Tata Hexa Overview
Being at right place at the right time is very important. Tata Motors is certainly right with the timing of the launch of its all-new premium sports utility vehicle Tata Hexa. The premium SUV, coming after the Indian automaker’s latest hit Tiago, ensures a rather improved environment for the brand in the market place.Tata Motors’ effort to break free from the old perception and accelerate the new image created after Tiago launch is seen clearly in the Hexa. The space where it is pitted doesn’t have much of promising products except XUV500 and Toyota Innova Crysta, though it can also have an impact on the sales of some compact SUVs like Renault Duster and Mahindra Scorpio. Toyota Innova Crysta may still score higher on some point, else for other rivals Hexa truly comes as a winner.
The success of Tata Hexa will strongly depend on the pricing and the way the carmaker is communicating about product features. We think that the pricing should be in the range of Rs 10 lakh to 16 lakh. Hexa will also be crucial to see if Tata Motors has really graduated from ‘Horizon Next’ to the ‘Future Ready’. Tata Hexa certainly has a baggage of its predecessor – Aria, which was not so successful in the market to deal with. However, the SUV has used the same ladder chassis body frame but has been able to put together much improved overall construction of the vehicle which are enough to overcome the legacy. The new SUV is totally clear in its design from front grill to the rear. Hexa has been successful in almost completely doing away with any resemblance to Aria.
Hexa’s tail light, bumper and front grill – all have gone for an overhaul and certainly for the positive when compared to Aria. In terms of handling and drive comfort, Hexa has by far higher number of pluses than minuses. The most notable parts of the new SUV from Tata are – elegant black interior with leather seats and much improved drive quality. The 6-speed automatic transmission is simply heart winning and cannot be ignored.
Tata Hexa Exteriors
Tata Hexa is underpinned on a reworked version of the Aria platform and there are visual similarities between the two. That said, the Hexa has a completely new front and rear. Taking centre stage at the front are Land Rover inspired headlamps housing projector lamps. Sitting between the headlamps is a piano-finish black honeycomb grille, on top of which is a muscular clamshell hood. The surface area of the chrome finish beneath the grille is just about enough to look premium without going overboard. Lower in the bumper are LED daytime running lamps (DRLs) with fog lamps below them.
Moving on to the side, the silhouette is reminiscent of the Aria but the body panels are visibly different. The roof tapers a bit at the end but is mostly straight. While the design team wanted a steeper rake, it wasn’t given a go ahead in favour of headroom for the third-row passengers. The wheel arches are massive, adding to the muscular appeal. Thankfully, the 19-inch twin-spoke alloy wheels fill up the huge arches adequately.
At the rear, there’s a chrome finish slat, flanked by sleek wraparound LED tail lamps. These tail lamps, we were told, are imported from a European supplier as Tata couldn’t find a local supplier with the required capabilities for this part. Rounding up the rear are the twin-exhaust pipes, which in chrome finish, look elegant.Overall, the Hexa came across as an impressively designed vehicle,which lend it a muscular look, which is easy on the eye. Unlike the loud design of the Mahindra XUV500 or the futuristic Toyota Innova Crysta, the Hexa is a vehicle one would be pleased to see day after day for years.
Tata Hexa Interiors
The sheer step up in design and quality are obvious when you step into the Hexa. Shut lines and the overall quality of the plastics and materials used are by far the best we have ever seen on any Tata Motors vehicle in the past. Its great how consistently we have said this of all the recent Tata products – meaning with each car, the company is taking big strides off late. The all-black interior gets a hearty dose of leather on the dashboard and on the door panels along with the leather seats on the top of the line variant. The seats are not only well designed but also feel top notch in terms of their tactile feel with a really good grain of leather running through as well. My only grouse is the slight lack of shoulder support on the front seats and the fact that the padding seems a little harder than it should be.
The central console gets a touchscreen infotainment unit with navigation (that syncs with your smartphone) and an array of options including bluetooth and smartphone integration. There is no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto but the Hexa does offer an app based control system that helps you play your collection of songs from a Juke-Car App – similar to the one in the Tiago. The app also has systems like service and diagnostic tools, navigation support and options to choose the ambient lighting (of which there are eight colour options). The multi-functional steering wheel gets cruise control, audio and telephone controls, and is height adjustable.
The simple gloss black console combined with a chrome wraparound is pleasing to the eye and so are the well placed chrome/brushed aluminium accent pieces around the dashboard and the AC vent. The climate control knobs are placed slightly lower than they should have but you do get used to them very quickly. The horizontal central console on the automatic houses the gear shift lever enclosed in a black bezel. You get just one cup-holder and no real slot to place your smartphone apart from the central flip up storage space between the seats.Book Tata Hexa Testdrive in Hyderabad.
You can get the Hexa in either a six or seven seater configuration. Rear leg space in both versions is quite healthy and the rear passengers get their own AC vents in the centre and on the B-pillars. The third row could get slightly cramped if you are of average height but passengers do get their own storage space and charging points. The Hexa’s large glass area makes it quite airy on the inside and even without something like a panoramic sunroof, it does feel very bright – especially good considering an all-black interior can seem to make the car appear to be cramped.
