Welcome to PowerDrift, and let's quickly have a debate, but, before we start throwing out
jabs and punches at each other, here's the topic of discussion, what is an SUV?
Now some of you might want all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive as standard, some of you
might want seven seats and some of you might want ground clearance that's big enough to
drive over boulders, some of you might want big wheels and tyres, but I think the definition
of an SUV is different now.
Look, evolution, it's inevitable, isn't it?
And everything around us has evolved, everything's new, everything's changed, similarly, the
definition of an SUV has evolved in the last couple of years and that brings about new
sub-segments in the SUV space like the micro-SUV and in my opinion, the Tata Punch is India's
first real micro-SUV.
Now that's the terminology that I am going to use for this car because I think it deserves it.
Punch, in our opinion, deserves that micro-SUV tag because it does look like an SUV.
It has all those tell-tale design bits everywhere, the plastic cladding on the bumpers, the plastic
cladding on the doors, a 190mm of ground clearance, roof rails, and with this top spec variant
or Persona, as Tata calls it, it gets a two-tone paint job that makes it look really good,
oh and yes, this colour that we drove in general, very very premium.
Feels like a colour you would find on a brand-new iPhone or an iPad, yes, it's really that good.
But more than just the plastic cladding and the perfect size that I think is absolutely
ideal for the city, I think it's the stance that really makes this car stand out.
Now, look at the wheel arches on the back, it's all squared out, it's all accentuated
around this part, I like that, I like this, a dimple in the handle to put your thumb in,
sensible, very well thought of, again squared-off wheel arches in the front, nice and muscular,
but there's that always one thing in a car, always that sort of grabs my attention that
one little attention to detail that I always love I look at and I'm like, hmm, interesting
and on this one, it's this little grille notch.
Now, Tata has done this design language for a while now,
but look what's behind it, India's favourite thing,
that's a horn there.
I just hope it isn't a flute or a speaker playing out tabla music, if you know what
I'm talking about, in the near future.
There are other cute bits too, okay, not cute, not the right word by a longshot, let's just
stick to interesting, like this rhino on the rear window, I half expected another cat out
there but nope, it is a rhino and I guess it's there to show how tough the car is and yes,
that little Tristar or whatever design element they call it, it's everywhere too and it is
well integrated, it's not just slapped on senselessly.
Do you know what Tata does really well, every time they launch a new car, they make an interior
that'll age well, that'll look nice in five years and that is a tough thing to do, not
to get carried away and over design things and this is the perfect example.
It's all nicely done, it's all horizontally placed out, it's all clinically nicely designed
in my opinion.
Now there are a couple of texture that Tata Motors has played with, so you've got one texture
on the top here, it's a brush finish in the middle and this white panel which has the typical
Tata Motors, three-pointed star thingie design element that they've used almost everywhere
on the car, and yes, some of the plastics do feel a little bit cheap on the touch, but
this is a car that's going to be designed and built at a price and that's a little excusable,
to a certain extent.
It's not something that comes out and is blatantly in your face like you get on some other cars.
Digital and analogue instrument cluster, I like that as well, it's a cleanly designed
cluster, it's a mix of both.
You've seen it in the Altroz and it sort of looks nice here as well, 7-inch touchscreen,
very nice and responsive and since we're at it, let's inaugurate this car shall we, properly.
That's the, sort of, protective layer off and this is no longer a new car then.
Now apart from what I just mentioned, you do get a lot of features too, like the expected
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto etc, and you also get connected car tech, but it is not
standard on any variant and even the top spec has it only as an option and of course in
terms of safety, you get ABS and EBD and something called brake sway control, which Tata says
makes it much safer, you also get two airbags, and at the rear you get isofix for your child's seat.
Those wide opening doors, super nifty to get in and out of, I wonder why not more manufacturers
do this because it's just a sensible thing isn't it, you rarely find me in the backseat,
because I usually spend time somewhere there driving the pants of cars, but this is a more
sensible review so, I thought I'd get in the back and actually talk about the amount of
space there is here because look, Tata Motors has always been the king of packaging,
look at the amount of space the Nano had or the original Indica
and it's the same thing with this as well.
Now this is set in my driving position which is slightly further setback than what you
normally would have people drive at and I look, I still have wiggle room for my legs
and my knees have space and I have head space left over.
