Tata Punch Review, First Drive: Has All The Potential To Become Tata’s Best-Seller

Tata Motors is gearing up to launch the new Tata Punch in India. Check out what the sub-compact SUV has in store for you in our Tata Punch Review, First Drive.

New Delhi: Tata Motors has been creating a lot of buzz in the market with its ‘New Forever’ range of cars and SUVs. Be it the Tata Tiago, the Tata Altroz, the Tata Nexon, the Tata Harrier, or the flagship Tata Safari, these models are being liked by people of all ages for their design, features and capabilities. The automaker is now ready to add a fresh product, the Tata Punch, to its ‘New Forever’ family. We are still a few days away from the Tata Punch launch. But official bookings for the new vehicle have already started. I recently drove the Tata Punch to see what it has in store for prospective buyers. And this is what I found out.

Tata Punch Exteriors

The Tata Punch is a sub-compact SUV with a butch appearance. At first glance, you notice that it has taken design cues from both Tata Harrier and Tata Nexon, which is not at all bad keeping in mind that these two SUVs themselves look quite stylish. The curves, creases and character lines add a premium touch to the Punch.

A very sleek grille sits at the front and houses the automaker’s badge in the centre. Like most Tata cars, the signature ‘Humanity Line’ is present here as well. The Punch has a split headlamp setup, quite similar to that of the Harrier, with the LED DRLs placed at the top and the projector headlamps placed below on the bumper. The fog lamps are stacked further down, unlike in the headlamp cluster as seen on the Harrier.

There is heavy use of black cladding on the sides. The Punch sits on stylish 16-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels. The A, B and C pillars have been blacked out and accord a floating-roof design to the vehicle, which gets options for dual-tone black and white roofs depending on the shade you have chosen. My review unit was in Atomic Orange colour with a black roof. Like the Altroz, the rear door handles of the Punch are housed in the C pillars.

The tail lamp cluster is unlike anything we have seen on Tata cars till now. The tail lamps are LED units and shoot towards the sides. The contoured tailgate with the automaker’s badge and PUNCH moniker looks nice.

Tata Punch Dimensions

Talking about the dimensions of the Tata Punch, the sub-compact SUV is 3,827mm in length, 1,945mm in width (with mirrors) and 1,615mm in height. It has a 2,445mm long wheelbase and 187mm high ground clearance. Its boot can accommodate up to 366 litres of luggage.

The high ground clearance, along with a 20.3-degree approach angle, 37.6-degree departure angle and 22.2-degree ramp over angle, greatly assists the Tata Punch in clearing many hurdles with total ease. Its water wading capability of 370mm helps as well.

Tata Punch Interiors

I must start with the doors first. They have a 90-degree opening, which makes ingress and egress so smooth. The Tata Punch has comfortable seats at the front and rear with decent cushioning. There is adequate support for the back. However, I felt that the thigh support could have been a bit more. I adjusted the driver seat to my driving position and sat behind it. Now, I am 5’10 and had ample knee room and headroom. The rear floor is flat. I even made three men sit at the rear seat and guess what they did not complain about the space. This speaks volumes about the way Tata Motors has judiciously utilised every inch inside the cabin of the Punch.

The cabin of the Tata Punch has an uncluttered feel to it. The dual-tone treatment on the dash and door trims looks plush. The layered dash looks good as well. The Punch gets a 7-inch touchscreen from Harman for the infotainment system. It is compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. While its user interface is quite basic and easy to comprehend, it is not as responsive as one would have liked it to be. The instrument cluster is a semi-digital unit with a 7-inch coloured TFT display and an analogue speedo. It gives you all the information pertaining to your trip. And yeah, it is easy to read as well. There is leather-wrapping on the steering wheel as well as the gear lever, enhancing the feel-good factor when you hold them. The steering can be adjusted only for height and not for reach, which is somewhat disappointing. But you are sure to enjoy the music system (four speakers and two tweeters) of the Punch.

The Tata Punch gets iRA connected car technology with more than 25 features, including navigation, weather updates, geo-fencing, time fencing, valet mode, intrusion alert, remote immobilisation, panic notification, find my car, What3Words and natural voice commands. However, it is only available as an option on the top-spec trim.

