Yash
Tata Tiago EV price starts at 8.49 lakhs.
Tata motors is a leader in the EV segment in India.
Recently, it launched Tata Nexon EV under the compact SUV segment.
The sales rose and Tata Nexon EV became one of the highest-selling EVs in India.
Along with this, Tata Tigor EV is also very popular in India.
Now, Tata has come up with another EV under the hatchback segment.
And
It is Tata Tiago EV.
This EV is loaded with many features and comes at a price India has never seen in the EV segment.
Let us discuss more this great EV in today’s post.
What is Tata Tiago EV?
Tata Tiago is an Electric Vehicle in the hatchback segment.
It was launched in the month of September 2022.
Tata Tiago EV is India’s most affordable electric car with a starting price of 8.49 lakhs.
It is offering two variants to its buyers.
One is the medium range and comes with a smaller battery pack
Another is long-range, fitted with a bigger battery.
Let us have a glance at some of its unique features.
a. Battery
Tata Tiago EV is fitted with a Li-ion battery.
The medium-range variant has a capacity of 19.2 kWh, giving you a maximum range of 250 km once it is fully charged.
This is suitable for short, frequent city drives and medium drives.
Whereas another comes with a battery capacity of 24 kWh, giving a maximum range of 315 km. It is ideal for people who go for long drives often.
Both these battery packs are waterproof and dust-proof with an IP67 rating.
Range depends on many factors such as:
- Driving style
- Road conditions
- Weather conditions
- Traffic jams
b. Warranty:
Tata offers 8 years or 1,60,000 km (whichever is earlier) warranty on its batteries.
For example, you have driven over 1,60,000 km in 6 years.
The distance covered will be taken as it exceeds the warranty limit first.
Similarly, if you have driven only 1,00,000 km in 8 years. Then also your battery will be out of warranty period.
Because in this case, the time limit is exceeded.
Therefore, either the time limit or the distance limit, whichever exceeds first. The warranty is said to be expired.
c. Motor
The motor is the main component of any vehicle.
A strong motor gives you fast pickup and makes your journey comfortable.
Tata Tiago EV comes with a 3-phase permanent magnet synchronous motor.
For the medium range, the motor power is 45 kW with a peak output of 110 N-m(Torque). Acceleration of 0-60 kmph in 6.2 seconds.
And
For long-range, Tata offers a motor with a power of 55 kW with a top torque of 114 N-m. Acceleration of 0-60 kmph in 5.7 seconds
These motors are equally efficient both at low and high speeds. And the noise levels are quite low too.
d. Safety
GNCAP is a global 5-star safety standard. It helps the users to choose the safest vehicle on the basis of the star rating.
The safety rating of any vehicle is determined by simulating a series of real-life accidents.
The more start any vehicle gets, the safer it is.
Tata Tiago EV has 4 stars out of 5. Making it one of the safest cars to drive on Indian roads.
e. Technology of Tata Tiago EV
Tata offers over 45 features through its Z-connect app.
You can seamlessly connect with your EV, making your journey comfortable and memorable.
Assuming I am driving Tata Tiago EV and the battery is depleting.
My immediate need is obviously to find the nearest charging station.
This app helps me in finding the nearest charging station based on my real-time location.
Some of its other unique features are:
- Intrusion alert
- Stolen vehicle tracking
- Remote geo fencing
- Remote vehicle health diagnostics
- Real-time charge status
- Remote ac turns on/off with temperature setting and more
How much energy is consumed by Tata Tiago EV?
The energy is stored in the battery of an EV.
And
How much energy is stored is represented through the battery capacity.
More capacity, more energy.
Whenever your EV runs, it withdraws energy from its battery.
And
the amount of energy withdrawn from the battery when your car runs for 1 km defines it’s per unit consumption.
The cars which do this with less energy are more efficient.
It is the ratio of car battery capacity to its range
Per unit energy consumption = Battery Capacity/Range
We see Tata Tiago EV models come with two different battery packs.
- One 19.2 kWh (250 km) for short, frequent drives and medium drives and another 24 kWh (315 km) for long drives.
Let us see the per unit consumption for both battery packs.
- 77 W-h (19.2 kWh/250 km) with a 19.2 kWh battery. It consumes 77 W-h energy when running for 1 km.
- 76 W-h with 24 kWh battery
It is almost the same.
We can say that both variants of the Tata Tiago EV are equally efficient.
Assuming your office is 20 km away from your home.
You drive your Tata Tiago EV to the office and return home in the evening.
A total of 40 km in a day.
How much energy is withdrawn from the battery?
It is simple, multiply your daily commute distance by per unit of energy consumption.
- It is 3040 W-h (40 km x 76 W-h)
- Similarly, for 50 km, it is 3800 W-h
- For 100 km, it is 7600 W-h
Charging options for Tata Tiago EV
In Electric Vehicles, the charging system has to be efficient and have multiple charging options.
