[freakmuzik]

I really see the Punch as a good option for my parents, from their 10 year old Wagon-R. I'm yet to see the car, but looking at the review, the dimensions are pretty compact, the build quality is good, seating comfort & boot space is good and driving position is high set which should help my mother feel comfortable when shifting from a Wagon-R. Really gonna give a look this time to change the Wagon-R so that I can reasonably feel safe when they take the car out.

Best wishes to TATA, but please, work on better engines and Gearboxes. PLEASE.

[simplyself]

Diesel engine option should have been provided if it's possible to accommodate one. Let the customer decide. Magnite and Kiger come with 2 petrol options, Sonet comes with 2 petrol and one diesel option. And Tata have them ready and being used in other models. Why shy away from taking the fight to the competition when you have the goods?

I feel diesel would bring in a lot of numbers as there are only Sonet and Venue in this space and they are a bit bigger vehicles. Also, it could be quite frugal, as seen in Altroz, which is critical to this segment.

[AROO7]

Originally Posted by ashis89

One question for Tata - Why do you give a cut out for rear fog lamp when you have no intention of providing the feature even on the top variant of your freshly launched car?

There are optional factory add-on packages available for each Punch trim. So the rear fog lights could be a part of that.

[rajneeesh]

Tata Motors is on a roll and they seem to be working on implementing their strategy.

They seem to have been focusing on a) Design and b) Safety to differentiate their vehicles from that of the market leaders.

They know that their petrol engines are not as refined or powerful as that of Maruti & Hyundai. They also seem to realise that as log as the engines are fuel efficient and reliable, the average Indian car buyer is not going to complain too much as long as the price is right.

A Tata vehicle today looks far better than any other product in its class. Marutis look drab in comparison. Many people will buy the Punch ( as they bought the Harrier) just because it looks so much better than its competitors.

Tata has introduced the Turbo petrol in 1.2 Altroz. But from what I see on the roads, the 1.2 NA Petrol still outsells the Turbo by a country mile. One reason is that the Turbo is more expensive. At that kind of a price, a large segment of Indians opt for a Hyundai which is still seen by most, as a more desirable brand. Tata keeps trying to attract his segment by talking about safety, an area where he Koreans and Maruti have lagged behind.

Tata Motors is still a loss making company and they have to use their resources very carefully. They will keep making their products better ( engines and transmissions) to close the gap on competition, even as they have improved tremendously in terms of design, interior finish and safety .

When I bought my Safari Storme a little over 6 years back, most people questioned my decision ( and some my sanity) for investing 16 lakhs in a Tata vehicle. That seems to have changed. I hope that Tata Moors keeps upping its game as the Indian Car buyer needs wider choice. This is especially true at a time when many global manufacturers are pulling out of the Indian market.

[Coyote]

Originally Posted by Omkar

Tata Punch Review

Tata Punch Cons

• 1.2L NA petrol’s highway performance is weak. At 100 kmph & up, more noise than action
• Suspension has a firm tune (R16 variants). It is compliant & liveable, but you do feel bad roads
• Jerky and slow AMT gearbox when competitors offer you smoother CVTs and torque converters
• 3-cylinder petrol cannot match the competition’s 4-cylinders in refinement & NVH
• No turbo petrol or diesel option. Period. Rivals & other Tata cars offer both
• Cabin width makes 4 adults welcome, not 5
• Some missing goodies such as an auto-dimming IRVM, splitting rear seat, rear AC vents, full-size spare…
• Tata's after-sales service quality is a hit or miss. Remains a gamble

Thank you for the review!

3 of the 8 cons listed above pertain to the engine. The fourth one is with respect to the AMT.

The truth is, Tata Motors is presently at No. 3 in the PV segment in India, thanks largely to its mass market cars - Tiago, Tigor, Altroz and Nexon. A sizeable portion of its sales, that has turned this company around, comes from this 1.2 NA engine and that AMT.

