[Singh09]

Hello Everyone, Though this is my 3rd ownership review but still suggestions are welcome to make future reviews more precise and error free. And it's gonna be lonnnng story before the review comes in, so please bear with me.

Likes:

- VFM car at the given price.
- FE is good both on highways and city.
- Music system is just awesome, thanks to Harman.
- Decent GC
- Nice build and interior quality.
- Seats are pretty comfortable and long trips are doable in this car.
- Built Quality
- Ride Quality
- Feature loaded which includes Harman System, Rear Sensors, Steering controls, Electronic adjustable ORVM’s, Driver seat height adjustment, rear wiper etc.

Dislikes:

- Car does tend to shake during cold starts.
- The key does not go easily in the key hole.
- No rear fog lamps even though they have a space for it.
- Door locks are old school like the Maruti 800 (Gem of a car though)
- A 4 cylinder engine should have been much better than the 3 cylinder looking at the competition.
- Bottle holders on any of the doors can’t hold a regular bottle (1 Ltr), you got to find a small bottle for it which is annoying.
- You can feel the undulations and rough road entirely at the steering wheel.
- Wind noise from the driver side door is prominent at speeds above 70-80 km.
- No remote for the music system even in the top model.
- That long antenna looks really odd.

Background:

We had 3 work horses in our garage, XUV 500 W8 (2012), Hyudai Eon D-Lite Plus (2013) and a TVS Jupiter (It comes handy when we need to go in the interior parts of the city where taking a car is like committing a crime) which was acquired recently in July as a replacement of our R15 v2. I moved back to my hometown (Moradabad) in 2016 from Gurgaon and started a new venture thus my local as well highway trips came close to 2500-3000 kms a month on average. I did a calculation that from November 2012 we have driven almost 1,87,500 kms till date. Most of this comes from highway trips though and are distributed between 4 vehicles. XUV 5OO – 1,02,500 kms, Eon 30,000 kms, Skoda Octavia 25,000 kms approx and Elite i20 30,000 kms approx. So Overall it comes to 1,87,500 kms in 5 years, 37,500 km per year and 3125 kms a month.

And with Eon, Octavia and Elite i20 gone we are currently left with XUV 500 only. So we definitely needed a diesel workhorse though our running will be reduced a bit but still petrol made no sense. Our 4 year old Eon was doing okay and was not giving any problems mechanically but was due for a tyre change as well as rim change, both sides needed bit of denting/painting job which was still okay with us. But the major problems we were facing was with 4 people onboard it used to scrap even on the smallest speed breakers and on the other hand petrol hatch was burning our pocket.

I knew it was not going to be an easy task to buy another ride. First question that came to our mind was should we buy a new car or a decent condition used car. Second question that ran straight through our mind was in either way, WHICH CAR? Well this is the biggest question we all go through when we are in the market for a new ride. So after a long discussion with dad we decided to give a look at the pre-owned stuff. The reason being that most of the times this car will be used for local purpose and will go through abuse not because of our driving style or up keep of the car, reason being the traffic here is worst and it’s literally a mad race when you go out on the roads.

Since I keep going to Delhi – Gurgaon almost twice a month I started looking for cars on Carwale, Cartrade, Olx, Quikr and few other websites with a budget of 4 – 4.5 Lacs. Our requirements were:
- Had to be diesel
- Atleast driver side Airbags
- ABS a plus if I could get one in the desired budget.
- Low maintenance
- Decent Ground clearance
- Good mileage
- Good ride quality
- Easy to manoeuvre and park in city.

So after looking at our requirements and considering the budget I came up with the following options that I could go for:
1. Swift
2. Old i20
3. Figo
4. Grand i10
5. Liva

So I started spending some time online searching for used cars on Carwale, Cartrade, Droom, OLX and Quikr. To be honest I was more inclined towards Swift because of it’s peppy engine, size, design, mileage and last but not the least Resale value. I did not wanted to go for i20 as we already had an elite i20 in the family (It’s with my cousin now). I tried couple of Figo’s but honestly speaking the car didn’t appeal me though it was really fun to drive and felt stable as well but the looks are bit dated.

Liva, another gem of a hatch accompanied by Toyota reliability but the biggest drawback for me was the location of speedometer, can’t stand that (sorry Liva owners but that’s just my personal opinion and no intention to hurt anyone’s feeling), so I was left with Grand i10 and Swift.

