Faisal Khan

Make or Break: Why the Duster Hybrid is Renault India’s Most Crucial Launch Yet! - Good pricing for the hybrid tech - A lot of missing features when compared to non-hybrid Duster - Top-end costs Rs. 23.5 lakhs (OTR), buyers will happily pay Rs. 50k more for foglamps, 360-camera, auto-dimming IRVM, in-built Google, etc. - Renault doesn't understand that people in India want features, a slight cost increase is hardly an impact on EMI. - Hybrid tech is super, performance is excellent! - Fuel efficiency is phenomenal - I don't like the cluster, I don't like the infotainment - Drives really well - fab ride, great handling - superb balance - Sales and service network needs improvement - K9K diesel in this car would 10x sales overnight - Renault sold a measly 465 units of the Duster last month - Nissan sold 409 units, just 46 units difference - Renault's massive test drive campaign backfired - existing owners did knowledge transfer to prospective customers about poor service and bad resale - Next up for Renault is the Bridger and 3-row SUV Hope the Duster sells better, it's a phenomenal car, let down by poor marketing, past baggage (Renault did nothing in India under ex-MD Venkatram Mamillapalle's 8 year tenure that has now made people forget the French brand in India completely)! Now ex-Renault MD is advisor to JSW Motors, I honestly don't know how the world works!

The Bayon is Hyundai's answer to the Maruti Victoris! - Looks striking - Great interior - high res screens + physical buttons - Rear seat has space but misses out on sunblinds that the smaller Venue offers - Limited powertrain options - turbo & diesel should have been offered - Rs. 11.72 lakhs - good starting price - Rs. 21.49 lakhs - expensive top-end (all prices on-road, Mumbai) - Will get a good head-start till new Creta comes by March 2027 - Why Bayon when Creta is in the same segment? Hyundai wants to push new Creta higher-up & take Alcazar's place as Alcazar will be discontinued soon - Alcazar replacement in the works, will be more SUV as Alcazar is more MPV - Bayon competes in the most crowded segment with more than 15 cars vying for the same pie!

Tata Power is by far the worst charging provider, most of the time charger doesn't work, app doesn't connect & keeps crashing! But the worst is showing of ads in the app, like seriously! Absolute garbage UI & uptime, even though Tata EVs benefit most from a good charging network!

4 years after launch & the major issue of Scorpio N is still not resolved which is last row of seats - no 50:50 split, no third row AC vents & charging ports! This was a great chance to add memory seats, sliding second row seats, rear window blinds! The old cluster was better too

The Sierra EV is not just the fastest Tata car, it's also the fastest manufactured in India car (CKD not considered)! While it has some serious speed, not everyone will be able to handle all that power. Then there is the price, it's on the expensive side but very feature loaded!

Honda has given the 5th gen City a second facelift & although it's minor, the car definitely looks better now (I hate chrome)! But there are 0 mechanical changes, the screen looks after-market, there is still no Turbo VTEC & the changes aren't enough to boost sales of the City!

Skoda has loaded base variant of Kushaq with a lot of features which is amazing but instead of alloy wheels, a better infotainment system would be nice! The Kushaq facelift drives as good as ever & added features makes it a better package, price - Rs. 12.66 - 22.47 lakhs (OTR)!

The Duster is back but this time it's feature loaded! Renault has done a fab job as the new Duster is a great all-round package (a diesel is missing though)! The dynamics are segment best with good handling, great ride & a nice steering feel. Price - Rs. 12.42 - 22.15 lakhs (OTR)

The new CLA could be the most affordable Mercedes in India & the range is absolutely phenomenal (claimed at 792 kms)! But the design is a hit or a miss - some like it, some don't! What do you think about this new design direction & would you buy this EV sedan at Rs. 60 lakhs?

The Kylaq has been a game changer for Skoda with 50,000 units sold in the past 12 months (it completes 1 year today - happy birthday Kylaq)! Skoda has been smart enough to understand what Indian car buyer wants & the Kylaq is proof that good things do come in small packages!

