[mh09ad5578]

Ran into the first sort of major bug. The central DRL stopped working. Observed it today don't know when it stopped working. Did a vehicle software reset but it didn't help. I don't really care about this central DRL so mostly won't take it to ASC till next service. Hoping it fixes itself

Found media player to be lacking, while playing USB media everytime it starts with the same first song, doesn't remember the shuffle/repeat seatings/ last song. It even plays suffle songs in the exact same sequence. Its irritating to listen to the same song/sequence every time I start the car, my 9 year old Duster with the antique LG system used to play the last played song and real good random shuffle I don't know what's wrong with the Tatas media player. Would have loved it if started on Bluetooth every time but it needs to be physically selected on the media player and then needs one more click to play on mobile every time. Lots of steps involved, would have preferred automatic play. This does happen in Android Auto but not on Bluetooth.

There is no way to save/select the default vehicle drive mode/regen mode. Trying to use the Eco mode but the vehicle starts by default in City mode and every time have to reselect Eco mode and level regen 3 (Eco has level 2 regen as default). Lots of extra button presses, I think Tata could have improved here.

Going on 1000 km round road trip to Kolhapur tomorrow and hence fingers crossed, haven't got the spare yet so doubly apprehensive. Lets see how it goes.

[DHARM]

Originally Posted by mh09ad5578

Ran into the first sort of major bug. The central DRL stopped working. Observed it today don't know when it stopped working. Did a vehicle software reset but it didn't help. I don't really care about this central DRL so mostly won't take it to ASC till next service. Hoping it fixes itself

Found media player to be lacking, while playing USB media everytime it starts with the same first song, doesn't remember the shuffle/repeat seatings/ last song. It even plays suffle songs in the exact same sequence. Its irritating to listen to the same song/sequence every time I start the car, my 9 year old Duster with the antique LG system used to play the last played song and real good random shuffle I don't know what's wrong with the Tatas media player. Would have loved it if started on Bluetooth every time but it needs to be physically selected on the media player and then needs one more click to play on mobile every time. Lots of steps involved, would have preferred automatic play. This does happen in Android Auto but not on Bluetooth.

There is no way to save/select the default vehicle drive mode/regen mode. Trying to use the Eco mode but the vehicle starts by default in City mode and every time have to reselect Eco mode and level regen 3 (Eco has level 2 regen as default). Lots of extra button presses, I think Tata could have improved here.

Going on 1000 km round road trip to Kolhapur tomorrow and hence fingers crossed, haven't got the spare yet so doubly apprehensive. Lets see how it goes.

Recently my car also had bug, Regen was shown off and won't turn on. It stopped showing battery %, Range etc. so I called Service center staff, he told me system is hanged & advised to remove -ve terminal connector from the smaller battery for 5 minutes however since I was charging the vehicle at the time I avoided it. Surprisingly after the completion of charge the bug went on its own.

[DHARM]

Originally Posted by Gurudatta Nayak

Check this out https://Youtu.be/0xzxUECsXvA?si=1aAgvwU7TRLgCIu7

It looks like punch ev is yet to iron out lot of software issues.

True, in this comparison video TATA Punch achieved range of approx. 260km travelling to Lonavala (ghat section) and back while Nexon achieved range of 284, A net difference of less than 10%. I did travel last month in the same area & got the range of @ 280km with eco mode and sedate driving

[Gurudatta Nayak]

Originally Posted by DHARM

True, in this comparison video TATA Punch achieved range of approx. 260km travelling to Lonavala (ghat section) and back while Nexon achieved range of 284, A net difference of less than 10%. I did travel last month in the same area & got the range of @ 280km with eco mode and sedate driving

280kms range translates to 125Wh/km. Thats impressive. Is that with air conditioning on all the time?

I am planning a 290kms Goa to Belagavi and back trip via anmod ghat section to test the vehicle capability and range anxiety fear as we plan to do Goa-Bengaluru drive soon. We plan to charge the car at Tata Power charging station at gogte plaza, belagavi.

