Not so long ago, Tata Motors – a pioneer in India’s electric car market - found itself nearly upstaged by two upstarts. On one hand, MG – with the Windsor and Windsor Pro – began breathing down Tata’s neck. On the other, arch-rival Mahindra, set the market buzzing with the BE 6 and XEV 9e, capturing both market share and mindshare. Tata had to respond, and respond the EV giant has.
Enter the Harrier.EV, an SUV that promises to be the market leader’s latest and greatest electric car. To find out more, we got behind the wheel of the Harrier.EV QWD a couple of weeks ago, in an overcast Faridabad. Let’s launch straight into CarToq’s first drive review of Tata’s new electric flagship.
The Harrier.EV, like its name suggests is a flagship electric SUV from Tata Motors – an SUV that sits at the very top of the automaker’s EV line-up. While its name suggests that it’s essentially an electric version of the Harrier Diesel, top Tata engineers disagree.
Chief product officer – Anand Kulkarni – says that the Harrier.EV is Tata’s first take on a 'born electric' car, and that it’s based on a totally new platform – Acti.EV+. The new platform has allowed Tata Motors to equip the Harrier.EV with an all wheel drive system, and a host of technologies that make it the most capable car that Tata's ever produced.
At first glance, the Harrier.EV looks very similar to its internal combustion engined sibling. Look closely, and you’ll find a host of changes. The front grille has been blanked out, as is the case with most EVs, and the front bumper has changed, too. On the profile, alloy wheels get a revamp - adopting a design that makes them cut through the air with as little resistance as possible. Remember, it's an EV!
At the rear, the bumper gets a refresh, and all around, there are a bunch of .ev badges. The design changes are subtle yet enough to differentiate the Harrier.EV from its diesel powered sibling, especially upon closer inspection.
On the inside, changes are more pronounced. The center console now hosts a mode selector switch rather than a gear lever.
The dashboard gets a once over, with different colours and materials coming together to make the cabin look fresher, and the instrument cluster now gets a new interface to suit electric propulsion.
Stepping into the driver's seat, things are familiar yet different. There's the largish steering wheel - leather-wrapped and flat-bottomed!
The steering wheel feels nice to hold, and the only thing we didn't like is the phygital center, which feels quite slippery and un-ergonomic, especially while accessing the horn pad. Behind the steering wheel are paddles, which help control Regen.
Since it's an electric car we're dealing with here, there's total quiet in the cabin. Thumb the start-stop button, and the loudest noise one would hear is the air conditioner. It's an EV you see!
Finding a comfortable driving position in the Harrier.EV is a breezy affair. The power adjustable driver's seat can be moved fore and aft, up and down. The seat back can be inclined, again with the same set of switches.
In a similar fashion, The tilt-telescopic steering can be moved up and down, fore and aft. The seat and steering come together nicely to give the driver a comfortable yet commanding driving position. It helps that the edges of the bonnet are also visible, and one really feels like sitting in a large, imposing SUV.
Getting a move on happens by pushing the drive selector knob on the center console to 'drive'. The Harrier.EV glides forward smoothly, and silently. At parking speeds, the steering does seem to convey that you're driving a heavy car.
Some may like this while others would prefer a lighter steering feel at low speeds. As for us, we liked the heft. There are multiple modes that one can choose - Eco, City, Sport and Boost. And each mode varies the responsiveness of the throttle and steering.
We drove the Harrier.EV primarily in City mode as we were doing a range test. In city mode, the throttle doesn't feel snappy but torque really comes on should you press the accelerator pedal beyond the first couple of millimeters.
The Harrier.EV surges ahead and staying in front of city traffic is very easy. For those who want a sharper throttle and steering response, the Sport and Boost modes offer a lot more. There's a sense of urgency in both modes, and the Harrier hits triple digit speeds very quickly.
If you're looking for numbers, we hit a GPS indicated 100 Kph from standstill in about 7 seconds in Boost mode. The speedo read about 5-6 Kph extra at this point. While the Harrier.EV is the fastest Indian electric vehicle money can buy today, the way this SUV masks speed is something that could be polarising.
Many would love the German car-like speed masking character of this car while others - who want a more seat-of-the-pants feel - will enjoy something like say the Mahindra XEV 9e more as the power delivery of that car feels sharper.
While the Harrier.EV is faster than the XEV 9e, it doesn't feel just as frantic, or urgent. Our interaction with Tata engineers post the drive revealed that this character or 'feel' of the Harrier.EV was engineered deliberately, to give the car a 'European finesse' - something that a lot of people who've experienced high-end Mercedes' and BMWs will immediately connect with. The Harrier.EV felt more European than Indian in the way it accelerated, masked speed and rode. And this is saying a lot!
Talking of ride, here again, the Tata Harrier.EV felt extremely composed and well mannered, gobbling up road imperfections and irregularities, cuccooning the occupants. Comfort? 10/10 for an electric car.
This comes with the usual downside: body roll, which while well controlled, does give away the fact that the Harrier.EV weighs well over 2 tons, 2336 kilograms to be specific (The Harrier.EV's RWD trim weigh 2,235 Kg).
Although the center of gravity of the Harrier.EV is low thanks to the massive 75 kWh battery in the floor, this in an electric car that shows its weight when driven hard, especially around tight corners.
You know that you're driving a hefty SUV. The car tells you that. To sum it up, the Harrier.EV feels like an expensive European car in the way it moves - both in terms of straight-line and cornering performance.
If you drive normally in city mode, with regen set to Level 3, accelerating when you have to, braking when you have to, doing brisk speeds when you have to, and crawling through congested roads when you have to, the Harrier.EV will return about 400-450 Kms on a full charge. In fact, this is what we managed, with AC running all the time, with the car stationary for about 30 minutes with the AC on, and even doing four acceleration pulls in 'Boost' mode. Do check out our video to know more:
While we didn't really take the car off the road save for a short stretch on an open ground, the Harrier.EV is THE most capable electric car in the sub-Rs. 50 lakh segment. The all wheel drive system makes a mammoth difference of the road, and the way the Harrier.EV handles off road obstacles is unreal. Add some trick technology in the form of the 'terrain camera' and this is an electric SUV that's supremely capable off the road. Here, take a look at what the Harrier.EV is capable of, off the road!
The Harrier.EV represents Tata Motors' 'Zenith' in terms of electric cars. It's a showcase of what Tata can achieve - both in terms of mechanical and electronics engineering, and from here on, expectations from India's largest electric car maker, will only inch higher.
Easily the best electric car that Tata has produced, the Harrier.EV is very comfortable, has a very European feel to the way it drives, has stunning off road capabilities, and also has plenty of infotainment and entertainment bits that one has come to expect from 'software defined vehicles'.
The cherry on the cake is the way Tata has managed to price it. At 28.9 lakh rupees, ex-showroom, the Harrier.EV QWD is great value for money, and in Tata-speak, 'more car-per car'. You get 303 Bhp-504 Nm for that kind of money - unmatched by any other car under Rs. 50 lakh. Go test drive one. This is an electric car that should clearly be in the top of your list should you be in the market for one!