How could we not include the Nexon EV in the celebrations when Tata Motors itself is a founding partner of the movement?
Words: Neeraj Padmakumar
We had told you through a previous post that the 9th of September is World EV Day. We chose to celebrate the inaugural EV Day in a worthy fashion. You might remember that Tata Motors is one of the founding partners of the movement. Thus, we decided to take the Nexon EV on a road trip.
The entire action happened in Kerala. We had with us a Tata Nexon EV from one of our friends and were all set for the road trip early in the morning. The drive was to start from Calicut and do a Calicut-Ambalavayal (Wayanad)- Calicut round trip. 210 kilometers needed to be munched in a day and in one single charge. The majority of the journey consisted of runs through ghat roads.
This meant that this trip would put the capabilities of the EV to intense tests. The Coronavirus related restrictions in place meant more care on the roads and possible mid-way stops. With all these addressed properly, we set out on the journey.
The instrument cluster showed a full 100% battery charge. Having brought the car to life in a rather silent way, I started the drive. The Nexon EV whizzed past the scarcely populated streets of Calicut. The sheer acceleration of this car is absolutely commendable. 100kmph from a standstill comes in as quick as in 9.9 seconds, thanks to the 127hp churned out by the 30.2 kWh motor. I grew quite impressed by the breathtaking performance of this machine.
In about half an hour, the real fun began- the Ghat roads! A bunch of awesome hairpins was up ahead and we were all belted up for action inside the EV. The traffic around was minimal, thanks be to the pandemic. There were quite a number of sharp hairpins and corners. We felt no pain from the car as it banged itself into the corners and came out smooth. I would have called this a hill run, were there no traffic as was not the case this time. The ride quality is quite good on the electric Nexon. Also, the body roll is very well contained despite its SUV persona.
In about two and a half hours, we reached out destination- Ambalavayal, in Wayanad. Quite scenic a place, it saw us have a quick lunch and get back inside the EV for the return-run. Our journey uphill had costed us around 57% of the battery. But we would not complain as many a time we had slotted the car into the ‘Sport Mode’ for added fun in the corners.
The journey downhill was equally fun. The Nexon EV handled corners in a quick yet graceful manner. The weight of around 1400 kilos and the aptly tuned suspension gives this car absolutely superb dynamics. In another two hours or so we reached our finishing point. Having quietly parked the car at its slot, I cast a quick glance at the instrument cluster, which almost made my eyeballs pop! We had munched a total of 212 kilometres and there was still 7% battery backup (an estimated 23 kilometres of range) left!
The Nexon EV has an ARAI certified range of 312 kilometres. However, we were expecting 230-240kms in the ‘normal’ road scenario. But, considering the nature of the ghat roads that we took this machine to and the overall driver behaviour, I should say I am very impressed by the outcome!
I would really like to thank Tata Motors for such an amazing sustainable mobility solution being offered. As is the motto of the #WorldEVDay, I would also recommend and promote the use of such EVs in our daily life. Let’s all go green and make a better tomorrow…
