Tata Nexon Diesel: Purchase, First Impressions, Little Things & Accessories

Driving the Nexon was a different experience for me having previously driven my father’s VW Vento.

BHPian Ramprakashram recently shared with other enthusiasts.

Hello dear BHPians

This is my very first property review for T-BHP. I am writing this review after 2 months and 5000km of ownership of the Tata Nexon XM Diesel Manual in Daytona Grey.

I am 28 years old and have 10 years driving experience. I learned to drive on my grandfather’s HM Ambassador Diesel, which had an ISUZU engine that my grandfather used to brag about. Over the years I have driven a variety of cars in my family including Tata Sumo, Tata Sumo Victa, Tata Safari, Mahindra Bolero, Tata Indica Vista, Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo, Maruti Suzuki Alto, Maruti Suzuki Swift Diesel, Ford Figo Diesel and Skoda Superb TDI DSG. Although I don’t own any of these cars, I have a lot of experience with them as they belong to my father and uncle. My father currently owns a VW Vento TDI MT which he absolutely loves and has owned for over 11 years.

Now that I have a good job and am single, I thought it would be the perfect time to buy a car. And so the hunt began.

To make a long story short, since everyone already knows the ins and outs of the cars available in the Indian market, let’s dive into my experience with the Tata Nexon.

looks at cars

• Tata Nexon-Diesel MT
• Kia Sonet Diesel MT
• Maruti Baleno – Gasoline MT
• Nissan Magnite – Turbo Gasoline MT
• Hyundai Venue – Diesel MT
• Hyundai i20 – Diesel MT

Criteria for choosing cars

• Should be under 12 lakhs on the road
• Should be a relatively safe car
• Diesel only
• Strictly manual
• Since I drive freeways most of the time, I need a car that feels stable and planted at high speeds.

Final Choice

After several test drives and looking at countless forum posts, I finally decided to buy the Nexon Diesel. It has everything I need: safety features, plenty of space, a diesel option and a smooth ride, and it fits my budget. I checked with Jayaraj Karz in Thanjavur about the availability of the Nexon XM variant and was pleasantly surprised to learn that they had a Daytona Gray color available and were able to deliver the car in just three days. It seemed too good to be true! We agreed on a final price of around Rs. 11,50,000 including registration, insurance and other various fees. I transferred the booking amount the same day and the car was delivered on January 11, 2023.

First impressions

Driving the Nexon was a different experience for me coming from a sedan. It was a hoot to drive, and I found I didn’t have to slow down for small potholes like I did in the Vento. Also, the elevated seating position meant the headlights didn’t hit my eyes directly like they used to. While the corners aren’t as sharp as the Vento, I don’t think it’s fair to compare the two.

One thing I would say is that I think they should have given the Nexon a 5 speed manual instead of a 6 speed manual. I find that I am constantly shifting gears and the power is distributed too much across the gears. If it were a 5 speed I would feel like it was a different beast to drive.

nipple

A few days after receiving the shipment, my Nexon started having some problems.

• The rattling of the front left side door
• Slight rattling noise on the speedometer when driving on bad roads
• The front left speaker has a distorted hiss when playing a bass-heavy song

I took my car to Jayaraj Karz Service Center in Thanjavur but they couldn’t fix the rattling noise in the front left side door even after 3 tries. I then took the car back to Bengaluru, where I work, and handed it over to the Tata Kropex Service Center in Koramangala. They were able to fix the front left side door rattle and assured me they would fix the remaining issues during the second service.

I sincerely hope that TATA will improve the quality of their cars as having hard edges and quirks in a brand new car is unacceptable. I hope they will be able to fix all my problems soon.

Accesories

I made some installations on my car:

• Blaupunkt San Andreas 970 head unit
• 70mai dash cam A400+rear camera set
• steering control
• backup camera
• Suntek Sunfil

I chose the Blaupunkt San Andreas 970 over other devices mainly because it’s the only non-Android 9-inch main unit available for under 40,000. It also has wireless Android Auto and Apple Carplay and has worked flawlessly so far. The sound quality also seems to be better than the Android devices, although still not quite on the level of the XZ+. The total cost was Rs. 40,800 including the main unit, canbus, frame and fitting. A reversing camera was also included as a free part of the package.

I also fitted steering controls which work fine with the HU. They cost me Rs.6000 and the fitment people assured me they wouldn’t void the warranty as they didn’t cut any wires.

I installed all these accessories in EDGE Accessories, HSR Layout, Bengaluru.

Accessories planned

• alloy wheels
• Leather seats and steering wheel cover
• Wrap the side mirrors in a gloss black finish
• Correct audio upgrade

Verdict

Nexon is a fun car, especially in Bengaluru where there are a lot of potholes, and the extra height gives a confident driving experience. Thank you for reading my post and I will keep you updated.

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