The power is sufficient for the urban landscape, the gearbox is smooth and the A/C is a chiller still after 2 years of ownership.

BHPian W.A.G recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

It's time for an update again! Our Altroz completed its fourth service today at the Garve Tata Service Centre at Narhe. Given the fiasco about cleaning in the prior three services, my wife made it amply clear to the service advisor that there should be no mistake in the cleaning part this time. Before that, a word about the service. After the 3rd service fiasco, we decided not to give the car for a service on the weekend. However, today Pune was practically empty due to the long weekend of Republic Day. Taking advantage of the situation, we booked the appointment for today morning at 9.30 AM. Garve Tata has been proactive so far and they called us last Tuesday to get the car serviced. We reached the service centre on time and it turned out to be lucky for us today. There were hardly 4-5 cars for service. The receptionist promptly assigned a service advisor to us and in 10 minutes we went to the car for an inspection. This was not a "true" service - it was just a general checkup and a fluid top-up type service.

To for those who keep complaining that the service interval is 6 months/7500km, this is partly true. If you consider the engine oil change service as the actual service, then the service interval is 1yr/15000km. Our car so far has had 2 checkups and 2 oil changes now. For this particular service, we had only one niggle - there was consistent squeaking noise from the rear left area. The service advisor - Nikhil was his name, was good. He patiently listened to all the inputs and noted them down. He also explained what would be covered in the service and what would not be covered. We also opted for a thorough cleaning of the car inside out. He then took a short test drive of the car to observe the sound and noted it. Some weeks ago, there was also a minor fender bender, when an over-enthusiastic cabbie took out the rear mud flap unnecessarily. We asked Nikhil for a replacement and to our surprise; he said that Tata doesn't stock these consumable items and that we were free to get the replacement from any car accessories shop outside. We decided to do that because it will anyway turn out to be cheaper.

All was good, and we made it back home by 10.45 AM. The only goof-up probably was that he called very late in the evening to pick up the car, when it was only around an hour to closing time. Thankfully due to the less traffic today, we reached 15 mins before closing and got the car delivered to us spick and span. This time both of us were satisfied with the service done (basically only brake fluid, A/C gas, and windshield washer fluid were topped up, all 4 brakes were opened and cleaned, and some padding was added to control the noise from the rear seat clip). The squeaking was traced to a loose clip for anchoring the rear seat back and we were assured that it would not occur again.

The car was thoroughly cleaned from the inside and outside. The cleaning was long overdue and we just kept postponing it till the service. Given the feedback and fiasco about cleaning my wife had mentioned multiple times no shortcuts would be tolerated. I and the talking Ecosport kept a watch from a safe distance till the car was thoroughly inspected by the lady of the house. Only when the coast was clear, we made it to the Altroz! Thankfully, history did not repeat itself and we made it back home without the usual fireworks! The overall bill came to INR 6,109.00 which is okay, neither too cheap nor too costly. The car felt better to drive after the service. Maybe it's a psychological effect, but still, it felt nice. The noise in the rear has disappeared now, so we can say they "seem" to have diagnosed it correctly. If it re-occurs, then bad luck for us!

Coming to the car once again - I am happy to report that it is performing as expected. The power is sufficient for the urban landscape, the gearbox is smooth and the A/C is a chiller still after 2 years of ownership. We are satisfied completely with the car - it is an all-rounder in that sense. It does a lot of things correctly and only some things wrong. However, whatever it does correctly, appeals to the 90% of the people out there. If you are looking for outright power then this is not the car for you. It has just a sufficient amount of power for the urban jungle. It runs easily out of breath on the highway. It has low seating as compared to my talking Ecosport. The under-thigh support in both the front and back seats is underwhelming, to say the least. The fuel efficiency is on the lower side, but this is a given fact because the car is heavy. There are some rough edges here and there, but nothing that you cannot live without. The auto headlamps work like a charm, as do the rain-sensing wipers. The dual-clutch gearbox is smooth and shifts nicely. We are now converts (saying once again here) and our next cars will probably be automatics! The gearbox single-handedly offsets many of the disadvantages or rather the shortcomings of the car.

About Tata and Garve - I think our thread is a breath of fresh air in a sea of niggles being reported. For us, the car has been trouble free and the dealer support has been quite good. I have been reading about the problems, niggles, misdiagnosis and lack of good customer service in many of the threads on Team-Bhp. In contrast to those, we have had an overall good experience. Maybe we hit the jackpot for this. Sure, there have been goof-ups with us as well, but nothing major so far. Everything has been sorted out by the Garve Tata Service Centre, after being reported (and after a possible shouting match later!).

Now for some pics after the service:

All shining - the wet look feel of the grey colour looks fab!

As highlighted earlier, the piano-black finish is a scratch magnet, but looks good from a distance

Here is the broken mud flap. Something that we now have to source from a local accessories shop

A bad snap of the speedo - I realised, that the camera lens needed a clean. But as you can see, the fuel efficiency keeps hovering between 11 and 12 kmpl. This is completely in Pune city with the A/C on always and on a relatively busy route/road.

This car seriously looks good from any angle.

However, I feel, this is the best angle to look at the car!

