Honda Cars India Secures ARAI, ICAT Certification for Its Wind Tunnel Facility to Support WLTP Compliance for India Models

Honda Cars India Ltd. (HCIL), a leading manufacturer of premium cars in India, announced that it has received Confirmation Certificate from two of the country’s premier automotive testing and certification agencies, the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and the International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) for its advanced state-of-the-art Wind Tunnel Facility at its R&D facility in Tochigi, Japan to conduct testing activities supporting Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) certification requirements for its India-specific Honda models.

The ARAI certificate was handed over by Dr Reji Mathai, Director, ARAI to Mr Udit Kumar, SVP and Director, HCIL. The ICAT certificate was handed over by Mr Saurabh Dalela, Director, ICAT to Mr Udit Kumar, SVP and Director, HCIL. Senior officials from ARAI and ICAT were present in the certificate handover ceremonies respectively. 

Dr Reji Mathai, Director, ARAI handing over the ARAI certificate to HCIL

Mr Saurabh Dalela, Director, ICAT handing over Confirmation certificate to HCIL

This certification recognises HCIL to use the Wind Tunnel facility in combination with Chassis Dynamometer facilities for ‘Vehicle Road Load Determination’ under the established AIS:175 regulatory standard that mandates the adoption of the WLTP from April 1, 2027. The certification marks an important milestone in Honda’s efforts to leverage its global research and development infrastructure to support homologation and regulatory compliance requirements in India.

WLTP is a globally recognised vehicle testing procedure developed to provide more equal representative measurements of fuel consumption, energy consumption and exhaust emissions. The system was developed under the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and is already used in markets such as Europe, Japan and South Korea. This certification comes at a significant time as India advances towards implementing WLTP based testing procedures, which require robust and accurate aerodynamic evaluation to support vehicle efficiency and emission assessments and will support Honda’s efforts to ensure seamless compliance for future models.

Speaking on the announcement, Mr. Takashi Nakajima, President & CEO, Honda Cars India Ltd. said, “We are pleased to receive this certification from ARAI and ICAT for Honda’s Wind Tunnel Test Facility to be used for testing activities supporting the upcoming WLTP certification requirements. While it is an important milestone, it is also a reflection of Honda’s long-standing commitment to engineering excellence and proactive compliance with evolving regulations.”

TiHAN Foundation at IIT Hyderabad and ICAT To Collaborate in the Area of Autonomous Navigation

• MoU signed between TiHAN and ICAT for collaboration in R&D on the verticals of autonomous navigation
• Joint offering for collaboration with industry to work in autonomous navigation utilizing the technical expertise and infrastructure
• Training and capacity-building programs
• Startup programs and design challenges, including challenges for problem statements by industry and ministry

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the DST NMICPS Technology Innovation Hub on Autonomous Navigation (TiHAN) at IIT Hyderabad (IITH) and the International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) for collaboration in research and development in the emerging field of autonomous navigation. By combining the organization’s strengths and capabilities, this partnership will support the innovation ecosystem, skill development, and entrepreneurship activities in the field of autonomous navigation systems. TiHAN-IITH and ICAT will collaborate to pool their technical expertise, infrastructure, expertise, and experience in the field of technological advancements.

“MoU signing between TiHAN-IITH and ICAT is a wonderful moment which has initiated a long-standing partnership between the organizations. The motto of IITH is Inventing and Innovating in Technology for Humanity, and TiHAN, which has been established with the vision of supporting activities related to Autonomous Navigation, is a feather in the cap of IITH. TiHAN Testbed is a state-of-the-art facility and the first of its kind in the nation for testing and validating different use cases of autonomous vehicles. Our association with ICAT will be a game-changer and will help both TiHAN and ICAT grow significantly together and for the nation”, said Prof B S Murty, Director, IITH.

“The area of focus of TiHAN is a very important subject for the automotive industry currently. Autonomous vehicles are being talked about globally, and levels of autonomy are being implemented in Indian vehicles as well. ICAT is a flagship initiative under the Ministry of Heavy Industries and is focused on developing world-class infrastructure for full vehicle development, automotive testing, and certification. However, there is a void in creating an ecosystem for research and development to deliver services for generating IPs, innovation with Industry -academia collaboration, etc. ICAT is already developing an Incubation centre where the space and services will be provided to entrepreneurs for automotive development and testing. Academic courses in collaboration with IITH and ICAT can also be looked into under this agreement. Though this is a small step, if there is a will and wish, this association can make big ideas possible, beneficial to industry and academia. ”, said Ms Pamela Tikku, Director, ICAT.

Explaining TiHAN- IITH efforts in Autonomous Navigation, Prof P Rajalakshmi, Project Director, TiHAN-IITH, said, “The collaboration would not have been possible without the support and guidance of Prof Murty and Prof Mohan, Advisor-Innovation & Translational Research, IITH. TiHAN at IITH is working towards the vision of being the destination of next-generation mobility solutions providing a collaborative research platform for academia, industry, and R&D labs at both national and international levels. We look forward to timely and relevant collaborations and joint research initiatives with ICAT.”

Speaking about ICAT and future collaborations with TiHAN, Mr Ankit, Manager -Powertrain and Lead ICAT Incubation and Acceleration centre, “Under ASPIRE, ICAT has taken a great initiative of implementing the interventions under the Capital goods scheme of Ministry of Heavy industry for reducing the import into the country. Autonomous navigation is going to have widespread applications across the domains where ICAT and TiHAN can synergize and collaborate. ICAT being a neutral entity and an active contributor to the regulatory framework of the country can seek and facilitate necessary interventions so that the products developed are not only market-ready but can also ensure compliance with the regulations of the country and reduce reiteration of work. Future collaborative works between ICAT and TiHAN include webinars, training and capacity building programs, startups, and design challenges for problem statements from the industry as well as the ministry.”