[ranjitht87]

Originally Posted by Sidban85

Have you faced issues with taking U-turns given that the turning circle diameter looks longer than even Innova?

I didnt find any problem in taking U-turns, in fact i felt it very similar to the ecosport which i believe has 5.3m radius.

Originally Posted by Col Mehta

One quick question -
The unlock button on the gear lever in all of the test drive cars were too plasticy and made creaking sound while pressing it. One of the SAs mentioned it would be fixed in the production cars. Can you confirm if that's the case?

I didnt notice any issue on the unlock button on gear lever.
Will check again

Originally Posted by ridehard

This doesn't seem to be right. 11.2m!?
It can't be more than 5.5m, imo.

Diameter is 11.2 so radius should be 5.6m.

Originally Posted by Varun_G

150mm GC for a so called SUV on Indian roads is clearly not acceptable! Even certain hatchbacks sport ~170 mm GC these days.
Clearly a deal breaker for a lot of folks. Wonder why all the SAs across the country were parroting 185mm as the standard answer for GC queries. Highly unethical! Most probably will suggest my sister to go for a cancellation now

The 150mm ground clearence is the laden ground clearence.
I think the unladen ground clearence will be 185.

Just for a comparison, Tata harrier has Unladen ground clearence of 179, but the laden ground clearence is just 150(Source: Rushlane)
For VW Tiguan the unladen GC is 189 but laden GC is 149mm.

[The_Duke]

Originally Posted by ranjitht87

Took delivery of Astor Sharp(O) AT on 10th of Nov. It was a mass delivery event in Bangalore.

Congratulations and wishing many happy miles. I look forward to reading your ownership review.

I have a few questions on ADAS.
How do the ADAS functions perform on real road conditions?
I am keen to know how the emergency braking function performs on our roads.
Also, are 2 wheelers detected in blind spot monitoring without any misses?
Thank you.

[satnan]

Originally Posted by ranjitht87

Took delivery of Astor Sharp(O) AT on 10th of Nov. It was a mass delivery event in Bangalore.

Hearty Congratulations on your new car. My booking too is for the same color (CVT variant though) with tentative delivery by Nov End

Did you take insurance from MG or outside? Would really appreciate if you can let us know whether you could negotiate the premium and the final quote.

[neoonwheels]

Folks who get delivery, please keep all updated on ownership experience. Should help people sitting on fence like me.

[K.grg]

Brace up for an imminent price hike of Astor, which would be irrespective of your booking phase (whether phase 1 or 2 doesn't matter).

Guess it is the reason for delayed deliveries.

[rajeev k]

Originally Posted by ridehard

Can you elaborate more about the MT drive?
Acceleration?
Driveability in 2nd, 3rd gears?
Refinement/power comparable to Seltos/Creta/Scross 1.5, or was it inferior?
Any note on the fuel efficiency?

I will narrate my experience of driving the MT Acceleration adequate as I could not go for assessing a scorching one.
Refinement levels found to be above par. Gear changes were slick and slots in comfortably.
Drivability found fit enough for city traffic at 3pm on a week day.
I was impressed but yet to drive the CVT.

[satnan]

Finally, I did get the test drive I wanted 😊

- Very smooth for a relaxed driving style in city and shouldn’t be a problem for relaxed cruising on highways either

- The brakes performed well, and I am not worried about this anymore (had a concern earlier based on my previous test drive)

- On flooring the accelerator, there is a definite delay in downshift, and it also becomes a bit noisy – guess typical of any CVT and may be line with expectations

- Even in dynamic setting, steering is light for city driving. Not sure if it weighs up and provides enough feedback for highway driving (coming from a Linea, it may fall short of my expectations)

- Felt the ride to be a bit bumpy (my wife did not complain though). Thought the tyre pressure to be high, but TPMS showed ~33psi on all 4 tyres which is the recommended setting.

Got 9kmpl (as per MID) for a 17km test drive. It was mostly light Outer Ring Road traffic with occasional stop-go traffic at stretches where metro construction has reduced road width. Drive also consisted of some pothole filled (patches with even non-existent tarmac) pocket roads.

[Varun_G]

I had taken a TD of Astor 1.3L Turbo last month from MG Electronic City Showroom in Bangalore. Today, I received a follow-up call from the SA regarding the decision. He also informed that all three types of transmission are available for TD - MT, CVT, and AT.