Here is the invoice copy for today's service at Garve Tata Service Centre.

Last but not least, a snap of the cleaned interiors. Outside the driver's side, you can see Nikhil - I can only imagine how tense those 4 to 5 minutes must have been for him while my wife was inspecting the cleaning! Reason enough, that me and my Ecosport, stayed put outside the gate till the inspection was over!!

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The service center had replaced only one gearbox till now. I was really concerned about their inexperience in handling this situation.

BHPian anand_roy recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

My worse fears on the Tata Altroz DCA has come true. The automatic gearbox probably needs replacement within one and a half month's of purchase.

We brought home the Altroz XZA+S on 20th October last month.

It all started with a noise last week. When my wife reversed (R) the car and then put it into Drive (D) mode and moved a bit forward, there was a screeching sound.

She thought that it was something in the road and continued. When I did the same sequence of events a day later (reverse and then drive), I also got the same sound.

It came immediately after the car if driven for maybe 50 metres after putting in drive mode (after the car is reversed). This sound is a bit longish lasting for about 2 seconds. It felt like the noise was coming from the back. I felt it was something with the brake pads or something stuck in the wheel. Visual inspection did not reveal anything.

Then when the car is driven, a similar sound comes, shorter in duration and also lower in noise, in speeds of less than 40. Driving the car during the past few days, I noticed that it generally comes when the brake is applied and then accelerated or during acceleration in lower speeds.

Today, the first service was due and I reported the issue to the workshop. We went for a test drive and the SA initially felt it was coming from the back as well - but initial inspection on the roadside did not reveal anything.

They took it back into the workshop and did their investigation. And then, my worse fear came true. The SA reported that it was an issue with the automatic gearbox and it will need to be replaced. They do not have any diagnostics to run on the gearbox. They have tightened all nuts and bolts, checked the wheel and brake pads and per my understanding, came to this conclusion by the process of elimination. Also, the sequence which leads to the noise (reverse and forward leading to a longish noise and slower speeds leading to a shorter noise), is an indicator that this is a gearbox issue.

I had a feeling that the sound was coming from the back; but on another longish test drive when I was sitting in the back seat today, on careful listening, it seemed that the noise was coming from the front.

The Service Center has sent their observations to Tata and will wait for observations from Tata. Based on Tata's observations, they will order the replacement.

I was told that I can drive the car in the meantime. I am not sure how safe that is. But two cars is essential for us. We will try to drive it at a minimum but cannot avoid it altogether.

After coming back from the workshop, I went to my trusted mechanic and he also mentioned that the noise was coming from the front right (where the gearbox is located) and could not find any issue in the tyre or that general area based on visual inspection. He also advised to follow the suggestions of the workshop.

The service center had replaced only one gearbox till now. I was really concerned about their inexperience in handling this situation. Very sad that the only scenario that I feared has come true.

Tata personnel in Pune confirmed that this is an issue with the gearbox and the service center has asked for a replacement.

I also escalated the issue to the senior leadership team of Tata and received a call back from the customer care manager.

The replacement gearbox arrived last Wednesday and I took the car to the Service Center on Thursday for the replacement.

In addition to the Service Center personnel, Tata had sent an engineer from their automatic gearbox division to oversee the replacement.

The gearbox is situated in the lower part of the engine bay towards the left side wheel (the one nearest to the co-driver).

And they had to take out a lot of the parts to take out the faulty gearbox including both wheels as well as the axle.

The replacement job went smoothly and was completed in about 3 hours after which the car was taken for a long test drive and then handed back to me.

Since then, we have been driving the car and it is running smoothly. It has been only a few days only and hopefully things will be ok going forward.

I am definitely very concerned about the reliability of the car.

And a lot of parts were taken out and then put back in to replace the gearbox. That is also a cause of concern.

An automatic gearbox should not fail within one and a half months of operation. That is just unacceptable. That's a question mark on a lot of things.

I am in discussions with Tata Motors to assuage my concerns. Let's see where it goes.

If this replacement was required to be done without warranty, it would have cost 3.5 Lac + INR !!

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The insurance survey report says to repair the car, which came as a surprise because considering the damage, I expected it to be declared as a total loss.

BHPian nemodotme recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Finally, on 20th October 2023, I bought my first car - a pre-owned red Tata Altroz DCA. Last Sunday I got the RC book, and the very next day Cyclone Michaung hit Chennai.

I was fairly sure that nothing would happen but slowly the water kept rising and by Tuesday morning, my car was in 30 inches of flood water almost to the dashboard. I could see water inside the glove compartment and center gear console.

It is heartbreaking and I am sad.

The insurance surveyor's initial survey asked for the vehicle to be repaired (which was surprising since this was level C and should have been a total loss).

I got someone from the Tata workshop to see my car but both the steering and front wheel were locked and they couldn't fix it.

Now the only option was a tow that has a wheel skate/dolly/trolley/freewheel that is added to the front wheel and moved to the open area where it can be towed on a flatbed.

I purchased a wet vacuum and heat gun and cleaned and dried it to the best of my ability. I didn't want my car to just sit there in the flood gunk and rot till I got it towed to the workshop.

