[aniyo]

Contents:
1. Prologue
2. Buying decision and Delivery
3. First Road Trip
4. First Few months and service
5. Wife's Fury
6. Acid Attack
7. Chennai Trips
8. Goa Trip
9. Third Service
10. Vizag Diaries
12. Final Thoughts

Prologue:
Hi Folks. it been 2 years with my Nexon and covered almost 23,000 KM. Been a great journey so far and wanted to share my experience.



We all love to drive one way or another, some prefer fast cars, some comfortable and some love off-roading. The last one I am not.
I used to drive fast in my 20s but better sense has come in my 30s, now I am savor the journey more than the destination

After passing our from MBA I really wanted to buy a car back in 2013, but education loans dictated discipline. Vigorously I paid of my loan in just 20 months and I literally used to live hand to mouth and used to drive my old Pulsar (round headlight).

In 2015 I started hunting for a car and test drove Ecosport and Duster. I loved the Duster but my pocket did not. After consulting the excel sheet decided to pick up Ecosport, I think it was Trend+ at that time, can't remember the variant exactly. It was about 8.5Lor 9L on road. Did a few calculations and started saving up a bit more to reduce the loan.

As fate would have it, my brother called and told he is leaving for USA for a 5 year stint in 2015 (a lie, he is not coming back ever) and wanted my help to dispose off the Brio and RE Thunderbird. Now I became greedy, he being my elder brother I should get things for free. Now the dilemma started should I buy the Ecosport or get the used Brio and knowing my brother it was immaculately maintained. Spoke to parents (big mistake) and they were shocked that I was actually thinking of buying a new car when there is one ready available with brother. Finally settled for the Brio.
This is how I got my first personal car, a red Honda Brio and it had done 18,000 Km in 2.5 years when I got it home.

Honestly the Brio was a fuss free car and very reliable. Surprisingly composed on the highway, I and my wife did Coorg, Munnar, Chennai, Wayanad etc in the Brio and it was rather pleasant.

But, there is always a But. Everytime I saw the Ecosport I would feel bad that I missed the chance to buy. Brio was good not special. Not once I looked at the car after parking. I did not take any great care either, regular service, regular wash that's about it. It just did not feel like I own a car, it was a utility, a very good one at that. It was small so easy to drive and GC was okayish.

After 2 years of driving I got really bored of the Brio and wanted to upgrade, wife did not seem to understand my pain but she agreed as she did not like the Brio either. So in 2017 we went car hunting again. This time I had more experience with the car and having spent so much time on Team bhp I was confident to make the right choice.
I test drove Creta, Duster, Ecoport and had to choose among one. Wife found Creta a bit pricy but this was in contention. I was to avail company car lease and was close enough on booking a Ecosport again this time, since the price was within my lease limit. So did I book Ecopsort finally.

Nope, life had different plans. My wife's uncle suggested we invest in an house in Hyderabad as the rate were to pick up soon. Got a fab deal, a 2BHK ready to move in, in vast gated community under 60L all inclusive. Well we got the house and our rental income started the same month as the EMI (we live in Bangalore).

So the wait started again and I had a few hiccups on the job front and we went into a slow mode for now. After a few months things improved for both me and wife at the job front, both got decent hikes and we were again ready to buy the car. I wanted to ensure nothing ruins this time.
Original plan was to upgrade in 2018 but wife wanted a foreign vacation and we went to Mauritius. Blew 1.7L in total and had to wait one more year for the funds to build up.

Finally in 2019 I put my foot down that we are buying a car. Test drives begins the third time and still we had exactly the same cars in contention.
1. Creta
2. Duster AWD
3. Ecopsort Titanium/ Titanium plus
4. Nexon, the new addition

Neither of us were keen on sedans, though I considered City for a while wife rejected it. She wanted a SUVish sort of car. Also driving in Bangalore I too prefer a high GC car. Don't get me wrong, I managed Brio just fine for 4 years even with 4 people. It is that low GC adds to driving stress. None of the sedans (baring Rapid/Vento) have sporty handling or great suspension. All are commuter in nature. The few advantages with a SUVish car is better visibility, no stress on driving in city or highway, most of them are decent to handle at speed till 100-110 (my prefeed driving speeds on highway) and cities don't offer enough space to enjoy the handling or suspension.
One can say it was more of a mental requirement than actual physical requirement and we made our choice.
Few important aspects on car shortlisting,
For me:
1. Safe and Robust
2. Good Audio system or at least easily upgradable. Being in Sales I spend a lot of time in car. So a good Audio system and good BT
connectivity is a must
3. AA mandatory no compromise.
4. Good supportive seats, my back has started to hurt
5. Good strong AC, Brio was very mediocre in this even in Bangalore climate.

