My new Tata Altroz 1.5L diesel: Delivery & Initial impression

The Tata Altroz seems to have perfectly replaced my Maruti Suzuki Ciaz

BHPian PrasannaDhana recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Delivered!

There were 8 other cars waiting to be delivered today between 9:15 am to 10:15 am (auspicious timing we believe).

The Tata Altroz is w-i-d-e!! Even wider than my Ciaz. Gives a good stance!

Odo at the time of delivery was 52 km

Drove it to the church which is 25 km away. Absolutely love the low seating. It is even lower than my Ciaz. The engine is refined and punchy too. Cruised at 110 km/h and it was nice and calm. 80 km/h in the 5th, and you dab the accelerator, the progress is nice and quick!! I am sure that with this engine and my driving habits, there won't be any DPF issues whatsoever

The TFT instrument cluster graphic clarity was superb. Yet to explore Harman 6 speaker audio. I seldom listen to music when my parents travel with me.

The window line flows upwards from driver door to tail. This gives a different experience while reversing - all you see prominently in the ORVM is the window line going up. I do use the ORVMs a lot while reversing even though there is a rear cam. Blame my Storme for making it a habit to me, with the lack of rear cam.

The dead pedal was very useful. I felt clutch and brake pedals are set a notch higher than other cars. So is the gear lever, which is actually good. It falls right into your hand when kept on that very useful adjustable armrest.

How can Tata engineers design horn pads so idiotically? It's quite irritating to use the horn. It's set to the extremities of the steering and the pad width is narrow too.

I will pen down the initial ownership experience in another 2 weeks.

The floor mats were out of stock and hence took delivery without them. They promised to give it to me tomorrow. Fastag was not kept in the car. The car clock was not set to the proper time. The driver side upholstery was soiled at a place, I had to clean it off with a clean wet cloth. The diesel tank had less than 5-litres of diesel. These are the small things that makes difference in customer delight.

But hey, that's Tata dealer being a Tata dealer. The delivery experience was good. Everyone in the sales department clapped and sent off the initial drive.

The first thing to do is to fill up the tank, get 3D floor mats from a local dealer, and remove all plastic covers over seats.

2nd day of ownership and a small lesson about EGR flap operation

Closing 300 km on the odometer.

I noticed a minute clatter like noise from the engine, especially when I lift off my foot of the A pedal, especially while coasting at 1400 - 1500 rpm. It was so minute that you would miss it with mild music or AC at any blower level over 1.

Took the car to the service centre, only to hear the news that all diesel Altrozes have that mild clatter at that rpm. I confirmed it with the test drive vehicle too. They told me it was something related to EGR and it is normal.

I then happened to discuss the same with my friend who is a post-grad in IC engines and currently works with Bharat Benz in the power train division. Only after talking to him, I was convinced. He says that especially in the BS6 engines, the EGR flap opens and closes intermittently when the engine runs at low rpm and low load. He advised that it's better to drive at RPMs above idling RPM + 600 revs, or not to let the A pedal in the low load position at that RPM. Also that it is normal and nothing to be worried about unless one doesn't continue the habit of keeping the A pedal at a low load position at those RPMs. I have started to drive at a few hundred RPMs higher and there is no flap clatter anymore.

I noticed this only in city driving and rural driving when I had to drive slower. No such issues on the highways as I don't coast at RPM <2000.

Any other Altroz diesel owners experienced this?

By the way, the Altroz has replaced the Ciaz perfectly. Drove 160 km today and it felt great to drive and was comfortable too. The Harman ICE audio is amazing!

Removed the garland, but kept the ribbon. That is a childhood silly habit of mine to keep the ribbon for days together. But this one will go tonight. Lol.

Tried ECO mode for about 80 km today. It felt eerily similar to DDIS 200 of Maruti in power delivery. I mean that in a good way,- relaxed and calm. Perfect for driving in city and rural areas. Driveability is even better than DDIS 200 even in ECO mode. The power delivery is very linear. Totally understand why so many Altroz owners face DPF issues. The Eco mode is adequate for 90% of the population. There is no lag nor lack of power for normal usage.

In the CITY mode, the car revs more eagerly and more noticeable is the way the engine note changes. The car pulls harder and the engine becomes substantially more throaty, again in a nice way. I liked the sound and it would urge you to push it more. Just wondered how great it would have been if Tata gave us Nexon's 108 bhp and 250 Nm. Missed opportunity, Tata. That being said, the Altroz diesel in its existing avatar, is quite fun to drive and can be really fast if you want it to be. 1.5 Revotorq is definitely an upgrade over the 1.3 DDIS even though they have the same specs on paper.

Also tried the cruise control (for the first time ever). It was quite useful, and the car delivered max fuel efficiency (on the MID) on the highway with the cruise control set to 70 km/h.

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