[jpm]

After much deliberation (predominantly to TATA or not) booked a Indica Vista Aqua TDi Gala Red from Sri Sheetala Balaji Motors, Thanjavur, TN.

The story as such...
Old amby getting too long in the tooth. Got to get rid of it. Keep the 3 1/2 yr old current 1.6 Ikon Nxt for another 2 years. Budget of under 5 lakhs.
Reqts: Spacious, economical hatch with emphasis placed on spacious. My bro and me being both 6 footers and my dad coming in close at 5' 9" special emphasis was always on spacious. Add to that, our rears much accustomed to the fantastic back bench of the Ikon, expected something similar comfort.

This process though started in November of 08, where I first took a TD of Hyundai i10 Kappa Sportz 1.2

i10 had a huge handicap in our books right from the get go, primarily becoz of its brand ambassador. That aside, was stumped by the interiors fit and finish which was quite incredible for a car of this size and price. SRK's endorsement alongwith the fact that i10 had to match an amby in space, the notion by which in itself is ridiculous and i now wonder why we even considered it for our requirements. It may be a competent city car but to seat 6 footers it surely struggles.

Now the usual suspects of Wagon R (too old), A-star (way too small), Swift (way too many on the road) were taking the bullet one by one which left us with very limited options.

The i20, Suzuki Ritz, Indica Vista and the perenially soon-to-be-launched-in-india Fiat GP.

Quite simply, the numbers didnt work out in favour of the i20 and GP. 5.40L for the i20 Magna otr wasnt in our budget and GP if ever was launched, also was expected to be over 5L on launch, even for the 1.2 Safire version.

I bravely took a test drive of the Vista Quadrajet from Concorde Motors, Chennai on Saturday. TD car took a while to arrive, however in our excitement were quite forgiving and were bowled over by the space alongwith the almost unabashed idolatry of the 1.3 MJD engine with its mystical aura (hmm... a little more and I could take off, surely a tank fill will be enough for an quick around the world etc etc). The less said about the plastics the better. Again the 1.3MJD was playing tricks and clouding our minds with no idle vibration or noise transmitting through at all. A bried 30 min drive through Chennai Mount Road at peak evening traffic was a revelation of the torque that was on tap. A pure italian smoothie, its what it was. The issue of price then inevitably came up. 4.9+ OTR for Aqua Quadra. Hmm... almost 5L for a TATA? not quite a good idea, my brain feverishly praying.

Then the salesguys realizing my hesitation offered the Aqua TDi at 4.35 OTR (with TATA's IPL offer of free insurance) and were confidently saying while the FE will be 0.8 to 1km less compared to Quadrajet and the NVH will be 15-20% more than the Quadra, the TDi engine was tried and tested and was more flexible when it came to accepting fuel of doubtful standards, quite common in suburban and rural India. Now I needed a TD and fixed up a date, Monday at 4PM. At 5PM, the guy calls me and says he will be at my place in 10 mins. Then Silence. 730PM, I called him only to find out that the car had been 'allotted' to someone else, hence couldnt get it over in time. Sensing a grand BS Story unfolding and after taking it upto a SM, an aqua TDi car (ahem... a car which was going to allotted to some unsuspecting soul no doubt. NO Demo Car grafx) arrived at 8PM.

This time, went for a longish drive of 1 hour through IT Xpressway through b2b traffic of velachery and moderately trafficked anna salai. The turbo lag was initially disconcerting but after a some minutes, it was almost fun waiting for it to kick in and that sudden power rush came with a nice dose of endorphins as well, just what the doc ordered. Sure the NVH was more, heck, the doors' lock/open switches seemed like they were holding for dear life. But at 4.35L and so big and so efficient, primary purpose of replacing an amby was sealed and delivered.

However, the TD delay had shaken my confidence in Concorde though they were part of TATA. Besides, I wanted the regn plates of my home town where i intend to leave it in six months time. So instead of going through that process, thought of going to the newly opened local TATA dealer Sheetala Motors. A Couple of phone calls, the guys were enthusiastic and offered to give a TD the same day for my parents. They were bowled over.

Now one sticking point. Being a small town, its quite common for the dealers to 'show' the cars to the customer's families once he has zeroed in on the model and color. Apparently, my luck, I would be led to believe, they had a Gala Red Vista Aqua TDi on stock. So the guy actually brought the vehicle (that is to be delivered to me on Friday) to show my parents. I havent seen the car yet (will do on thursday) but my dad vouches for the fact that the odo was on, the car was squeaky clean and no signs of abuse as TD.

My bank is supposed to handover the cheque tomorrow after which I shall give the dealership the Form 20 for regn, before which I intend to conduct a PDI. Also to make sure I am getting the mudflaps and carpet that was offered on phone, which he refused to put on paper.

