Tata Harrier Red Dark Edition: Booking, Delivery & initial impressions

I liked the digital instrument cluster. Very clean and has options to make it minimalistic. This is probably the best improvement they have done in Harrier in the current iteration.

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This is my initial ownership review of Tata Harrier XZA+ (RedDark Edition). I have done slightly more than 2000 kms.

The best views of the car:

The side profile:

What I Like:

• It is a pleasure driving this vehicle. Power delivery in general is very smooth and lot of reserve power available for most driving conditions.
• The sheer comfort an automatic provides when driving within the city.
• Great looking and comfortable interiors. The red seats actually look great(subjective though).
• Road presence is good.
• Huge boot.
• I liked the digital instrument cluster. Very clean and has options to make it minimalistic. This is probably the best improvement they have done in Harrier in the current iteration.
• Making u-turns has not been a problem at all even though it is big vehicle.
• Ventilated seats are a boon. No more "shirt sticking to back" by the time you reach office.
• Memory seats are also very helpful, though it is easy to find a good driving position with the power adjustable seat.
• Family has given thumbs up to the back seat comfort.
• Adjustable lumbar support is very useful.
• 360 degree view is very helpful for parking.
• Noise insulation is also very good.

The red inside:

Powered seat adjustment, memory buttons and the ventilation control:

Instrument cluster (sorry, couldn't get a better picture)L

What is not OK but acceptable:

• Headlights are not that great. Not sure if other owners feel the same way and have tried any alternatives and felt better performance.
• Placement of some controls is not ergonomic for the driver.
• Music system is good but you will notice distortion even when you are not half way through the volume level.

What I Don't Like:

• Android Auto is glitchy. It has gotten cranky few times while driving and the only option is to park and restart
• In general I feel that the Android Auto experience is very intrusive and "attention grabbing". For me it leaves a lot to be desired.
• iRA app is not good. This is not ready for production. UX is really bad. (on a side note: most Tata made mobile apps are bad in their first 1-2 iterations).
• The voice recognition is bad and that is an understatement. I don't have a neutral accent but most apps do a decent job of understanding me. But my car just ignores me in general and will come to life when you are having a conversation with someone sitting next to you. I have seen it triggered by voices from the back seat. This is the single most irritating thing on this vehicle
• No good place to keep the mobile phone. Wireless charger space is not easily accessible. Same goes for sunglasses (nowhere to stow). Basically, they have not setup the storage spaces well. This is not good on a vehicle which has been around for long enough to take user feedback and fix.
• Glossy panels sometimes reflect sunlight on your eyes (in some angles) and is very irritating.
• Finishing is not up to mark in certain places which is a let down on an expensive vehicle. There are many things that you can nitpick on, which reflects poorly on Tata's quality control processes.
• Too much of steering feedback. If the road is uneven, you cannot drive with a light hand. It will just not stop dancing.

This wireless charger space is very inaccessible:

This view of climate control in the central console is fluff. Everything shown here has physical controls available:

Though this segmented view is good:

Desirable Features:

Rear window sunblinds.

• Tinted glass.
• Bonnet with hydraulic struts.
• To differentiate Safari, some features are available only on it. which I felt need not be the case.
• Top variants without sunroof (I don't see much use for them here. I have used it 2-3 times that too only because the kids wanted to).

The most unused feature for me, the panoramic sunroof:

Buying Decision:

I was in the market for a new vehicle after my Tata Nano started giving me trouble post an accidental water wading I had to do late last year. I was intent on an SUV and had already booked a Mahindra ScorpioN. Later in Jan I had dropped the idea of going with ScorpioN after taking a test drive. Primarily because it was too high for my parents to get in/out and I felt there was too much bobbing when driven within the city for their comfort. It was difficult to say no, as the dealer had the color of my choice and ready to deliver immediately. Post that I felt I should have gone with XUV700 and put in the booking amount for the same. They gave me a delivery date of Aug'23 and with the prices moving north every few months, this vehicle was moving beyond my budget, so dropped it as a choice. In the heat of the moment, I even booked Jimny but based on the general feedback in this forum and videos on YouTube, I figured, this will not fit my driving profile and needs.

Moving on, I dropped my plans for SUV and ventured into the "SUVish" territory as there were nothing left for my budget range in the SUV class.

Harrier: I started by test driving Tata Harrier. Post test drive, I was impressed. So was the family. The sales guy told me that I can get the vehicle within 1 month of booking based on the model.

Taigun: Again impressed with the drive but equipment levels were low. I have driven by friend's DCT a lot and I only wanted to go for that one, but he was able to easily pursuade me to ignore it.

I never liked Seltos and the newer Creta designs are too overdone for my taste.

(PS: I know my choices are not from the same segment. I just went with what I liked within my budget.)

After lot of dillydallying finally called Select Motors and booked the Harrier Red Dark (RDK) edition as everyone at home voted for black and the younger ones were impressed by the advertisements of RedDark.

Price negotiations were simple as I am not good at haggling. I opted for their insurance though it was slightly on the higher side. OTR price was 28.6 lacs.

