World's cheapest car coming to Europe

The Tata Nano has been making automotive waves for some time now, what with a 'world's cheapest car' tag burdening every news story about it - like this one. Geneva saw the European version unveiled for the first time.

What's all the fuss about?

The original Nana is a box sitting on four wheels, basically, and will sell for just over £2,000 in order to motorise India. However, this Europa version is different: Euro safety laws and our higher expectations demand that the Nano be filled with safety and comfort kit, as well as a bigger engine.

What makes it so green?

The two-cylinder engine of the original Nano is ditched for the European spec version, in favour of a three-cylinder petrol unit. There are no proper statistics yet, but Tata assures us it will still post a sub-100g/km CO₂ figure and it follows that its fuel economy will be pretty brilliant too. Of course, it's not as light as the Indian version, with its dual airbags, bigger wheels, bigger brakes and ESP - but then you wouldn't want to crash that one, either.

When can I buy one?

Probably in around two year's time. The Nano goes on sale in India in March, but this Europa version is still in development. Actually, the slightly chunkier stance of our edition makes the Nano look more like a proper car and less a child's play thing, which is good, but the Indian firm will have to make sure it's very cheap to prompt wallet-opening at Tata dealerships in 2011.

Mark Nichol