[snan]

Introduction

Our new Nexon facelift, XMA (AMT) is now 3 months old and while I have been able to drive it only for 1800 Km thanks to the lockdowns, felt it might be an opportune time to pen down my initial thoughts since I did not see much about the facelifted AMT version. Since I’m a far better photographer than writer (or so I believe), I’ll make this review crisp and to the point.

Current rides

We have a Swift ZXI in India for a while (2012 model) mostly being used by my dad. We have always been Fiat or Maruti house for past 40 years. Whenever I am in the country, I take long term lease from Revv typically. Outside India, my daily drive is Ford Explorer and weekend fun / track car is the GT86.

New Requirement

Though dad is driving much less these days due to age, we felt the same reason also merited a change in the drive. Our primary needs were auto tranny and safety. Everything else including budget was flexible. After bit more discussion and thought we decided we’d prefer an SUV (or one of the faux ones) given the floods and rain issues that Kerala has been facing off late. None of our runs merited AWD/4x4. Parking at home meant we couldn’t go the big real SUV route – even Duster would have been a very tight fit. That’s also when dad had a rather strange requirement added into the mix - he doesn’t want too many gizmos and definitely no touchscreen (or even if there is touchscreen, for managing basic functions like AC and music there should be knobs).

Cars considered

We considered everything from used Merc GLA to Jazz. But the real contenders were as follows
1. Maruti Brezza : Was the obvious first and safe choice given our long term relationship with the brand extending to 3+ decades !! I personally never liked the looks and in test drive there was nothing that connected with the heart.
2. Duster: Could not park easily in our parking. Questionable safety.
3. Venue: Too small, too cramped, safety record of Hyundais in general. But indeed, the best of the lot in terms of quality and refinement
4. Ecosport: My fav of the lot. Felt at ease since I have driven the most in Fords (12+ years) - so everything felt very ergonomic and drive was excellent too. Truly an international product.
5. Nexon: The looks, safety and ground clearance were big factors going for it. And that Foliage Green was my favourite color in any of the cars we considered.
6. Cretos/Seltos: Too expensive for auto and parking would be tight for us.
7. XUV 300 – did not seriously consider for no particular reason - nothing really seemed to stand out for the money being asked ! (It was at the back of mind that it’s the most expensive CSUV, maybe that played a part)

The final selection

We didn’t spend a lot of time discussing. Ecosport while a very capable vehicle was a bit long in the teeth (And I wanted a change from having yet another Ford in my life). And the facelifted Nexon just looked amazing, esp in my favorite color. So it was decided that we will buy Nexon automatic in Foliage Green color. After analysing the specs, it was decided to go for XMA since it seemed to have most of the basics that we wanted. Things like alloys, fog lamps etc. could be taken care of later.



Only things I did find that were big misses - the rear wiper and lack of adjustable headrests in back seats. Amazing how car manufacturers in India get away with such nonsense in a million-rupee car! Anyways at 8.4 lakhs (Ex showroom) and less than ~10 lakhs OTR, I felt the value was really amazing for this mid version.

Dealer experience and purchase

An OK experience overall. Nothing bad as such, nothing good either. Thanks to lockdown we could not have the car in time promised thought they had taken cash in full promising delivery in 2 days. (This was March, couple of days before Junta Curfew). Sad that it had to then stand in dealer yard for almost 3 months.
Delivery experience was again OK. Nothing comparable to a Maruti or Hyundai let alone a Kia. We discussed formalities, signed necessary papers, got necessary papers and key was handed over. (No financing was involved). Also took the extended warranty (Obviously!).
Got zero discount. Also no mudflaps, no parcel tray and no carpets even in XMA version. Paid for these 3 at dealers. Mudflap was bad design, kind of useless. Other two were of really good quality.

