General Motors India on Wednesday launched the multi-purpose vehicle Chevrolet Tavera to take on competition from Qualis and Scorpio and said it might soon ink a deal to acquire the car assembly unit of Daewoo India.

The base model of Chevrolet Tavera, which would be available in six variants, has been priced at Rs 544,000 (ex-showroom, Delhi), GMI president and managing director Aditya Vij told a news conference in New Delhi.

The top-end model sports a price tag of Rs 845,000.

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GMI, which would complete the due diligence to acquire the car assembly unit of the bankrupt Daewoo Motors India, hopes to sign a definitive agreement with DMIL creditors "soon".

"Though we still have some issues to sort out, we are hopeful that we will soon sign a definitive agreement which will enable us to bring mini (compact) cars to India. If at all we are not able to sign the deal, we will explore other avenues," GM Daewoo Auto and Technology Co president Nick Reilly said.

Asked what could be the other avenues, he said: "The question is hypothetical."

In India, GMI, Suzuki and Fiat could have some synergy in the area of procurement of auto components. Beyond that there was not much scope as Suzuki has about 51 per cent market share in the country, he said.

The company aims to sell 10,000 units of the MUV this year. The Chevrolet Tavera, which has been developed with an investment of about Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion) in 18 months, has 85 per cent local content and the company expects indigenisation to the level of 93 per cent by the end of this year.

About the significance of the Asia Pacific market for General Motors Corporation, Reilly said, "We cannot afford to ignore the Asia Pacific market in general and India in particular, if we intend to cling on to the number one position in the world."

"To be a major player in the Indian market, we need to bring a mini-car which we will either through Daewoo Motors India or other avenues," he said.

At present, DMIL has a production capacity of 120,000 units annually.

He said the Asia Pacific market, excluding Japan, is slated to grow at 8-10 per cent.

If GMI takes over the car assembly unit of DMIL, it would launch the Matiz as Chevrolet Spark which will perhaps be a volume spinner.

GMI aims to double its sales this year to 30,000 units.

In Chevrolet brand, the company has sold around 8,000 units since its launch in July 2003.

Estimating a CAGR of 20 per cent in the MUV segment in India, he said, the sales are expected to touch 94,000 units during the current year.

Between 2002-03, the MUV segment had recorded a growth of 47 per cent as against 19 per cent in the passenger car segment.

Chevrolet Tavera comes with a capacity of seating for 10 people and is available in six variants.

Currently the Chevrolet brands contribute around 40% to the total sales of the company and it is expected to touch 60 per cent during the current year.