[giri1.8]

Managed to have a short test drive, have nothing much to add to what members have already observed, only thing I wish to talk about is the size of the car! Pics might be misleading, design too helps to hide the bulk, but while driving there is no escape from its large footprint.

For someone who is not familiar with cars, this could be mistaken for an SUV between Hyundai Tucson and the Fortuner. This can actually make few people to choose Creta/Compass over the Harrier, but that would be just 20% of potential customers.

Tata has a winner here, dedicated sales team too is helping them gather booking, service and reliability is the part that remains to be proven.

Managed to click this Lion inside the Headlamp unit good attention to detail.

[suhaas307]

Vidyut and I went on a short spin in the Harrier around Hosur Road / Dairy Circle this afternoon. Owing to the crowd that began to pour into the showroom after 4 pm, our test drives were cut short. Based on our observations, this is our initial impression of the car:

1) Looks imposing and like a proper full-grown SUV. Very LR Disco Sport from some angles, especially the contours of the bonnet just above the grille. Wheels are an OK size. One size larger would have looked perfect. The kink and chrome styling elements that follow the green house could have been made to look a bit more subtle. Personally I cannot stand the orange colour and wish Tata had used a different launch colour.

2) Front seats are great! I particularly liked the shoulder support. Our only complaint was the manner in which the seat squab tapers off at the edge, leaving you wanting for under-thigh support.

3) Overall quality of the interior is good. Soft touch plastic on the top-half of the dash is finished in this strange gloss-effect giving it a slightly cheap look. Buttons and switchgear - top notch and hard to fault! It's not the last word in luxury, but for 20 big ones it's not bad at all! I liked the door handles and lever in particular.

4) Arm rest for the driver tapers off abruptly. You can't rest your elbow on it comfortably as it will tend to slide off the arm rest.

5) Cabin space is great! Will accommodate four 6-footers comfortably! The 5th passenger won't struggle either!

6) ORVMs look great but are two sizes too big. On my short drive, I failed to spot a cow whilst making a right turn solely due to the mirror! It's amazing how the large mirror directly hinders your field of vision. Should have been a touch smaller and positioned a 3-4 inches lower.

7) Light steering makes city driving a breeze. Couldn't get any sense of what the wheels are doing as I turned the steering, but it's easy to get used to. Pitches and yaws even at slow speeds, typical of SUVs.

8) Drivability is super easy. Bottom end torque is great, clutch is easy to operate. Gears are not super slick but decent enough. Almost impossible to stall! Wish there was a larger area for the dead pedal, but it's fine.

9) Noisy and gravelly engine. Literally begs you to upshift after 2k RPM. Refinement is average. Felt minor vibrations through the gear lever and pedals.

10) Test drive car had a few niggles - reversing camera packed up and seat-height adjuster felt a bit loose whilst in operation, to name a few.

In short, this is a great car for the money and is definitely hard to fault. All it needs is an automatic gearbox to make it perfect for the price tag.

Jeep / FCA better be worried!

[condor]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

6) ORVMs look great but are two sizes too big. On my short drive, I failed to spot a cow whilst making a right turn solely due to the mirror! It's amazing how the large mirror directly hinders your field of vision. Should have been a touch smaller and positioned a 3-4 inches lower.

Ah ! so that is the mystery of blind-spots. I've always associated blind-spots for vehicles coming up from behind, esp for cars/ SUV's. (with a truck/bus, it is different set of blind-spots.).

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Vidyut and I went on a short spin in the Harrier around Hosur Road / Dairy Circle this afternoon. Owing to the crowd that began to pour into the showroom after 4 pm, our test drives were cut short. Based on our observations, this is our initial impression of the car

Suhaas covered all the points succinctly. To add to Suhaas' points:

1. The plastics are acceptable. There are a few plastics that aren't top class. The dash top has soft touch but 2 different textures. One feels good with the grain whereas the other part doesn't with a bit of sheen. Plastics on the door and indicator / steering shroud don't feel great. Not really too much to complain. It's not a Hyundai but it's not at all a show stopper.

2. IT was not easy to get a comfortable driving position. I found something lacking. The back support was very good but the base was not. Under thigh was less due to the taper of the seat Suhaas mentioned.

3. That blind spot due to the XXL ORVM and wrongly placed in field of view is insane. When making a turn it completely blocks the kerb as well as any vehicle or cattle.

4. Clutch is light but damn easy to use. You really have to be talented to stall this car. Even an L board won't be able to stall from the way it moves from standstill.

5. As Suhaas mentioned. engine gets gravely and boomy, does not like to be revved. but on the flip side it is extremely tractable so you can shift early and still enjoy the low end grunt. Clearly tuned for low end driveability over outright acceleration.

6. Rear seats are very good. Perfect angle, height and base. Under thigh support even for a 6 footer like me was good.

7. Steering isn't heavy at all as some others here mentioned. Was surprised as both Suhaas and I found it on lighter side.

