[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by sachinayak

Mean no offense, but i doubt if you really want to buy one. You want Japanese rivaling attributes at Indian prices.

Hey buddy - I never asked for a ciaz for the price of a swift. all I am asking for is a quality product that will last for years to come. I didn't tell them price it below innova or undercut the innova. I am okay shelling out 30 lacs for a tata, provided its as reliable as the Toyotas.

Crysta top end retails at around 20 lacs and is the benchmark in quality. I never asked Tata to price it low, but offer lower quality. Tata can jolly-well charge 20 lacs, if they think they are on par with the Japanese. It will sell, as long there is perceived reliability. Hyundais are able to sell a 16 lac 5 seater SUV, so I guess Tata can do the same.

A person who could pay 17.49 lacs for the top end, might as well pay 2-3 lacs more and get a better quality product. I don't see why someone wont pay more for a better quality.

[RavenAvi]

In reply to my query on Twitter:

Perforated leather seat can be seen in this screengrab (taken from the video shot during last night):

Flippy, foldable type key can be seen in this cabin shot.
Keyhole is illuminated by a bright, white ring during night:



Source - Twitter

Originally Posted by gopi_rm

Does it come with dual-zone climate control?

Yes, it does.

[centaur]

Boy oh Boy! Looks amazing. Never been so excited for any other TATA product so far but looks like things are to change. The way TATA is handling things on social media and otherwise, I feel there is a sea change in the attitude at their end. I just hope this changes cascades down to the service centers too where they make people feel like they own a somewhat premium product and not just a variant of a commercial one. Also hope the pricing is a killer one

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Very good first impressions from the media crew. Must admit that I like it from the design point of view. It's right up there with the Innova and XUV. In fact, I like Hexa more than these two.

Waiting for their first drive reports.

[bageherath]

I had just saw the Hexa in flesh during media drive, believe me it has very good road presence. Did not had a chance to take a snap as it went pass me in flash.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

In reply to my query on Twitter:

Attachment 1567483

Perforated leather seat can be seen in this screengrab (taken from the video shot during last night):

Attachment 1567485

Flippy, foldable type key can be seen in this cabin shot.
Keyhole is illuminated by a bright, white ring during night:

Attachment 1567484

Source - Twitter



Yes, it does.

Does this mean that the 4x4 will only be available in the highest variant.. that's quite a bummer as then the price will shoot up a bit and people will not have the option of 4x4 in the mid and lower variants.
I feel that Tata should have give the option of 4x4 in the lower variants too.
With the 4x4 in the highest variant, ex showroom price will probably shoot up to something like 18.5 Lacs and on road (in Gurgaon) will touch 21+. That is a very ambitious price and too close to the Innova ZX AT!
End of the day the Toyota carries great brand value and resale and customers will end up getting swayed to Toyota.
In those price bands (20L +) the brand value plays a significant factor in the purchase decision and a typical customer in that bracket can also afford the Audis, Mercs and BMWs. Toyota has been able to play in this bracket because of its Brand and also the bulletproof reliability (which the Germans lack, at least in India).
Will Tata be able to play off in this bracket - I seriously doubt it and I feel that they should focus their play on the 11-16 Lacs (ex-showroom) price bracket where all the other Indian Companies and Koreans are focusing currently.
This purely my personal 2 Cents on the Hexa's positioning!

[N.r.K]

Awesome set of pictures!
The premium car support department is a very encouraging sign. I hope there are some priority sections in the service bays as well.

I'm waiting to hear if there are some interesting tit bits in terms of design like the rain gutter and the elephant images in the tiago!
Good to see an Indian design team come up with such an awesome effort that to working on existing platform. I can only imagine the challenges with that!

Last, even if the product bombs or indian arm of tata motors goes out of business, it definitely won't because of lack of trying! Looks like a really good attempt by Tata. Even the drive looks like its well organized. And if this is horizon next, I can't wait to take a peek at what happens beyond the horizon!

