Tata seems to be on a mission to improve motoring standards in India, to get people off bikes and trikes and into a four-wheeler. It started with the Nano, which low entry price gave families an alternative to cramming everyone on a bike. Now, the company has launched the Magic Iris at the Auto Expo in Delhi, which should be a decent alternative to the three-wheeled auto rickshaw common in India.
To be launched this year, the Magic Iris “is for public transportation, offering safer and more comfortable mobility for those who depend on three-wheelers”. The tiny body can sit five, including the driver, and occupants will be fully enclosed, unlike in tuk-tuks.
The Magic Iris is powered by a 611cc water cooled diesel engine. With a 10-litre fuel tank, it’s capable of longer distances than a three-wheeler and has a top speed of about 55 km/h. 11 bhp may not be much, but it’s more than what the auto rickshaws offer. Tata also promises lower maintenance costs and a higher load capacity than the popular vehicle it’s trying to replace.
Looks quite cute and cartoonish, don’t you think?
My God, it looks horrible!!
i tink its gonna tip over everytime u sneeze !
This car is so “nice”…Maybe perodua can think of rebadging this van!!!!! It suits perodua…..Small car, small vehicle.
you kidding right, paul????? a 611cc diesel….a smiling, happy vehicle.. tata is creating cars for local market….
aku tengok keta ni dah mace mato ‘SUPERMAN’….wakakak…Lucu gilo.
It looks like CRAZY FROG…….LMAO
Such a tall car……….can forsee a high centre of gravity means many will turned turtle.
Should rebadge Passo Sette instead, or Honda Freed.
If bring to Malaysia can replace ‘prebet sapu’ or not??
Love it.
hey Paul, Can you post and write about Tata Aria MPV?
it is also looks promising.
Who knows if it a good turning point for Rajan besides the Nano
such a ‘cute’ thing…..rim size ’10 inch’ ?
Bold…
looks like turtle face to me…
haha…soo magical.
although small and look fugly…..
but the car is an ideal car…….
and the diesel engine is a brilliant idea for a small van and its only 611cc…
but still my grandfather KAPCAi does run faster than this car…
What a social contribution…. Salute
But Indian might despise it in distance future… More vehicle more pollution..
can tata come to malaysia? i dont think tata car quality is very good, so it give some fair competition to p1? or india got railway construction as contra of p1 to penetrate india market?
they should put the front wheel more forward.
it looks like a rabbit yang patah kaki!!
damn thats one fugly car, but its purpose is not to look good, rather to subsitute as a rickshaw transport.
so looks aside, it pretty much wins over the rickshaw in everything else.
ha ha ha ha …. 1st impress …..
it’s just better than a rickshaw…
i think the car really reflects TATA… very very bollywood kind of ride…
Looks like ultraman face
Looks like ET on rollers : )
ET Phone Home…ET Phone Home…ET Phone Home…
this is the real moving coffin….
Its passengers will enter/exit through the back door?
Interesting….
bukan mata superman.
mata ultraman.
pwerodua will rebadge it..down worry..
small comfort. better quality.and all malaysian can buy others Branded car..
petrol is about RM5 per litre in India. Diesel is around RM3. Motorcyclist who would want to convert from 2 wheeler to 4 wheeler probably could only afford to buy diesel engined 4 wheeler. Tata sense a big market in this buyer’s category…..let’s see what will happen.
IF this is TOYOTA, sure can sell in Malaysia !!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
looks like a honda city, not literally.. but like a baboon.
Perhaps Proton or Perodua should come out with its own tuk-tuk for Malaysia market. Petty those ‘kereta sapu’ using Perodua Kancil…
the engine is located at the front or at the back? what will happen if its going downhill with a driver and front passenger then hitting an emergency brake?