Tata Hexa Performance
Mechanically, the Tata Hexa is very similar to the Safari Storme. For example, it gets the same 2.2-litre, four-cylinder, turbocharged diesel Varicor engine that makes 156bhp of max power and 400 Nm of mighty torque. The engine is mated to either a six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic gearbox. The manual gets the option of both a rear-wheel-drive and an all-wheel-drive driveline whereas the automatic is only available in a rear-wheel-drive configuration.
The Hexa with the manual gearbox gets the driving mode options that changes the amount of power and torque the engine makes. For example, in comfort mode, the engine makes 150 bhp of power and 320 Nm of torque while in the sport mode, the engine makes the full 156 bhp and 400 Nm of torque. Now while this might not be immediately apparent to the average consumer, there is a noticeable difference on how driver friendly the Hexa gets especially around the mid-range. The modes also change the ESP efficiency and traction control settings on the Hexa which means a little more leeway for spirited driving in the sport mode.
There is also a ‘rough mode’ that is essentially an off-road mode that gives you better power at lower revs and a less intrusive ESP setting that gives you a lot more leeway when one (or more) of your wheels lack traction. Power delivery isn’t what we would call hectic and the clutch could have certainly been better in terms of both its overall feedback and free play. The Hexa is not what we would call fast though as with 2280kg of kerb weight to move around, it does take some time to get up to speed. But, its isn’t painfully slow either and once you do get it going, mid range performance, especially on a highway is impressive.
The automatic gearbox is the one we would choose as the Hexa is the kind of large car that truly comes in its element with an autobox as it just takes a lot less effort to drive. Yes, it is slower than the manual but then the Hexa is not meant to be a sportscar either. The gearbox is surprisingly smooth and there are no jerks in between shifts (while upshifting or downshifting). The actual gear level in the automatic does require a little more effort than usual to operate – something Tata should look into and improve immediately.To know more information on Tata Hexa check Painpeters
The automatic does not get the driving modes like the manual but does get a ‘sport’ option on the gear shifter that makes it rev higher and downshifter faster than in the standard ‘drive’ mode. There is also a tip-tronic setting where one can manually shift gears but with an SUV like the Hexa, you will rarely use it. The automatic also lacks the ESP and traction control options and that is something we think Tata Motors should not have skimped on. The automatic also does not get an all-wheel-drive option which we think is fine since the Hexa with both an autobox and AWD would just become too expensive (and heavier) and would not have any takers.
Tata Hexa Driving
For the Indian automaker, this is probably the toughest department to make an impression. Hexa, has really done a lot of good work in this department too and it is equipped to give tough competition to its rivals.The moment we get behind the wheels, the first few things we notice are clutch, steering, gear, accelerator and brake. While clutch is soft and comfortable on the feet, brake is also responsive, however, the gear box needs improvement as the driver struggles to choose the gears in H-type 6-speed gear box; especially first and second gears are quite inconvenient. Steering is much more lighter in the automatic variants compared to the manual 4X4 model.
On the road at lower speed, the heaviness of the Hexa is clearly felt and that gets further accentuated during sharp turns. The braking has scope of improvement but it has quite a good response, as it worked precisely when applied at a speed of 90kmph.
Tata Hexa Safety
Tata has made no compromise here and safety aspect has also been well taken care of and that too with a very close attention. Both versions have ABS (Anti-locking Braking System) with EBD (Electronic Brake Distribution). Interestingly, there was another system to inspire confidence while panic braking. The Hexa would understand how quickly the right foot is shifted from the accelerator pedal, sensing imminent panic braking.
The EBP or Electronic Brake Pre-fill then would force brake fluid through the brake lines, that would enhance braking efficiency . A test in the off-road experience was about hard braking where this system worked perfectly. Apart from this, the Hexa also has dual front SRS airbags, side and curtain airbags to cocoon its occupants in utmost safety. As safety is now becoming a paramount deciding factor, Tata should consider to keep the safety systems standard across its variant range.
Tata Hexa Price In Hyderabad
Tata Hexa XE Ex-showroom Price is 12,99,000/- and On Road Price is 15,75,454/-. Tata Hexa XE comes in 5 colours, namely Arizone Blue,Platinum Silver,Pearl White,Tungsten Silver,Sky Grey. Tata Hexa XE comes with 2.2 LTR VARICOR 320 with 2179 CC Displacement and 4 Cylinders with Maximum Power 148 bhp@4000 rpm and Peak Torque 320 Nm@1700-2700 rpm DRIVE TRAIN RWD and reaches 14.50 Kmpl . Tata Hexa XE comes with Manual Transmission with RWD. Check EMI Calculator for Tata Hexa
Tata Hexa Verdict
The Tata Hexa is unlike any other Tata vehicle and has equipment found usually in luxury SUVs. It has brilliant NVH (Noise Vibration and Harshness) levels and an impressive automatic gearbox, which is a quantum leap for the carmaker. However, pricing will be critical to the Hexa’s success and it should undercut the Toyota Innova Crysta AT by a considerable. For the manual, it should be priced below the XUV5OO’s top-end trim. Things such as only one touch down on the driver window and lower plastic quality for the rear HVAC control panel are some shortcomings. That said, the Hexa is a big indicator of change for Tata Motors and hopefully production models and upcoming models maintain consistency.