Initial TD of the Indica Xeta

[goldie_malhotra]

(@mods - i know there is a similar topic in the indian car scene - but i wanted to keep the TD in relevant section)

Yesterday, I accompanied a colleague of mine to scout around for a small car for himself. We had tried out both the Santro and the Wagon-R, and though he found both to his liking, I tried to play devils advocate and we ended up in Nawab motors to try out the new Indica Xeta.

Exteriors
Looks exactly the same as the "refreshingly new Indica V2" - no change over there. My friend was impressed with the looks, while i was like - u better take a non-white/silver colour to distinguish yourself from the cabs

Interiors
This is the place where the changes are most obvious. The indica, no doubt has huge amount of space and now you can split fold the back seat to get more storage space.
The new beige (muddy-brown as per me) interiors look quite good and they lend a sort of refreshing change from the oodles of grey plastic on santros and wagon-rs. The console has a silver panel on the upper models and a white instrument-cluster.

The controls are another matter altogether - I found most of them very awkwardly placed - the power windows on the floor console instead of the door, headlight adjuster hidden someplace - AC controls were tacky and instrument-cluster doesnt look very impressive.

Performance

The 70 ps engine is quite peppy to drive - as good as the wagon-r or santro, but not much better - maybe due to the extra weight it has to lug around - close to a ton. The engine is not as refined though as the jap/koreans - and it starts to scream at around 3k rpm or above - at this point the NVH is significantly higher.

The steering wheel (hydraulic) is also not as responsive and more tough to move than the santro's. Though at higher speeds, it is quite firm, parking the car or squeezing out or traffic jams may get tough for one. Turning radius is also higher than both - around 4.9m - hell, its more than the zen or palio (i think) & the same as NHC or Ikon.


Ride Comfort & Handling

The car feels quite stable at high speeds and is quite comfortable around the corners as well. Though we didnt push it very far on that front, as we were in the city limits.

At low speeds, over bumpy roads, the ride was quite comfortable and rear seat takes the cake over here. It comes with an all independant suspension - borrowed from the indigo, and it is very obvious over the potholes and breakers.


Build-Quality

Okkkkk - here is the touchy part. Though the overall build quality is far better than the Indica diesels that come as our office cabs, it still has quite some way to go over here.

There were some gaps in the floor console - not fitted properly, the controls for A/C and power windows were very tachy. And the plastic door handle felt as it would yank out - it was rattling in the TD car that we got.

The indicator stalks did not mover around with a smooth click as in santro or wagon-r, and the gear-shift, though much improved, was still a notch below santro's.


Pricing

Here is where the Xeta beats the competition by far - the middle version with body-color bumpers, power steering and AC comes for cool 3.30L OTR delhi !

If thats too much, consider the base version for just 2.80L OTR delhi !!

Thats under-cutting the competition by miles.


Verdict

Of course, only time will tell how good a market proposition it is, but if you can ignore the build-quality issues, it is a very good VFM buy. Indica petrol sales should definitely go up with this offering.

Though my friend is still confused, as he likes the space & pricing in Indica, but is not able to decide whether he can ignore the quality issues.

[deepakhon]

Originally Posted by goldie_malhotra

its more than the zen or palio (i think) & the same as NHC or Ikon.

Ask me for Palio's turning radius. It is 5.1 m and it is one of its weakest points. Many U turns have become 3-point-turns for me.

BTW, a good first impression report here. Let us see how Indica Xeta fares in the market.

[Steeroid]

Nice report, Goldie.

Originally Posted by goldie_malhotra

It comes with an all independant suspension - borrowed from the indigo, and it is very obvious over the potholes and breakers.

Thought the Indica always had independent suspension, which was one of the USPs claimed at the original launch in '98.....

[Abhay]

I agree that Indica turning radius in indeed quite bad :-s Like deepak above many simple u-turns in the M800 have now become 3 pt for me. Good report goldie.

I drive the 75PS version and engine noise is quite a bit upwards of 3.5k rpm.
The brown/beige interiors should indeed be a welcome change from drab gray stuff everywhere, btw does it also have a metal finish to gear knob ?
btw the 60:40 rear seat split is in my car as well so its not a new thing.
Very useful too when you are transporting lots of luggage.

[goldie_malhotra]

Originally Posted by Steeroid

Nice report, Goldie.


Thought the Indica always had independent suspension, which was one of the USPs claimed at the original launch in '98.....

