Why did India's Tata Nano "People's Car" fail?
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- čas přidán 19. 01. 2021
- The Tata Nano continues in a long line of inexpensive “people’s cars”, designed to push car usage to the masses. Many of these cars succeeded and fuelled both car ownership, and in many cases the standard of living. When the Nano was launched it was touted as a car that that would change India, but in 10 years production stopped with just 300,000 sold. How did a car designed to move Indians from their motorcycles into a comfortable 4-seat car fail, and what’s Tata’s future strategy for an entry level car?
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Clarification: About 6 minutes, the 600kg is referring to the whole car, not the engine.
Erratum: The CNG car had the gas storage under the front seats, not in the boot.
What a NANO with a HEMI and a 4 Gal petrol tank.
@@thepumpkingking8339 and that range is like 4 miles
Thanks for the video. Loved it. Few areas where Nano shined. This is from my experience of our little nano which is now 8 years old and 1,10,000 kms run.
1. Amazing space for 4 people. Unbelievable leg room. More than what you can get even from 7 times priced SUVs
2. Superb AC. On par with B and C segement cars. More so you will not feel much of engine power lag when driven on AC. Which is not the case with Maruti 800
3. An Engineering master piece, lot of innovations went in ... I hardly see any legacy car design elements in it. Believe me after another 20 yeara. The left ober Nanos will become collectables among car enthusiasts
4. Its got all 4 wheel Independenr suspension , front and rear tyre width are different
5. 2 cylinder engine real world mileage is almosr 25% better than maruti 800. I used to get 26+ kmpl when driven within 70kmph (20% with AC)
6. Yes. If left in open parking there will be lot of rusting issues.
7. Mechanics say Nano is not an easy car to work on. Just to change a clutch wire ... it takes 3 times the time which would take on a normal car
8. Nano sheet metal is more robust then latest suzuki hearttec platform cars. Nano dimention to weight ratio is more than suzuki baleno
9.cng varients did not utlise any additional boot space. Cng tanks were under front seats
10. My personal fun fact: I was returning back from a 200km road trip. Inwas behind the wheel and had fun time talking with family. I missed to note the fuel indicator the car stopped middle of very conjested city suburb highway. I had a 2ltr water bottle. It was night time. I popped the bonnet . You see both windshield washer and fuel pipe opening are in front . One to the left other to the right. Ha ha. I poured some water in the fuel pipe. Thinking im filling windshield washer. Then i was really worried ... removing the tank and cleaning is a headache... you know what. I filled up the tank with petrol again. The car started without a fuss. Have covered 30,000 kms post that incident. God only knows what happened to the water. I dont know if i can do the same with a German car :)
11. For people who say Nano is not a safe car. Fully agree but think again its 10 times safer than a 2 wheeler. Just assume the car as a helmet ... you are sitting inside a helmet. More over the cars max speed is same as a 100cc bike.
11. When i was in need of second car in 2016. I wanted to buy nano again. But the price at that time was so high. I ended up picking an Alto 800. It lost its value for Pricing charm which it had earlier.
12. My nano cx 2013 model costed 2,00,000 onroad. Which was 60,000 inr lesser that its direct competetion Maruti 800
13. In 2016. I was quoted almost near to 3,00,000 inr. For a new nano. Thats why i ended buying an alto800 for 3,50,000 onroad price.
14. On an ending note.. A free advice for younger gen (i am not that old , haha). Try to buy cars without going for a loan. Instead focus on creating assets like home or land.
@@thepumpkingking8339 More like a 6bt cummins with a 31 gallon diesel tank.
Thank u for the video sir..😊❤
i love how in the commercial the guy pulls up and the girl looks the car over like "dayummmmm he got a new Tata Nano? homeboy must be loaded!" And then he said “it quickly developed a reputation as a car for poor people.” 😂
For the Indian market though that is about all you can really expect, many Indians either walk or ride a motorcycle as a form of transportation.
I am thankful to live in Switzerland.
Don't call any body poor and make fun of them ,many of the Indian can't afford a car nor its expenses
Nano was made for those people who are not privileged
@@Romeo_O_M he said "IN INDIA it quickly developed a reputation as a car for poor people." i was repeating what was said in the video and apparently what people IN INDIA also think. i never called anyone poor. Do you drive a nano? Being awfully defensive.
exactly, this was a marketing failure.
@@ManishSharma-qg1jq why we guys start fighting on simple things??
It's fine no one cares we are almost 20times bigger, we need more sources and money to spend. Our needs are bigger, it's like they are happy with their 2 seater we are struggling with our 4ones.😏
I streamed this to my 3D television from my Windows Vista laptop. My nano is currently on order.
Living the dream my friend. Living the dream.
Might I suggest the Tuk-Tuk instead. It has classy rawness about it you know, feeling one with the environment. That feeling of sitting over the engine as the polluted air blasts your face. It just can't be matched.
Don't forget to crack open a refreshing bottle of Crystal Pepsi whilst you watch it!
@@Howlingd0g In which part of the world is Crystal Pepsi still avaible?
@@horeageorgian7766 It's a joke about products which never took off, so Crystal Pepsi is not available anywhere currently, although it has recently received several limited time re-releases on the North American market.
Fell in love with the nano when I first saw it, it’s too bad they couldn’t get an exemption, and bring it into America, it is the spiritual successor to the VW beetle
I agree. Forget all the money spent on entitlements, if you were going to have one entitlement, I would say spend the money on allowing poor or financially challenged people to be mobile because then you can help yourself
Crash rating of zero matters. You’re better off walking than getting in this vehicle in the USA. You would be figuratively and literally crushed.
