[malq]

A very dear friend of mine from the State I also grew up in, Bihar, on being told about the total party generated buzz about the Tata Zest had this say, best repeated in a Bihari accent "they must have been saying this in jest".

Big goof-up on the name, I think. Large parts of India pronounce "z' as "j". Once again, shows the disconnect that the baba-baby log in charge of communications at Tata motors apparently have with the real India.

First it was jokes about NANA NONO and now it will be all in JEST?

[shashi63]

Originally Posted by Stratos

Attachment 1262231

Apart from all the positives and negatives being discussed here for the right reasons, it is disappointing that such spelling errors take place in a car that has just rolled off an assembly line ('Break' instead of 'Brake').

It is probably a simple task for the OEM manufacturer to program and correct the spelling but these small things sometime reflect the lack of attention to detail, in this case by a big company like Tata Motors.

Stratos, I agree 100% on this and infact brought this out on a Tweet of mine to Pratap Bose and these small issues need to be given the same attention. It is called Attention to detail even small things which brings out excellence in all human beings!

Personally I am a huge Tata fan not just for the cars but as a Indian who has actually seen the contribution of Tata towards the up liftment of Indian's across the globe. I am also one lucky guy who has owned a Tata vehicle for 6 years and have had absolutely no issues ( TOUCHWOOD! ).

I have also noted that many of the features listed in many reviews are already present in my Club Class Manza, so evidently the reviewer has not clue about Tata cars and what they offer in terms of features. Primarily it tells me that most people tend to underwrite the Tata vehicle but the fact is that they offer More Car Per Car Absolutely!

The Zest is a winner all the way no doubt about it and it wont be long before Tata once again forces the competition to up its standards.

I have always believed that its because of Tata that the competition today thrives and survives in India and we indian's get products which are globally available at far more aggressive pricing!

Apologies for the rambling.

[phkr19]

Kudos to you TATA and Late Mr. Karl Slym.
Now this is how history is written.
I remember reading the thread where a team-bhpian was invited to meet Karl, and the way the responses were taken and now we see in flesh what the interactions have transpired into.

There is some feel good factor attached with the success of Tata motors, everybody wants it to rise, see it in the place where it originally belonged to, the king of VFM segment.

Any idea about the production capacity of Tata? They better keep a decent inventory of the Zest, and maybe take a leaf out of Honda as to how they managed the City orders.

Looking forward to the Bolt now.

[CARDEEP]

Another comparo, courtesy ODI, of the car with main competitors. The car scores good again, but not enough this time (difference in perspective):

http://overdrive.in/reviews/tata-zes...ft-dzire-ddis/

They compared the AMT against manual transmission cars .

[saket77]

Originally Posted by malq

... Tata Zest had this say, best repeated in a Bihari accent "they must have been saying this in jest".

Big goof-up on the name, I think. Large parts of India pronounce "z' as "j". Once again, shows the disconnect that the baba-baby log in charge of communications at Tata motors apparently have with the real India.

First it was jokes about NANA NONO and now it will be all in JEST?

I don't think that should be a problem. In fact, I like this name. Even the Bolt. Does not matter if people pronounce 'Z' as 'J'. For half of my life I have been hearing people call my car as 'Jen'. Hardly matters, it has been one of the best sellers of all time. It is a 'Zen'.

[extreme_torque]

Originally Posted by CARDEEP

Another comparo, courtesy ODI, of the car with main competitors. The car scores good again, but not enough this time (difference in perspective):

http://overdrive.in/reviews/tata-zes...ft-dzire-ddis/

They compared the AMT against manual transmission cars .

I stopped reading the review as soon as they said that Zest's boot is worse integrated than the Dzire. Dzire to me has the worst integrated boot in the segment. It is not even a half hearted job, it is just stuck on for the heck of it.

[damager21]

Two big details about Zest and Bolt have been revealed by Tata Motors in today's Economic Times:
1. Specifications of Zest - Base variant
2. Launch date of Bolt

Base variant specifications:
As per the article, base variant of Zest will come with a lesser powered diesel engine. It will come with the 75PS version of 1.3-litre diesel engine. This engine is the same Multijet engine that will power the 90PS Zest, but it will use a fixed geometry turbocharger instead of a Variable Geometry Turbocharger used in XM & XT variant of Zest.

Also, the base variant will not have alloy wheels, the Harman audio system, Airbags or ABS.


Bolt launch:
The Bolt is expected to hit showrooms early next year so no launch of Bolt in September.


I say this information is revealed by Tata Motors because above the article it says this is a "Advertising and Promotional Feature". Which means someone has paid to promote this article and it can be no one else but Tata Motors.

