[Abhinav667]

Tata has added a more affordable variant to the Aria 4X2 line-up, called the Pure LX. The new-entry level variant is priced at Rs. 9.95 lakhs (ex-showroom New Delhi) and is aimed entirely at the taxi-cab market. The company however has stripped-down the cross-over with most of its features, so as to position it under the 10-lakh rupee price bracket.

What’s missing on this sub-10 lakh rupee Aria

• Dual-mass flywheel; the cost-down Aria uses a single-mass flywheel instead.
• Airbags, ABS and EBD.
• Fabric/Leather seats; you now get Vinyl/Art-leather seats.
• Music System
• Rear wash, pipe and de-fogger
• Roof-storage bins
• Follow-me home lamps
• Chrome inside door-handles
• Body-coloured rub-rails
• Chrome radiator grille surround

To make sure the car doesn’t look cheap, the cost-down Aria retains its body coloured bumpers and projector head-lamps. Other features such as disc-brakes, key-less entry, rear-AC vents, etc. have also not been skimped upon and the Tata Aria still has an edge over the competition, in terms of equipment.

Under the hood, you get the same 2.2 litre Direct Injection Common Rail (DICOR) engine that delivers 140 PS of peak-power and 320 NM of peak-torque. The lack of a dual-mass flywheel means that the Aria LX will have a noisier cabin in comparison to the higher trim-levels. Still, at a sub-10 lakh rupee price tag, the Aria is a steal for what it offers.

This is the second time Tata has had to add a stripped down variant to the Aria line-up. The company had originally pitched this product to customers who need decent off-road capabilities as well as luxury and technology, which didn’t quite work. Despite the addition of cheaper 4X2 variants later on, the sales remained poor and the Aria continued with only 20-25 units every month. By making the car more affordable, Tata feels the sales will improve and hence it has further cut-costs and introduced a cheaper variant.

SOURCE: http://goaonwheels.com/auto-news/exc...-rs-9-95-lakhs

[raj.singh]

Hi all !
My first post, oh god I am so exited.

Definite competitor to Toyota Innova and other high-end people movers (talking about higher trims of Xylo and Evalia here.)

peace out.

[a4anurag]

A decent move from TATA.

Seem to be desperate for sales with the Aria. They should have retained the ABS and airbags as an offer in this stripped out variants.

The other odd thing to my eyes was the wheels. Doesn't gel with the whole image of the car but this is what could be done to get the costs down.

Lets see what this stripped out variant does to the sales chart. does it climb or strip Tata more!

[CRtorquefan]

Originally Posted by Abhinav667

What’s missing on this sub-10 lakh rupee Aria
Dual-mass flywheel;
the cost-down Aria uses a single-mass flywheel instead.

So the stripping changes have reached upto this level.
Hope so, they're not going back to the crude refinement levels for this car, for which they've Re-engineered this product for another more year, prior to its launch.

IMHO, To save on costs this car really needs a face-lift, which should include:
-Adding body panels or plastics costing less than existing ones.
-Adding of less complex & cheaper Infotainment systems(MID & ICE), afterall which car in its segment uses it, neither Innova nor Xylo.
-Other complex electronics can be given a go, than cutting on mechanical bits first.

Still this car is having a charm left in it & such an options can't be given a miss, considering what a product deserves.

[download2live]

Ok now we are talking.
At the launch itself they should have kept one variant at this price level while hoping to make customers part with 15+ lacs for grander versions.

[harishpr]

no airbags at 10 lacs !!!!! Tata produced a great product called 'aria', but ruined it completely with pricing/strategy. Heck, even my wife would have positioned this well. I love aria, no doubts. I wish they followed this strategy from the beginning. This is a 'very' capable vehicle, but im not sure if it can bounce back; unless Karl has any ground breaking ideas

[Off Roadie]

There are 'slym' chances of there being any immediate impact
The aria deserves a lot more than what it's got. This is really an interesting option now. I know that they did not want to position it there but now it is a good option over the Innova. They should just focus on making the third row a better place to be and it can start competing headlong with the Innova. The first 2 rows are brilliant.