I kept searching online and started making a list of cars that suited our requirements and budget. All this process kept on going for 2 months, whenever I used to go to Delhi I was taking TD’s of different cars once I used to finish off with my meetings. I started feeling as if I am searching for a hidden treasure since I was not getting a car upto my expectations. Finally got hand on 2 swifts 1 white and 1 grey both were in decent condition though they didn’t have airbags but had ABS. Both were approx 40k kms on the ODO and were 2014 model. I took the TD, but the condition of the engine or the overall car was not matching the ODO, SO got the VIN no and ran a service record check through my sources in Maruti. White Swift was a genuine seller but the Grey Swift was almost 90k. So the grey swift was out of the list, my mind right there itself. After I got the service records checked I called the owner of the White Swift and requested him to come to the maruti dealership so that I can get the car checked at the dealership and the owner agreed to that. Next day we got the car checked and I handed him Rs. 10,000 token money and took his receiving on a letter and told him that I would pick the car next week after paying the full amount. I had conveyed this to him at the beginning itself.

After a week I called the guy and was shocked to hear that he met with an accident with the same car. Though the damage was not severe and the owner didn’t get hurt as well, but my inner instincts were Big NO. So I told him to return the amount and the deal was cancelled right there. Now I was back at the same point where I started from 2 months earlier. All I had in my mind was Frustration and some more Frustration. I told my dad about the incident and that I had cancelled the deal while we were having dinner. There was silence and all you could hear was spoons hitting the plates and Fan noise. After 10 minutes of silence dad said something which was just a boiling idea in my mind.

Dad: Why don’t you look for a new car?
Me: Looking at Dad with (happiness, eagerness, confusion and what not in my mind)
Dad: See if we can get a hatch with a little bit of extension in our budget. (We were not tight on budget but I didn't wanted to spend more than 6 lacs on vehicle for our local use and also I am saving for my next car which will replace our XUV 5OO which has done 1,00,000 kms, probably sometime nest year). http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...xuv500-w8.html
Dad: It’s better than wasting 2 months again and you won’t get time from your work in the coming days anyways. Also we can keep the car for another 4-5 years easily.
Me: Hhmm. Let me see what the options available in the market are.
Dad: See if you can get something within 6 Lac since it will be primarily used local, so no point in buying anything above 5-6 Lakhs.
Me: True, that sounds good.

Next day I went to Maruti and Ford to check out the Swift and Figo. First I went to Ford and I was just blown away with a RED beast right in front of me (It took me back to days in US) yes it was a red mustang. Somehow I managed to move on and a sales guy shows up and welcomes me in a good manner.
SA: Hello Sir, Looking for the Endeavour ? (Maybe he said that because he saw me coming out of my XUV, don’t know).
Me: No, Actually I am looking for a smaller car for local purpose.
SA: How about the Figo in that case
Me: Sure.

He got the brochure and started explaining the features and the differences between the different variants. But the titanium model was going way over the budget and on top of that they only had titanium in stock and for lower variants the SA said that I’ll have to wait for 2 months atleast. I took the brochure, price list and left the showroom. I told the SA that I will let him know of our decision in a day or so.

Next was Maruti which is just 2 minutes from Ford. I entered the showroom and no one came to attend me for 2-3 minutes. Finally I went to the lady at the reception and asked her if she can call someone. She told me to sit at the sofa lying by her side and after good 10 minutes a SA showed up and straight away asked which car do you want? First of all you keep a customer waiting for good 15-20 minutes and then you don’t even greet him, good start.
ME : Can I get a glass of water? I think it would have been nice if you asked me for it?
SA: Sarry sar, I forgot. (Goes and get a water bottle)
SA: So sar, which car do you want?
ME: Swift – Diesel
SA: Let me tell you about the variants and the difference between them.
He actually explained everything very nicely.
ME: What’s the price of LDi?
SA: 7,25,000 ON ROAD.
ME: Holly Christ! 7.25 L for Swift and that too for base model.
ME: How much is the ZDi?
SA: 8.5Lac approx
ME: Took the price list and walked out of the showroom.

The price of Swift was too high and I personally felt it’s not a VFM car anymore.Not that we had a tight budget but I remember getting Elite i20 Sportz – Diesel for 8.38 Lac. And if I compare both the cars I don’t think Swift gets any extra points besides resale value.