@@JoeOvercoat Would hitting a small stone cause your vehicle to go end over and kill you like it does with motorcycles? We allow motorcycles on the road. I can promise you that the survivability in a crash is far better in the Tata Nano.
@@gregorymalchuk272 definitely better than riding any motorcycle. not buying a motorcycle is the best First World decision I ever made based on not being killed riding/wrecking. My bicycle is dangerous enough. But still that crash rating tells you that this car is going to crumple up and be your coffin
@CJ Thank god we don't see them much anymore where I live. shitboxes!
I lived in India for nearly 2 years. While I was there I used to play a game called “how many people can you fit on a scooter?” My personal favourite was seeing Mr and Mrs Singh, he wearing a turban about 2 feet in diameter, beard streaming over his shoulder and her with a magnificent sari trailing 12 feet behind her like the cape of a super hero and their 5 children artfully balanced like an acrobatic troupe. They were all grinning like Cheshire cats and clearly having a great time. I miss India. An amazing country…
Yes everyone grins until someone gets hurt. You expect such foolish acts from kids. Not responsible adults who have their family's safety and well being at heart.
Write a travel blog, those descriptions were fantastic
Ah yes, A Sikh Mr Singh and his wife in Saree. Your depiction sounds very "GenUiNe" .Lol.
I think it was a mistake to focus only on passengers and not on cargo. Especially for the rural market. On a 2CV, if you removed the rear seat and the canvas roof, you could haul all kinds of big and small stuff. Which makes a huge difference for a farmer.
Main issue here was the disconnect between TATA leadership and engineers.. and the culture that wouldn't take NO for an answer. It simply was not a good idea.. and most engineers would have probably said that too(atleast privately)
They already had the tata ACE or ACE gold for that .
It’s a light pickup truck which costs 4.5 lake rupees.
If they did those changes it would cannibalize their more profitable pickup business
@@johnsamuel1999 I'd consider making a deliberately inferior product to not eat sales from your other product is a poor strategy, unless your total market share is absolutely guaranteed.
@@Alpostpone oh no they didn't intentionally make an inferior product .They both are different markets . One (tata ace) is for light commercial vehicles and the nano is for budget passenger car
2cv didnt have to meet any fuel or safety norms. Good luck making a car like that in this day and age. A lot of the price of a car is invested into regulations and getting the certificates.
I had bought one in 2013 May, the 2012 LX model. I still own it. Initially I was viewed as a laughing stock, now with fuel prices sky rocketing, I say, I made an excellent choice. On one trip I remember, I got excellent gas Mileage which can make a heavy duty bike to shame. The air conditioning is still excellent. Only recently has it began to show signs of aging. It is absolutely an excellent city car.
I drive the Myvi in Malaysia and the car never ever ages. A 2007 model, mind you.
yeah.. my Nano gives better mileage than my colleagues bike.. We used to joke about it in office.
@@GaneshNayak Is your bike rain proof?
@@cb250nighthawk3 Myvi is the greatest, all hail Myvi
@@LOLn2025 you think so?
Indians want the products with Insane value. They are very price oriented ppl.
@JOHNSON Chodenseider Well, to sum it up, life uhh finds a way, and it's usually the cheaper way here in India.
And yet when there is one offering decent value for a lesser price, they want to stay away from it for fear of imaginary stigma.
@@PravahanSalunke Only force stronger than money in India, is the nosy society.
its not price per value, its price per image.
source: I am indian.
My family owned a tata nano, which empowered us to road trip with my younger differently abled brother. Most of the times fuel pump filling employees at the remotest highways won’t know where to fill. Kids would often scream “nanoo” and “khushiyo ki chabi” seeing us pass.
We own a Honda City now after 10 years of amazing nano memories with my brother. Appreciate you digging this topic and touching our hearts ♥️.
When we were in school, me and 8 of my friends fit into this car!
I'm trying to imagine 8 people in my Camry and I dont see how. And then 8 in a nano.... geez
@@baronvonjo1929 They were likely pint-sized children.
Indians need to fit 8+ in them to compete with their motorcycles
@@baronvonjo1929 you don't say
@@baronvonjo1929 More than 40 people fitted up on a OG Beetle and settled a record so, there must be a way!
I always liked the styling of the Nano,
Looks a hell of a lot better than a lot of new cars
There was only issue with unlike Mini, Tata focused on the "cheap" rather than its practicality.
As an indian, I literally cried watching this video. When this car was about to release all the people were teasing this car and comparing with the auto rickshaw with a flying roof with plastic sheets. When it was released everyone thought owning this car would create a poor feeling, where cars were a symbol of feeling rich rather than owning a motorcycle. But now walking through the lane, i see how tata struggled hard to make this despite of facing this much challenge. But as of now tata is doing well in india. 🇮🇳🇮🇳
I tried to buy one but Tata backed out of the idea of exporting them abroad.
It’s one good car though I don’t own one
The Nano could've been better. Maybe the MaiMai from Cyberpunk? It's literally a freakin triangle car.
A car at its simpliest expression it's a Citroën 2CV, a Renault 4, and more than these, a Tata Nano, of course. In the other hand, could a Nano compete against a 2CV or a R4 out there ? This is the real question...
@@Maddiedoggie citicar/commutacar is what you're thinking of with cyberpunk.
It's an electric "car"(more of a fast golf cart lol) from the 70s.
