Another month gone by, and having to live with the long term Indigo might be fun, but it’s also a bit of an eye opener. Tata’s previous generation products, after all – of which the Indigo is a part – isnt the last word in quality. And, having lived with the Indigo now for a few months, it shows. The temperature in Delhi this year has fallen far below normal, but a car with the blower working its magic at 28 degrees makes it cozy. Not so in the Indigo though! The heater decided to die on me, leave me feeling blue, literally – it was that cold. And this is the top-of-the-line variant!
Worse still, there are more bits of plastic parts that are beginning to show signs of falling off. Plus, the clutch has started becoming heavy and vague over the past month. Though this is nothing that a quick visit to the workshop won’t sort out, it still is an area of concern as a new car from a proven platform shouldn’t suffer from such niggles.
The engine, though still powerful enough for in-city use, is becoming slightly rough and the vibrations from the drivetrain are filtering into the cabin through the gear lever. The stitching on the steering wheel has worn to the extent that it hurts to rest your fingers on it, and the seat adjuster comes off in your hand when using to it adjust the tilt of the seat-back.
Tata’s claim of 25km/l is also a far-cry from what we’ve been able to manage – and that’s after driving the eCS very sedately. Between Kapil and I, we consistently get between 16-18km/l, whereas that number drops down to 12-13km/l when heavy-footed Ashish takes over. He’s a fairly tall chap, and, a few days ago, after getting back from driving the eCS around, Ashish was complaining about the lack of a dead pedal as he’s forced to rest his left foot under the clutch pedal.
The Indigo manages to fare better on long distances however. I made a trip to Jaipur, and the boot could easily swallow the two medium bags that I carried along. The seats too are very supportive, and doing long distances is comfortable for passengers. All said and done, this month hasn’t been too rosy with the Indigo, but next month we’re planning more highway driving, which should give the Indigo a chance to shine once again.