For Wife:
1. Decent boot space, Brio lacked big time and we struggled when we had relatives or families come over
2. Good AC, for her this was a no compromise
3. High GC with door opening above footpath. As silly as this may sound she hated that the door in Brio hit the footpath every time
I parked close to it
4. Decent insulation from outside noise
5. Interior quality and design
6. Compact footprint, owing to Bangalore congestion

Decision making

Creta:
Likes
1. Great interiors much better than other in the fray.
2. Spacious than CSUV not as much as Duster.
3. Good right quality and decent feature list
4. Good Diesel engine

Dislike
1. Expensive by 4L (stretch but in consideration)
2. Based on i20 platform and know braking issue
3. Fully loaded version almost 17L on road. Did not find it worth the cost

Duster:
Likes
1. Ride quality no doubt
2. Decent space for 5 people with a large boot
3. AWD option available
4. Rugged look and a rugged workhorse

Dislikes
1. Outdated interiors by a large margin
2. Infamous injector issue esp. on the 110 PS variant was on my mind
3. Dealer network not ideal. Many people have reported serious issues with them
4. Small airbags was a shocker
5. Horrible insulation

Ecosport:
Likes
1. Robust build
2. Great AC and nice commanding seating position
3. Good quality of interiors and nice touchscreen with Sync 3 system
4. Fantastic handling and dynamics also nice insulation
5. Still looks fab and has 6 airbag version
6. Nice diesel engine

Dislikes
1. Stiff ride quality
2. Narrow cabin and relatively less rear seat space (not an issue with wife)
3. Side opening boot (an issue with wife)

Nexon: Honestly I had a soft spot for this car
Likes:
1. Great space management
2. Good compromise between ride quality and handling.
3. Unique design
4. Nice linear engine and good seats makes for a comfortable driving. Usable driving modes
5. VFM proposition (price and features)
6. 5 * crash rating
7. Proper tyre size makes for a great stance

Dislikes:
1. Odd design at the rear (Wife hated it, still does)
2. No 6 airbag version
3. Fit and finish in many areas is not up to mark
4. Silly cost cutting (no rear reading lamp, laggy touchscreen, pathetic reverse cam etc)
5. Insulation could be better
6. Firm ride quality at 15-40KMPH speeds on potholed roads


Outside option:
I fancied Harrier when we went to check out Nexon. Liked the design and interiors. Surprisingly enough wife did not find the interior worth the money.
She was like this seats exactly 5 like other options so what's the point on paying premium. I gave her all the gyan on platform and how big car will benefit in long term. She stumped me by asking the crash rating for Harrier (I had raved about 5* on Nexon). Now I was caught off guard, told her untested and reports suggest not great results. She then asked about the child seats(again by Nexon raving), we were planning for a child in a year or so. I told her its available in top end model (Nexon had it from base model onwards). She stared back at me and I knew the answer.
Barebones mid variant, bad review on 2019 version did not help. Finally dropped this for good. Also this was way beyond budget did not see a point in stretching so much.

Decision time:

We were quite confused which way to go. Each car had their share of positives and negatives. This is where wife took charge and started by elimination.
Duster was the first to go. She hated the interiors every bit and refused to sit in it again. After a brief to and fro, Duster was axed. I realized, Duster really pulls the heart and most of us will look past the interior and other shortcoming for that AWD and abuse friendly build, but when it comes to family decision we have little say. This is where I feel Duster has lost a lot of family crowd despite being a decent option.

That left us with 3 choices. We went of test drives again. After a lot of though Creta was axed. Despite all the positives it was expensive by 4L for comparable variants from Ecosport and Nexon (4M rule here). She did not see the additional space as great advantage as Creta was only bigger by 10%. Also we would have to take a loan on Creta which we were hesitant since home loan was already ongoing. I was not too sure on the core engineering of the car. Reported braking issues ensured I did not contest this too much

We were down to 2, Ecosport and Nexon. Ecosport was what I wanted from 2015 but for one reason or other this was pushed.
Wife liked both Nexon and Ecosport and asked me to make a choice. She was good with both. We set our preferred budget to 12L with 1L stretch at max.

This was the hardest decision for me to make. One cannot go wrong with either of the choice, that made it all the more difficult. I was unable to make up my mind what will I like in the long term.
Ecosport had Driving dynamics, Sync 3, great reverse cam, nice insulation and engine, built to last interiors and body, 6 airbags.
Nexon had good linear engine, better ride quality and space management, regular opening hatch, awesome music system and 5* rating.

After a long thought it came down to 2 options. Nexon XZ+ D (11.6 on road all inclusive) or Titanium plus (14L before discount)
When we enquired around the ongoing discount was about 50-60k on Ecosport that made it 2L expensive. Now this is partly owing to non-sensical tax structure for cars above ex. showroom 10L (17% vs 14% for <10L). We are getting a lot more kit, 6 airbags, safety aids, I think it had art leather seats too (don't remember)

We took a close look at our finances and decided not to stretch ourselves too thin and limited the budget at 12L strictly (great decision in hindsight). Post this it was a no brainer. Ecosport titanium did not provide much value and felt Nexon was a better bet.

So after almost a 1.5 month long evaluation we decided on Nexon and got a decent deal. So in March'19 3rd week we booked our Nexon, Glasgow grey. (Wife will not have it any other color)


Buying experience:
We got a great deal of support from KHT motors. Never were we denied test drive by Sales executive. She never stopped us from taking a longish test drive either.
We though of making the booking with KHT itself but wife did not get good vibes from the place, blame it on showroom being small and mediocre or her general untrusting nature. I was hesitant to go elsewhere as we took all our test drives from KHT. I being in sales felt the Sales executive did a fair job. Honestly I knew a lot about the car so did not ask her much.