So after visiting Maruti I returned back to my office with more confusion in my mind. Tiago was nowhere in the race till now. Got a phone call from one of my friend who is a banker and he asked me whether I finalised anything. Actually he was in the same dilemma since he was looking to change his old 2008 model dzire. I told him my experience and he was like “What 7.25 L for Swift Ldi”.
Friend: Are you serious, 7.25L for base model of Swift?
Me: Yes
Friend: How much is the top?
Me: 8.5L apporx.
Friend: Ok. Are you free right now?
Me: Yeah, why?
Friend: Come over to my office and let’s go and check Tiago
Me: (Thinking in mind TATA ASS and customer care)Hhhmm lets go. I’ll pick you up in 10 minutes
Friend: ok

Within next 10-15 minutes I was right outside his bank and left for Tata dealership after picking him up. We reached the showroom and saw couple of Tiago’s and Hexa lined up for deliveries. As soon as we entered the showroom we were greeted by the receptionist (Atleast it was better than Maruti).

SA: Hello Sir, How can I help you?
Me: We are looking for Tiago.
SA: Please have a seat sir. Would you like to have something cold or hot?
Me: No. Thanks
SA: Are you looking for petrol or diesel?
Me: Diesel
SA: What all features are you looking for, sir?
Me: Airbags, ABS, Power windows, Power Steering
SA: Sir the XZ model has everything you want and it is the top model. And he explained all the variants and the difference between them.
SA: Sir, there is an option pack available for the lower models which adds airbags and driver seat height adjustment.
ME: Can we take a TD.
SA: Yes sir, just give me 2 minutes and your ID please.
I gave him my ID and he returned after 5 minutes or so and we followed him out of the showroom where a sunburst orange XZ diesel Tiago was all set for the TD.

TD Experience:
So I took the driver seat while my friend jumped into the passenger seat and the SA took the back seat. And I was actually taken a back with the nice and decent interior of Tiago which was really good taking into consideration the segment and price of the vehicle. Nicely laid out centre console and a very simple but decent looking ODO. The quality of the dash, touch and feel plus the buttons and knobs were good quality. We slowly took off and I took my own sweet 5 minutes to get adjusted to the steering, acceleration and braking first as I just drove to the showroom in XUV 5OO. So once I was settled I started noticing all the aspects of the car. Clutch felt light which will be really nice during B2B traffic. Steering weighs up nicely as your speed increases and the suspension felt nice as well since the car just glided over the potholes though they were mild ones not those big ones but still suspension felt nice for this segment as compared to other cars. And the 3 cylinder engine is not that quick but it’s not lousy as well. After the TD we went back to the showroom and booked the XM(O) – Diesel.

Booking 1:
On th July we went to Shree Balaji Autowheels, Moradabad and booked a Silver Tiago XM(O) variant with 15-20 days of delivery time. I gave 11,000 /- cash, took the receipt and left for home. As we reached home I got a call from the SA saying that sir there is a problem.

ME: And what is that?
SA: Sir, I just got confused between the regular and optional variant delivery time.
Me: What’s the difference?
SA: Sir, Actually for the XM(O) variant the wait time is about 4-5 months and I just came to know that from our GM.
Me: What???
SA: Yes sir, I am sorry sir as I got confused between the regular and optional variant.
Me: No Problem atleast you are being honest and accepting your fault. Please cancel the booking in that case.
Me: Or see if you can get the car through any other dealer in your connection.
SA: Sir I already ran a check for about 15-20 dealerships but no one has XM(O).
Me: In that case please cancel the booking then.

BOOKING 2:

So my first booking got cancelled in first 24 hours. Next day I called a guy who used to work in Mahindra when we bought our XUV and I knew he was in Concorde Motors, Mohan Estate, Delhi.
So I called him and told that I need to buy a Tiago –Diesel XM(O) variant and enquired whether they have any in stock. He gave one of the SA’s no. and told me to coordinate with him as he was in the Service Dept. (Service Manager).

So I received a call from the SA whose no. the guy gave me and I told him my requirement. SA asked me if I could come to the showroom. I told him that ill see you tomorrow as I already had plans to go to Delhi. Next day around 2:00 pm I reached the showroom and was greeted by the SA and my contact from Mahindra. We discussed over the pricing and all the factors and booked the XM(O) variant with delivery assured within 3 months. We gave them a cheque of Rs. 11,000, took the receipt and left the showroom.

Booking 2 Cancelled:
On 30th October the dealer called me and said that (when I was expecting delivery of my car)
SA: Sir, Please provide a letter from your bank stating that it’s not our responsibility to provide the RC and insurance documents of your car to the bank and we will have no responsibility.
Me: What do you mean by that?
SA: Sir, since you have opted for self registration we can’t give the car without that letter as I told you the same at the time of booking.
Me: And I told you my bank will do anything that is under their policy and guidelines and you agreed to that.
SA: Yes sir, so please tell them to provide the letter.

