Chevrolet Optra Magnum For?

Pamper yourself by resting your behind on that comfortable captain seat and you will feel the softness of the seats caressing your arse. Lumber support is offered in dollops and finding the right driving position is never a hassle. The gear lever feels sporty, somewhat like that of the Civic's, and falls to hand easily. And then you have the shift quality. You see, GM has always faltered while orchestrating the gearing with the engine. But the American giant was upping its game all the time and the UV-A sported the best gear shift action of all GM/Chevy badged cars, untill this came around. The Magnum runs higher ratios but the awe-inspiring torque never makes you feel wanting for shorter ratios. It is apt. Just right.

There is so much space inside! I am about 6ft tall and even with the front seat pushed back to the max, I did not bat an eyelid in discomfort. But do not attempt to do long distances in such a state! With the seats pushed to the front, it is a different story altogether. Like I said, there is huge amount of space. Good legroom and under-thigh support only add to the comfort value, which this car exudes aplenty. Good space is not the only thing that makes for a comfy experience. The suspension setup, like its lineage, is beautifully sorted out and complies with most of the road irregularities with aplomb. Ride quality has always been GM's forte and the latest Chevy is no different. Small bumps and depressions dealt with without a hiccup while larger ones are annulled with only a hint of jiggling rear. At high speeds though, going on rough patches, she has a tendency to flounder a bit.

Of late, the offerings from Chevrolet have been doing a commendable job at the handling front. Optra and SRV were spirited while the UV-A struck a fine compromise between ride and handling. The Optra Magnum falls somewhere between the Optra and the SRV. Super ride is concurred by the acceptable handling. She does exhibit fair amount of body roll, and the rear tends to step out of line, but nothing that can't be taken care of. Good amount of grip offered by the Goodyears encourage the driver to test his balls to the point of madness. If at all there is one element that robs you off some fun, it, in all certainity, is the anesthetized steering. Takes its own sweet time to interact with the wheels. Till the time you are driving in the city comfines, it is well behaved but on the open stretches the driver is left wanting for more feel and response from that big-dia steering wheel.

The brakes offer great bite which can be ascribed to the discs all round. The Magnum shears its speed with composure and braking stability scores brownie points here. The only soot in the operation is the feel (rather the lack of it) that the brake pedal offers. Feels spongy. ABS only help matters when things seem like getting out of hand.

Since it is a diesel motor, people will have pre-conceived notions about the frugality of the car. And she does not disappoint. Our city runs suggested that we were running the car for 11.5 kays for a litre while on the highway this number marched northwards, touching the better side of 18kmpl.

Yes I have not talked about the engine or the performance yet. Sufficient reason I have for that. GM did the unthinkable by launching a product which could shake the Octy from its perch, and rightly so. And what a product in the shape of the Magnum it is! Inestimable times more comfortable than its Czech counterpart. And better performing too.

Yes the engine blathers in a manner characteristic of a diesel. Yes the sound is irritating on the outside. Yes, it forces you to slap yourself for shelling out 10 large large ones to buy this car. But then you did buy it, and for what? For this. PERFORMANCE. "Give me numbers" you will say, and I shall only but oblige, with pleasure. 314Nm - the copious amount of turning force which is primarily responsible for the next number in line. 10 seconds. Yes, this is the number on your oh-so-Swiss watch's stopwatch function that will dispatch a 100 clicks on the speedo of this car. And it gives you that thrust back in the seat which will induce a grin on your face.

A grin running from Boston to Budapest. Trust me, you will be laughing out loudly when you experience the rage of this engine and the urgency of those 120 horses. We clocked 165 on the speedo and there was no slack in the way the engine was pulling. A top speed speculation of 180 odd is not being over-optimistic. It is doable. And the bloody Mumbai traffic allowing, we will do it soon. We want to. The motor is flexible and dutiful enough, but a tad slow when under-driving the gears. But for such kind of performance, I am game for any trade-off. This is THE car I will take to do on my long-drive endeavours in. Efficient, fast, comfortable and plush. What more do I want? My lady as the passenger of course!