Tata Nexon Review & First-Hand Experience

It was an honor to be part of yet another media event of Tata Motors and this time it was at Kochi for a test drive and review of new Tata Nexon  – the new baby of Tata motors.

In the last 18 months, Tata Motors family have been consistently adding new members – Tata Hexa, Tata Tiago and yes, you have heard it right Tata Motors India is mulling to bring in the new Tata Nexon aka “NEXT ON” in September. The new addition is going to enter the compact SUV segment. It will compete with Maruti Suzuki ‘s Vitara Brezza, Mahindra TUV300 and Ford’s EcoSport. It took 3 years for the Tata Motors team to transmute their concept model to reality.

As a part of the 2-day media event ( July 28th-29th), we bloggers were given an opportunity to test drive this beauty and get a first-hand experience before it hits the market. We were put up at Marriott near Lulu Mall. The flag off was planned on the second day. We got to test drive both the petrol and diesel variants. Our drive took us from the city’s traffic to serpentine roads of Idukki, Kerala.

With the onset of monsoon, the drive was as scenic as possible as we whizzed past lakes, waterfalls and tea estates in our new Nexon.

Let’s just delve into the technical aspects of the car and some cool features of Nexon that set it apart from the other cars in the same segment.

– PLUSH INTERIORS & COMFORT –

The moment you step in you will find a good measure of luxury thrown in. The layered three-tone dashboard looks smashing punctuated with a right amount of features.

To start with, there is a floating  6.5-inch infotainment system to keep you entertained on long road trips. You can listen to songs and watch YouTube videos on the go. It even comes with in-built maps to help you reach your desired destination and voice commands to guide you through. There are bottle holders in all the four doors and umbrella holder.

Boot space is a generous 350 litres. It is also equipped with a spacious cooled and illuminated glove box and a detachable tray which could be used as a placeholder for a laptop. Plus, it also has a sunglass holder.

The seats are comfortable. I found the rear seat way better than the front ones though. Be it the generous leg room or storage space, Tata Nexon does make sure you have an ample amount of storage for a relaxing and a comfortable drive.

– LOOKS & PERFORMANCE –

Look does matter.  Nexon does tick all the checkboxes when it comes to looks in the category of compact SUV. It is masculine and powerful. It also comes with well endowed 16-inch alloy wheels and 215/60 R16 tyres. The car does not come in one monotonous color but breaking the monotony of the car is a right amount of dash and slash. The ivory white housing runs all around hugging the headlamps, fog lamps, boot and LED tail light. The roof is also different from the color of the body. It does “Breaks the BOX “.

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For me, the side profile of the car stands out look wise. Having an amazing looking car with high revs is always an added advantage.

– COOL FEATURES –

Lets now come to some of the coolest features Tata Nexon boasts about. Multi-Drive Option – A tiny knob sets the mode of the car. There are three options – Eco, Sports & City. In Eco mode, you get a linear pickup. In city mode, the car does pick up easily. While the sports mode uses all power and is the ideal option for an engaging driving experience.

Floating Infotainment Display is coupled with AUX, USB, Bluetooth connectivity, Android Auto and Apple Carplay (to be launched later). You can read & reply to WhatsApp messages or call via voice-based warnings too.

Voice Commands, 8 Harman speakers, Reverse parking camera are other additional features. Umbrella Holder and grocery bag holder is kinda cool. The 6-speed gearbox is good for fuel economy. Reverse gear has a lift-to-shift lock so that you don’t get confused. There is also a push start button to set the car rolling.

But the most amazing feature is the wearable key. That comes quite handy if you don’t like carrying keys everywhere. Wish they have also added some features like a fitness band to track the number of steps or calories burned.

OVERALL EXPERIENCE 

It was an amazing experience driving this beauty from Kochi to Ikuddi. Driving the car was a breeze both in the city traffic as well as maneuvering in hairpin bends. The multi-drive options make it quite convenient and easy. Though performance wise Diesel ranks high. Tata Nexon is definitely going to give a tough competition to others in the compact SUV segment for sure. Though we have to wait for the exact pricing and if it is competitively priced I think it has an edge in terms of features, looks, storage, and boot space.

Here’s a quick summary of some of the best features of the car.

Compact SUV

6 – Speed Gear Box

Smashing Looks

Ground Clearance ( 209 mm )

Drive modes-Sport, Eco & City

Plush Interiors

Infotainment System – You can watch videos and listen to songs on the go.

Sliding Tambour Door for storage.

Keyless Entry

Spacious Glovebox

Umbrella Holder

Boot space

High-intensity projector Headlamps.

The Nexon will be offered in two engine options – 1.2 L Turbocharged Revotron Petrol and 1.5 L Revotorq Diesel with a  six-speed manual transmission box.

If you are a person who prefers automatic over manual then get excited as the automatic version is under development.

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PRICING: Expect the Tata Nexon to be priced between Rs 6 lakh-Rs 10 lakh. Though, we do have to wait for the official announcement in September 2017.

You can see all the specifications on Tata Nexon page

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