The compact SUV segment has taken the Indian market by storm. Ford was first to start off the club with the Ecosport which was an instant success followed by the Maruti Vitara Brezza which sells a mind boggling 10,000 plus units and also commands high waiting periods. Indians love their SUVs and these sub 4 metre crossovers give them a chance to own one without burning a big hole in the pocket. The Tata Nexon is the newest kid on the block and the carmaker’s first foray into this segment. Tata’s recent models like the Tiago, Tigor and Hexa have been impressive so the Nexon does hold a lot of promise. Does it live up to it? Let’s take a look.

Tata Nexon Exterior

The Nexon was first shown in concept form at the 2014 Auto Expo followed by the showcase of the production version at the 2016 edition of the Expo. Part of Tata’s ‘Impact Design Language’ the design of the production spec model has stayed pretty close to the concept. The Nexon has very funky styling, and many people we encountered during our drive did not guess it is a Tata till they saw the T badge. Up front, the Nexon gets large sweepback headlamps with integrated daytime running lamps along with a gloss black honeycomb grille. A chrome strip runs end to end under the headlamps and grille. The front bumper features a large central air dam and fog lamps enclosed in black and white housings.  On the side, the flared wheel arches along with black cladding give the Nexon its SUV stance. The thick belt line finished in white runs across the side from the A to the C pillar. The top end variant has the option of a dual roof, which gives a floating effect at the thick C pillar. Also check out the stylish roof rails. The rear of the Nexon is a complete standout. The stylish tail lamps scream concept car and there is white plastic that runs cross the rear end to end in an ‘X’ design. There is a gloss black insert below the white plastic border. The rear windshield is rather small and features a roof mounted spoiler. The Nexon gets Easter Egg surprises too. Check out the lioness and her cub walking up hill on the rear windshield. We showed you similar surprises on the Jeep Compass a few months ago.  The rear bumper features black plastic trim with reflectors on either side, and a fog lamp in the centre at the bottom. The 16 inch alloys have a super cool design and the 215 profile tyres have a meaty stance.  The Nexon is offered in 5 exterior colours but the Moroccan Blue shade on our test car is an eye catcher in particular.  The car turned a lot of heads and we were hounded with loads of questions from people wherever we went.

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