By keeping the turbo away at launch, it is possible they can go in for aggressive pricing, and when the competition heats up, introduce a higher variant with the turbo petrol and other features. Rule the segment.

The consumers as well as the stock market are handsomely rewarding Tata Motors for its efforts. In this context, I see no reason for them to deviate from what has proven to be a very very successful formula.

Originally Posted by Omkar

Tata Punch Review

Tata Punch Cons

• Tata's after-sales service quality is a hit or miss. Remains a gamble

Another oft repeated warning relates to Tata ASS being a gamble. I understand why this is included. There are several posts here of Tata vehicle owners (Harrier / Safari et al) suffering hardships. There are also several posts relating to Hyundai brakes, paint quality issues, Maruti's build quality, Maruti's cheapening interior parts quality, Renault / Nissan's limited dealership network and related issues, etc.

Given that this car is built on the Alfa platform, and shares many things with other Tata cars, including the engine/AMT and the infotainment, I doubt there are many gremlins lurking here.

Originally Posted by Omkar

Tata Punch Review

Tata Punch Cons

• Some missing goodies such as an auto-dimming IRVM, splitting rear seat, rear AC vents, full-size spare…

The XUV 700 does not get auto dimming IRVM, or a full size spare. My Sonet does not get a full size spare. It doesn't get a puncture repair kit either. A space saver has become the norm in this market. Each vehicle in each segment has misses.

Originally Posted by Omkar

Tata Punch Review

Tata Punch Cons

• Suspension has a firm tune (R16 variants). It is compliant & liveable, but you do feel bad roads
• Cabin width makes 4 adults welcome, not 5

In my humble opinion, for the category this car wants to play in, these are very acceptable.

What this also tells me is that this will make a sick EV.

Kudos to you, Tata.

[rajneeesh]

Originally Posted by abhishek46

Just a quick look at the Performance Figures of the Tata Punch:
Source: ACI

0-60: 7.23s
0-100: 16.4s
0-100 (AMT): 18.3s
20-80 (3rd): 17.26s

Forget the Celerio, and the Ignis.
In flat out acceleration, it is comparable to the Alto 800cc.
And in roll-on acceleration, it is a whole 4 seconds slower than the Alto 800.

For reference, the Figures for Alto 800:
0-100: 16.9s
20-80: 13.1s

It makes me wonder.
Did Tata really bench-mark this against something?

In summary, I still do not understand the point of continuing this engine.
Looks it is neither smooth, nor powerful, nor efficient.
For such a wonderful looking and capable package, why use this underwhelming power-train!

The Alto is a very light car which suffers incredibly in terms of safety,

[abhishek46]

Originally Posted by rajneeesh

The Alto is a very light car which suffers incredibly in terms of safety,

I am not comparing the build quality of the Alto to the Punch.
I am merely proving some data points, so that we can understand what this package is missing (Performance).

We already know that the tata is built like a tank, and the Maruti is a tin-can.

My point is around the performance gap.
Tata should have at least provided an option for the Turbocharged Petrol.

Let the People decide what they want!

[AROO7]

Originally Posted by GTO

See, that's my point. Why offer just one? Why not ALL engines, and let the customer choose?

I think what Tata is doing here is first avoiding the big sticker price shock by not giving turbo petrol and diesel. Second they might be waiting for initial enthusiasm to die down or the product to loose traction in public and then launch a turbo petrol or say a diesel. This will keep the Punch fresh and customers intrigued with the new launches of the same model.

I could be wrong here but if Tata decides to give these engines later on then surely Punch will be a competitive offering under 10 lakh.

[GeeTee TSI]

Originally Posted by Omkar

Bird's eye view of the center console. Handbrake is strangely on the passenger's side, as if in a left-hand-drive vehicle!

I am guessing it could be for ergonomic reasons, of being comfortably away from the driver's body in order to operate (unlike re-engineering excuses of European manufacturers!)