We own a Tata Nano, exactly the red GenX one; and it's a fantastic vehicle! We use the car mainly to daily drives to office and to markets(it's super easy to park and maneuver in crowded Indian cities). I wish they had launched the 'Original' nano with features included in GenX one(and with an 800 cc engine); their future would have been completely different!
When it was launched was price the main stumbling block to vehicle ownership in general?
@I Curse Your Village yeah I think that just like body shaming, car shaming is actually quite prevalent here in India. Especially the nano, which is the most ridiculed car ever. समाज 🤡
Only if they have priced it at 10 lakhs with 90 percent discount. It would have broken all records.
@I Curse Your Village I hate the child me so much. I did the same shaming thing although in my mind. That car was a piece of engineering.
@@saaksharshah1083 I think car/wealth shaming replaces the foreign body shaming. Like almost everyone here (looking at you uncles) look like they're carrying twins that fit people would get body shamed more. Instead they shame on the car you drive and the salary you make. It's just so dumb
Tata: It will happen
Thanos: Reality is often disappointing
I love the idea of the tata nano. If you could somehow make something like this safer I know so many people who could use a car this cheap. It would be literally life changing for them. I had a friend who was stuck in the loop of "need a car to have a job, need a job to buy a car" Because nobody around where he lived were hiring and ubering every day would be too expensive to be worthwhile. Buying a cheap used car is basically like rolling dice. You don't know if you'll get a week a month or years out of it.
My sister's first car. She used it for seven years and it served her in her worst times. It'll always have a place in our hearts.
@Insignificant Speck Of Dust stop using three dots every sentence
@@user-wv2xq2db1m stop breathing
@@aarusht7 nah
@@user-wv2xq2db1m it's his choice
@@user-wv2xq2db1m stop bothering.
Big Car: "but with the price of steel more than doubling in four years, making an affordable car would be more challenging than ever."
East Germans: *laughing in Trabant*
It's worth mentioning that only the outer body panels (and not even all of them) of the Trabant are made out of Duroplast. Most of the car was still made out of steel. Still, copying this idea for the Nano (perhaps with more modern plastic body panels, like on a Smart) would have been a smart move.
Copying the Trabant and giving it a modern engine would have been the smarter choice.
@@no1DdC You have to think about how those manufacturing processes scale. Stamping out steel body panels, especially when you expect to make 300K a year is by far the better option. Plastic panels require more specialized equipment and a substantially longer cycle time. Like so many things it's low price depends on a massive sales volume. At a tenth of the expected sales I'm surprised the price only went up 50%. Not to mention the price of plastic isn't that much less than the amount of steel used. Depending on the price of oil it could actually be more expensive.
@@macdaniel6029 The last run of the Trabant, after the end of the GDR had a VW Polo engine.
@@IntyMichael Yes, I know.
I have used two tata nanos over the last decades. It is a beautiful & functional car with high mileage and low cost of ownership. I have travelled extensively viz Pune to Kerala, Pune to Bangalore, Pune to Goa (5 times), Pune to Dharwad & Pune to Nashik; apart from daily city run.
It’s unfortunate failure was on account of marketing failure. The car was stigmatized as a poor man’s car instead of something more appropriate. It was a monumental folly building a plant in West Bengal, a hot bed of political strife and a lazy-cantankerous work force. Even sanctimonious leaders with green labels refuse to be seen in nano, a car with very low carbon footprint. Our leaders prefer high power diesel SUVs. Nano failure in fact is a national shame.
Well, Tata has turned the tables in their favor now with an awesome line up of cars in the Indian Market.. Altroz, Tigor, Tiago, Nexon, Safari, Harrier. Their previous hit model Tata Sierra is also making a come back.. All my life, I have never seen a car company which came up from the dead to shine and shine and shine with all glory.. Super excited for Tata Motors! 💚💚💚
I visited some relatives in sri lanka, and honestly the fun part about it was the different and random cars like bolero.
Theres potential with tata and bolero to expand to the states if they sold UTVs or cheap pickups.
The Nano is presently one of the Best Buy's in the used car market. I got one (2011 CX) for Rs 67K. It is easy to drive in congested Indian roads (Hyderabad in my case) due to it's compact size. It's far more nimble than a car with a longer wheel base(Maruti 800, Alto, Swift, Wagon R, Celerio, Santro, Beat, Jazz, Brio - which I have driven). Similar to a Mini Velo bicycle compared to bicycles with 700 C / 26" wheels.
yay! happy to see my car featured on your channel! i own a GenX nano with the automatic gearbox, which has a 5 speed tiptronic, and a 4-speaker harman kardon sound system. the sport mode does nothing to the car except make a hilarious "sporty" noise and delay the lower range shift. it's not fast or powerful, but it is charming and adorable, you don't drive the car with a serious face. it is an ideal city car imo. id say it was bad press and delayed updates that caused it to fail in india. it's a shame really, it's a really sweet little car.
😀 Great to get your take on it! It looks like a cool car.
Very true.