Meanwhile I called my guy at the bank and told him about the letter that the dealer was demanding. He told me that sir there is no such kind of letter that the bank provides to any customer. And this is dealer’s responsibility anyways to give all the documents whenever they receive it. Sir I have clients who get BMW, Audi, and Mercedes from Delhi on Temp. registration and get it registered here in Moradabad but none of them has ever asked for this kind of letter. He then explained me that sir this all crap is at the dealership level and TATA has no such norms and policies.

Infact, we have couple of cars that were bought from Delhi, Faridabad and registered in our hometown and we were never asked for such letter. So I called the SA back.

ME: Sorry, the bank will not give the letter as they don’t provide such kind of letters to anyone. And secondly it’s the dealership responsibility to provide all the documents. And anyways I’ll get the insurance right away and you can update the same with bank and regarding RC as soon as I get the RC I’ll scan and send It you and I have no problem in doing that. So why are you worrying for such a small thing.

SA: No sir this is mandatory.
ME: Again talking very calmly thinking that he understands
SA: No Sir, I really can’t do that.
ME: After almost wasting half of my day over the phone with him. “Vipin Ji” tell me one thing,
SA: Yes sir,
ME: I booked XM(O) with you and I was given 3 months waiting time but you fail to do so. Still I didn’t create any ruckus and moved to XZ so that you can give me the car earlier as you had no idea when you could give me XM(O) and I let it go.

Then you tell me to pay some more down payment before giving the delivery so that you can bill the car and I had no clue why would you bill the car before the actual delivery date but still I transferred you Rs. 30,000 without any question. (I was okay with it still as anyways I had to pay some money as the margin money besides the loan amount). And if I give it a thought you wanted to bill the car in the month of October maybe to complete your targets. Still I was okay with it as I would have taken the delivery on 4th November.

Now you come up with this stupid story of yours and you want to believe this and you want my bank to go out of the way and provide something which is out of their policies for a 6 Lac car?
SA: Sir I understand that and I am thankful for your cooperation so far. Sir we are just few steps from the delivery.
ME: Tell me one thing, does TATA gives you the authority to do this?
SA: Had nothing to say
ME: Sorry you are not getting that letter from the bank.
SA: Sir, let me see what I can do

After 10 minutes he calls me back with a new scheme which totally made me mad.
SA: Sir, my seniors have give one more option.
ME: And that is?
SA: Sir you can give us Rs. 50,000 cheque as security which will be refunded in full to you once you give us the RC.
ME: So you are trying to say that I’ll run with the car and not provide you the documents and you guys don’t trust me as a customer. Is that what you and your team think of us?
SA: NO words
ME: Please cancel my booking as I can’t take any more insults as a customer.
SA: Sir please don’t get angry and I told you earlier.
ME: And I also told you that my bank will do anything it needs to do within their guidelines and policies. You want the money, my bank is giving you the “DO” and I am paying you the remaining amount at delivery out of which you have already received RS. 41,000. And still you have issues?
SA: Sir I’ll talk to my superiors and see what can be done.

I get a call back after 5 minutes with another scheme.
SA: Sir you can take the delivery and leave the car with us after the delivery ceremony and pooja is done. And when you will get the RC we will take a copy and release the car to you.
ME: (I was totally irritated and frustrated by this time and unleashed at the SA). Are you serious? This is what you thought would work after I have waited for almost 3.5 months?
SA: Again trying to get my approval on this and finally tells me the same thing that he will me back.

After 10 minutes I receive a call from his senior Mr. Jacob:
Senior: Hello Sir, I came to know that there has been an issue going regarding the delivery of your car.
ME: Yes, And I Can’t do anything about it since the bank does not provide such type of letters.
Senior: Sir, Actually we have gone through a similar incident where a customer bought a Safari from us and he had opted for self registration and never turned up with the RC and the bank took the loan amount back hence our dealership had to bear the loss of 9 lacs.
ME: Many people default on their bank payments but our bank never said NO to us for an vehicle loan. You just can’t put all customers in one basket.
ME: Please cancel my booking and refund the amount. I can’t this anymore as I have already wasted a lot of time on this now.
Senior: OK, Sir and disconnects the call.

First of all I thought that I’ll just let it go, take my money and get the car from my hometown itself as I didn’t wanted to make a complain because of my relation with one of their service manager with whom I have a good friendly relation as I know him from long. (He was the RM in Mahindra when we bought our XUV). But after thinking all that I went through and what I achieved at last I came to a conclusion that TATA should know how their dealers are treating valuable customers.