We did go to Concorde to check on pricing and wife liked the ambience better. Large bright showroom and lot of activity made her comfortable. So we finally made the made the booking with Concorde motors dairy circle Bangalore. We got a decent deal and discount but the delivery time was 4-5 weeks. This was in March'19 and we wanted the car before our anniversary in April.
For more than a week, the SA did not confirm the VIN number and I got news that TATA will increase prices from April 1. Problem the Nexon XZ+ was 9.95L ex. showroom. If the price hike crosses 10L the we end up paying 17% tax instead of 14%.
Now we all now price hike will apply unless I invoice before the hike. But without the VIN I was not paying a penny to the dealer.

Meanwhile I started to enquire with other dealers for XZ+ diesel in Grey. After 2 days of hunting, KHT motors had one cancellation for same variant in our choice of color. Went there did the PDI, completed negotiations and booked with invoicing. Car had 8Km on the ODO so good to go.

Total price including insurance 11.6L on road. Unfortunately they did not budge on handling charges of 5K. We did get 25K cash discount and 15K corporate discount. Insurance with 3 year 3rd party I got for 34K. I got a quote from outside for insurance and they came within 3K of that price. Considering I took a test drives there I agreed on the pricing and took the insurance in-house

Freebies- carpet mats, Ganesh Idol, car perfume, bumper corner protector and one more item I forgot

Nope, we did not exchange the Brio as showroom quoted 1.2L for a 48,000 KM driven car, I nearly laughed on their face
We managed to sell the Brio after a few months in Chennai (it was TN registered) for little over 2L

Delivery:
After invoicing we were asked to pay the balance payment. There was some hiccup in payments but finally we were able to send the money to dealer and they got the car registered on 26th March 2019. I got notification from RTO on tax paid and the car number. SBI fastag was provided which was pain and useless. Within few months we shifted to Paytm.

We consulted our parents and both side came with different auspicious dates. Have never understood this but who am I to challenge or change things. Finally 30th March was chosen for delivery. Strict orders not to wear black for delivery (don't ask me I don't understand either).

Finally the delivery date arrived and I could not sleep a night before. Thankfully it was a Saturday and we booked the cab and off to take our beloved Nexon. Wow I was having a car after a 4 year wait.
Delivery process was smooth, nothing fancy as I had requested delivery at their stock yard and not at the showroom. All the process was closed by 12:00 P.M. and off we drove for a small round (after tank full at shell). Took the car to customary pooja in a temple near our home. I slept in peace that night.










First road trip:
I was itching to take the car out for a trip. Our anniversary was in April and a perfect reason to go for a trip.
Since I had switched the job recently (joining in Feb), I could not take long leave. Wife was not too happy but relented. We decided on Mysore as a destination.
Took Friday off and since this was a short trip we just had one bag. I did not even bother to check the fluid level (since the car is less than a month old).
We started at around 7 a.m. and reached by 11ish. Bangalore- Mysore route is almost like driving in the city. Pathetic traffic. The car worked perfectly. The AC was a chiller and added GC and higher seating made obvious difference comparing from my Brio days.

As I mentioned earlier, the low speed ride quality is firmer than what I like. This is the funny thing though, ride quality is firm on roads with sharp potholes. The ride quality is surprisingly decent where the road is kaccha, or with uneven surface. I am not sure if I could explain this properly. One has to feel to understand.

Also the ride quality improves with people at the back. I checked with other Nexon owners they have had similar experience.

I found the gear shift a bit notchy esp. 1-2 and 2-3 and sometimes the reverse take extra effort to engage. Made a note to bring this up during service visit. Brio has a short crisp gear shift and never had any issue.

Body roll exists owing to the height but the car is pretty planted. No nervousness at 110 kind of speeds. Did not use the driving modes here and kept the car in City mode throughout

Coming back to trip, car being compact was easy to drive and park in Mysore and we could cover good ground in a short span. I felt the fabric seats are a bit too soft but decent quality. Wife did not like the seats and wanted to change. Few pics from our trip below.






Attachment 2151860



First few months and 2 services
Next few months were good and I found the silliest of the reason to take the Nexon out. I took wife on late night drives on highways, early morning drive to Nandi hills and random drives along the ORR just to have an ice-cream or a coffee 40Km away.
Wife was like, if I knew I was getting so many joy rides I would have bought the car before the house.

I had my first service after 1000Km. Nothing to report rather straight forward. I bought the extended warranty at this time and the car was returned without issue. There was a rattling noise from the C-pillar and this was on and off more off than on. They could not locate as the rattle had stopped. Service did not cost me anything.
I did bring up the gear issue they said it will improve with time and nothing is needed to be done now. I left reluctantly but was not keen on they touching the gearbox either.

After the first service I started using the drive modes more frequently. Used the eco mode one and never again. Most of the time Nexon is driven in City mode and use Sports mode only on the highway or when I am planning for an overtake.
I find the sports mode jerky in city conditions.

I majorly drive in peak traffic and moderate traffic across Bangalore. Clutch is light and easy to operate. Gear as I mentioned is a bit notchy on 2-3. Never felt fatigued driving a manual car. I would have considered Automatic if there was a TC on offer, no way I paying so much for AMT box.

Had my second service at 7500Km and I insisted to change the engine oil. They were reluctant but I insisted. Oil change with general service costed my 2.5K.
I had complaints this time. The car was dirty. Despite I explicitly telling them not to, they applied some stupid shine/polish to the dashboard. The smell gave me a headache and the dashboard reflected light like a metal plate. I was upset with this.
The thing that got me truly mad was the smudged the A pillar on passenger side and scratched the center console . I have no clue how they managed this. I gave them an earful and also mentioned same in the feedback. SA was like such small things happens saaar. They really need to value customer car more. I realized nothing is going to come off it and since I had to go pick wife I left the place in anger.


