Tata Motors sights revival with Zest

The first shoots of a new way of motoring from Tata Motors have broken through and what was pure visual has now turned into fact.

Not since the launch of the iconic Nano city car has there been so eager a wait for an all-new Tata Motors's automobile. This time round the company seems to have broken with tradition and gone for not just technical, design and process changes on the hardware front but it has also engineered a major charm onslaught. All this, of course, in a bid to not just redeem itself after a lean period of over a couple of years but also start on the long haul of revival in the automotive sphere.

Spearheading the revival is not just an all-new automobile but also an all-new tech-laden approach that is audacious enough to have the South Koreans and the Japanese interested in. An all-new platform has been created which will underpin not just the Zest, which is a four-door sedan conforming to the tax-busting sub-four-metre length, but also the Bolt hatchback that will follow rapidly. If that is not all, this platform will also form the basis for a compact SUV in the mould of an EcoSport or Duster while an multi purpose vehicle on the lines of the Ertiga-Enjoy-Mobilio set is also on the anvil. The latter two body styles are over 18 to 24 months away but the smart money and the big hopes rest on the Zest and the Bolt.

What is strikingly different about the Zest is that it is a not just another sub-four-metre sedan but a veritable tour de force able to take anything its established rivals can throw at it. In build and turnout the Zest is a technological leap as much as it is a leap of faith for the team, which is behind its concept, development, testing, manufacture and placement.

It has been designed differently – no short cuts on style or being staid but not flashy either yet in conformity with aesthetic sensibility and appeal. It has also been built differently using best practices and new processes imbibed from Tata Motors's Jaguar Land Rover subsidiary with clear cut emphasis on not just build quality but also in bought out component quality so that performance is a given, rather than an afterthought. It is also a bold reference to a new way of wooing customers, with heaps of equipment to delight and pamper the senses, massage the ego and instil pride of ownership – a critical area where Tata products were found lacking. And then it has that solid intent of performance with a confident move to take on rivals with a state-of-the-art 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine while keeping its traditional diesel clout intact and also build on that with an AMT transmission – the first diesel small car to be so equipped in India.

It is also indicative of a new thrust by its maker to indicate to the Indian car buying universe that it has not only learnt its lessons but has begun to implement the learnings across the board in customer handling at launch as well as user interface and care across the ownership cycle. If that is not all, there are signs that more importantly its people and efforts will have the humility to do all this with grace by being on terra firma while addressing what could only be its best ambassadors – satisfied consumers. Of course, doing the product and the process by which it is designed and manufactured is a lot easier than getting out and about with changing attitudes. However, this social engineering is also key if the company intends to make its mark as a manufacturer who not only can be ruled out but also one who could acquire the ability to rule. So while the commercial launch of the Zest gets underway next month, its maker has already logged in close to 18 months of hard slog on the road to redemption.

The writer is editor-in-chief, ZEEGNITION.com. For more on the Tata Zest including a first drive story, full specifications, images, equipment details and quick comparison with immediate rivals, log on to www.zeegnition.com