[dannybuoy]

Got my Nexon XM Diesel Blue , delivered last week. Thrilled to say the least.
Quick observation when I compare it to the TD vehicle ( XZ+) . Ride is slightly on the firmer side.
I think this may be because of the difference in tyre spec ( as the suspension is same). XZ+ is 215 mm with 30psi recommended pressure whereas the XM is 195 mm with 32psi .

[perty]

Originally Posted by simplyself

I found that the Nexon appears to be less roomy than the Zest

I felt the same way too. The numbers say otherwise, because in terms of width, the Nexon is wider than the Zest by approximately the size of a credit card.
It might be that the flared wheel arches on the Nexon were contributing to the overall width numbers but not to the interior room.

[KA18]

This is going to be lengthy post:

I finally got to have a test drive!

Thanks to BHPian ar134

He put me in touch with the right people. A bit of communication and action happened before I could lay my hands on a test drive car.
Mr. Suraj Subbarao, Zonal Manager for the south region saw through the process.

On Sunday the 26th of November at the Hassan dealership, I had a brief test drive of both the Nexon and the Hexa.

I call it brief, because firstly it was officially a holiday and the dealership staff were waiting only to provide the test drive.

Secondly, there weren't many stretches I could take the car in Hassan and ended up being on the highway within a few minutes whichever direction I took. Driving on the good highway roads doesn't provide the true picture.

Initial impression of the Nexon TD:
I again faced the issue of getting into the car (But found it easier for subsequent ingress).

Myself and the sales executive in the front.
My Mom, my wife, my 10 year old son at the back. We all got seated comfortably. Ample leg and head room for all of us.

Driving over rough patches, I did not feel anything, but rear passengers felt the bumpiness slightly, but no discomfort.

Driving in City and Eco modes were normal like regular diesel mills, but the Sport drive mode did make its presence felt.

The audio quality felt fantastic.

Overall drive quality was good and satisfactory.

Then I did the mistake of TDing the Hexa

It just blew us away...!

Awesome!! Is the word I would use for it.

The variant was the XT manual, 6-seater.
None of passengers felt any kind of bumpiness or discomfort. The Hexa just sailed through all road imperfections.
The suspension, handling, everything felt great.
Everyone agreed that it's a superb vehicle (except my son as I had made him to sit in the 3rd row )

I headed back to Chikkamagaluru undecided.

I started thinking of how to justify going in for the Hexa, which was clearly not in the budget that I had in mind.

I had after another longer test drive of the Nexon followed by the facelifted EcoSport at Chikkamagalur.

The Nexon affirmed my opinion.

The EcoSport felt more powerful, thanks to the low end torque.
The car just moved ahead without any throttle input.

The quality of materials used felt slightly better than the Nexon.
Ride experience was not better than the Nexon.

It had a 5-speed gearbox v/s the 6-speed of the Nexon.
The audio quality was nothing to boast about.

One thing I observed was that the doors can be opened from the inside at any point of time irrespective of whether the vehicle is in motion or not. Even if you accidentally pull the door lever from the inside at higher speeds, nothing stops the door from opening. I checked with the sales person and he said that that's a common feature across all the Ford models. He also mentioned it's a safety feature, that in case of an accident, the doors can be unlocked easily.

I found it to be a scary option, though it may be true.

Bonus features were the auto wipers, headlamps and most importantly, the cruise control which is sorely missing in the Nexon.

He also offered discounts for the pre facelift model, which resulted in an OTR price of about a lakh of rupees lesser. I wasn't convinced somewhat to consider the Ecosport.

I had previously taken a test drive of the Honda B-RV, W-RV and the Jazz.

We had liked the Honda W-RV and had almost booked it, but Honda dealers (I checked with 3 or them) were least interested inspite of repeated follow-ups. I had booked for a test drive of the BR-V ever since it's launch and all I got was phone calls, but no TD. I had to visit a dealership in Mysore to TD their cars. Guess they didn't need my business.

I ignored all other car makers and narrowed down my choice to either the Nexon or the Hexa.

The head said Nexon and the heart said Hexa.

I was wondering if should stretch my budget to get the Hexa, which inevitably meant more down payment, registration charges and more EMIs to pay.

