If you are out shopping for a crossover vehicle, you are very well catered with choices from Germany, Japan, Korea and America. To be honest India is the last country that you would think of in this case! So reading about TATA Aria might sound irrelevant to you, but it does have some redeeming features, which are worth a look at.

Most of you might have never heard of TATA, but they are India’s biggest, if not the only, car maker. And they’re so big in fact that they’ve acquired Jaguar and Land Rover and effectively saved them from going bust. How about that!

They have a range cars for the Indian market, some of them even made it into the UK market, rebadged as Rover. But we’re talking about their new Aria crossover here, and the first thing you should know is that the Aria is a seven-seater car. No other Crossover offers that feature.

But then the Aria is rather big for a car of this type, and as for the design, well it looks more like a van to be honest! They are adamant that the Aria is the best compromise between a sedan and a SUV, so much so that sometimes you might rightfully think it’s a just a sedan that’s been jacked up a bit!

The Aria is powered by a 2.2 litre Direct Injection Common Rail (DICOR) engine, with variable turbine technology and 32-bit ECU delivers 140 PS power and 320 Nm torque. It is equipped with a dual mass flywheel which isolates torsional vibrations from the powertrain, thus providing a NVH free environment in the cabin.

The 4×4 Adapterra Torque-on-Demand System on its own senses terrain conditions and automatically supplies torque in varying proportions between the front and rear axles, depending on the terrain. It helps off-road driving as well as stability on normal roads.

The Tata Aria is being launched in three trim levels, all with 4×4 – the Aria Pride at the top end, the Aria Prestige and the Aria Pleasure, each in eight colour options. While the Aria Pride is fully loaded, features will vary in the Aria Prestige and the Aria Pleasure.

Of course the Aria does not stand a chance to become available in the European market, but you never know!

TATA Aria at a glance:

* A sedan & and an SUV blended in one car — with sedan like finesse, handling and ride quality and SUV like performance,  offroading capability and stance
* 2.2 L diesel commonrail powerplant delivering 140 PS power and 320 Nm torque
* Luxurious premium leather upholstery & three-row theatre-style flexible seating
* Selectable 4×4 with Torque-on-Demand System
* Electronic Stability Programme with Traction Control System to maintain stability
* 6 airbags to protect occupants from every side
* In-dash GPS-based Navigation provides destination guidance
* Automatic darkness sensing lights & rain sensing wipers
* Steering mounted phone and music controls
* Cruise Control
* Automatic climate control
* ABS & EBD to aid steerability and control in emergency braking
* Electrically adjustable and retractable ORVMs
* Available in 3 trim levels – all 4×4 – Pride, Prestige, Pleasure