@JOHNSON Chodenseider which model? 😋
@JOHNSON Chodenseider lol.... i just realized your name is Chode-enseider XD ... sorry jk..... well what u said is true. 1 - the nano isnt badge engineered and was designed from scratch. 2 - suzuki cars can be worse than the nano in terms of equipment, like the alto (the competitor car). 3 - the nano inspired cheap engineering from other brands and now we have cars like the renault kwid and datsun Go. not all cars need to be built like tanks, the original mini by issigonis wasn't, neither was the fiat 124, 600, or 500. there is a market for cars like these, and they are for aspiring car owners who don't have a lot of wealth. :)
Even though I have a car myself, I hate watching car-related shows, but man how fascinating your presentation was! I watched it to the end! It was very instructive and easy to understand. Warmest greetings from Algeria :-)
Stopped production... Stil my favourite and close to my heart
As a B-school faculty, I always make sure I discuss the Tata Nano case-study with my undergrads and master's level students. Brilliant product with in-correct positioning.
AHH positioning. Trout & Reice (spelling ?)
@@AgentGG1967 if you ask any of the owners of Nano, mostly you will hear very good reviews. The bad ones are usually from people who never owned a Nano. Also, on CZcams there is a documentary by National Geographic on Nano manufacturing, do watch that. It was really an engineering marvel.
@@AgentGG1967 my pleasure Gaurav 😊
@@tausifmulla I liked my Betamax VTR..
sad thing is people still have not realized that it was a brilliant product with incorrect market/marketing
Its a shame that the project did not succeed. But I truly admire their perseverance! They might have tired to hit the wrong market. I believe this car would be a great success in Europe, if they sold a more comfortable & safer electric version. I'd buy one for sure.
Absolutely
It would be a practical city car, also something you don't have to worry about getting scratches, door dings, etc...
If people didn't judge you, I'd love to get one too... Far more useful in a city than my V8 E-class. Cheaper to run, easier to park, it's a win-win. But, the big question still remains - Do you want to be seen driving the world's cheapest car?
Call me shallow and silly, but if I was poor, I'd rather drive around in a second hand German car, even a 20+ year old one... You pull up in a 20+ year old Mercedes C180, it's still a Mercedes. If it's not a total rust bucket, people won't judge you. And old German cars are reliable and still going strong today.
But pull up in a really cheap car like the Nano, or a Dacia - the gossip starts right away. It's not a problem with the Nano, people are the problem.
@@Megadriver I think you diagnosed the problem correctly. The lower middle class for whom the nano was designed, mostly shunned it since it didn’t come with a status upgrade. The nano can always be made with better safety features and more performance and comfort all at a mouthwatering price. But without a status appeal much of the market might not want to buy one.
You can't really make cheap cars for EU market, because of it's very strict emission and safety regulations, and the fact that the EU market has a rather vast second hand market. And if you could get a real car for cheaper that is 3-5 years old and will most likely work for another 5, why would you buy a real piece of crap that is a massive compromise made from poor materials poorly with cost cutting in mind? I mean I doubt that a nano would hold up much better than a 3-5 year old used car, and it has a rather similar price.
In the EU you already have similar things, especially in france, the aixams, they are light, consume a little fuel, but their price is almost the same as a very basic car, and when you compare it to used cars, oh my god, why would anyone buy them? And then you realise that their use, in France at least, is that they can be driven without a driver's licence...
They started converting nano into electric car. It will be in the market soon
Wulin Mini EV, the Chinese version of “people’s car” has the similar concept but gained much more success in China. I feel there are such differences: it’s focus on young small families so majority of the time it’s using 2 seats only with good boot space. The price 30000rmb is cheap enough compared to the average Chinese income. It’s electric which means less running cost. Wulin keep the car in low profile before they really made it.
That's true, but Nano was focusing on families, because that's who would most want to move from a motorcycle. And in India, there are many such families.
Wuling五菱
@@wojciechmuras553 then it should be successful, why that guy said failed?
@@fannyalbi9040 Because we value social status over everything
We'd rather carry entire family on a 125CC motorcycle than in a cheap car
@@pranaym3859 but motorcycle has no roof on indian weather (hot or rainy)
Watching those old ads kinda makes me feel nostalgic. I was a kid when they used to air on TV. Here in Bangladesh I still see a few units that are unsold in the local Tata dealership.
A thoroughly enjoyable video, the Nano was certainly a curious machine. :)
Love your videos, this channel and yours are just great, looking forward to your next! 👏🏻😊
Didn’t expect to see you
Nano fail example 👉 czcams.com/video/XOV6rg-Uhqw/video.html
Nice to see a railfan on a car video 🙂
Well hello there!
The Nano looked a bit like the Mitsubishi MIEV.
I think it's the other way around, they do look similar though.
I've thought the styling is a based on a hideous version of Pikachu from Pokémon!
I’ve always wanted a Mitsubishi MIEV with all the extra options including built in NAV. I love crazy (read innovative) Japanese“K” cars like that. I still look up prices on them in Autotrader!
Miev itself is electric version of Mitsubishi i released in 2006.
@@t8polestarcyan22 Pokemon Munna
In 2012 I drove a Nano 26,500 km and in a period of 79 days I went all over India - all state capitals, quite a few union territories, to India's corners in NSEW and too it to the top of Khardung La. I also drove to Bhutan - the first Nano to enter that Himalayan kingdom.
I averaged 335 km per day and on two days covered more than 750 km.
I personally love this car, my father and my brother are still owning this one and I like to drive it. This is really value for money.
Please! Do Renault Twingo! It is iconic to Europeans, South-Americans alike!
It's on the list, but unfortunately another video that won't be very popular. But I love the Twingo!
@@BigCar2 I had a Twingo, they're a cult car here in Germany.
It's a modern 2CV, yes, I know that's a Citroen, so maybe a modern R4?
By the way, do the R4! 😁
@@BigCar2 personally I really appreciate your “less popular” videos.
