True TATA Value

Back in October 2004, TATA, the foreign motoring giant arrived on South Africa’s shores with the intention of offering the motoring public a new and exciting alternative to the usual mundane norm. First on the agenda was to introduce the remarkably affordable range of Light Commercial workhorses, the Telcoline range. A few months later South Africans were introduced to Tata’s small hatchback and sedan, the Indica and Indigo respectively. As the saying goes, the rest is history.
Tata has grown from strength to strength, now sitting with an entire motoring market share of 2.2%, equivalent to retailing 1,201 vehicles in the month of September. A share or sales volume of this magnitude is normally only achieved after operating for a period of 2 to 3 years. According to Tata, their vehicle park now stands at over 9,100 vehicles, all of which have been retailed through their 43 dealers nationwide! As asked by many, what is the secret to Tata’s success? The answer is simple; good quality, nice looking vehicles, at exceptional prices, offering unrivalled value for money. The demand for Tata’s range of vehicles is so great that the marketing department has already released an apology with respect to the waiting periods people are experiencing. Tata is doing everything to increase the volumes of vehicles being imported.
The latest entrant into the Tata family of vehicles is the Indigo SW, a multi-use vehicle that is compact in size, while still retaining the essential family space, both in the boot and rear seat. Tata describes this vehicle as a cross between a city hatch runabout and multipurpose vehicle. The hatch aspects incorporate the folding rear seats, excellent all-round visibility, ease of parking, and fuel economy. As for the multipurpose characteristics, you have a high roof, little storage compartments throughout the vehicle, a substantial internally roof-mounted storage box, roof rails, and a retractable rear parcel shelf. The combination of the two vehicles makes the Indigo SW a perfectly suited all-round family vehicle.
The Indigo SW comes in two model choices, the GLS and the GLX. The GLS comes standard with selective remote door unlocking, electric windows, power steering, air conditioning, 2 year or 45,000km service plan, 3 year or 100,000km factory warranty, and a 3 year roadside assistance, for added peace of mind motoring. The GLX comes standard with all the GLS specifications plus a driver and passenger airbag and ABS brakes with EBD. And the best feature of all must be the price. The GLS will set you back a mere R94,995 and the GLX just R105,995. At these prices the Indigo SW is certainly the most affordable new family car available today.
In many vehicle write-ups, there are a host of extra features that are not mentioned, but which make a big impact on your driving experience. Standard on all the Tata vehicles are internally height adjustable headlamps, variable speed intermittent windscreen wipers, internal fuel cap and boot releases, rear fog lamps, and rear window demister. Tata also incorporate a rear washer/wiper system in all their hatchback vehicles.
As for the coming year, Tata intends on expanding their product range by offering diesel engines on their existing models and even venturing into the SUV market with their 7-seater, the Safari. Prices and specifications haven’t been released yet, but Tata has stated that it will be competitively specced and priced. There is also word of another one ton workhorse bakkie joining the family, as well as a half ton option.
Will Tata continue their exceptional growth? Well given their consistent growth to-date, and continued sales above 1,000 units per month, as well as their model range expansion and development of their dealer network, Tata’s future does seem rosy indeed! It’s not so much ‘Tata ma chance’ anymore!