[trinadha]

look neither the tatacar has been launched nor any mishap has occured in anyone's dreams,how safe are we in any car is important .i.e whether the driver drives it well or not,only upto then car build ,abs ebd all the hitch comes in.

[sumitkalindi]

So I just want to say that we need to wait and watch. No need to jump the gun at this point over the safety of a cab forward design car that has not even been launched.

[ravibhat]

We can't expect quality in TATA's 1 lac car. Lets take some examples.

Omni, M800 and few other cars are not safe at all. and in India there is no proper rules about crash worthiness so every car manufacturer is taking its advantage.

TATA's 1 lac car is aimed for people who need vehicle for short distance travel in City limits. It won't make sense to take such cars in highway for sure.

Considerring its truly City car I appreciate TATA.

Regards,

Ravi.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by ravibhat

It won't make sense to take such cars in highway for sure.
Considerring its truly City car I appreciate TATA.
Regards,
Ravi.

Now, put yourself in the place of the poor chappie who buys his 'first' car. He is going to put his family into it and head for the hills for a lovely holiday. And of course he will use the National Highways system.
Is there anyone, or anything, that will prevent him from doing that?

[gemithomas]

Just one small thing. How safe are we in a Maruti 800?!! Probably TATA would use better guage materials (that it sources for Indica range) for the body at the least.

We are dealing with a budget car. For gods sake!!!

[deep_bang]

Hey guys... M800 is still selling quite a lot... Just because tata is making a car at 1lac does not mean it may not be safe.

Now, i am not Pro tata as yet. I would wait to see the 1 lac car before commenting anything. But, the below argument is to say why this car may not be as bad as it seems (from the price point) . Lets understand what gets you safety:
1. At the bottom rung, safety is crash tests. Since the whole car is being designed new, it is possible it may have good crash ratings.
Indica was designed at IDEa, and it was sold in Europe under Rover brand i think. So, it is not a huge deal to add a few safety things, PROVIDED the basic design is good.

2. ABS / air bags / side air bags / traction control - all these features help a lot in safety. Just that even premium Indian cars are just starting to have these.

Now, Tata's point COULD be to invest well in technology and earn in volumes. India is a growing volumes market.
When reliance started the mobile phone war, the Indian mobile market was pretty low. Reliance was one of the biggest factors for a change in Indian mobile market - Mantra - harness the volumes market in India.

Also, Tata may have a great design but leave out certain safety measures initially. As and when the safety features become a requirement, they have to introduce it. But the car may already have a good basic design with farely good crumple zones etc. And - crumple zones can be introduced without the engine being in the front as well.

[sudarshansarma]

I've been told my people at TACO that the car is extremely safe. Also the entire car will be bonded with adhesives and will follow a distributed production pattern which means there will be people in major locations who will do the assembly of the car. Ratan Tata himself has said that the car will confirm to the highest of safety standards..besides they intend on exporting the car as well. Tatas have had a crash test facility for a long time now, however the sumo is the WORST car they make with regard to safety. If you notice the entire cabin area buckles around the driver and passengers during a frontal crash with the bonnet and fender area remaining relatively untouched..!!!

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by sudarshansarma

Tatas have had a crash test facility for a long time now, however the sumo is the WORST car they make with regard to safety. If you notice the entire cabin area buckles around the driver and passengers during a frontal crash with the bonnet and fender area remaining relatively untouched..!!!

Notice where? Do you have any after crash test pics you can share?

[greatDrive]

Not gone through all the posts of this thread, but I can be rest assured that the car will safer for people who travels on MCycle, Scooters and Autos.

A lot of people/Families ( sometimes 4 people, 2 adults +2 Children) rides on Scooter with only driver wearing helmet. It would be a safer bet for those people atleast.

[anupmathur]

Why this extraordinary worry about the TAta 1L car?

No one seems overly concerned about the Cycle-ricks, Auto-ricks and the host of other unsafe vehicles and 'goods carriers' plying on our roads and National Highways. Not to mention the complete abandon with which all these said vehicles and creatures use them. All without ABS and airbags.

And people are suggesting that the 1L car should be brought under the ambit of the forthcoming crash test law so that perhaps it won't be allowed for sale!!
Everything is allowed on our roads - even 'Jugaads', cattle, monkeys and pedestrians. With or without lights. With or without being sound of mind or body.
We do not have a working system for roadworthiness certification nor any system to dis-allow certain types of vehicles from plying on National Highways. And no system to police and enforce what little we do have.
Keeping these ground realities in mind, can't we just accept the 1L car as a good step that will make travel safer for those who currently travel by far more dangerous means?

As already expressed:

Originally Posted by greatDrive

Not gone through all the posts of this thread, but I can be rest assured that the car will safer for people who travels on MCycle, Scooters and Autos.
A lot of people/Families ( sometimes 4 people, 2 adults +2 Children) rides on Scooter with only driver wearing helmet. It would be a safer bet for those people atleast.