Thanks, mate - I thought so too, but the sales guy was harping away to glory about the independant suspension borrowed from the indigo - maybe some indica v2 owners can clear out the confusion
@abhay, tsk ??

[goldie_malhotra]

Originally Posted by Abhay

btw does it also have a metal finish to gear knob ?

yes - but i think only on the high end versions.

Originally Posted by Abhay

btw the 60:40 rear seat split is in my car as well so its not a new thing.
Very useful too when you are transporting lots of luggage.

hmmm - more of the marketing blabber identified from the sales guy. could you help us out with the suspension part as well ?

[DCEite]

Nice TD report, Goldie..

The general public gives a damn about performance (which is adequate for city anyhow). I think the single most important part of the whole Xeta package is its Price. And if it can somehow match the FE of the wagons and sanros, it will have a bright future..IMHO.

[hell_rider]

Originally Posted by goldie_malhotra

It comes with an all independant suspension - borrowed from the indigo, and it is very obvious over the potholes and breakers.

are you sure about this ?? maybe I am just mistaken but i thought the indicas did not come with the suspension setup that the indigo comes with. the indigos now have a independent suspension and gas-filled shocks, which originally were introduced on the Marina.

On the web-site specs are as follows:
Indigo:
Front - Independent McPherson strut with anti-roll bar
Rear - Independent 3-link McPherson strut with anti-roll bar

Indica Xeta:
Front -Independent, Wish Bone type, with McPherson strut, Antiroll Bar
Rear - Independent,Semi trailing arm with coil spring mounted on hydraulic shock absorbers

Indica Turbo:
Front - Independent, wish Bone type with Mcpherson strut, Antiroll Bar
Rear - Independent, Semi trailing arm with coil spring mounted on hydraulic shock absorbers

While gas shock absorbers are not mentioned anywhere, the Indigos rolling out since Nov-05 end / Dec-05 start are provided with the gas shocks as well, as per showroom dealer guys.

[Mpower]

Like the website mentions, both the original Indica and the Indigo come with independent suspensions. But they are different types.

When the Indigo was launched, they switched over to the 3 link type with is much better then the trailing arm. Now they may be switching back the Indicas to the 3 link type.

[abdriver2000]

I will be going for a TD on Friday. Since this is going to be my first car, can someone give tips on what items to look for, what pitfalls to avoid, etc?

The dealer has flatly refused to give any discount/deal since the car is low priced, but I can haggle over finance options right? Some tips here can be helpful.

[hrag]

Originally Posted by Abhay

btw the 60:40 rear seat split is in my car as well so its not a new thing.
Very useful too when you are transporting lots of luggage.

It depends on what you compare against. The split seats were introduced in 2004 as part of the 'Refreshingly New' series. My car doesn't have the split rear seat.

[toms_2191]

hii all

yesterday i took a test drive of much hot talked indica xeta from koyanco mortors. cochin. guss wat, there were no glx or glg versions avilible for test drive hence i had to setteled for a gls with only ps and ac.

change to a biege interior gave a feeling that i am not in a taxi cab atleast. lumber support in front seat is poor compared to other cars. xeta felt quiet torquey in in higher gears.

The change i noteced is the rollon rates in various gears which has improved considerably than last generation petrol indicas. never felt gear shifting as a task as expected. i think it will improve further in comming generations of indicas with a new tieup with fiet. ride was comfortable as other indicas

exterior finish looked good with stunning colour options. i would rather prefer turbo,s cherry red on a xeta which is not there in colour option. pannel gaps remains same compared to earler generations

when it came to real buying, xeta is a real winner with a price equal to alto (2.98l ex showroom GLS) and fully loaded verson equals wagon R LXI (3.46L GLX)

I liked the total package and had a tough negotiation on additional benefits.

so guys wish me luck for my new indica xeta GLG

[goldie_malhotra]

congrats on your new car, toms
btw - which colour did you finally settle on - i think they have a cherry red in other versions of the indica, though the salsa red on xeta is quite good as well...

[rajdoll]

Hey toms, congratulation on buying Xeta, one of my friends also recently booked one, the choice was between Alto and Xeta and he decided Xeta. Given the price of Xeta, You really have to be dumb to strike it off, as the current Ad. campaign says

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by toms_2191

guss wat, there were no glx or glg versions avilible for test drive hence i had to setteled for a gls with only ps and ac.

All the best, Toms. If you want to try out the other models you could try RF Motors, the new Tata dealer. They're excellent.