The interior
Beyond the rump, the rest of the car is bog-standard Verito, with a few subtle changes here and there. The front grille, for example, is finished in a sporty carbon fibre look compared with the chrome of the normal Verito. Blacked out headlamps and sporty roof rails complete the picture. There are some last-mile issues in terms of fit and finish and the quality of interiors is ordinary. One strange sight was the centre console – it’s not fit dead centre, it’s skewed more to the left. Seems like a casting error in the die that moulds the dash -- and needs to be taken care of.
Normally, due to the length restrictions, interior space is compromised in a lot of the cars in this segment, but the Verito Vibe will have none of that. While still maintaining a 330-litre boot, albeit with an awkward, slit-like opening, there’s absolutely no reduction in interior space compared with the Verito. This, we think, will be the Vibe’s USP. Front seat space is great as usual, but the best part is rear seat space.
You can actually seat three people comfortably back there and won’t hear many complaints. There are also three proper headrests for the rear seat passengers for added safety and comfort. Interior quality could definitely see a lot of improvements, but at least with the recent upgrade to the Verito, ergonomic nightmares like the moulded door handles and power window switches are taken care of. The faux carbon fibre theme continues in the interior as well, with the dash and glove box accents adorned in the stuff.
Thankfully, they leave it at that and don’t go overboard. Overall, it may be a little on the bland side, but it’s very spacious.
The heart
Under the hood of the Vibe is the very familiar 1.5-litre dCi Renault diesel engine, the same one that powers the Renault Duster and Nissan Sunny diesels. In this state of tune, it produces 65 bhp of peak power and 160 nm of torque. In this conversion into a shorter sedan, the Verito doesn’t lose much weight over its predecessor though, in fact, it ends up gaining some weight, ending up with a kerb weight of 1155 kg.
Despite that, the Verito still jumps off the line eagerly and pulls strongly through the revs. The best part about this powertrain is that even though it’s a little low on power, it’s got no noticeable turbo lag, so you don’t have to work the gearbox to get going, it’ll pull strongly within the gear. It won’t be setting any performance benchmarks any time soon, but on the fuel efficiency front, the car will easily return 15 kpl in a mixed city and highway cycle. On the highway, the engine is a little stressed out, so you won’t see the fuel economy improve too much over that figure.
Ride & handling
The Verito and the Logan before it were known to have great ride quality, and this variant does not disappoint. It takes both slow speed and high speed bumps with authority, never once losing composure, and surprisingly, even steering feel and feedback is more than adequate. It definitely inspires confidence with the way it changes direction. Again, it’s not at all sporty, but it lets you know exactly what the front wheels are doing and a pretty good indication of what your inputs will get them to do. Overall, we come away impressed with both the ride quality and handling of the Vibe.
The verdict
That leaves us with only one question. Is it worth buying? With prices starting at Rs 5.68 lakh going up to Rs 6.55 lakh, ex-Delhi, it sounds like a no-brainer, really. All that space, a tried and tested powertrain and decent looks. The downsides? Having to load luggage into that slit-like boot is not easy. Yes, it would have been better if it were a hatchback, but at this price, we’re willing to compromise.
Mahindra Verito Vibe
Price: (ex-Delhi) Rs 5.68-6.55 Lakh
Kitna deti hai? 15 kmpl in our test
Fuel tank: 50 litres
Full tank good for: Over 700 km
Engine: 1461cc, i-4, turbodiesel
Max power: 65 bhp@4000 rpm
Max torque: 160 nm@2000 rpm
Good for family of 5: Yes
Dimensions in feet: L/W/H 13.09/5.7/5.05
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