Tata Bolt vs Toyota Etios Cross

There are few better ways to unwind at the end of the day at work than by getting behind the wheel of our Tata Bolt. Thanks to its supple ride, hushed cabin and brilliant air-conditioning, the Bolt has made my commutes within the city a lot easier, especially in the scorching midsummers. Having used it for the best part of 8,000km and four months since its arrival in our long-term fleet, I can vouch for this car’s calming effects.

It’s a crossover… It’s a hatchback… No, we don’t know! And since we don’t have a name for this segment of cars, we are going to begin by christening them Hatchovers! The Etios Cross is the latest entrant to this India-specific segment, where the cars look rugged and bulky like crossovers, but offer pretty much the same utility as that of a hatchback. It may be a unique distinction for the Indian automotive market, but not something that we should be proud of. What exactly is the purpose of the hatchover then? What made manufacturers like Volkswagen, Skoda and Toyota enter this segment? Is it just a passing fad or will we see more vehicles of this kind in future? We spend some time with the Etios Cross to get to the bottom of this riddle.

More than any other kind of vehicle, it’s the hatchbacks that are bought with the head and not the heart. That’s probably a given – but at a more basic level, would you rather have a hatchback that’s exciting and divides opinion? Or one that’s pretty straightforward and simply blends into your everyday life? This is the sort of question that’s been brought into focus often in the couple of months that I’ve spent in getting to know our Tata Bolt.