After a lot of hassle, I got a private tow and spent 5k to drop the car at a Tata workshop.

The front wheel seems to be locked due to the gear (not due to the brake), trying to move the vehicle the front wheel was moving a couple of inches and was stopping causing a slight shake in the engine. This is related to gear / transmission?

What are the parts that might have been damaged (Transmission ? + electronics modules like ABS, Airbag etc) which I need to insist on replacing to ensure reliability?

I would be extremely grateful if someone could guide me in this.

Thank you.

Here's what BHPian VellVector had to say about the matter:

Looking at the level of the water, it would be safe to say that the water level was sufficient to flood the transmission and a good portion of the engine bay.

Ask the ASC to include in their estimate:

• A new engine and transmission assembly (the surveyor will ask for the oil to be drained in front of him to confirm the entry of water).
• All the electronic modules (ECU, ABS, interiors, entertainment, etc.)
• Brake calipers
• Wire harnesses
• Starter / Alternator
• Fuel pump / actuators
• Entertainment system - Speakers, things like that
• Air Conditioning
• Airbags (if the water level was that high)
• All the switches and other things that may have been affected
• Seats (the insurance company won't agree to this - they will ask the ASC to clean them)

Basically, get everything possible added to the estimate. Anything that the insurance company asks you to repair instead of replace ask the ASC to give a written guarantee that it can be repaired and will be in warranty. If they can't do that for any part ask them to tell the surveyor that the brand cannot repair that part.

Depending on the surveyor there may be a few rounds of these discussions before the vehicle is declared a total loss.

Here's what BHPian Habanero City had to say about the matter:

Please do not attempt to move the car or crank or push start any flood-damaged cars as it will get hydrolocked which seems to be your case.

This would cause severe damage to the engine, especially the connecting rod.

Based on your report, the car seems to have suffered extensive water damage and would be better to scrap it.

Please negotiate with the insurance company and the service center about this.

Here's what BHPian porsche_guy had to say about the matter:

It seems that you did not release the shift lock for the transmission. I am surprised that even the RSA person did not notice or know about this. Next time onwards, for any AT car that needs to be towed, do always follow this process so as to not risk damaging the transmission. I feel you should send strong feedback to the people at Tata Motors to better train their technicians about this. Anyway, attaching the instruction page from the Altroz owners manual for manually releasing the shift lock.

To be honest, with a flood-damaged vehicle, it is tough to accurately assess the extent and intensity of damage. You will only truly get an idea once the car is opened up. Nasty surprises should be expected. That said, a basic idea of the work required can be found on many threads on this forum such as this one - Restoration Report: Flood-affected Toyota Etios.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

We have now gotten used to the lower power output and have started to become accustomed to extracting the right amount of torque at the right places.

BHPian W.A.G.7 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

The Altroz is performing well. The odometer stands at ~67xx kms as of today. Nothing much to report so far. A comprehensive update is still due, along with some beautiful pictures, but looks like it will be the year end till it happens.

Possible road trip towards the end of the year, but it's a bit early to say. Last week, visited Satara and it behaved beautifully on the highway. Except for one or two steep places in the Khambatki ghat, wherein I had to mash the accelerator, the gearbox shifted well and it was in the power zone for most of the time. Come to think of it - we have now gotten used to the lower power output and have started to become accustomed to extracting the right amount of torque at the right places. Still a lot to learn though.

We did a trip to Satara last week and the car gave an average fuel efficiency of 20.3 kmpl on the highway as per the trip meter. A/C was switched on for about 30 mins max (~25% of the travel time) but not otherwise. I think this is quite a decent highway fuel efficiency. Real world fuel efficiency will be in the range of 11-13 kmpl for a combined driving cycle, we have now made peace with it!

A political rally at Medha, and the road was closed by the police, so we had to take a long detour through some beautiful internal roads. At quite a lot of places, there's construction going on, so we learnt a lesson - if there mud kicked up, don't use the wiper. Else the car ends up looking like this.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Given our current limited use of cars as low as 1,000 - 1,200 km a year, of which 50-60% is in the city we thought going for a hatchback with auto-transmission for ease of use.

BHPian Devansh88 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Garage:

We are a couple in mid-thirties and we currently (and proudly) own a 2005 Baleno Lxi, which extremely well maintained and is only 55k done. Most of our office commute is on two wheelers, mostly for convenience of avoiding Bengaluru traffic. Car runs are limited to couple of times a month, and half a dozen airport runs a year, when parents or friends visit, maybe totaling 1000-1200kms a year. However we do acknowledge that like our car, we are also aging and will need a reliable vehicle for our day-to-day needs - and eventually for office commutes. I am currently considering retaining the Baleno for sentimental reasons, but deep in my heart I know we won't get much use out of even one car, let alone two.

Dilemma:

Given our current limited use of cars as low as 1,000 - 1,200 kms a year, of which 50-60% is in the city we thought going for a hatchback with auto-transmission for ease of use. Such limited use doesn't justify spending big bucks, which can be used better elsewhere.

