Style, Performance and Value for Money

The description of the features and the pictures of the car were truly inspiring. So I landed at a TATA - FIAT dealer to check the offering in real and also have a taste of it. The car is long and wide. I am 5'9" and for my build, I found that I can stretch my leg while on the front passenger seat with much space to spare for the passenger behind me. His knees were yet to touch the back of front seat. The width of the seats were good, three men could be seated at the back. The car I checked on was standing in sun for a while and was pretty hot (oven) when I entered but cooled up soon after start of the AC. The climate control did a good job and cooled the cabin in a short while; the rear AC vent helps in the act. I checked on the mirrors, they were rightly sized to allow proper viewing as well as the electronic control was good. Next I checked the stereo and found the Blaupunkt equipment to be delivering very good sound quality and the control at the steering made it enjoyable. The buttons were positioned at convenient positions. The display console shows many usual things including real time fuel usage display. The hand rest between front seats and the space beneath was good to keep toll tickets.  The handbrake is restricted by this hand rest and would need moving up when applying. However it is same for all cars  with a hand rest . The rear seat hand rest is equipped with cup holders. I would rather not like this utility as the plastic was very thin and looked brittle. Visually it seemed a bulky hand might damage the piece. I would rather like this hand rest tucked into the rear rest. However I noted a car that has its bonnet opener broken, the piece didn’t seem to be very strong on visual inspection. The colour composition of the doors, the dash and the fabric on the seat were in harmony but not extravagant. The alloy wheels looked beautiful.

The engine doesn’t transmit much vibration or sound to the cabin indicating the good quality of insulation, the horn when sounded doesn’t sound much into the cabin. While in neutral, it was difficult for me to know if the engine is running. The gear shifts were very smooth and the movement was short and sweet. The gear box responds well and so does the engine to the acceleration. Over 60 KMpH, the on acceleration with RPM below 1500, it takes a short while to respond, but it catches on very soon. On accelerating around 2500 RPM, the response is prompt but with a little grunt which disappears with the stabilization of the revs. The steering is light, the braking is good and the handling is wonderful. The road grip was very good and combined with the light steering effortless maneuvering of the vehicle was possible. I made a U tern of the vehicle at 3rd gear and there was no struggle. The engine and transmission is surely a gem of a creation. At 80 KMpH the car was going strong and was yet to approach any serious rev rate. I could go no further than 80 KMpH due to restrictions on the road but the car seemed capable of delivering high speed with control. While on the drive, the driver seat could be and was elevated when I changed seat with my wife. The driving experience indicated that this car would be a driver’s car.  My short drive was not good enough to test the fuel economy. I was told the same engine is being used in another car and there it delivers 14+ KMpL in city and 17+ KMpL on highways. This would need to be checked with users.

I asked the question on servicing and availability of the spares, I was shown a few older Fiats being serviced. On spares they commented that Fiat has taken cognizance of the fact and have made improvements in their spares supply chain and the company is serious to make a comeback into the market. This would also need validation.

Conclusion:  A big car with a right size and responsive engine and transmission. Features galore and great comfort for the price it comes (Rs.891000 on-road for me), it is time to plan some real long drives.