Overall it's a very nice package but you need to oversee some of the flaws. Typical Tata in a way. Has a few rough edges which get ironed out over a period of time.

Niggles observed:
- Software of the infotainment (reverse camera crashed midway of drive).
- Some plastic bits that can be made better.
- NVH needs to be improved

What the Harrier really needs is a proper Automatic transmission. The appeal will be much larger with the AT box option.

[5kmiles]

Originally Posted by shridhar.s.i

So they definitely have a pedigree of their own in many aspects but we just have to have an unbiased eye to look at it

Cant speak much about the Land Rover as never had the privilege of driving one.

I agree. Drive a Manza for 1.25L kms and sold it for 1.6L odd. Took outstanding care of it but car did hold up alright.
Have an 85k run xuv right now. Maintenancee is required but can be managed. Not like the Europeans. Not as awesome to drive either.

I think Indian car makers are adding more value to their cars and service ecosystem while most other car makers are taking it away. Even Maruti Suzuki inlcuded. Their services are very expensive now.

[IntoTheStorm]

I took a quick test drive at KLM motors Chennai.
The staff was courteous and asked me to check the static vehicle first in detail and then go for a quick spin
It was a very short test drive...
initial observations are as follows
+ves
1. Massive road presence
2. Modern and catchy design
3. excellent space
4. good quality interior with wood finish
5. good driver information display
6. banging audio system from JBL
7. different driving modes to play with ( there is some discernible difference between city and sports mode)
8. Engine power seems to be adequate ( need longer test drive)
9. nice comfy seats
-ves
1. infotainment screen response is average
2. notchy gearshift and slightly jerky power delivery
3. hard suspension set up ( at least for me, in city)
4. reverse camera quality is average ( not as good as my elite i20

3. That blind spot due to the XXL ORVM and wrongly placed in field of view is insane. When making a turn it completely blocks the kerb as well as any vehicle or cattle.

- Completely agree with you. That ORVMs are too big...couldn't see much on the right had side "corner" area..
- Also after driving my Elite i20 for 2 years, Harrier feels still a bit rough ( controls/ pedals and power delivery)...but still a big leap for Tata

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Vidyut and I went on a short spin in the Harrier around Hosur Road / Dairy Circle this afternoon. Owing to the crowd that began to pour into the showroom after 4 pm, our test drives were cut short. Based on our observations, this is our initial impression of the car:

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Suhaas covered all the points succinctly. To add to Suhaas' points:
.

After the team test of the Disco Sport back in October, could you lad's add a few points on whether you spotted any Disco Sport genes in the Harrier?

[RavenAvi]

For those who are curious:

Thanks to a good friend.

[sparky@home]

Originally Posted by ajmat

After the team test of the Disco Sport back in October, could you lad's add a few points on whether you spotted any Disco Sport genes in the Harrier?

Observed this in the Autocar review of the Harrier, which I thought would be a definite incentive for people who would want add ons.
quote
Fun fact: if you can find the Discovery Sport’s 18-inch wheels aftermarket, they’re a direct bolt-on fit.
Unquote

https://www.autocarindia.com/car-rev...t-drive-410647

[condor]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

For those who are curious:

Attachment 1841842

Thanks to a good friend.

@RavenAvi - 4" instrument cluster ? Something is not correctly shown there.

[Latheesh]

4" is the size of screen between two meters. Top variant gets bigger 7" screen.

Looks like all other color looks better than orange (calisto copper).

[xjosephjacob]

Spent a few minutes checking out the Harrier yesterday. Boy oh boy, the car is a real looker ! Couldn't test drive (TD) the vehicle due to unavailability of TD vehicle. No prizes for guessing, the display car was the top variant and orange in color.

Let me clear this first, Harrier is not as well put together or as solidly built as a Jeep Compass or a typical car from the west. Nonetheless TATA have made great strides in design, build and the overall interior quality. They are inching close to Hyundai, though not quite up there.



Harrier looks butch and intimidating from every angle. Road presence wise it feels more XUV'ish than a Compass. Competing C-SUV's may look puny.



The engine bay is neatly laid out. Hood is HEAVY and to make matters worse, there are no gas struts to help. Don't miss the noise insulation materials and the frameless wipers.



As expected the both the wheel arches are fully cladded. No disc brakes at rear.



Rear is stylish, but is a little bulky. The led wrap around tail lamp with black accents looks smart.



I wish the headlamp cluster used black and silver accents so as to break the chrome monotony. Not much detailing inside the headlamp unit.



A closer look at the rear camera module



No two ways about it, the dashboard looks smart. Very tasteful black and brown combination. The top portion of the dashboard is soft touch.