Quick review

Version: XMA version (Petrol AMT, rated at 120 BHP, 170 NM torque)
Since it has been around for many years, I’ll skip the detailed tech specs. We have some great reviews of the old one and facelift on the site so I’ll see if there is something I can add over and above.
Let me quickly list some likes and dislikes (I’ll have a separate session on drive)

Likes:

1. Feels safe – its tough, heavy car. And with the 5* NCAP ratings, I would not have an issue on the safety front. (6 airbags would have been very welcome though). Should be a good highway drive for parents. Separate section below on Safety.



2.Looks – I just love the looks of facelifted Nexon from front and sides. In my view it has the most handsome front end of any of the CSUVs. XMA has added advantage of not having a lot of chrome or silver around. I love such looks. It gets new grille, sleeker headlights as well as a new bumper – all of which are quite premium looking. It even gets a new bonnet likely to meet the new pedestrian safety standards. Overall well done Tata.




3.Interiors – good quality interiors for a car at 10 lakhs OTR. Reasonably well put together though its mostly hard plastics all around. XMA comes with darker shades internally and mostly black which is how I love my cars. The glove box etc are clearly from couple of segments above. Steering also feels amazing and looks quite sporty. It even has an umbrella holder!



4.Drive modes: Tata continues to give drive modes across versions – three modes namely city (Default), sports and eco.
5.Comfort and space: Has always been a Tata hallmark. Nexon is a comfortable place to sit – both in front and at rear.
6.Decent boot space (350L) and folding rear seats
7.LED DRLs, both at the front and rear, ESP, traction control, roll-over mitigation and brake assist as standard across version is indeed a good job by Tata.



8.High speed stability is admirable for some thing which has such a high ground clearance. Also at speed, you are very comfortable over broken roads / gravel etc. What adds confidence is that the steering weighs up nicely and imparts a fair amount of feel (I found overall handling in general on par with the Ford, which is saying a lot. Much better than all other alternatives we considered). It even imparts enough confidence on curves and you can take high double-digit speeds on most curves. Note that XMA has the larger tyre section 215/60 R16 from the top end models (Unlike manual XM).



9.Music system is supposedly the best amongst rivals in the top end. Even in the XMA it still manages to sound OK with just the 4 speaker Harman system.
10. Paint quality is among the best in the segment.
11. The ground clearance lets you take it for very mild offroading if you know what you are doing and the limits.

Dislikes

1. Back design is not to my taste. Also that white ceramic strip, apart from being a dirt magnet and difficult to clean, is something which I have never been a big fan of. The only color combo that I loved the strip in was the old orange color with gray ceramic strip.



2.I am not a fan of the digital rev counter nor a fan of having 1980s stalks in the instrument cluster. It works but is an eyesore. Also there are many blank buttons in XMA version which kind of make interior appeal a bit less than what it could have been.
3.Non adjustable rear head rest – pathetic from a safety conscious brand!
4.Lack of a rear wiper – especially in Kerala monsoon, it’s a safety hazard. For an NCAP 5 car, Tata should have taken a moral high ground and provided the same.

5.Jiggly low speed drive. Surprising poor (by Tata standards) drive at low speeds was a surprise. The stiff suspension will let you know the potholes and aberrations. Thuds filter in easily.
6.It tells you it is a 3-cylinder engine- esp. at start and till ~2000 rpm.
7.Service interval is 7500 km / 6 months. I’d have preferred 12 months for my dad, esp. in Covid times.
8. Horns needs change. It is very feeble and unbecoming of a vehicle of this stature.

Safety

Since it was the biggest variable which made us convinced to try Tata (no one in our family / extended family has ever owned a Tata) felt it is important to have a separate section for the same.

