Sumo Grande Test Drive

[v1p3r]

Hello,

Dunno if it's been posted and this is a repeat, but here's my TD of the new Grande. I don't know how to write a TD report, so swalpa adjust maadi.

So the car shows up, and I take a look at the engine. 2.2 VTT and all that jazz.


The turbo is a tiny Garrett VNT/VNAT made in India.


The rear seat is suprisingly comfortable. With a 6 ft plus person at the wheel, seated comfortably, my knees didn't touch the front seat. Which says a lot about the leg room and how the Scorpio is going to get it badly.




Like I mentioned earlier, the last row of seats is pretty good, and you could put a 6 footer in there without too many issues.



The car pulls effortlessly from lower revs. With 4 people and the aircon on full blast, you won't notice much missing. The engine is still to be run in, but shows great promise. Torque delivery is smooth, and not scary like the Scorpio. The gearshift was very stiff, being new. The gearknob may look good, but it's a big pain and your hand will not love you for it.

Steering feel is typical Sumo. The car lazily turns a second after the wheel is turned. Stability is just about ok. But I must say, the rear suspension, though leaf-sprung, is rather good. It soaks up the bumps and you can barely tell it has leaves.

Interior finish is just passable. Dash gaps are evident, and though everything is designed well, it's just Tata. The doorpads and inside handles in particular are HORRID.

Paint finish is very good, though. This is something that has been carried over Tata vehicles from the past.

This is a pretty sweet deal at the price. Anand Mahindra is going to have some sleepless nights.

Here's some random shots of the old and the new.

[condor]

v1p3r : Steering feel is typical Sumo. The car lazily turns a second after the wheel is turned.

Oye, is that how the Sumo Victa felt when you were ripping it at 100+ all the way from Salem to CBE ? And, No - you are not going to get a drive to refresh your memory about the sensitivity of the Power Steering on the Sumo Victa.

Could have continued in your other thread to give a more comprehensive review. But good you took the side-by-side pics. I'd say both look good from the front. But EOD, they are two different models.

[ram_hyundai]

Viper you are learning to put up a test drive report ,lol.Next time you may say about the turning radius ,how you felt when going over a humpetc.
good photos though,

ram

[Murugan]

Nice one that - the side by side, New vs Old stuff

[phamilyman]

superb. except the last pics. I had imaigned it (post auto expo) to be in a diff league. but its just as boxy somehow now looks unappealing!

[snaronikar]

Good report and nice pics. But some technicalities needs to be included in the test report though.

[dadu]

Nice first clear pictures of the Grande.

[Steeroid]

Good report with pics and stuff, but could have been a bit more detailed on aspects such as in-gear acceleration, highway behaviour etc.

However, given that the vehicle is pretty new in the market this is a good first impression. The usability of the last row of seats is going to have a lot to do with the success of the vehicle.

[v1p3r]

Originally Posted by Steeroid

Good report with pics and stuff, but could have been a bit more detailed on aspects such as in-gear acceleration, highway behaviour etc.

Thanks. In-gear, well it pulls reasonably well from lower revs. No snatches or jerks even with 4 people in, and the aircon on, like I mentioned. I didn't get the chance to drive it on the highway though.

[Sankar]

Anyone know if the Turbo in the Grande and the 2.2 Safari is the same or different?

[ishotmydog]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

superb. except the last pics. I had imaigned it (post auto expo) to be in a diff league. but its just as boxy somehow now looks unappealing!

yup it does look boxy specially from the rear, the safari looks better.

[trrk]

Hi,

I don't know the colour of the Grande in the pictures. RF Motors gave a test drive to a friend in the vehicle of similar colour. This colour did not suit the vehicle and was accentuating the boxiness.

The display Orange and Green colours suited it well and the Grande looked very impressive in those colours.

[amitg79]

That has to be one of the ugliest rear ends on an automobile ever!

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by amitg79

That has to be one of the ugliest rear ends on an automobile ever!

amen to that. i liked the victa a lot better

[srinivasmhn]

I had been to Manipal motors to book Indica and this new Sumo was on display. It looks very good. It may look boxy in pictures but not same when you see it live. In my opinion it is better looking than Safari and Scorpio will feel the heat.