The Tata Pixel was a

concept A concept is an abstract idea that serves as a foundation for more concrete principles, thoughts, and beliefs. Concepts play an important role in all aspects of cognition. As such, concepts are studied within such disciplines as linguistics, ...

rear-engined four-passenger

city car The A-segment is the first category in the passenger car classification system defined by the European Commission. It is used for city cars, the smallest category of passenger cars defined. A-segment sales represented approximately 4.2% of the ...

, unveiled on 1 March 2011 by

Tata Motors Tata Motors Limited is an Indian Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive company, headquartered in Mumbai and part of the Tata Group. The company produces passenger cars, cars, trucks, vans, and busses, buses. T ...

at the 81st International Motor Show in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

. Aimed primarily at the European market, it was primarily based on the Tata Nano platform.

History

The Tata Pixel is based upon the Nano Europa concept which was first shown at the 2009

Geneva Motor Show The Geneva International Motor Show was an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva. The show was hosted at the Palexpo, a convention centre located next to the Geneva Cointrin International Airport. The Salon was organised b ...

. Complying to the Europa concept, Nano was upgraded to meet EU safety and emission standards. The concept had undergone a series of improvements over the standard Nano, including an extended

wheelbase In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (front ...

, a new 3-cylinder engine,

power steering Power steering is a system for reducing a driver's effort to turn a steering wheel of a motor vehicle, by using a power source to assist steering. Hydraulic or electric actuators add controlled energy to the steering mechanism, so the driver can ...

, an anti-lock braking system (ABS), an improved interior and exterior and it was also heavier than the standard Nano.

Features

The Tata Pixel concept includes the following features

Zero Turn Drive

The Tata Pixel is able to maneuver and can be parked in tight spaces due to the zero turn toroidal traction-drive, Infinitely Variable Transmission (IVT), and due to its steering system design. This results in a turning circle radius of 2.6 meters. The steering and the transmission work together so that each wheel is driven independently with inputs from the steering system. By applying reverse drive on a single rear wheel and forward drive on a single front wheel, the car is able to turn almost in its own length.

Low Carbon Footprint and High Fuel Efficiency

The Tata Pixel features a start stop hybrid and

regenerative braking Regenerative braking is an energy recovery mechanism that slows down a moving vehicle or object by converting its kinetic energy or potential energy into a form that can be either used immediately or stored until needed. Typically, regenerativ ...

system, with a fuel efficient and low emission diesel engine. It has emissions of 89 gm/km and combined cycle fuel economy of 1 litre/100 km.

Design

The Tata Pixel features a monographic roof, silver shaped window graphic and forward sweeping roof line. It also features 2 scissor doors for easy access and visibility.

My Tata Connect

"My Tata Connect" is a platform which provides integration of smart phones or tablet with the vehicle's information, and entertainment system and also allows the user to control the key functions of the car.

Technical specifications

The Pixel is a car with a three-cylinder 1200 cc rear engine.

External links

* three websites are expired or invali
Tata Pixel
Unveiled on 1 March 2011 by Tata Motors at the 81st International Geneva Motor Show.
Tata Megapixel
Newer version, unveiled on 6 March 2012 by Tata Motors at the 82nd International Geneva Motor Show.
Tata Pixel – Official product page

References

{{Tata Motors 2000s cars City cars Hatchbacks Rear-wheel-drive vehicles Rear-engined vehicles

Pixel In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a Raster graphics, raster image, or the smallest addressable element in a dot matrix display device. In most digital display devices, p ...

Cars introduced in 2011