[CARDEEP]

Now, ACI have put officially announced the Storme launch date on their website. Link to same:

http://www.autocarindia.com/News/317...on-oct-17.aspx

... & this is what they say:

Safari Storme will be powered by the same 2.2-litre engine, but will now come with an improved suspension and modern chassis.

We expect it to be priced at around Rs 10 lakh and, at this price point; it should have enough appeal to still be viewed as an attractive buy.

[Vroom barabar!]

I guess we have to wait and watch for the Safari Storme to launch on 17th October. I am sure Tata must have acted upon the feedback they got at the Auto expo as well as in the previews. Also, the delay in the launch suggests some serious thinking is going on within Tata to make it a successful and competitive product. Hope they don't disappoint this time around.

[Vishal.R]

There is an LXa but no EXa for Storm. Does this mean ABS is standard in Storm EX?

Any chance of LXa (or even EXa) in current gen safari? Wouldn't it make sense? Otherwise there would be no variant with ABS in current gen safari.

[pk_del]

Just got a call from my friend and he was lucky to drive Storme (please dont ask me how he got a chance to drive it), and as per his experience Storme is a totally different beast.

For him ride quality, smoothness of engine, rattle free interior and minimum body roll are the key deciding factors and he gave thumbs up to each of them. He is not much fan of double DIN system so he was not too much disappointed by the absence of it.

As per him, it surely is a surprise package from TATA Motors and we are hoping TATA keeps the pricing thinking about the aspirations of middle class people.

I am hoping a range from INR 8.85 L - 12.5 L.

- PK

[neel385]

Originally Posted by pk_del

For him ride quality, smoothness of engine, rattle free interior and minimum body roll are the key deciding factors and he gave thumbs up to each of them. He is not much fan of double DIN system so he was not too much disappointed by the absence of it.

I am hoping a range from INR 8.85 L - 12.5 L.

- PK

In all fairness, the factors that you talk about do have an important role to play in the overall scheme of things, but, if the pricing is anything more than what you have indicated, as have many others, then the "value for money" question comes into play. With the W6 available at about the same price as the Ex and with many more features, customers will think twice before going for a Storme, specially if the A$$ and other factors are taken into consideration.

[narayan]

The Storme launch and the pricing is going to be really tricky for TATA. Ideally after 15 years with the same platform they should have , by now, come up with an all new SAFARI but what is essentially being given is an improved chassis + interiors.

No one will pay a premium for this over the existing Safari which itself is a big dud in the recent past and sells at a deep discount. Hence at best, the Storme will just about manage to hold against the Scorpio ( if it can ) if priced at current Safari list price levels.

Any thing more and people would continue to buy the Dusters/Scorpios and the top end models will overlap with the XUV which is a clearly better buy

Lets see what TATA comes up with. The question is how keen/hungry are they for success ?

[pk_del]

I totally agree with you, Neel. Pricing will be key for Storme to be successful in this competitive market.

My point is (assuming that pricing is fair), should we be so negative that we start discarding the product just because it is not feature rich? To be very fair, some times I think that we as netizens are in some ways responsible for make or break of a product.

For example, Fiat GP, it was a product which had all the features and great ride quality. Whosoever sat in my GP never complained about the so called lackluster interiors, infact they praised it. But where ever I saw or read the comments, it was the interiors which took the maximum beating from netizens. And, it got so much embedded in peoples mind that without even looking at the interiors they started rejecting Fiat.

I too had problems with my GP but they were attended to by the service center and rectified to my satisfaction.

Question is, should feature loaded cars rob us from driving pleasure? I some times miss my OHC which didn't have all the gizmos but was true to Honda's philosophy of giving "Man maximum, machine minimum".

-PK

PS: I don't mean any dis respect to any car owners. I respect every body's choice and their opinions. These are just my thoughts, may be I am from old school who just loves to drive without worrying about the features.

[teamveevee]

Originally Posted by narayan

all new SAFARI but what is essentially being given is an improved chassis + interiors.

I guess it all depends on what is the definition of "all new". Every one knows that Strome shares the chasis and underpinning with Aria, which did not have any connection with the old Safari. The shape was kept similar to the outgoing model. Engine is the only carry over from the old safari. I will call it "all new"

Originally Posted by pk_del

To be very fair, some times I think that we as netizens are in some ways responsible for make or break of a product.

I doubt it, if that is true, probably TM would have gone out of business by now. Majority of Tata sales comes from rural india and they depend on advice from relatives/neighbours. In my village, people prefer a Tata/Maruti to a VW, because they think Tata/Maruti are more suitable for the village road conditions. I agree, the situation is different in Cities.

[ACM]

For me the new Storm Safari is as fully new as required. With new interiors and the wheel going below the back and new rear doors, new cladding, new bumpers and lights, new suspension, chassis and tweaks from the Aria, new dash and instrumentation. I really can't figure out why we don't think it is "ALL NEW" . The new swift too looks like the earlier one but is all new and so is the Safari Storm in the same way.

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by ACM

For me the new Storm Safari is as fully new as required. With new interiors and the wheel going below the back and new rear doors, new cladding, new bumpers and lights, new suspension, chassis and tweaks from the Aria, new dash and instrumentation.

I was waiting for you to show up on this thread.
Since you are a happy(I presume) Aria owner, and the Storme shares quite a few underpinnings from the Aria like the chassis and the suspension, can you tell us if you have faced any pre mature wear and tear issues with the Aria (how much has it clocked?) so far?

This could be used as a rough reference point to the expected wear and tear of the steering, suspension and a few mechanical components on the Storme.

[turbo_freak]

Here's another source confirming launch on Oct 17
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/t.../1/223415.html

[lohithrao]

Superb, am sure Strome will be a superb product and would suit the need of the people with "go-anywhere" attitude..

So those "prospective buyers" please take a proper-long TD and base your decisions on that and not on here-say, like we all know most negative comments come from people who have know clue of that product.

The present-gen safari itself is a fantastic product, and if one goes through "Hari's" report its very evident that "Strome" will be a super fun truck to own! i would close my eays and buy his opinion cause he owns/knows the present Safari...

[narayan]

For a product that is not yet launched, its virtually impossible to form an opinion without hear say. All the debate about the car being new pr not stems from a fear of potentially disastrous pricing by TATA. It needs to be priced reasonably in line with all the "new" stuff that's its made out to come with . Else it will be bought and owned by a few enthusiasts who will vouch for it in their ownership reports and the rest of the buying junta will continue to lap up Scorpios and Dusters

[oops]

TATA has officially announced Launch date as Oct 17, 2012.

https://www.facebook.com/SafariSTORME?ref=stream

Fb page also confirms that it would come with 17inchers

https://www.facebook.com/SafariSTORM...ariSTORME/info

[sachinayak]

I doubt the authenticity of this FB page. Do not think it is official. They have pics with (c) of LukeSkyWalker (the same images on the first page of this thread) and also have images of test mule sightings. Seems to be a collection of Storme images available across the net.

Originally Posted by oops

TATA has officially announced Launch date as Oct 17, 2012.

https://www.facebook.com/SafariSTORME?ref=stream

Fb page also confirms that it would come with 17inchers

https://www.facebook.com/SafariSTORM...ariSTORME/info