The Tiago is an interesting vehicle from Tata Motors. It is mainly aimed at the young buyer and is positioned in the compact hatchback segment. We spent some time with the petrol version and tell you if they succeeded in their aim.
From the outside, Tata designers have done a great job to make the car look appealing. Where the Bolt was more of a evolution from the Indica Vista, the Tiago is based on an all new design theme and we certainly like the way Tata is headed with that. The car is more elegant than outright in your face, which means it will have a wider appeal.
All the elements have been smartly designed. The new large headlamps, the air vents in the bumper and the design lines on the bumper give the car an interesting look. Around the side too, there is a strong shoulder line which doesn’t make the side profile boring. Turn indicators have been incorporated in the rear view mirror (top of the line) which is a nice touch.
The tail lamp cluster too is nicely done. A cool design element is the fact that the rear spoiler has black accents on the side which really adds a dash of sportiness. It maybe a small touch, but it certainly shows that Tata wants to appeal to the youth.
We were very impressed by how good the Tiago looks in flesh, especially in the vibrant sunburst orange shade. Even though this car has been in the market for a few months now, it still managed to attract a good amount of attention from other people. We even had a cop stop us just to have a closer look at the car and ask for more details.
Let’s talk about the interiors now. With the Bolt and Zest, Tata showed how they could build interiors with a touch of premium-ness. The same is what is seen on the Tiago as well. The interiors feel very upmarket. The quality, fit and finish are really nice. Even the design is interesting. The dashboard isn’t cluttered with a lot of buttons and has a dual tone colour theme. With the orange exterior shade, you also get orange air vent covers on the inside which is a funky thing.
To keep the dash clean, Tata have come up with an interesting idea of using a hidden button to release the glove box. Tata’s ConnectNext philosophy gives the Tiago a whole host of features. It has the Harman sound system which is really nice, especially given that it competes with the Celerio. Bluetooth phone connection, steering wheel mounted controls, USB, Aux-in are standard along with another interesting feature which is a segment first, the turn by turn navigation.
This basically connects with your phone’s navigation system so that you can use the car’s screen instead of looking at your phone. The MID as well provides a lot of information and the whole instrument cluster is well designed. If the Tata logo were removed, people would find it very tough to identify the car, and that says a lot.
While we are on the inside, let’s talk about ergonomics which is very important in day-to-day driving. The A-pillar is a little on the thicker side and blocks visibility. The mirrors are large enough and provide decent amount of rearward visibility. The rear parking sensors have a display as well and they work really well. Yes, it is a small car and sensors aren’t really necessary for a good driver, but it is always helpful to have them.
Space, like on every Tata car is in abundance, be it on the inside or the cabin.
Let’s tell you how it is to drive now. We tested the petrol variant. The engine in question is a 1.2 liter unit. Surprisingly, Tata is using a 3 cylinder one even though it is such a big engine. It produces 84 Bhp and 114 Nm. The output is similar to that on the Swift. So how does the engine perform? Turn the engine on and it settles down into a loud idle. NVH is one area where the Tiago is lacking, especially at lower speeds. Because the engine is a 3 cylinder one, it is unbalanced and hence the vibrations at idle are pretty high.
This becomes better at higher speeds though. As the speeds rise, the Tiago is very stable and feels planted which is a really nice thing. The engine is eager to be revved and does a good job. The gearbox is pretty nice to use as well and is pretty slick. The engine comes with 2 driving modes, Eco and normal. The car is extremely comfortable as well, like every Tata. For the segment the car is in, it handles pretty well.
Verdict?
The Tiago is very impressive. It is stylish, drives well, is comfortable , adequately spacious as well and is extremely well priced. We certainly feel that the Tiago is the vehicle in this segment currently.
Pricing: XB: Rs 3.20 lakhs, XE : Rs 3.66 lakhs, XE(O): Rs 3.84 lakhs, XM: Rs 3.96 lakhs, XM(O): Rs 4.14 lakhs, XT: Rs 4.26 lakhs, XT(O): Rs 4.44 lakhs.
