[abhi413]

Having spent 6¼ blissful years and 61,000 Kilometers with my Linea, on 16th May 2018 I finally felt it may be time to move on and look at a new car just for the heck of it.

The wish-list is long. Of course, the first option is an SUV. I may need a break from Sedans for a while. And of course it needs to be an Automatic as That’s the way forward. Good ground clearance (thanks to the last 2 Km stretch to my workplace at Sanaswadi, Pune) and maybe a Diesel engine (my Petrol Linea is not exactly phenomenal in fuel efficiency, gives me 12-13 Km to the litre at Pune) would be an added bonus. Unfortunately no worthwhile Electric cars (compact SUVs) are available yet. I may finally wait till 2019 for the Kia, but no harm in TD'ing some available compact SUVs now.

With this in mind, on 16th May I contacted Tata Motors (Nexon), Ford (Ecosport) & Maruti (Brezza) for their Auto Tranny Test Drive cars.

Today, on 19th May at 1 PM, I just finished Test Driving the Tata Nexon Diesel Automatic (XZA+). My two cents on the experience:

1. The TD was organized by Rudra Motors, Nagar Road, Pune - who actually also received the vehicle just today morning from TML. I got the car with barely 70km on the odometer, and was also informed I was their first guy to Test Drive the Nexon 1.5 litre Diesel Auto Tranny. Being the first to respond to my request, TML scores +1 over Ford and Maruti Suzuki.

2. The car looked smashing in Grey and white! This, even as I’m not a big fan of the white running all across the Nexon - my personal favourite on this car remains the Etna Orange Dual Tone. However, the car also looked a bit smaller (Typical Hatchback’ish) than it looked in the showroom. Oh well, at the end of the day it’s under 4 meters long.

3. Anyway, all doubts about the size vanish into thin air as soon as you enter the cabin. It is reasonably spacious, and by and large feels good all around. Best Tata branded car till date, by far!

4. Of course the car has the now common Start/Stop button, Airbags, ABS/EBD, etc. but it also comes with a fancy fitness band type wrist band that you can wear for keyless operation. All this is fine, but what good is it to someone who instead likes to wear that watch a loved one gifted him?

5. For this size and price, the car has creature comforts galore, and then some! If I buy this car, sitting inside it may not really feel like a downgrade (My Linea 2012 has aged beautifully, still retains a lot of snob value, and has basically all bells and whistles). But the Nexon matches up well, and then goes even beyond: Rear AC vents with air flow control, Rear 12v charging outlet, and USB/Aux /12v in front, good armrest with usable storage space, BIG cooled glove compartment, a Killer AC with better throw, and the best Sound System I have heard in a car in many years (has 4 speakers + 4 tweeters). Not only that, both front doors come with umbrella holders as well as 1 litre bottle holders. The small hook near the front passenger footwell to hold small bags in place is a deft touch. Very practical and much appreciated.

6. I found no issue with the resolution of the reverse camera. In fact it was rather nifty and quite helpful. Of course, the disclaimer being I tested it in broad daylight, but yet it felt pretty much okay.

7. The Tyres were Goodyear 215/60 R16 (or was it R17, I forget) Alloys with a Ground clearance in the region of 210mm, and the Nexon munched the Sanaswadi potholes with disdain! (And to think I drive my Linea so carefully to reach work each morning!!)

8. Finding the right driving position was not difficult, and still left plenty of leg room for the rear passengers. Front seat belts are height adjustable. Dead pedal for the left foot is broad enough to be comfortable. Plenty of sunlight enters the cabin.

9. The rear bench is best for 2 Adults + 1 Child, and 3 Adults is only a squeeze. My Linea’s rear seats are more spacious. Headroom in the Nexon will not be a problem even for six-footers.

10. Nexon’s rear bench is split 60:40, and both parts are foldable (but they don’t fold exact flat). Wonder why all carmakers cannot provide Honda Jazz-type Magic seats if their seats are foldable!

11. The boot has a light and is quite usable at 350-odd litres, also the wheel wells don’t really intrude in too much. However it remains a far cry from my Linea’s mammoth 506-litre, able-to-fit-both-parents-in-law boot. Boot light is provided. Great news is, there exists an electric Boot release button right on the front panel just like my Linea. The floating touchscreen is reasonably responsive (but I’m yet to Test Drive the apparent segment benchmark touchscreen in the Ecosport Automatic).

12. The voice activated commands are recognized easily by the car. Practically everything can be controlled by voice. The virtual lady in the Nexon speaks with an Indian accent too which is a welcome change, because Mona (yes, that’s what I call the virtual lady in my Linea – named after Mona Sax from the Max Payne series – speaks in a very robotic, European way and expects me to command her in the same dialect which may actually often sound funny). The steering mounted controls are better than my Linea. The MID is clear – has 2 tripmeters, shows most inputs like current gear, temperature, Instantaneous FE, Overall FE, Distance to Empty, etc. This variant of the Nexon also comes with Projector headlamps, Daytime running lights, Auto climate control, Isofix Child Seat Mounts, and two front fog lamps.

