[Tabasco Sauce]

Has anyone heard of any plans to launch the automatic version of the Aria which was strangely absent from the Auto Expo

[lifebuoy]

Originally Posted by bijuiser

But from my experience ARIA (on any type of Terrain) performs much better than any MUV in the price bracket. It feels much sportier and one will feel that it should be placed somewhere between an SUV and MUV.

+1 to that. Have driven the ARIA from Delhi to Udaipur, Srinathji, etc, up to Shimla and a couple of straight runs (Chandigarh, Haridwar). 25K kms in about 1yr 9 months, the ARIA simply rocks !

Originally Posted by rkg

It appears ARIA and Strome will come with SAC( self adjusting clutch) sourced from a reputed European manufaturer.

It was even said recent batches of strome are being shipped with it. can any one confirm it?

Have heard that ARIA in auto guise is round the corner, with a few cosmetic updates. Lets wait and watch ?

[jkdas]

I expected the 6 speed Auto with Harman kit to be showcased for this Auto Expo; well, it didnt happen. But, some products from Tata surprised us all and hence I think the new Aria & Storme would be worth the wait.

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by lifebuoy

As I said earlier, look and evaluate the product and match it with your needs. Factoring Market response as a decision parameter speaks of herd logic, no ? And why does it sound a good proposition as a used car ? Sticker price would be the obvious answer, that supports the fact that the product is good.

1) Priorities are different. Resale value is important to me in some cases. Aria has a pathetic resale value.

2) Good A.S.S. and availability of spares is another. With a diminishing product, I wont be sure of either.

3) Aria has poor resale and a good product can be had for cheap, if you are willing to overlook the above factors. That is the reason I said its a good proposition.

4) I have never doubted the fact that the Aria is a good car.

[sudhakarg]

Originally Posted by raj_5004

1) Priorities are different. Resale value is important to me in some cases. Aria has a pathetic resale value.

2) Good A.S.S. and availability of spares is another. With a diminishing product, I wont be sure of either.

3) Aria has poor resale and a good product can be had for cheap, if you are willing to overlook the above factors. That is the reason I said its a good proposition.

4) I have never doubted the fact that the Aria is a good car.

I own a aria and have driven it for over 65000 kms. While I did have my share of niggles, I must say that Concorde motors workshop at worli , Mumbai has been very helpful in sorting out the things. I get a good comfortable ride, 10 plus fuel efficiency .

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by sudhakarg

I own a aria and have driven it for over 65000 kms. While I did have my share of niggles, I must say that Concorde motors workshop at worli , Mumbai has been very helpful in sorting out the things. I get a good comfortable ride, 10 plus fuel efficiency .

Very happy for you sir!

We cannot go into individual cases, can we? There is a whole thread on XUV niggles and solutions, however I have hardly had any major issues.

When I bought the XUV, the only reason for me to consider it over the Aria is because personally I would always have a car which is doing well in the market and would not really take chances, especially if its my family car.

[rkg]

Originally Posted by lifebuoy

Have heard that ARIA in auto guise is round the corner, with a few cosmetic updates. Lets wait and watch ?

Concorde, Bangalore, confirmed that ARIA is coming with new SAC( self adjusting clutch) from LUK, Germany. It is said this clutch has a minimum shelf life of 1 lakh KM. Storme is also expected to come with this shortly

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by rkg

Concorde, Bangalore, confirmed that ARIA is coming with new SAC( self adjusting clutch) from LUK, Germany. It is said this clutch has a minimum shelf life of 1 lakh KM. Storme is also expected to come with this shortly

1. Is there a way anyone can differentiate the old clutch from the SAC?
2. Also apart from the life, what else is a positive about SAC?
3. In case of a replacement, how about the costs?

[lifebuoy]

Originally Posted by raj_5004

1) Priorities are different. Resale value is important to me in some cases. Aria has a pathetic resale value.

2) Good A.S.S. and availability of spares is another. With a diminishing product, I wont be sure of either.

3) Aria has poor resale and a good product can be had for cheap, if you are willing to overlook the above factors. That is the reason I said its a good proposition.

4) I have never doubted the fact that the Aria is a good car.

Originally Posted by raj_5004

Very happy for you sir!

We cannot go into individual cases, can we? There is a whole thread on XUV niggles and solutions, however I have hardly had any major issues.

When I bought the XUV, the only reason for me to consider it over the Aria is because personally I would always have a car which is doing well in the market and would not really take chances, especially if its my family car.

How do you put your money in a product that had / is having so many issues ?

For a family car, assuming both the XUV and the ARIA are desi brands / products, how do you place a bet on reliability and service ? Both TATA and M&M have equally good or bad A.S.S. Being home grown / components manufactured in the country, a steady supply of spares is more or less assured. Yes, numbers here make a difference, agreed. This is where commonality of spares with siblings plays a vital part. The mechanicals of the ARIA and the Storme are similar (suspension, engine, engine components, electricals , etc). I'm sure the XUV will have similar spares shared with the Scorpio, but not suspension, electricals, ICE, etc

Enjoy life king size as per YOUR desires, don't go with the herd is what I feel. 5 years down the line, resale values may not mean that much to you what it means now, owing to reduction in monetary value of money. Why miss out on something for fear of the unknown ?

In today's technology and ECU controlled everything, I can assure you that if a critical sensor goes bust even on an Audi or a Merc, nothing can save the moment, it has to be towed to the service centre for a diagnosis and replacement . All the road side chap can do (if he has the acumen to diagnose) is to bypass the sensor so that you get moving again. ( I have experience of a Nano moving like this, till the wiring went bust and the owner had to get it to TATA when no one could figure anything else).