Booking 3:
1st November
I was again back to square 1, yes once again. My loan was approved and everything was ready. I told my guy at the bank that looks after all our loan stuff the entire story. He has been in the same bank for years and has very good reputation with all the dealers, RTO, insurance companies and with the big hot shots of the city.

Bank Guy: Sir please put a complaint of this dealer with TATA. And give me 5 minutes I’ll call you back.
Me: Okay
After 10 – 15 minutes I receive a call back from my bank guy,
Bank Guy: Sir, I have talked to the GM of TATA and they can give you XZ –Diesel in white or Silver right away and they will match your Ex-Showroom with that of Concorde Motors, Delhi.
Me: Wow that was quick.
Bank Guy: Sir, you are a very old customer of our Bank. “Aap ke liye to karna hi padega” (You are a very old customer of our bank, so need to do this for you).
Me: Thanks
Bank Guy: Just go and meet the GM around 1:30 pm and he will take care of the rest.
Me: Thanks.
So, I go and meet the GM of Shree Balaji Autowheels (Same dealer where I got my first booking cancelled, destiny) around 1:30 pm.
Me: Hello sir,
GM: Hello sir, how you doing.
Me: I am good. I guess you had a word with Mr. XXXX
GM: Oh yes yes, I got a call from Mr. XXXXX this morning and if he is calling me then it means you definitely are someone important or have a close relation with Mr. XXXX (with a smile on his face)
Me: Just passed a smile.
GM: So you want XZ Tiago, right?
Me: Yes
GM: Any particular colour you want?
Me: Berry Red
GM: “Thinks for a minute or so” Can you give me one more choice if I can’t arrange Berry Red for you since that colour is mostly ordered on demand
Me: I will be okay with Espresso Brown in that case.
GM: Done, I’ll try to find Berry Red for you but In case I don’t get it I’ll provide you a Brown Tiago as we have one in our stock and another one is in transit.
Me: And I need the delivery on 10th of this month.
GM: I assure you of that, don’t worry sir you will get your Car delivered on 10th of November and I’ll let you know by 5th or 6th November which colour will it be.
Me: Thanks

After that I enquired about the insurance, AMC and extended warranty and told the GM to add the AMC with it and negotiated little bit on the insurance as well. And besides that they promised to give basic accessories kit free of cost (Mats, Flaps, No. Plate, Perfume and divinity), for which they were initially charging Rs 5000.

The SA called me on 5th November and told me that they have received Espresso Brown and will be ready for delivery on 10th and I can visit the showroom anytime and do the PDI as I insisted. I told him that I’ll come on 8th as I was out of station. I visited the dealer on 8th and my car was standing right at the front all covered in mud. They had actually got it from another dealership which was 145 kms, approx. I checked all the sides, exterior and interior of the car and found everything to be okay. I met the GM afterwards and told him to get the car clean properly and he assured me that he will take care of it and check everything, after that I left the showroom. Also I decoded the VIN no. and it shows that the car is manufactured in September 2017.

Delivery Day:
10th November, Finally comes the D-Day, woke up early and left for my office to get few things done before going for the delivery. Afer finishing my work we left for the dealership and reached there around 12:30 Pm with family. We were greeted by our SA and the GM and offered to take a seat by the time paper work was getting completed. I had already paid the margin money a day before so that dealer can make the delivery quick. It took the dealer 20-25 minutes to finish all the formalities and we were out of the showroom with our Tiago in about 30-35 minutes which included the delivery process. The SA did walk me through the features but I was like please just hand me the keys now (well, it was long 5 months wait).
Dealer provided 5 litre diesel coupon from the nearest pump, so got the 5 litre filled in and then got the tank full which came upto 27.61 litres. So probably the tank had 3 litre diesel before refuelling.

Ex Showroom: Rs. 5,67,000
Insurance: Rs. 22,000
Registration: Rs. 46,000
On Road Price: Rs. 6,35,000

Freebies: Floor mats, mud flaps and no. plates.
Special Reg. No: Rs. 3000 (Booked the number online from the UP Parivahan website on 2nd November itself).

I will be going for the AMC which is Rs. 5400 and Extended Warranty which is Rs. 7000. Tiago XZ (D) is Rs. 6,54,500 on road in Moradabad plus Rs. 5400 for AMC and the total comes upto Rs. 6,59,900 so I saved almost Rs. 19,500 on a vehicle that has no discounts. Well I guess that makes up for all the difficulties I faced during the entire process from day 1 to the day of delivery.