Delivery Experience:

Overall experience with the dealer was good. Post booking, I reached out after 2 weeks but no update was there. Got a callback from the sales rep stating high demand for RDK variant might cause delays. As my need for the vehicle was immediate, I asked for alternatives. He said he could get me the regular Dark edition in a week. I said OK. But then after 2 days he called me back and said that the RDK variant is allotted and on the way. Few days later the vehicle had arrived in the stock yard. I asked for an inspection and they asked me to come over to their showroom from where they would take me to the yard. But then I was checking for an auspicious day (we are big on it) and the next day was a good one with no good days for the next few days. My impatience took over me. I called up my bank and asked them if they could do the loan disbursal that day itself (I had gotten a pre approval). They said yes. Called the dealer and asked him for next day delivery. He said OK. So had no time for pre-delivery inspection and went for the delivery the next day.

The next day went to the dealership at around 11:30 in the morning. It was pretty much empty as all the deliveries were scheduled in the evening. The dealer took more than the time he told he would but I was expecting some delay. Finally at around 2pm, I got my vehicle. The sales guy gave me a quick demo and then we went home post a short puja we performed at the showroom (courtesy: the showroom guys).

At the showroom:

The RedDark badge:

Another Red Dark accent:

Accessories:

• The XZA+ variant itself is pretty well equipped and I felt no need for any major accessories.
• I got the sidestep and 7D mats installed from the dealership. They threw in a free perfume which was useless.
• I wanted door scratch guards but I didn't like the ones they had. So ignored.
• No other accessories added.

Other Additions/Modifications:

I was keen on ceramic coating, so enquired about it. The sales guy had given me a contact for a newly setup shop doing detailing and ceramic coating work near my house. I contacted them and they were honest in saying that they have done only 3 cars before mine and one of them was a Safari. They showed me the pics of their work and their shop. After a brief discussion, I said OK. They did acceptable work, but am not 100% satisfied as they did not remove the swirl marks in certain places and you can make out (under intense light/ evening sunlight). When I called them out, they came along with a high intensity light and were able to see the swirl marks themselves. They gave some explanation, which both of us knew was not good enough. But at this point, I was not sure what else I could do. Do note that I had given my car for the coating just after 2 days during which time, I had done only one dry cloth dusting of the car and still many swirl marks were there. Probably the cleaners at the dealership just rubbed in all the dust in their zeal to clean the car.

Driving Experience:

In City:

Driving within the city is very comfortable. There is enough power on tap for quick movements when needed. There is a marked difference in performance in the eco, city and sport mode. I have not been able to perform quick accelerations on Eco mode. I guess it is to be used only in bumper to bumper traffic or very sedate driving. Sports mode is a different thing altogether. Noticeable surge in power is there when you try to accelerate. It does bring a smile. But then I felt it makes too much noise in this mode.

People who have driven Harrier will know about the heavy set steering, but I am not having any problems with it. But yes, if you have driven the Tata Nano with power steering, you will know what you are missing when driving Harrier.

You need to be very cautious about the blindspot especially with two wheelers.

Highway:

Highway manners are good. Very stable at high speeds. If the road has undulations, then it is not very great at handling them. Overtaking is not an issue.

We also did a long trip recently to our village which involved highway, narrow lane, bad roads and some rough roading too. No issues noticed. The drive was very good and comfortable. During our onward and return journey, We drove through the summer afternoon with temperatures reaching 43 C but the AC did a good job and never felt the heat (even though we had kept the temp setting at 24). Note that most of the driving till now has been below 100 kph speed (though I got tempted once and sped).

Fuel efficiency:

It is best when driven between 60-100. When driving on Hyderabad ORR on cruise control @ 97kph, the trip meter showed upwards of 19kmpl. In city efficiency varies dramatically. There are days when I get 8 kpl and some when I get 14 kpl. Though I need to see how it performs if I drive it in eco mode fully.

Niggles and Issues:

Right after iRA was enabled, I installed the app and connected to the car. Suddenly after few hours, it started popping notifications that there is some issue and you need to take it to the service center. Another notification was that the battery terminal is not connected properly. The car was not showing any abnormal signs and no lights were also glowing, so was a bit concerned. Took it to the service center immediately. They diagnosed and said there is no issue and they have cleared the errors. Based on my conversation with the service technician, I felt they too are not very fond of the iRA app.

Sometimes the rubber beading on the doors mis-aligns (by itself) when closing the door and this causes irritating hissing noise.

Left rear door needs extra effort for closure.

If we switch off the engine when the gear is in D, and then move to P it seems to have an issue in locking the vehicle. Not sure if this is the intended behavior or an issue

First Service:

I got the first service done recently. Pretty much eventless which is good.

I had asked them to look into:

• The steering wheel as I felt there was some sort of soft grinding feeling when you turn sometimes. The service guy said it happens. On multiple questions, he tried to explain what happens. But I still need to know from others if this is something noticed by others.
• Brakes as I felt they were a bit mushy. They have recalibrated and the feel is better now.
• Wheel alignment, as I noticed a slight pull to the left. The alignment was off right out of the factory. (charged)
• DEF top-up.

(PS: Wheel alignment still seems to be off. Have raised a complain with the service center. Need to follow up)

In the end I would say that the last 2 months of ownership and the overall experience so far has been good and am loving it.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.