I also put off my purchase decision to January as there were no discounts whatsoever for the Nexon. The Hexa had insurance and other discounts upto 78 thousand, which still had not me convinced as I was plonking a good deal of money upfront.

Was in this dilemma until Mr.Suraj Subbarao messaged me on the 08th December that the prices are going to be hiked from January 01.
He said that he would expedite the process for delivery.

I started thinking and discussed this with my wife. Though she is not a auto buff like me, she set forth some points to consider:

01. It's going to be costlier to own and maintain the Hexa.

02. The Hexa is not too handy to drive and park in city conditions.

03. She drives rarely and the Hexa will be difficult for her.

The Nexon it is then!

Again the debate of the variant stared. The XM looked value for money, the accesories barring a few OEM, could be installed separately.

Again my wife rescued me saying that since I plan to keep the car for a longer time, it's better that I go in for the top end variant so that I do not feel compromised whenever I drive it.

Finally booked the Nexon XZ+ (D) Calgary White on the 10th of December.

I had to leave for Japan shortly after that on 12th Dec. On arrival on 22nd, I got a message from the sales executive that the Car has reached the Mangalore dealership.

I may need to get the car invoiced by 31st Dec. to beat the price hike.

Special thanks to BHPian ar134 and Mr.Suraj Subbarao of TML.

[kaviprem]

Originally Posted by KA18

The Nexon it is then!

Special thanks to BHPian ar134 and Mr.Suraj Subbarao of TML.

Congratulations!

Yes, Hexa will ruin [in a good way] if you had other decisions in mind. I took a short TD of XTA soon after its launch. It was just too good.
To me, driving and parking within the city limits has never been a problem when I had my Safari. With my City now, I find it difficult to drive sometimes due to few yellow board!

You should also thank your wife since she made you take a decision

Congratulations, again. Enjoy the drive.

Prem.

[ar134]

Originally Posted by KA18

Special thanks to BHPian ar134 and Mr.Suraj Subbarao of TML.

Welcome to the Nexon family and wish you thousands of happy miles in advance . I was stunned how responsive TML had been during my Nexon purchase process and thankfully it has been something similar in your case as well. Mr Suraj is certainly a thorough gentleman and kudos to TML for having such guys at the helm. Hopefully the same percolates down to the dealerships and service centres in the coming days.

OT : In case anyone is interested in getting a Nexon quickly (2017 model) and is flexible regarding color options, contact me on my mail id shared a couple of pages back on this thread. Old bookings I may not be able to help much at this juncture.

P. S. : I work for a Maharatna PSU and have nothing more to do with TML other than owning a Nexon .

[Sebring]

Took the Car on a long 800 Kms trip - to & fro from the scenic coastal city of Mangaluru. The engine has opened up beautifully and is butter smooth. Mileage climbed steadily to 22KMPL on the Mid, but when I calculated 'Tankfull to Tankfull', it was actually 20.4KMPL. Good enough for me, as now - after this trip - even in the city the Mid Average stands at 22KMPL. I recommend a long drive once you cross 1,000Kms (Mine was at 1,800kms before this journey). Attached is the image of Nexon mats drying by the well, which I found interesting

The car continues to be brilliant, no niggles whatsoever!

[srvm]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Took the Car on a long 800 Kms trip - to & fro from the scenic coastal city of Mangaluru. The engine has opened up beautifully and is butter smooth. ....
....
The car continues to be brilliant, no niggles whatsoever!

Dear Sebring, Its good to see your continuous update on your Nexon. Why don't you start a initial ownership thread unless its already in the Assembly line? I'm sure lots of folks would be interested in reading it.

: That pic with your Grey Nexon and the beach in the background looks smashing. What location is it? Do you mind sharing Gmaps location? Thanks.

[Sebring]

Dear SRVM, my initial ownership thread is merged with this official review. I'm happy you find my posts interesting as I squeeze out few minutes from my busy schedule to do full justice. I love this car like crazy and it shows!

The pic is a lazy beach town of Padubidri in Mangaluru, my home town. You will find lots of such pristine beaches dotting the place. Even I put the name on Google Maps and it guided me to it, as I'm visiting after 15 long years, myself. A quick trip to my roots, it was!

Originally Posted by srvm

Why don't you start an initial ownership thread unless its already on the Assembly line?What location is it?

[scopriobharath]

Couple of updates to share regarding accessories.