To me , it's the reputation of the OEM coupled with first hand experience that helps in making a decision. My experience with TATA has been outright good, small issues were there, only one on the ARIA. Why leave this all important thinking and decision making to the general public ?

[rkg]

Originally Posted by sudhakarg

I own a aria and have driven it for over 65000 kms. While I did have my share of niggles, I must say that Concorde motors workshop at worli , Mumbai has been very helpful in sorting out the things. I get a good comfortable ride, 10 plus fuel efficiency .

Can you please share the average cost of each service especially after 50K?

[LobsterB]

Originally Posted by rkg

Can you please share the average cost of each service especially after 50K?

Normally around 10-11k. But now I do the service every 10000kms.
For the 70k kms of my Aria so far I have spent close to 90k for maintenance including brake pad replacements and clutch overhaul.
BTW, had DMF, AC compressor and water pump replaced under warranty in the last quarter (also did 9k kms in that quarter).

[sudhakarg]

Originally Posted by rkg

Can you please share the average cost of each service especially after 50K?

I opted for a maintenance package at the world workshop. I guess I paid 18 k for it and that takes care of servicing costs and consumables for four services. I will confirm the amount tomorrow.

Other expenses included brake pad change at 60000 Kms which costed me about 5 k , leaking brake lines which set me back by 1000 , rear door rub rail which used to foul , replaced for about 1000. Niggles taken care by tata include driver seat replacement, fuel sensor replacement, windows control unit, DMf to SMS conversion including clutch replacement.

[rkg]

Originally Posted by LobsterB

Normally around 10-11k. But now I do the service every 10000kms.
For the 70k kms of my Aria so far I have spent close to 90k for maintenance including brake pad replacements and clutch overhaul.

It appears to on a higher side, especially considering the fact that first 5 services are free( only consumables) + vehicle has 1 lakh Km warranty means, labour can not be charged for part replacement. Can you please elaborate the breakup of this 90K?

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by lifebuoy

How do you put your money in a product that had / is having so many issues ?

When I bought the XUV, both the Aria as well the XUV were prone to issues. But the difference was - M&M were proactive to solve issues whereas TATA had a lacklustre approach.

Now, if you show me individual cases of disgruntled XUV owners, my reply will remain the same - search the forum for Aria's never ending woes.

That is why I mentioned - Aria as a product is not a bad car. But it is a fact that it is a failed product and not because of it's own virtues, but simply because of TATA's incompetency to deliver good service.

I do not mind niggles in a mechanical product, but I need efficient service from the company. Please note, I am not talking about the A.S.S., I am talking about how eager the company is to please annoyed customers. And here, based on my observations, M&M wins hands down. Atleast that is my reasoning towards buying a XUV over the Aria.

Being home grown / components manufactured in the country, a steady supply of spares is more or less assured. Yes, numbers here make a difference, agreed.

There are many cases on this forum where customers have had to wait for weeks and months for the A.S.S. to source parts for the Aria.

Enjoy life king size as per YOUR desires, don't go with the herd is what I feel. 5 years down the line, resale values may not mean that much to you what it means now, owing to reduction in monetary value of money. Why miss out on something for fear of the unknown ?

1) I initially mentioned this being a family car, so I am not willing to take chances since this would be our primary car. I cannot afford to take the risk of the car spending months in the A.S.S.

2) My personal car was a Fiat before, I guess that is not exactly herd following. In this era where everybody is buying diesel manuals, I bought a thirsty petrol A/T. My second car is a Civic A/T.

3) I do not really "miss" having the Aria. IMHO, the XUV is equally competent is most areas and better in some. The only area where Aria shines over the XUV IMHO is in ride quality and boot space with 3rd row up, not a big deal breaker for us.

To me , it's the reputation of the OEM coupled with first hand experience that helps in making a decision. My experience with TATA has been outright good, small issues were there, only one on the ARIA. Why leave this all important thinking and decision making to the general public ?

You are making a mistake of assuming that you are the ONLY ONE "thinking" and rest are following the herd. Please do consider that different people have different needs, perceptions and priorities and they "think" based on these factors.

You are happy with the Aria - Good.
You like Tata's ASC - Good.

Am I happy with the XUV? - Very much.
Do I miss the Aria? - No.

Would I buy a car with poor sales figures as a primary family car? - Never.

I hope you get the drift.

P.S.: If you are thinking that I got the XUV over the Aria only because I do not trust TATA, then you are wrong my friend. I actually like the XUV more than the Aria.

[LobsterB]

Originally Posted by rkg

It appears to on a higher side, especially considering the fact that first 5 services are free( only consumables) + vehicle has 1 lakh Km warranty means, labour can not be charged for part replacement. Can you please elaborate the breakup of this 90K?

Of the five free, first two are at 1k and 5k and they didn't cost me anything. The consumables during free services (from 15K Kms onwards) were close to 8K. Towards the end of free services (around 40K onwards if I remember correctly) I moved to a 10K Kms service schedule against the 15K Kms recommendation. Paid services with labour and other small maintenance stuff was costing closer to 11K. Front and back brake pad pairs were 10K and clutch overhaul was 12+K. In addition I had also replaced left ORVM(under 3K) and wiper blades among other small things.
This 90K doesn't of course include warranty replaced components or their labour charges, but does include consumables associated with failures covered under warranty (coolant replacement after water pump failure, gear box oil topup for gearbox packing leakage etc).

Originally Posted by sudhakarg

I opted for a maintenance package at the world workshop. I guess I paid 18 k for it and that takes care of servicing costs and consumables for four services. I will confirm the amount tomorrow.

Interesting, can you please provide more details about the maintenance package? Is this from dealer or manufacturer?