[loving_alaap]

I also received an immediate call in less then 10 sec after registering. It seems TATAs are well prepared this time.

Upon inquiring they stated that Display and TD of vehicle will start from Nov.

She took more details about job type etc for her database.

I asked for XM variant interior photos as all the available reviews are of XT only. Lady shared that XM trim will be available on display from Nov.

Absence of many features including reverse parking camera in XM varient may also hint at aggressive pricing.

[rkg]

I have done 25 days trip across Himachal, J&K including leh circuit in my Aria in September-October 2014. Third row was folded for luggage. Did not face any problem of sliding luggage.
It all depends on how one packs the boot. with proper packing one can easily avoid this sliding problem. The sliding will happen, even if the boot is flat in case inclines and slopes.

When ARIA was launched, none of these reviewers said this as a problem. In Hexa, it is exactly same as in ARIA. So how this became an issue now?

Major discussion on this topic only shows, that the reviewers could not find any thing else to nit pick

[GrammarNazi]

Topic Change from Flat Folding seats to Engine Oil :

Tata said they've tested the car from -20°C to +50°C right. I'd like to know why then do they recommend mineral oil that is rated at 15 W 40 ? Ours is a Tropical country & it should mostly not be a problem, but discussing this is IMO more academically relevant & also I'm just curious because most companies recommend 10W40. Is it the same viscosity for the 400NM Storme VX ?

Will they have tested the car with that oil at -20° C ? Did it not freeze / gel overnight ? I'm pretty sure it would (or is there any anti-freeze / anti-gel available). Moreover this engine was known for performance in high altitude regions, yet they've chosen to recommend 15W40, and that too at 20,000km interval.

[rkg]

One important change TML is quietly doing is : Reducing the number of free services: Till 2014 TMK was offering 5 free services with Safari and ARIA ( @ 5,15,30,45 & 60K intervals). It reduced to 4 free services with the launch of refreshed ARIA in 2014 (@ 1,5,15 and 30K). Now they are offering only 3 free services upto 20K. In addition service interval was reduced form 15k to 10k

[ptushar]

Came across this nice article on testing for tyre sizes. Explains in detail on the effect of larger wheel sizes.
Source: caranddriver.com (link to the article provided below)

http://www.caranddriver.com/features...d-tires-tested

Reading this, I wonder why Tata have provided the 19" wheels for the Hexa. A 17" for XT / XM would have sufficed. As per the above article, there is a drop in fuel efficiency to the tune of 10% between the 16" and the 19". This is quite significant. Can the 19" be replaced with 16" through the dealer? Is that generally an option provided by the dealer? Or can these be exchanged through a tyre vendor as soon as the vehicle is delivered? Does this in anyway void the warranty?

[prakash_ajp]

Originally Posted by GrammarNazi

Topic Change from Flat Folding seats to Engine Oil :

Tata said they've tested the car from -20°C to +50°C right. I'd like to know why then do they recommend mineral oil that is rated at 15 W 40 ? Ours is a Tropical country & it should mostly not be a problem, but discussing this is IMO more academically relevant & also I'm just curious because most companies recommend 10W40.

According to this page, it matters if it is just mineral or has synthetic base as well. It also recommends 15W-40 (semi synthetic base) from -20° C to 40° C:

http://www.machinerylubrication.com/...ose-engine-oil

[sourabhzen]

Originally Posted by ptushar

I wonder why Tata have provided the 19" wheels for the Hexa. A 17" for XT / XM would have sufficed. As per the above article, there is a drop in fuel efficiency to the tune of 10% between the 16" and the 19". This is quite significant. Can the 19" be replaced with 16" through the dealer? Is that generally an option provided by the dealer? Or can these be exchanged through a tyre vendor as soon as the vehicle is delivered? Does this in anyway void the warranty?

We are never happy. Most of the time people will upsize the tyres as soon is the car is delivered as they are smaller than our liking. Now we want to downsize when a manufacturer is giving us a option of larger tyres. Anyways, all your questions above can be reserved till official launch of the vehicle.

[ptushar]

Originally Posted by sourabhzen

We are never happy. Most of the time people will upsize the tyres as soon is the car is delivered as they are smaller than our liking. Now we want to downsize when a manufacturer is giving us a option of larger tyres. Anyways, all your questions above can be reserved till official launch of the vehicle.

You are actually right. We are never happy. (Gear's not good enough, seats not folding flat and now tyres too big)

Maybe Indian car makers should have a concept called "make you own car" akin to "make your own pizza". Just choose the components to your liking.

