Datsun redi GO Overview
The Go and Go+, Datsun’s first two launches, were functional cars available at affordable prices, especially considering their size. Datsun, however, underestimated the Indian consumer’s need to have as much as possible while paying as little as possible. As a result, the Go siblings have been left by the wayside, because they are poorly equipped and the cost-cutting is obvious, which is something Indians these days will just not accept. Suffice to say, the Datsun brand needs a strong shot in the arm to get back on buyers’ radars, and lessons learnt have been plowed back into the Redigo which comes to the market with the task of resurrecting the Datsun.
Even with this contemporary looking car, Datsun has its work cut out. Where the Go and Go+ went up against the likes of the Maruti WagonR and Hyundai i10, the Redigo is entering a much fiercer battlefield. It’s the budget segment, dominated by India’s best-selling car – the Maruti Alto, and recently stirred up by Datsun’s own very attractive cousin – the Renault Kwid. That’s quite a tall order for this little hatchback, with not only the weight of the entire Datsun brand bearing down on its shoulders, but also the pressure to thrive in a hugely competitive segment with some of the most critical and brand-loyal customers in the country.
Datsun redi GO Exteriors
The Datsun redi-GO looks quite refreshing from the outside with the curvy lines and especially in this bright green colour. The hatchback gets an upright stance with a high ground clearance of 185 mm. The front gets angular headlamps, a wide Datsun grille, raked down bonnet and a sporty bumper that integrates LED daytime-running lights. These DRLs though switch off when you switch on the headlights at night. Also notice the single wiper for the front windshield to keep the costs low. On the side profile there is a deep character line running on the lower half of the body that rises sharply towards the rear and meets the tail lamps. The rear looks a tad simple with the small tail lamps. The tailgate gets a wavy patter and the brawny bumper integrates reflectors. Datsun is offering faux silver skid plates as optional, which adds to the sporty look of the redi-GO.
Datsun redi GO Interiors
It is on the inside, that the Redi Go doesn’t seem as appealing. The interiors are decent, however it is the colour that doesn’t make it look premium. The steering wheel is small and good enough. The instrument cluster is shared with the other Datsuns. This has a speedometer that occupies most of the space. The centre console is made up of a large single AC vent, music system, three knobs for the air-con. There is some storage space in the vehicle. To begin with, there is space above the glove box, under the air-con knobs and even the door pockets are large enough. This has been designed to be practical. In terms of safety, the Redi GO gets a single airbag and even seat bels for all passengers.
The front row seats offer good enough space. Now, the other important aspect of the Redi GO is the tall boy looks. This ensures good head room for both the rows. The second row too has decent knee room and even good head room also. The rear seats lack adjustable head rests too. The boot isn’t as large as the Kwid, but it is big enough. The wheelbase of the Redi Go is shorter than the Kwid to make it more compact. In terms of features, it even gets front power windows. For more details on Datsun Redi Go check Tony-allen.
Datsun redi GO Transmission
The mechanicals will be familiar if you’ve driven a Renault Kwid. A 799cc, three-cylinder petrol engine drives the front wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox. The power output is 54hp, while the torque is rated at 72Nm, both of which are par for the class. The experience might not be exactly the same as the Kwid, however, because while the gear ratios and final drive have come over unchanged, the motor is said to be ‘improved’, likely for even better fuel economy. A kerb weight that’s about 25kg lighter than the Kwid’s will also play a part here.
On start-up and idle, it comes with an acceptable three-cylinder thrum that’s not too bad, but what might irk you a bit is the vibration you’ll feel through the steering wheel, which only gets stronger as you move up to about 1,100rpm. The other thing that will annoy you is that it stutters a lot getting off the line, forcing you to feed in a little throttle to move away smoothly. Once you’ve picked up speed, however, it will potter about quite smoothly, which is what you want in town, where the Redigo will be most at home. Here, the vibrations settle down and progress is pretty smooth, and this is the zone you’ll want to keep the car in at all times.
The motor will rev to just over 5,000rpm, but we wouldn’t bother taking it much past 4,500, because that’s where it becomes unbearably noisy and thrashy, and moreover, there’s not much more power to be had either. Flex your foot harder and you’ll find the mid-range has a flat power delivery. When it comes to overtaking, you’ll need to shift down to make sufficiently rapid progress. Overall, the engine sounds and feels a bit too crude compared to the competition, including the Kwid, where the same motor feels a lot smoother and quieter. In fact, Datsun engineers hinted that the engine is ‘still a work in progress’ and the calibration is likely to be tweaked before launch for a smoother power delivery.
The five-speed manual uses a dog-leg reverse gear, which might be a little unusual for first-time drivers, but is also a great safety feature to prevent accidentally slotting in reverse for novices. The gear-shift action is not the lightest but allied to a light and progressive clutch, driving in stop-go traffic is quite easy.
Datsun redi GO Driving
Well, the first thing you notice when you are on the seat is that you sit pretty high. Almost SUV like. This is a good thing as it give a commanding view of the road and also improves all round visibility. The suspension setup is better than most cars in the segment. It handles bad roads pretty well. We found the ride to be a bit stiff. This could be to balance the additional ground clearance in the car which is best-in-class at 185mm. We were surprised with the way the RediGO went about on large speed breakers. Clearly, this is a shot in the arm for this car.
Datsun redi GO Safety
Datsun will provide driver-side airbag as an option on the range topping trim of the redi-GO but ABS is not available with the hatchback. Still, the Japanese automaker claims that the redi-GO has the shortest braking distance in its segment and the mechanism is such that the brakes don’t tend to lock early. In terms of after sales, Datsun won’t be the best in its segment but the carmaker is improving the network rapidly across the country and currently has 220 outlets pan India. However, they are claiming that the Datsun redi-GO will have the lowest cost of ownership amongst its rivals.
Datsun redi GO Cost
Datsun Go On Road Price is 4,06,445/- and Ex-showroom Price is 3,32,000/- in Bangalore. Datsun Go comes in 6 colours, namely Ruby,Sky,Silver,Grey,White,Blue. Datsun Go comes with FWD with 1198 CC Displacement and 3 Cylinders with Maximum Power 67 bhp@5000 rpm and Peak Torque 104 Nm@4000 rpm DRIVE TRAIN FWD and reaches 100 KMPH at 13.3 seconds . Datsun Go comes with Manual Transmission with FWD .Check for Datsun redi GO price in Bangalore at Tryaldrive.
Datsun redi GO Final Thought
Think of this as the start of a second innings for Datsun, where the Redigo is the opening batsman – there’s a lot riding on it. The marketing reminds you that it’s a ‘Japanese’ car, so it will be reliable, that it has the ground clearance to handle our bad roads, and most of all, that it will have best-in-class running costs thanks to 98 percent localisation. All these are true, and to that list, you can add the tall proportions that, apart from providing a great driving position, also make for spacious and comfortable seating. However, the Redigo is not without fault. Signs of cost cutting, like the exposed metal in the cabin really mark it down, as do the poor driveability and levels of refinement. Yes, it’s a well-packaged product, but it doesn’t really break new ground.