Back in the early 2000s, I had just started writing about cars, and one of the first cars I covered was the Indica V2. The car felt solid, like a tank, thanks to thick sheet metal. However, it also exhibited handling characteristics and performance similar a tank, Which is not ideal for a passenger vehicle. A college friend had even gone ahead and bought one, a decision he was later regretted due to reliability issues.
I mention this because I recently drove the new Tata Punch.ev and was thoroughly impressed. Sure, Tata Motors is introducing the ‘Curvv’ this year, aiming to dispel any lingering doubts about their reputation. But it is the first car unveiled this year that truly convinced me of the company’s positive trajectory, not just in terms of sales but also in product quality.
To clarify, there is no singular Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (TMPV). Last year, Tata Sons spun off ‘Tata Passenger Electric Mobility’ (TPEM) into a separate subsidiary valued at $9.1 billion by investors. Whichever way you slice it, that is a lot of mustard as the saying goes. The acquisition of the erstwhile Ford plant at Sanand, Gujarat, which Tata Motors bought for a song, is now operational with a dedicated line for electric vehicles, positioning TPEM to dominate the electric vehicle market. In fact, three out of every four passenger electric vehicles sold in India in 2023 wore the Tata Motors badge.
But, truth be told, despite driving several of them, they were not the best. The refreshed Tata Nexon.ev was a massive improvement in creature comforts and slightly improved drivability. But you always felt that vehicles from this carmaker, all of which wear a ‘Vocal 4 Local’ sticker on the rear windshield, could be better. And that is what the Tata Punch.ev is: it is better. And there are a couple of reasons why that is so.
Firstly, the Punch.ev is the first TPEM vehicle to feature the new ‘Acti.ev’ (pronounced Active) platform from Tata Motors, making it the first second-generation electric vehicle from the company. Driving it on the Bengaluru-Hyderabad highway on a Sunday morning, it felt responsive and agile, easily switching between regenerative modes, offering a natural ‘single-pedal driving’ experience.
TPEM also wanted us to experience the Punch.ev with a short dynamic and off-road test, and again, the Punch.ev did not feel like a ‘forced’ car, which earlier Tata electric vehicles did, because they were basically internal-combustion engine (ICE) vehicles that had been retrofitted to be EV’s. The Punch.ev had genuine verve, because, as you will see, it is a powerful little car.
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A superior EV
The Punch.ev is available with multiple options: a choice of motor (60 kW—82 horsepower—or 90 kW—122 horsepower) and a choice of battery pack (25kW, with a claimed range of 315 km and a 35kW with 421 km). I drove the top-end ‘Empowered+’ version with the more powerful motor and battery pack, which has an ex-showroom price of Rs 14.49 lakh. The company also provides an 8-year or 160,000-km warranty on the battery. Electric vehicle batteries last 1500-2000 charging cycles, much longer than the warranty period.
While there is an ICE Punch, the Punch.ev shares little with it beyond the skin panels. At the dynamic test site, I spoke to Tata Motors’ head of global design, Martin Uhlarik. He emphasised that “other than the skin, it is totally different inside”. Although an updated ICE version of the Punch is planned, Uhlarik confirmed, there will be increased differentiation between the ICE and EV versions, with EVs designed to look like everyday cars. “Which is why we removed the ‘teal’ colour on the Nexon.ev; we want to highlight just how normal and everyday owning an EV is,” Uhlarik said.
There are some minor niggles, such as outside indicator cameras appearing on the infotainment display, which is a pain when you are using it for navigation. That said, if you use a smartphone with Apple CarPlay and Apple Maps or Android and Google Maps, the navigation can appear on the instrument cluster, which is a very useful thing. I acutely felt the lack of ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems), particularly on the highway where every weekend, Bengaluru’s fastest motorcycles gather to have fun, and were overtaking me from both sides. If you are driving near Devanhalli and Nandi Hills during the weekends, remember to always check the mirrors.
So, the Punch.ev, especially with the larger battery and more powerful motor, is an excellent value proposition for those seeking creature comforts in a vehicle. Sure, some features, like watching YouTube and other streaming services on the infotainment screen, may seem excessive (you can only do it while stationary), but then again, Indian car buyers do love gimmicks. But without any hesitation, I would say the Punch.ev is is undeniably superior to India’s top-selling EV, the Nexon.ev, in every respect.
@kushanmitra is an automotive journalist based in New Delhi. Views are personal.
(edited by Prashant)