Gear shifts had improved over the last few thousand KMs but the reverse gear and 2-3 was still an intermittent issue. I decided to live with it for now. Other Nexon owners also faced so I was relived I am not the chosen one for this.

Wife's Fury:
We had not gone out since our anniversary in April and both of us wanted to go someplace. Picked the August 15th Weekend for long drives.
Places on the radar: Coorg, Yercad, Manipal, Wayanad/Munnar or Hampi. Well as lick would have it rains were in full flow and there was landslide and flooding in many tourist locations on the western ghats.

With that side closed we started looking at alternatives and the only one we got was Pondicherry. Wife had never been there so she wanted to try out.
Unfortunately for me she only prefers resort unless the location is exotic (like North east). With the whole tourist shifting towards, Pondicherry the rate went through the roof. Average accommodations were costing 9K/night. This is what we paid in Ocean facing room in resort in Mauritius. No way I was going to pay so much for Pondicherry.

Wife in no mood to listen wanted to go. Well for once I won the argument and she was mad at me for not going out. Quickly googled and posted on local Nexon group and day trip was planned at shivasamundram falls. It was good 140Km away so a nice 300Km round trip was planned and completed.
I was so happy with Nexon here as the terrain varied drastically with smooth road to no roads to sudden craters. Nexon is really comfortable to drive on the highway with good road manners and a robust planted feel.
Although I must mention that the ride quality is rather firm on cement roads and the insulation should improve.

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Acid Attack:
It was Diwali time coming up and my parents were to visit us. I casually went to check the car on Saturday (parents were arriving on Monday) and to my absolute horror the pipe above the car parking was dripping and formed a layer of white deposit on the glass and body of the car. I was heart broken seeing this. Tried removing the deposit with soap water, detergent, paint thinner, diesel etc nothing worked (did not apply anything on car body only glass).
I was not sure how to resolve this and I searched this on Team bhp, few hacks were provided but a more logical solution mentioned was to take it to experts.
Called 3M and fixed appointment. They quoted 7.5K since they do not do part polishing and the whole car will be done. With a heavy heart I agreed but the end result cheered me up. Wife felt car looked better than when it was new.
The issue was resolved and life continued.




Chennai trips
I handled Chennai as a market and preferred to drive down to Chennai than take a flight. The roads are good and it was always a joy to drive to Chennai and back. Typically it would take me 4-5 hours in the morning and during return 6 hours sorts. Milage was regularly in the range of 20-22 T2T depending on how I drove. Once when I was coming back I managed to achieve 16.5KMPL in a diesel car. It was pedal to metal in sports mode throughout.

I will be honest, Bangalore-Chennai highway is actually very smooth. This is the only stretch I miss having a sedan like Rapid. The higher GC of Nexon is not much use here.
Also it was during Chennai trips I realized something which I completely missed during evaluation. The Fuel Tank size. For some reason Nexon has just 44L tank. Ecosport has 52L size this 8L makes a lot of difference on highway. Almost 160Km in realistic range.
For eg, even if we leave 10L in emergency reserve, that is 34L safely usable for Nexon and 42L for Ecosport. With a realistic 20KMPL on highway this works to be a usable highway range of 680Km for Nexon and a whopping 840Km for Ecosport.

Bangalore-Chennai-Bangalore round trip is usually 750-800Km with internal Chennai drive included. So I have to tank up in Chennai for Nexon and not for Ecosport. This is all ok when one is going to big city, but when one is travelling to smaller cities or destination we have to factor this as I fill up at Shell always and shell is not available in many places outside big cities.

During one of our Chennai drives wife commented we need to do something about the seats as she is not liking the fabric ones. Partly due to support and partly her OCD of dropping something on the seats.
After lot of pestering we got the seat covers done from Imperial Leather Bangalore and they did a fine job. Absolutely good fit and finish. Few of my friends have used his service after seeing the work in my car. It costed us 16K with genuine leather for steering wheel and art leather (nappa I think) for the seats. I so vividly remember this was evening time in November end or December first week, I got the car back with seats done. I did not put on the AC and within 10 mins I felt uncomfortable on the Art leather seats whereas on the fabric I could drive for an hour without issue. My AC usage has increased dramatically with art leather seats. I still miss the fabric seats wife prefers this.



We visited Chennai in December 2019 to sell the Brio (it was TN registered). Had availed service of an agent for the same. This was to be a morning-evening trip. I had driven 500Km regularly in a day that too in Brio, I was sure 750Km would be possible in Nexon.
As usual we started at 5 in the morning and reached at 10:30, stopped en route at A2B for breakfast our regular joint. We took the money did all the formalities and started back at around 2:00. Drove for a long time without break and first stop was at Alankar another of our regular joint. Food is quite good and the place hygienic. Reached back Home at around 8:30 P.M. owing to pathetic jam at the toll both entering Bangalore.
We came out quite fresh without much discomfort. This trip we truly realized the comfort of Nexon and were even more confident of our Goa trip in December end. On this Chennai trip we completed 10,000Km milestone.

The diesel engine is really a gem. It does not have outright power but liner nature makes for a very comfortable, relaxed drive. It is very traceable and can be pulled in 3rd from low speeds. The 6th gear helps it cruise at ease.

