While Tata Motors has teased performance-oriented concepts based on its hatchbacks for a while now, the Tiago JTP is the first to make it from show floor to showroom floor. Alongside the Tigor JTP, the Tiago JTP is one of the first products from JT Special Vehicles or JTSV — a joint venture between Tata Motors and Coimbatore-based Jayem Automotives, a big name in the business of racing. The cars have been worked on by Jayem, but are produced alongside the standard model at Tata’s Sanand plant and are offered with the same warranties and service intervals. In brief, the JTP is a proper souped-up version of the Tiago. Revised styling package aside, it’s also got a proper engine upgrade, reworked gear ratios and suspension modifications.
The JTP’s a proper looker
The 4mm lower ride height, larger 15-inch wheels and chunkier 185-section tyres alone give it a squatter, sportier stance. The front bumper is completely new. The grille gets a new honeycomb mesh and there’s even a functional vent on the bonnet that helps dissipate heat from the engine compartment. Faux vents just at the front-wheel arches, neatly-done side skirts and diamond-cut alloy wheels add the right amount of flash to the sides. A restyled rear bumper with a faux diffuser and a dual-pipe exhaust completes the JTP transformation.
The cabin isn’t vastly different from the standard Tiago’s, but there are enough touches to give it a unique vibe. The predominantly black cabin features red stitching on the seats and steering, red surrounds for the air-con vents and red lining for the floor carpets to distinguish it from the standard model.
The drilled pedals don’t look quite as convincing, but drivers will like the feel of the leather-wrapped steering. It’s just the right amount of meaty. However, more sculpted front seats with better side bolstering would have been nice. In every other way, the JTP is identical to the standard Tiago. However, dual airbags, ABS, rear parking sensors and an 8-speaker sound system are part of the package. And while the 5.0-inch touchscreen is fine, it’s not the largest, slickest or best-equipped today.
Under the bonnet
The naturally-aspirated 1.2-litre petrol engine from the standard Tiago makes way for an enhanced version of the Nexon’s turbocharged 1.2-litre petrol engine. Peak power is a cool 114hp (up 29hp from the standard), while peak torque is at 150Nm (115Nm when the drive mode is set to City). The engine runs a revised intake and exhaust system (which makes it more powerful than on the Nexon) and comes mated to the standard Tiago’s 5-speed gearbox, but with tweaked ratios for brisker acceleration.
Stick to Sports mode, keep revs above 2,500rpm or so, and you’ll like the JTP’s turn of pace. It’s not a rev-happy motor, nor do you get a huge surge of mid-range torque, but there’s still fun to be had winding the engine to its 6,000rpm limiter. Performance is warm-hatch good and you’ll enjoy thrashing the engine on a twisty road. What also comes into play when you are in the mood is the smooth shifting gearbox — it’s light and has fairly well-defined gates.
The thrum from the three-cylinder engine actually helps the experience here and, if you listen closely, you can even hear the turbo. Still, some more volume and some more depth to the sound would do wonders. In average driving scenarios, the JTP feels livelier than a standard Tiago, but not as peppy as a Maruti Suzuki K12 petrol engine. Also, the power delivery tends to feel jerky in low-speed environments, perhaps owing to snappy fuelling.
Engine apart, it’s the JTP’s dynamics package that, well, makes it a JTP. The springs have been lowered, the dampers have been optimised, but the biggest gains, as per engineers involved in its development, have come from the bespoke 185/60 R15 tyres.
As is, the Tiago has a fairly fluid steering, but on the JTP, there’s more weight and feel, so you get a greater connect with the car. There’s also a lot more grip from the tyres, allowing you to push the JTP in the bends with far more abandon. And the brakes (front discs and rear drums) are sufficiently strong too. What’s nice is that the added dynamism hasn’t come at the cost of ride comfort. Low-speed bump absorption is really good and the car feels nice and planted at cruising speeds.
Price perfect
Tata has launched the Tiago JTP at ₹6.39 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi), a good ₹1.2 lakh over the standard Tiago petrol’s XZ trim. But see what you get for the money, and also see the JTP in perspective of other sporty hatchbacks, and it comes across as quite the deal. The JTP is a car for enthusiasts by enthusiasts. It’s not perfect, but there’s a certain character to the Tiago JTP that makes it very endearing.