[shankar.balan]

The poor Aria was neither a pure van nor a pure SUV. It was confused and jinxed right from the beginning.
The Tata name cannot carry off pretensions to 'premium'. They should have priced it just below the Innova and just above the Xylo. The Aria offered so much more than these others and they would have been on to a winner.
Now all they are doing is to dig the Aria more firmly into its grave...

[Fillmore]

In Bangalore I keep hearing the radio AD for the new Aria
It says 0% Interest financing and an EMI of 9,999/- per month.

Lots of push indeed.

[greenhorn]

I think this is a credible attempt by tata to push their brands upmarket. Since repositioning a product to a higher segment is nigh impossible, You start with a higher positioning, and then quietly introduce a lower variant. They did this with the grande and now this. Imagine if the aria had actually been released with this variant from day 1? if would have invited unwelcome comparisons with the scorp/xylo/safari, and then people would have pronounced it VFM, and then if they released higher variants of it, we would have thought tata to be mad.
Instead they create a halo product, let peoples perceptions about it settle so that you have created a premium image - most of you will all agree that TML products are more expensive than M&M products right? (overpriced or not is another issue) and then quietly intoduce a cheaper base variant, and then suddenly it will seem more VFM right?

They seem to be taking a leaf out of Ford's playbook(remember how fiesta's are introduced, and how they move over their lifecycle?) , and seem to be learning from the failures of the nano. While short term this might cost some sales for tata, long term I think this has potential to push their brand upwards.

[teamveevee]

This is mainly intended for people mover/taxi usage. This segment is becoming an Innova monopoly now, Tata cannot afford to loose its major customer base over night. Even though Aria was a good product, it did not take of as expected. Now the product is repositioned for Taxi segment. If it takes off, Safari will become the premium vehicle once again, leaving Aria one segment below Safari.

[Sarvodaya]

A 10 Lakh Vehicle without ABS? The Aria is not going any where. A Price difference of over 5 Lakhs for the top end model. Instead of Launching tooooo many variants confusing Customers, Tata should slash prices of Aria keeping to bare 4 variants with the top end below the XUV 500 W8 AWD. Second Dud for Tata this Month after Strome. If Honda accepts and slashes its Prices why cannot Tata.

[pradyblr]

The article states this is intended for the taxi market and probably there might be takers for it. In that sense will it compete with Innova now? In the taxi market do people give importance to ABS, Airbags?

[manolin]

simulateneously if they up the quality control and have fixed the niggling issues, they have a fair shot at the taxi market - which, for one, is acquainted with the pitfalls of dealing with tata cars. Further if the quality control is upped, then they have a shot at surprising the taxi owners! Innova is too overpriced. 10 lakhs with finance options is the sweet spot indeed.

[rkg]

Originally Posted by Sarvodaya

A 10 Lakh Vehicle without ABS? The Aria is not going any where. A Price difference of over 5 Lakhs for the top end model. Instead of Launching tooooo many variants confusing Customers, Tata should slash prices of Aria keeping to bare 4 variants with the top end below the XUV 500 W8 AWD. Second Dud for Tata this Month after Strome. If Honda accepts and slashes its Prices why cannot Tata.

Innova base model costs 10 lakh - what one will get is a car with power steering. Innova proudly mentions the steering wheel is PVC not PU. That's all. AC without rear vents.

Of course one will get TOYOTA brand

ARIA-- 10 lakh --- what is on offer over and above Innova

Rear AC vents
Power windows
PU steering as against PVC steering( Because TOYOTA made this a feature)
All Disc brakes
MID
Better GC ( 200 mm Vs 170 of Innova)
140 HP Vs 100 HP
Electric ORVM with heated demister facility
Fog lamps- rear
Glove box chiller
Auto bonnet lift
Key less entry , immobiliser with parametric alarm system
Height adjustable driver seat
Puddle lamps
Automatic door unlock in case of accident

I think the price is justified to be on par with Innova