Tata Safari - Reclaim your life?
The design of the Safari is one of Pratap Bose's parting gifts to Tata and boy she looks gorgeous to look at. The large front end chrome grill and the signature led eyebrows flow beautifully into the muscular sides. There is a signature Safari step up in the roofline which then flows seamlessly into the rear spoiler. The rear end too looks bold yet elegant with the shapely all led taillamps neatly following into the sides and the bold S A F A R I badging christened in chrome at the bottom. There is a distinct touch of flow in the exterior design. The Safari is big but gorgeous, butch but not purely masculine to look at from the outside. Get into the driver's seat and it all changes. There is a significant climb into the Safari's cabin. You have to sit low into the car because otherwise, the roofline gets into your line of vision. Despite that, you get a nice, commanding view of the road ahead. You can see over the little cars ahead and plan your lane changes and overtakes accordingly. You also get a clear view of the bonnet line and get a good judgement while navigating the car through narrow gaps. The hydraulic power steering is chunky and weighty giving you that further dash of machismo in the driving feel. Once at the wheel, the Safari wreaks of testosterone, of muscle, of that macho, gabru feeling that we normally associate with big bad SUVs. There are no apparent ergonomical flaws in the cabin. The steering adjusts for reach and height, the pedals are well spaced out, there is a dead pedal on the left, the seats are electronically adjustable, there is manual lumbar support adjustment, the mirrors are large and give you a good view of the world you leave behind. Overall, finding a comfortable driving position is easy and everything in the cabin falls to hand just right.
The cabin is pleasing to look at with its soft touch materials, beige interiors, white seats, wooden inserts, ambient lightinng and good mix of silver, beige and faux wood everywhere. If you want variety, you also get the Gold edition with touches of gold and marble on the inside or the Dark edition which plays around with various shades of black in the interiors. There's also the Adventure Persona and the Kaziranga editions for further interior and exterior options to match your personality. The Safari also gets electronic parking brakes, driving and terrain modes, auto dimming IRVM, dual zone climate control, ventilated seats, cruise control, hill hold and hill descent control among other modern day features. The infotainment system is reasonably smooth to operate. The JBL sound set up is crisp. The rear camera resolution is decent and comes with dynamic guide lines. Yes, the feature list is not as exhaustive and gimmicky as the Mahindra XUV 700's but Tata have covered the basics just right. Tata has missed out on a very basic but useful feature: one touch up and down for the power windows. The switch quality felt average and I was already facing problems with a switch for adjusting the seat.
Jump on to the middle bench of the Safari and once again, you are pleasantly surprised with the room and features on offer. The rear ac vents are B pillar mounted, the bench adjusts for reach and recline, again giving you the power to adjust legroom and comfort. In the third row, you get adequate space for two small to medium sized adults to sit for short distances. You can even increase the legroom in the third row by sliding forward the middle row seats. Lets say a full house going for a movie or a restaurant, two adults in the third row would be no problem. Kids of course can comfortably sit for much longer distances. You get dedicated ac vents, speakers, charging point, cup holder and even a magazine holder in the third row which is quite amazing. Point to note, the tumble down middle row seat got stuck while trying to put it back in place. All the sales staff tried fixing it one after the other but to no avail. These little things keep reminding you that this is after all a Tata product. Heartbreaking. Moving on to the boot, there's only space for some shopping bags there. However, the third row seats are 50:50 foldable and that opens up meaningful luggage space at the back.