But than again, I’m a big fan of (quirky) daily drivers and your Videos!😊
Yes, please do the Renault 4, it was an incredibly practical car and was made in my country all the way to 1994. My dad owned one from 1970 :)
exactly!!! twingo is amazing! we had one, uff it was great! spent very very little fuel, and you could stuff an elephant inside!
hard to beat "impossible". Sad to see it failed after such heroic effort was made.
wow that is impressive research. As an indian, i never knew tata went through so much challenges.
That's one sweet car. Amazing piece of engineering by the Indians, shame they didn't sell the car elsewhere.
I did own one. Its was an amazing city car. Its very good car for small commute. Easy to drive, relaible, compact car. And even budget friendly too. I was actually in love with that car
I drove one of the early one lakh base models in India when visiting friends. For a car that was USD$2500 new, quite impressive. In the city it was powerful enough, easy to park & weave through the chaos that is Indian street life. My friend still has it to this day; he keeps it for a second car.
@Zack Smith it was bro.. did u ever own one?? If u would have you will be knowing its reliability
Zack smith, are u indian. I did own one man, im not saying from 3rd person information, im telling by my own experience. It was very reliable. Its not that GM carp. Its fucking TATA man
@Zack Smith see bro, untill u experience the vehicle u cant say anything about it. Ya they r low cost vehicle, but it doesnt mean it was not reliable. I know people who clocked around 1.5 lakh kms in original transmission and engine
@Zack Smith Nope. My friend still owns one. He uses it everday for personal use as well as work. I have been on it many a time. Its a good car. Hardly any reliability issues and easy to maintain. Very practical for our heavy traffic and narrow roads. This is from personal experience. Not from third party reports.
I remember seeing articles in various English motoring magazines about the Tata Nano at the time of it's launch. I wanted one then. And I still do now. Would make a brilliant short trip commuter, which is exactly what I want.
Have you watched their crash test video - it's a death trap! czcams.com/video/b8wjh9VvNzU/video.html
@@josephyewlett2713 I was recently watching a Triumph video from the late 60's / early 70's, and their crash tests are frightening. They're bigging them up as ensuring passenger safety, and all you see are test dummies heads being smashed into dashboards. czcams.com/video/OanO_XEuH8c/video.html
@@josephyewlett2713 Still safer than a family of four balanced on a moped.
@@josephyewlett2713 Safer than a motorcycle that was sold on the same price.
The Citroen Ami is the perfect car for you then!
Great video! Clinical and succinct! Keep up the good work. Cheers, Govind
We had a lovely Tata nano. We drove from Jodhpur Rajasthan to Goa and the journey was comfortable, and most importantly unforgettable .
Sadly most Indians dont realise what's good until it's gone... Thanks Tata for this wonderful car and memories attached to it. Long live The Nano.
Made me really sad to hear absolute facts.
This was the best car I ever bought! I used it like a mini truck, driving over tough mountain terrain for 4 years continously, without any major problem
i dont think nano if meant for mountain terrain.
He may not mean upper Himalayan Roads, there are smaller Himalayan mountains in states like Himachal where a lot of people live, the road conditions are decent and sceneries beautiful. You would be moving up and down mountains while traveling in these towns.
Your videos are informative and interesting,
Your voice keeps me calm when i listen to you in the background.
Thanks
Very well done presentation! I cannot wait until someone finds one of these tucked away in a barn 40 years from now and marvels at its ingenuity...or lack there of....
Weirdly enough the best selling point of tata motors is safety.
Especially with their Nexon and Altroz releases, they're industry leaders in safety. Even their most affordable Tiago has better crash ratings than many c segment sedans
@JOHNSON Chodenseider reliability and safety have (almost, engine blowing up is a safety issue I guess) nothing to do with each other. But Tata cars have always been exceptionally reliable, they have made cab/taxi cars for decades now. Lacking in power and torque, but I've seen those 1.5 crdi Tata diesel engines last forever.
@JOHNSON Chodenseider
1. Im not dissing Japanese cars in any shape or form. Heck my dream car is literally a mazda fd rx7
2. Yeah they are not as good as japenese or american cars but they still reliable enough and have good features
3. All the cars we get ( except germans) are outdated and have shotty build quality campare that to foreign caounterparts, and we can't do much about it
@MADHAV NAIR SOSH no they mostly have 3 stars at max tata harrier and altroz ( along with mahindra marazzo ) was one the first cars to do full 5 star safety rating
@John Johnson no.. Tata cars aremore safe than hondas.. Only tata nano is bad... Tata has its own steel plant so they givebetter robustvehicpes than japanese vehicles.... And mahindra xuv 700 kills.. Literally kills power, features and electronics, premiumness of any japanese car of that tlprice..... Check out XUV 700
Back in 2014, whilst visiting family in Mumbai, I popped into a local dealership and got a test drive around the suburbs. After initial caution due to no discernable traffic laws, and encouragement from the salesman, I fully committed! What a cracking little car, eager to rev, quick gearchanges, cornering on its door handles! Was like driving an early Fiat Uno, another great city car. Was disappointing to see the company couldn't quite make the leap to comfort, practicality and quality it deserved
Such a pity, I didn't realise it went so poorly. It sounded very promising in the early stages but I hadn't heard anything about it for a while and forgot about it. Now I know what happened.
Liked the last minutes most!. Great video(s)
Executive makes promises somebody else has to keep. A not unusual story...
