4 years with my Tata Nexon: Likes, dislikes & updates after 43,000 km

Fuel efficiency figures vary between 8 km/l in Bangalore traffic, to 14 km/l on the highway.

BHPian varun_n recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello everyone, I have been an avid and silent reader of the forum for the last five years. Thanks to all the BHPians who helped me in making many decisions over these years through their contributions here. Looking forward to more threads on this journey. Writing this story has always been on my mind. Going ahead with the quote Better late than never.

Timing:

Cut to November 2019, my brother’s marriage got fixed for May 2020 (yes, we didn't anticipate the COVID-19 outbreak). Since we wanted to buy a car before his wedding, we started research on which one to buy.

What we’re looking for:

• Safety - Since most of our usage would be confined to highways, this has been our top priority.
• Top End - Since we’re new to this, we didn't want to get duped in the aftermarket accessories stuff.
• Petrol - Because of all those things we heard growing up that Diesel engines are high maintenance, Daily/Frequent usage is required, cannot leave cars aside for days and all that. Realized very late that none of that applies to current modern cars.
• Good headspace - Both my brother and I are around 6’1 tall.
• Budget - Under 12 lakhs on-road in Bangalore.

With the very limited knowledge that we had at that time, few exclusions were made from the cars we initially considered.

• All Maruti cars are considered safe. (Regretted this exclusion later because of S-Cross)
• Sedans - Low ground clearance owing to Bangalore potholes and illegal speed breakers.
• Xuv 300 - couldn't get a test drive despite multiple showroom visits and follow-ups.
• Hyundai i20 - I drove this car a lot. Thanks to self-drive companies. Leg space was a bit of an issue.
• Ford Ecosport - Superior build quality, great engine and Ford reliability. But heard news that Ford might leave India soon
• Tata Nexon - Loved the interiors and good ground clearance. TASS is one point we’re concerned about.

The final shortlist came down to i20, Ecosport and Nexon. Since there was more time for the wedding, we’re taking this process slow. Every year we go to our native Tuni, Andhra Pradesh during Sankranti. Usually, we book tickets well in advance but that time, we forgot about it completely. During the first week of December when we realized this and checked for the tickets, BLR to VTZ flights were costing around 24,000 INR two way for two people. With a fuel price of Rs76 per litre and 1900 Kms, if we go by car, it costs around Rs10,000. And then the bug to get the car before Sankranti itself started. Since we haven’t finalized the car yet then, we checked with multiple people about these three cars and 10 out of 10 people advised us not to go towards the Tata Nexon. After three days of deep conversations with multiple people on online reviews, we went ahead with our gut feeling and booked the Tata Nexon XZ+variant. Did the PDI on 24th Dec’19 using the Team-BHP checklist. After posting the delivery pictures in family and friends groups, we’re bombarded with one question. Why TATA? We didn’t know the answer. We just felt it the moment we sat in the car.

Booking Experience, Delivery and Ownership

Booked the car through Kropex Domlur initially but then moved the booking to Prerana, BTM as we're getting better discounts on a few accessories. We've taken insurance from outside as the dealer could not match that price. Sales guy Anil was very helpful in this entire process. He kept us in the loop each time there was any development. Bought the car for 11lakhs on-road in Bangalore.

PDI was done at their stockyard before disbursing the full amount. Took the delivery on the 4th of Jan’20 while the car is from Dec’19. Within a few days, as planned we went to our native on Car for the festival.

The first long drive went very smoothly. Fastag was helpful in those long queues at toll gates. All happy faces at home looking at our first car.

By the time I started writing this thread, it’s been 3 years, 11 months and 21 days since our purchase. We did multiple trips during this time.

• Tuni - Bangalore 3 times.
• Post Lockdown, as we’re in our native there were many Hyderabad - Rajahmundry - Tuni - Lambasingi - Vanajangi - Araku - Vizag trips.
• And then once we’re back to Bangalore, Coorg, Madurai, Wayanad and multiple ones.
• We’ve completed almost 43,000 km so far in the last ~4 years. I'm jotting down the things I liked, didn't like and my learnings so far.

Things we didn't like but somehow managed:

• Faulty Infotainment System. Frequent issues with AA/Carplay. Complained to TASS multiple times but no use.
• Despite it being the top variant, features like Cruise Control and tilt steering adjustment were not there.
• Very bad fuel efficiency. In Bangalore traffic, the car gives less than 8kmpl but the MID shows 8kmpl only (realised very late that the MID reading is set at a minimum of 8 km/l and it wouldn't go beyond that). On the highway, the maximum we got was around 14kmpl.
• Hard clutch. Many of my friends who own Nexon also felt the same. My knees do hurt in bad traffic sometimes.
• And the main one is the Tata after-sales service. Multiple follow-ups and visits were needed to clear even a minute niggle.

Things we liked:

• Build quality. Never felt unsafe while driving at high speeds.
• There is a bit of initial turbo lag but the car picks up well post that.
• Super Audio quality with Harman 4 speakers and 4 tweeters.
• Very premium interiors.
• High ground clearance. Took the car through fields in our native. Also, never faced any problem with our illegal speed breakers.

Things we learnt as a first-time buyer:

• Visit multiple dealers of the same brand car. keep negotiating for discounts/accessories. Do not hesitate to ask for one more test drive.
• Do a thorough PDI before disbursing the complete amount. Check out the TeamBHP PDI checklist.
• Insurance from outside is always cheaper than the one quoted by your dealer. See if that can be matched or compensated in any other way.
• Get a PPF around the door handles. This prevents involuntary scratches from your nails.
• If there is a liquid spilt under your new car, it is more likely water from AC. We went into a panic mode thinking it was an Engine Oil leak
• No car is perfect. Each has its Pros and Cons. Rather than thinking of buying a perfect car, buy the one that fits your requirements the most. This is one thing I tell my friends who are in the market for buying a car.

And below additions were done to the car:

• Sensairy TPMS for four wheels from Madhu’s-Felt is a very needed and useful feature. Spoke with Sensairy folks directly and got it installed at Madhu's. Again thanks to TBHP.
• 3M floor mats- 8k purchase but worth the money. Dust settles in the bottom of the mats and keeps the surface clean.
• 70mai dashcam-Purchased Online.
• Ambient Lighting set up.
• Upgraded the stock low beam to HIDs. Not so a great upgrade. 6000K light is not that great in rain and fog. I learned about 4200K Vs 6000K differences only later. I wish I had done more research on this.
• Multiple car wash shampoos and cleansing products.

And a dump from the past.

With the increased awareness of safety, all those people who asked why Tata are looking to buy a Tata vehicle now. We're just ahead. Although TASS is still a hit or miss, wishing for many more miles and memories ahead. And I still turn back and look at the car after parking it. The day I don't do it is the day I sell it.

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