Mercedes has given the S-Class a facelift & it gets even more tech now! Do you like the Mercedes logo in the headlights and tail-lights? Are 3 screens too much? Because this car actually has 5 screens (excluding the remote for rear seat entertainment)! The best gets even better?

Tata has finally made a good petrol engine as the 1.5-litre TGDI motor that powers the Sierra, Harrier & Safari is very impressive in refinement & performance! The new Fearless Ultra variant adds even more features to these cars but I wish the Safari was still a ladder frame SUV!

The new Seltos is bigger in size & looks quite nice in person! While the engines remain the same as before, the chassis has been updated & the car drives better with improved ride quality! A ton of features but nothing segment unique like when it was first launched 6 years back!

The eVitara fails to deliver with its small boot, poor rear seat comfort & a UI that gets frustrating to use as even the basic of functions are stuffed into the touch-screen. While performance is good, it's not EV level fast & the dynamics dont' impress either! I expected better!

The Seltos boasted of many segment first features at launch in 2019 but the second-gen doesn’t have any unique features because of Tata loading the Sierra to the brim! Would be interesting to see how sales turn out in the most competitive car segment, should the Creta be worried?

I am quite impressed by the new Sierra - it looks bigger than it is, has plenty of features, quite spacious with a big boot & seems like the best Tata car till date! But I hope Tata Motors has worked on the quality & reliability, & the service centre is able to manage any issue!

Volvo will soon launch the EX30 in India with a 69 kWh battery pack and rear-wheel drive layout, after driving it for a couple of days, I feel it's one of the worst cars Volvo has ever made, here is why - Pros - - Small, nimble, peppy - the EX30 drives like most Chinese EVs - 0-100 km/hr in 5.3 seconds is fast as it produces 272 HP and 343 Nm - Apple CarPlay is finally wireless in a Volvo Cons - - Doesn't feel like a Volvo, feels like any other Chinese EV - Everything is stuffed inside the 12.3-inch infotainment screen, there is no instrument cluster and it lacks physical controls - shockingly distracting and coming for a brand that always talks about safety - The glass roof is fixed, doesn't open - AWD variant isn't being offered in India - Design is more Chinese than Scandinavian - Rear seats lack space, this car is designed for 2 people - Storage is poor with small door pockets, useless glovebox and a small boot - Evident cost cutting - there are no speakers on the doors, power window switches are in the centre and not on the doors - ADAS is poorly calibrated, everytime you look into the centre screen to monitor speed, the driver monitoring system rings an alert and you have to turn it off everytime you turn on the car! - Stiff ride and the 19-inch wheels don't help comfort either - The EX30 isn't a bespoke Volvo as it's underpinned by the Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) which is developed by Geely and used by the Zeekr X and Smart #1 - Claimed range of 480 kms, real world range of under 340 kms with an efficiency of under 5 kms per kWh is poor for a car of this price - Sub-par build quality, doesn't feel like a Volvo and my test car's front bumper collapsed on a small impact with sand, the car was undrivable It's quite evident that the EX30 isn't a Volvo but a Chinese car with a Volvo badge but if Volvo prices it right, it could sell well. However, anything above Rs. 35 lakhs (ex-showroom) will make this new entry-level Volvo dead-on-arrival!

I met Lewis Hamilton and also interviewed him (in Barcelona)! The only Indian (outside of F1 media) to interview the 7-time world champion! I also got a LH44 and CL16 autographed Ferrari cap!

The bounce feature in the Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 is one of the coolest suspension tricks in the automobile world, agree?

The Panamera is a very under-rated sedan because it offers good amount of comfort, tech & features while driving like a sports car! This GTS has a 4.0-litre V8 engine that pumps out 500 BHP & 660 Nm, making it very quick! Handles like a charm, steering is unbelievably quick!