[Singh09]

Putting up some pictures.
At the time of delivery



ODO at the time of delivery. Since they got the car from another dealership from other city hence the ODO stands at



At home after delivery



Front looks appealing with the 3d emblem, piano black grille, fog lamps with chrome rings



Decent GC for a car in this segment. Does not scrap easily even with 4 on board.



Side click, paint quality is pretty good.



ORVM’s with turn indicators



Fuel Tank Door



I really like the black appliqué on the bumper, gives a nice look.





Steering wheel with Phone and audio controls.



Very well laid out center console layout. Everything is very well in reach of the driver.



Harman Audio System



Rear defroster, fog light and economy mode buttons.



AC and Air Flow control. Aux, usb and 12v socket.



Centre AC vents with the hazard button.



AC vents are very well finished in piano black with chrome accents, gives a nice look to the interior.



Small hook to hold those small grocery bags and other stuff.



Nice storage to keep your cell phone and other stuff.



Gear knob finished in piano black with chrome outer lining looks and feel good.



That space behind the cup holders can gulp 1 litre bottle easily.



Driver side controls on the door for the windows. Driver side window has auto down function as well.



Wiper stalk with different settings.



Light stalk with headlight height adjustment



Front cabin which feels roomier and does not feel cramped like EON



Rear seats which are pretty comfortable.



This is how much space you have with the front seat pushed all the way back.



ORVM's controls.



Dashboard has a small shelf to keep the car documents



Key fob with remote. You oly get 1 remote and a simple key as a spare one.

[Singh09]

Rear PArcel tray



Back door with speaker and twiter



Front door has the door handle finished in paino black and is very well positioned.



Even the door opeing latch are finished in chrome which adds more premium look.



Key hole



The key hole ring illuminates during night



Cabin light has the led bulb which throws white light instead of the dull yellow light



ODO during night time



Center console during night time



That's how the front looks during the night time. Feels nice when you are behind the steering wheel



Boot space is decent and can gulp is your weekend trip luggage easily



175/65/R14 Goodyear tires are pretty much decent according to the size of the vehicle.





Spare tire is a simple tire without alloys



Key fob with remote



The Antenna is pretty long for my liking. Will probably change to a much shorter or a sharkfin one.



The emergency triangle is well placed in a pocket behind the second row



Highest Mileage pic I have but last week I got 26.7 kmpl couldn’t take the pic as I was driving on highway. This includes 50% city and 50% highway drive



That's the current ODO reading

[Singh09]

Engine & Gearbox: The 3 cylinder engine produces enough power to move you around the city comfortably. You can feel the turbo kicking around 1500-1800 rpm and then around 3000 rpm. So far 2nd and 3rd gears are doing their work in the city traffic, thanks to the low end torque. Talking about the gearbox, gears are really smooth but sometimes second gear used to be a bit notchy in the initial days but now it has become little bit smooth, hope it will become smoother with time. Engine does struggle a little bit during cold start in winters.
Also you ought to be in the right gear while you are overtaking on the highways; on the contrary I like the short gear lever.

Ride & Handling: Handling is very nice as the steering weighs up as your speed increases and does not feel life less or light at high speeds but when you are driving in city the small and light steering wheel is a plus. It is light in city at low speeds and weighs up properly while you are driving on highways which give you a lot of confidence.

Suspension: Well this is something I really want to appreciate about since we upgraded from EON it’s totally a different experience. Now the car does not scrap the smallest of the speed breakers (thanks to the 170 mm GC) as our EON used to with 4 on board, ooppss I would rather say 4 and a half (my 9 months old son). Suspension has a mature setup which makes the ride quality pretty comfortable plus the tires provide decent grip on the road. Also the suspension is not bouncy and the car just glides on the small potholes and breakers. Overall suspension setup is very decent and it’s more on the softer side but don’t compare it with the Germans.

Design and Finish: Well it’s a fresh design and the nose of the car tips forward which gives it a bit of aggressive look. The body line goes all the way from the front fender to the rear of the car giving it nice look. Small things like black B pillars, fresh shape of the spoiler, the 3d TATA Emblem, the chrome on the front fog lights, black appliqué on the rear bumper, the front piano black grille etc gives it a fresh look which will age well with the time.

Build Quality: Well it’s a TATA hence built tough but with Tiago TATA has done a very good job when it comes to interior of the car. The quality of material used for the dash is good or I would say decent. Everything feels solid and sturdy but the lower panels of the dash (part of the dash that goes all the way to leg space by the gear knob) feels bit sceptical and the quality can be improved.