[DHARM]

Originally Posted by Gurudatta Nayak

280kms range translates to 125Wh/km. Thats impressive. Is that with air conditioning on all the time?

I am planning a 290kms Goa to Belagavi and back trip via anmod ghat section to test the vehicle capability and range anxiety fear as we plan to do Goa-Bengaluru drive soon. We plan to charge the car at Tata Power charging station at gogte plaza, belagavi.

Air Conditioning was ON 98% of the time, about 95% of the time I drove in Eco mode(ZConnect data) with Level 2&3 regen. I was sedate on climbing the ghat to avoid loosing range & since this was old goa road it had lots of curves and single lane similar to some the ghats at Belgavi-Goa Section but less distance. All the best for your trip & share you experience.

[DHARM]

Hi,

Has anyone taken extended Warranty? is it worth it? Should we take now or before 3 years of purchase? Some people on Nexon EV thread have been denied warranty claim by TATA Motors hence this Question.

[Gurudatta Nayak]

Originally Posted by DHARM

Hi,

Has anyone taken extended Warranty? is it worth it? Should we take now or before 3 years of purchase? Some people on Nexon EV thread have been denied warranty claim by TATA Motors hence this Question.

The AC Compressor is the costlier item at 62,731/-of the lot covered for 3 years and 1.25L kms.

Due to frequent niggling issues, I am planning to opt for the 2yrs extended warranty at 26k. Will still wait for a year to see how manufacturer handles OEM warranty in this first year.I has a word with tata officials, they says to retain OEM warranty and extended warranty, the customer has service the vehicle at TASC as per the schedule mentioned in the Owner manual.

The Extended warranty will be issued only after inspection of the vehicle.

[Raghuwire]

Originally Posted by mh09ad5578

There is no way to save/select the default vehicle drive mode/regen mode. Trying to use the Eco mode but the vehicle starts by default in City mode and every time have to reselect Eco mode and level regen 3 (Eco has level 2 regen as default). Lots of extra button presses, I think Tata could have improved here.

I think this is a safety feature of the car to always start in the default mode, as in if drivers change, they may not be aware of the change in settings. Like in Harrier, I drive in city, sometimes in Sports, but wife drives only on city mode. If I leave it on sports and she does not realise, she will not be able to handle the extra surge of power. In EV the regen 4 and regen 0 are drastically different, so it's better to start in default mode as it's very predictable.

[Gurudatta Nayak]

Here are the list of spare part prices for Punch EV. I feel, we should opt for extended warranty as electronics can fail at any moment. We should also ensure to remove the charging connector properly, as the connector assembly is not available separately.

There are lot of common Punch EV spares which are compatible with Nexon, Harrier and Tiago.

• TRACTION MOTOR ASSY-LR - 3,13,625/- (8Yrs or 1.6Lkms Warranty)
• Container,3in1combo Unit Nova Lr - 2,28,258/- (3yrs Warranty)
• CABLE ASSY,CCS2 VEHICLE INLET TO 3IN1 COMBO BOX-LR: 45,173/- (3yrs Warranty) -This houses DC/Slow Charger Connector (#58).
• CONTAINER;VEH ELECTRONIC CONTROLLER UNIT: 43,413/- (3yrs Warranty)
• KIT-WIRING HARNESS,POWERTRAIN: 16,988/-
• AC COMPRESSOR ASSY: 62,731/- (3yrs Warranty)

Source

[mh09ad5578]

So did my first multi day (two day ) long drive from Chitradurga to Kolhapur (430kms each way) and back

