Mumbai: Mahindra Renault Pvt. Ltd. (MRPL), a joint venture between Mahindra & Mahindra and Renault S.A. of France, today announced the appointment of Mr. Nalin Mehta as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Mehta will join the board of MRPL.

Mr. Mehta will assume responsibility from Mr. Rajesh Jejurikar who will step down as Managing Director of MRPL from October 1, 2008. Mr. Jejurikar will, however, continue on the board of MRPL.

'My congratulations to Nalin on his new appointment. From the inception of MRPL, Nalin has played a significant role in the success of the Logan which has won several accolades since launch and is among the top 3 selling sedans in India today. I am sure he will continue to steer the company to new heights as the Logan begins its global foray,' said Dr. Pawan Goenka President, Automotive Sector, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.

Mr. Sylvain Bilaine, Chairman of the Board and MD of Renault India, said, 'I welcome the appointment of Nalin as CEO and look forward to working with him as we grow the Logan brand in India. I must also thank Rajesh Jejurikar for steering the Company these last 3 years and will follow his guidance as a member of our Board.'

The Logan has received a tremendous response since its launch and has been clocking steady sales numbers each month. It has also been named the ‘Car of the Year 2007’ by HT Cars & Bikes, a supplement of the Hindustan Times, and also recently won the Business Standard Motoring Jury Award 2008 and the NDTV Car India & Bike India ‘Midsize Car of the Year’ Award.

With respect to product performance, the Logan outclassed all its competitors in the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2007 India Initial Quality Study. The Logan was ranked as the ‘Best Entry Midsize Car in Initial Quality’, with a score of 65 PP100, i.e., problems per 100 vehicles ahead of other leading passenger cars, indicating a high level of satisfaction experienced by customers.

The 2007 four-wheeler total customer satisfaction study undertaken by leading market information provider, TNS, ranked the Mahindra Renault Logan Diesel at the top of the ‘Midsize Car – Diesel’ segment with an exceptional score of 96. The Logan Petrol achieved No. 2 position with 86 points in the Entry Midsize segment.

About Mahindra Renault

In February 2005, Mahindra & Mahindra and Renault decided to join forces to produce and commercialize the Logan in India. The joint venture is a 51:49 partnership between Mahindra & Mahindra and Renault. The state-of-the-art Logan facility in Nashik offers a body shop, stamping shop, a paint shop with a top quality pre-treatment and an assembly line specific for the Logan. The Mahindra Renault Logan was launched on April 3, 2007. Commercial sales began in May.