[raj.barcode]

There is too much hype on zest and bolt; hope they don't screw up. I am looking to change my wifes' car (i20 asta crdi) which is 75000kms of stress free and niggle free ownership. We are seriously looking at polo gt tdi but option of Amt in diesel seems to be very good bet. Hoping they are niggle free and well made to put ones hard earned money. But i feel it looks too much like Indica in side profile

[Fx14]

Originally Posted by GrammarNazi

Maybe I'll try tweeting someone from the top mgmt so they can put me in touch

Suggest providing feedback on the need for an AMT diesel version with airbags as well ... rumours that only the top diesel version with manual transmission would have airbags.

Why should safety be compromised for comfort / convenience features.

An article in ET states that there could be a 75 PS base diesel version also to cater to the low-end purchaser as well (do they imply taxi segment again - which is what they set out to differentiate with ZEST).

[RYP]

According to Zigwheels they're gonna rip-off the VGT, Harman Music system, Alloys, projector headlights, foglights and 15PS of power for the bare-bone basic variant. This will attract buyers mostly from Taxi segment than the Tier II and III city customers. Is this the only thing TATA shouldn't be doing right now?. You launch a modern capable product and give it a taxi image thus screwing up everything. Boffins at TATA can get a earful from prospective buyers.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by damager21

...As per the article, base variant of Zest will come with ...the 75PS version of 1.3-litre diesel engine....

Also, the base variant will not have alloy wheels, the Harman audio system, Airbags or ABS...

Looks like aimed at the taxi segment - this should be the last thing TATA should do at this point of time.

Originally Posted by damager21

...
Bolt launch:
The Bolt is expected to hit showrooms early next year so no launch of Bolt in September...

Good move I say. They probably are quite happy with the response (of Zest) and expect a good order log and may want to cater to the customers with less waiting period. Adding Bolt to the line up will ONLY complicate this.

Plus, Bolt might make people think of Indica / Vista. With Zest, the comparison is NOT going to be that high. All in all, a positive strategy according to me.

[Aniketh]

Originally Posted by safari_lover

Finally some good news coming in from Tata Motors. It seems that they have listened to all the rantings and feedback that has come their way about their cars, especially the Vista and Manza. Autocar India has this exclusive report about the new Tata cars scheduled to be unveiled at the AutoExpo next year.

source - http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...po-363463.aspx

With the launch of Zest, Tata is looking for a refreshed positive branding of their cars. I had the opportunity to examine the car, and must say the interiors have been improved tremendously! I never felt so good sitting inside a Tata brand before! Just wish them all the good luck and success with Zest.


Note from Mod : Please avoid the use of SMS language (d, jst, etc). Do see THIS THREAD before continuing. Thanks.

[WorkingGuru]

Originally Posted by shashi63

...I have also noted that many of the features listed in many reviews are already present in my Club Class Manza, so evidently the reviewer has not clue about Tata cars and what they offer in terms of features. Primarily it tells me that most people tend to underwrite the Tata vehicle but the fact is that they offer More Car Per Car Absolutely!

Infact IIRC you must have Touch Screen, MMI GPS and a CD player (which aren't there in Zest). But there are many new things - Exteriors, Interiors, Harman music system, a new steering system, improved suspension & chassis.

Reviewers IMO are often biased/motivated (IMO Indian media is facing its lowest point in credibility). This review from the 'much revered' Overdrive says the boot integration is comparatively better in Dzire than Zest. Looks are subjective, but IMPO its abit too much when they start giving it names like "muffin-top".

...I have always believed that its because of Tata that the competition today thrives and survives in India and we indian's get products which are globally available at far more aggressive pricing!...

+100.

• I still remember how Maruti arbitrarily made it compulsory for owners to only use expensive (3x price AFAIK) Synthetic oil for the 1.3mjd versions of its cars (Ritz, Swift, Dzire & Ertiga), while all the other car-makers using FIAT's engine used mineral oil. Theres a reason a that thread called "Maruti Service is cheap - A myth!" exists. Since I've pointed to the thread, I don't think I need to elucidate further.

• Even in FIAT threads you'll see owners complaining about how spares have become expensive off-late. Not just that, FIAT dealers are known to be elusive when it comes to selling spares OTC even though there is a rule(or something to that effect) by Competition Commission that spares should be made available OTC. Since dealers were elusive, people bought FIAT spares from a (3rd party vendor) website called 99RPM. FIAT stopped supplying parts to them too! So who knows, FIAT may even be hand in glove with dealers.

• AFAIK Tata has always recommended mineral oil & never arbitrarily compelled customers to use anything else. They also always made spares available OTC without fuss.