Priorities:

1. High on safety - 4 star or higher, but 5 preferable

2. Auto Transmission - to make city use more bearable

3. High on reliability - I certainly don't want to be visiting the service centers except for scheduled maintenance. Longer service intervals preferable, but not a dealbreaker

4. Decent power - Not expecting 1.6L type outputs, but shouldn't be a complete laggard either.

Good to have:

1. Parking assist - front + back sensors or 360 degree cameras

2. Cruise Control - while not relevant for the city, a big help on the highways, for whatever road trips we might take

Thus we started our research with Tiago AMT. A 2km test drive was enough to give a sense that the suspension setup was not adequate, but more importantly, the gearbox was not something we could live with. Nor was the interior any better than what cars had 20 years ago. This was quickly rejected.

We checked out the Altroz in the showroom, and it did feel spacious enough, so the DCA can be kept in consideration. However the interiors still feel dated, and even the top end version has a basic ICE, which puts the value under question.

We did sit inside a 2023 facelift Nexon Creative, and while we are yet to test drive it, it did feel more premium and liveable compared to the Tiago. But in terms of absolute space, the difference between the Altroz and Nexon was minimal, apart from the boot.

Next we test drove the XUV300 W6 AMT - the ride quality was fair and the AMT was a bit better but for the price, the interiors still feel dated. Maybe this is because we sat in the Nexon Facelift before this. W6 is priced competitively at 13.13 but lacked even a colour screen ICE. The W8 AMT was already more than the Nexon, hence out of consideration.

Lastly we sat in the Elevate in a nearby Honda showroom. The V CVT version is barely 70k more than the Nexon Creative+ DCA, and apart from the lack of cruise control, it feels like it offers much better VFM in terms of a reliable 1.5L engine, time-tested CVT, longer wheelbase and more boot storage. Only problem is we're already in the 17L bracket and big car segment.

Original budget was about 12L, but ready to stretch for a car that we can use for many years.

Pending test drive of Nexon DCA, I have the following questions

1. The Tiago felt impractically underpowered, and given the same state-of-tune of the engine in heavier Altroz DCA, is it a viable option for the city? Haven't driven the DCA yet, but I doubt that will make much of a difference.

2. I'm having a hard time justifying the incremental cost of Nexon Creative+ being >4L over the Altroz top end, given space is nearly the same, and just 10% lower boot capacity? Except for the Turbocharger, and 4 additional airbags, price premium seems high for the bells and whistles, but maybe I fail to see the complete picture. Thoughts?

3. Somehow paying ~16.3 for Nexon Creative+ DCA with a relatively unproven gearbox feels unreasonable when the Elevate is available for 17L OTR. Only reason I'm favouring Nexon is that it has some useful features like 360 degree camera, cruise control, while Elevate will be too big for the city (and the parking spot of my rented apartment, but that can change soon).

Happy to hear your thoughts!

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

Couple of thoughts:

• Avoid all the AMTs.
• You keep your cars for long (2005 Baleno).
• 1200 km means the car will spend a lot of time standing still.
• You need something simple, robust & reliable.
• Go for the Elevate CVT or the Nexon DCA, whichever pulls the strings to your heart more. Elevate = Perfect size for the city. Space for 4. Butter-smooth CVT, bulletproof 1.5L NA engine, compliant ride quality. Nexon = superior to the Elevate in many ways, but won't be as fuss-free to own as the Honda (but the Tata has a lot more tech too). If I were buying something for family members to use and some rough usage, I'd get the Elevate. On the other hand, if it was purely my own car, I would get the Nexon DCA.

Take a long TD of both and go with your heart. End of the day, the car & driving experience have to keep you happy. Maybe, just maybe, a great car will make you road-trip more.

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

For keeping a car till 15 years or more, prefer a Honda, Maruti or a Toyota. Avoid a TATA.

As you need a 4-star safe car, eliminate Maruti (only Brezza and Grand Vitara are capable of being equivalent of 4 stars) but given your limited running, lets explore others as well.

Toyota does not have a suitable model in this range. Glanza safety would be same as Baleno while HyRyder iis also same as Grand Vitara.

Honda Elevate seems to be the most suitable option.

You have mentioned that you are finding it hard to justify Nexon over Altroz. Have you checked out the Amaze by the way?

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

When you are keeping your vehicle for a long time, take the larger vehicle from the higher segment. Families expand, needs may change and a larger vehicle always helps.

Ageing in your 30s?!

Think about it, the last thing you want is a boring car.

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

I think you would be best suited to buying a Japanese product. Go for the Elevate  considering it has a more balanced 4cylinder petrol motor that is smoother than any Tata petrol also considering it comes with a CVT (Honda is known to make bulletproof CVTs) which is any day more reliable than a twin clutch autobox, the Elevate is clearly a mechanically more finessed product. Forget the 360degree parking camera and the cruise control as you will not need 360degree camera in a simple hatchback design and cruise control while sometimes useful, I find is a feature that I use rarely even more so nowadays as the number of idiots on the highways have definitely doubled in the past decade.

The Fronx ought to also make a good candidate (pending a crash test report).

Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The car feels solid, stable and planted on the road and absorbs most of the bumps without any fuss.

