Chevrolet Beat spied in Mumbai!

Muntaser Mirkar    9 July 2009

GM India's promised small car for the Indian market seems ready to go! We caught a camouflaged Beat doing the rounds in Mumbai recently.

Pardon the extremely poor picture quality, but this is all I could manage with my now-kaput camera phone driving into Mumbai in the middle of heavy traffic and the wrath of pouring monsoons. It was late evening as I spotted a camouflaged car getting bigger in my RVMs. As it pulled closer the size of the car was evident and so was the shape. The Gujarat temp registration confirmed it in the end - this was the Beat - all set to make its Indian debut in August.

While most of the car was covered with black sheets that hid the true shape of the headlights, fenders and roof, the generous wind blowing provided glimpses of the led tail lights and the general shape of the body apart from some very impressive design features. First off are the muscular wheel arches and the way the glasshouse curves downward ahead of the B-pillars. The car seemed like it was spacious enough - there were three men already in the car and the guy at the back seemed to be quite relaxed. The rear end is quirky as it was in the concept, but then that's something that really impressed - the fact that the actual production version is so close to the way the concept looks. In fact, that aspect dawned on me when I managed to take a peek inside the cabin. The instrument cluster id far from conventional - with a cylindrical analog meter which most probably is the tachometer and a flat block beside it that could house the speedo and tell tale lights. The interiors were lively and well appointed.

The way the Beat was zipping in and out of traffic speaks loads of its in-city capabilities. And with three full-grown adults in the car the test mule was extremely zippy and fast as well - meaning performance should be good.

The Spark is doing good for GM in India with the little hatch being the main sales driver. The Beat will add great perspective to the Chevrolet portfolio in the country as it does battle with established hatchback heavyweights like the Suzuki Swift, Indica Vista, Hyundai i20, etc. We reckon the Beat will have an added advantage though - it's got roof rails!