The long-term reliability of dual-clutch ATs has generally been poor in India.

BHPian Aditya recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Tata Altroz DCA:

What you'll like:

• A smooth dual-clutch AT in a segment full of slow & jerky AMTs
• We find the Altroz DCA to be well-priced for what it offers
• Looks absolutely stunning! Solid build too
• Nice interior with good quality parts & adequate space
• Accommodating 345-litre boot is among the biggest in the segment
• Mature on-road behaviour, including at highway speeds. Expressway stability is exceptional
• 5-star NCAP safety rating! Safety package includes dual airbags, CSC, break reminder etc.
• Enjoyable Harman 6-speaker ICE. One of the better systems in this segment
• Impressive kit (auto park lock, auto headlamps & wipers, cruise control, ambient lighting, adjustable armrest...)
• Factory-fitted customisation packs available

What you won't:

• The long-term reliability of dual-clutch ATs has generally been poor in India
• 1.2L NA motor is weak & noisy. Better in the city than the highway. Don't expect a "Polo TSI DSG" experience at all
• DCA isn't offered on the 1.2L turbo-petrol or 1.5L diesel variants. Period
• 118 BHP Hyundai i20 turbo-petrol DCT is noticeably faster & offers superior performance
• Mature suspension does have a firm edge at low speeds (16" rim variants)
• Service visit every 6 months / 7,500 km (1 year / 10,000 km is the norm today)
• Some missing features (Eco & Sport modes, paddle shifters, idling start / stop, auto-dimming IRVM, thinner spare tyre on top trims, split-folding rear seat...)
• Tata's after-sales service quality is a hit or miss. Remains a gamble

Link to Review

Hyundai i20 DCT:

Link to review

Here's what GTO had  to say on the matter:

I am a total engine guy, hence I am quite surprised myself, but I have voted for the Altroz.

Reasons: I already have bigger & faster cars for the highway, so if I buy either of these, it would be purely a city runabout. The Altroz' engine is weak, yet it has sufficient poke <80 - 90 kmph for commuting. I l-o-v-e the styling. This weekend, I'm with a Lexus and spotted an Altroz on the expressway. I slowed down, moved to the right, then to the left and was admiring its styling from different angles. My passengers thought I've gone mad. It's got a 5-star safety rating and the superior suspension. Behaves like a proper "big car". The i20 has the better engine, equipment and after-sales.

Yet, as a purely city car, it's the Altroz for me. I have to admit that, the fact that an "Indian" company has rolled out such a competent car does play a role in my affinity for the Altroz.

Here's what BHPian Shreyans_Jain had to say on the matter:

Voted for the Altroz DCA:

• Wet clutch over dry clutch.
• Value for money pricing.
• 5 star safety.
• Better ride and handling package.
• Simpler old school engine is more tolerant to adulteration which is soon going to become mandatory (E10, E20). Direct injection turbo petrol can be very temperamental about fuel quality. For city use, the Tata motor is adequately powerful and the gearbox does the heavy lifting for you.

The Altroz DCA is about perfect a city car in my opinion.

Here's what BHPian Keeleri_Achu had to say on the matter:

Voted for the i20. Like others said, i20 is just a better package.

Yesterday I drove a Tiago AMT under full load for over 100 km.The engine was struggling to keep pace on the highway and I had to think too much before every overtake. While the engine was acceptable in city conditions, I just couldn't live with it out on the highway. I don't expect things to be drastically different even with a DCA.

Tata should've offered DCA on the turbo petrol regardless of the price. Give the customer options. Let them decide what's right for them.

Here's what BHPian SoumenD had to say on the matter:

Among the two, voted for Altroz DCA. Would have been better had the DCA come with iTurbo though.

While i20 seems great in a lot of aspects (most infact), it looses out on a key aspect which is personally important to me. That’s safety. I just can’t plonk in a million bucks for a structurally unstable car. Yes even cabs that we use at times are similar but that’s not in my control. But what is in my control is the one I purchase and there I would always avoid these options. Purely personal opinion

Having said that if I have to buy a million rupee car today it would be neither of these two. I will go with the Magnite.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

With the Normal drive mode, the car starts smoothly from the get-go. This mode can cater to the mix of sedate and occasional enthusiastic driving.

BHPian neeraj08 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Driving the Kia Carens petrol automatic with full load:

Took out my Carens 1.4 DCT last night with all 7 seats occupied and drove extensively on the empty city roads. My experience in brief:

Seating comfort:

With ample space on offer, the seating is comfortable. No complaints from the 3rd row passengers whether there were 2 adults or 3 kids seated there. Since there is no air-purifier or tablet tray in the 2nd row, there is oodles of space on offer for middle row passengers. Overall, the cabin feels airy which can be attributed to large windows and 4 separate air vents at the back.

