Team-BHP - Datsun starts testing GO+ MPV in India

Quote:

Originally Posted by bullboy (Post 3594364)

Look were the last row occupants heads will be.
Given the placement of rear seats , they should offer a helmet or make helmets mandatory for the last row occupants.

Datson's cost-cutting yet again. They must have designed the third row seat in such a way that the inside of the hatch door may double up as headrests. lol:

Personally, I see little personal/family use for this Go+ and it may work well as a public carrier such as a hearse wagon and utility wagons.

I am surprised that Datsun has chosen to go the pre-bookings route after the recent Ciaz debacle. And after the recent bad publicity thanks to the GNCAP crash test results, I am even more surprised that they chose to launch it at all...

PS: At 67 horses, it is wayyyy too under-powered for a people mover.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing (Post 3617127)

Chal gaye toh maaf, nahi toh Datsun ka dhandha saaf :D:D

I am surprised that Datsun still lives like Alice in Wonderland.

Don't see this fitting any market segment or having any customer base.

How does this stack up against the Mobilio? Apart from the i-vtec and super-inflated price tag the Honda comes with, I notice some glaring similarities -
- both have inexcusably cheap and weird interiors
- both have poor quality upholstery (especially the Honda for the price it asks)
- both have super thin seats and unusable third row
- both are built on entry level small car platforms
- both have supposedly flimsy build quality

Unlike in other countries where the brand has been introduced, Indians seem to have rejected the blatant cost-cutting approach followed by Datsun.

The Go has turned out to be a flop in India. I don't understand why they are striving for a second flop. Instead, they could concentrate on making their upcoming 800cc car based on the CMF-A platform a success. As long as they don't do blatant cost-cutting on it and make it reasonably safe, the Redi-go based small car has much more potential than the Go & Go+ combined.

As mentioned by misquitas, the Go+ would fail to attract MPV buyers. By removing the last two rows of seats and adding a CNG/LPG tank, they can target commercial buyers by marketing it as a rival to the Omni Cargo & Eeco Flexi. That's the only way they can achieve some numbers for the Go+.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RSR (Post 3617293)

Unlike in other countries where the brand has been introduced, Indians seem to have rejected the blatant cost-cutting approach followed by Datsun.

+1
Datsun read it all wrong if they assumed that a product that works in some east European country (ex-USSR) will work in India feature on feature. I see them struggling for years to come if their attitude is what the NCAP tests reflected.

Nissan probably has more to lose in the failure of a brand like Datsun. But since they themselves are fishing at the very bottom to find something to survive, i doubt Datsun is going to get any direction from them. Not in the near term for sure.

Mod Note: Team-BHP's Datsun GO+ Review has been taken live at this link. Please continue the discussion over on the review thread. Thanks!

Don't get me wrong, but I just can't understand the purpose of Datsun developing this vehicle in the first place. When the Go hatchback, a decent vehicle that stacks up well against its competitors on most aspects, has failed to find favour with Indians, how do they expect the Go+ to succeed in India? I mean, look at it. I feel it looks atrocious after the C-pillar. Add to that the sub-par interiors and the big question mark on safety. With no trump cards whatsoever, the Go+ is going to be just another flop from Renault-Nissan-Datsun trio in India.

By the way, why don't manufacturers realize it's best to leave the sub 4m rule for hatchbacks and stop downsizing every other automotive body-style to fit into this length? We had sedans, we had crossovers, we had pseudo-crossovers and now this.