Why I chose the Nexon facelift: Buying experience & 1st impressions

If you want pure driving pleasure then the AMT gearbox is not for you, the best would be a manual transmission.

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Hello BHPians, this is my first blog on this forum and I am doubly happy as I join all the petrolheads and share this news, that I bought the new facelift Tata Naxon. So I am going to share my buying experience, why I chose Nexon and my first drive impressions of the car. Please bear with me if the post becomes a bit long.

Buying decision

1. Was using an MS wagon R earlier despite one of the best reliable engines and gear box, I wanted to have a car which had one of the best build quality, safety and premium features Hence Tata's cars were big on my mind. I visited a few showrooms in Pune to have a look at the newly launched Nexon, but the buying decision was miles away in my mind.
2. As my wagon R was getting a good resale value I wanted to sell it for cash at the decent price offered and thus the buying decision was made for a new car.
3. I didn't visit any of the other brands as safety was of utmost importance to me. Hence Brezza, venue and Sonet were automatically crossed off the list. The XUV 300 was a very old design with the least feature list hence it dropped out too. The only other brand I visited was VW to enquire about Taigun. Taigun was on top of my wishlist, had a great showroom experience there but the budget was not allowing me to go for it as the 2nd top variant the Highline was 16 odd lacs which missed a few features that I wanted hence it was off the list too. So the only contender was Nexon left.
4. So I visited the nearest showroom and checked out the Altroz petrol top-end variant with a DCT gearbox I took the car for a test drive and it felt amazing. DCT gearbox was super smooth the car itself felt very premium great build quality and comfort with all the premium features I wanted. Second. I checked out Punch but didn't drive it as the interiors of the Punch out my wife off and she likened it to our old wagonR
5. Had a detailed look at the Nexon but didn't drive it as the dealership didn't have the car with the AMT gearbox which I wanted, nevertheless, I went through the exhaustive variant list of the Nexon and after a thorough discussion with SA and watched infinite blogs and reviews on YouTube I narrowed down to the creative + S variant which is a 2nd top variant. I was very impressed with the features it offered apart from stunning looks it had all the features I preferred and of course, wanted to have a sunroof as well. The premium-ness of the interiors and comfortable suspension set-up safety and build quality sealed the deal for me. And I booked the car with the variant exclusive colour shade of Ocean blue.

Buying experience

1. The buying experience from Saibaba autowheels in Pune was satisfactory. Nothing very impressive or going the extra mile kind of experience but it was not ordinary or bad either. I had booked the car 2 days before Dusshera I wanted the car delivered in Diwali which was not of high expectation but the SA said we would try to deliver in Diwali.
2. The dealership made a WhatsApp grp of relevant ppl and shared relevant and often a bit late updates of the status of delivery, though it helped me to keep some pressure on them to deliver the car in Diwali.
3. Though the Diwali date was missed by them they finally said they could deliver the car next week of Diwali after completing all the loan process, 100% payment before car arrival and PDI. The car arrived at the showroom. I did a PDI of the car before registration and there a minor scratches which I pointed out to the SA also the door of the boot was not closing. The SA said it would be taken care of before delivery. The delivery date was just 2 days away and I was a bit sceptical if they would finish the job before delivery
4. After doing all the "sho- sha" of cutting and documentation finally got the delivery of the car. The small issues were rectified before the delivery. The delivery experience was good. And after seeing the stunning beauty shining in its glory the thought of taking the beauty home was very exciting.

Overall it was a good buying experience. The car itself had almost everything I wanted so I was very very delighted.

My first few impressions of driving the car mostly in the city were very good although the AMT gearbox is not as smooth as a DCT, TC or CVT it does its job fairly well. My left leg showers all the love on the gearbox.

Driving experience

1. Well I have driven my car mostly in the city and the experience has been quite good. The suspension is neither too soft nor very stiff and hence offers excellent comfort. I have rarely felt any bump of the pothole coming through to the cabin. It has been a very comfortable ride.
2. The AMT gearbox though could have been better not that it came as a surprise to me but the gearbox has a typical rubber band effect. The gear changes are very evident in 1st 2nd and 3rd gears and mostly in eco and city drive modes while in sports mode it settles down a bit.
3. If you want pure driving pleasure then the AMT gearbox is not for you the best would be a manual transmission. But if you can compromise the driving pleasure against comfort and ease of drive then go for AMT. Also, I bet the DCT gearbox is much better and since it is a wet clutch transmission it will definitely won't overheat in Indian hot weather. But be ready to shell out a lakh more for it
4. Rest the car is great to drive no complaints at all the engine is smooth a bit noisy but the grunt is good to hear no complaints.

Following is the feature list of my variant:

• Rain sensing wiper
• Autohead lamps
• 10.25inches touch infotainment system
• Android and Apple car play wireless
• 7 inches fully digital instrument cluster
• TPMS
• 6 airbags standard
• Electrically adjustable and foldable ORVMs
• Auto-dimming IRVM
• Led DRLs and sequential turn signals
• Led projector headlamps
• Cooled glovebox
• Auto climate control
• Keyless entry and start-stop button start.
• 16-inch alloy wheels.
• Voice command operated sunroof
• Blind spot monitor camera reverse and front cameras
• Rear and front parking sensors

What the variant misses out on is:

• Rear defogger
• Driver armrest
• Passenger armrest
• Ventilated seats
• Fog lamps.

I will test the mileage of the car in the coming days. The car is solid to drive very well planted on-road, very comfortable suspension, camera is the highlight of the car. Overall, I think it's a very solid car a bit expensive as I had to shell out 15 lacs on road Pune for it. But very very happy with the decision.

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