But all in all, I am really liking this whole package. I think Tata have a winner on their hands. I really do hope that they price it well. My choices are now narrowed down to the XUV and the Hexa. So far it seems that it will be the Hexa; the test drive should help me take the decision. I have already driven the XUV and I love it. Hope Hexa can better that experience.

[GTO]

Very nice! The Hexa has got the right product placement. It's target audience is definitely the type that'll watch Rock on 2.

Tata Motors today announced its association with Excel entertainment for their upcoming film, Rock On 2, where the company’s latest flagship offering, Tata Hexa will feature in the movie starring Farhan Akhtar, Shraddha Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, Prachi Desai and Shashank Arora directed by Shujaat Saudagar.

Slated to hit theatres worldwide on November 11, 2016, Rock On 2 will also feature a range of vehicles from Tata Motors, including the Safari Storme and Xenon.

[DieselAddikt]

Originally Posted by Zappo

Well, XUV for sure does. If we look around we may well find a couple of examples more.


When you do not have a packed boot. With just one or two heavy suitcases they will tend to slide on the slight incline on rough roads or sudden braking situations. I remember an incident where I was once driving with a small box on top of some other stuff in the boot. The vehicle in front suddenly braked. After my reflex took over I would have braked a little harder to stop in time. Next thing I heard was a pretty loud thud from the back. The sound reverberated inside the closed confines with a mind numbing echo. I clenched my teeth thinking someone has rammed into my vehicle from behind. After a moments gap I realized that it was actually that small box which threw itself on the inside panel of the rear hatch door and made the sound.

So yes, moving objects inside a vehicle can be distracting and at times disastrous as well. And if the surface on which they are kept is not flat it can only further aid such movements.

What has the above scenario got to do with a third row that is not fully flat ? What you explained will happen whenever there is luggage in the boot that is not properly fastened. It has nothing to do with a car whose third row does not fold flat. That is not really a big problem. :(

In fact, your problem will be less pronounced of there is an incline. Your luggage will hit the back of your second row seats with less force as it will have to travel up when you brake hard. It is better than a flat space. Why not see the positive side of it ? You are not going to lose a lot of boot space either. Just that it may not look "clean" when the third row is folded down. Let us not give it more importance than that.

[sathya.bhat]

Originally Posted by GTO

Very nice! The Hexa has got the right product placement. It's target audience is definitely the type that'll watch Rock on 2.

Completely agree!
On the similar lines, TATA Tiago branding in the recently aired TVF series "tripling with tiago" was well integrated. Anyone who has seen the series will agree that, the car got some beautiful shots and well integrated car feature highlights.
Let's see how Hexa is shown in the movie.

[sunishsamuel]

Chanced upon the Tata Hexa today at Novotel, Hyd (thought they had left but it was nice to see them)

Likes

1) The fit and finish is great. Comparable to the segments above 30L Rupees
2) The road presence is great. Looks massive but yet graceful
3) The wheels look right sized for a car of this dimensions.
4) Space looked decent though visually i was not able to see if its more or less compared to XUV or Crysta.

Dislikes

1) That old grating noise of the gearbox is still there, very audible when you hear the car pass by at very slow speed and trying to accelerate. Quite unmistakable as thats the same problem with the Safari gearbox too.

[Zappo]

Originally Posted by DieselAddikt

What has the above scenario got to do with a third row that is not fully flat ? What you explained will happen whenever there is luggage in the boot that is not properly fastened.

It has to do with the same common thing. If the surface is not absolutely flat things will slide. It is immaterial whether it is the folded seat or some other surface which is not flat. In my case the small box was kept on something which was not flat and it moved. A heavier bag or suitcase (particularly the hard kind) can actually slide and hit the rear hatch hard enough to cause a bigger problem. Or the slight slide may cause something else on top to topple over and in case that happens inwards may even cause injury to someone on the passenger seat.

[deetjohn]

Originally Posted by mallumowgli

Probably Monocoque would allow the seats to sink in better compared to the ladder-frames. And may be that's why the fold away style of seats are preferred for ladder-frame like Innova

No, its got nothing to do with ladder frames. Just depends on how everything is packaged. The last two rows fold flat for the Endeavour.



And here is the video for the same that I had shot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wr6L9te_iHs

And No. I don't think its a big deal on the Hexa. Can surely live with this.

[Guna]

Originally Posted by avisidhu

But I'm genuinely curious, under which precise scenario is this such a huge problem?

In my current car, if the luggage are not closely packed, they tend to move around while taking turns, braking etc. Now, with a sloping floor, I can imagine that things get worse and the luggage tends slide and to move to the lowest point.
When there is a new car, especially from a manufacturer who is on a learning curve, it is natural that there will be things to be improvised and I feel it is natural (and healthy) that we discuss such things in a forum like ours.