[N.r.K]

Originally Posted by Shivjeet

I think all car manufacturers should just give dealerships to Bhpians. I'm sure that way it will be a lot better.

Be it Toyota or Mercedes, I'm never satisfied with their service. I give in the car for service and every time I get it back with all settings changed. The Air Con will be set to minimum, AC vents will be in all different directions, all seats will be fiddled with, music will be on full blast, fingerprints everywhere including the roof lining. Then they use a sick cloth and make everything sticky.

I mean they return the car in a much worse state than I gave it in. We (Dad and I) always used to complain, but now we've given up because the mechanics and service advisors are thick skinned and will never understand. They're so good at spoiling things that they even erased the seat memory in our LC200. Like who does that? Only complete morons do.

Very few dealers are actually passionate about running the dealership, others are just there to make some money and you can't even call them business men because they're that bad.

This is very true!
And about the service experience. Tass is not incompetent. At least not the guys who have serviced my car over the last four years. I admit that the whole experience is not very pleasant. But its definitely not a deal breaker considering that i have to go there only once a year! And i've actually seen that complaints during their followup calls are actually taken very seriously.
They once took the car back, cleaned it and got it back just because i gave them a middling score for the service. The SA called to apologize and insisted on taking the car back and dropping it for free. I don't know if he has incentives based on our grading!

Any whichways, the final product matters and its reliability. The dealers and after sales not to the same extent.
Thats no excuse fot tata not to improve on the overall experience. But it wouldn't stop me from considering their product!

Originally Posted by gsurya

This is what is called a striptease

[prakash_ajp]

Looking at the discussions about the kerb weight of the vehicle I thought of checking how this fares with other similarly big vehicles (not necessarily the ones Hexa is competing with). Looks like Fortuner is around 2 tons and Endeavour and Trailblazer are about same as Hexa. Kind of par for the course. Besides, if this wasn't a problem for Aria I doubt this will be a problem with Hexa. My two cents.

[SnS_12]

Plus its got 400nm of torque, which is higher compared to Crysta (343nm for 2.4 & 360nm for 2.8) and XUV (330nm). Also, I have seen it been testing multiple times on my road trips in the last few months and this beast really moves. So the added weight won't be a problem on the driving experience as it has serious pulling power

[aptiwa]

Hi all, I must have missed this in the volume of posts but which hotel in Hyderabad is this happening in? I'm in Hyderabad today and pretty kicked to go and check it out for myself.

Also, to be truly honest, I don't see this killing the XUV, leave alone the Innova. The XUV killed the Aria last time around by pricing, variants and internal gizmo-gimmickry and people love it for that.

However, every good vehicle deserves it's own space and for those who don't like the current XUV looks or the Innova price, this does present a very good option. Add captain seats (the perennial Innova USP) and better storage as well as the novelty of new model, you have something of a minor success story brewing here. A 1500-2000 monthly sale, if sustained, will be pretty good. Will get people in the showroom and help move the Kite 5 when it slots between the Tiago and Hexa next year.

Having been on the fence for the Honda BR-V for last couple of months I'm eager to wait it out for another few on how this is. Till then there is always an Uber and Ola willing to ferry me at someone else's cost

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by m3_07

What media embargo??? every one is dropping a subtle hint.

Media embargo is put in place to arrange the drives over a couple of days without anyone feeling left out. Obviously they can't accommodate everyone on Day 1 itself, and if these guys start posting full reviews, the other magazines will not get any attention later, and will feel left out.

Nothing wrong in media persons expressing their excitement.

Originally Posted by aptiwa

Hi all, I must have missed this in the volume of posts but which hotel in Hyderabad is this happening in? I'm in Hyderabad today and pretty kicked to go and check it out for myself.

As per earlier posts, it's Novotel Shamshabad (inside airport).

Originally Posted by aptiwa

A 1500-2000 monthly sale, if sustained, will be pretty good.

I feel it's way too much. I would predict an average sales of around 500 units per month, after the initial 6 months excitement is over. And the biggest casualty will be Storme, rather than XUV or Crysta.

[Zappo]

Originally Posted by aptiwa

Hi all, I must have missed this in the volume of posts but which hotel in Hyderabad is this happening in? I'm in Hyderabad today and pretty kicked to go and check it out for myself.

Its happening in Novotel Shamshabad (near airport).

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

As per earlier posts, it's Novotel Shamshabad (inside airport).

Actually not inside airport but close to the airport.

[ambujlal]

Originally Posted by SnS_12

Plus its got 400nm of torque, which is higher compared to Crysta (343nm for 2.4 & 360nm for 2.8) and XUV (330nm). Also, I have seen it been testing multiple times on my road trips in the last few months and this beast really moves. So the added weight won't be a problem on the driving experience as it has serious pulling power

True, I have driven the 400Nm Storme (a friend's). Once in the right RPM band, this engine is a rocket. It just pulls. I am sure in Hexa the driving experience would be even better.

