This is the first time I am writing about a car. The reason is simple. I never got to use one till date (I am hardly eligible for two wheelers!!). So I have never had to really look into cars and all. But I decided I’ll write about my own car- the second car my father bought in five years, Tata Indica V2. Let’s see...
Appearance
Normally, I begin my automobile reviews with the title Style and Build but I changed my mind about cars. I’ll begin with Appearance Personally, I think this car is a beauty. I mean, there are tonnes of other cars in this segment of five-seater hatchbacks. You have FIAT Uno, you have Hyundai Santro, you have Santro Xing you have all sorts! Among all these, I think Tata Indica V2 has a very good finish from the outside. Santro and it’s variants are tall and appear peculiarly boxy in shape, with rather angular corners. Indica on the contrary is streamlined and has a more continuous shape (students of math’s and calculus will appreciate this comment more). Indica has this sporty look about itself, without being too gaudy or hip-hop. I mean, it does look sporty, but it also does give off an executive air (if you allow me to call it) as well, so that it doesn’t look out of place at a meeting or family gathering.
As you enter the car, austere interiors welcome you with warmth (though the A/C is really cold). The front of the car, where you have the gloves’ compartment, Music player and the steering-and-instrument panel is designed in a manner that makes you feel comfortable and pleasant though without being to classic or stylish. That is my taste, you know, elegant and graceful yet not stylish or too polished so as to look intimidating to those who don’t have the Indica. The seats of the car have an uphostery that matches the car colour (like that?!). But of course you can cover it with your choice of seat covers. For it’s beauty and finish, I’ll give it nine out of ten.
Comfort
Comfort is a very ambiguous title to give here. I mean, there are two ways in which a car can be comfortable. It can have a high driver-comfort but not a passenger comfort. Or it may be other way round. As far as the passengers are concerned, I think the car is very comfortable. It is a five seater, so to say. Five people do fit in the car without any appreciable cramming, but the three people at the back don’t have much space for free movement. Four people make the car give off an impression of a football field. It has plenty of leg room for the front bucket seat as well as the rear seat. The seats are well designed, giving your backside a good ride (rude, aren’t I?). So in general, I don’t see why passengers should complain about the car, unless you’ve stuffed nine.
For the driver’s comfort part, I have to rely purely on others’ description. My father is happy with the car’s power-steering and seat configuration. The driver’s seat is positioned just right for a person of my father’s height (5’7’’) to drive comfortably with a clear view of the front and all. My mother, who is slightly shorter than him, does find the front view near the bonet a tad difficult, though it gives her no problems whatsoever.
The rear view, however, is a bit of a problem. The build of the boot’s door is such that the driver has to strain and stretch to get a clear rear view to reverse. This is, of course, a matter of discussion for those who can’t reverse with the mirror provided at the door.
Performance
I am at a loss to make out what could come under this category. But I’ll go for it. Indica V2 has a 1000cc engine giving it a 75bhp power which is, if you ask me, very good indeed. My father and I (without the ladies of the house, mind you) love zooming around the city’s roads at speeds like 80 which it catches without you knowing some time was spent. It has a good pick up of nought to sixty in some five seconds with full payload of five people. You can buckle that under good performance.
On long trips, this is the car you’d want to be in. It has an AC which really cools the car fast and very well. So it’s comfortable even when it is very hot. The car gives a smooth and silent ride (if you have the windows shut) for as long as you like. You can drive at the speed of your choice for the duration of your choice. The engine will not trouble you at all, unless you’ve wrecked it somewhere. This is one good enduring machine.
Fuel efficiency
This is where the car takes a bad beating. Over the past one whole year, this car hasn’t gone more than ten to a litre in cities and twelve to a litre on highways (mine runs on petrol). Compared to the Uno that we also own, Indica needs more trips to the gas station. This is where we have to spend so much on it. That’s why it’s more money per car!
Summing it up
I think, apart from mileage, the car is a wonder. Riding from the Tata’s stable, you can’t expect anything other than good engineering.
In his unique style, my father says: Tata truck-walla hain. Indica truck jaisi banai. Truck jaisi chalti hain. Truck jaiki peeti hain!
(Tata is a trucker. He made Indica like a truck. It runs like a truck. And it consumes fuel like a truck.)