Space and Comfort: This is something which was really appreciated by everyone in the family as both the front and back seats are pretty comfortable. And the legroom for the back row is pretty much sufficient. Also the rear seat is best suited for 2 adults and a small kid otherwise 3 people can be adjusted too. Talking of boot space, its’ quite decent for your long weekend trips and can gulp those big suitcases that you take on the international trips with other small bags as well.

Lighting: Well this is something that TATA really needs to work on. The headlights are adequate for city driving but driving on the highway with the stock lights is difficult. Though the headlamps are adjustable but the light throw is not upto mark.

Convenience & ICE: Well the harman setup in the car is really awesome when you compare the price of the car you have paid. Even it's better than my XUV 500 stock system. Phone pairs up easily when you step in the car. Also the steering controls combined with the phone controls are just upto mark. There is lot of storage space in the front including the cup holders, cubby space behind the cup holders and the space under the AC controls but what is annoying is that the cup holders and the hand brake lever are placed too close to each other which makes it bit uncomfortable to pick your coffee or drink as the lid keep coming off since it brushes with the hand brake.

Fuel Economy: So far the FE is hovering around 16.5 to 18 kmpl while driving in the city. However the highest FE that I have got is 26.7 kmpl which was on the highway on my recent visit to Delhi. I think the car will perform a little bit better once it’s done with it’s first oil change.

AC: Well the AC is quite effective as of now since the summers are over but still I am using the AC at fan speed 1 and have to switch it off within 10 mins. So can’t speak much on that right now until the summers are back. But the blowers make a lot of noise which is not to my liking and as you increase the blower speed the noise increases.

NVH: The cabin feels silent with all the windows up even with the music system off but it’s not like soundless. I do feel a little bit of vibrations on the gear stick but that is when your hand is on the gear stick while driving otherwise it’s not like you can see the gear stick shaking. But if you floor that accelerator really hard the engine sound is very much audible and I mean it goes from a silent baby to a cranky baby crying for his milk.

Verdict: Overall a really nice product from TATA stable and yes one of the most VFM car available in the segment. If backed by the customer service and good ASS TATA definitely has a winner in their hands. Rest i'll be updating the thread as we continue our journey with Tiago

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[unni246]

Let me be the first to Congratulate You Mr.Singh !

Awesome story and a great ownership review that you shared on the well rounded package of a car, wise choice there.
I am keen to see how Tata progresses with their improved range of vehicles and also waiting to see them launch the Sports version of the Tiago & Tigor that was displayed at the 2018 Auto Show.

TATA ASS again is something that needs to still see some good improvements along with number of their service centers within the country.

Well wish you Happy Motoring

[ROG_AK]

Congratulations! and a great write up. I personally think it's the best car in the segment . Hope it serves you well for years to come.

[ShubhamGhute]

Congratulations for your new beauty! She is indeed a looker. Great choice of colour and well put together review! Loved reading it. Tiago is the best VFM preposition in its segment and even in segment above it. Sweet diesel engine, host of features on offer and a good built as well. The only thing against it is Tata’s ASS which though better than earlier, still requires quite a lot of reformation to satisfy their customer base.
Hope she serves well in coming years and give you endless memories to cherish!

[palsaumik]

Thanks for the detailed experience and ownership review. Will look forward to your long term reviews on this car.

I have been closely following all TIAGO threads on T-BHP and it seems to check all the items in my next upgrade (from a Brio). Well, XZ it is then.

[ashokabs]

Congratulations on your new ride. It is a great car and certainly very good value for money compared to all the others in the market. It is a pleasure to hear the thunk of the solid doors compared to the tinny sounds from other competitors. I am very happy with my Petrol Tiago XZ which is now 18 months old. It grows on you and I am confident that Tata Motors is going to improve their service even more in the days to come. Already in 18 months I can see a lot of improvement.

[Singh09]

Originally Posted by unni246

Let me be the first to Congratulate You Mr.Singh !

Awesome story and a great ownership review that you shared on the well rounded package of a car, wise choice there.
I am keen to see how Tata progresses with their improved range of vehicles and also waiting to see them launch the Sports version of the Tiago & Tigor that was displayed at the 2018 Auto Show.

TATA ASS again is something that needs to still see some good improvements along with number of their service centers within the country.

Well wish you Happy Motoring

Thank you buddy. I personally feel that Tiago is the most practical choice in that particular segment. It has everything you need from a basic hatch for city as well as highway drives.

Originally Posted by ROG_AK

Congratulations! and a great write up. I personally think it's the best car in the segment . Hope it serves you well for years to come.

Thank you buddy.