[nikkibike]

Originally Posted by sumitkalindi

The main target of the vehicle seems to be people carrying entire family in their scooters, so they do deserve, this four wheeler which is inherently safer than four lives on two wheels. Remember this vehicle is designed to be a city runabout, not a highway cruiser. For city purpose it seems to be okay safe. At the end of the day one's safety is in his own hands

Originally Posted by 1100D

Whatever be it, it will definitely be a much safer option to a family motorbike. That has time and again been Mr Ratan Tata's statement as to what the target audience of the car is.

Moreover, it has also been pointed out that the car will meet International/European crash testing norms which does not distinguish between Forward control or otherwise. There is a lot of European interest as well on this car so one can expect the car to be designed to be appealing to those companies as well.

Rear engine does not make a car forward control.

Note, there is no rocket science about making a cheap one-lakh rupee car. Quite a few of them are actually running in some non-descriptive form in quite a few places. However, when you dial in the traditional expectation from a car in terms of safety and facilities, one gets into complexities which is quite evident in the time and effort not just Tata but all its vendors are putting into it.

Lets just be with them, rather than try to castigate them for trying. This is something that our so called industry leaders (The formation of some of them are in itself controversial) should have tried long back, given our economies, but they decided to loot us in the bargain. Instead it took another Tata car to bring their cars to somewhat realistic price points.

Very Very relevant and sensible points guys!

[Ram]

One has nightmares of a flood of dimunitive two-cylinder put-putters clogging up the expressway with their inexpensive, prolific, ubiquity.

The Tata Ace, Bajaj Minidor and Mahindra-Champion have already supplanted the bullock cart on rural roads. Although they look different from a bullock cart, they still retain the same painful characteristics -- holding up high-speed traffic; impeding the lifeline of the nation. Having four wheels instead of three isn't enough.

Now imagine hordes and hordes and hordes of two-cylinder four-wheeled autorickshaws, cluttering up every inch of road space, filling the air with their loud, smoky but torqueless throbs.

One really wishes, there is a minimum restriction of BHP/ton for vehicles permitted on the expressway (and more expressways to come).

To be expressway worthy, a vehicle must be capable of:

• Accelerating rapidly. (acceleration of the convoys that spontaneously form on our arterial roads, depends on the most sluggish member.
• Holding a steady 110 km/h without overheating. (The Indian consumer's usability expectation is no longer in the medieval ages).
• And smooth unquestionable braking from that speed in a straight line without stability misbehavior. (remember the driving nightmares that the early Scorpios were? -- which the recent models are really yet to overcome)

Ram

[anupmathur]

Ram, what you say is irrefutable.

The same applies to our Tata trucks. Painfully underpowered, superbly overloaded, one hero taking an eternity (at 70 kmph) to overtake the slowcoach travelling at 67 kmph! And then he has to fall back because the slowcoach had to move right because of that bullock cart in his lane ahead. Then the painful exercise begins anew. .... Then again, before being able to complete his manoeuvre, our hero has to fall back because there is oncoming traffic! All the while you are awaiting your turn to get on ahead with YOUR journey at 90 kmph (legal limit [higher than what the U.S. has!]).
There is quite possibly NEVER going to be a solution to all these issues in our great democracy. There cannot, in all fairness, ever be the political will to rectify these issues when cheap populist vote-bank politics is the order of the day. To speak nothing of all the other ailments that plague our system.
Which is why our politicians have NEVER volunteered to give up practices like roads being temporarily 'closed' for an imminent VIP movement. Such moves routinely cause the most horrendous traffic snarls in Delhi. Our politicians KNOW VERY WELL what they have done to our roads, but they have many work-arounds in place for themselves.

As for you and I, well, ... we must just learn to live with reality. Come election time, we must vote for one or the other, the lesser of two evils, all over again.

[sumitkalindi]

Originally Posted by anupmathur

Now, put yourself in the place of the poor chappie who buys his 'first' car. He is going to put his family into it and head for the hills for a lovely holiday. And of course he will use the National Highways system.
Is there anyone, or anything, that will prevent him from doing that?

, there is no one to stop him. However I have a notion that, he is going to take a more comfortable, cheap, Conducted tour BUS ( OF TATA MAKE) for the same holiday.

Cummon guys, We all know, neither you Nor I, or for that matter maximum members of TBHP, who love CARS, SPEED and DRIVING, are going to buy that car. We also know that very few of Indian family take their car on Vacation, and majority of them are members here. Those guys who carry their whole family in their Hamara Bajaj, still preffer train or Volvo for their vacation Journey, which works out to be cheaper, AND MONEY is the reason this to be launched car is called THE TATA 1 LAC CAR.

Hopefully I have been able to explain my point well.

[anupmathur]

Originally Posted by sumitkalindi

Those guys who carry their whole family in their Hamara Bajaj, still preffer train or Volvo for their vacation Journey, which works out to be cheaper, AND MONEY is the reason this to be launched car is called THE TATA 1 LAC CAR.

I'm sorry I cannot agree. Jusy check out the Volvo fares for 4 people and then compare even with a petrol driven car.