Ugly car. 10L fuel, not going that far when carrying five people. So where is the engine? Is it that small?
like MJ…
my boy-boy love the look of this van….he want to paint “Ben10″ on this car
i am still wondering why do they design the crumple zone to be so far to the front. the reaosn why some car manufacture put the wheels wayy up front to be part of force absorbtion.
suitable for india magic road
Think it is not right to compare to a normal car at them. To them, beats sitting in rickshaw or motorbike
Some heavy vehicles zooming past this car fast enough can make it topple, if not the least sway like hell
box with 4wheels
….
man..this thing has got a COG so high that it looks like it can tilt over anytime while standing still!
1st in my thought is this car shouldn’t be allowed into highway PLUS.dangerous bcos too slow!!!
Can bring in to malaysia for replace Melaka & penang beca… sure looks nice….
i think this tata suits india…
Dont tell me even with inputs of prodrive like the later article 5-10 years later we still see such crap in India. sweat!
sangat menarik perhatian.. kejap je dah 40 komen lebih..
it’s Tata’s Keicar model (again).
scary….
i thought so someone will say it is nice….what da….
nano…then aria…now this…quite a good move from tata,suitable for places like india thailand etc…definately not malaysia…
WTH*! SO FUNNY! LOOKING! LOL!
alien face…
This car look like trying to scare indians…
Another sucks from india, similiar monkey face, they should engaged italian . Where been local talent? shame2!
600cc diesel engine? damn that should be the holy grail of fuel efficiency….why can’t we have 1 of those?
hmmm… no aerodynamics needed for this?
n yea… look like an alien smiley face!
TATA GOODBYE
Looks good
very good looking with good efficiency
Lime green paint job screams optimism, but optimism cannot hide the fact that the exterior design is bad, really bad. I sincerely believe the smart people at TATA can do better in their product design, while still being able to limit their budget. Its seems like they’re not trying to reach their full potential…where’s the effort? Cheap can be excellent too. Go, India! TATA should try harder.
TATA YOU ARE THE TAJ OF INDIA.YOU ARE THE JEWELE IN THE CROWN OF INDIA.KEEP THE GOOD WORK UP. MY BEST WHISHES TO TATA AND ITS ENGNEERS.
Look 1000x better the the fugly Proton Sawi. I haven’t even mentioned the uglist vehicle everr created by mankind >>Proton Juara<<
sure alot of tuk-tuk sound coming out …..
Ugliest car ever.looks like someone asking for a slap
even savvy is million times better than this frog
even juara is way better than this box
i thk it’ll be better alternate of rikshaw….. nice
This thing sucks big time. I wonder who designed this thing. You can keep this as an example of how NOT to design an automobile. TATA u can make cheap cars but they look cheap as well… I would be ashamed to travel in one of these. GOD save us please!
can be dumb n dumber’s ride 4 next movie..
Mmmm i m thinking ver 2 start, ok first of all its better den BIKE & RIKSHA if u think about safety,much safer den BIKE & RIKSHA,as it is diesel must be ECONOMICAL for middle class people to own it and utilise it, buying vehicle is not only DIFICULT but after buying the vehicle it is also important for the person to AFFORD the MAINTENANCE and FUEL,and this UGLY but USEFUL vehicle is delivering both to indias middle class, i bealive something is BETTER den nothing,i hope in future TATA will not ask KIDS to design vehicle but use more PROFESSIONAL designer to put xtra effort in DESIGN & SAFETY,this vehicle looks bit tall and not much ground distance between tyres,like the DIESEL concept,i hope TATA will provide free insurance to all buyer of this TOY VAN.but i am saluting THE TATA to make something for middle class of india who never thought that they can afford to buy 4 wheeler,THANKS TATA, i am giving 6/10, I LOVE MY INDIA & ALL INDIANS WITHOUT THEIR CAST/RELIGION/REGION.
Juara’s ugly sister.
I have rode on an ‘AutoRiksha’ (not tuk tuk, Paul) in Mumbai and Delhi and this is way safer and comfortable. Well you can say it looks like a grasshopper or whatever but i think is suitable for Indian roads and users. It would be pointless to compare it with a Guigaro or Bertone designed car, cos Styling is last on the priority list.
