Opinion on the mini TANK, the Tiago!

Tiago can be seen as the successor to the late Indica and Vista, and it is a mighty good one at that. Tata's cars and ther after sales, both were problematic just about a decade or two ago. But now they have sorted out their issues. Their cars now are just brilliant, and the Tiago is the best example, so much so that it has single-handedly restored the faith of the people in the company with its chic looks, efficient engine options and it's exhaustive list of features which adds up to a highly VFM package that no other car in the segment can offer. The interior is unlike any other car in the segment and is made of good-to-excellent quality materials. The top of the dashboard is made out of premium soft touch plastics while the bottom part is hard, but still is not commuter grade. The door panel plastics, the centre console all contain a touch of class and the top part of the front doors flow seamlessly, joining the dashboard to the other side, something which is clearly inspired from Jaguar cars. The glove box is cooled and has a damped opening action, which is unseen in cars thay cost twice as much. The variant I am reviewing, the XZ Petrol comes with dual SRS airbags, ABS, EBD, Corner Stability Control ( CSC ), Central Locking, Remote Lock/Unlock, Speed Sensing Auto-Locking Doors ( 10kmph ) and Impact Sensing Door Unlock, a feature rich MID with dual trip meters, average fuel consumption, instantaneous fuel consumption and clock. The body itself is very strong and that is reflected in the kerb weight of the car, which weighs more than the Baleno which is from a segment above, it is also seen the sheer weight of the doors and the proper THUD upon closing them. This is one strongly built car and safety isn't in anyway compromised at any point. The infotainment on offer is co-developed by Tata and Harman and is named "Connectnext" and sounds are played through an absolutely magnificent, high quality 8 speaker Harman sound system that has very clear treble and a super rich bass that doesn't distort the music, unlike some cheaper systems. This kind of speaker setup can give competition that cost even thrice as much a run for it's money. The transmission on offer is the TA65 5-Speed unit ( same on the diesel ), although the gates are defined decently well, it is a bit notchy although nothing that would break the deal, and power is fed to the transmission via a 1.2 litre 3 cylinder motor titled "Revotron" and develops 84 BHP and 114 NM of torque which is more than adequate for day to day usage. Expected mileage under normal highway driving conditions would be between 20-21 kmpl, which is pretty good and in the city the figures are between 14-15 kmpl, which again, are respectable numbers. Servicing has always been a problem with older Tata cars, I will have to be honest and say that the after sales is still lagging behind Maruti and Hyundai but the Tiago's petrol is a very reliable unit as I've been using it for more than two years and it hasn't cost me anything other than the usual service costs. Cons to speak of, are the refinement levels, you can only get so much refinement out of a 3 cylinder motor since they are inherently unbalanced. My car is a 2016 batch one and hence refinement levels are just about average and you can feel the vibrations on the pedals as well as the gear level and you can always hear the engine when you are on the get-go. However newer batches ( 2018 and up ) are much more refined, which I strongly believe is due to the addition of a balancer shaft to iron out the vibrations and they have managed to contain it to a large extent. Another Con is the fit and finish. It's nothing to write home about and Tata should have improved their overall finishing levels especially since the materials being used are of such good quality. Finish is inconsistent on some places and are nowhere near Hyundai levels of fit and finish. And that concludes my short review of the Tiago Petrol XZ. Thank you.