13. The good part is you literally walk into the Nexon, and not bend to get in. But the ‘Thud’ of my Tank-like Fiat Linea upon closing the door was sorely missing! Of course it may be just a feeling but somehow, the Tank’s Thud gives you a lot of reassurance of safety that’s a notch higher.

14. The drive was satisfactory. Driving modes can be changed on the move by turning one simple knob to move between City, Eco & Sport Modes. The Sport mode has the best pickup and is the most engaging to drive. However, an Auto Tranny being an Auto Tranny, it can never match up to the engaging drive of a manual transmission driver’s car like the Linea. Feedback from the steering is adequate at best (maybe because it’s not a hydraulic unit), however much better than the typical Hyundai cars. Best part is, when overtaking (even in city mode), just double tap the accelerator and you will get a thrust from the car. Smart!

15. I took a good 15 Km test drive spanning Highways, potholes, and more potholes. I am told by the Sales Advisor the ARAI rated FE of this car is 21.5kmpl but you can expect 19kmpl on road. The fuel tank is 44 litres. By and large I was reasonably satisfied with this car. The On-Road Price at Pune is 12.76 lacs and the waiting period is 7-8 weeks. May just even buy it in the weeks ahead. But I still have to try out the Ecosport, Brezza and the WR-V first!

Keep Revvin'

[jithudigitised]

Originally Posted by avingodb

Also would like to update on a problem that in my Nexon, the audio settings change each time the engine is stopped. For example, Base and Treble go to -09 each time. Its also forgets the call list and takes a good amount to reconnect. Is there a a way out?

You need to get the November version software update and it will fix this issue.

Originally Posted by gk.93

Did you get the ICE updated?
Mine is November Version. I don't know if any newer version is available or not.

There is a February 2018 version. But i think it has some bugs, so they are not pushing it to customers who don't have any issues with their system.

[Maverick Avi]

With Tata trying to change their brand image by bringing in good cars recently I had started to suggest Nexon to quite a few of my friends and relatives. Infact a recent back to back test drive of ecosport and nexon had strengethed this belief even further.

Recently one of my cab mate bought a Nexon XM diesel and boy was he happy with it. Somewhere I also felt pride in his decision as it was heavily recommended by me as well. But then something happened. He was out of town for a few days and he receives this call from his neighbors that his Nexon has burst into flames and fire tenders have been called. By the time he reached, his car was just a piece of burnt junk.

Surveyors were sent in from Tata and they denied any electrical failure and washed their hands off. Insurance guys tell him that it doesn't look like a malacious act as fire originated from inside the engibe bay and hints to some electrical or mechanical failure. He tweeted this to Ratan tata and is now following up with all folks possible to find a amicable solution. 2 weeks later he also receives a call from another Nexon owner who had read his tweet. He had a similar case where his parked Nexon caught fire and Tata refuted to any electrical failure at their end. Now they both are trying to see what options they have.

I really don't know what might have transpired during this whole course of mishappenings but I now keep mum when someone asks for my opinion on Tata cars.

[Nissan1180]

Originally Posted by Maverick Avi

With Tata trying to change their brand image by bringing in good cars recently I had started to suggest Nexon to quite a few of my friends and relatives. Infact a recent back to back test drive of ecosport and nexon had strengethed this belief even further.
Recently one of my cab mate bought a Nexon XM diesel and boy was he happy with it. Somewhere I also felt pride in his decision as it was heavily recommended by me as well. But then something happened. He was out of town for a few days and he receives this call from his neighbors that his Nexon has burst into flames and fire tenders have been called. By the time he reached, his car was just a piece of burnt junk.
Surveyors were sent in from Tata and they denied any electrical failure and washed their hands off. Insurance guys tell him that it doesn't look like a malacious act as fire originated from inside the engibe bay and hints to some electrical or mechanical failure. He tweeted this to Ratan tata and is now following up with all folks possible to find a amicable solution. 2 weeks later he also receives a call from another Nexon owner who had read his tweet. He had a similar case where his parked Nexon caught fire and Tata refuted to any electrical failure at their end. Now they both are trying to see what options they have.

I really don't know what might have transpired during this whole course of mishappenings but I now keep mum when someone asks for my opinion on Tata cars.

Thanks for sharing. Sad that this happened.
Can you please share some pics of the incident or the other incident that you mentioned? I believe that a car catching fire on its own is a big news but I did not get any results when I searched for the Keywords. Would be nice if you can substantiate your claim with details, because so far, no one seems to have suffered the same fate. Thanks.