1. NCAP 5*. Nexon’s high-strength steel structure which had rave review from NCAP. The bodyshell was rated as stable and it was capable of withstanding further loadings. Footwell area was rated as stable.
2. Only Indian car to have adequate/good rating for both front Pax across all body parts.
3. Front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable, SBR.
4. Isofix anchorages and 3 star rating for Child safety (XUV300 has 4 star)
5. 4 channel ABS and ESP (Electronic Traction Control, Roll- over Mitigation, Emergency Brake assist, Hill Hold Control - though this last one is not implemented well in my view)

Overall build quality, fit & finish, paint quality and panel gaps

Overall build quality is indeed great. The heft on bonnet for e.g. is among the heaviest I've lifted for a car of this size.
Fit and finish is acceptable overall and especially so in the interior. On the exterior, panel gaps are consistent but could be smaller overall. Finish could improve for sure around bushes, rubber beads etc. (It might also be due to the car being in dealer yard in sun and rain for 3 months of full lockdown). Paint quality is great - no complaints on that front.

Overall NVH levels are par for the course - again no one will complaint.

Drive and performance

Though I have touched upon some aspects of the driving experience above in pros and cons, I think this car requires a separate section on driving. As someone who has driven the old Nexon also, I found no uptick in delivered power due to the added 10 BHP. However overall drive was more refined and NVH levels were better. And overall engine hence felt better - not necessarily from a power delivery point of view but everything put together.

There are three modes and they are well calibrated and you can tell the difference. And the difference is material.

City mode: The default City mode is fine for most runs. Issue I have is that the 120 BHP is never felt. It takes its sweet time to get going thanks to the very average AMT system. Upshifts are notchy, irregular and announces its onset with fanfare! (Bit like someone heralding arrival of King!). Maybe with bit more of use and services, the ride might become better. But for now, in City mode it would never be my daily drive.
Sports mode: Put in Sports mode and it becomes a significantly better car. The AMT is still jerky (Can’t beat mechanics) but more liveable. Once it picks up speed, midrange onwards, it is a very fine car. It is just that getting there is a bit of a pain even in sports mode. I’d say over all, it is acceptable. Can it be my daily drive? Possibly. But for sure I would be very OK driving it whenever I’m home with parents especially on highways and broken roads (i.e. normal roads in Kerala) and the mountainous speed bumps. Oh yea, absolutely !
Eco mode: Bit of a joke – I didn’t find any use for it

Interior space & comfort, driving position, ergonomics

It is indeed the biggest attraction of the Nexon. It is very spacious especially in front. At the back, it is good but for some reason I expected it to be more (maybe from all video reviews which went gaga about space). But the middle Pax in rear seat will just about be comfortable, especially for long durations. However, the headroom is ample despite the coupe like rear design. Driving position is excellent and you can easily crunch miles throughout the day without much exhaustion. Ergonomics to a large extent is great - only pet peeve being no real place to keep a large mobile phone. Also no sunglass holder was a bit of a surprise.

Visibility overall is good and the ORVMs are decent size. IRVM is kind of small but given that the rear glass area is also relatively small, it kind of makes it almost irrelevant. Note that the blind spot due to the thick A pillar felt in first generation Nexon, continues into the facelift. Taking a right turn, one needs to be extra careful lest one bangs into something unexpectedly.

Some more points

1. There is clearly difference in performance based on ambient air temperature. It is obvious given the small turbo but since I drove it at around 40 deg Celsius and at around 18 deg Celsius, the performance difference was material and observable. Is that normal ?!

2.Given the large tyres in XMA and the higher options, the sides will forever be dirty.



Even a 5-10K drive attracts so much dirt, at least in rainy season in Kerala. And since I took it to mild “off-roading” I also got cow dung and other skunk attached to sides.

3.Cleaning in general is a pain. Especially with that white “ceramic” line and panel gaps
4. Engine gets really hot after longish drives (not half day drives, but even say 50km drives) ; again might be the norm for small capacity turbos but must confess I didn't expect bonnet to get so hot so soon. Again something that is a question ?
5. No major niggles so far (Touchwood) but in typical Tata fashion couple of small bushes in the inner side of door fell off while cleaning. The cover of the seat belt joint on door panel came out. Just the kind of things you don't want from a brand that is trying hard (and with honesty) to be niggle free. (And exactly the kind of things that will not happen with Hyundais or Toyotas)

Parting thoughts:

It’s a great tourer and all rounder. Put it in Sports mode, play some nice music and it will take you safely to your destination – doing it in quite comfort and a complete lack of physical tiredness, miles after miles. Just ensure you keep it in mid bands of around 2.5 to 5K. I would definitely buy it again if I had the same requirements as I did this time. (Very safe, comfortable, high ground clearance CSUV for parents without many high maintenance gizmos). And personally, for me owning an Indian made car is a moment of pride!