It seems like the GenX Nano was a lot more practical as a car and is probadly what they should have launched with initially. However I'm still not sure why they didn't go for a 2 door design, would have made it cheaper to build. Really the project seem overly concerned with looking like a more expensive car.
My thoughts precisely. Two doors and a hatchback - with the ability to remove the rear seats through the back for versatility?
India is not suitable for a 3 door hatch back due to different dresses in india
Tata had some bad experience with Tata Sierra. Its a funtastic 3 door SUV. But sales was less due to lack of rear door. So they dont want to repeat the same mistake. I own a Nano its a very fun to drive car. Its a very unique design . It does not carry any legacy car manufacturing ideas... you need to experience in person to see the space it offers. Front passenger leg room is more than what a Toyota Innova offers..
@@om5201 - So... Tata made an SUV with 2-doors (Sierra) and made a micro car with 4-door. They seem to be consistent in their mistakes.
@@om5201 How's long term reliability and servicability?
When I saw the motorcycles with two adults and three children aboard it reminded me of what I see regularly here in Mindanao Philippines. So many people can only afford a motor scooter and even the very cheapest cars (mostly poor quality Chinese cars) are four to six times more expensive. Tata had the right idea but maybe they should have considered the rural market a little more, as Citroen famously did with the Deux Chevaux.
Being an indian &TATA FANBOY, I can surely say, This is a well researched, well prepared amazing video.
It's a shame it never took off. I remember reading about it when it first came out.
There was a lot of publicity surrounding it when launched, but reality was soon overtaking. Sad that it failed, but here it's clearly shown why - it was too expensive for the poor and too basic for the more wealthy.
Can you do a Hindustan Ambassador story
Or an Austin A55!
@@frenchenstein yep
Yes please
Or better yet, British Leyland imported Standard cars in India.
Or better yet, British Leyland imported Standard cars in India.
I really appreciate this case study. Gives a lot of insight to the Nano project. Can you please also make a video on Adam Revo?
Got to say I am a recent subscriber but your videos are excellent and production is 10 out of 10 I am watching them back 1 by .. congratulations on the superb channel 👍
Glad you like them Glen
In retrospect, the Nano was far too ahead of its time. A future classic for sure but yes it was a car I never really desired as a kid although I can appreciate the ingenuity that went into making it as an adult. Love driving around in my Tiago though!
I agree ahead of its time, if the project was attempted within the last 8 years i'm sure it would've fared much better.
@@ThexXxXxOLOxXxXx True
The car is not half bad.
Looks cute and the innovation were there
The space and seating was amazing.
Yes, but bear in mind the rear didn't open on the initial model, and it didn't suit the market at the time in terms of pricing or what it offered. Add to that the pricing and quality issues and that all wrote it off as a failure.
Love your Big Car YT series.
My buddy's got one of these as a second car and has kept if for abour a decade now and its one hell of a beater, it grinds in almost every gear but reverse, turns right every time he hits the brakes, the AC shoots hot air even in the coldest setting. A beater in every sense but we still have a blast with it every time we go out in it, it was a fun car and i wished they sold more.
I remember Jay Leno driving one around a track in 2010 or so. It looked like fun.
"One lack of car", you're right, that _is_ a great soundbyte!
Fun Fact, Tata was trying to revive the Nano in 2019 with the concept code named "Pelican", but god knows what happened to it. Probably they didn't want to take the risk. The GenX and the Twist Nano editions were better because of their "Horizon Next" initiative which aimed to improve quality control. Basically this was Tata's make or break thing, ironically enough... the Indica and its Sedan version the Indigo was discontinued a year earlier than the Nano because they didn't meet emission norms, by then the Zest and Bolt picked up the slack.
U can slightly make some changes to this nano by converting it with four turbo fans to become a flying car drone. That would make it an ideal urban flying car around the busy clogged city streets.
It was also intrudose to the Jamaica market and branded as the cheapest car but as you rightly said , too expencive for it's target customers. They were mostly bought by compinies and working class people, not even me could afford one . Not very many were sold but I still see one on the road now and then.
Fantastic video. I've always had a soft spot for this kind of basic transportation.
I need a tiny car like this to drive to work. I don't need unnecessary technology. I don't need power windows or locks, radio or anything else. Just a heater.
A lot of my friends wish it was still in production. Even I would love to buy one in 2023. It was a good enough vehicle in the later models. A large part was played by Indian media houses (as always) who ruined the reputation of the car even before it was launched.
My grandad wanted to get one (he was like 70) and test drove it... yeah a motorcycle was the better option...
Why?
@@alex_ob1 Well, my grandad had a Morris Oxford III earlier and that just got way too hard for him to drive... so he thought that the nano being small with a small engine would be very easy to drive... apparently, the car handled horribly and everything felt like it was about to fall off
Should have hired Robin Williams to market it!
Well may be looking and copying a 2CV wouldn't have harmed too, add fuel injection plus cat and had moving front light in the peasant class, with extendable carry room, not uncommon to add a bigger box in the back, even made with ply wood. The suspension was good enough for ploughing through the field! Remove the garden chairs and take the ones from nano, et voila, smooth boxer with fuel injection, running 120 km/h with moderate consumption.
@Samurai Shampoo Who’s trying to be funny? Robin’s signature line in Mork and Mindy was Nanu Nanu which could easily have been modified.
Even worse than the cars were the ads. I'd say 1 lakh commercials.
