How I ended up buying a Tata Nexon EV after test driving multiple cars

I noticed a blue Nexon EV XZ+ Prime parked in front of the showroom when I went to check out the Harrier. That's when I thought why not give it a try.

Story of my Nexon EV Dark Edition | Full Circle

Prologue:

Circa February 2020, while I was studying in London , my dad called me and asked which variant of Nexon (Petrol) should he book to replace our ageing 2013 Wagonr CNG.
Later that week, a booking was made at Puneet Motors, Malad.

However , in a surprising turn of events of the following month , we had to cancel our booking. I got back to India later that year.

Fast forward to 2022:

We have a 2018 Verna diesel which has done 40,000 kms till now. Our annual running is around 12000 kms (90% Mumbai Traffic), self/ chauffeur driven.

My dad happily gave me the responsibility to select our car to be as I would be the one using it most of the time.

My requirements/ needs:

• A good looking vehicle.
• Safe.
• Silent cabin.
• Fuel efficient and fuss free.
• AT was a must.
• Comfortable for 2-4 people.
• Comfortable rear seats with armrests and 60:40 split.

Jeep Compass:

Excited and armed with a budget of 15 - 25L, I rushed to Landmark Jeep showroom in April with a friend to TD the compass. I had my eyes on it ever since the facelift came out in 2021.

Loved the interiors , ride and handling. It felt solid to drive and the experience was miles ahead of my Verna. AT was the need of the hour due to obvious reasons , however , the Diesel AT was costing over 32 Lakhs hence the idea was painfully dropped.

Budget was stretched to 28L to accommodate the Limited Diesel Manual variant. A home TD was scheduled for my family , after which the booking was to be made.

I also made a casual visit to a MG showroom to check the ZS EV. However it being even smaller than the Compass (which is already very compact) , that too for similar money it was immediately dropped. Hector was never in contention hence was ignored.

We had to keep delaying our home TD due to various family commitments. In the midst of this I sensed that my dad wasn’t very keen to get home a jeep. He was worried about expensive maintenance and cost of spares. Add to this that I was already making a very big compromise by dropping the automatic gearbox. Horror stories of jeep’s breakdown within days of buying the vehicle didn’t help either.

After much contemplation , decision was made to drop the Jeep.

Our plan was put on hold for a couple of months as there were no other options which interested me. I was patiently waiting for the Hyrider/GV twins to make an entry.

Toyota Hyrider / Maruti Grand Vitara Hybrid:

As soon as I heard that the cars were up on display , I rushed to both Toyota / Nexa showrooms to grab a look.

• Both the vehicles looked fantastic and were loaded with tech.
• Premium interiors and soft touch dash.
• Silent at idle.
• Fuel efficient and comfortable rear seats

However the twins were dropped due to the following reasons:

• Questionable build ( Light doors).
• 3 pot engine and high speed NVH concerns.
• Poor road presence compared to the Koreans.

After rejecting the hybrid twins I was eyeing the Brezza and GV mild hybrids. I felt these were good options considering they were costing me towards the lower end of my planned budget. I decided to go with either one of these if I was not able to find ‘my perfect car’.

2022 Hyundai Tucson:

If I only had the budget…… (soon).

Tata Harrier:

Rejected due to poor interiors.

Nexon EV (Wild Card):

Though I wasn’t keen on the Harrier, I thought it was worth a shot. Went to a nearby TaMo showroom for TD but the SA informed that the car had gone for repairs to the workshop. He offered me a TD of the Safari but I politely refused ( I hate the rear design) . This particular SA seemed very motivated to make a sale. I noticed a blue Nexon EV XZ+ Prime parked in front of the showroom and thought why not. SA was very happy to offer the TD.

One pedal to the metal and I was sold. I had a blast driving it through the narrow Mumbai roads.

Excellent pickup , NVH and suspension setup. Lower running costs just made the deal sweeter.

After the drive I walked into the back seat , and that’s when I realised how bare bones this particular variant was. Fabric seats , no sunroof, no rear armrest / 60/40 split. Heck it did not even have adjustable rear headrests.

XZ+ Lux has all these features but lack of subsidy on it made the OTR price difference to around 2.5L +

Now here are where things get interesting!

• XZ+ = 16,30,000 Ex showroom
• XZ+ Dark = 16,49,000 Ex showroom

For a difference of 19000 rupees, the Dark Edition gets the following upgrades apart from the obvious black theme:

• Full leatherette upholstery + Steering wrap.
• Adjustable rear headrests and armrest.
• 60/40 Split rear seats.

The Dark Edition also enjoys the 1.5L subsidy, and hence was a no brainer.

WHY EV?

• Lower running costs, silent drive , zero tail pipe emissions and annual savings of 120,000 INR (estimated).
• 1,50,000 INR subsidy from the MH government.
• Flat 5000 INR RTO charges.
• Final on the road price lesser than the Ex showroom cost.
• This would be our second vehicle, primarily for city drives.

Range anxiety?

Not at all. Daily running of 40 kms, max 100 kms (rare), and a diesel Verna to take care of longer highway drives.

Why not Nexon EV MAX?

• OTR difference of around 3L rupees makes the Max costly at 19L + OTR.
• No Dark Edition

A search which started with a Nexon and ended with a Nexon, albeit in an EV avatar. FULL CIRCLE.

• PS - This car perfectly complements my username - Eco_Boost .
• PS2 - Delivery experience was okay and I received a Nov manufactured car with 39 kms on the odo.

Epilogue:

I saw and drove over 10 cars during my search but Tucson was the only car which could touch my heart. It has everything one could ask for at a fairly decent price and I wouldn’t change one thing about it. It’s a perfect blend of Jeep’s quality and Maruti’s trust and reliability. Until next time.

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