BHPian W.A.G.7 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

A quick update on the car. The Altroz is performing its duties nicely:

• The odometer stands at 6190 km as I write this post. It has seen some reduced running this month due to the festive season. Apart from that no other updates.
• We are getting a fuel efficiency of 11-12 kmpl consistently. So I guess that after a year now; it is safe to assume that the average fuel efficiency the car will return will be somewhere within this range. Neither too good nor too bad. Expecting something more wouldn't be right, as this is a heavy car with an underpowered (read just sufficient) engine.
• The DCA gearbox is working excellently. We are loving it and are "converts" to automatic boxes now. I am happy that we didn't settle for the AMT one but went ahead with the fully automatic gearbox. Now I keep wondering, why I didn't stretch my budget in 2018 and got myself an automatic version of the Ecosport!
• The car feels solid, stable and planted on the road and absorbs most of the bumps without any fuss. We find the shock absorbers adequate for city use.
• The noise insulation is fantastic, once you close the windows; all other ambient traffic sounds are filtered out. You can hear the sound system nicely.
• The audio is another good part of the car. 4 speakers and 4 tweeters dish out some nice audio quality. Neither of us is an audiophile, but we can distinguish good speakers from badly tuned ones. I am happy to report that the Harman system in this car is excellent. Exception for an OEM system to sound nice!
• Good Year All Terrain Max 2 tyres are really good. They have little noise, as compared to the MRF ZVTVs or MRF ZV2Ks. Once again, I am happy that we got these tyres with the car by default.
• The air conditioner is a chiller, we have to tone it down to blower speed 1 or 2 after the initial 4-5 minutes. The automatic climate control works perfectly.
• Auto headlamps and Rain Sensing Wipers also work flawlessly. We have never faced any issues with these two so far.

I do feel that the Altroz DCA can complement your garage as a competent secondary car. It's perfect for city runabouts.I know a photo shoot is long due, I will try and put it up soon.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The maximum mileage on highways has been 20 km/L.

BHPian ssathiyanarayan recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Quick update after some 4 months and 2800 kms

Having driven across a variety of terrains and mostly in the urban jungle with heavy B2B the principle contributor to mileage here are some observations over the months:

What I Love

• Mature ride handling - Though I've not touched / crossed the triple digit speeds, the ride of this beast is very mature for its class
• Good AC - The AC unit is very good. Xpress cool is added boon
• 1.2 NA Engine - I was wrong at being skeptical about its performance. It is good and has been doing the duties well. Its very rev happy as well
• iRA - After the initial hiatus and the app glitches, things have improved after the new app updates
• Rain sensing wipers, Rear wiper with wash - really useful features
• Head lamp levelling - Finally found the desired level
• In the heavy traffic of city like the B2B, the DCA is a bliss to drive with just a foot on the brakes and no A pedal inputs
• Sound system - Many have really complimented for such a nice audio system on car

What could have better or changed:

• Tata ASS - They have a long way to go
• GC of 165 mm - Though the suspension set-up is good, the GC at 180 cms would have done wonders, my personal opinion
• The car's rear design - I like the ones on Harrier and Punch. Altroz seems a bit half cooked one
• The omission of the driving modes in the DCA variants
• Provision of led strip lighting on the boot door
• Rear seat could have been a bit more reclined
• Magic seats 60:40 split at rear - Would have brought practicality and value for the hatchback
• Provide an option of Tan orange interiors - It would have added colour and pep to the dull interiors
• Rear camera resolution could have been better along with a different spot to avoid getting covered in mud and muck during rainy days
• Add front parking sensors & integrate them with radar sensor to provide real-time collision alerts. Could be done with rear parking sensors as well.
• Redesign the headlight assembly and provide separate LED projector lights as well with a 4500k hue

Mileage:

This is the biggest thing that matters in India. "Kitna deta hai". One thing I've learnt in life being a Quality and ESH personnel is nothing comes handy that a well built and safe product. So for me mileage is not principle deciding factor but nonetheless expenses have to be tracked. My mileage figures are below:

• B2B drives - 8 to 10 kmpl
• City drives - 10 to 12 kmpl
• Highway drives - 16 to 20 kmpl

I'm neither a pedal to metal driver or a sedate one. I'm an opportunistic driver willing to rev, take cuts and quickly pull over the gaps, finish a quick overtake. So my mileage figures are bit on the lower side. I don't maintain things in steady state - like keeping the rpms steady and providing very steady throttle inputs. It's one thing I'm trying to master and envy those who have such gifts. I'm starting to drive with a light foot and cool head - This has helped me to avoid road rage issues and also get decent mileage figures over the experimented drives. Maybe a couple of long drives and I should have got habituated well with Optimus.

Altroz wishes me on Birthday

Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The engine has opened up nicely and feels a lot more eager to drive when we mash the accelerator.

BHPian W.A.G.7 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

So, around a week and a half ago on 5th Aug 2023 (to be precise on 8th Aug) we had our third and final free service done with Garve Tata. I refer to this as a "true" service because it involves an oil change. The prior two services were general checkups and involved only "top-ups" of certain fluids.