Beautifully narrated, TATA has significantly improved their market presence with some of the best products like Nexon and Altroz , with punch recently launched they have safety in mind and all of them have been certified 5 star at NCAP , there stocks also hit all time high and have started to seriously invest in EVs
Thank you for making video on Nano, first I had seen one car in orange shade and felt in love with it and ended buying one without even doing a test driving it. My ownership experience was great with it I even took it for small off-road and it survived well due to low weight it did not got stuck on muddy trails even if it was not four wheel drive. As new cars added to garage and no parking space left for such lovely car had to sell it off. If today also had more parking space would again buy atleast one from used market. It was great time owning a Nano.
Thanks for the video. Loved it. Few areas where Nano shined. This is from my experience of our little nano which is now 8 years old and 1,10,000 kms run.
1. Amazing space for 4 people. Unbelievable leg room. More than what you can get even from 7 times priced SUVs
2. Superb AC. On par with B and C segement cars. More so you will not feel much of engine power lag when driven on AC. Which is not the case with Maruti 800
3. An Engineering master piece, lot of innovations went in ... I hardly see any legacy car design elements in it. Believe me after another 20 yeara. The left ober Nanos will become collectables among car enthusiasts
4. Its got all 4 wheel Independenr suspension , front and rear tyre width are different
5. 2 cylinder engine real world mileage is almosr 25% better than maruti 800. I used to get 26+ kmpl when driven within 70kmph (20% with AC)
6. Yes. If left in open parking there will be lot of rusting issues.
7. Mechanics say Nano is not an easy car to work on. Just to change a clutch wire ... it takes 3 times the time which would take on a normal car
8. Nano sheet metal is more robust then latest suzuki hearttec platform cars. Nano dimention to weight ratio is more than suzuki baleno
9.cng varients did not utlise any additional boot space. Cng tanks were under front seats
10. My personal fun fact: I was returning back from a 200km road trip. Inwas behind the wheel and had fun time talking with family. I missed to note the fuel indicator the car stopped middle of very conjested city suburb highway. I had a 2ltr water bottle. It was night time. I popped the bonnet . You see both windshield washer and fuel pipe opening are in front . One to the left other to the right. Ha ha. I poured some water in the fuel pipe. Thinking im filling windshield washer. Then i was really worried ... removing the tank and cleaning is a headache... you know what. I filled up the tank with petrol again. The car started without a fuss. Have covered 30,000 kms post that incident. God only knows what happened to the water. I dont know if i can do the same with a German car :)
11. For people who say Nano is not a safe car. Fully agree but think again its 10 times safer than a 2 wheeler. Just assume the car as a helmet ... you are sitting inside a helmet. More over the cars max speed is same as a 100cc bike.
11. When i was in need of second car in 2016. I wanted to buy nano again. But the price at that time was so high. I ended up picking an Alto 800. It lost its value for Pricing charm which it had earlier.
12. My nano cx 2013 model costed 2,00,000 onroad. Which was 60,000 inr lesser that its direct competetion Maruti 800
13. In 2016. I was quoted almost near to 3,00,000 inr. For a new nano. Thats why i ended buying an alto800 for 3,50,000 onroad price.
14. On an ending note.. A free advice for younger gen (i am not that old , haha). Try to buy cars without going for a loan. Instead focus on creating assets like home or land.
Good to read your Nano experience.. from a fellow Nano owner :-)
@JOHNSON Chodenseider True. We should have atleast one safe car in our garage to take care of long highway runs... These small cars can take care of quick city runabouts...
why would taking loans or emi be disadvantageous?
@@Vivek10010 It depends... Assuming if you have a need for a fat home loan... I would rather suggest buy a low cost car or post pond ur car purchase... Dont step into the idea of buying a big 10+ lakh car on a loan. That would spoil your financial in the short term.. End of the day why would you even borrow and invest in an asset which depreciates.. On the contrary if you have your own place to live.. No big deal you can buy even a BMW on loan and live with it.. End of the day the financial burden for that will be less than a HL...
"Try to buy cars without going for a loan. Instead focus on creating assets like home or land."
*looks at my mustang
Me: I am sorry little one...
Tata got the marketing wrong... They thought being the cheapest car would help it to sell but it backfired.... In India the customer mentality is the car defines ones status... So anybody owning a nano became an object of ridicule
Tata today has reputation for all of their cars being 5 star in international safety standards.
I think if they're relaunching nano they'll have to choose between their safety reputation or the affordable car title. If much rather they choose their safety reputation. The nano would make for a great commuter car, I'd buy it day one if it has a good safety rating.
after the discontinuation of tata nano in india recently we spotted nano electric testing
I want to see the Toyota Prius story one of the most boring cars but perfect for a Uber
I'd like to do that one. Someday...
@@BigCar2 definitely can’t wait to see that your videos are excellent and I love watching them again especially the Ford and Vauxhall videos
Please do one about the over engineered 2nd Generation Prius - the first truly mass produced Prius that was accepted and became famous worldwide.
I believe you would truly do the story of that vehicle, Justice! Did you know the steering wheel isn’t actually round but an oval that mimics the Toyota Logo?!! 🤣
When I went for a visit to a construction site (in India) with my new Tata Nano Twist, it became a sensation. Site engineers stood there with eyes wide open. After getting down the first question was: "Sir, you are a German, so why are you driving a Nano?" 😄Says a lot, don't you think?
The fact is, there are many Indians like me, who take pride in owning an Indian car instead of a German car.
@@protograde2723 you obviously didn't understand my post.