[AkMar]

I really hope Tata takes care of this soon. It won’t take long for it to balloon into a PR nightmare. The root cause should be investigated, fixes should be made if required & and put out in front of the owners instead of plainly denying any responsibility.

[shaktisarangi]

Surprisingly, every time this happens with a Tata car, it turns into a PR nightmare, while Marutis go up in flames far more frequently. Recently a mother and her child were charred to death after their Maruti Ritz caught fire in the parking lot. Many such incidents have also been reported on the Swift. Even a Ford Endeavour burnt down recently in Karnataka.
It is not fair to judge Tata without clear proof of the issue in question.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Nissan1180

I believe that a car catching fire on its own is a big news but I did not get any results when I searched for the Keywords. Would be nice if you can substantiate your claim with details, because so far, no one seems to have suffered the same fate. Thanks.

Not sure if this is the same incident that is mentioned by the OP, but i could easily get these two results on twitter -

[pious_devil]

Sad to see the pics. If the car was in standstill for long then it should be an electrical short circuit causing the fire. Loose wiring during additional accessories installation or even a Rat menace can cause this. In my earlier car (Figo) a rat attack caused lot of damage to the wirings while I was away for a week. The FASS later informed me that I was lucky and got the car on time. If it was delayed by few more days it would have been disaster as the live battery wire was on the verge of being dislocated and short circuiting.

[Maverick Avi]

Yes. This is the instance I was referencing and Jatin is my cab mate now running from pillar to post. Shruti is the other Nexon owner from whom he gets this call after learning about this instance from twitter.

[RavenAvi]

The pics of the 2nd owner's burnt car:

BTW, notice the similarities in both letters written to Tata? This, despite the fact that the first was from Rohtak, Haryana, while the second one was from Mumbai?

Both addressed to Ratan Tata, Tata Motors, Mumbai.

Some common phrases used in both letters:

"buying a car is not easy for a middle class family"
"What could have happened if the vehicle caught fire while I/someone was driving it?"
"have to bear the loss of 2.5 lakhs/3 lakhs in just 2/5 months of buying it."


Curious.

[ottocycle]

Originally Posted by avingodb

.

Also would like to update on a problem that in my Nexon, the audio settings change each time the engine is stopped. For example, Base and Treble go to -09 each time. Its also forgets the call list and takes a good amount to reconnect. Is there a a way out?

I also face the exact problem. I also face frequent disconnect of andoid auto.

[ObsessedByFIAT]

Do I smell foul play in both the fire cases? Not speaking about the owners per se. Earlier the competition had a threat from Nano and that too was popularized as catching fire and now this?

Tata will again need to do a complete root cause analysis and very quickly at that. So that this thing subsides before it catches too many eye balls.

[Maverick Avi]

BTW, notice the similarities in both letters written to Tata? This, despite the fact that the first was from Rohtak, Haryana, while the second one was from Mumbai?

The owner from Mumbai had not taken any action till the time she saw the tweet from Jatin. I don't see any date on the emails but am sure the official complaint to Ratan Tata must have been suggested from Jatin to Shruti so that their case can get stronger.

Do I smell foul play in both the fire cases?

I am not sure what exactly the foul play we are referring to here? Can someone elaborate?

[ashokabs]

Originally Posted by Kommandogerät

Hmm... I see that other cars too have this issue. I might have jumped the gun in blaming the Service Center.
I have cleared it myself.

Procedure to clear the service reminder:
-Change mode so that 0 is displayed. (Indicating that Service is overdue)
-Press both Set and Mode knobs for a few seconds till the 0 starts blinking.
-Press both Set and Mode knobs again to reset the Service Reminder indicator.

However please also consider this Note from Manual:
Never reset the display between service intervals otherwise this may result in to incorrect readings.

One of the things that is very important for anyone purchasing a new car is to first go through the manual from cover to cover. This is one action most new users don't take on priority. Many apprehensions and problems will get resolved if one has the correct information.

[ayankm]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

BTW, notice the similarities in both letters written to Tata? This, despite the fact that the first was from Rohtak, Haryana, while the second one was from Mumbai?

Some common phrases used in both letters:

"buying a car is not easy for a middle class family"
"What could have happened if the vehicle caught fire while I/someone was driving it?"
"have to bear the loss of 2.5 lakhs/3 lakhs in just 2/5 months of buying it."

Originally Posted by Maverick Avi

I am not sure what exactly the foul play we are referring to here? Can someone elaborate?

If you see RavenAvi's post, you will see what foul play is being referred to. The language used in both the letters, the format etc are so so similar.
This could well be case of an attempt to sabotage the ongoing success story of Nexon.

Just out of curiosity, are there any such cases with Tiago?


Regards.
A.