CarSeekBlog

Nick Kurczewski went to Pune, India to take a test drive in the Tata Nano for The New York Times. The Nano, the much storied $2,000 “people’s car,” has a 32 hp, 624-cc, 2-cylinder engine. The body and chassis are steel, the bumpers plastic. Overall, it’s the shortest four-passenger car in India at just 122 inches.

In his article, Kurczewski reports a zero to 50 mph time of around 16.4 seconds (Tata claims closer to 15) and a turning radius of a mere four meters. There are three models: the base, CX and LX with the price actually ranging from $2,200 to $3,360.

Engine noise is apparently suprisingly low and the model Kurczewski drove had AC and power brakes, but no power assist steering. Still he said the control was “nice” and the ride stable and comfortable even with a fifth person in the car. (He said acceleration suffered with a 700 lb. load, a little better than half of the Nano’s own 1,322 lbs.)

The brief review (with photo) makes for an interesting read and, of course, we all wonder if the Nano will ever see our fair shores. It looks a bit like the Smart car, already selling briskly in the United States and in these tough economic times, the price tag is — well, mouth watering.

One thing is for certain, the very fact that the Nano exists and that the Smart car is rapidly becoming a favorite, is proof positive that the automotive form factor has undergone a radical transformation in a relatively short period of time. The era of the gas guzzler, if not yet dead, is on its last legs.

Filed under: New & Notable by Shorty