On 5th Aug 2023, we reached the service centre in Narhe and it was a "haaaawww" moment for us. There were so many cars coming in for servicing, that it was impossible to even get the car inside the premises. The watchman told us to park the car right there and leave the keys in the car. When we went inside, it was another story. The whole area was choc-a-bloc with customers waiting to be assigned a service advisor. When we approached the reception, the overworked lady told us to take a seat and wait for at least 45 minutes! This was the story at 9.30 AM in the morning. We waited for 15 mins and figured out that we were surrounded by overworked receptionists and flustered service advisors who were just running around in circles with job cards and a different set of customers every time!

Long story short, both of us instantly figured out that due to the overload on the particular Saturday, these unfortunate headless "chimkens" would hoodwink both of us like a couple of kids and possibly just wash and hand over the car to us. Actually, they did hoodwink us and we realized it today while we were penning down this report! How? Read on...

Coming back to the main story, we approached the reception lady and asked to reschedule the appointment to 8th Aug (Tuesday) - she quickly assigned a Tuesday slot and almost stood up and thanked us both for getting ourselves and her out of the mess! Oh, the irony of selling too many cars and having the same "sized" service centres and dealers as yesteryears!!

Tuesday turned out to be a blessing in disguise - there were hardly 4 or 5 more cars for servicing. Lesson learnt - never ever go to a service centre on a Saturday. While we were waiting, we were offered a mandatory coffee which we gulped (and instantly burned our soft palates once again; though the taste was really good!) while they assigned a service advisor. And guess what??

Horror of horrors - he had a bad case of conjunctivitis and looked straight at us like this:

My wife told him with a deadpan expression to get some rest and asked him to get hold of someone else. Someone else came and another "haaaawww" moment for us. The person coolly took over the pen and job card from him! We realized that we had to use Dettol Hand Sanitizer liberally when we got home, or else the same pen and job card would make us sitting ducks for conjunctivitis after we had signed the job card.

But the other person was quite cool with the situation. He accompanied us to the car and wrote down the mandatory things. We asked him to check the TPMS warning once again and also check the seat height adjustment. Apart from this, there was really no other complaint about the car. He explained that this service will have the oil and oil filter changed along with the general checkup. He also offered us to change the front wipers to "frameless" ones - which we obliged because the original ones were making some noise. Usually, we make it a point to change the wipers once a year, no matter the condition. While we were leaving my wife told him to ensure that the car was washed properly when we would come to collect it in the evening because it was horribly muddy when we left it at the service centre.

4 pm and they call us - saying the car is washed and ready and we can pick it up. We agreed to a time of 5 pm because we assumed that we would be back by 6-6.15 pm, as we both had meetings around 6.30 pm onwards. Classic case of assumptions gone bad. We reached there at sharp 5 pm and they assigned a person to us after 10 minutes or so. He said let's check out the car before we get on with the paperwork - not a very good idea on his part!

When we approached the car - we instantly saw was not washed completely - quite a lot of places still had muddy traces and swirls For some strange reason we realized that the car was completely fogged up from inside. My wife told him in no uncertain terms that if she doesn't see the clean car in the next 10 minutes, he can very well go home with 0 out of 10 stars in his rating. Not a good start I told my Ecosport and we both agreed remotely. The conjunctivitis guy and his non-conjunctivitis friend (who got the job card signed by us) were nowhere to be seen. The new person got on the phone in a double and after a shouting session to someone on the other end of the line, we saw some 4 or 5 cleaner guys running towards the car. To cut the long story short (again!) they had the car exterior cleaned up in no time. That's when part 2 of the cleaning saga unfolded!

The new person confidently opened the door and another "haaaawww" moment for us. The driver-side doormat was dripping wet! Someone at the centre absent-mindedly had put the wet mat in the car after cleaning and closed it. With the wet mat and the car standing under the partly sunny, partly cloudy weather - the interiors got fogged up. This time, we both raised our voices and said we want the car cleaned up nice and proper else we are calling the TaMo customer care right now and escalating it to them. After some frantic shouting matches and around 4-5 service advisors running helter-skelter, they got the wet mat partially dried and the car cleaned up from the inside in the next 30-40 minutes. Again realisation dawned on us that neither of us was going to make it to our respective meetings - so a couple of frantic phone calls to colleagues excusing ourselves and we were back in the middle of this fiasco.

In the meanwhile, they got the mat partially dried up and apologised to us saying it was an oversight. All said and done, we dried the mat at home but the wet water stench has remained in the car for 5-6 more days. Overall this time, the service experience at Garve Tata Service Centre in Narhe was underwhelming as compared to the prior two ones. Now, enough of the whole chimichanga and side stories - let's get to the basics:

• The whole bill came to INR 6365.49/- Screenshot below somewhere. While posting the screenshot below, we both realized that they did manage to tack on A/C cleaning and some 3M care charge. Yikes! There's no such thing as A/C disinfection/cleaning and all the A/C cleaning threads on team-bhp came flooding back to my memory.
• In hindsight, I realized that the above fiasco cost us 2 hours of precious time and by the end of it, we were so exhausted that we just wanted to get out of the mess quickly and we overlooked this charge. Next time, we will be more careful. Experience is the best teacher they say, we learnt it the hard way.
• The oil change seems to have made the engine a lot more smoother to drive. Naysayers will call it a psychological effect but then it really feels so.
• The engine has opened up nicely and feels a lot more eager to drive when we mash the accelerator. The loud raspy note is still there though. It becomes all the more apparent when the gearbox drops down two gears during a manoeuvre such as overtaking. But we have gotten used to it.
• They checked the problem where the TPMS sign keeps coming on but were unable to determine any problem in the system. They advised us to fill in the air once every two weeks and keep a watch. Additionally, they suggested switching over to nitrogen instead of plain air.
• They also said that they had sorted out the seat height adjustment issue and tightened some of the gears in the mechanism. The problem seems to have diminished but I can say that this isn't fully resolved as yet. The seat keeps slipping down to the lowest setting; albeit at a bit slower rate as compared to before the service.
• The gearbox is as smooth as ever, and we are loving it. Never found a cause for complaint, and it has made us total converts to automatics.
• The DCA gearbox has won over the hearts - to the point that we are pondering, whether it would be advisable to get rid of a 5-year-old Ecosport with 25k kilometres and replace it with a Skoda Slavia or VW Virtus 1.5 DSG. Then the brain kicks in and reminds us that this would be foolhardy. It's stupid to replace a fine-running Ford Ecosport with another Dual Clutch Gearboxed car (They don't make cars like the Ecosport anymore and personally I have a soft corner for it). Two Dual Clutch Gearbox"ed" cars - that's a potential financial headache for sure in the future!
• The car feels planted and stable at speeds of 80-90 kmph. Heck, we even touched 100-110 kmph without a sweat. We haven't gone beyond 110 km per hour anytime for two reasons - one is that the car is not meant for spirited driving and two is that the Indian roads are not mature enough to drive at high speeds.
• The suspension is tuned nicely - we found that it absorbs all the bumps and potholes efficiently. We never felt any unsettled or bouncy behaviour so far in our ownership.
• Rain sensing wipers and automatic headlamps - two more nice features that we have got in this car and which work okay. The rain-sensing wipers work pretty well in all types of rain that we have experienced so far. The automatic headlamps work decently - they are quick to switch on at the slightest hint of darkness. Conversely, they take their own sweet time to switch off. For example, coming out of a tunnel.
• The back seat comfort is okayish. I mean you have enough legroom in the front even with the front seat extended fully back, but under-thigh support is lacking. What I mean is that the rear seat height is quite low, so for a 5'10" person like me, my legs and knees become angled upwards. For short rides, this is okay but will be a pain for long rides. Back and lumbar support is okay, however, I felt that the seat back angle is a tad too upright. It could have been more relaxed.
• Disc + drum brake combo never gave us any cause for concern, but if I compare it to my Ecosport; then the response time could be a bit better. We have now learnt to use them in the right way in order to have the least stopping distance.
• Good Year ATM2 tyres are nice - have minimal road noise as compared to the default OEM Tyres - the ubiquitous MRF ZVTVs or ZV2Ks. They also offer quite a good grip for OEM tyres. Hence no upgrade is planned as of today on the tyre front.
• The odometer stands at 5909 km as of today, while writing the report. The car is working flawlessly in the "office" traffic i.e. office commutes. With speeds never exceeding 40kmph, the gearbox is always in the right gear - mostly third or fourth. It does have a tendency to upshift quickly and remain there.
• The manual mode is the one which we have used the least. Somehow since day one of the ownership both of us never got our Hand <-> Eye <-> Leg <-> Gear <-> Brake combination right.
• Ultimately we thought to ourselves that we got an automatic car to get rid of the hassle of changing gears and then decided to skip the manual mode altogether - a classic case of grapes being sour!!

The overall conclusion once again is that this car is very much suited to the cityscape and the occasional highway escapades. It will work pretty well as a secondary family car, especially for the ladies. One year (actually 11 days short of completing 1 year of ownership) down the line, I would wholeheartedly recommend this car as a secondary/city drive. I will continue to keep updating our experiences as we get into the second year of ownership starting 29th Aug 2023.

A couple of pictures now - not much but will do it for now.

The saviour! We liberally splattered Dettol to all the touch points in the car and our hands. Thankfully a week later neither of us has conjunctivitis, so you can say for sure that the Dettol idea worked:

An important milestone in the life of the car. 5555 km:

The piano black finish looks good but is still a swirl magnet. Notice the shade difference where there is a reverse lamp and the other side where there is none:

We love the wet look finish of the grey colour. A good wash and polish and it really shines out nicely:

Page 1 of the invoice:

And here's page 2. Notice the unnecessary charges added on both pages:

At the in-law's place with their 2021 Honda City:

The rainy season means lots of muddy roads and mossy houses:

Side profile of the car. Although I hate cars with a huge front overhand and a minimal rear overhand, I have come to love the shape of this car from the rear three-quarters. It is one of the decently proportioned vehicles sold here:

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The TPMS is throwing up audible and visual warnings once again in the MID.

BHPian W.A.G.7 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

A few quick updates and observations.

Monsoons have arrived, read that as "dirty cars" that need frequent cleaning. A daily drive compounds this problem even more. We will mostly get it cleaned up during the service scheduled next week. Here in the pic, you can see that the rear wiper has a good sweep & cleanup area; and is being put to good use.