Originally Posted by ShubhamGhute

Congratulations for your new beauty! She is indeed a looker. Great choice of colour and well put together review! Loved reading it. Tiago is the best VFM preposition in its segment and even in segment above it. Sweet diesel engine, host of features on offer and a good built as well. The only thing against it is Tata’s ASS which though better than earlier, still requires quite a lot of reformation to satisfy their customer base.
Hope she serves well in coming years and give you endless memories to cherish!

Thanks! I actually wanted to go with berry red since I had couple of things planned like black roof, ORVM's and alloys but couldn't get it hence moved to espresso brown. ASS still need to improve as they don't give proper attention while servicing. I went in for my first service which was basically a general check up, cleaning and washing. And I guess that was too much of a work for them. They had put wet mats inside and one of the mat had black grease on it. Since I didn't had time to go back I got it washed at my home itself.
This is where Mahindra excels over TATA by miles, I have never faced any problem with M&M ASS in case of my XUV which is 1,08,000 kms as fo now and will complete 6 years this November.

Originally Posted by palsaumik

Thanks for the detailed experience and ownership review. Will look forward to your long term reviews on this car.

I have been closely following all TIAGO threads on T-BHP and it seems to check all the items in my next upgrade (from a Brio). Well, XZ it is then.

Thanks mate and yes XZ is the way to go with all the bells and whistles. You will just fell in love with the Harman.

Originally Posted by ashokabs

Congratulations on your new ride. It is a great car and certainly very good value for money compared to all the others in the market. It is a pleasure to hear the thunk of the solid doors compared to the tinny sounds from other competitors. I am very happy with my Petrol Tiago XZ which is now 18 months old. It grows on you and I am confident that Tata Motors is going to improve their service even more in the days to come. Already in 18 months I can see a lot of improvement.

Thanks buddy and +1 to that. How has your experience with the ASS so far?

[ashokabs]

Originally Posted by Singh09

Thanks buddy and +1 to that. How has your experience with the ASS so far?

I have had only the three unpaid services so far. My first paid service is due at the end of this month after 18 months (12000kkm). I have had good experience at the ASS for the three services. I had to get one major fault corrected during warranty. The throttle assembly was faulty and the car was not taking any throttle inputs. I had to involve the Tata Motors customer service management in Delhi and two different ASS were involved in the diagnosis and rectification - one in Delhi and one in Noida. The emergency service was also used twice for towing the car and dropping me to my residence. It was as good as any others I have availed like Maruti and Honda.

[ShubhamGhute]

Originally Posted by Singh09

I actually wanted to go with berry red since I had couple of things planned like black roof, ORVM's and alloys but couldn't get it hence moved to espresso brown. ASS still need to improve as they don't give proper attention while servicing. I went in for my first service which was basically a general check up, cleaning and washing. And I guess that was too much of a work for them. They had put wet mats inside and one of the mat had black grease on it. Since I didn't had time to go back I got it washed at my home itself.
This is where Mahindra excels over TATA by miles, I have never faced any problem with M&M ASS in case of my XUV which is 1,08,000 kms as fo now and will complete 6 years this November.

Yes! Tata has a lot to go in terms of their ASS. The problem you mentioned is the same issue I faced with VW service stations regarding putting wet mats in car. Such small issues dont matter much but they ensure you dont get ‘satisfied’. Toyota excels here!

[Singh09]

Tiago completed 5k on the ODO early this month and completed 6 months as well. So sent it for the Second service and the total damage was Rs. 885/-.

Now since we bought the Car in November when the weather was pleasent and as I have mentioned in my initial review that I would update on the cooling of the car as we go forward. I am not pretty much satisfied with the AC unit becuase it fails to cool if you are driving with sun right in front of you. There has been a couple of instances and the cooling isn't that great. As a matter of fact our Eon had a better cooling efficiency as compared to Tiago.
And if you have your car parked under the sun for a while then it takes a lot of time to cool the cabin even though if you drive with windows rolled down for a minute or so.
I will be ordering the magnetic curtains for my car and see if that helps to keep the cabin cool. Rest any other suggestions are more than welcome from the fellow owners and members.

[Singh09]

Hello Everyone,
I am facing a problem with my Head Unit of my Tiago XZ. The head unit went dead on its own and is not switching ON. Everything in the car is in Stock condition, and no wires have been touched. It came alive one day and worked for a few days and now again it's dead. It does not turn ON, I have checked all the fuses inside the cabin as well as in the engine compartment. Everything is looking good, So does anyone has any clue what might be the problem here?

Thanks