- started on this Thursday at 8 am from Chitradurga with 90% charge. Reached Ganesh hotel after Bankapur at 10.30 am 196 kms away with shown 54 kms/21% charge left. Cruised at 85kms in Eco mode with cruise control most of the time. (Home charge approximately 300Rs)
- Put the car to charge, Zion charger and went on for breakfast 11.15am I came to the car to realize power had gone and come and car had charged only 2% again cycled to charge, switched on AC and sat in car again power went out at 12.15 pm with car at 70% . Decided to wing it to next charge station at Belagum as It was 114kms away and range shown was 170 kms.( Fast charge cost Rs522/-)
- on the single road stretch between Hubli and Dharwad about 30 odd kms kept switching between Eco and Sports modes during overtakes and there was no change in range shown.
- Reached Gogte charge Plaza near Fairfield Marriott in Belgaum around 1.45 pm with 80 kms/27% charge left. Here ran into my first Tata charger and couldn't get the 60w charger to charge. With no QR code to scan wasted close to 45 minutes figuring the system out. Finally the 30 KW charger worked just before I was planning to go to Ramdev hotel charger almost giving up. Went into Irish Cafe for Lunch. By the time I was done with lunch the charger had reached 90% . This charge station has the best washrooms and two great fine dines. Good place to kill time though a bit pricy. (Fast charge cost Rs514)
- Started for Kolhapur at 3.45pm with shown 241kms range/90% charge. The roads from Belgaum to Kolhapur are under widening and pathetic with chok a block traffic. Was mostly on the peddle with occasional cruise control at 89 kmph. Reached Kolhapur at 5.30 pm with 157kms/52% range left.
-Went for dinner to Sayaji Hotel, this has a Bijali fast charger , created an account loaded wallet and put it to fast charge ,it reached 98% and auto disconnected as balance was over on about 45 minutes. Went and disconnected charger and resumed dinner. (Fast charge cost Rs450/-)
-next day Started from Kolhapur at 1pm with 90% charge. After countering the chock a block traffic reached Belgaum Gogte charging Plaza at 2.30 pm with about 150 kms range. Put it to charge on 30 KW charger and it went smoothly. Strangely car app was not showing charging but Tatapower app was indicating charging percentage etc correctly. Went to Spice Blends restaurant for dinner which was really good. Stopped charging from Tatapower app at 98% at 3.30 pm as lunch too was almost done. (Fast charge cost Rs 409/-)
- Gremlins knock- surprisingly car z connect app was showing previous charge state only. When we went to car and started it it was showing only 78 kms range with no charge percentage. Shockingly the car refused to switch into drive or reverse mode no matter what. It was only shifting into only park and neutral mode. Tried charging it again didn't work. Tried switching it on and off a couple of times, didn't work. Did a factory reset from menu ,didn't work. Tried calling the sos/call center call kept disconnecting. Finally called the SA at Davangere where I had serviced the car previous Saturday. He said to switch off and restart a couple of times and if this didn't work to disconnect the negative terminal of the aux battery and reconnect after 10 mins. Was wondering where I will get the the spanner for this and Tried to restart and voilà the car started perfectly with 255kms/98% range. All this circus wasted about 30 mins and with wifys confidence shaken (she had started believing she can drive this car solo the next time to Kolhapur her home town).
-Left Belgaum at 4 pm with wify on the wheel as I was feeling sleepy. She was uncomfortable with cruise control and hence turned it off and also left car in city mode. When I woke up near Dharwad she was doing upwards of 90kmph and was enjoying the drive. I told her that she was killing the range and my stats and she was like next charger is well in range forget it . Switched to total sports mode on the 30kms stretch between Dharwad and Hubli narrow lane. Reached Ganesh hotel at 6pm.
-put it on charge and went on for a snack, this time charging went perfect and by the time we were done with food it had reached 234 kms/92% . Started from Here to home at 7pm out it on cruise control at 89 kmph as I was driving. Reached home at 9.15pm with 43kms/17% charge left.( Fast charge cost Rs 349/-)
- Totally did about 859 kms in two days with shown 121 wh/km. Total cost was about Rs 2548- (One home rest all fast charges). Took about 9.5 hrs onwards and 8.5hrs return journey. In my Creta need about 6 hrs with one break for the same journey.
- on the way from Chitradurga to Hubli the car gave audio chime to take a break if tired with a coffee visual on the instrument cluster. I perplexed and shocked as indeed I was a bit drowsy. Started searching for camera/sensor and was alarmed at the thought that maybe Tata was spying on me . Then realized this came in right at 150kms of the non stop drive . So guess it's a interval thing. Was greatly relived lol.
-Except the mediocre speed the car is absolutely comfortable to drive on long drives,with no gear/clutch to shift and cruise control and regen. I was not even using the accelerator that much, used to take it to 31 kmph and just switch to cruise resume and smoothly the car took it to 85 kmph and maintained the speed. Slowing down was just suspending the cruise control. It's way effortless. AC is also superchill kept it mostly at 23-24 on auto mode.
-The underside did brush a particularly large speed breaker which was surprising as I didn't expect it to, so was quite careful when I saw the next big ones.
- Totally 3220 kms in these 19 days. Apart from yesterday's scare , totally loving it. Cheers