The Safari is powered by the same 2 litre Fiat sourced diesel engine that powers the Jeep Compass, the Tata Harrier and the MG Hector. This tried and tested unit delivers close to 170 BHP and 350 NM of torque. May not sound too impressive on paper but what's important is how the torque curve is mated so brilliantly to the transmission. Lets get one thing straight out the window, by transmission I mean the Hyundai sourced 6 speed torque converter automatic and not the manual. The manual transmission suffers from long throws and long clutch pedal travel that really takes away the sophistication of the Safari. So for me, the Safari only exists with an automatic transmission and what an engine-transmission combination that is! Let me start with the City mode which is the middle one of the three modes. Dab the accelerator pedal and you feel that slight sluggishness in getting off the line. Once it gets rolling, the car picks up speed with the ease of sliding a hot knife through butter. The gearbox is very intuitive and there is always torque available on demand, so long as it's rolling. The Eco mode exaggerates the initial sluggishness and carries it forward to rolling acceleration as well. Use this mode only when you're really not in the mood for driving or when you're stuck in traffic and can't go beyond 20-30 kph anyway. For the enthusiastic lot out there, there is the Sport mode. Put the Safari in sport mode, put the pedal to the metal and the car immediately knows your intentions. You're rewarded with a strong wave of torque thrusting you back in the seat and that torque wave doesn't seem to taper off as the speeds rise. It goes on and on and on. The gearbox too becomes more eager and rewards you with snappy shifts and longer holds. Oh what a joy to drive! If you're buying a Safari, buy the one with the driving modes, only to experience the thrill and excitement of this sport mode. What's even more impressive than the way the Safari delivers power is the way it keeps the NVH levels so low while at it. This Fiat engine is a loud motor, mind you. However, inside the cabin you only hear a sporty grunt from the engine and that too only at higher revs. The rest of the time its all hush hush inside. The car does not have any vibrations to speak of either. Not even at start up. Just push a button and the engine comes to life without a shake or a judder. Very impressive, Tata.
Now lets talk about the aspect of the Safari that impressed me the most: the ride quality. As soon as you hit the first pothole, the Land Rover DNA behind this Omega Arc chassis comes to life and the Safari just flattens everything that comes in its way. Bad roads, potholes, small speed breakers, you don't need to slow down for them any more. Just roll over them as if they don't exist and you will be rewarded. In fact, all through the drive, I was hunting for potholes and purposely going through them faster and faster each time, trying to find the limit of the car but the Safari remained unphased. The suspension also works very silently and there's very little suspension noise coming into the cabin. That's when you realise that this suspension has been tuned by none other than the legendary British supercar makers Lotus. I had never imagined I would witness these high levels of ride quality and suspension refinement from an Indian car manufacturer. Take a bow Tata, take a bow. With great ride, you also need great handling. That's the golden balance very few auto manufacturers are able to achieve. So lets start with the steering. I just loved how direct and feedback rich this hydraulic power steering is. The slightest of steering inputs and the almost 2 tonne mammoth darts in and out of lanes with the eagerness of a hot hatch. This may be a bit of a concern for the unsuspecting, inexperienced lot but in experienced hands, this works like a charm! When it comes to the stopping power, the Safari gets all four discs and the brakes are on the money. They may lack the initial bite but they do back it up with good progression to give you confidence in the stopping power.
Like all good things, this ride too came to an end. How do I sum this up? From already having rejected it in my mind to falling in love, the transformation of the Safari's image was amazing. What did I love the most about the Safari? The way it flattens the bumps on the road with authority, the engine noise insulation, the silent suspension, the direct steering, the refinement, the king of the road driving position, the engine-transmission match made in heaven, the driving modes, the build quality, the electronic parking brake, the auto dimming IRVM, the seat comfort on all 3 rows, the room and flexibility offered in all 3 rows, the way she looks, the way she drives, I can go on and on all day. At the end of the day, it's not about the specsheet that it offers, it's about the experience, it's about how a car makes you feel. The Safari made me feel empowered. Empowered to go wherever I want, whenever I want and go there in utmost comfort, safety and of course, having a lot of fun along the way. Yes, it has its shortcomings. At 26-28 lakhs for the feature rich variants, it comes at a price point where you have a bullet proof reliable option from Toyota and an extremely feature rich option from Mahindra. Moreover, the A pillar blindspot is a safety issue, not to be ignored. The boot space with all 3 rows up is a joke. Also, despite the price tag, the Safari misses out on some basic features like one touch up and down for the windows and sunroof. However, the bigest shortcoming for the Safari is the Tata badge. Would you bet Rs. 28 lakhs of your hard earned money on brand Tata and risk bearing with the little quality, service, reliability, staff attitude and resale value issues that have plagued Tata Motors for decades now? Or would you compromise with a Korean or even a Japanese brand that may not give you the same feel that the Safari does but one that would also not leave you wanting for more in terms of reliability and support? That's the question you'll have to ask yourself and that's the question you'll have to answer before signing that Rs. 28 lakhs cheque. The decision to buy a Safari would be purely one that you would have to make with your heart and not with your mind. One thing is for sure, the drive experience is just unparalleled. I'll stick my neck out and say that no car so far has pulled at my heart strings as hard as the Safari did and I thank Tata Motors for that experience.
