The Tata Nexon compact SUV (popularly dubbed the Osprey) has been spotted on test near Pune. It was first shown as a concept car at the 2014 Auto Expo and is likely to go into production sometime next year. The car is based on the same platform as the Bolt and Zest and is expected to carry the same design philosophy in production guise.
Firstly, the spy pictures show some shots of the interior, although with so much camouflage the details are still sketchy. However, if we are to go by how Tata has been developing its models then the Nexon should get a lot of bits from the Zest, Bolt and Zica.
Moving to the exterior of the car, we can see the mesh grille, shape of the bumper and what appear to be circular headlamps indicating that this is still a pre-production model. We can also see the high ground clearance and hatch opening at the rear.
On the engine and gearbox front, the car is sure to get the 1.2-litre Revotron petrol and most probably a new 1.5-litre diesel which is currently being developed in-house and may be shown at the 2016 Auto Expo.
The Nexon will be Tata’s answer to vehicles like the Fiat Avventura, Toyota Etios Cross, Hyundai i20 Active and the Volkswagen Cross Polo.