Other prominent features of the Tata Punch worth mentioning are:

• Auto headlamps
• Follow me home headlamps
• Rain sensing wipers
• Auto-fold ORVMs
• Push-button start
• Height adjustable driver seat
• Fully automatic temperature control
• Cooled glove box
• Rear armrest
• Fast USB charger
• Cruise control

Tata Punch Safety

Tata Motors has taken adequate care of the safety aspect with the Punch. The automaker claims that there is extensive use of high-strength steel in the sub-compact SUV. It is based on the same ALFA (agile light flexible advanced) architecture on which the five-star safety-rated Tata Altroz is built. The Tata Punch gets safety features like:

• Dual airbags
• ABS with EBD and corner safety control
• Front fog lamp with cornering function
• Child seat ISOFIX anchor points
• Parametric alarm system
• Reverse parking camera
• Driver and co-driver seat belt reminders
• Tyre puncture repair kit
• Segment-first brake sway control

Tata Punch Engine & Transmission

Under the hood of the Tata Punch is the new-generation 1.2-litre Revotron naturally-aspirated petrol engine. The engine gets the automaker’s latest Dyna-Pro technology, which is claimed to enhance the overall performance of the car. It develops 86PS of maximum power at 6,000rpm and 113Nm of peak torque at 3,300rpm. The engine can be mated either with a 5-speed MT or a 5-speed AMT. The Punch has City and Eco drive modes. The AMT variants come with a segment-first Traction-Pro mode as well.

I started with the Tata Punch petrol AMT first. The engine is quite easy-going and there is no surprising element to it. The power delivery is quite linear. At low speeds, it is a bit more responsive than what we have seen on the Tata Altroz. The new Dyna-Pro technology does help here. Even at medium range, it is good. But when you start pushing it hard, it does not respond the way, say Maruti Suzuki’s K12 naturally-aspirated petrol engine does, and reaching triple-digit speeds takes some time. The engine is best suited to city driving. It is also not very silent. The fact that it is a 3-cylinder unit does not help the matter either. When you push the throttle hard, you do hear that grunt from the engine.

The AMT unit of the Tata Punch feels more refined. It makes the complete driving experience so much more comfortable and to be honest, this is what you really need when driving in bumper-to-bumper city traffic. Although I felt the shifts, this is something very normal with the AMTs. Besides, downshifts take time in AMTs. So maneuvers like overtaking need to be done with a bit more caution. This holds for the Punch petrol AMT as well. I liked the manual gearbox of the Punch also. It is slick and made the driving experience fun. The clutch felt light as well.

Tata Punch Ride & Handling

Tata cars are known to be the better ones when it comes to ride and handling. But Tata Punch does not have a ‘better’ ride and handling. It has an ‘excellent’ ride and handling. I will tell you why. I drove the Punch on the roughest of roads at decent speeds and it was digesting all the irregularities with elan. Be it potholes or poorly-constructed speed breakers, nothing could rattle its cabin. I am still speechless at its ride quality. When it comes to handling, I will again give full marks to the Punch. For a car with high ground clearance, it does handle pretty well. There was minimal body roll on twists and sharp turns and it was tackling them quite confidently. I could feel the stability in the car. The brakes were performing pretty well, even when I was going hard on them. I particularly liked the way the steering of the Tata Punch felt. It is neither very heavy nor light. It is far better than what Maruti Suzuki offers in its models with K12 naturally-aspirated petrol engine. The Punch’s steering instills confidence in you when you try to partake in some fun driving.

I also had a short off-roading experience to test the capabilities of the Tata Punch. The car sailed over large boulders and ruts quite easily. I was pretty impressed by the way it tackled steep inclines and nowhere did it bottom out. This was seriously unexpected from a car of the size of the Punch.

Tata Punch Variants

Tata Motors is offering the Punch in four variants — Pure, Adventure, Accomplished and Creative. Also available are three different customisation packs — Rhythm (Pure and Adventure variants), Dazzle (Accomplished variant) and iRA (Creative variant).

Tata Punch Price Expectation

The Tata Punch price is expected to start at Rs 5 lakh and go up to Rs 8.50 lakh (ex-showroom).

Tata Punch Launch

Tata Motors will launch the Punch in India on October 20, 2021.

Tata Punch Verdict

The Tata Punch is a formidable vehicle that looks handsome and is embellished with creature comforts. While it has a decent engine for city driving, it is second to none when it comes to ride and handling. The Tata Punch is best-suited to the needs of buyers looking for a small car that can accommodate five individuals easily. If Tata Motors can price the Punch right, it has all the potential to become its best-seller.