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

Gangster colour, love the facelift's new face, superb rims & fantastic pictures! Your car is going to our homepage today .

[Vinod_nair]

Lovely Fauji green colour, your car misses the steering mounted controls.
Nice alloys.

[chiefpk]

Lovely colour choice. Detailed impressions. Keep it up. Wishing you a lot more safer miles with the car.

Why din't you discuss about your alloy wheels and the pricing stuff and the accessories you added.?

Looking forward for some details on them too.

Cheers!

[shrinandiyer]

Congratulations!

The first time I saw the facelift I was reminded about the safari (dicor) poster.
The green shade brings back that memory.

Some details on the alloy and third party changes would be nice to know.

[ms001]

Beautiful pictures , lovely color , the face lifted version looks superb in this particular color .The fit finish and safety features , interiors look great too.
Happy driving .

[G.Harry]

Congratulations on your fantastic ride. Brilliant alloys, makes it look as though you have upsized the tyres. What I enjoyed most of all were the gorgeous pictures!

Having owned an XZA+ for a year now, love almost everything about the car other than the low speed ride. You should definitely try to drive in the manual mode. It's a lot more fun and overcomes the laziness of the AMT to a large extent.

Drive safe and TC..

[TheGearBox]

Congrats on the new ride. I was never a fan of the Nexon's looks but the facelift has really improved things, atleast at the front end. And that colour looks smashing! Do post details about the wheel upgrade too.

[vivek_lm]

First up, congrats on your new ride! The car looks macho and gorgeous in that shade!

I must say I feel you're right about your photography skills- amazing shots indeed!

You've mentioned that the ride is stiff- how does it compare with the suspension on the pre-facelift Nexon?

[SansGT]

Congratulations! Looks fabulous.

With the face lift, I have seen a lot of complaints about the AMT in the owner's FB group where there are multiple occurrences of breakdowns. What I gather is that it is a software related issue and no major mechanical problem. TML has rolled out an update which fixes the same and initiated recall for a particular set of vehicles. However, the major complaint is about dealerships not being proactive enough to roll out these updates.

Have you updated your system? If not, please check out with your dealership for the same.

[ashish2135]

Amazing pictures.

Everyone has already mentioned the lovely colour choice and the allow design. I would like to mention that I absolutely loved the seat cover. They look fantastic and top quality, OEM like.

[NFS2024]

Nice crisp review. Also agree to the point that you are a better photographer, beautiful pics with awesome scenery, landscape and lush green backgrounds. Makes me feel like going for a drive !

[kamilharis]

Congratulations snan!

Lovely color and the alloys looks cool. Aren't they after market ? And regarding the silver accent at the rear , will it look better if painted in black ?
I haven't seen the new Nexon yet, but the car look super solid and high on quality.

I wish TATA had their presence in middle east. Especially since now a days Chinese cars are getting very good response from here I think TATA too can gain success in Middle East if priced well , definitely their products like Nexon and Harrier are on par or better than the Chinese ones.

[SkyWraith]

Congratulations on the fine purchase snan. Quite detailed and crisp review.

When this face-lifted version came out, this Foliage green color also attracted me. I was so tempted to upgrade from my Swift.

Hope you and your family get to to drive more once this pandemic ends.

Did you by any chance get to try out the manual one too?

How much do you feel there is a difference in the Manual mode of the AMT?

[AZT]

The first pic with the big tree and field in the background looks amazing, where was that taken. Congrats on the gorgeous new car and wish you many happy miles ahead. Are those after market alloys, I used to think only XZ variant and above come with alloys.