat's diesel engine and transmission technology through the joint venture.[51]
The two companies formerly also had a distribution joint venture through which Fiat products were sold in India through joint Tata-Fiat dealerships. This distribution arrangement was ended in March 2013; Stellantis cars have since been distributed in India by Fiat Automobiles India Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Stellantis.[52][53]
Tata Motors European Technical Centre
In September 2013 it was announced that a new National Automotive Innovative Campus would be built at WMG at Warwick's main campus at a cost of 92 million pounds.[54] The initiative will be a partnership between Tata Motors, the university, and Jaguar Land Rover, with the 30 million pounds in funding coming from Tata Motors.[55]
Tata Motors has unveiled electric versions of the Tata Indica passenger car powered by TM4 electric motors and inverters,[58] as well as the Tata Ace commercial vehicle, both of which run on lithium batteries which launched in 2022.
In 2008 Tata Motors' UK subsidiary, Tata Motors European Technical Centre, bought a 50.3% holding in electric vehicle technology firm Miljøbil Grenland/Innovasjon of Norway for US$1.93 million, and planned to launch the electric Indica hatchback in Europe the following year.[59][60][61] In September 2010, Tata Motors presented four CNG–Electric Hybrid low-floored Starbuses to the Delhi Transport Corporation, to be used during the 2010 Commonwealth Games. These were the first environmentally friendly buses to be used for public transportation in India.
In December 2019, Tata Motors unveiled the Nexon EV, an SUV with a 30.2KWh lithium-ion battery and a consistent range of 312 km on a single charge. It is also equipped with fast charging technology, which can charge the vehicle from 0% - 80% in 60 minutes.[62]
Tata Passenger Electric Mobility is a subsidiary which produces electric cars under the brand name Tata Motors.[63]
Tata Nano is often cited as the world's most affordable car
The Nano was launched in 2009 as a city car intended to appeal as an affordable alternative to the section of the Indian populace that is primarily the owner of motorcycles and has not bought their first car. Initially priced at ₹100,000 (US$1,500), the vehicle attracted a lot of attention for its relatively low price. However, the Nano was very poorly rated for safety[67][68] and in 2018, Cyrus Mistry, chairman of the Tata Group, called the Tata Nano a failed project, with production ending in May 2018.[69]
Tata Ace, India's first indigenously developed sub-one-ton minitruck, was launched in May 2005. The minitruck was a huge success in India with auto analysts claiming that Ace had changed the dynamics of the light commercial vehicle (LCV) market in the country by creating a new market segment termed the small commercial vehicle segment. Ace rapidly emerged as the first choice for transporters and single truck owners for city and rural transport.
By October 2005, LCV sales of Tata Motors had grown by 36.6% to 28,537 units due to the rising demand for Ace. The Ace was built with a load body produced by Autoline Industries.[70]
By 2005, Autoline was producing 300 load bodies per day for Tata Motors. Ace is still a top seller for TML with 500,000 units sold by June 2010.[71] In 2011, Tata Motors invested Rs 1000 crore in Dharwad Plant, Karnataka, with the capacity of 90,000 units annually and launched two models of 0.5-T capacity as Tata Ace Zip, Magic Iris.[72] Ace has also been exported to several Asian, European, South American, and African countries and all-electric models are sold through Polaris Industries'Global Electric Motorcars division. In Sri Lanka, it is sold through Diesel & Motor Engineering (DIMO) PLC under the name of DIMO Batta.
Tata Prima is a range of heavy trucks first introduced in 2008 as the company's 'global' truck. Tata Prima was the winner of the 'Commercial Vehicle of the Year' at the Apollo Commercial Vehicles Awards, 2010 and 2012.
The Tata 407 is a light commercial vehicle (LCV) that has sold over 500,000 units since its launch in 1986.[73] In India, this vehicle dominates market share of the LCV category, accounting for close to 75% of LCV sales. The 407 model range includes trucks, tippers, pick-ups and vehicles for agri/food products, construction, light mining and services.[74]
Tata Harrier is a 5-seater SUV that rivals the MG Hector and Jeep Compass. This car uses the engine from Fiat which is a 2.0 L-4 cylinder turbocharged diesel motor and transmission from Hyundai which is a 6-speed, available in both manual and automatic. Tata Harrier is derived from the H5X Concept displayed at the 2018 Auto Expo. It was launched on 23 January 2019.[75]
The car is a C-segmentcrossover SUV based on the OmegaArc platform, an essentially re-engineered version of the Jaguar Land Rover D8 platform.[76] A petrol variant of the Harrier is confirmed to launch in 2022–23.[77]
Tata Harrier is also available in Nepal with the name H5.
The Tata Nexon is a subcompact crossover SUV produced by Tata Motors since 2017. It is the first crossover SUV from Tata Motors, and occupies the sub-4 metre crossover SUV segment in India.[78] The electric version of the Nexon was revealed on 19 December 2019. The Nexon EV uses components from Tata Motors' electric vehicle technology brand Ziptron. The electric motor produces 94.7 kW (127 hp; 129 PS) and 245 N⋅m (181 lbf⋅ft) of torque and 0 - 100 under 9.9 seconds. It has a 30.2 kWh battery with an ARAI rated range of up to 312 km.[79]
The battery can be fully charged in under 8 hours using a complimentary AC charger. It can also be charged using a 15-ampere power cable that can be used at any place with the necessary power socket. DC 25 kW fast charging can be used to charge the battery from 0 to 80% in 1 hour.[80]
Restructuring
In March 2024, Tata Motors announced plans to undergo a significant restructuring by splitting into two separate listed entities. This strategic move aims to enhance operational efficiencies and focus on distinct business segments. The demerger is expected to allow each entity to pursue tailored growth strategies and attract specific investor bases. The announcement was well-received by the market, with Tata Motors' stock experiencing a notable jump following the news.[81][82][83]
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