Re: Tata Nexon EV Max Review I'm based out of Hyderabad and in June took some test drives for various EVs. Took one of the Tigor EV (Dealer A), MG ZS EV and the Nexon EV Max (Dealer B). Finally (my wife, daughter and I) decided and booked the EV Max XZ+Lux 3.3kw variant from Dealer B. All my TD have been at the dealers showrooms. The prime reason for this was to evaluate the showroom experience. The SA at Dealer A was completely clueless about EVs although the manager was really knowledgeable.
I visited the MG showroom closest to my home and found the experience pathetic. We were left waiting for over 30m, and no one approached us to even have a discussion. Instead I visited another MG dealer and even though they were far busier, had a more positive experience. The car even though larger than most 5 seaters I have driven, was easy to drive with the 360 degree camera very usefull when taking turns. However the under thigh support and the driver/passenger seating wasn't comfortable to my liking. For a car priced over 25L lack of ventilated seats and auto IRVM was a real deal breaker. Plus they had a waiting period of 10months and when I enquired about the excite version and what features it would have, they were non-commital. Also informally they said that they weren't sure that it would actually launch considering the long waiting periods for the exclusive version.
I visited Dealer B for the TD of the Nexon EV Max and even though the raised flooring resulted in a knees up position, we could get away with having our legs under the front seats, since we're not particularly tall. While I found the space less than the MG ZS EV, the seating was lot more comfortable. So we finally booked it and the dealer mentioned a waiting periods of 20-24weeks. However post booking other than the receipts, I wasn't provided any booking confirmation. So I kept following up with the dealer and finally was shared a screenshot in their booking system with the "Opportunity ID" mentioned. This took over a week.
In the meantime I called other Tata Dealers and "Dealer A" mentioned that for the Max XZ+Lux with 3.3kwh charger, their waiting period is around 3 months, and is longer for other variants. Other dealers also mentioned anywhere from 16-19 weeks. When I called up the SA at Dealer B, he said it will come sooner but this is what they were told to tell customers. I got a call from a third dealer (Dealer C) and I raised the concern with their SA (who was a lady) and I told her that I already booked with Dealer B but that I could consider booking with them if I got it sooner and also a lower insurance cost (since others were quoting upwords of 92K). She said if you are getting different waiting periods from different dealers, I should book with the others as well since it is completely refundable. Also she said that I did not have to take the insurance from them and could get the same outside. Furthermore she said she could raise the booking for 1/2 of the booking amount. So while I paid 21K for the first booking, I paid 11K for the second. This person was more responsive and by the next day got a receipt for both the invoice and the booking confirmation.
Now in order of the overall dealer experience, I found Dealer C's to be the most responsive. Dealer B however has the closest service center followed by Dealer C and Dealer A. The closest showroom by time is Dealer A, and by distance is another dealer (which I did not consider because the service center is too far away).
All showrooms are able to provide a Nexon EV within a few weeks as people have changed the booking to the EV Max. If the Nexon EV had all the other features of the EV Max (except for the larger battery and the ventilated seats) I would have probably booked it instead.
I was hoping that the pricing for the Toyota Hyryder would be competitive enough for me to consider it over the Nexon EV Max. But unlike Haryana, there are no benefits in Telangana for Hybrid cars.
So I am looking for advice on the following: - Is booking with multiple dealers the right thing to do? Other than the opportunity to get cancelled bookings reassigned, would Tata motors prioritise delivery to some dealers over others?
- While I do not need the car till February (the earliest I can resume working from office due to renovation work), my concern is price increase due to the 6 airbags rule and due to the exemptions of road tax for electric cars being limited to the first 5000. I would expect around 20K per airbag. For purely city driving I do not see the need for side/curtain airbags. I've been driving cars since 2002, and driving cars in Hyderabad since 2009.
- I currently have a 3phase power connection with contracted load of 5kw. My peak usage (RMD) in summer has been just a little over 3kw. Would I need to increase the contracted load to be on the safe side? I stay in a rented apartment and the meters/distribution system is under 10m from the one of the two parking lots assigned to me. This parking lot is also exactly 3 floors below my flat, and coincidently is exactly where the provision for the air conditioning system is. I currently do not use air conditioning in summer (do not liked closed rooms), but that could change going forward as air coolers are beginnning to get a bit inconvenient. I have got signoff from the owner on installing the charger in the parking lot subject to approvals from the apartment association.
- My office as part of the renovation work is setting up couple of EV charging stations in the underground parking. So even if I do not get approval from the association, charging will not be a constraint going forward. For now the closest EV (Fortum) is around 6km away at an Indian oil petrol bunk. How do those that do not have charging facilities at their homes manage with public chargers?
Last edited by Aditya : 11th July 2022 at 17:53.
Reason: Spacing
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