[aniyo]

Goa trip:
With our plans in August going for a toss we were eagerly looking forward for a road trip. My brother was returning from USA to Goa (his wife is from there) for a few weeks and we planned to catch up with him after nearly 4 years. My wife was to fly down from Vizag and I was to drive alone from Bangalore to Goa. Sorry no photos of this drive.

I started early at 4:30 a.m. I am a morning person so am completely cool with starting this early. The drive was good initially wherein I drove non-stop for 400Km (with 2 bio breaks). Sometime around 10 A.m. I stopped for breakfast, I was carrying paratha and chutney with me. Then after another 45 mins or so stopped for tea at a hotel. Refreshed I continued my journey.

The next half of the journey was pathetic with highway work going on, I had to take detour every 5 Km. This is where Nexon just shined through. Zero stress and I could manage all the roads without issue, happily listening to songs.
I had an unintentional race with a Honda City guy. He would overtake me and at every detour I would breeze past him. This fun continued for almost an hour. Finally the roads opened up and he took a different turn and our small silly race ended.

Closer I got to Goa the worse the roads turned. Last 50-60 Km were pure nightmare. Every low slung car struggled and I was happy with my choice. However within Goa the roads are decent and sedans do well.
One thing I noted, on the ghat roads, the taller cars tends to feel a bit uncomfortable with lots of turns, sedans or hatch do much better here. Maybe a wider track may help.

I reached Goa at lunch time. My brother was surprised that I did not look tired at all. I will put solely on the fact that Nexon is absolutely non-stressful to drive across various road conditions. I have no doubt that as long as roads are good (Blore-Chn), sedans will provide higher comfort and lesser fatigue but this is not a reality across India. Sedans can manage, Crossover manages way better.

I managed a total of 620 Km on a single tank with 160Km to spare. After this I drove another 80Km to go and pick wife from Airport. So a total of 700Km drive and had enough energy to go out for dinner with brother and his in laws.

We visited at least 6 beaches during our stay at Goa and drove almost 600Km within Goa in a week. This had to be the most satisfying city drive I had. Since I stated my career in Goa, I knew a lot of hidden gems with most tourist do not know. Like Bogmalo beach or internal scenic routes towards south Goa. I took my wife to show the company where I started my career.

Here the irritating rattle started again and I visited the Goa service center. They managed to provide a temporary fix but the rattle was on and off.

We enjoyed food at fisherman's wharf and few good restaurants. Surprising as it may sound I had exactly 1 pint of beer in Goa over a week. 2 main reasons, wife had ear infection and was on anti-biotics and I was the only one to drive.

I completed 11,000 Km when I was just reaching Goa. Had a Fab time in Goa roaming beached and trying food. I also completed 12K on the way back. The total trip was 1800+ Km. Awesome time spent







Madurai Trip:
In February 2020 we did a Bangalore-Madurai- Bangalore trip. Attended a Wife's friends wedding. Nothing to report really comfortable journey. One interesting thing happened on our way back. We got stuck in a slow moving traffic on the highway with 2 trucks and tractor blocking the lanes. We were patient for about 20 mins and after that I lost patience. Took a risk pushed left wheel off the roads and raced past the slow tractor. My wife got scared but thankfully Nexon took it coolly. No damage to suspension or tyres. I understand the risk and will avoid doing this unless necessary.

Third Service:
I was due for 3rd Service in March 2020 but decided to get it done in February as I was joining new job in March and may not have time later. This was the last free service, and if I remember the bill was about 2.3K at 13,700 Km (scheduled was 15K)
Service as usual was average, they did not attend to the rattling issue, car was returned dusty and they applied the polish on the dashboard again. They flipped the foot mats (carpet one over the rubber). The passenger side door had an issue closing they did not attend to it properly and the issue came back in couple of months. This was rectified by Vizag service center. Apparently the passenger drive side door was loose. This was scary and how could this not be done in Bangalore.

Lockdown
Absolutely nothing to report here, the car idled for most of the time. I used to drive within the locality to keep the car running. By the time we completed the first year in March, car had run 15,000Km absolutely justifying the diesel purchase.

Drive to Vizag (Medical emergency, no pics)

We were chilling and adjusting to the new normal. Locked in houses for 3 months can have a lot of toll on one's mind and body. We were just worried for our parents well being.
On 20th June'20 we got a call from in-laws that my FIL was getting continuous fever and he has been taken for test at covid center. They suspected pneumonia basis x-ray scan which was odd since he had taken the vaccine for pneumonia. Alarm bells rang in for us and we had to get to Vizag one way or other. This was a time of utter chaos as none of the governments could make up their minds. There were 2 options 1. Flight or 2. Drive down.
Now Bangalore to Vizag is 1080Km and with Covid raging we did not want to stop anywhere. Usual stop point is Vijaywada, but this place was badly hit it the first wave and had maximum number of cases in AP.
Flight issue, we needed pass (also needed for road) but there was a huge risk of we contracting either at airport or in flight.

Also the process after we land in Vizag was crazy. A public bus was arranged which will take us to covid center for testing from there we have to go to our respective homes by self (cab) and quarantine till results come in. Complication was that there was stamping on hand and even if one person from lot was positive we all had to be in quarantine for 14 days. This would defeat the whole purpose for us going to Vizag. We got passes for both flight and road and we decided to take the road.

