[teamveevee]

The front and back were designed by 2 seperate teams in 2 locations(never talked to each other). Then the team that supposed to integrate the front and back got busy with other projects. (lol). The same feeling you get not only with this, but with Venture also. Definitely this refresh will not help TM at all. Every body who sees this, think this is not a good one, what about the higher ups in TM who approved this? If i were Carl Slim, i will fire those who approved this facelift, and bring in fresh blood. If some one working on Venture facelift, please stop it right away, dont waste money.

[Sanjunair5]

This just does not look like a factory upgrade, looks more like a cosmetic job done at an accessory shop! Doesn't it?

[soonya]

Even the colourful autorickshaw stickering wallah does a more esthetically pleasing job! What's up Tata?

Earlier you were blamed for being under-stated, trying-to-be-dignified type of designs, now seems like some Korean and Chinese combined esthetic pallette seems to have been borrowed!

Or is a strategy to make the earlier one look more desirable by contrast?

While the Sumo looked lean, this one looks like a sumo wrestler, rounded, bulky and above all as an over made up streetwalker! No offense streetwalkers.

Both Sumo and Grande will look better if they cut off an inch or two from the roof and make the front glass also shrink vertically, that should give it a good stance. Of course TML have to keep improving on all the finer points of car-building as many writers here talk about.

[Parm]

Sumo started its journey by getting inspired from G wagon and over the years it got inspired 2nd time by LR Discovery and now it's somewhere in between the two and looks Chinese enough.

Tags should seriously look into its design team and its chief designer.

[FuelInjector]

Would be a tough sell for TM, this one. unless the cab drivers think it gives them something more to drive this.
Also - yuck! did you notice the fuel stain near the fuel flap.

[arulpeem]

Originally Posted by tushky

Comfort??? Really i think this is the worst tata car in terms of comfort. I have driven this muv for long drive and the boat like suspensions makes u mad. Also the vibration levels are also bad. I can say this vehicle offers good space only. Overall this is the worst product in terms of comfort,quality.

Hi tushky,
Did you drive the MKII or the earlier version. Grande was definitely bad and wallowing, but MKII was definitely a major improvement and that is why I bought it and have done 72,000 KM in 3.5 years. Most of the journeys were on highways and it is good at 90-100 KM. Three of my friends who have high end sedans regularly borrow this for their highway trips...

[AyAn!]

Ok, so they have a fresh pair of tail-lamps, like somebody bothers to remember the last ones. And they should have given it a full matte black treatment, not just strips of it around all the wrong places.

[Gerardfdz]

I really like the XENON shape and look (without the rear) - Just wished that they would use a similar looking body instead of their ancient designs of the SUMO and SAFARI!

[ashutoshb]

I hope the Tata guys are reading this. These sticker jobs do not help at all. What I can see in the pictures looks shoddy and distasteful.

Time to put in some money and come out with serious stuff. Let's leave the short term jugaad altogether.

[sadsack]

This whole thread with the posts in it proves one well known aphorism right and that is that everybody loves to beat someone when they are down. I do not like to use very strong language (not due to the fear of moderators, but because I do not like to be offensive to others) but this thread and the posts show the follow the herd mentality of human beings.

One of my biggest problems with automobile forums is that they have gradually degenerated into forums for the display of various peoples' juvenile tendencies. Most posts have no meaning and no sense and one person had to say something about Chinese looking design and there are three or four others falling over each other to say the same thing.

Stupid motor journalists in India who do not even know what the four in a four stroke engine means have for aeons now been pushing awfully pedestrian ideas about design tastes of cultures by commenting adversely on Korean, Chinese and even Japanese aesthetics. And this coming from the people of country that has no identifiable design patterns in any products. The colonial mindset of raising European designs to positions that are lofty and running down other countries' designs into the ground is also an acquired European taste that our country people have lapped up happily and have been for years creating racial slurs.

But to come back to my original point Tata is down and so everybody who is actually a nobody actually feels the necessity to run the company down. People who have never sat in a Nano talk rubbish about the car. People say that Tata will not regain lost ground until it drops the Indica and Indigo names. Gems of wisdom. Having said all this, Tata has been doing too little to make an significant impact with these piecemeal and not to well conceived ideas of facelifts. But I will definitely take into consideration the point that Tata is using these as stop gap measures too keep some numbers moving while it is working on newer products.

Indian companies that have decided to go solo will have to work harder and longer in order to reach acceptable standards of quality and durability and that has to be seen as a given. In this light it appear that Tata "maybe" working on newer models. If they are not then as a company they deserve to go down. But that is no reason for other people to make meaningless remarks all in the name of humour which is so sad that it makes me want to cry.

P.S: I am quite sure that this post will not make it past the moderators but I stand by what I have said and I have not been offensive in what I am saying.