The parent company (at TaMo) has always seemed to believe in fair-play. Service center issues were definitely there, but since the past 3-4 years it seems they've tightened the noose. yet, I generally recommend that if people stay with the car overlooking the service - even the shadiest service center would hesitate to try doing anything wrong with the car.

Originally Posted by phkr19

Kudos to you TATA and Late Mr. Karl Slym.
Now this is how history is written.
I remember reading the thread where a team-bhpian was invited to meet Karl, and the way the responses were taken and now we see in flesh what the interactions have transpired into....

Ah! This thread by Grammar Nazi. Turns out they actually have taken feedback seriously. But seems it was for general crowd where a BHPian got in thanks to his excitement. Even to date, the top management at TaMo still keeps in touch with the customers through social media like twitter. Seriously appreciate them for that . Its unheard of to see top management staying connected with customers like this, especially in the auto-industry.

There is some feel good factor attached with the success of Tata motors, everybody wants it to rise, see it in the place where it originally belonged to, the king of VFM segment.

Any idea about the production capacity of Tata? They better keep a decent inventory of the Zest, and maybe take a leaf out of Honda as to how they managed the City orders....

Definitely! Team-BHP itself has SO many threads for them.

IMO amongst other things, they seem to evoke so much excitement because :
(1) they're Indian, so theres nationalism/patriotism,
(2) They're known for the MASSIVE number of CSR initiatives,
(3) They're considered TOP among the cleanest corporates - wrt business processes. Their branding stresses massively on honesty & trustworthiness.
(4) AFAIK They were the only corporate to have a "Code of Conduct" for ALL its employees.
(5) Their offerings are feature-rich and populist (whether the masses choose them or not) & VFM.
(6) The TATA's are known to be amongst the most credible and honest families in India since the past 100+ years.

Originally Posted by RYP

According to Zigwheels they're gonna rip-off the VGT, Harman Music system, Alloys, projector headlights, foglights and 15PS of power for the bare-bone basic variant. This will attract buyers mostly from Taxi segment than the Tier II and III city customers. Is this the only thing TATA shouldn't be doing right now?. You launch a modern capable product and give it a taxi image thus screwing up everything. Boffins at TATA can get a earful from prospective buyers.

Industry-wide, the 1.3mjd+FGT churns 75PS & 1.3mjd+VGT churns 90PS. Ritz / Swift / Dzire - The segment leaders all provide only FGT in 75PS state of tune.

Harman Music system, Alloys, projector headlights, foglight...

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Looks like aimed at the taxi segment - this should be the last thing TATA should do at this point of time.

Things like these aren't offered even in the mid-variant in this segment. Whats so surprising if Tata doesn't provide them in the base variant? Dunno where the Taxi part comes in. I'm sure TaMo won't make these available to the Taxi market (just like Nano).

Maybe they're planning to keep the Prices REALLY REALLY low for the base variant, so they can attract buyers even from lower segments.

...Good move I say. They probably are quite happy with the response (of Zest) and expect a good order log and may want to cater to the customers with less waiting period. Adding Bolt to the line up will ONLY complicate this.

Plus, Bolt might make people think of Indica / Vista. With Zest, the comparison is NOT going to be that high. All in all, a positive strategy according to me.

+1

[RSR]

Originally Posted by damager21

As per the article, base variant of Zest will come with a lesser powered diesel engine. It will come with the 75PS version of 1.3-litre diesel engine. This engine is the same Multijet engine that will power the 90PS Zest, but it will use a fixed geometry turbocharger instead of a Variable Geometry Turbocharger used in XM & XT variant of Zest.

The base version being powered by a 75PS FGT Quadrajet (to ensure a low starting price) would be okay, if it were to have 2 airbags and ABS as optional features.

But then, we have this information:

Originally Posted by damager21

Also, the base variant will not have alloy wheels, the Harman audio system, Airbags or ABS.

[nijelj]

Originally Posted by RYP

According to Zigwheels they're gonna rip-off the VGT, Harman Music system, Alloys, projector headlights, foglights and 15PS of power for the bare-bone basic variant. This will attract buyers mostly from Taxi segment than the Tier II and III city customers. Is this the only thing TATA shouldn't be doing right now?. You launch a modern capable product and give it a taxi image thus screwing up everything. Boffins at TATA can get a earful from prospective buyers.

Isn't the Zest's competition all in the 75bhp range,except the Amaze? So Tata is also catering to the market that buys its competitors.The market which buys its competitors are not fully taxis.I haven't come across a xcent Taxi yet.So should we/Tata be worried that it'll get a taxis tag?