Great review of an appealing, practical urban runabout for which the NA engine need not be a downer

[Desi Dybuk]

This wobbly light switch is common with even the higher priced Harrier/Safari. The moment you touch it, you are afraid that it is going to break. Can't they find some good quality switches than these Rs 2 swtiches? Heck, they might get some cheap Anchor brand light switches & they would feel like an upgrade.

Tata should really really fix up these touch points. This feels so shoddy. This switch is so pathetic.

[Singer_Shower]

Brilliant review.

How is the under-thigh support of the rear seat? From the pics, the seats look more or less similar to Altroz and I was disappointed with the under-thigh support of Altroz rear seat.

[AirbusCapt]

Tata punch has a kerb weight of 1030kgs and 86bhp engine. The power to weight ratio is 83.5 bhp/ton. With a torque of 113nm the torque to weight ratio is 110NM/ton.

The Maruti Alto 800 has 48 bhp/69 NM and a kerb weight of 762 kgs giving it 63 bhp/ton and 95 NM/ton.

With both cars operating a 5 speed manual gearbox how come the Punch 0 to 100 is similar to the Alto?

Forget the Alto, the initial Safari Storme had a 138bhp engine with 320nm torque (5 speed manual) and a kerb weight of 2000 kgs. With a lower bhp and NM/ton then the Punch, it could still do a 0 to 100 in about 14 seconds.
I think either the Punch 0/100 is wrong or somehow the laws of physics are bent.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by abhishek46

Just a quick look at the Performance Figures of the Tata Punch:
Source: ACI

0-60: 7.23s
0-100: 16.4s
0-100 (AMT): 18.3s

For such a wonderful looking and capable package, why use this underwhelming power-train!

Is usual with TATA Motors, isn't it? Such a stark contrast between Mahindra and TATA Motors when it comes to the powertrain approach.

Mahindra goes: "With our vehicle dynamics - what's the maximum power output we can get away with, so the owners don't kill themselves (from a rollover)? 150hp on a Thar - let's do that!"

And TATA Motors goes - "With our excellent dynamics - what's the least power we can get away with, so the owners don't kill themselves (out of boredom!)? 16 - 18 seconds to 100 - let's do that!"

Wonderful review yet again and truly impressed by the new TATA Punch and it surely does look like a giant killer , but TATA Motors seem to have taken a conscious decision to avoid it's bread and butter Nexon from getting cannibalised by the Punch. A similar approach was taken with the Altroz as well - initially and even now (motors are still detuned compared to Nexon spec).

I'm hoping and guessing that this will also get an Altroz spec turbo petrol - sometime next year once the car becomes a sales success. Wonder if this one finally has the punch it takes to steal some numbers from the Maruti Suzuki small car range - the ageing Swift and Ignis.

[RavenAvi]

Youtuber Nikhil Rana noticed this last night in the Tata Punch online booking page.

It has been subsequently removed from the same page.

Expect an official announcement soon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fAZFmdZZhk

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Is usual with TATA Motors, isn't it? Such a stark contrast between Mahindra and TATA Motors when it comes to the powertrain approach.

Mahindra goes: "With our vehicle dynamics - what's the maximum power output we can get away with, so the owners don't kill themselves (from a rollover)? 150hp on a Thar - let's do that!"

And TATA Motors goes - "With our excellent dynamics - what's the least power we can get away with, so the owners don't kill themselves (out of boredom!)? 16 - 18 seconds to 100 - let's do that!"

Problem with Tata is their R&D focus (among other things) - brilliant design, focus on safety but hardly anything "new" on engine and transmission front.

Tata Motors team goes - "Build the car with the most beautiful interior and handsome exterior, which should be able to break through concrete walls. Don't worry about engine, we have one lying around from the Tiago".

Mahindra team goes - "Build the car. Plonk every engine from our arsenal until the car doesn't topple on a straight line. Start with the most powerful one first".

Or maybe Tata is cooking something but it's taking too long to be ready. Hope ICE doesn't get banned by the time Tata comes up with the next range of engines!