[mallumowgli]

Originally Posted by sadsack

Indian companies that have decided to go solo will have to work harder and longer in order to reach acceptable standards of quality and durability and that has to be seen as a given. In this light it appear that Tata "maybe" working on newer models. If they are not then as a company they deserve to go down. But that is no reason for other people to make meaningless remarks all in the name of humour which is so sad that it makes me want to cry.

Not sure what this rant was about - but you have not said whether you liked this refresh or not. Do you?

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by Sanjunair5

This just does not look like a factory upgrade, looks more like a cosmetic job done at an accessory shop! Doesn't it?

Its an upgrade/refresh, probably meant to make the existing vehicle look slightly more appealing - which shouldn't be difficult considering how shapeless it looked.

The title says "Refresh" - when was the last time a 'Refresh' by any manufacturer included changes to body panels? It usually means headlamps/tail lamps/grille/bumper & stickers. Sometimes fake bonnet scoops, if the manufacturer and its buyers are inclined towards such meaningless bits.

Save brickbats for new models that may look as ugly.

Originally Posted by sadsack

I stand by what I have said and I have not been offensive in what I am saying.

You have a very valid point, but its pretty useless trying to push it. You're probably better off trying to piss against the wind.

[rahul4321]

Originally Posted by sadsack

But to come back to my original point Tata is down and so everybody who is actually a nobody actually feels the necessity to run the company down.

I dont speak for others but i surely do not join the 'herd' when it comes to bashing companies who are down and out. I like what they did with the Storme Explorer Edition; very tasteful indeed. But this; The Xylo-esque treatment to the Grande is a very shoddy job. I would be happiest if Tata does a 360 degree turnaround and starts raking in huge sales; not because i have any particular fondness towards the company but because i have immense respect for Ratan Tata and what he did for his employees who were caught up in the Mumbai Terror Siege. (I know it has got nothing to do with Tata Motors but then i guess thats the way the heart works)

Go on Tata!!! We are all here for you you. Solve the quality niggles, solve the tyre-eating issues, solve the electrical issues and design a car with proper curves (like the Indigo CS but unlike the Indigo Manza)

[slamnos]

The car looks too bulky, even though its not spacious inside. Why cant they have designs which look contemporary?

[AyAn!]

Originally Posted by sadsack

Stupid motor journalists in India who do not even know what the four in a four stroke engine means have for aeons now been pushing awfully pedestrian ideas about design tastes of cultures by commenting adversely on Korean, Chinese and even Japanese aesthetics. And this coming from the people of country that has no identifiable design patterns in any products. The colonial mindset of raising European designs to positions that are lofty and running down other countries' designs into the ground is also an acquired European taste that our country people have lapped up happily and have been for years creating racial slurs.

I would say that this is ignorant journalist bashing on your part as well. One doesn't need to acquire scholarly knowledge about automotive engineering to push ideas about aesthetics and general car culture. While I agree the various Indian journalists are a bit too generic and unoriginal in the way they go about things, but that doesn't necessarily make them stupid.

European design has always been held in high esteem because they're pioneers in most respects, and you can't run away from that fact. That said Japanese and Koreans have long made a strong niche for themselves. Today, we witness a lot of Korean and Japanese influence on some European cars, which speaks a lot about their acumen and respect that they've garnered for themselves. If a Volkswagen or an Opel has a "Korean looking" rear end, it does receive a lot of flak, but that's because it's sacrificing it's originality and character. But that's not meant to degrade the design philosophies of the chaps over at Korea in any way. In fact, it's a positive sign for the east, in a way that some smug manufacturer from Europe is letting itself loose to the Asian invasion. And if you look closely at the way China churns out blasphemous automobiles, it's not hard to understand why they're bashed.

And I think we can safely overlook European influences on Korean/Japanese automobiles, because that trend is solely reserved for Asian cars trying to do brisk business in the west, and they are understandably blatant about that fact. For example, your average JDM product would be a far cry from it's European counterpart in terms of vehicular character as well as aesthetics.

Originally Posted by sadsack

But I will definitely take into consideration the point that Tata is using these as stop gap measures too keep some numbers moving while it is working on newer products.

There is no room in the 21st century automotive sphere for such considerations. These "stop gap" measures deserve to be bashed on forums and by the market as well. Sticker jobs like these are nothing short of some stupid joke, and the Grande's not even a strong seller that they'll get away with it. They shouldn't have even bothered to do something like this in the first place, and concentrated more on implementing some superior engineering improvements to the car.

Originally Posted by sadsack

But that is no reason for other people to make meaningless remarks all in the name of humour which is so sad that it makes me want to cry.

People have a general tendency to voice opinions about things and jump bandwagons to feel good about themselves. Or maybe for attention. Anyways the humor involved maybe ignored, but collectively all these opinions are just voicing distaste for the actions of Tata Motors and they should be well aware of it and take necessary action before stuff hits the fan.