The car has started throwing up the "Service Due" reminder frequently. We have a scheduled appointment for the 1-year/15,000 km service on 5th Aug 2023. This is the real "true" service in that sense, the prior two ones were more or less check-up and top-up services. I will update the experience once we get back the car from the service centre. Nitpick - The infographic showing the fuel level in the meter blind spots the actual information! Just wish there was a separate place for the fuel level infographic but it is a minor inconvenience!

The replacement valve for the front tyre has gone kaput once again. The TPMS is throwing up audible and visual warnings once again in the MID. We will need to get it replaced during the service this time. The tyre is good for sure - checked twice and found no punctures at all. it's only the leaking valve that's causing the low pressure. The second point to note here is the average fuel efficiency. Monsoons = traffic jams, which is equal to stop and go traffic; which in turn means a drop in the average fuel efficiency. It keeps hovering between 11-11.5 km/l in the city. The odometer stands at ~5400 kms.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The DCA gearbox is a boon in bumper-to-bumper traffic.The positives of the automatic gearbox outweigh all the cons combined.

BHPian W.A.G.7 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

So, the Altroz crossed 5000 km today! It's a good milestone for us to achieve in the last 10 months. The monsoons have arrived here. Read that as an excuse to head out somewhere for a drive.

A few points, related to the car, before some pics of the drive:

• The average fuel efficiency is hovering between ~11.5 km/l in the city to ~13.5 km/l on the highway. This is quite a decent figure considering that it is a heavy car with an underpowered petrol engine.
• The strange thing is that this engine delivers a better fuel efficiency in environments where it's not supposed to be! We tend to get a fuel efficiencey of 13-14 km/l on the highways, but it's main area of expertise is the cityscape! We do not expect the fuel efficiency of the car to increase beyond these limits.
• The DCA gearbox is a boon in bumper-to-bumper traffic. I have mentioned it enough times on the thread - the positives of the automatic gearbox outweigh all the cons combined. The shifts are seamless and you can realise the gear has changed only because of the engine noise.
• For 90% of the time when the car would be used in the city, there is sufficient power available on tap. As an example, since our car is used in full traffic twice a day, where the average speed, does not cross 25km/h; the lack of power doesn't matter at all. There is always enough power and torque available and the gearbox never goes beyond 3 or 4 at the maximum.
• If you are someone who does a lot of of highway driving then the power output of the engine and the gearbox combo may not be enough for you. There will be situations on the highway where you will be left wanting for power. Of course, the engine is powerful enough on the highway but it takes its own sweet time to get into the power band on the highway.
• For highway driving, I would go for the diesel engine + manual gearbox combo. That would be the best one to regulate the power and have good fuel efficiency.
• While climbing ghats, the gearbox tends to hold on to the second gear, but you can see the empty road ahead and you wish it would upshift to the third quickly. However, the ECU needs to hold it in the second gear just so the engine remains in the power band. This is where the lack of power output becomes evident.
• The rear camera is situated just below the round Tata logo. One practical disadvantage is that when driven on the highway the mud that gets thrown up tends to soil it so much that there is almost no visibility. For example, today we had to stop and clean it thrice during the trip. Maybe a lower position would have helped!
• The car has had its fair share of nicks and cuts in the daily traffic but the body has held on well. The piano black finish however is one thing I can crib about all day. Its a huge swirl magnet and will catch up swirls no matter how careful you are!

In conclusion, in the last 10 months, we have learnt that the best place for this car is in the city where it is supremely comfortable to drive in traffic. Its extremely useful for ladies as well - the convenience of a proper automatic in a premium feel hatchback. It's quite a head turner too. For everything else that falls under driving - we have our Ecosport!

The one year / third service (which is the actual service; the prior two ones were not services - they were only checkups and fluid top-ups) is approaching in August when we will complete one year with the car. I will report the details here once that is completed. It will be useful for everyone to know how the experience of the first "proper" service is.

Now for some pics!!

Here is how our Altroz looks after 10 months:

I like this angle the best for photos:

The chrome is not overdone in the front of this car. However, the front overhang is huge. (not saying because of this photo, but a general observation):

The paint quality is top-notch and has held on nicely. We haven't done any kind of coating on the paint:

Here is the fuel efficiency when we realised we had missed to click a photo of 4999 or 5000 km! We just missed clicking a photo of the 5000 km mark by a whisker:

Here is the average fuel efficiency at the end of the trip. Pretty decent for a heavy hatchback:

A shot of how the car looks from the rear:

I think the rear three quarters is probably the best angle to click a photograph of this car. Notice that the camera is positioned below the Tata logo, so it gets soiled pretty quickly when all the muddy water gets thrown up:

The thick flat bottom steering wheel is a pleasure to hold. It's thick and the feedback is quite decent too, sufficiently weighted at all speeds:

When monsoon and road trips combine, you cannot miss having tea! The weather was just beautiful today for a long drive. We had to cut short because of personal commitments today:

That's all for now, I will post more pictures and updates in the coming weeks and when the car completes one year in August:

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.