Day 2 of the Tata Motors and Blogadda collaborated Tata Zest experience was no less fun. While Day 1 was full of takeaways in terms of learnings and master classes, Day 2 had us actually driving the car around, around Goa and in Goa. Scenic winding roads, green cover, the sun and the rain. All playing a perfect hide and seek. It only made the experience all the more thrilling.
Driving the nail straight home, I will directly dive into the review of the car without any further ado. First Up is a little about the car itself followed by F-Tronic powered AMT (Automatic-Manual Transmission) Diesel engine and then the Revotron powered Petrol engine. Drove both around, but then I would leave deciding which one is to your liking back to you.
Tata Zest has been a product of 3 years of back breaking research, innovation and commitment. A commitment to the people of the Indian Democratic that we can produce cars no less than the Japanese, Koreans, Europeans or the Americans if not better. Tata here, however, has delivered a death knell to most of these manufactures. Featuring 29 segment firsts, Tata has definitely got it right with the car in all the sweet spots! I am sure, with this onslaught, the others must be running for cover! A common platform across the two variants differing only in the fuel, the car takes care of not just the bling in terms of gadgets but also in safety. ABS, SRS are standard, but Tata has gone further ahead and used ABS9 and Dual SRS bags deploy ability.
The car is fully future proof and can be upgraded like any other car with a plain straight firmware upgrade. The car also features an advanced level of Noise Level Insulation that prevents any kind of noise from filtering in. It is all kept out and you are good to have all the favorite gossip you want without being bothered about the sound from out on the road. While the gossip is on, the powerful as Jaguar AC manages to keep the temperature and the climate n control and comfortable! I would be ready to give up just about anything if you broke out into a sweat! Well, not if you got scared while driving! The car having a longer wheel base than the others in the segment is utterly stable and has excellent cornering ability. On a N bend, I had no difficulty in getting the car through without losing out on my speed or experience! The car also comes with best in class interiors and space that none other can offer. After all, it's a Tata Car!
Tata has always been known for its diesel engines and has always got them right. This time though, Tata has reinvented the wheel, put in loads of innovation and loads of research. This has not gone in vain and given the Indians and the world one Diesel Automatic-Manual Transmission engine. The engine coupled with an intelligent ECU not only ensures that the gear changes happen at the right time, but in case of Manual, it takes over in case you forget to change the gear and automatically shifts it up or down! The car comes with an ultra-light steering wheel that provides you feedback just when you need it. The rest of the time, the unnecessary jerks and twitches are kept out.
Tata's Revotron powered petrol engine is where the experts have put their brains to most work. While earlier petrol engines from Tata were not really as powerful, the recent iteration manage to shake off all that grime from itself and comes across as a sporty, peppy and Zestful engine! The one that we had driven was a manual transmission and was a real fun drive. The petrol engine comes with 3 modes, Eco, City and Sport; with Eco being for cruising speed on a highway, City for obvious sedate city driving conditions and Sport for when you want a maximum thrust and feel of power! I definitely feel that Sport mode should have been a default with Eco and City as selectable options rather than Eco and Sport as selectable options. I am really sure most of the buyers are going to end up driving in the Sports mode only.
Programmable features like follow me home head lamps, Call reject SMSes etc.
The Gear definitely felt a bit flimsy on the petrol engine. It transmitted an occasional jerk and often vibrated when on the highway.
In all, Tata's Zest is a wonderful car and great product from the Tata stables. It is more like the stallion that was awaiting in patience to be unleashed in the last. The car performs wonderfully under all conditions and exhibits an aura of premium feel and presence. The projector headlamps and all day running lamps are definitely a segment first and are generally featured in much more expensive cars. With this product, Tata has fulfilled all its promises that it has ever made to us Indians. Truly an Indian car, but it's not Indica. It's Zest!