[procrj]

A couple of live videos posted by overdrive on facebook. Also mentions that

the drive modes will not make any changes to the suspension but will only impact the way the torque is delivered

Walk around -

3 12 V sockets. 2 USB ports with Intelligent USB charging that will identify the kind of device plugged in and dynamically change amperage to suit charging

[Dhanu@DJ]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Oh boy! TATA needs to lose weight. Hexa has 2280kgs of it!

This means it has lower power to weight (68.4bhp/ton) , and torque to weight (175.4 Nm/ton) figures than Innova 2.2 and XUV 5OO, weighing 1805 kg and 1865kg respectively. There goes the Varicor 400 advantage.

Innova 2.8 AT is way ahead in these parameters.

That too with an hydro formed chassis it weighs almost 500kgs more than Crysta. This is not good. Definitely TATA should learn few weight saving tricks from Japanese.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Tested for over 8,00,000 kms across 3 different continents!

That means Tata did their homework well, hopefully.

And i think Tata is playing it safe, i mean, start booking from November, guage the response/demand and plan the assembly.

I have seen most of the Crysta test mules with 2.4 to 3 lakh on the odo and there were quite a few of them in the Bidadi plant as well as at the new engine plant at Jigani. The number is low compared to Toyota. They test more kms in each market and more extensively at global development centres.

[GrammarNazi]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Confirmation - the AT doesn't come with Tata's Multi Drive modes...

Hi,
Those multi drive modes are for engine remaps & steering feedback. Nothing related to the suspension.

Btw, the 4x4 Hexa will not have low ratio like the Storme, so I guess it's use will be very limited. As it is, 4x4 has a very limited usage in the lifetime of the vehicle.

In this case, the logical choce should be the 4x2 (for almost 95% people).

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

...QUOTEa 2.8 AT is way ahead in these parameters.

I'm sure Tata will load the Hexa with features, just like it did for the Aria.

Originally Posted by narayan

...4. Alloys - not to my liking. Tyres - presume 235 section - but this baby needs atleast 1 size up. Definitely looks under-tyred...

Overkill no? 8L km of testing with these type & size of tyres and people go & change them, won't it change the character of the car abit too much ?

Originally Posted by Behemoth

...ex showroom price will probably shoot up to something like 18.5 Lacs and on road (in Gurgaon) will touch 21+. That is a very ambitious price and too close to the Innova ZX AT!
End of the day the Toyota carries great brand value and resale and customers will end up getting swayed to Toyota.
In those price bands (20L +) the brand value plays a significant factor in the purchase decision and a typical customer in that bracket can also afford the Audis, Mercs and BMWs. Toyota has been able to play in this bracket because of its Brand and also the bulletproof reliability (which the Germans lack, at least in India)...!

Innova Crysta ZX AT will be ~3.5L higher AFAIK. That's ~15%. Anyway, I feel if Toyota (for the first time) cuts prices by even just 5%, that gap would narrow down, bringing the Innova dangerously close. Easy to deny that they would, but Toyota's interior plastics gave me an indication that this company has equipping itself for cutting prices (if need be) to protect market share.

Like you said, people DO care for the brand & who'd not want an internationally acclaimed product with a good legacy & great resale.

Let's see.

Edit :

Originally Posted by Sudeep_Kimster

All companies have different priorities in testing, as does the mule which has been prepared for Durability, reliability, performance and many other parameters. Just a mule with 3 lakhs kms on odo doesn't justify it actually did those kms on real world. Could be a long cycle dyno running vehicle also.

I'd have happily agreed if it was another company, but with Innova Crysta being an international product, I'm pretty sure they're likely to be the production car.

Tata has left no stone unturned to rectify its image, competing global automotive giants being half their age in the industry.

Really? When did you experience this ?

We tend to take liberties at such stuff. There seems much less heroic stuff happenning in there, than what's said here. If there was, my mails to them about fake job cards wouldn't have gone unanswered.

It isn't really hard to appreciate the commendable job done by TML, critics will always complain.

Agreed, unnecessary criticism is there. Unfair comparisons are also there. But most people know how to sort rants from genuine complaints when they read posts.

