Why Aria Failed To Take Off But XUV Did??

[raj_5004]

To be honest, I do tend to agree with 'Superbad' here. Both the cars were driven on similar routes and in similar conditions. The only exception being that, since Aria is a RWD, the reviewers tried to drift it in the sand and they had a puncture. That is not the car's fault at all. I will also give the sidewall damage which happened later a benefit of doubt.

But the other issues which the Aria has like the ECU acting up and the power steering failure cannot be attributed to the reviewer's drifting. Lets not forget it was a ruptured oil seal which failed the power steering, no damage as such was done.

Overall, on the topic of this thread - why XUV sold more, the reviewer makes himself very clear on that -

We’d spent quite some time in both cars by now and the immediate impression is that the XUV500 feels much fresher, almost an entire generation newer.

The XUV also has very nice feeling interiors with an ergonomic layout, buttons that feel good to use, well bolstered seats and a generally more modern atmosphere.

Despite the XUV being slightly stiffer it was the car we ended up wanting to drive at the end of the long day. The light steering, comfortable interiors and torquey engine just made it more of a pleasure to drive.

We made it by three in the morning and were absolutely wiped out. Can’t say the same for the XUV though, After a week of torture all it lost was two mudflaps and one of my CDs that the system refused to eject.

 

[navnit013]

They are reporting not of an ECU failure. An ECU failure will shut the car down and you will be going no where. They are reporting ECU error.
ECU records things like, throttle position, vehicle speed, yaw, steering angle etc etc. When there is an overload of message, ECU error light is switched on. Which can be rectified by switching off the car for a few minutes. Or you have to go to a service station, where they will plug into a system and rectify the issue.

The steering system in road cars or normal 4WD cars are not designed to take a battering like WRC cars or Raid rally cars.

SO their tomfoolery 'could' have caused the issue.
As per my observations, ARIA any day is a better car compared to the XUV. It has better quality of materials used, looks classy, is more comfortable and more spacious.

 

[raj_5004]

My uncle who owns the Aria visited us yesterday. I drove his car yet again and I can confirm that, as a passenger, you would always wish to be in a Aria than the XUV. The seats of both the cars are nice but the suspension of the Aria is sublime when compared to the XUV. It just soaks up all potholes and undulations, whereas the XUV crashes into them.

I also felt that the cooling in the middle row was faster, probably due to the additional floor mounted vents. The cooling was faster, not better. After the first few minutes, both cars' AC performed equally well.

But when it comes to driving, the XUV was way better. It has better low end grunt and is eager to accelerate. The Aria thinks for a while (turbo lag) and then linearly starts picking up speed. By that time, that gap in the traffic is filled by a rick! I also felt that all round visibility was better in the XUV.

In short, the XUV is for the driver whereas the Aria is for the passenger. Today, if you ask me, I would pick a Storme over the Aria. It has most of the flaws of the Aria ironed out.

Oh by the way, Aria's Navigation is pathetic. First of all, its a monochrome display, but it got us lost twice, that too in a metro city like Mumbai! XUV's MapMyIndia nav is not perfect, but is much better.

 

[THE XOVER]

Aria is much heavier than XUV especially the AWD version(almost 300kgs+),so performance difference between Aria and XUV is to be expected.

 

[raj_5004]

Yes. And also the gearing - I guess its tuned for efficiency rather than outright performance.

 

[navnit013]

Aria is much heavier than XUV especially the AWD version(almost 300kgs+),so performance difference between Aria and XUV is to be expected.

Not just that, ARIA is a huge car compared to XUV and the ARIAs sold in India too have all the chassis braces need to pass the stringent European crash test norms. All this adds to the weight.

If we take at look at the real world performance, then there should not be much of a difference. How many of us are going take the car to 100 in 14 secs?? We dont.

 

[THE XOVER]

^Indeed.In the real world(especially highways) mid range torque is most important,and Aria seemingly has enough of it:)

 

[raj_5004]

^^^

When I was talking about performance, I mean in-gear acceleration, not 0-100 timings!

@ navnit013: The Aria is heavy simply because it is built on a heavier and conventional LOF chassis. The XUV on the other hand is built on a lighter monocoque. That does not make the XUV any less safer.

@ The Xover: For a city dweller like me, low end torque is very very important. In dense city traffic, a combination of good low end and mid range torque is very very useful. XUV provides just that.

 

[tdcarlover]

Why is it that even a small price drop with clever ground clearance"adjustments" from M&M increased sales of the XUV while a rather more drastic drop had no effect of the Aria?
I love the Vista and the Manza for the ride quality and space ,inexpensive spares and the Aria would have been a next step( when i could ever afford it ) but the abysmal sales makes me wonder if there is any other flaw that most buyers are aware of? Apart from looks,features.. ASS seems almost the same?

 

[vikyjoshi]

Why is it that even a small price drop with clever ground clearance"adjustments" from M&M increased sales of the XUV while a rather more drastic drop had no effect of the Aria?
I love the Vista and the Manza for the ride quality and space ,inexpensive spares and the Aria would have been a next step( when i could ever afford it ) but the abysmal sales makes me wonder if there is any other flaw that most buyers are aware of? Apart from looks,features.. ASS seems almost the same?

