Tata Punch: India’s ever changing automotive space has seen once-set product borders blur, and the Tata Punch found its very own place as a micro-SUV – marriage of a hatchback’s compact form factor and a sport utility vehicle’s grounds clearance and sturdy image.
The design of this contemporary urban car is such that the car is ready for life in the fast lane of Indian cities while the design of the car makes sure that finding a parking slot or guzzling every bit of fuel are not concerns for the owners.
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Tata Punch: Design in a Nutshell: Little Things with a Big Impact
On the outside, the Punch has wisely negotiated its cramped dimensions to offer some visual realism. Its face features a Tata “Humanity Line” griller that runs through swept-back headlamps, that give it an appealing face with is clearly a member of the same family as larger models such as the the Harrier and Safari.
The lower bumper tri arrow motif is echoed in several places to help tie it all together, too, giving the car a coherent design signature.
In profile, the Punch uses squared wheel arches and generous body cladding to highlight its crossover credentials, and the rising window line and floating roof effect (available in dual-tone hues) introduce visual energy into a bodyshell confined by its sub-four-meter length.
Though its 3827mm length, 1742mm width and 1615mm height make the Punch compact, it looks especially planted (with wheels-at-the-corner effect and front and rear overhangs being very minimal).
A 187mm ground clearance also settles a lot of practical concerns that one could have in our country as it provides good ability over speed breakers, broken tarmac and light off-road conditions at the best possible level without looking excessively tall.
Higher trims get 16in diamond-cut alloy wheels that fill the arches just right, and there’s a sense the Punch looks far more premium than its price suggests.
Cabin Quirk: Smart Wrapping
Tata Punch- Interior Meanwhile, inside, Punch is so much roomier than you’d expect thanks to clever packaging and design choices to make the car feel bigger inside.
It’s the layered look of the dashboard, featuring different types of materials and textures, that catches the eye without looking overly busy.
The 7-inch ‘floating’ touchscreen infotainment system (developed by Harman) is positioned well in sight, but it doesn’t take away from the cabin looks.
The level of comfort in the seats is for that high in the segment and offer good thigh support at the front and support on the sides that are sufficient.
The raised seating position also gives the all-seeing look that many buyers like from SUV-type vehicles and yet, it still permits easy getting in and out for older family members.
The back seats are actually quite accommodating for a pair of adults, with enough headroom (something unusual for a compact car of this size), though for long trips, three across would be a little tight.
Storage solutions have been designed with actual use-cases in mind, with door pockets that are sculpted to a shape that can secure 1-litre water bottles snuggly, a cooled glovebox that can store a bottle or a beverage, and other cubby holes for accommodating a smartphone and other things that you may want to keep handy.
There’s a 366-litre boot – good room for a weekend’s worth of luggage or a supermarket shop, with a height-adjustable floor on the higher-spec cars to make it more versatile for various load requirements.
Materials throughout the cabin effectively walk the line between industrial strength and aesthetics – a must in value-focused segments where surfaces will need to survive years of daily use, yet be presentable surroundings.
The woven fabric upholstery is designed not to show dirt, and is covered in a suite of patterns, while contact surfaces such as the steering wheel and gear lever use materials that age well rather than getting prematurely grubby.
Powering the Punch is a familiar Tata source 1.2-litre Revotron three-cylinder petrol engine that churns out 86bhp and 113Nm of peak torque.
Although those numbers may not seem impressive on paper, they equate to decent performance for a car that weighs the better part of 1100kg.
The motor has the typical three-cylinder identity with a sonorous note and some vibrations at idle, which smoothen out well on the move.
With the Punch, you can choose between a 5-speed manual or an automated manual transmission, badged Tata Punch iRA Auto, that provide two-pedal convenience without the expense or complexity of a conventional automatic or a CVT.
The enthusiast’s choice is the manual, which has decently defined shift action, while the AMT’s focus on convenience and efficiency means gearshift speeds lag, especially when you want to go from one extreme to another, so adopting a measured driving attitude is the key to smooth progress.
Fuel frugality is eye-opening in both the transmissions, 17-18 kilometers to a liter can be eked out under mixed driving conditions.
This efficiency with a large 37-liter fuel tank allows a generous riding range of over 600 kilometers while reducing the requirement for frequent stops at the pumps which are far more suited to both a daily city commuter and a highway rider.
Technology Integration: Wired and Able
Tata Punch- The Punch gets the iRA (intelligent Real-time Assist) connected car technology suite powering remote monitoring and control features via a dedicated smartphone app.
Features available include vehicle tracking, geofencing alerts for people using the car, remote immobilisation for safety, and over-the-air updates for infotainment software.
The infotainment system plays nice with both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay — recognizing the reality that the majority of users would rather have their smartphone apps than a new touchscreen GUI.
Also, the physical controls are a nice compliment to the standard touchscreen for frequently used functions – something that can be helpful in a driving situation and a safety consideration that’s usually lost in the mad rush toward a digital dashboard.
Safety is a particular focus, and the Punch boasts a 5-star Global NCAP safety rating – an impressive feat at this price.
Dual airbags and ABS with EBD, corner stability control and rear parking sensors are available as standard accross the lineup, with higher trims getting extras such as a reverse camera with dynamic guidelines and automatic headlamps with follow-me-home feature.
Performance: City Smart and Off-Road Tough
On the tarmac, the Punch offers driving dynamics tuned for Indian conditions and not to European handling benchmarks.
At either end, the suspension is MacPherson strut up front, and a torsion beam at the rear, offering sensibly judged compliance for the urban road failscape, and adequate body control when asked to do anything more enthusiastic in a corner.
The 195/60 R16 rubber also provide decent bite on different terrains, and a comfortable ride due to its taller side walls.
Steering calibration focuses on keeping things easy in parking lots and firms up gradually as speed increases, eventually returning back to a agreeable amount of feedback.
Most desirable is their small turning-circle diameter of just 4.9 metres, it’s a lifesaver in the city when a convenience-destroying three-point-turn is required on your typical lane or tight city parking space.
Off the black stuff, the Punch actually does have genuinely useful capabilities in its Terrain Response system – which is pretty rare at this price point.
This system modifies engine mapping and traction settings for various surfaces wet, dry, offroad and sandy including.
Not really a full-blown off-roader, the Punch is adept at broken roads, slushy conditions and light off-pavement action; better than most hatchbacks.
Market Position and Significance
Tata Punch-Tata Punch holds a crucial position in Tata’s growing portfolio of vehicles and fits neatly between the small Tiago hatchback and the compact SUV Nexon in terms of both size and pricing.
This positioning is specifically designed to appeal to the growing number of urban consumers who wish for SUV attitude, but not necessarily SUV size and thirst, the latter tending to be catered for by raised hatchbacks rather than by engineered crossovers.
As for the competitive space, the Punch has a mix of competition that includes the Mahindra KUV100, the Maruti Suzuki Ignis, and to an extent the premium hatchback top-end variants in the form of the Maruti Suzuki Swift and the Hyundai Grand i10 Nios.
“All that makes Tata different is the pure SUV design language, obviously real, meaning real ground clearance advantage and ever-improving reputation for safety going with it.” – points that are NOT lost on new-age Indian car buyer.
But it’s not just another Tata model, the Punch embodies the evolution of Tata to design products which cater to Indian needs, rather than taking a global platform and localising it very lightly.
This strategy has produced a product that had to solve painful end-user issues, instead of competing on spec comparisons alone – and if the growing market share in a dog-eat-dog market is any indication, seems be working very well indeed.
