First Drive News

The Datsun redi-GO will now be available with a 1-litre engine and yes, it's the same as the one on the Kwid delivering the same amount of power, 67 bhp and same torque 91 Nm. Datsun calls this powertrain i-SAT or Intelligent Spark Automated Technology, which it says is better on performance delivery. Does it really? We find out.

the Tiago went on to win the 2017 NDTV Hatchback of the Year Award too. The only thing it missed was an automatic gearbox. And now, Tata Motors has launched a new variant of the Tiago which gets an AMT option. Under the hood is a 1.2-litre three cylinder unit that also does duty in the standard manual gearbox equipped car. You get 84 bhp of peak power and 114 Nm of peak torque. The gearbox essentially stays the same, a 5-speed unit on which is mounted the AMT shifter module. The module is mated to a traditional shifter lever, which replaces the manual shifter in the cabin. Just like the unit on the Nano and the Zest, the Tiago also gets an AMT unit with a drive, neutral and reverse mode and a manual mode that allows the driver to shift up or down. The Tiago AMT also gets a sports mode to compliment the AMT unit.

When the Mercedes-Benz GLA was first launched in India, most dismissed the car as an A-Class on stilts but the German auto giant knew the potential of this car and the facelift finally made its public debut in January 2017 at the Detroit Motor Show. A little over six months and it's all set to launch in India and we drive the GLA facelift to sample all the changes.

I rarely swoon over the way a car is or drive but the new Aventador S is genuinely that good a car. The old one was great but it did have its issues and now with the new one Lamborghini has really got the formula spot on. I have spent hours and hours on the Lamborghini configurator after I drove this car and I even came up with what could be my dream spec. But alas, for us mere mortals, the Aventador S is quite expensive with its Rs 5.01 Crore (ex-showroom, Delhi) price tag. Maybe Ill just get a 1:18 scale model than and hope to win the lottery someday. Because if you really do have the money to consider a Rs 5 Crore car, the new Aventador S has to be at the very top of your list!

The Isuzu MU-X is the latest SUV from the Japanese company and we were rather excited to get behind the steering wheel of this one. Here's how it felt.

The XC60 is Volvos global bestselling car model line, and also Europes number one seller in the premium compact SUV segment. Thats quite a reputation especially for a car that comes from a brand that was ready to be written off not so long ago, isnt it? And being a brands best selling model in the last year of its life cycle is even more creditable, given it was surrounded in showrooms by much newer and popular models like the S90, V90/V90 Cross Country, XC90, and facelifted V40 too. It also accounts for 35% of Volvos sales in India. This is significant since Volvo is now poised for growth in India. The Volvo XC60 will come to us by November 2017. It will be a direct import for starters and therefore we will get only one fully loaded Inscription variant. Volvo has announced that it will now also begin assembling cars in India an so eventually the XC60 will also move to being assembled here.

Maruti Suzuki offers a large variety of AMT powered cars in its portfolio. These include the entry level Alto K10 and Wagon R to the Celerio and the Ignis hatchbacks. In fact, about 40 per cent of all Celerio buyers and about 20 per cent of Ignis buyers opt for the AMT gearbox. The last generation Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire had the AMT gearbox but only with the diesel engine option. The new Maruti Suzuki Dzire gets the AMT gearbox with both the petrol and diesel engines. So lets tell you how it drives and if it is worth the average Rs 50 thousand premium over the manual versions.

We drive the brand new 2017 Maruti Suzuki Dzire to see if the car is really worth the premium price tag that it comes with. The new Dzire looks nice, especially compared to the older versions, and it surely is a lot more feature-rich as well. AMT is now offered with both petrol and diesel variants as an option and the revised mileage makes the new Maruti Dzire the most fuel efficient car in India in both the categories.