TATA is doing something good for India market and i don’t think they will be exporting this vehicle any time soon. Anyway their internal market is already sufficient without exporting.
i’ll drive that. Cute and fun!
In Japan, you can see worst than this.
for short distance, this is perfect, much better than riding a bike…
alansmithz said,
January 7, 2010 @ 11:13 pm
Look 1000x better the the fugly Proton Sawi. I haven’t even mentioned the uglist vehicle everr created by mankind >>Proton Juara<<
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hahaha..
this guy try really hard to be a basher..
if TATA put their emblem on a COW DUNG also he will say.. CUUUUN..
hahahaha….
Peter said,
January 7, 2010 @ 1:10 pm
This car is so “nice”
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WTF?? hahaha..
u must be ridding a GWIZ rite now..
http://www.carpages.co.uk/news/news-images/gwiz_15_04_05.JPG
TATA only sold 18 vehicles here last year..
if they bring this van here.. it’s a suicide…
and 1st person to commit that is YOU..
if sell in malaysia, should be more like beca replacement model.
Funny looking car which might only suit Indian market. But at least they dont plagiarize other peoples designs like China manufacturers.
The van looks as if its going to roll over its roof under braking… then again, I suppose they dont use their brake that much over in those parts of the world… should work well with Hindi movie stunts.
honda freed away better……paul should review that than this experiment vehicle..
Looks are subjective lah. A lot of kei cars won’t even pass our ‘appearance’ standards but sell well in Japan.
At least they’re trying to get people off bikes & trikes and into something relatively safer.
Fuyooo.. magic betulla..
When will our local manufacturers start to produce ‘kereta sapu replacement models’, or ‘beca replacement models’ or ‘taxi buruk mercedes kelantan replacement models’….
this is on the likes of what the Japanese use. If u dunno what i mean go to Tokyo. U will see worse ones
This would be the next Proton Juara replacement model!
Proton, please get this into our local market and sell is RM100k without AP of course!!!
guys u are missing the point !!! its not abt aerodynamics, styling or any of the exteriors!! if its exteriors u r concerned with, take a bajaj auto !! what is the styling quotient??? so f**k that !!! talk of the purpose, talk utility, talk economics of an average auto driver trying to maitain hiis GAADI!! talk of pasenger comfort, talk of a workeable solution to travelling/ driving in a back bending useless-suspension rickshaw almost everyday for almost 18 hrs of the day !!! ever done that ???? see the point ????
There will be some idiots always to comment negative for every move someone make to improve the standard of living. This is a replacement for Auto Rickshaw and NOT for those who want to purchase a car.Are you crazy enough to think TATA is releasing this vehcle without passing the security tests? ‘N look?? Far better than the Rikshaw and much safe than it. Congratulate TATA!!
JACK HAMMER said,
January 8, 2010 @ 10:42 am
Peter said,
January 7, 2010 @ 1:10 pm
This car is so “nice”
________________________________________________________________________
WTF?? hahaha..
u must be ridding a GWIZ rite now..
http://www.carpages.co.uk/news/news-images/gwiz_15_04_05.JPG
TATA only sold 18 vehicles here last year..
if they bring this van here.. it’s a suicide…
and 1st person to commit that is YOU..
Bro, i say it is “nice”,….Not nice………”nice” = not nice la…..simple english leh….
Btw, i already had my persona . So i dont think i will be buying anymore car from now. Maybe i will wait for the next global version of persona in 2012.
my kapchai has 14hp…from 125cc….
and they say 1.3 campro drinks fuel…because underpower…
now?
The car looks like a frog… seriously ugly….
maybe suitable in india.. but i dont think it is a good idea to bring that thing here… malaysia people should get better quality design car not things like this…
for the first time… juara looks better if put side by side with this thing…
i wonder.. time brek tayar blakang benda ni tercunggit tak…? or maybe not enuff hp to do that…