Tata Motors has announced the rollout of its 100,000th Ace from its Pune Plant, within 22 months of the launch of the sub 1-ton carrier. The Ace is the first mini-truck in India and was first rolled out in May 2005. Ratan N Tata, chairman, Tata Motors, flagged off the 100,000th Ace.

As India's first four-wheel sub-1 tonner, the Ace created a new category in the commercial vehicle segment and has received a very strong response from customers across the country. The vehicle has also been launched in Sri Lanka.

To meet the growing demand for the small vehicle from transporters across the ountry, Tata Motors is setting up a dedicated plant at Pant Nagar in Uttaranchal to manufacture the Ace. This plant will have an annual manufacturing capacity of 250,000 units and will begin production this year.

"It is a moment of great pride and satisfaction for all of us at Tata Motors on achieving this milestone in such a short span of time," commented Ravi Kant, managing director, Tata Motors. He added, "We are happy that we have been able to meet customers' need for a mini-truck for the last-mile connection, while providing comfort, style and easy maintenance. What particularly pleases us is that the Ace has been able to generate self-employment, with many of its owners being individuals who have entered the transportation industry for the first time."

The Ace is powered by a small and unique fuel-efficient twin-cylinder 16PS IDI 700cc diesel engine. Suitable for both rural and urban use, the Ace has the ability to carry a variety of payloads and has the agility to navigate narrow by-lanes with its turning radius of 4.3 metres.

The Ace is a high performance, low maintenance, mini-truck with sporty car-like features to ensure comfort in ride and handling. It has an ergonomically designed, all-steel cabin, including elegant two-toned seats, clear instrument cluster, utility trays, magazine pockets, twin-blade, twin-speed wipers and combination switches. The conveniently positioned gearshift lever and parking brake enhance comfort in ride and handling.

The Ace meets all safety norms, including frontal crash, roof crush and rear wall strength. To ensure the safety of the driver and co-driver, seat belts are standard fitment. Disc and drum brakes in the front and rear respectively ensure high performance in sudden braking while the large windscreen and rear window allows for higher level of vision and clarity.

The company recently launched a special variant, called the Ace HT (high torque), to deal with the slopes of the hilly North Eastern terrain.

Tata Motors has brought out the Ace in several variants for different applications such as a water tanker, box type delivery van for high-volume low-weight cargo, bodyline delivery van for precious cargo and courier services, garbage tipper, D'Siltman (for desilting underground drainages and wells), dumper placer, and one with an elevated platform.

The world's fifth largest medium and heavy truck manufacturer and the second largest heavy bus manufacturer, Tata Motors is India's largest automobile company, with revenues of $5.5 billion in 2005-06.

With over 4 million Tata vehicles plying in India, it is the leader in commercial vehicles and the second largest in passenger vehicles. In addition it also markets Fiat cars in India.