Apr 02, 2006 02:26 PM
26733 Views
(Updated Apr 02, 2006 02:26 PM)
I bought an Indica Xeta about 45 days back and have driven it for about 3500 kms. This is an amateur attempt of writing a Road test of Indica Xeta.
The car is a top end model, GLX, fully loaded except for the music system. It would have been a great idea to have provided with a Blaupunkt system by default.
The car is a much improved version of the old Indica Petrol (I have an old Indica V2 petrol in my family). The engine is much refined, noiseless above 1000 rpm, responsive and has a better grip as compared to the older car. There isn’t much improvement in the seating posture or the steering wheel position; it sometimes is uncomfortable for long drives. I expected a much better thigh support. Putting a small air bag semi inflated under the thigh helps dramatically and improves comfort substantially. The rear 60:40 seat split is useful in the car.
A reduction in power by 5 bhp can be easily felt when running the car in the ghat sections on highways. The older Indica zipped through the ghats with AC on in the 4th or the 5th gear while the Xeta needs frequent changes in the gear in the ghat section, typically fourth and third with AC on. If you break the momentum somewhere in between, you are dead. It takes quite a while to catch it up unlike the old one. However, in the city the car is more users friendly and is peppier. It has much less drag as compared to the old car in the city. Since the car is new, the AC is working fine. But with the prior experience, I would say, the performance of the AC is no where near to the performance of ACs of Suzuki cars like the Zen or for that matter even the Alto. As the car gets older the performance of the AC drops quickly.
The NVH levels are kept in control as compared to the old car but at idling the car makes an irritating noise, may be the chain or some belt, which even the old car, has. It subsides when you switch on the AC or increase the RPM. As you engage the first gear and start moving the noise levels drop and in the speed range of about 50 kms to 110 kms, the car is absolutely noiseless and vibration less. It is fun at these speeds. As the needle touches 120 the car has a noise but that is primarily the air noise, more than the engine noise. But there are vibrations that come through your feet and steering wheel as the needle begins to go beyond that. I have touched 140 kmph in the Xeta, but was scared to go beyond that as the noise levels had increased dramatically. It is evident when you increase the volume of your system and as you come back at 100 kmph you realize that the volume is too high.
The build quality, the plastic quality, controls quality, upholstery and interiors have improved tremendously. The power windows controls need to improve a bit for the front doors. It is quite an effort when you have to open or close the windows. You have to bend over to access the power windows buttons. The gear shift is improved from the older car as it is softer but no where in comparison to a Zen. The reverse gear sometimes gets hard to get. One has to fidget around to get the right slot or press and depress the clutch so that the reverse gear is correctly engaged.
The lights are quite powerful but the focus of the lights is not properly aligned. I would say among all the cars in its category, Santro head lights, focus and illuminate, the road in the best way. The fog lamps are very helpful on the highway as when using the high beam, the fog lamps can help you see the bad road in the near vicinity.
Most importantly - I don’t see a big jump in the fuel efficiency of the car. With a Xeta, I get about 11.5 to 12 kmpl in city and about 14 -15 kmpl on highways (AC is always on). One may get a better mileage on highway if one drives at 80 kmph but one normally likes to drive at 100 to 110 kmph on express highway. The mileage in city is definitely not 14 kmpl.
All in all, I would say it is a good buy for people who want comfort in seating, have more highways running and hence require a sturdy and safe car, need a cheap and low cost of ownership car.
For people who are looking at sheer mileage, Tata cars are not for you. For mileage, Suzuki and to a certain extent Hyundais are a perfect fit.
For any queries, suggestions, do write to kedar_apte@yahoo.com