[King_Julien]

Originally Posted by mh09ad5578

Gremlins knock- surprisingly car z connect app was showing previous charge state only

I had heard this happens when you stop charging during cell balancing.

I always stop fast charging at 89%, have seen the charging speed drops drastically after that.

[GTO]

• Driving a model that has become the #1 bestseller in the country is always a special moment. It is even more special when the best-seller is not a Maruti, nor is it the cheapest hatchback on sale. With petrol power (the weak petrol), a CNG variant and now an EV, the Punch has a fantastic range of powertrain options. I only wish they now give it a turbo-petrol engine, so even petrol lovers can enjoy the Tata Punch. The 85 BHP NA petrol motor is simply too weak.

• Looks like a million bucks, the Tata Punch. I love Tata’s new design language. Easily amounts to the best-looking cars on our roads.



• On the other hand, the panel gaps, my God! Even a cursory glance when approaching the car shows how there’s an inconsistent panel gap on the right side of the tailgate (compared to the left side). It's big & glaring.

• "Small" doesn't have to mean "cheap" and the Punch EV is a testament to that. The build, improved cabin (vis a vis the petrol variant), smooth powertrain, and technology give the Punch EV a feel-good factor. It doesn't feel cheap at all. On the contrary, it'll leave you smiling! The Punch feels like an extremely modern, contemporary car. It also feels 10-20 years ahead of any compact Maruti on sale today. Maruti has really fallen behind in R&D and has a world of catching up to do.

• Very good sound system quality for the price. It has a nice, well-sized user-friendly touchscreen as well.

• Rear seat legroom is tight. If I sit like a 6-footer, even a kid will have trouble sitting behind me. A 5’10” person can sit behind a 5'10" driver, but just about. It’s not spacious in that sense. Also, the cabin width is limited and you realise this is a small car when you’re on the rear bench.

• Tata has learnt a prank or two from Maruti, it seems. No one on the rear seats, and still you have to live with annoying seatbelt warning beeps and chimes for a couple of seconds after driving off. A simple load sensor should solve the issue.

• The air-con is fantastic! Bombay is experiencing one of its worst summers = too hot & insanely humid. The Punch EV AC cools the cabin in no time at all. Wish there were rear air-con vents as well. In such a well-loaded car (360-degree camera, ventilated seats, etc.), they should’ve given rear vents.

• After spending time with the Punch, I understand the appeal of its compact footprint for the city. Small dimensions mean that you can easily squeeze it in and out of places. Tight gaps, thin bylanes, no sweat at all.

• The last Punch I drove was the weedy 1.2L petrol and the jerky AMT. In terms of powertrain, the Punch EV is so much superior, so much nicer to drive and so much smoother. There’s no comparison between the EV and ICE. The EV is the one to buy if you are eyeing the Punch.

