With an eye on Maruti's Brezza, Tata finally launches Nexon at Rs 5.85 lakh

Billed as the most-awaited car of the year, the Tata Nexon was finally launched on Thursday. The compact sports utility vehicle (SUV), which is carrying the hopes of a desperate Tata Motors, has an eye on the incumbent leader Maruti Suzuki.

The moment we have all been waiting for - the Nexon is priced at Rs. 5.85,000/- *Ex-showroom price Delhi

— Tata Motors (@TataMotors) September 21, 2017

Built over three years, the Nexon is the fourth brand new product from Tata Motors in less than two years.

Also Read: - Can Nexon replicate Tiago's success for Tata Motors?

But just how does the mini SUV compare vis-a–vis the competition?

Nexon is the second-widest of the four mini SUVs – Ford EcoSport, Maruti Suzuki Brezza and Mahindra TUV300 - available to buy in India. Because of this, the interior space of the Nexon is also the best in the segment.

The urban SUV can comfortably seat five occupants whereas the Ecosport may feel cramped in its compact interior dimensions. The Mahindra TUV300 remains the only compact SUV that offers seven seats (including two single-seater opposite facing seats after the second row).

The Nexon comes close second to the TUV300 in the area of boot space. With 350 litres, the Nexon leads the Brezza which has the smallest boot space and also the Ecosport. But the Tata car is the shortest of all the four SUVs given the fact that the vehicle is actually a cross between a hatchback and an SUV.

Interiors

Manufacturers of all the four SUVs have the urban consumer in mind and therefore have tuned their interiors to be as stylish and feature-loaded as possible. From Bluetooth connectivity to Apple Car Play to multi speaker surround sound system, all four vehicles are built keeping the common consumer in mind.

The TUV 300 and the Brezza sport a 7-inch touch-screen infotainment system, while the Eosport’s screen size is the biggest with 8 inches. Nexon’s unit measures 6.5 inches. However, the Nexon leads the pack with an exclusively-built, eight-speaker  Harman music system which comes with the top-end variants.

Safety

Tata Motors has decided to offer airbags as standard across all the variants of the Nexon, a first by the company. Maruti Brezza and the Ford Ecosport too offer driver side airbag as standard on all variants. The Mahindra TUV 300 is the only model which does not offer the airbag as standard but offers it as an option.

Engine options

Nexon and the Ecosport are the only two models to come with both petrol and diesel engine options. The Brezza and TUV 300 come only with diesel engines even as demand for petrol-driven cars have seen a sharp surge in recent quarters.

The Nexon is powered by two new engines - 1.2 litre petrol and 1.5 litre diesel. The diesel motor, a four-cylinder turbocharged unit, is the most powerful in its class generating 110bhp of peak power at 3,750rpm.

The petrol unit, a three-cylinder turbocharged engine, generates peak power of 110bhp at 5,000rpm, which is less than the 1.0 litre turbocharged ecoboost engine seen on the Ecosport. Both the engines on the Nexon come with a 6-speed gearbox while the competition has a 5-speed gearbox.

Only the TUV300 comes with a automatic gearbox option even as Tata Motors has promised to add it after some months. Maruti Suzuki too said it was exploring planting an AMT gearbox in the Brezza.

Also Read: Riding on Nexon, Tata Motors aims to double market share in passenger vehicles biz