The cost of spare alloy is 9000 as against 8290 mentioned in the brochure. This difference is for the centre cap and tubeless tyre mouth.

The smartwatch accessory will be made available in future only and that too at service centre only. Price unknown at this point.

Puddle lamp cannot be fit on nexon as per accessories dealer at concorde Chennai. However he would confirm with plant and get back.

Electric sunroof and manual sunroof available for nexon at 98000 and 18000 respectively. Both are installed by factory technician and not dealer. The technician keep travelling to various dealerships across India depending or orders. The sunroof is same whether it's for nano or hexa. 3 year warranty is provided.

Fabric seat cover has a white colour on the body contact area including heat rest. This is sad as lot of dirt would stick especially from the hair oil applied on our head.

[Sebring]

Thanks for the much-awaited prices. Puddle lamp is being fitted from day one by Concorde, Dairy Circle, Bangalore. Sorry, did not take a pic. It illuminates the lower cabin in cheap red light and throws T logo on the ground. I've seen it and like most other Nexon accessories (seat covers, car cover, illuminated scuff plate... for eg) dont think much of it. Could be better. I was interested in rear reading light but the guy was insisting on fixing it to rear parcel shelf, whereas the right place would be along the rear handle grabs, on top. So I let it go instead of arguing. Fixing sun roof is too risky for me, prefer factory fitted.

Frankly, I think the Car designers should get involved with Nexon Accessories, as there is a great demand, but the poor (discernable) quality and cheap design (seat covers) let it down. They should have a say, as it's also their baby - after all.

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

Puddle lamp cannot be fit on nexon

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Thanks for the much-awaited prices. Puddle lamp is being fitted from day one by Concorde, Dairy Circle, Bangalore. Sorry, did not take a pic. It illuminates the lower cabin in cheap red light and throws T logo on the ground. I've seen it and like most other Nexon accessories (seat covers, car cover, illuminated scuff plate... for eg) dont think much of it. Could be better. I was interested in rear reading light but the guy was insisting on fixing it to rear parcel shelf, whereas the right place would be along the rear handle grabs, on top. So I let it go instead of arguing. Fixing sun roof is too risky for me, prefer factory fitted.

Frankly, I think the Car designers should get involved with Nexon Accessories, as there is a great demand, but the poor (discernable) quality and cheap design (seat covers) let it down. They should have a say, as it's also their baby - after all.

I agree - they have a three year warranty and they are allowing me to see an installation that is happening on a Hex in the frst week of Jan. I'll check it out and post the outcome here.

Sunroof is the biggest factor in WRV. I am inclined towards nexon. I would need to fit sunroof to convince wife to book the nexon

[sngautam]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Took the Car on a long 800 Kms trip - to & fro from the scenic coastal city of Mangaluru. The engine has opened up beautifully and is butter smooth. Mileage climbed steadily to 22KMPL on the Mid, but when I calculated 'Tankfull to Tankfull', it was actually 20.4KMPL. Good enough for me, as now - after this trip - even in the city the Mid Average stands at 22KMPL. I recommend a long drive once you cross 1,000Kms (Mine was at 1,800kms before this journey). Attached is the image of Nexon mats drying by the well, which I found interesting

The car continues to be brilliant, no niggles whatsoever!

Thank you for your regular feedback on the car.

P.S. I saw your car in HSR yesterday. I overtook your car and gave you a thumps up near Agar flyover. The car looks the best in this color. I'm not impressed by any other colors.

[anuragverma666]

Can RavenAvi or anyone else please confirm the launch date of the AMT variant in diesel? And by when the dealers will start taking bookings for the same? Following this car for over 2 years now and stalking this forum for the longest time possible! The wait is killing many like me! This thread actually pushed me to secure a Team-BHP membership after 7 years of hardship! :-)

[power ranger]

I happened to be in my friends new nexon xz+ diesel variant. He was saying he gets some fuel smell especially when you start the car in the mornings. I too observed the same. Has anyone faces a similar issue ?

[H_Dogg72]

Originally Posted by power ranger

I happened to be in my friends new nexon xz+ diesel variant. He was saying he gets some fuel smell especially when you start the car in the mornings. I too observed the same. Has anyone faces a similar issue ?

Smell of diesel exhaust.