Tata Aria Road Test and Review

Tata Aria didn’t come down in the last shower of rain. Tata Motors has matured the learning curve over the years, facing many challenges and crossing many hurdles. Now they are, in every sense of the word, accomplished enough to develop a world-class vehicle; and the result is Tata Aria, the first indegenous 4X4 crossover.

Having taken Aria for a short spin, I’m fairly impressed with the vehicle, especially the safety measures. Tata has left no stone unturned, Aria is a potpourri of every feature that you’d expect from a world-class crossover.

Safety Prime Concern

Tata has taken safety to new heights. Aria comes with safety features, both active and passive, that only 30 lakh plus vehicles can boast of. While active features like ESP, ABS & EBD to aid steerability and control in emergency braking, six airbags – driver, passenger side and curtain – ensure protection from front as well as side impacts. Passive features include Hydroformed chassis members that enhance strength and rigidity with reduced weight, crumple zones to absorb impact energy, side impact beams within doors, collapsible steering, auto door unlock during accidents et al.

How Does It Look

Aria looks handsome. The angular, wrap-around dual-barrelled headlamps and the signature Tata grille that we saw on Vista and Manza give Aria an aggressive look. Dynamic roofline, sharp detailing and 17-inch alloys temper its macho stance. However, the rear of the car is not as impressive as the front, it more or less looks like that of a van.

What’s Special Inside

Step in, oh sorry, walk-in (Passengers can simply walk into the Aria, rather than having to climb up or get down into the cabin, thanks to the low-floor design) and you’ll be quite impressed, rather surprised. The cabin is incredibly spacious. The three-row seats are strategically arranged to provide passengers with ample head, leg and shoulder rooms. Both front and middle seats are adjustable so that even a 5’6” person can comfortably sit in the third row. There are AC vents on B and C pillars, providing satisfactory cooling in all three rows equally. All seats except the driver’s can be flat-folded, giving you lots of luggage space.

The dual-tone dashboard is neat, not exciting though. But you’ll find imposing features there. Aria is the first in its segment with an in-dash GPS-based navigation system that maps 400 cities. There are two gloveboxes, one of which can be used as a chiller, too. Steering looks so neat and exciting, with mounted volume, phone controls and even cruise control. The 2 DIN integrated music system with 6 speakers is great but again, nothing ‘exceptional’ about it.

Aria has a constructive driver information system that gives you real-time information about fuel-consumption, distance to empty, engine performance and other critical data. Tiltable steering, electronically adjustable and foldable mirrors, height-adjustable driver’s seat, reverse guide camera, cruise control, darkness sensing lights, rain sensing wipers, all that provide the driver with lots of ease.

Powertrain

Under the hood sits the same 2.2 litre Direct Injection Common Rail (DICOR) engine that powers the Safari, but of course, more refined. Coupled with variable turbine technology and 32-bit ECU, the motor delivers 140 PS power and 320 Nm torque. It is equipped with a dual mass flywheel which isolates torsional vibrations from the powertrain, thus providing a NVH free environment in the cabin. The new Mark II gearbox is mated to the engine ensuring a slicker shifting. Turn the ignition and the Aria burbles gently into life. But as you foot goes down, it becomes a monster, accelerating swiftly but almost silently.

Ride and Handling

Aria handles well, too. Independent double wishbone suspension in front and five link rear suspensions smooth out almost all rough driving condition. Moreover, top-in-the-class features like ESP, ABS & EBD and all-wheel disc brakes enhance confidence. Although I can’t say the ride&handling is immaculate, it’s decent, pretty decent. Aria can be called the layman’s 4X4, because it calls for no expert skills that we once needed to handle a 4X4. You can turn off the 4X4 function by tapping a small button, thus improving the fuel efficiency.

Tata touts Aria as a competitor to a throng of vehicles in the segment, however, its main rival is gonna be the Toyota Innova. Although Aria can’t match the handling elegance of Toyota, it rules in terms of unmatched space, great comfort, a praiseworthy powertrain and loads and loads of features.

Pricing

Being launched in three trim levels, all with selectable Adapterra 4×4 – the Aria Pride at the top end, the Aria Prestige and the Aria Pleasure, Aria will be priced between Rs 12.91 lakhs and Rs 15.50 lakhs (ex-showroom New Delhi).