2021 Tata Punch review, road test

Designed on a clean sheet of paper, the Punch has been conceived to be an SUV from the ground up. The flat concave bonnet (raised on the sides) and its split-headlamp layout, with the LED Daytime Running Lamps atop and projector headlamp cluster below, establish strong family ties with the larger Tata Harrier and Safari. Uniquely, the gloss black grille is an enclosed panel with a tri-arrow-shaped opening for the horn behind. The lower half of the front bumper is black plastic, and it features a large air-dam (split by the number plate) that sports tri-arrow design elements, which has now become a signature styling trait on modern Tatas.

The Punch has a purposeful stance; and while the smart 16-inch diamond-cut alloys are attractive, they don’t quite fill out the massive squared-out wheel wells. Its thick side cladding, black pillars and roof break the monotone, and like the Altroz, the Punch’s rear door handles are tucked in the C-pillar. Some might find the Tata’s rear design a bit tame in comparison to the aggressive front, but the cool-looking circular tail-lamps with ‘Y-shaped’ tri-arrow LED elements really do help the Punch stand out. Like other Tatas, the Punch also sports some fun Easter eggs for you to discover, like the one-horn rhinoceros motif in the rear windscreen (and glovebox), as well as Tata lettering in the elongated tail-lamp bezel.

View it in light of other compact SUVs and the Punch is much smaller in dimension. Measuring 3,827mm in length, 1,742mm in width and with a wheelbase of 2,445mm, it is shorter and narrower than the Nissan Magnite and Renault Kiger. However, its 1,615mm height makes it taller than its closest rivals, and its high roof and upright pillars certainly help with that SUV-like look Tata’s seriousness to establish the Punch as a capable SUV is evident in its marketing speak, which highlights its 190mm (unladen) ground clearance, 370mm water-wading capacity and a host of off-roading angles.

The Punch is built on Tata’s new ALFA architecture and like its platform sibling, the Altroz, it has secured an impeccable 5-star rating in crash tests conducted by Global NCAP. What’s also interesting is that Tata has introduced it with a petrol engine to begin with, with an all-electric derivative also likely to see the light of day in the future.