For starters , the price of the new Nano remains same and this in itself makes half the battle won. Design wise , the car remains as cute as ever and you notice the new look wheel caps on the middle and top end variant. New color options have been added as well and the overall quality of paint as well as fit and finish seem better. Park the Nano next a brand new hatchback and you notice that in no way does the Tata offering look or feel bad in or inferior in any way. The same feeling is what gets carried onto the inside. 

The new 2012 Tata Nano gets a re-worked cabin – not in the design sense but in the overall feel and experience sense. For example , the top end LX trim level gets new beige interior treatment which adds a sense of plushness. Seats are finished in a similar color tone as well and this along with large windows means the Nano indeed feels pretty airy on the inside. The CX and base variants get ‘Rich Black’ and ‘Stunning Graphite’ color scheme for the cabin. The Nano’s biggest plus point of being a spacious small car continue – we were shocked to see that our test car could easily seat five grown up adults without any one of us feeling the lack of space at all! That said , yes , the boot space is heavily compromised but one look at the sticker price and that is easily ignored! 

 

 

So , the new Nano looks better on the inside and outside but is that about it? No , for the biggest change lies under the hood , errr , in the engine that sits behind. Tata has taken feedback from customers in a positive manner and the first thing you notice is the quitter cabin and a sporty exhaust note. Sound damping and other steps have made sure that the overall NVH or noise , vibration , harshness levels are better. The moment you step on the gas and get moving , you also notice the change in acceleration. The new Nano is peppier now thanks to a bump in power and torque : 3PS as well as 3Nm more. This does result in the Nano being an easy to drive vehicle in traffic and the longer gear ratios mean that it can sit all day long at an indicated 85-90km/h without a fuss. Icing on the cake comes in the form of better fuel economy which is now up from the earlier 23.62kmpl to 25.4kmpl! 

 

 

For those who feel that the 624cc petrol engine is simply too small for a car need to drive the Nano in traffic. Ofcourse it won’t burn rubber but as a daily means of commute , we don’t think an owner will ever feel the lack of power until unless you drive with five people on-board with the air-con working overtime. That said , the lack of a power-steering at crawling speeds can be noticed easily but moving , the Nano can surprise you with its agility , punch and visibility in congested traffic. On open roads , it quickly hits 85-90km/h with the engine feeling relatively un-strained. Tata Motors has , in the favour of safety , limited the top speed to 106km/h. 

 

 

The Nano will mainly be used in City traffic and this is where its suspension does a decent job as well. Pot-holes are dismissed off pretty easily and until unless you decide to drive over bad undulations at high speeds , the Nano remains calm and composed. Brakes have been worked upto too and the Nano sheds speeds pretty easily and emergency braking doesn’t result in any drama or nervous antics. 

 

The Nano continues to sell for the same price and this is brilliant news. At the time of going into press , Tata Motors was offering a cash discount of Rs 10 , 000 across the three variants and another added benefit is the low down-payment. No other car in India offers such a flexibility and ease of owning a brand new car. The top end model is the one to go for as it offers a huge list of standard features including front power windows and cup-holders. An audio system and keyless entry though are missing. The 2012 Nano has really come the right way at the right time. The Nano ended the year 2011 in a good way , clocking a healthy 7466 units in December. The new version is better in all respects and will simply help Tata gather good numbers this year. We know this little wonder can pull it off because finally , it is now a complete car in all parameters! 
For prices and specs , refer to the TATA NANO PAGE