Lets stick to " Seeing is Believing" until its "Drive it to feel it" once its available for TD at nearest Dealership.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by GrammarNazi

I'm sure Tata will load the Hexa with features, just like it did for the Aria.

That was my expectation too, but as more details are revealed, I don't see any huge difference in terms of features in the Hexa.

The music system for sure deserves an applause (subject to audition) and there is 4*4 as well.

But other major features like drive modes (Even Innova has different power modes), 6 airbags (Innova has 7), touchscreen ICE, mood lighting, all are up there with the segment, not significantly above it for people to consider the Hexa. Even the engine advantage is nullified by the weight (on paper).

I believe the success of this product will come down to the pricing once again. Waiting for media drive reports to see how it rides.

[driverabhi]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Oh boy! TATA needs to lose weight. Hexa has 2280kgs of it!

This means it has lower power to weight (68.4bhp/ton) , and torque to weight (175.4 Nm/ton) figures than Innova 2.2 and XUV 5OO, weighing 1805 kg and 1865kg respectively. There goes the Varicor 400 advantage.

Innova 2.8 AT is way ahead in these parameters.

I see this the other way. For me, somehow it adds up to the safety of the vehicle. We all know how Aria is a safe vehicle. Hexa must be an add on. You better be sitting in a tank rather in a light vehicle in case if you (God forbid) met with an accident. We will not lose anything if we miss a second or two in 0-100kmph dash. As long the loaded vehicle pulls on an incline, I am more than happy.

[Sudeep_Kimster]

Originally Posted by Dhanu@DJ

I have seen most of the Crysta test mules with 2.4 to 3 lakh on the odo and there were quite a few of them in the Bidadi plant as well as at the new engine plant at Jigani. The number is low compared to Toyota. They test more kms in each market and more extensively at global development centres.

All companies have different priorities in testing, as does the mule which has been prepared for Durability, reliability, performance and many other parameters. Just a mule with 3 lakhs kms on odo doesn't justify it actually did those kms on real world. Could be a long cycle dyno running vehicle also.

Tata has left no stone unturned to rectify its image, competing global automotive giants being half their age in the industry.

It isn't really hard to appreciate the commendable job done by TML, critics will always complain.

Lets stick to " Seeing is Believing" until its "Drive it to feel it" once its available for TD at nearest Dealership.

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by Behemoth

Does this mean that the 4x4 will only be available in the highest variant.. that's quite a bummer as then the price will shoot up a bit and people will not have the option of 4x4 in the mid and lower variants.
I feel that Tata should have give the option of 4x4 in the lower variants too.

That tweeted reply was in response to my asking if 4x4 is offered in the top AT variant(s).

They are not disclosing anything on the variant spread/line-up right now so let's not speculate on things until we have official confirmation.

The birdies had disclosed at least four different variants with 4x4, including the mid XM trim, so I am fairly confident we shall see the 4x4 option in more than 1 variant.

Originally Posted by Dhanu@DJ

I have seen most of the Crysta test mules with 2.4 to 3 lakh on the odo and there were quite a few of them in the Bidadi plant as well as at the new engine plant at Jigani. The number is low compared to Toyota. They test more kms in each market and more extensively at global development centres.

In addition to what Sudeep said above, remember that unlike the Hexa, the Innova Crysta is a global product.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by driverabhi

For me, somehow it adds up to the safety of the vehicle.

Sorry, I think that's wrong. Safety depends on the structural design of the vehicle. We have seen multiple cases where heavier vehicles performed poorly in crash tests.

However, given two proven safe vehicles, I would also prefer the heavier one. Momentum surely works in favour of the heavier one.

Originally Posted by driverabhi

We all know how Aria is a safe vehicle. Hexa must be an add on.

Aria 4*4 was proven to be safe, but the 4*2 had structural changes which made it 200kgs lighter and not worthy on Euro NCAP ratings as declared during the media drives.

Unless it's proven with crash tests, we cannot assume regarding safety just seeing the weight figures.