I check the fluid level, filled in air, topped up diesel and prayed that Nexon will not falter. I took the great risk of carrying fuel since I was not aware of the situation in Vijaywada and did not want to run the risk of filling from fuel station on highways. There were reports of cheating and adulteration as most pumps had sever losses in the 3 month lockdown.

We started at 5:00 a.m. from Bangalore and reached Mulbagal checkpost by 6:45 a.m. took almost 15 mins to clear the paperwork at the check post and we were off again.
We carried a lot of food with us to ensure we don't have to stop at any hotel and carried a 20L can for water. I took 2 breaks (15 mins each to recharge) and we drove as fast as we could. Luck played spoils sport as the highway was under construction and twice we had to take detour through kaccha road. Boy I just gunned the Nexon on these roads and the car took it without any fuss. I was so happy for buying a high GC car.
We stopped at Vijayawada outskirts to fill fuel from the can we have been carrying (20L). Took us 10 mins to fill-up and we started our journey again. It was almost 4 in the afternoon. From here on we drove non-stop to Vizag and reached the hospital at 10 in the night. A total journey of 1080 Km. This was a straight 17 hour drive.
I was tired due to lack of sleep but surprisingly did not feel much fatigue. After checking on our FIL we drove back to a nearby accommodation that they had found (friends flat).
I was truly amazed how comfortable and capable small cars have become. I am sure Ecosport would have been equally comfortable. It was good we had diesel car, this really help drive longer without need to fill-up. All in all mighty impressed with Nexon.

Drive within Vizag (Lot of pics)
It took nearly 3 weeks for my FIL to come back home from covid recovery. Post that we spent couple of week at home taking care. Once all was sorted we wanted to go out and explore Vizag as the situation had eased quite a lot by August.
We drove to few beaches nearby and ensured to go farthest before unmasking. There were hardly 10-15 people on the entire beach and we had several 10's of meter between people.










Drive to Araku
There is a popular hill station near Vizag called Araku. A beautiful destination and even more pretty is the drive. It is almost a 4 hour drive from our place.
We visited Araku twice and both times we carried home made food or ready to eat snacks. The only thing we got from outside was Araku coffee. They do serve bamboo chicken and corn en route to Araku with other snacks, we were scared to try owing to covid.
Nexon was super comfy through the ghats, bad road, good roads, Nexon just soldiered along.






Final Thoughts:
The whole Covid stff costed us 5L plus with very little covered by insurance. It really proved sensible (thanks to wife) to keep the car cost under 12L when we bought. This left us with substantial cash reserve to manage the emergency.

Lesson learnt, just because today is great tomorrow will not necessary be the same. Always buy a level below what you can afford. The best part of the CSUV space is that we don't loose anything from engineering and safety point if we buy sub 4M CSUV or Creta grade unlike other segments where there is substantial difference in quality and engineering.

As I have said earlier, Nexon is really gem of a car with a capable diesel engine and the ride to match. At no point during our highway drives we felt nausea or fatigued. It has been reliable and fuss free till now. Never have we been left stranded or left wanting.

The suspension is robust. Have driven through potholes at speed, driven over unmarked speed breakers, took the left wheel off the road to overtake the slow tractor etc. and the suspension has kept up. Steering is good to use as well, weighs sufficiently at speeds.

Brakes, thanks to the big tyres, stops the car without drama.
AC is chiller and the music system is best in class no doubts on that. Never felt a need to upgrade, maybe a sub or amplifier at best. Apart from one rattle the car is silent.

However, Nexon is not perfect.
Fit and finish in many places needs improvement. Boot could have been better shaped.

The touchscreen is slow and the reverse camera is a joke. My Brio had better quality. There is no reading lamp at the back and no proper charging as well at back.

Engine noise does creep in, the firewall insulation and glass insulation can be improved along with beading quality. The rear should have been re-designed with so many colors and textures looks like a kids job.

Gear shift is still an issue esp. reverse and 2-3. Nothing alarming just takes away the charm of owning a nice car

Fog lamps shoud be better, 19W common tata that is like a torch light. Also the stock low beams are pretty useless. I upgraded to Philips xtreme night vision, they are just about bearable. They cost less 1.5k a pair so not much complaints.

And of course, the service quality is ok if you have low expectations. Even if you have half a love for your car you will be left wanting. Car has improved the mindset has not. To be honest I found the Vizag service center better than Bangalore, they do arrange for pick up and drop despite I staying 30 Km from the city. But outside of that not much. They did not upgrade the software and messed with the light setting, have no clue how. I had to specifically go to get the software upgraded.


Finally a snapshot of all the expenses and FE of the car through the 23,000 KM. I have spent a total of 14K for service on the car including 2 oil changes, wheel alignment and wiper blade change across 2 years of ownership. I am pretty satisfied with the cost for now. I use Drivvo to manage the details and expense on the car from Day 1. The data is very useful to understand the usage. My wife hates this but I love doing this.

Few Stats:(cost in Rs.)
1. Service cost: 0.65/km
2. Fuel cost: 4.22/km
3. Expense cost (including insurance, seat covers etc): 4.67/km
4. Total Cost: 9.43/km

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Reviews section. Thanks for sharing!

Your car is going to our homepage today .

[condor]

Congrats, @Aniyo. And thanks for the detailed write-up.