Steering is just the right size, with comfortable thumb contours. The concave hornpad looks and feels like it's from a segment or two lower. The lights and wiper stalks doesn't belong to a 15 lac rupee car. The speedometer console, when lit up, shows the tachometer, fuel and temperature gauge and others.



They could have integrated a bigger screen here by eliminating those physical buttons. Didn't test the unit in detail; touch response is good and screen resolution is okay, but this unit cannot be compared to the silky smooth high resolution Sync unit offered in the Ecosport. I'm not an audiophile and found the sound system to be excellent. There's a sub-woofer inside the boot.

The AC vent slider moves in a nice and damped way.



The aircraft inspired handbrakes looks good, but is not in a very ergonomic to use. The handle has a very noticeable sideward play too.

Up above are the sweet looking gear lever, the 2WD control modes and a small slot to park your smartphone and other things.



The drive mode selector, ESP & Hill decent control toggle.



The front and rear doors are large and provides good amount of storage space. Doors are not heavy and don't close with a solid thud. Couple of points that I noticed (and could possibly be attributed to the quality control) were:
1. Rear door vibrates noticeably when I shut the front doors
2. Front passenger door had noticeable vertical play

Don't miss the additional dedicated compartment in the rear door SmartPhone, and the Tweeters.



Armrest looks nice, but is flawed in a couple of areas. One, it doesn't slide, and is practically doesn't serve the purpose well. Secondly, to access the storage cubicle beneath it, one has to press (push in) in the button on the armrest towards back- not at all convenient. The cubicle provides cooling functionality and houses the 12v charging socket. You get a space to park your smartphone at the rear of the armrest.



The glove-box is HUGE and provides a partition inside. No dedicated slot to keep the car manual and other documents.



No vanity mirror lights for co-driver and no ticket holders for the driver is a big bummer.



The cabin light toggle switch belongs to the 90's.



The driver seat is not power adjustable. Worse, the seat height adjustment lever had a lot of horizontal play, and wouldn't look out of place in a humble wagon-R. Look at the exposed screws on the front seat mounts- very crude.



A look at the front and rear legroom for a 5'10' person (front seats are set at maximum height and pushed all the way back). The legroom is sufficient, but not in abundance considering the size of the car.

To find the ideal driving position, I had to jack up the seat all the way up (for the right under-thigh support) and push the seat all the way back. That said, at the highest position the front seat back provides superb support; icing on the cake is a lumbar support adjustment lever and a near perfect cushioning.

Taller folks who care about the perfect driving position may have to lower the seats considerably.



The driver footwell is not very wide either, and there's only just enough space to rest your left leg.



The rear seats are set high and provides great under thigh support. The seat base and seat back are at the perfect angles. The super-soft headrests lets you sink your head in supreme comfort. No headrest for the middle passenger though. The seat is wide enough to accommodate 3 easily.



The transmission tunnel makes its presence felt.



Well shaped boot. The parcel tray however is a single piece unit (not like the very functional 2 fold unit found in Duster). Don't miss the sub-woofer on the left side. There's a storage space beneath the boot. A 3rd row seat would be a tight fit here.



Spare wheel sits under the chassis.

[xjosephjacob]

Originally Posted by PrasannaDhana

Are you sure ?

Because I am 6'2 and I have been using Safaris for 7 years now. Not once have I felt the need for legroom either in the Dicor or the Storme. In fact it would accomodate even taller guys (6'4-6'5) without any issue.

To each, his own and especially when physiques vary from person to person To me, the problem with Safari Storme's front seats are that they are set low and provides poor under-thigh, shoulder and back support. I jack the seat up all the way for correcting thigh support, but then I find that there's not much legroom.

Originally Posted by shibujp

Even without AWD the front wheel drive Harrier was able to work wonders in the dunes of Rajasthan with it's terrin response system...

No matter how much ever technical wizardry that a 2wd car claims it had, there's no comparison to an AWD and 4WD.

[rovingeye]

Well, bluntly speaking, all reviews of the Harrier have been strictly lukewarm so far. Given that, I do not understand Tata's tendency to artificially make its better offering, the Hexa, look worse in comparison. They should have just let the Hexa be and not delete features or tinker with the pricing at this point. If anything, they should probably add the nice to have features into Hexa and then think about price adjustments.

[Guna]

Originally Posted by rovingeye

Well, bluntly speaking, all reviews of the Harrier have been strictly lukewarm so far. Given that, I do not understand Tata's tendency to artificially make its better offering, the Hexa, look worse in comparison. They should have just let the Hexa be and not delete features or tinker with the pricing at this point. If anything, they should probably add the nice to have features into Hexa and then think about price adjustments.

In fact, they should be fixing few minor glitches it had, enhance few features (larger infotainment screen, powered seats...) and launch a higher end variant (with may be few minor cosmetic updates). It is possible that they are already working on it. It is too good vehicle to be ignored.