Lets see how the PDI goes tomorrow.

break up
EX 395776
insurance 10559
LT 31662
Regn 3200
Xtended Warranty 4425

Total 445622

[jpm]

a few things I missed.

Like many hundreds, I too was a silent member of this fantastic community. Stealthily following all those Vista threads, reading them back to back for several weeks well through the nights. Many bhpians and their favourable opinions really convinced me to go for the TATA. (I was in a similar predicament some years ago about the V2 Indica/Swift, then dropped the entire idea.)

This time though, to go the distance CTRL+ALT+DEL, revhappy were strong motivators and nukeblitz almost had me scared. End of story is, decided to take the plunge only thanks to this forum.

What I missed on the initial post, I TDed Chevy UVA and Matiz (when I was on the 'i10 may suffice' mode). UVA was slightly better built, but nearly not as spacious.

[greenhorn]

hey jpm, the quadrajet terra has been launched. if you really like the quadrajet, you can still have it
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...erra-trim.html

Edit: oh wait, you've almost taken delivery of the car. then never mind.

The turbo lag was initially disconcerting but after a some minutes, it was almost fun waiting for it to kick in and that sudden power rush came with a nice dose of endorphins as well, just what the doc ordered.

You'll curse the engine for this in the city, but in the highway, you'll find yourself doing this again and again, just for the heck of it - I know i do

Originally Posted by greenhorn

When you go to take delivery of the car, the salesman will ask you to fill a satisfaction form, and tell you that its a formality/ask you to fill it before you get the car. Do not do so.Wait until you recieve the car , and are totally satisfied with it, and hand over the form only at the end. Tata scrutinizes this form very carefully, so if you rate anything low in it, they will get grilled for it, so they ask most folks to fill it up initially, where most people will give good ratings, take the form, and then deliver the car with some issues, and thats when things get ugly, but the customer is helpless by then.

So make sure you dont fill/hand over that feedback form until the car is in your hand and everything is as you want it/if there are unresolved issues, make sure they reflect on the form.Its just a form with 10~20 checkboxes , but it matters a lot. I've managed to get very good results by holding the form at ransom when taking delivery

and do check if all the rubber beadings around the windows are fitted correctly. its an issue we've found in several new vista's

for more a complete list of issues with the vista , check
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...-problems.html

just go through the thread. dont be alarmed, Its just a list of stuff that have gone wrong in other people's cars. Just go through it so that you will know what to look for

and Yahoo! Groups

here's how to verify the month and year of your car's manufacture

and here's the official team bhp checklist
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...heck-list.html

[greenhorn]

with TATA's IPL offer of free insurance

insurance 10559

Tata Cars | 20-20 Offer



PS: I assume you're taking the 2+2 year warranty

[safari_lover]

Congratulations on your new car, mate! Do post a few pics.

[jpm]

greenhorn,

Originally Posted by greenhorn

hey jpm, the quadrajet terra has been launched. if you really like the quadrajet, you can still have it

Thanks for the info about the satisfaction form. The dealer I am getting it from just opened shop, around 14th april. So i am relatively confident, i am going to get good sales&service. But then, always better to know these subtle yet significant things which a regular customer may not even think twice about.

I thought of it but the Terra version is barebones. This Aqua version was a nice middle of the road version.

You'll curse the engine for this in the city, but in the highway, you'll find yourself doing this again and again, just for the heck of it - I know i do

and do check if all the rubber beadings around the windows are fitted correctly. its an issue we've found in several new vista's

for more a complete list of issues with the vista , check
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...-problems.html

just go through the thread. dont be alarmed, Its just a list of stuff that have gone wrong in other people's cars. Just go through it so that you will know what to look for

and Yahoo! Groups

here's how to verify the month and year of your car's manufacture

Thanks for these. Only mean one thing. Should permanently keep my fingers crossed with some tape till friday.

and here's the official team bhp checklist
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...heck-list.html

yes.. already took a print out.

Tata Cars | 20-20 Offer

sorry for that. The dealer quoted the OTR price (as is) on the proforma and i quoted from it. He will issue me a cheque separately for the 10558Rs. Forgot to mention that in the original post.

[jpm]

greehorn,

PS: I assume you're taking the 2+2 year warranty

yes. the 2+2 years or 150K warranty.

safari_lover,

Congratulations on your new car, mate! Do post a few pics.

AM yet to take delivery of the car. thanks for your kind wishes though. will post pics surely by friday or saturday.

[jpm]

update: Went to the SSB Showroom. There was a slight delay in getting the hypothecation letter and draft from SBI. Due to which registration is to be done only tomorrow instead of today.

The delivery is scheduled for 9.30AM tomorrow morning.

Had a 20 minute PDI at the stockyard. Odo shows 39km. Especially checked for rubber beadings as advised by greenhorn. All else spot on as per the t-bhp PDI checklist. The mud flaps and carpet should be on as well.

Thanks to the yahoo group, found out that the car was manufactured at Pune in the month of March 09.