I had considered the Nexon (yes, as a replacement for my Storme) back in 2017. But better sense prevailed, and I continue to enjoy the Storme, and making full use of it. Looking back, if I had changed cars, I would not have been able to do all that I have done with the Storme in these 4 years. The space cannot be replaced: whether it is about carrying stuff, or allowing a person to sleep fully stretched out (of course, with middle seat removed).

The only thing I miss is the frugal nature of the Nexon diesel. Even my regular light traffic commute does not give the minimum FE that you get. But like I said, no regrets.

Yes, the Nexon is a lovely car. Wishing you many more years of happy ownership.

[aniyo]

Originally Posted by condor

The only thing I miss is the frugal nature of the Nexon diesel. Even my regular light traffic commute does not give the minimum FE that you get. But like I said, no regrets.

Yes, the Nexon is a lovely car. Wishing you many more years of happy ownership.

Thanks a lot. Nexon cannot be a replacement for the Brute Safari. I have imagined myself in Safari so many time during college days and the reclaim your life ad is still fresh. I did travel quite a lot in friend's Safari and it is spacious and comfortable.

Maybe after few years if finances permit I might indulge in the new Safari, though modern, it does not have the charm of the old one

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by aniyo

Lesson learnt, just because today is great tomorrow will not necessary be the same. Always buy a level below what you can afford. The best part of the CSUV space is that we don't loose anything from engineering and safety point if we buy sub 4M CSUV or Creta grade unlike other segments where there is substantial difference in quality and engineering.

As I have said earlier, Nexon is really gem of a car with a capable diesel engine and the ride to match. At no point during our highway drives we felt nausea or fatigued. It has been reliable and fuss free till now. Never have we been left stranded or left wanting.

First of all, glad to know your father in law recovered well.

As you rightly said, there's no wrong decision especially when you have thought and evaluated all the available options before choosing the Nexon. What matters is if you look back at your car after you have parked it! And it is a very prudent decision to avoid loans whenever possible.

Nexon is an excellent choice. I remember when I was hunting in the market, Nexon came out at the top as the most spacious CSUV. Never felt like a sub-4m car at all. And looking at your review, the engine is indeed very fuel efficient. Never got a chance to drive it yet but I am eagerly looking forward to that opportunity. A friend is looking to buy his first car and needs my help in choosing the Nexon.

Wish you many happy years and miles with your Nexon. Please keep updating the ownership review and your travelogues.

And many thanks for the honest review around the nappa leather seats. Once in a while I get tempted to get something similar for my car but the thought of seating brings me back to senses!

[jeeva]

Loved reading your post.
In hindsight, the first version of the Nexon (the one you have) was a tad subtler looking than the current one. Well, that's just my personal opinion. And the grey shade looks nice (masks some of those loud cuts and creases). Always have been a Tata Motors and Mahindra fan. I am contemplating buying a Nexon - medium foot print, easier to manage, good build, decent dynamics, frugal diesel engine, and an awesome audio system when compared to my 2.2 Dicor.
The Nexon is a lovely car! Wishing you miles of happiness with it.

[aniyo]

Originally Posted by ashis89

First of all, glad to know your father in law recovered well.

Nexon is an excellent choice. I remember when I was hunting in the market, Nexon came out at the top as the most spacious CSUV. Never felt like a sub-4m car at all. And looking at your review, the engine is indeed very fuel efficient. Never got a chance to drive it yet but I am eagerly looking forward to that opportunity. A friend is looking to buy his first car and needs my help in choosing the Nexon.

And many thanks for the honest review around the nappa leather seats. Once in a while I get tempted to get something similar for my car but the thought of seating brings me back to senses!

Thanks for your wishes. As someone had mentioned in discussion in a separate thread, one cannot go wrong much in this space, the key is to find our one's priority. All cars have a certain USP and negatives so pick your choice without bad mouthing others.

Yup fabric seats are way comfortable. Even if I have to wait for 10 mins for someone, I used to switch the engine off and lower the glass to half when I had fabric seats. In art leather this is just not possible. Either I have to get out of the car and wait or keep the AC running

I see you drive a Seltos, if this was launched when I was car hunting, I would be one very confused man. Wife did like the design of Seltos, the next car she liked is the Compass which is way out of league.

Happy motoring

Originally Posted by jeeva

Loved reading your post.
In hindsight, the first version of the Nexon (the one you have) was a tad subtler looking than the current one. Well, that's just my personal opinion. And the grey shade looks nice (masks some of those loud cuts and creases). Always have been a Tata Motors and Mahindra fan. I am contemplating buying a Nexon - medium foot print, easier to manage, good build, decent dynamics, frugal diesel engine, and an awesome audio system when compared to my 2.2 Dicor.
The Nexon is a lovely car! Wishing you miles of happiness with it.

Thank you. I am surprised Safari owners considering Nexon. Yes in a compact package its quite good. Infact I have seen very little complaints on Nexon than Tiago and Harrier which is quite surprising

I like the older design but love the Green shade on the new car. I hate the digital instrument cluster on the new one.

Wife liked the newer design better but she still hates the rear even on the new one.

[Vasanth]

The Tata Nexon is a fabulous car.
Though I am not a SUV/CSUV person, if I had to buy one day I would pick the Nexon without a second thought, leaving all other Brands aside. (Hyundai, Maruti, Kia) Ecosport would be the second pick.
One of my family member has Tata Nexon. I was really impressed by it.
Likes :
1) VFM
2) 5 star rating
3) Build quality.
4) Driving comfort
The only thing I dislike about Nexon is the rear styling.