• Absolutely love the regenerative braking and the fact that it’s adjustable. Although, level 1 itself is powerful enough for most users. Levels 2 and 3 will primarily be used by power users. What is annoying though is that, in some modes on startup, the car automatically engages level 2 and most people will find it too aggressive. Then you have to manually move it to level 1. Not cool. I personally would stick to Level 1 only as Level 3 can get rather jerky.

• Spent some time pacing it, just to see how much 1-pedal driving I could get away with on level 3 regen. Answer = A LOT.

• This electric rotary gear knob looks swell and has a wow factor, but in terms of usability, it is a fail. Firstly, it is slow to shift between the different modes. There were several times when the car was in R and I slid it to move to D, and it didn’t move for whatsoever reason. It happened to me a couple of times and also to a valet guy I handed the car to. If you are parking in a tight spot, and have to move from R and D in quick succession, it will be done in a really slow motion. You actually have to keep a watchful eye on the display to ensure that your selected mode has been engaged. Good looking gearshifter, but not practical.



• Eco mode is just perfect for your calm and smooth commuting around the city. If you’re driving early in the morning, there’s an empty road, or you’re on the highway, engage Sport mode and you’ll see that the Punch EV is a genuinely quick car. The powerful torque delivery is enjoyable and as you accelerate away, you will hear the front tyres continuously chirp away as they struggle for grip. In terms of sprinting, you can outaccelerate bigger, more expensive cars. Tata claims a very believable 0 - 100 time of 9.5 seconds.

• Eco mode will take you quickly to 120 km/h, but it won’t let you go above that. The speedo will hover in that range. If you want to go faster, press the Sport mode button and the car instantly accelerates up, taking you beyond. Tata has capped the top speed to 140 km/h.

• Back on the mega Atal Setu bridge



• The suspension is tuned on the firmer side. You feel potholes and large bumps prominently in the cabin at city / slow speeds.

• I don’t agree with an R16 size for the Punch EV (link to related thread). The R15 should offer noticeably superior ride quality and that size should’ve been standard across the range.

• Excellent high-speed stability. You can comfortably cruise at 120 km/h all day long with no feeling of nervousness.

• The steering is light in the city and weighs up okay at speed. But just like most electric cars, it is extremely vague and simply doesn’t have the direct feel that you see in some steering wheels of ICE cars.

• In hot Mumbai city, I saw a range of 230-240 km on the Punch EV. Many Punch EV owners have claimed hitting 300-km on a full charge and I don't doubt that. However extreme heat has a detrimental effect on an EV's range. After my 2nd full charge, I took her out on a very hot afternoon and the MID was showing just a 200 km range.

• The kind of range that the Punch has for commuting is more than enough for an average EV user. But for a petrolhead like me, it’s not and I’ll tell you why. When I see an empty road, I like to revv and I like to drive fast. On the highway, I will cruise at 120 km/h, and not 80-90 km/h like some of the conservative EV users. I also like to corner hard on empty mountain roads, going up and coming down. The problem is that, with my kind of driving style, the actual driving range is approximately 50% of what a regular person would get. Hence for me to own an EV, I would need a minimum of 500 km range, so with my driving style, I get at least 250-300 km range.

• Charging on my good old, simple & cheap 15A home socket works just fine for me:



• I greatly appreciate Tata’s commitment to safety. Not just in terms of the safety equipment it has, but also the crash test ratings. This is something Maruti & Hyundai have to learn.

• Not giving a spare tyre is a serious omission and I have to admit, I was quite concerned on my expressway run too. If I ever buy a Punch EV, the first thing I would do is chuck out the underboot organiser and put a spare tyre instead. Tata should really avoid such cheap, cost-cutting ideas that don't suit its climbing image. Not to mention, how grossly customers will be inconvenienced when they are stranded on the highway or in the middle of the night with a puncture. What takes 10 minutes to switch to a spare will take 1 - 4 hours for repair. Now, Maruti is also giving a puncture repair kit and not a spare tyre on some variants of the Fronx. This is utter nonsense for Indian road conditions. Whichever manager approved this move, I want to see him stranded on the Mumbai-Goa highway with a damaged sidewall tyre.

