Is Tata Nano ready for you?
A car for everyone – This was the dream of Tata’s behind their recent flagoff of Tata Nano. Tata Nano is a car for the masses. After running into some obstacles for months, it was finally released with huge enthusiasm & high hopes. So do these hopes seem promising? You will get to know after reading this article, whether you should really go for the Tata Nano or not.
Let’s begin with the analysis, which will help you to know Tata Nano in great details. I will be taking the standard model into account and not the premium one.
Price – Price is of utmost importance. Considering the rising fuel costs, getting a decent car in a moderate budget is what everyone is on a lookout for. On this part, the Nano seems almost irresistible. The standard variant of Tata Nano is available for around Rs. 1,25,000 & the deluxe version is priced at Rs. 1,40,000~1,60,000. Now if we consider in general sense, every individual who is on a lookout for a good bike or second hand car will definitely go for Tata Nano. Hence we can Nano wins convincingly in the price aspect.
Safety – After price, a car should have good safeguarding abilities against accidents. Here Tata Nano, is found to be compliant with the front collision test as per the Indian standards which match up with the Europeans & US counterparts. This means Tata Nano should be able to tackle frontal collisions with sufficient ease. However, Tata Nano seems not to have passed the side collision along with the offset collision tests. Also it seems Tata Nano is void without any airbags, which are a must when safety is taken into account. So if you are a safety paranoid, then you better look elsewhere.
Build Quality – Apart from the above, the build quality of Tata Nano is passable considering the premium one pays for it. To start with, Tata Nano is stripped of all the unessential parts which mean any lapses in build quality are kept to a minimum. Though most of the exterior parts are of plastic, they seem of good quality. The car is designed keeping the Indian conditions in mind. The suspension & tyres have been designed in such a way so that they can withstand the bumpy Indian roads.
Space – Tata Nano though appears to be small from outside, it is quite adequate for 4 passengers. The car has good ground clearance & also provides good head space in small car category. Tata Nano is strategically designed as the vehicle length is reduced to 3,100mm, shorter than that of the ordinary small vehicle and the height is increased to 1,600mm. The seats are good, but you are likely to feel uncomfortable for long journeys. Apart from this the car has no space at all to carry your picnic basket. There is just a tiny space on the rear part to accommodate a single spare tire.
Emissions – It’s always good to drive a car which causes least damage to the rapidly degrading environment. Thankfully Tata Nano seems to be fully compliant with EURO 4 emission, an European emission standard. This means Tata Nano is environmental friendly.
Why Tata Nano is so cheap? / Reasons you should not buy the Tata Nano.
You cannot make a product cheap without making any compromises here and there. Same is the case with Tata Nano. Following are some reasons which make the Tata Nano cheaper. These reasons could be perceived as possible shortcoming of Tata Nano.
1) Devoid of fancy things. Tata Nano just includes those things which are absolutely essential in a car. It does not have dual wipers, power steering, air-conditioned cabin, music system, airbags, anti-theft technology, driving assist technology, power windows and many other things. Imagine driving in summer without AC or getting bored in conveyance due to unavailability of music system.
2) The car is limited on space. You will not be able to store or transport even a small amount of goods, since there is absolutely no space available to do so. Not good option for those who frequently need to transfer goods from place to place or who were looking to use Tata Nano as a cheap alternative to sell petty essentials. This will also foil any of your plans of arranging a night out somewhere out with your bunch of friends.
3) The car has only two wheel drive. It makes away with the propeller shaft to keep down the costs. Due to this, the car is not suited for long mountainous journey or some rugged terrain. Also the pipe arrangement has been simplified by mounting the radiator on the rear side which further helps in keeping the overall cost low.
4) Tata Nano consists of a 624cc engine with 33bhp which gives a maximum speed of 70km/hr. The top speed is quoted to be around 105km/hr. This means Tata Nano isn’t for those speed freaks & again for those who wish to take in on an adventurous voyage.
5) The bumpers of Tata Nano are left un-painted to further keep the costs low. No way for those flashers out there, to stand out from the crowd. Plastic has been used in abundance to keep the weight low, which is not too good considering safety.
6) The main motive behind Tata Nano was to provide a cheap car to the masses & in the process earn heavy profits. This is a major reason for the affordability of Tata Nano. According to Tata, it was done so as to swoop off the financial pressure from the company’s management.
Reasons you should buy the Tata Nano.
Here are the good reasons, for which you should think of getting a Tata Nano.
1) Extremely economical. It’s the price which is the winning point of Nano. At around Rs.1.5 lakhs, you can get a car which really is irresistible offer.
2) Low on maintenance. Being a Tata product, a good after sales support is expected in case you run into problems.
3) Being small in length, you can park the Tata Nano in very little space. Good to cramp it up in a narrow lane. Also you will be relieved from the parking headaches. Tata Nano can be parked easily in a small cranny of your building compound.
4) Goes around 23km/ltr of fuel. Not bad mileage considering the likes of Maruti Alto and other providing around 12km/ltr that too at a high cost.
5) Good to get instead of buying a two wheeler or a second hand car.
6) Being an Indian product, it is well suited for Indian conditions which include harsh roads & traffic snarls. Give you a sense of patriotism, infuses Indianess.
Conclusion:
Tata Nano seems to be of utmost value to the shallow pocketed. It is a revolution in the automobile industry. On the footsteps of Tata Nano, many other automobile manufacturers are bound to follow. At the moment it seems, waiting is the best since you are bound to benefit with the competition in the small car segment. I too will wait for options to be unveiled from other automobile manufacturers & then will choose wisely. I suggest you to do the same too. If you can’t then go for it, you will get a bang for your buck.
For more details you can have a look at the Official Website.
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How much will all these affect in casual driving in city
The car is good only for casual driving, but not at all for moderate-heavy use. Also I have heard about many more Nano clones by other manufacturers better than Nano. So it is worth waiting for now on, besides only few lucky people are going to grab Nano this year(due to over-booking)that too by a random pickup.
I dnt find nano impressive..
Yeah, I salute Mr. Tata for showing keen interest on common man’s need and wish. But, still the price of Nano which a common man would like to purchase is peaking towards 2 lakhs.. I wonder who would by the cheaper version of Nano. I would rather prefer a powerful motorbike indeed.