[mallumowgli]

Autocar news report mentions this

All trims are expected to be offered with two- and all-wheel drive options.

Is this true? The info in this thread mentions AWD only in one trim

http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...17-403167.aspx

[methecupid]

I have been quietly reading through all the posts through this hullabaloo; and some not so intelligent expectations from the Hexa. So why am I writing anything now? Because owning the New Innova Crysta, I find myself rather bordering the craving of going gung-ho on my finances, logic and stern looks from wifey to propose swap it for this baby. Am I going to do it? that's for another day and time to decide.

I had booked the Storme VX 400, prior to cancelling it to go for the Crysta. The production for the variant had stunted, and what was very honorably and honestly communicated was that the production was adjusted for the Hexa. This was 4 months back.

4 months and after 6000kms on the ODO, I believe I can appreciate what Tata has managed to achieve here. I agree, this may tend to float on water, till I get to chance my paws on this beast; but having said that, I would like to give a perspective of a current owner of the much vaunted, and an aspirant of the vanquished.

a. The why? People buy Toyota for either the resale value (including fabled ownership cost) or the comfort of the middle-bucket seats. Hexa has got that now, and how! The seats look like they could do justice in the 50L above bracket. Initial impressions say that the feeling of being wrapped is truly remarkable.

b. Toyota is niggle free? That's a myth. Or for me, it is. Mind you, if you are not one of them who gets perturbed to the extent of losing your beauty sleep on creeks and rattles, you will love the car. My Innova has managed to add its own (and rather irritating) acoustics on rough "roads" of Mumbai is just 4 months. I was not OK with it on my new-gen Scorpio; and then hell, I won't be ok with it after spending double of it for the Innova.

c. Competent service? I have already visited the service center four times now, instead of the 2 intervals that was scheduled. The first one was for a minor bump on the car. To revisit a harrowing experience for a new car on just its third day, a Skoda Rapid decided to rear end my stationary car. what happens? The bumper folds and dents the tail gate. That's how dainty the mighty Innova is. I still thinking of whether I will allow the service center to attend to getting the tailgate replaced and painted. I saw an accidental Innova for which the bonnet was repainted by them. It looked as if someone applied a toothpaste instead of the lacquer paint. My eyes could notice the difference from 15m away, and I wasn't even wearing my glasses.

Second was for a very, very notchy gearshift. The service center took considerable time (in days) to get the car back; after having lubricated the gears. I haven't driven it since, so I don't know yet. Maybe its not so much of competence issues, as to inability to get a ascertaining and reassuring fix to the problem.

d. The gleaming new car? Yes, it was. Not after two months. When the early morning sun falls on the car, you could clearly see swirl marks and imperfections on the door. The paint of a Toyota is so pathetic (to keep it civic on this forum) that even if an adjacent car opens their door and mistakenly bumps your car, you will be able to see it. This has happened not once, but twice. I have two scars on the left side to show for the battle. Battle? wait a minute. I wasn't even brazen. The paint chips and fades even if you wanted to cake it with wax. Just don't mess with it.

e. Oh the mighty oar? The steering feel has been well documented on this forum. I am going to cancel my gym membership because I get to drive the Innova on creeping speeds. Enough said.

Please read my above points with consideration and not in confrontation. This could be as much a part of the Crysta thread, as it is here. But the constant comparison some of our esteemed members are resorting to is frankly as much humorous and horrendous. It is like foretelling Boomer will never be as good a swimmer as Michael; who's to say that. The mythical Innova has its flaws, and so will this car. I have driven the Storme and all the above points were not its short-comings. Would it be fair to assume that Hexa can only be a step forward? NMs, BHPs, GC, LR etc. etc. are only technical jargons, they do little for a family guy who just wants to look at a good car and drive in safety and have his family comfortable. Please, let's not now compare towing capacities and say how bad the Hexa is. Instead, I would say call it what the Hexa really is, an evolution of the Aria, a revolution of Tata and hopefully resolution to all the doom-theory of the Company. I for one, wouldn't think a price between 12.5 to 19 ex-showroom is murderous for the car that all of us has just seen in pictures. <peace>

[lurker]

The new Innova, aka Crysta to me looks more like a slightly bigger ertiga. It has lost it's butch looks altogether. This is where hexa has more promise. Infact, for me today, it's hands down hexa over crysta or XUV if TATA gives better sheet metal in Hexa than in crysta or XUV, both of which look overwhelmingly tinny. Because rest of Hexa's has already me sold.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by methecupid

I have been quietly reading through all the posts through this hullabaloo; and some not so intelligent expectations from the Hexa. So why am I writing anything now? Because owning the New Innova Crysta, I find myself rather bordering the craving of going gung-ho on my finances, logic and stern looks from wifey to propose swap it for this baby. Am I going to do it? that's for another day and time to decide. <peace>