Tata offers both efficiency and multiple charging options.
Tata Tiago EV has CCS2 charging standards.
It is a standard for charging electric vehicles.
Tiago has a common port for both DC and AC charging.
This feature gives the car a compact design.
Tata offers 4 different charging options for its Tata Tiago EV.
- Fast charging: The fast DC charging at charging stations can charge your battery in just 57 minutes (less than an hour) from 10% to 80% for both medium and long ranges.
- 7.2 kWh AC charging: you can charge conveniently at home.
10% to 100% in 2.6 hours for the medium range and 3.6 hours for the long range.
- 15 A Portable charging: This charging offers you to charge your battery anywhere from 10% to 100% in 6.9 hours for the medium range and 8.7 hours for the long range.
- 3.3 kWh wall box charging: You can connect this wall box in your garage that can charge your battery efficiently from 10% to 100% in 5.1 hours for the medium range and 6.4 hours for the long range.
What is the cost of charging EV with the grid?
Yes, you can charge your Tata Tiago with a home electricity supply.
With 7.2 kWh AC charging, you can charge conveniently at home in 2.6 hours its a 19.2 kWh battery and a 24-kWh battery in 3.6 hours.
Assuming, you drive 50 km in a day.
Your car will withdraw 3800 W-h (76 W-h x 50 km) which is nearly equivalent to nearly 4 units per day (1 unit = 1000 Wh)
Therefore, you need 4 units per day from the grid.
The average per unit cost of grid electricity in India is Rs. 7.
Therefore, taking 4 units from the grid will cost you:
Rs. 7 x 4 = Rs. 28 per day.
In other words, the cost of traveling 50 km is Rs. 28 with Tata Tiago EV.
Per km cost is Rs. 28/50 km = Rs. 0.56
The cost of traveling the same distance with a Petrol car
Let us evaluate the cost of traveling the same 50 km with a petrol vehicle.
Assuming, the petrol car is giving an average of 15 km per liter.
Therefore, it will need 3.33 liters (50 km/15km per liter) to travel 50 km.
The cost of 1 liter of petrol is nearly Rs. 96 per liter.
The petrol car ride will cost you Rs. 320 for 50 km.
Per km cost is Rs. 320/50 = Rs. 6
The EV drive is nearly 11 times cheaper than the petrol drive.
What is the cost of charging Tata Tiago EV with Solar?
Most part of India is located between the equator and the tropic of cancer.
Making it a sunshine country with an average daily Peak Sun Hours of over 5.
This makes it a favorable solar destination.
A solar power system takes in the sunlight and converts it into electricity to charge the battery or run the other electrical appliances.
Finding the Panel size
Taking the commute distance of 50 km.
The EV has withdrawn nearly 4 units from the battery.
Now, we will replenish these 4 units using solar.
For this, we need to size the solar panels that can provide enough current to charge the battery and fill those 4 units.
The panel size = Energy withdrawn/(PSH x multiplying factor for the losses in the system)
Taking average PSH = 5
Multiplying factor = 0.7
(Like any other system some energy is wasted in the solar power system. And these losses can take up to 30% of the power of the solar panels)
Panel size = 3800/ (5 x 0.7)
= 1.1 kW solar panel size
For 100 km commute distance
The panel size would be 2.2 kW
Cost of solar electricity per unit = Rs. 3.76 per unit.
(The cost of solar electricity is calculated by considering many factors and these factors are defined in my solar feasibility spreadsheet)
For 50 km
It is 3.76 x 4 units = Rs. 15
For Rs. 15 you can drive your EV for 50 km.
Per km cost is Rs. 15/50 = Rs. 0.30
Summary of per unit cost
- Petrol car per km cost = Rs. 6 per km
- Per km cost when charging Tata Tiago EV with Grid = Rs. 0.56 per km
- Charging it with Solar (Per km cost) is Rs. 15/50 = Rs. 0.30
Solar vs. Grid Charging
Solar charges only when there is sunlight.
And in the daytime, I am out with my car.
Then how would the solar power system installed on my house roof charge the EV?
The energy produced by solar panels in the daytime can be stored in a battery.
In that case, the per unit cost of charging increases.
This comes near to grid charging (although slightly less).
When the difference is marginal why should I go for solar then?
Yes, it is true the difference is marginal when you charge your EV at the night using the solar power system with battery backup.
But this difference is going to increase in the future.
I have taken grid prices as constant in my calculations for finding the per unit cost.
i) Rising grid prices:
In fact, these are increasing at the rate of 8% per year.
And
It will become Rs. 45 in the 25th year.
Then the cost of charging would be Rs. 45 x 4 = Rs. 180
And
The per km cost would be
180/50
= Rs. 3.6 per km.
While on the other hand.
The cost of solar in the last decade has fallen from 70% to 80% in the last decade.