Cant wait to get my hands on this baby tomorrow.

[greenhorn]

He will issue me a cheque separately for the 10558Rs

good. he might ask you to settle for 10k, or even 12 or 15k's worth of acessories later on. But settle only for cash, unless ALL the acessories are stuff you need, and good quality, and priced reasonably. otherwise, insist on the cash

[jpm]

Added some pics.

many more to follow.

[sriramv.iyer]

Congrats dude! The car sure looks good!

Btw, I am seeing quite a few Vista TDIs on road in Bangalore and in the highway!

[anilagdr]

Congrats on the new ride jpm. The car looks exquisite. I see a spotted design on the rear windscreen in the 6th & 7th image. Is it a film?

[jpm]

Congrats dude! The car sure looks good!

thanks sriramv.iyer
-----------------


Friday finally dawned. But by 8AM, it was decided it seems some planets were improperly conducting themselves alongwith the fact that Rahu was holding a secret conference till 12PM. So had to change the plan and asked the dealer to go ahead and register the car and deliver it to me by 1230PM, instead of at 930AM as originally planned. The wait from 9AM till 12PM was painful, i must admit. Must have surfed my DTH several full cycles and a good dose of tbhp for ICE / SunFilm, next on my agenda.

Thought it would be a kind gesture to take my amby, so she can see her replacement, the truly ravishing lady in red! If only cars could speak....

The SM at SSB motors, Mr. Rajkumar was there and ready when I reached the RTO office by 1215PM. All documentation done and ready for delivery. Still, waited for an extra km or so, so that the car could reach the showroom and I can take delivery after appropriate poojas. The Extended warranty at Rs. 4425 was ready and the mudflaps/carpets were also done. So I was one happy customer.

Drove around 55km post delivery in and around town. No issues, thankfully except for a small noise at the hinge when opening driver's door. Back to SSB and a bit of grease, the noise is gone.

Overall seemed a very pleasurable experience from the my first contact with SSB Motors, Thanjavur on Monday (11/05) till today (15/05).

Drove straight home from the showroom after a couple of pics. Took mom and grandmother for a drive, both as expected were bowled over by the quiet Diesel (well, their benchmark was the Amby Diesel, where rattles/creaks are part of standard equipment) and my grandmother was astonished to hear that I can drive this diesel to mountains and not need hotwater to start it every morning.

Filled up tank 32.10lts@33.33Rs (sweeeeeeet...) of ordinary diesel with no additives. For in our current 1.6 ikon and the earlier 1.3, the trip to the fuel station everytime was the bitter-est pill.

During the routine visit to temples, I noticed that many ppl at first glance think its an Indica. Only those who take a second look notice that its a distinctly different car compared to its V2 cousin. Actually I am happy this way. Nevertheless was surprised as the petal shaped head lamps were a dead giveaway.

Back at home and with some time in my hands, found out that the vista comes with auto-lock for all doors on engine start (must be careful getting out with the engine running) and unlock on stop. A spare set of headlamp bulbs in the dash alongside the First Aid Kit. The Boot had the safety triangle. Came shod with Bridgestones.

The driving position is commanding to say the least. Suits my height very well. The Vista had originally piqued our interest coz it was the only car that could hold me in the driver's seat and my brother directly behind me in the rear seat with the least bit of difficulty. Us being 6 footers, this was impressive for a car of this category.

The rear seats are pretty low and has a nice airy big sedan feel from inside. The ride is quite comfortable though the first few ks am going to be extra careful avoiding those potholes and bumps.

During the run-in period, I think the TDi maybe a bit tricky and may test my patience as I already felt several times during the day to just floor the damn thing and let the turbo take over. But sense has prevailed so far.)

[greenhorn]

Filled up tank 32.10lts@33.33Rs (sweeeeeeet...) of ordinary diesel with no additives.

Try Iftex system D. cheaper than premium diesel, and more effective on tata engines. All indica users (including me) swear by it

During the run-in period, I think the TDi maybe a bit tricky and may test my patience as I already felt several times during the day to just floor the damn thing and let the turbo take over. But sense has prevailed so far.

try to keep revs within 2k .

hope you got the cheque for the insurance

[jpm]

anilagdr,
thanks

I see a spotted design on the rear windscreen in the 6th & 7th image. Is it a film?

Its due to the polarizer lens from my digicam. All tinted glass behave similarly.

Havent got the sunfilm yet. Planning to do it in chennai by monday or tuesday. Thinking of going for film for all windows including front windscreen. I am expecting it to cost me 6K.

Coming to this chennai trip, I was wondering if i should get a wheel alignment/balancing done before the long drive to chennai, some 350km away. Or is these are done by TATA already for a new vehicle before it leaves its factory?

Alongwith film, planning to go for a decent ICE for around 15K with MP3/USB. will take your guys' advice before doing so definitely. That will be only next week.