You can get in touch with the below person to schedule a TD if you have not been able to do it for the transmission of your choice - Mr. Anush - 9606151894. He is quite helpful and has a good amount of knowledge about the car as well.

[skarthiksr]

Originally Posted by satnan

It was mostly light Outer Ring Road traffic with occasional stop-go traffic at stretches where metro construction has reduced road width. Drive also consisted of some pothole filled (patches with even non-existent tarmac) pocket roads.

Did you keep the AEB turned on in this test drive? If yes, in what level of sensitivity? Did you feel the car warning or braking unnecessarily in the stop-go traffic?

[RLN_CHN]

I experienced this 360-degree camera when I took the TD at home. This comes as a handy feature in tight parking spaces. Glad to find this YT Video showcasing this feature well ��

https://youtu.be/5PYHJVHBq3U

[Guite]

Having read about the Astor in other threads, we went to have a look today. A nice and knowledgeable gentleman showed us the car and explained its features.

My wife and myself were wowed by the interior design, materials, fit and finish. Seating in the front seats, all the things you see and can touch are pleasing to the eye and fingers. The sunroof edge has nice rubber beading, unlike you know what. Seating in the rear, seat shape and comfort isn’t that great. I could notice some non uniform stitching on the rear of front seat cover. I just wish the AI assistant is optional on the top variant. It is just an eyesore sticking out on a clean dashboard. After the novelty wears off, we won’t have much use of it.

Both of us did not like the outer appearance. We found it too plain Jane. Personally I do not like it at angle, but particularly the front grill.

I have two concerns wrt the very long sunroof. One is in case of roll over accident. I thought the B pillars should be forming a roll cage. In this case the B pillars line is broken by the long sunroof. Second is that the thin rolling roof curtain would barely block the Delhi summer heat. So AC system would work overtime, with high and noisy fan speed.

[model-t]

I had booked my Astor on the 25th of October and it still shows a waiting period of 6-9 Months. The SA is clueless, the customer care has no updates and the website is glitchy at best. I had booked the Super variant as the booking of the Base was closed by the time they punched my entry. As an afterthought, felt the variant is not VFM and wanted to upgrade to a Sharp AT variant.

Here also, the SA said MG is not allowing any changes and Customer Care throws it back at the dealership. I am buying a car after 8 odd years so don't know weather this is the norm now or is MG the only culprit here.

On the case of price rise, the SA mentioned there will be a hike on the Astor and the price at the time of delivery will be applicable. But he also mentioned that for the already booked customers, MG will provide points to redeem either on service/accessories/ extended warranty. I think it is fair.

As I can wait till March 22, I am in no rush and with the semiconductor issues easing slightly, I think the production of all the cars will get better in the next 6-9 months.

Also test drove the following cars and my feedback on the drive:

1) Nissan Magnite CVT : At 11.XX OTR, the top spec is value for money. The engine response and the CVT tuning is smooth. I loved driving the car. I think in the city, this is one of the best auto I drove in the budget. The size is perfect too. The biggest downer is the interiors. The test drive car had done 17k and the dashboard was rattling. Not very bad, but with the music off, I could feel there was something off. The quality is strictly average.

2) Mahindra XUV 700 : I own a 2013 XUV 500 with almost 100k on the ODO. I test drove the new one. The steering was too light for my liking. Lots of gadgets inside. The engine I drove was excellent (Diesel). Ride was not Duster plush but improvement over XUV 500. I did not proceed with the booking primarily due to the niggles in Mahindra a)Electronic Niggles : I have had 4 stereo failures in 8 years. 2 times it was fixed by Mahindra under warranty. Third tme I paid close to 10 grand for a "Silver box" repair which barely lasted a year. Fourth time it conked, I got an android music system installed) b)Plastic Quality : The center console in my car is made up of budget grade plastics. For the last 3-4years, I am seeing faded parts/plastic locks degrading/small parts coming loose.

Due to this + Waiting of almost a year on AX5/7 AT put me off. I may replace my XUV 500 with this a year down the line but right now this is just not the one. Also, the insurance prices of the cars at the showroom were just insane! Even when compared to the Tata showroom's already high insurance cost.

3)Tata Harrier/Safari : Wife sat inside it and rejected. Maybe due to the dark interiors. Did not feel the XZA was value for money. She liked the Safari middle row though. Will keep this in mind for the 2023 upgrade of my XUV 500.

