[Karthik_S]

NK to my knowledge has been testing and rating the fastest cars available in India for years now.

As an urban buyer, I would definitely take a test ride to see if an NK "certified" car is as good as made out. (The buy decision of course would be based on whether I can afford it, like it and can live with it!)

To each his own I guess

[vikrantj]

I think one point people are missing here is that at the end of the day Narain K is a regular guy like us whole may be driving a regular (not an F1 car) to home and work. He is an expert driver (atleast better than all of us here in the forum) , so his feedbacks would well worth the money spent.
If it is a PR exercise then atleast Tata brought in a person who is closely related to auto industry and not some Bollywood hero who is chauffeured all the time.

[lurker]

NK did test drive quite a few cars for autocar's show (COTY, I think) a few years back. And i remember him driving around Lambo's, a ferrari, VW, porsche, merc, bmw and other cars which were then available in the Indian market. The car he came away impressed then was the Laura TSI, which he felt at that price point was really VFM and great driving fun.

[S2!!!]

TATA cars will sell if they have: Fiat like driving dynamics, Maruti like service, Honda/ Toyota like reliability, European like build quality and TATA like space. Obviously it is not possible to please everyone and tick all the correct boxes but if TATA Motors is taking the appropriate steps to improve their products, image and quality of service, I see no reason why the company should be bashed or the credibility of the experts to be consulted (in this case: NK) be questioned.

No one is asking anyone to buy a TATA product or even consider them if one/ one's acquaintance/s have had a bad experience previously. But the least we could do is to not criticise their level of commitment to the Indian market and their constant endeavour to bring innovation, better products and build a better image in the minds' of the Indian customers.

[swiftnfurious]

If NK signs off a car as FTD, the fact is, that car is going to have a better reputation atleast on team-bhp! I believe we had a thread where someone mentioned about a sting operation by Cyrus Mistry and blacklisting some vendors, bringing down the number of vendors etc. Yes - we would need another 5 years to start believing that TATA has indeed corrected their mistakes and have improved the reliability levels (based on the ownership reports) - that's a backlash for their own deeds.

As long as I get a car as FTD as Swift, I'll be more than happy (good reliability levels withstanding). I really do NOT mind whether TATA does it in-house or join hands with Lotus or hires NK for the inputs. The result is all that matters. And if TATA decided to go to the press to show off their association, I'll say it's brilliant. Who does NOT do marketing?!

[GTO]

If Tata wants to improve the dynamics & handling of its cars, they don't have to look too far. Just walk into partner Fiat's cabin next door and take tips / components / advice

Originally Posted by SPIKE ARRESTOR

Such a shame, they pay a ransom to someone when their own employees are capable of doing the job.

Originally Posted by HammerHead

Now I sincerely hope that NK's fees does not add the 'real' value to the cars

I don't think Tata would have paid him anything for these inputs. It was recently announced that Tata will be sponsoring him for the Japanese Super Formula championship 2014. This is one of the things asked for in return. That's how sponsorship deals work in motorsports. Personally, I think it's a smart move as Narain's name will add colour to Tata's rebranding & repositioning efforts. They're coming out with the Bolt, Zest & 1.2L turbo-petrol engine soon.

[sai_ace]

Probably its the Coimbatore connection for Tata Motors. NK and J Anand working hand in hand to make a better handling bolt or zest?

[sridhar-v]

TML need to get their manufacturing quality up to mark very fast. They have already been substantially overtaken in QC & Customer interaction by M&M. The only people below them are Hind. Motors and Force Motors. That is the sad position they have placed themselves in.

Diesel engine ion the car is no longer a plus point as everybody & their uncles has one now. People will pay for quality of ownership or demand a low price for a poor brand value.

[Mpower]

This is on the lines of Schumacher helping with the final tuning of the Ferrari 458 and California.

Marketing driven but seriously how many people in India know NK?

OK the F1 fans.... now many F1 fanatics buy TATA cars ??

They would have gotten more marketing mileage by having Viraat Kholi test their cars

[swiftnfurious]

Off-Topic:

Originally Posted by Mpower

....They would have gotten more marketing mileage by having Viraat Kholi test their cars

Sorry, but Etios twins do NOT seem to getting any help because of his star value inspite of the legendary reliability of the "T"!

[greenhorn]

Tata Needs inputs from gentlemen called Juran, Deming and Crosby first, before they start working on fluff like handling!

[4x4addict]

NK can sort out the handling, etc. How is going to take care of the quality issues? Manmohan Sing?

[nijelj]

Originally Posted by zenren

Handling levels of a regular Maruti is what the customers expect from Tata Motors...What is the point of all this futile exercise? I feel this is just a marketing gimmick.

Hope you meant the Swift by this? Being a self confessed Tata fan boy, I felt helpless when I read that the 0-xx kmph time of the 75 bhp swift is better that the 90 bhp vista.That feeling further intensified when my friend, whom I cajoled to buy a Vista instead of the swift, started facing some unsolvable noises.That did not stop me from buying a Nano, the service, driveability etc with which I have been satisfied.With this news of NK,I'm hoping that when I buy my next car/Tata, I won't feel like I'm sacrificing.Like some people mentioned here, Tata is trying very hard to improve their A.S.S.Also their quality is improving.They already have superb engines from the fiat stable.Now if they are trying to improve the driveability/handling, I feel they are on the right track.

[IshaanIan]

Wow! I had no clue this news would be met by such criticism by our "enthusiasts" I am really happy to hear this. For all you people saying that it is unnecessary, do you honestly think Tata is doing nothing about their A.S.S. quality too? And for the rest claiming this to be a waste, I would much rather have NK tuned cars than Mr. Khan looking out the sunroof in an i10 and going on about how global the product is.

So much hate here gosh!

[deep_bang]

Guys. All manufacturers have different strategies to promote their products. Nothing wrong at all. But, this is a case where the person who endorses the product (in some way or the other i expect NK to become like a brand ambassador), his own reputation is on the line.
Its like if you are good at a certain thing at your work place and you are asked to take a new project that is sinking, you are also putting your own reputation at risk isn't it? Which means you take up the new role on your terms on what YOU think should be done.

Similarly, i hope NK also gets down to the execution details and creates a mark for himself and Tata. After all, if all of us know what the problem is, NK can surely help drill down to the execution level. Think about the respect people have for him - might easily get things done faster than a typical hierarchical management that exists today.