Tata Motors unveiled the latest in the Nano's long list of upcoming improvements on the Nano Twist with an opening tail-gate and an Automated Manual Transmission. Tata has been working on developing an opening tail-gate since the Nano was launched in 2009 and will be offering this upgrade soon. It is a welcome addition to the Nano as the current method of accessing the small luggage space via the rear seat is quite cumbersome. The opening tailgate, however, increases the overall weight of the Nano by around 70-80kg, which could hit fuel efficiency. However, the fuel tank capacity has been significantly improved - now rated at 25 litres - and should considerably improve the range of the Nano.
As for the auto transmission, it is a five-speed 'box - basically derived from the Nano's four-speed manual, but with an extra ratio - and the AMT unit is sourced from Magneti Marelli. The unit features similar tech to the automatic gearbox seen in the Tata Zest and the Maruti Celerio. When it goes on sale in 2015, the Nano AMT could be the cheapest automatic transmission-equipped car in the world. This added ratio could also mean that a five-speed manual gearbox could be on the cards for the Tata Nano.
The show car also featured an interesting facelift that has a new bumper design and black accents for the headlamps. We're not sure if or when this will make it to the showroom but it looks good, so we are hoping it will.
Viraaj Bhatnagar
Dipan Sur
Dhruv Dhaka
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