Friday 26 August 2011
New Tata Vista features
Looks, fit and finish
Exteriors
Tata has dipped into the Tata Manza’s parts bin to freshen up the Indica Vista. The most noticeable change is at the front, where you now have three-barrel headlamps (like the Manza) and a new chrome-bordered grille and fog lamp shroud. This gives the Vista’s front a more aggressive stance. There’s more use of chrome along the bumper and door rub strips and in the door handles.The electrically-adjustable door mirrors have a slightly different look. At the rear, there’s a large glossy black strip below the rear windshield, and a Tata logo with more space between letters, while the badging gets a new font. The Vista is equipped with front and rear fog lamps and wash-wipe on the VX/GVX and ZX/GZX variants. The top-end version also gets 14-inch alloy-wheels.
Interiors
On the interiors, Tata has given the Vista a beige and black color scheme that does make the car look quite airy. Except for the base variant, all other variants get an integrated audio system with USB, Aux-In, steering-mounted audio and phone controls and Bluetooth phone function (capable of pairing up to 5-phones). A noticeable change is in the quality of the plastics, which has been improved and now feels better to the touchThe steering-mounted audio controls are well-designed, and even better than what we found on the Tata Aria. The door mirrors on the top-two variants are electrically adjustable. The centre-mounted instrument cluster from the earlier Vista remains, and we wish Tata had swapped that for the dashboard in the Manza, which looks even better. Other than the base variant, all models feature keyless entry and central locking.
The top two trims feature lumbar support adjustment and height adjustment for the driver’s seat and tilt-steering. The rear-seats are spacious and comfortable enough for three, but the middle passenger may find the transmission tunnel a little intrusive. The seats fold flat in a 60:40 spit giving the Vista some versatility in terms of luggage space. Boot space is about adequate at 232 litres. The car also has two 12V power outlets – one at the front and one at the rear.
Only the ZX and GZX variants come with dual front airbags.
Performance and handling
A significant effort has been made by Tata in improving the performance and handling of the Vista. The gear-lever has been worked upon and now has a more precise shift feel. The clutch has become significantly lighter and easy to use. A big improvement is in the steering. The Vista has hydraulic power steering, which has been tweaked to make the handling much sharper and more confidence inspiring.The suspension too has been stiffened, which gives the Vista much-improved ride and handling compared to the earlier Vista. Body roll has been reduced and darting in and out of traffic has become more sure-footed.
Tata has introduced a clutch-to-start feature on the Vista, where the car will start only if the clutch pedal is pressed. This is a safety feature that will prevent accidental starts when the car is in gear or double-cranking (especially in the Safire 90 petrol which has a very quiet engine).
The Indica Vista VX we were driving was powered by the tried and tested 1.3-litre Quadrajet diesel engine that puts out 74 bhp of power and 190 Nm of torque. (This is the same engine that’s also in the diesel Maruti Swift, Maruti Dzire, Fiat Linea and Fiat Grande Punto.) Gear ratios are evenly spaced and there’s not too much turbo lag. However, the engine springs to life beyond 1700 rpm and pulls effortlessly.
The car feels stable and planted till you reach three-digit speeds. On the expressway, at high speeds the car does tend to feel a bit light, but the steering weighs up well and inspires confidence. There is some engine noise and tyre roar that filters into the cabin at speed. In city traffic, however, the car is quiet and NVH levels are acceptable. The brakes are equipped with ABS and are quite sharp with decent pedal feel.
Mileage
There’s no significant change to the mileage of the Indica Vista over the earlier cars, except for some minor improvement. The Quadrajet diesel we were driving gives an ARAI-certified mileage of 22.3 kmpl. The multi-information display in the Vista does not show instant fuel or average consumption. It only shows trip meters and time. The petrol Indica Vista with the Safire 1.2 (65 bhp) engine gives a claimed figure of 16.7 kmpl, while the Safire 1.4 (90 bhp) engine gives 13.7 kmpl. The TDI 1.4 diesel (70 bhp) is only sold in BS3 markets with a mileage figure of 19.4 kmpl.Clearly, the Quadrajet diesel version of the Indica Vista is the best pick for both mileage and performance among the diesels, while those looking for outright power can consider the Safire 90 petrol engine.
What we think
Tata has priced the new Indica Vista at Rs. 3.88 lakh for the base petrol variant, going up to Rs. 6.11 lakh for the top-end petrol variant and Rs. 6.06 lakh for the top-end diesel variant, ex-Delhi. With 12 variants on offer, we think the Vista has the features it needs to effectively compete with the Toyota Liva, the Ford Figo, Hyundai i20 and Maruti Swift.The car’s looks have been improved and more importantly, it’s now a much better handler compared to the older Vista. The improved styling may now help the Vista appeal more to individual buyers. While the petrol Indica Vista may not appeal as much, the Quadrajet engines in the Vista, make it a good car to consider for those looking for features on a budget
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