The Zest is a knight in shining armour for Tata, launching at a time of flagging sales
With the company stuck in the dark, with no products up to the mark, the Zest looks like a promising offering after a long time
Almost instantly after its launch, the Zest has started to show a positive performance on the sales front
The Zest is the first of the next-generation Tata products which will continue to be launched till 2020
Although the compant makes it sound like a revolution, the design is more of an evolution
The Zest still resembles the old and dated round design language of Tata cars. Why?
However, to make it an attractive product proposition, Tata has given the Zest a couple of segment-best and segment-first features
Tata was the first Indian manufacturer to tap the sub-4 metre compact sedan segment with the Indigo CS
The Zest looks much more proportionate, compared to the Manza
Side profile reveals that it is the tallest in the segment, and hence offers ample headroom
Things are finally looking positive for Tata with the Zest outnumbering the Honda Amaze in October ’14
We loved the rear three quarter view on the Zest. It looked much better than the Amaze.
Does it not look good to you?
Rear end design is a refreshing change from the Tata stable
Boot is well integrated and does not look like an afterthought
A better view of the compact boot
Honeycomb mesh front grille with a chrome strip on the top and bottom
Tata likes to call it the ‘Humanity Line’
Small power bulge on the bonnet
Segment first projector headlamps illuminate the road well at night
AMT doesn’t get LED DRLs but only fog lamps
Black plastic cladding for the air dams
A very neat plastic applique to house the windscreen washer nozzles
Multi-spoke alloy wheels on the AMT variant. Tata offers a segment first, alloy wheels as standard on all models of the Zest.
ORVMs get LED turn indicators
Front bumper gets a black plastic lower-lip
No true keyless entry, one has to use the remote to unlock
Strong shoulder lines on the car
Blackened B-pillar and a chrome weather strip
Ample ground clearance to tackle the speed breakers
Rear wheel gets drum brakes
Notice how the boot is chopped-off to fall under the sub-4 metre classification
Close look at the flat bootlid
LED tail lamps are again a segment first
Rear fog lamp placed on the blackened section of the bumper
A Tata logo in chrome and a chrome garnish below
Closer look at the blackened lower end of the rear bumper
Rudimentary keyhole to open the boot from outside, no button
Notice how short the boot is
Shut lines although consistent, are a little on the wider side
Minimum cladding, yet NVH levels are well maintained
Short antenna on the roof
Look at the LED DRLs on the car to the right, next to the fog lamps
You will look around twice to believe that you’re inside a Tata vehicle, the dashboard looks that good
Beige, black and silver colour selection is very tasteful
Steering wheel gets contours for your thumb
A good looking, white backlit instrument cluster with a MID in the centre
MID displays tripmeter, odometer, average fuel efficiency, real time fuel efficiency, DTE, time, selected gear and outside temperature
Fuel gauge and engine temperature gauge is digital
Steering mounted audio and telephone controls
Control stalks are made up of good quality plastic and feel like they will last the distance
Centre console gets a piano black finish in the centre and silver accents on the side
Jointly developed by Tata and Harman, the stereo system gets 4 speakers and 4 tweeters
Manual AC controls on the AMT variant
Fog lamp switches and the USB & Aux input below the AC controls
Only 1 bottle holder in the car, and a power outlet next to it
Notice the ‘S’ button, for sports mode
Well bolstered seats for the front occupants
Adjustable neck restraints for everyone
No seat height adjustment on the AMT variant
Lever to move the front seat fore & aft
A cloth neatly covering the front seat rails from being seen
Seatbelts aren’t height adjustable
Piano black finish above the glovebox
Glovebox is average sized
A small compartment on top, inside the glovebox to store your car manual
AC vents direct the air to the desired spot effectively
Handbrake is neatly covered in faux leather
A storage spot under the handbrake is useful to park your wallet
Single cabin lamp at the front
Mic for the bluetooth on the roof
Passenger side sun visor gets a vanity mirror
The passenger side sun visor was already loose, within 4,000 km
Driver side sun visor gets a ticket holder strap
Rear view mirror gets day / night adjustment
ORVMs are reasonably sized
Door pads haven’t changed much compared to a Vista / Manza
No bottle holder on the door pad
A good place to rest your arm while on the move
Also, you can comfortable hold the door handle rather than the assist grip above the window
Rudimentary looking assist grips
Conventionally placed fuel cap and boot release levers
Steering column is neatly covered with a leather patch
Ugly looking bonnet release lever. Look at the poorly cut floor coming off in the background.
Details slapped on behind the front door
Doors open wide for easy ingress & egress
Wide rear seats can easily accommodate 3
Bright and airy cabin at all times
Leg room available for the rear passengers is also acceptable
Rear adjustable neck restraints
Well bolstered rear seats offer good support
Floor hump is noticeable, but won’t interfere much with the 5th occupant
Rear door, beige section is a cloth which will be a dust and dirt magnet
Rear tweeter placed next to the door lever
Seatbelts come out neatly at the back
Rearward visibility is poor due to the tall boot
High mount stop lamp on the rear parcel tray
Boot space is good for 3-4 medium sized bags
No cladding under the bootlid
Spare wheel is not an alloy
1.3L, Fiat-sourced, Quadrajet engine with VGT produces 90 PS of power @ 4,000 RPM & 200 Nm of torque @ 1,750-3,000 RPM
A neat looking engine head cover
Well cut cladding under the bonnet