First, I loved my Nano, one of the most ingenious cars build (I even knew the father of one of the leading designers), otherwise I wouldn't had bought it.
Secondly, if Indian customers would have thought the same like me the Nano could have a been a great (and well deserved) success,
Thirdly, don't give me this pseudo-patriotic nonsense and study instead the poor sales statistics before Tata stopped production of the Nano.
it is my 1st car and it was a nice improvement. I have been using it for last 10 years and alone in fuel prices i have saves more than 650k in indian rupees
1:05 - The car which became the last-ever Rover! (The Rover CityRover).
I was thinking this as I watched thanks for confirming.
It is
Nano is a ridiculously superb car, I have one and it's a superb city car . It was the poor mentality of my people which led to failure of this super adorable car.
Yeah why don't your people like cheap stuff? In Europe that car would be a hit. The cheaper the better.
@@AutumnWind92 The thing is in India car is a status symbol. As such making claims like "the cheapest" car didn't help.
@@kushagrakhare6995 bad marketing indeed. They should've said something different than cheap.
Well researched video! Good job! Keep it up!
Thank you Karthik
@@BigCar2 You are welcome!
@BigCar2 A new Nano is about to come out. A part 2 of this video would be great.
Maybe in a few years when it's got some history behind it.
Thanks for an interesting video. The Nano looks great; shame about its outcome. I agree that Tata was overpitching the whole project. The adverts clearly depict upwardly mobile middle classes, but the original hype was all about a people's car. For me, if I had worked at Tata I would have made a much simpler pitch to management - go to France and do a deal with PSA Citroen to start up production again of the venerable 2CV in India. That was a real people's car - and its suspension/ride would be perfect for the subcontinent's roads.
OMG, I want that Super Nano!!! Its soooo cute. Thank you for making this :D
Sadfully, this car has been discontinued... But current Tata cars are times more stronger, aggresive, safer and beautiful
This explanation about the Tata,that was big news in our country aswell,is an answer to a question I had totally forgotten about...will this car realy be the next Citroen 2CV/Ford model T/Fiat 500 etc.......it shows again how difficult it is to get a good design,all the logistics and the market lined up to create a succes.....thanks for the vid.....an answer to a forgotten question after all those years!!
I recall following this car when they started talking about running it on compressed air .... and knew it wasn't going to work when they said they wouldn't use steel tanks, but fibre ones. Fibre tanks strapped to the bottom of a car and holding 2200psi .... nobody was ever going to buy that.
I actually think it's an amazing achievement of ergonomics
Having known five people with life changing brain injuries I find it disturbing to see one entire family without helmets on a moped\scooter\motorcycle.
I would guess the Tata Nano passenger safety is better than a two wheeler but less than a larger car.
@@deepak_nigwal Wrong. Its not uncommon to see a family of four or five on a two wheeler in the cities even today.
@@deepak_nigwal Wrong. Four on a motorcycle here in Pune in quite the norm, and occasionally five. I always find it odd that the father, who is piloting the cycle may be wearing a helmet, but no one else will.
@@jjquinn2004 Damn really, well here in varanasi, you don't really see more than two people, maybe an occasional three, but that might be bacause we're the pm's seat.
I used to drive a Nano. Easily the best car I've owned. The engine was somewhat under-powered, and I never could drive faster than 80 kmph, but it was a joy to drive through urban traffic, and I could park it just about anywhere.
It's surprisingly spacious on the inside, and the legroom is nothing to sneeze at. The only problem is the lack of a boot - you'd have to travel light or give up half the backseat to your luggage.
I sold my Nano back in 2017, and miss it to this day, notwithstanding that I now drive a Glanza
because it was not marketed as something desirable but rather as something basic......the car though is supercute, super fuctional and super appropriate for a city
Do make a video on the Daewoo Matiz too!
14:29 i can live with that 2015 GenX Nano. It's a proper car all around.
Not really , Im indian and beleive me its no fun. better get the Ace pickup which it was based of off
@@moundain4220 and carry all passengers on the truck bed? that sounds fun
@@myMotoring Ya make the bed into a pool that would be fun !
@@moundain4220 every bump or speed bump also gives you a chance to surf in the water waves.
Many thanks. We recently got a VW Up! That's something line the baseline of family mobility in Germany but anything but a people's car. It's smallish but sturdy.
Great video. Very informative
3:14 4 studs on those alloys!
Yes, it seems to be the 2.gen version.
It had a front spoiler too.
That's not the production model photo.
@@gt3t0uring throughout the video there are nanos in 4 stud, but they all seem to be promotional pictures.
I've used one and i liked out despite the fact that it's a small and cheap car. 4 adults can sit comfortably !
Hard to imagine that such a major company with a good history and reputation could get this so catastrophically wrong!
I can't imagine how much money they lost on this project!
Even now, I would have thought that building a 2CV variant in India would have been a better choice for a simple, reliable, cheap, robust and versatile vehicle that can fit the family or cargo and survive the appalling roads.
In India many people buy car as a symbol of pride. At first point Nano created cheap impression, as they branded and positioned it as cheap car. So people thought themselves as cheap by driving a nano, we can see many memes and trolls of nano chasing BMW in whatsapp even now. Second, Tata as a company is great in its culture tradition and values, but as a car company untill 2020, they were not that good, they had bad reputation and people always think twice to buy a tata car. But things had changed now as they are transforming with new designs and quality model from late 2020 onwards.
Right now it definitely won't fly anymore. Since 3 wheeled Ebikes now even have more seats and storage spaces.