Its Perception to me. Look wise I feel its better looking that Innova (though this car not in same league as innova it is compared to Innova)
Build quality, features wise, Its way ahead of innova.

What this car lacks the gizmos that XUV has. All the glitter that one would expect is absent.

Probably this where Aria lost out. Plus there were initial issues and Tata by default carries a Truck maker badge which unfortunately not many people want to have.

If Manzas, Arias, Nanos were sold by say Fiat or Suzuki or any other maker that Tata they would have sold atleast double the numbers.

Do you think any lady would go for a TATA branded car? they would opt for Suzuki, Hyundai or Honda. Tata need to work very hard to change the perception.

 

[manojodungat]

What this car lacks the gizmos that XUV has. All the glitter that one would expect is absent.

An Aria featuring all those gizmos that you are talking about, would still have flopped.

Probably this where Aria lost out. Plus there were initial issues and Tata by default carries a Truck maker badge which unfortunately not many people want to have.

What about Mahindra here? A "tractor maker" badge wouldn't have helped them either.

• Just the lack of imagination or over-ambitiousness from Tata is what did it for Aria. There didn't simply exist a market for a MPV in the price bracket it came with.
  
• A dedicated Aria specific [XUV model] after sales support setup for the "premium" Aria customers would have made some difference, which unfortunately is still not happening.

 

[vikyjoshi]

What about Mahindra here? A "tractor maker" badge wouldn't have helped them either.

Well Mahindra have been making UVs from Ages, People are well acquainted with Mahindra Jeep. So much So that till a few years back i used to think that Jeep was Mahindras product itself.

The UV segment of Mahindra is what is going all guns blazing. they ventured in to car sedan category. This is not well accepted Like the UV segment. So they too have a Badge issue.

They have been spot on marketing XUV: creating a buzz, very good new age styling (interiors and exteriors) and pricing.

 

[Raja]

Well Mahindra have been making UVs from Ages, People are well acquainted with Mahindra Jeep. So much So that till a few years back i used to think that Jeep was Mahindras product itself.

The UV segment of Mahindra is what is going all guns blazing. they ventured in to car sedan category. This is not well accepted Like the UV segment. So they too have a Badge issue.

They have been spot on marketing XUV: creating a buzz, very good new age styling (interiors and exteriors) and pricing.

The fact is tata made one product it dint click , mahindra made one product which clicked .

Tata made vista and manza it clicked , mahindra made verito and vibe it bombed .

Ford made Ecosport it clicked mahindra made quanto it bombed badly .

When tata launched sumo , it ate and actually made mahindra and their jeeps obsolete . And now including mahindra others are making tata and their products obsolete .

It's a part and parcel of the auto industry .

Having said that I don't think aria can revive itself again no matter what , what can work maybe is complete new aria with a new design .

It's simple when something clicks good in the market it carries positive association around with it .

Same style of conclusions will be formed if someone starts a thread like " why did quanto fail and Ecosport and duster took off " ? .

Both tata and mahindra are at such a juncture now that they can be thrown away by other companies in no time unless they up their ante in almost all aspect .

We might enjoy the debate by showing how both outclass each other in certain areas , but the fact is both are equally good and bad .

A.s.s of both the companies is a gamble even now . Tata are useless and at times very good , most of the time they are useless .

Mahindra claims to give premium service and at times they try and give , and also a entire xuv goes missing from their so called premium service center .
And even parts are changed in a brand new xuv which was gone for service and repairs for correcting niggles .

Just google

" part replacement fraud at mahindra Dahisar Workshop "

and see what you get .

 

[manojodungat]

Mahindra claims to give premium service and at times they try and give , and also a entire xuv goes missing from their so called premium service center .
And even parts are changed in a brand new xuv which was gone for service and repairs for correcting niggles .
Just google
" part replacement fraud at mahindra Dahisar Workshop "
and see what you get .

Did come across the incident in the cyber space. It was indeed unfortunate, but certainly appears to be one odd case kind of incident.
I was more interested to know the way Mahindra dealt with those "rotten apple/s" at the dealership finally. Unfortunately most cases of this type often don't get updated and the resolutions made don't get posted as well.

So, instead of googling, a detailed comparison between ownership reports of both XUV and Aria owners of Theautomotiveindia would suffice,IMHO.

 

[Raja]

Did come across the incident in the cyber space. It was indeed unfortunate, but certainly appears to be one odd case kind of incident.
I was more interested to know the way Mahindra dealt with those "rotten apple/s" at the dealership finally. Unfortunately most cases of this type often don't get updated and the resolutions made don't get posted as well.

the owner is going to consumer court , and i think we cant get daily updates about what happens in the consumer court.

So, instead of googling, a detailed comparison between ownership reports of both XUV and Aria owners of Theautomotiveindia would suffice,IMHO.

I think there is a world outside TAI , and people outside TAI too have bought xuv and aria.
Have you visited xuv official Facebook page ? There is a huge world outside with some surprises.