When the Tata Curvv arrived in some eight months after we first drove it last September, it immediately got down to business. With its new Hyperion engine to test, we ran a Mumbai-Pune-Pune errand with it and right after it was accompanying us to a shoot which spanned over 800kms spanning Mumbai-Pune-Nashik-Pune-Mumbai. That’s a lot of running in just two days. Following that, the weekend arrived and I took it to my native place to attend a family function, so I added another 500kms to the mix. In all, the Curvv ran 1500kms in a span of under 10 days, which gave us a fair bit of idea of what we liked about it, and things that could have been better. Read on to find out.
The Curvv is a C-SUV which brings a unique coupe-SUV bodystyle. Now I have a bit of an opinion about the Curvv’s styling. That the Curvv Concept should have spawned this Curvv line-up sooner, instead of the design that was copy-pasted on the Nexon, Nexon EV, Harrier and Safari facelifts, and even the Punch EV. Doing this made the design of the Curvv less special.
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But the speciality of the Curvv has to be its rear three-quarter. With a coupe-SUV body style, it brings a very fresh flavour in the segment, and it looks gorgeous. It doesn't look like an afterthought, and more importantly, the Curvv’s haunches make it look bulky and grand. I saw one on the road with a petite sedan-like spoiler, and it looked so good with the styling of the Curvv. If you have one, do get yourself a small spoiler to enhance the styling.
A few fuel pump attendants - more on the fuel stops later - but the fuel pump attendants dropped their work and came around to admire this rear end. Even on the move, this one looks bulky and feels large, which many SUV buyers want from their pride and joy, right?
Also Read: Tata Curvv EV Coupe-SUV Review: Curve Ball
Now of the dislikes, the Curvv’s cabin has a few misses that grind my gears. Firstly, this centre console has no bottle holder. And the access to the USB is ridiculous, too. Then there’s the seats. It should have had taller backrest height. It lacks support for the shoulder, making it uncomfortable for longer journeys. You’d find yourself adjusting your posture time and again just to settle in.
Also, the steering is slightly offset from the centre, making it a nightmare for people with OCD. The gear lever is a tad too tall, and the overall ergonomics of spending time behind the wheel aren’t that great. Despite sitting in the lowest seat setting, you sit unnecessarily high and upright. And then there’s the rear visibility, or rather the lack of it, which is a bit of a hindrance in city confines.
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Front row aside, getting inside the second row isn’t easy if you are a senior citizen with knee problems. I know my parents are and they both complained the same. Once inside, the seats offer good bolstering here, but the space on offer isn’t the best. Legroom or headroom both leave you wanting for more.
The Curvv’s saving grace is the massive 500 litres boot space, which is best in the segment. More than what you get in the Hyundai Creta, Honda Elevate, Kia Seltos, and much much more than the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara and the Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder.
Although you can get the Curvv in an EV derivative, with the ICE version, you have both a petrol and a diesel. And there are two petrol options too. The first one is the familiar 1.2-litre Revotron, which does duty in the Nexon as well. What we have here is the new Hyperion engine debuting with the Curvv. This one too is a 1.2-litre engine with three cylinders, with direct injection, but it makes more power - around 123bhp and 225Nm. I am pretty sure many of you must be having this question, this big of a car with a small 1.2-litre three-cylinder engine might feel underpowered. But that’s not the case.
Sure, the engine with high-tech 350ps direct fuel injectors might sound racy, but it's built more in line with keeping up with technology rather than giving you the sportier feel. It’s nothing like the 1.0-litre or 1.5-litre turbopetrol from Hyundai and Kia. This engine, firstly, feels refined. There are no vibrations whatsoever. It’s smooth and delivers power nicely and easily. Past the 2000 rpm, the mid-range is meaty. Properly meaty. It feels so good in the meaty mid-range, I sometimes slot it in 3rd or 4th gear and just forget it there. You can go between 30 kmph and 130 kmph between these two gears. At that pace, the speed gathers so smoothly. The acceleration is a gentle tug. And the engine is free revving too. It doesn't race towards the redline, but rows through the rev counter at its own pace.