Thanks to the ever-evolving technologies and the efforts put by our engineers, scientists, and the government.
How much your EV can save you when you drive 1,00,000 km?
This section shows you the saving in comparison to the petrol car used for driving the same distance.
Multiply the distance traveled by the per unit cost.
We get the fuel expenses.
That can be shown as below:
When you charge your electric vehicle with grid supply you save Rs. 5,40,00 (Rs. 6,00,000 – Rs. 60,000) in comparison to driving the same distance as a petrol car.
And
These saving are further increased by another Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 5,70,000 (Rs. 6,00,000 – Rs. 30,000) when you choose to charge your EV with Solar.
Using solar reduces carbon emissions
A 2.3 kg of CO₂ is released into the air when 1 liter of petrol is burned.
Similarly, near to 2.4 kg of CO₂ is emitted when 1 kg of coal is burned.
(We get 75% of total electricity produced by burning coal).
Let me put it another way.
A 7.66 kg of CO₂ is released in the air when you drive for 50 km with your petrol car.
A solar power system also releases CO₂ into the air.
Although electricity production is carbon-free.
But when we consider their manufacturing transportation to installing and commissioning.
The process does have some carbon emissions.
A 1.1 kW solar power system releases near to 160 grams of CO₂ into the air.
When you are charging your EV through solar instead of using a petrol car.
You are reducing (7.66 kg – 0.160 kg) x 365
= 2737.5 kg or 2.74 tonnes in 1 year.
1 carbon credit is equivalent to releasing 1 tonne CO₂ into the air.
Price of 1.1 kW solar power system in India
It is around Rs. 80,000 (without battery backup).
And
With a battery backup, it is around Rs. 1,00,000.
Yearly Saving = 3.8 units x Rs. 7/unit x 365 days = 9709
Payback (without battery backup): Rs. 80,000/9709
= 8 years.
Payback with battery backup = Rs. 1,00,000/9709
= 10 years
Pros and Cons of Tata Tiago EV
Pros
At present, TATA is the only EV manufacturer that has entered this price segment.
Other players such as Maruti, Mahindra & Mahindra are likely to enter but TATA has taken the lead.
It is definitely going to benefit TATAs in the long run.
Tata is a brand name that signifies reliability, safety, and trust. It is operating in India for over seven decades.
- Very competitive price: The starting price of Rs. 8.49 lakhs is very competitive in this segment. This price has reached very near to the prices of conventional vehicles which run on gasoline of the same capacity.
Although it is still higher than conventional vehicles. But launching Tata Tiago at this price, Tata has proved that it is going to dominate the EV market in the future.
- Climate concern and government support: Using EVs is more environmentally friendly than using gasoline-fed vehicles.
In order to accelerate EV adoption state governments are offering subsidies for EV purchases.
For example, the Maharashtra government offers subsidies for electrical vehicles of Rs. 5,000 per kWh and the maximum is Rs. 2,50,000, and 100% road tax exemption.
Similarly, the Delhi government offers a subsidy of Rs. 10,000 per
kWh (for the first 1,000 cars) of the battery capacity with a maximum limit of Rs. 1,50,000 per vehicle.
You can check the subsidy in your respective state by going to their EV portal.
Moreover, the buyer is eligible for the tax deduction of up to 1.5 lakhs on the interest payments paid on the loan amount under section 80 EEB of the Income Tax Act.
Cons
Limited charging stations across India:
Although there are few charging stations in India. But these are increasing and Tata has installed over 2200 EV charging stations across 250 cities in India.
Also, Tata is offering multiple charging options to its buyers to compensate for the few charging stations.
India is a vast country. In order to make an EV a success, a wide network of EV charging stations should be established. So that the EV driver can go freely anywhere with the tension of the battery being depleted.
The upfront cost of EVs is more than the conventional vehicles of similar capacities.
However, this cost covers up in the long run due to very less fuelling costs compared to petrol and diesel.
Can Tata Tiago revolutionize the Indian EV market?
Launching an EV at such a competitive price is a clear indication of the EV revolution in India.
Tata has reduced the EV entry barrier and has put it in the price bracket of conventional vehicles (although on the higher side).
At this price, more people are attracted to buying Tata Tiago EV.
In a year or two, technology developments and economies of scale due to more EV buying result in more competitive prices.
This will further drive this revolution across India.
How solar can help in this revolution?
Charging is a vital part of any electrical vehicle.
And
If you get the option of affordable and clean charging that too at the convenience of your home.
Then everybody would be interested in it.
And
Solar has the potential of doing so.
Moreover, India is a sunshine country with over 5 peak sun hours in a day.
That makes solar energy a very good option for charging your EV.
The price, features, comfort, and safety are showing that Tata Tiago is going to revolutionize the EV market in India.
Let us see how fast this revolution takes place.
The time will tell.