Very well said!
I must also say that people are very unrealistic with the expectations from the Hexa and haven't see the Innova Crysta yet. When I had gone to see th Crysta recently, I had found the body panels to be very thin and though the car looks very good by design, I had a doubt on the longevity of paint and even the sheet metal. Somehow most people turn a blind eye and will forgive Toyota for anything. Toyota somehow is the hallmark of excellence and I would agree that that it used to be outstanding quality (till 5 years back) post that they have started diluting part specifications to keep in line with cost and profit targets. They are not wrong to do so, but when you see the new Crysta's pricing, it is really high! The difference alone from the GX to the VX variant is over 3 lacs! The GX has such interiors which would make anyone squirm and never pay 16 Lacs. Cars several segments below have better interiors than this. The VX has nice interiors, but they expect customers to shell out 20 big ones!
No offense to any current or future Toyota owners but In India Toyota is no longer the Value for money proposition it was earlier! In India they are taking premium positioning with a product which is not yet there, for lack of better options.
The New Fortuner remains to be seen and from what I have heard, it will touch 37 on road in Gurgaon (and maybe 40+ in cities like BLR)

My only hope is that Tata Price the Hexa correctly and put it in the 12-17 segment and can offer good design, quality and reliability at that price. At this price point, they should be able to sell 1200-1400 units initially and once market acceptance picks up, it can go up to 3000 per month.
The Hexa is a potential replacement for a lot of cars:

The Innova (Old)
The Xylo
The Scorpio
The Safari
The Duster & Terrano
and many other Sedans in the same price segment.
In this price band it can pick up decent market share once it builds credibility. I wish Tata has success and being an Indian, I take pride in the Tata Group.
I am also waiting for the Hexa and once I see the car (or read Positive reviews from the TBHP Mods!) am ready to make the booking and then wait patiently till Jan 2017!

[RavenAvi]

A video of the Hexa splashing and sloshing through the muddy waters, courtesy Bunny Punia.

https://twitter.com/BunnyPunia/statu...09446610907137

How ESP aids in braking of this 2.2 ton Hulk, by ET Auto:

https://twitter.com/ETAuto/status/789154647235629056

Originally Posted by igp_79

While we are on the list of missing features, another missing feature that the competition has, I think is the electrically adjustable seats.

Originally Posted by praveen_n

Hexa has electrically adjustable seats. One of the pictures taken during the media drive shows controls for seats.

Here's your clarification:

A collage of all the drive modes in the Hexa:


(Source)

Another one, same source:

An encounter with some locals while shooting with the Hexa:




And some notable shots, courtesy Twitterati:

[rrsteer]

Originally Posted by methecupid

a. The why? People buy Toyota for either the resale value (including fabled ownership cost) or the comfort of the middle-bucket seats.

b. Toyota is niggle free? That's a myth. Or for me, it is. Mind you, if you are not one of them who gets perturbed to the extent of losing your beauty sleep on creeks and rattles, you will love the car.

Originally Posted by Behemoth

Very well said!
, I had found the body panels to be very thin and though the car looks very good by design, I had a doubt on the longevity of paint and even the sheet metal. Somehow most people turn a blind eye and will forgive Toyota for anything. Toyota somehow is the hallmark of excellence and I would agree that that it used to be outstanding quality (till 5 years back) post that they have started diluting part specifications to keep in line with cost and profit targets.

Writing here not because I own an Innova to defend it. I dont need to. The sales figures have done it in the past and will continue to do in the future. But defending one vehicle by lampooning another manufacturer's MPV defies logic.

As quoted above, I didnt buy the Innova for its resale or the comfy middle seat. And I bought it in the last 5 years when as the quoted, quality was going downhill. I bought it because it was the BEST MPV in the vehicle, all sides considered. OK? And thats why most people buy it.

This so called thin paneled vehicle made under deteriorating quality standards is now over 4 year old, 140,000 kms done, has done two Leh trips, and my brothers - it has yet to get a clutch overhaul. This thin paneled vehicle was involved in a major shunt, was deformed but saved our lives.
In the 4 years, this vehicle has got just two parts changed - the two rear shock absorbers - apart from the routine maintenance.

Do check my Safari thread on this forum. I loved that car to bits. It performed really well. But post 1 lac km it did give me a service bill of above Rs20k. I wonder why with the Innova, I haven't yet seen a service bill in excess of 12k?

Gentlemen, to support your choice you don't have to lampoon another.

[sourabhzen]

Originally Posted by rrsteer

This so called thin paneled vehicle made under deteriorating quality standards is now over 4 year old, 140,000 kms done,

I guess the other two gentlemen were putting down their thoughts on Crysta.

Coming back to Hexa, the colours look awesome and it will be difficult to chose from the list.

[m3_07]

With so much power packed features, will the top end still have to be at 18 big ones??? Possible, 'coz it is from the house of Tata's.

Folks, do not get disappointed if you will have to fork out 1 or 1.5 big one more. This machine is just loaded.