Also Read: Tata Curvv EV, Nexon EV, Punch EV, Tiago EV Offered With Benefits Up To Rs 1.71 Lakh
But on the downside, it lacks a good low-end grunt. If you find yourself in a gear too high with speed gradually reducing it will stall it. In fact, just to give you an example, you are approaching a speed breaker, you downshift to second, because you know this speed breaker, second gear should pull you through. But no. This one would stall for no good reason. And it won't stutter and stall, it would just breathe its last breath and die on you. This happens more frequently, especially when you are carrying 4 on board. And then you hear the horns blaring in all your embarrassment. Also, there’s an electronic handbrake which engages as soon as the engine stalls. So, if you quickly try to start the engine and get going, it won’t let you.
It's not helped by the fact that the clutch action is long, and the biting point feels spongy at times. Moreover, the gear lever is a tad longer than it should have been. And it’s also quite notchy. It will take some time to get used to this clutch and gear lever action. Luckily, we managed to jump-start the dead engine once it stalled by dumping the clutch while it was still in motion. Yeah, it starts, sometimes. Not recommended. But necessary evil.
Maybe, get the twin-clutch automatic if you are getting yourself the Curvv. But there’s another catch to it. Because another dislike for this Curvv Petrol Manual as to be the fuel mileage we receive on our overall time with it. Throughout these 1500 km, the calculated mileage we received never exceeded 10 kmpl. That’s considering more than 80 per cent of pure highway runs. In the city, the figure drops to single digits and no matter how efficiently you try to drive. It may not fare more with the DCT either.
After a dislike, let me tell you one thing I really like about the Curvv - it is a Tata. So, it's got amazing ride quality. Especially for the Indian road conditions. We went to the interior roads of the NH66. Those who know, know that the entire NH66 is under construction. You can imagine the state of the interior roads must be by now. The yet-to-be-paved roads with gravel and red sand laid out on the ribbon going around the western Sahyadri, and the Curvv just came into its own. It felt like driving a proper WRC car on a dirt track circuit. Too much fun.
The steering may not be very communicative. It isn’t light either and has dead centre for a few degrees. But get going, and it gets better. Like the gearbox, it also needs time to get used to.
One of the biggest reasons why you should get yourself the Curvv has to be its extensive feature list. There are five variants apart from the S, and this range-topping version also comes with ADAS. This ADAS works brilliantly, too and sometimes too brilliantly. Especially in traffic where it wants to hard brake despite the foot being on the brakes and not on the accelerator.
On the other hand, so many features also mean there are as many glitches as possible. This wireless Android auto disconnects for no reason. The wireless charging has never actually charged my phone properly. The digital driver’s display went off and blanked out a couple of times. Once on the Lonavala ghat. And lastly, our test car’s rear right indicator sometimes works, other times doesn’t.
So, after clocking 1500 kilometres with the Tata Curvv Petrol Manual, one thing is clear — it’s not just a bold attempt to rewrite the rules of the game as it dares to do things differently. It blends bold styling with solid highway manners and a genuinely refined engine that sings well at certain notes. But like most things trying to break the mould, it isn’t without its rough edges. The cabin could’ve been more thoughtfully designed, the low-speed drivability of the engine could have been better, and the fuel economy—well, let’s just say it doesn’t win any medals there.
But here’s the thing — the Curvv isn’t playing safe. It’s a statement. It’s Tata trying to define a new design language and a new benchmark in how their cars feel on the road. And for that alone, it deserves your attention. Should you buy it? If you want something that stands out in a sea of cookie-cutter SUVs, offers great ride comfort, solid road presence, and you can live with the quirks, then yes, the Curvv might just be the coupe-SUV curveball you didn’t see coming.
Pictures by Vaibhav Dhanawade