Drivability:

With the Normal drive mode, the car starts smoothly from the get-go. This mode can cater to the mix of sedate and occasional enthusiastic driving. With full load, both city and highway drives can be taken care of with this mode.

With the Sport mode, the car instantly becomes aggressive- drops a gear, gains RPMs and the engine becomes vocal. I could notice the push back in the seat feel even with full load. The car waits longer before upshifting, but the FE takes a hit. Overall, this mode will keep the enthusiastic drivers well satisfied.

With the Eco mode, a conservative approach takes over and the car can only be driven sedately. The engine delivers power rather conservatively and this leads to a better FE figure. As per my observation, the gearshifts take place at the same RPMs as they take place in Normal mode. But due to the limited power delivery, the FE figure improves. I drove sedately in Eco mode for a good length and didn’t face any issues with car loaded full.

Ride and suspension:

The ride was overall smooth and can be termed as family friendly. The 205mm wide tyres and 16inch wheels are a fine combination to tackle potholes.

Gearbox:

The gearshifts are very smooth with the DCT gearbox. It doesn’t matter if the car is full with pax or just the driver, it’s hard to notice the gearshifts without looking at the MID.

I have driven a friend’s Crysta Diesel AT and I felt the Carens to be smoother to drive which can be attributed to the refined 1.4 Turbo engine and the dual-clutch AT.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information

The driving experience is overall smooth & jerk free. Do note that this DCA variant weighs approximately 20 kgs more than its manual counterpart.

BHPian karan561 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

In continuation of an in-depth review from Team BHP / Omkar, I'd also like to contribute my thoughts as I too had the opportunity to spend a day with the Tata Altroz DCA & here are my driving impressions in the form of a video review.

For those who prefer text here's a quick review:

Altroz DCA driving performance:

The driving experience is overall smooth & jerk free. Do note that this DCA variant weighs approximately 20 kgs more than its manual counterpart. The deal breaker however is the non enthusiastic engine up front which is not really enjoyable for the enthusiasts & even for the gearbox there’s not much power & torque upfront for the gearbox to take advantage off. I think this was the 1st time me driving a DCT gearbox paired to a non turbo "3 cylinder engine", however this engine contributes upto 85% of Altroz's total sales hence Tata Motors decided to pick this engine to be paired with the DCA. Another reason for the seamless driving experience is thanks to the shift by wire technology & also because this gearbox comes equipped with a Machine Learning technology which optimises transmission behaviour. Overall it was a interesting combination of a fast gearbox paired to a slow engine, good for non enthusiastic sedate drivers but for people who love to drive my pick still is the Altroz 1.5 diesel manual.

Will It be India friendly?

This transmission is equipped with a wet clutch with Active Cooling. (Allows better cooling for our Indian conditions v/s the Dry clutch gearboxes where both the plates are packed together.). Overall with this wet-clutch design, the transmission should offer stress free performance on inclines and in stop-go-traffic situations. Also if the transmission detects debris or dust then its equipped with a Self Healing system of sorts which prevents build up of dust or debris through an Automatic vibration technology decreasing the need for active maintenance.

Will it be reliable?

Tata Motors claim that this DCT box utilizes 35 % less components. For example, This DCA has only 1 layshaft as compared to 2 - 3 layshafts found in conventional DCT's. Another example is that this Belgian DT1 DCA Uses the World's 1st Planetary Gear System. (Only 13 Gears instead of 20 found in conventional DCT's). Hence, overall fewer moving parts is always a good thing which means that this gearbox might turn out to be reliable for the long term.

S.W.O.T. analysis:

Strengths:

• Design (Exterior & Interior).
• Space, 90 Deg. opening doors (Spacious cabin & boot).
• Safety (5 Star Global NCAP Rating is still a strength & a USP).
• Pricing (Prices revealed last week suggest that this might be the most affordable DCT in India).

Weaknesses:

• The 1.2L Revotron petrol engine is not fast. (Enthusiasts will be disappointed).
• No paddle shifters (Would have engaged the enthusiasts a bit & provided better braking control).
• No sunroof (Tata Motors could have finally offered a sunroof to distinguish this variant. Though I'm not sunroof hungry but most Indian car buyers today are. Hence a missed opportunity).

Opportunity:

• Gain back the lost sales (After 2 years the Altroz finally gets an A/T hence its a good time to attract back the customers who always wanted an Altroz but could not buy one in automatic).

Threats:

• Hyundai i20 N Line 1L DCT (Enthusiasts might stretch their budget and pick that).
• Punch DCT (This engine gearbox combo may soon be available in the Punch and that will cause an internal future threat for this variant).

The above video, review & thoughts are based on driving the the Altroz DCA on city roads, bumper to bumper traffic and also the open highways.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.