Tata Motors has unveiled its newest range of intermediate and light commercial trucks (I&LCV), the Ultra Sleek T-Series, designed and engineered to suit contemporary demands of urban transportation. Available in three models – T.6, T.7 and T.9, the all-new Ultra Sleek range is available in varied deck lengths from 10 to 20 feet to adapt to all the required applications. A sleek 1900mm-wide cabin provides superior driver comfort yet swift movement in confined city spaces, and smart features provide for easy manoeuvrability. This new-generation range of future-ready vehicles further endorses Tata Motors well acknowledged ‘Power of 6’ philosophy, of superior vehicle performance, driving comfort, convenience and connectivity, along with safety – all with lower total cost of ownership (TCO).
Speaking at the launch of the new range, Girish Wagh, President, Commercial Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors, said: “Being the leader in the commercial vehicles domain, Tata Motors has consistently set new benchmarks by introducing smarter, future-ready products and solutions across its various segments. The launch of the Ultra Sleek T-Series range marks a new landmark in urban freight transportation. These trucks are sleeker and smarter enabling faster movement and hence higher utilisation and revenue with more trips. Built on the internationally recognised Ultra platform, the trucks are engineered to cater to a diverse set of applications.”
The Ultra Sleek T-Series range combines futuristic styling with comfort, provides significantly lower Noise, Vibration and Harshness (NVH) levels, ease of movement on congested and narrow roads and a fatigue-free driving experience. The walk-through cabin is rigorously crash-tested for superior safety and comes equipped with adjustable seat height, tilt-and-telescopic power steering, and a dashboard-mounted gear lever. The addition of an in-built music system, USB fast charging port and liberal storage space offers enhanced comfort, while air brakes and parabolic leaf suspension provide better safety and control with clear-lens headlamps and LED tail-lamps improving night visibility.
Affirming its versatility, Ultra Sleek T-Series has variants available in 4-tyre and 6-tyre combinations and varied deck lengths, the range is curated to suit diverse transportation needs. It is equipped to cater to a wide variety of applications, such as transportation of e-commerce products, FMCG, industrial goods, LPG cylinders, and refrigerated containers for transportation of Covid-19 vaccine, pharmaceuticals as well as food items such as eggs, milk and fresh farm produce.
Powered by the future-ready BS-VI 4SPCR engine, with a 100hp power and a torque rating of 300Nm, the range provides optimum power and best-in-class fuel efficiency. The range is fortified with a strong modular chassis designed for better durability, and radial tyres with low-rolling resistance to further boost the fuel economy.
With Fleet Edge, a next-generation connected vehicle solution, Tata Motors offers telematics to optimise fleet management, with informed decision making. This solution gives fleet owners the vital insights on vehicle diagnostics and driver behaviour, which help in better fleet utilisation. The Fleet Edge solution is relevant and beneficial across varied fleet sizes.
The range also comes with an offering of a comprehensive set of fully-built solutions, with multiple advantages like better financing terms, nationwide service warranty, and higher resale value, thus making a much better value proposition, through the life cycle, for its customers. Adding to these lucrative offerings, the Tata Motors I&LCV range comes with an unmatched warranty of 3 years/3 lakh kilometres. Tata Motors also offers Sampoorna Seva 2.0 and Tata Samarth – the company’s commitment to commercial vehicle driver welfare, uptime guarantee, on-site service and customised annual maintenance and fleet management solutions with each I&LCV truck.
—
“We are very optimistic about the new range”
In a quick chat with Rajesh Rajgor on the sidelines of the launch of the new Ultra Sleek T-Series range, Girish Wagh, President (Commercial Vehicle Business Unit), Tata Motors, shares interesting details about the new range
Ultra T.7 was first showcased and launched in December 2020. Therefore, is the sleek cabin the only change in the new range?
Yes, we did introduce the T.7 as a pilot vehicle back in December 2020 in some of the key markets like Kerala and we got good feedback from it. So, the new range of trucks – namely, T.6, T.7 and T.9 – have actually been presented with different deck lengths. The sleek cabin comes with comfort, convenience and connectivity and makes itself very well-suited for transportation within city limits. The range ensures that it meets the needs of the multiple end-user segments, taking care of the entire intra-city distribution requirements.
Could you please tell us how many kilometres of road trials have been done for these ranges and how has been the feedback in the last one year?
We have undergone lakhs of kilometres of trials with these ranges and the response has been extremely positive. The talk has been about the comfort and convenience of the cabin that leads to fatigue-free driving. It is also therefore leading to longer working hours if required. Another aspect of the cabin is that it is spacious for utility and knick-knacks and the driver is able to spend time comfortably throughout the day. Walk-through construction with one plus three seating arrangement is an added benefit as the driver most of the times would have couple of helpers with him on a long route. This range of vehicles can eliminate a handover or changeover in freight distribution as it can travel for a long distance. Customers’ feedback on TCO and fluid economy in the BS-VI era is phenomenal and hence we are very optimistic about this new range of Ultra Sleek T-Series.
Would you be assisting and encouraging the fleet operators to build refrigerated containers on these platforms?
Absolutely! The entire Ultra T-Series range comes with a lot of applications already developed on it and one of the applications is reefers. We have already sold quite a few trucks for vaccine transportation. The refrigerated container can help not only in vaccine transportation but all those goods requiring cold chain transportation. Another application which can be seen coming from the fleet is about fuel bowsers for last mile distribution. Our team has tested the same and the range is quite suitable for it. Similarly, for municipal applications the vehicle is the best fit as it bridges the gap between a SCV and LCV. With multiple deck lengths it is also suitable for urban and semi-urban requirements from a farm to the point of consumption for fruits and vegetables.
You are strong with your LCV and SCV range in the western and northern belts of the country. What are the markets and regions you are looking to target with this new range of vehicles in India?
The requirement of these range vehicles will be across the country, whether it is Kolkata- Mumbai, Patna-Jaipur or Delhi-Chennai. This vehicle will be required in all the markets and important cities. This will reinforce our brand in this particular segment. We are already leaders in LCVs with more than 50% market share and this product will only strengthen and upgrade our customers’ needs.
Do you plan to bring LNG, CNG or electric vehicles on these platforms?
Yes, in the LCV and ICV segment the penetration of alternate fuel like CNG has been increasing. In the BS-VI era the percentage penetration is increasing. Hence, gradually the Ultra T-Series range will come in the CNG range.