• Tyre noise is definitely on the higher side, even at just 80 km/h. You’ll obviously feel it even more in the EV than ICE as there’s no drivetrain noise out here. But even in the city on flyovers and some roads, the tyre noise was noticeable. This area of NVH needs to be addressed. It shows that the Punch EV is based on a cheap crossover.

• Interestingly, this is the first Tata car that I’ve used over 4 days and didn’t encounter a bug or niggle. The Safari Facelift I test-drove had its fair share of bugs in the short time I had it (link to drive report).

• If the Punch EV price and size meet your requirements, by all means, go for it. However, as much as I love the Punch EV, I’m not a price-sensitive personality at all. I would spend the extra bucks and get the Nexon EV Facelift, a car I particularly love.

[TheARUN]

Originally Posted by GTO

Attachment 2608512
If the Punch EV price and size meet your requirements, by all means, go for it. However, as much as I love the Punch EV, I’m not a price-sensitive personality at all. I would spend the extra bucks and get the Nexon EV Facelift, a car I particularly love.

The only review you would need to read if you're in the market for a PUNCH.EV, all the other reviews are for those who have too much time on their hands or want to indulge themselves in their passion

Key takeaway for me was - In an EV, aim and plan for 50% of what the Manufacturer claims as the range, you will never come out disappointed

Had a question. The PUNCH.EV has only the name and maybe 60% of the design copied from its Petrol and CNG sibling it seems. This one is an all new car from ground up, that's what I am thinking until I get corrected

[coldice4u]

Originally Posted by AG532

I have driven around 4000 km. Initially the car used to show the range between 280 - 330km (depending on the drive mode), but then after some time i started seeing discrepancy between the range shown and actual range.
Thanks

The current heatwave conditions have spiked the AEC on my Tiago LR to 150-160 with the compressor now working overtime and whining. I think i saw similar AEC numbers from NCR users of Tata EVs.

It showed 49C today on the the ambient temperature . I don't think i crossed 44-46 degrees last year. Current usable range (100-10) must have dropped to 130kms.

Originally Posted by TheARUN

Key takeaway for me was - In an EV, aim and plan for 50% of what the Manufacturer claims as the range, you will never come out disappointed

Had a question. The PUNCH.EV has only the name and maybe 60% of the design copied from its Petrol and CNG sibling it seems. This one is an all new car from ground up, that's what I am thinking until I get corrected

I would say 50% is too extreme. For the average Joe with a regular commute and daily driving the number would be close to 60%. Also need to keep an eye on the total distance vs total time as places like Bangalore which has much slower traffic will give much lesser range compared to say NCR users.

[digitalnirvana]

Originally Posted by GTO

• If the Punch EV price and size meet your requirements, by all means, go for it. However, as much as I love the Punch EV, I’m not a price-sensitive personality at all. I would spend the extra bucks and get the Nexon EV Facelift, a car I particularly love.

Thanks for the crisp and clearly articulated review Rush.

I wanted to understand a bit more about this specific reason, I agree with you that the Nexon EV facelift is a better, bigger and more proven car, but it still a Gen 1 ICE retrofit to EV compared to the Punch which is a generation ahead in terms of the underlying ALFA ARC platform.

For example two issues with the Nexon that bother me are that the HV wires have to go front to back in the Nexon, and there is no integrated skateboard for the battery and chassis. On the plus side it gets a wider cabin, and all the benefits and quirks of the X1 platform.

What would you recommend to someone looking for a 1 car EV garage for mainly city commutes. I'm just looking and not going to buy anytime soon. Thanks.