4)Skoda Kushaq : This is where it gets interesting. Test drove the car yesterday. It looks good from the outside. Top spec has good looking alloys and 6 airbags. I drove the 1.0 AT and boy it was an amazing test drive. Sports mode is extremely addictive and for the first time my wife could feel the surge. Amazing performance and more than adequate for the city for highway runs. This is a great performer. Now the bad part. The interiors are not upto the mark. The roof liner is not pasted properly. There is a lot of play. The dummy Sunglasses holder (The SA calls it a dummy) is an eye sore. The way it has been pasted is even worse. The seats were supportive albeit I felt 1 size smaller than the Astor and 2-3 sizes smaller than the XUV. Plus it is much more expensive than the Astor.

So I am keeping the booking of Astor open till December end and see where the booking goes. Kushaq is available for ready deliveries so if I change my mind, I can always get a quick delivery. It is very tough to decide with the engine and drive is almost 9/10 on a Kushaq and interiors being 6/10. Astor is the exact opposite. Interiors are 10/10 and engine is a 6.

[vagman]

So after a month of continuous follow ups with MG for a TD of 1.5 MT in Mumbai, a test drive vehicle was finally made available in our nearest showroom.

For reference, we previously took test drives of Taigun/Kushaq 1.0 MT

While the highway dynamics, ride and handling have been extensively covered by fellow members, I will only be focusing on the drivability and MT performance.

Drive Impressions

1. Engine was extremely smooth with no vibrations felt on the steering/gear/clutch, Power delivery linear, lacking punch in mid end, top end is acceptable, not at all underpowered. However the lack of turbo is felt when you want that extra power for quick overtake. 1.0 Turbo on Europeans is noticeably more responsive and punchy.

2. Gearbox - Slick Shifting, no vibrations or rattles. Gear throws are short and slot in beautifully. Similar experience in Taigun/Kushaq, not much to differentiate here.

3. Clutch - Very Light, Less travel, perfect for bumper to bumper traffic. I was perfectly happy with the clutch travel and weight in European siblings until I drove Astor. I would rate the ease of use to be best in the segment.

4. Drivability - Impressive, you don't feel the need to switch gears too often, unless you plan on overtaking. 25kpmh in 3rd gear and the car never felt like stalling. Easily passes the 2nd gear speed-breaker test. The car is capable of crawling without using accelerator, even on slight slopes (very diesel-esque behavior), which is a boon in city traffic.

5. Hill Hold control was quite effective, we were on a 45 degree slope and the car held its ground for a good 3 and a half seconds. Climbing slopes without breaking a sweat.

6. Braking - Brakes have a great bite, however felt the brakes on Kushaq were slightly better, however I am nitpicking here.

Overall we were quite satisfied with performance and hugely impressed with the drivability, hence at this price point this makes for a very capable and extremely VFM for someone looking for a city car with excellent interior quality, plush ride, , good driving dynamics and adequate performance.

Misc Impressions

The gear knob is not leather wrapped, however the texture was rubbery and good to hold.


The footwell is well laid out. Just like the Germans, Notice the brake pedal is slightly lifted upwards and not on same level as accelerator.

[Vid6639]

Delay in deliveries due to chip shortage. Batch 1 will be delivered by end of 2021. Price protection for all those who have booked:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FH18WuK7BAY

[amey027]

Any owners here of the MT 1.5 variant? I took 2 test drives and both left me confused & uncertain of the Engine' power & mileage.

I am someone who doesn't like revving the engine when driving a car, that's something specifically reserved for motorcycles because they actually sound great when revved. With a few exceptions, most cars feel like they are being choked to death when you floor the pedal. During the TD, I revved till 3000 RPM but the engine felt completely lifeless, with little punch and anything beyond 3000 RPM, the NVH deteriorated quickly. I could barely touch 3 digit speeds even though the highway was pretty open. And the mileage reading was great either, around 9 kmpl.

I test drove the 1.0 TSI Kushaq and the issue was even more apparent. Kushaq was literally sitting on power reserves and I had to barely cross 2000 RPM to overtake. Moreover, the mileage I got was 12-13 kmpl in city conditions.

Would be great if someone could shed some light on the real world mileage and drive experience, beyond those 10 km test drives.