And I have, well, this lovely large armrest here so I can rest my arm comfortably and the person
sitting next to me can as well, this is a very spacious space in general at the backseat
and that's what you need because this at the end of the day is going to be a family car,
it's going to be a sensible car and I can't find anything wrong with the backseat at all.
I mean the seat's well, bolstered at the thighs, back support's great, big headrest to sort
of stop your head from flopping around like a rag doll.
You've just got everything ticked off and that's what Tata Motors really knows how to
do very very well.
If I did have one complaint though, it would have to be the lack of rear AC vents.
With the summers getting hotter and hotter every year, a car without rear AC vents,
it's just too warm at the rear sometimes.
So, I've been driving the Tata Punch now for about half a day and should I start with the
good news or the bad news, well, I think let's get optimistic and let's start with the good
stuff because there is one big great chunk of good stuff to talk about, the ride quality
in the Punch, oh my god, Tata Motors, you guys have absolutely nailed this one, this
is a knockout punch in your favour.
Yes, boxing reference, I know, I just had to do it.
They've really really made the suspension setup on this absolutely great, it is one
of the best ride qualities that I've had in a long long time in anything that's
sort of affordable and mass market.
It sort of, irons out everything, bad roads, potholes, speed breakers, you can literally
take them at speed and you don't feel a thing, on the flip side, yes, because suspension
setup is slightly softer, it does compromise the handling a fair bit, so don't expect to
hit any corners really hard anytime soon in the Punch, it doesn't like that.
The other thing that's a bit lacking on the Tata Punch is that engine, now, on paper, the
1.2-litre, naturally aspirated motor, and it's only petrol, there is no diesel option,
makes 86hp and gets a 113Nm of torque and we've had this engine before in the Tiago and the
Tigor and this one's a manual, so it's the more responsive gearbox and it just isn't
enough, I mean, sort of potter around town and, sort of, just cruise on the highway at
100 kilometres an hour, this is great.
But, in terms of, sort of, overtaking people or
getting there, you know, on a incline, or just getting to 100 quickly, there just isn't
enough power, Tata Motors, you really need to put that turbo engine in this or you know
what, you know what I'd really really like, I'm sorry, I'm going to say this, put that
Nexon EV powertrain in this, this is the perfect little electric car for the Indian market
or it could be, Tata Motors, come on, do it.
But, for now, as I mentioned, running around the city, you will not feel that lack of power,
running around on the highway at a 100 when you're cruising on like an open highway, you
won't feel that lack of power, it's only when you need to put your foot down, overtake somebody
or get up an incline a little bit quicker or just get to a certain speed a little bit
faster, it just doesn't do it as well as it should, I mean, 86hp isn't a small figure,
I'm struggling to see why this car takes 16.5 seconds to get to 100.
Now some of you might wonder if Tata should have plonked in a diesel, but I think this
is the right move to have it only as a petrol as of now, as even with prices per litre being
what they are, a diesel market in this sort of an ultra-price sensitive segment, I think
is just too small to mess with.
Okay, I'm going to be very, very candid and honest, now, I started my day off really genuinely
wondering if there was even a little bit of space in the Tata Motors line-up with the
Tiago and the Tigor, and the Altroz and the Nexon, for something like the Punch to exist.
Now, I was wondering whether there was, in the general Indian context, a place for the
Punch, and after spending half a day, I'm now genuinely worried about the other products
on the Tata Motors line-up, because I have a niggling feeling that this car is going
to be one of Tata Motors's greatest hits in the coming months and years.
I think Tata has really really got this formula absolutely lined out.
You know what, we've been making these puns and jokes about a knockout Punch through the
video, this is a knockout punch, I mean, yes, it will affect sales of Tata's own products,
but this is also going to cannibalise into a whole bunch of competition, especially people
who are looking at just a general hatchback, under the 10-lakh rupee mark, because all
the small SUVs have now become more expensive.
So, this is going to fill that void and fill that void really well.
It looks good, people turn their heads and look at it, not just because it's new,
but because it's well proportioned.
It just is a nice-looking car, it's got this nice interior, it's simple, it's got, well,
a lot of tech, it drives decently well with the exception of maybe feeling underpowered
at times, rides phenomenally well, there's a decent amount of space, it ticks most boxes.
You know what Tata Motors, price this right and you have a massive winner on your hand.
So now I know why they called it Punch.
This thing might just end up knocking the daylights out of a fair few cars.