Wish you many more road trips and more miles.
Drive safe

[arjab]

Good to see you are enjoying the Nexon.
We also have a petrol Nexon of two years vintage and it has proved to be reliable and fuss free.
I particularly like it's stability on highways and the relaxed cruise it offers in 6th gear.
The steering is feelsome, the highway ride nice and flat with stoic resistance to getting deflected by mid - corner bumps and sudden dips. Only sharp ridges and culvert expansion joints make their presence felt with a more than acceptable jolt.
I have taken the Nexon quite a few times to the hills of North Bengal and surprisingly, despite being such a tall and heavy car, it's quite a sprightly performer in the mountains. The steering is fluid, understeer contained and the chassis composed enough to tackle bends at enjoyable velocities, (maybe not as sharp and pointy as an EcoSport!).
The mid range power available on tap more than enough to tackle even the steepest of gradients.

What I do not like is the overall performance of the 1.2L gasoline engine. Till 3800-4000 rpm it's acceptable, but after that it becomes quite coarse, breathless and power tails off rapidly.
If you compare the Nexon's powertrain to the naturally aspirated 1.2L gasoline engine from Suzuki or the 1.2L "Dragon" unit from Ford Ecosport, the Nexon is quite a bit of a bummer.
Wonder how it could have been with a better, more free revving powertrain, maybe something like Honda's 1.5L VTEC

Overall it's a good car. Just hope Tata Motors's fad of "cost optimisation" and "value engineering" doesn't demean it too much in the coming months!
And yes, for the Nexon Gen-2, request Tata Motors to please provide us with an AWD option.

[sen2693]

Great article, congrats on your decision to buy a Nexon. Although, thanks for quoting Rapid a couple of times in a positive tone

It was a last minute decision for me to switch from Nexon to Rapid. Nexon felt more practical but my love for a Skoda car just could not be over come. Needed one slight comment from my father and to-be-father-in-law about the Nexon's looks and I quickly switched to Rapid. Now, whenever folks here talk about needing a high GC car to drive in Bangalore, it hurts a bit but no regrets given how beautifully it drives in highways (where I plan to drive it more than in cities).

[Benoit]

Thoroughly enjoyed your post. Nexon diesel is a wonderful car. Currently, our family owns a Tata Altroz XZ D (used primarily by me). In the near future, my brother will have it as his and by then I would have to get my own car. So far, Nexon diesel has been in my mind. And posts like these, makes me to want to look nowhere else. Keep updating with your ownership experience.

[aniyo]

Originally Posted by arjab

Good to see you are enjoying the Nexon.
We also have a petrol Nexon of two years vintage and it has proved to be reliable and fuss free.
I particularly like it's stability on highways and the relaxed cruise it offers in 6th gear.
The steering is feelsome, the highway ride nice and flat with stoic resistance to getting deflected by mid - corner bumps and sudden dips. Only sharp ridges and culvert expansion joints make their presence felt with a more than acceptable jolt.
I have taken the Nexon quite a few times to the hills of North Bengal and surprisingly, despite being such a tall and heavy car, it's quite a sprightly performer in the mountains. The steering is fluid, understeer contained and the chassis composed enough to tackle bends at enjoyable velocities, (maybe not as sharp and pointy as an EcoSport!).

What I do not like is the overall performance of the 1.2L gasoline engine. Till 3800-4000 rpm it's acceptable, but after that it becomes quite coarse, breathless and power tails off rapidly.
If you compare the Nexon's powertrain to the naturally aspirated 1.2L gasoline engine from Suzuki or the 1.2L "Dragon" unit from Ford Ecosport, the Nexon is quite a bit of a bummer.

And yes, for the Nexon Gen-2, request Tata Motors to please provide us with an AWD option.

Those are awesome pics. I enjoyed Sikkim during one of my vacations. Glad to know Nexon is holding up well.

Yes I did hear about petrol flat spots. I wanted Diesel that was clear, my running was high before pandemic and its a proper 4 pot mill.
I am assuming you meant 1.5L dragon from Ecosport.

I too wished AWD version, but even Harrier was not launched with no plans either, I have no hope for Nexon. Also X1 was not made for AWD. When next gen Nexon moves to the newer platform, all we can do is hope.

[Raghu M]

Great post, very detailed and to the point. Very important lesson you shared, save for the rainy day. Wish you many happy miles with your Nexon!

[PrasannaDhana]

Great thread!

Congratulations on the nexon.

This review helps me find more reasons to love the altroz diesel. If the 110 bhp nexon can give you such good fuel efficiency numbers, I am sure the lower tune, lighter, more aerodynamic altroz would return even better. As Condor has mentioned, nothing can replace the Safari Storme which is my current ride. But 13.6 kmpl average with 3000km monthly usage and our ever increasing diesel prices does make us feel the pinch. Tata's 1.5 diesel is a blessing in that regard.

Coming to nexon, I have made 2 of my friends buy it recently. It has excellent seats and the engine + gearbox combo is sweet, specially in the sports mode. Low speed ride is the Achilles heel , but it flattens out with pace.

In my opinion, nexon should be priced lower by 50k, variant by variant in the diesel option