Following the heels of the Dost, Ashok Leyland is on a launch spree. It showcased a range of vehicles at the Expo, but the two capturing our interest is the Stile and Partner. Yes, you know what they are! The Stile is the NV200 or Evalia with a new face while the Partner is the Nissan Atlas badges as Ashok Leyland.
The Stile will take up various assignments in the Indian market. Ashok Leyland has said that a slew of variants such as ambulance, panel vans, courier service vehicle, shuttle bus and hotel shuttles are planned for the Stile. It sports attractive features (for a commercial vehicle) such as sliding doors, two and three row seating configurations and dual tone interiors and will be available in CNG and diesel avatars.
On the other hand, the Partner (spied by our readers Sree Ganesh and SR Vishnuvardan during tests) is a 6-tonne LCV with a tiltable cab. Power is derived via a 120hp CRDI engine. Ashok Leyland has ambitious plans with the Partner. It proposes the release of a range of applications like tippers, containers and refrigerators.
Ashok Leyland is also showing the CNG variant of the Dost at its stall. It will reach the market in 2012 whereas the Nissan-derived models are scheduled for a launch in mid-2013.
