Tata Ace Gold CNG: Review and Test Drive

In the era of soaring fuel prices, a CNG powered truck emerged as a strong alternative to diesel/petrol. To offer its customer a choice, Tata Ace Gold CNG aka Chotta Hati comes with a promise of higher earning potential to first-time buyers. Are you looking to buy one? Read to find out all that matters before you go ahead.

The rising fuel prices have escalated the operating cost of last-mile supply chains and threatened the profitability of truck owners, especially for the small truck owners. So if you’re looking to buy a new truck or trade-in your old one for a new one and looking for an alternative to a diesel truck, then you’re certainly not alone. Many truck buyers are looking for a CNG truck for their last-mile delivery business that would help them protect their monthly income without compromising on the performance of the business. 

Market leader Tata Motors offer the legendary Ace Gold entry-level four-wheeler mini-truck, in the CNG variant at an attractive price promising superior mileage, lower maintenance and higher monthly earning. Should you consider buying the Ace Gold CNG to hedge against the rising operating cost? To help you with the answer, we drive the Ace Gold CNG to check out how it performs, does it make sense to overlook diesel or petrol variants. Let's dive in.  

The Look and Feel

Everyone is familiar with the omnipresent Ace Gold Truck which has been part of Indian roads for decades, no matter if you're in a city or town. So for starters, the Ace Gold CNG isn’t radically different in terms of the way it looks which you could make out the moment you see this truck, largely the exterior of this truck remains unchanged.

Take a look at any profile, the Ace looks quite familiar, despite being around for over a decade and a half, this truck still appears refreshing with its uncluttered design clues. The sleek cabin design nicely blended with the cargo body making the Ace stylish and appealing on roads. Among the many successful attributes, Ace Gold’s design is always one of the key USPs as this truck truly transformed the small truck market with its upmarket appearance. Over the years, the Ace didn’t really see much change in terms of its look, other than some minor iterations with every facelift. 

The moment you enter the cabin, you find ample space for both driver and co-passenger. This is quite an eye-opener because this isn’t something you expect looking from the outside, this spacious cabin makes it easy to drive and spend time as most of the owners/drivers typically do. Then the all-new modern digital instrument cluster catches your attention, and a large enough glove box for storage and a USB charger. 

You also notice the large cargo deck that is 8.2ft in length allows you to carry heavy and voluminous cargo. The leaf spring suspensions absorb road bumps well and strong chassis inspires confidence in the ability of this truck to carry bulky cargo effortlessly. The R12 8PR tyres may look small from the outside, but they suit precisely the truck size and enable quick pickup and speeds at crucial times of traffic. The 160 mm of ground clearance is enough to take on almost every kind of terrain be it city road, semi-urban or rural patchy ones, nothing stops the Ace march. At the back of the truck, under the cargo deck, the Ace is fitted with two CNG cylinders that supply the crucial gas to the engine. The cylinders look quite well placed with easy access for refilling and also ensure safety all the time.

Driving Impression

Ultimately, the real test of the truck is the way it drives. Is it capable of taking on a typical Indian road without any power lag when you’ve got the full load to deliver? Well, Ace Gold diesel is well-known for its performance, highly regarded by customers for its proven track record over decades. In our short drive, it was clear this truck maintains its core characteristics with the CNG powertrain, from the time you rev the engine, the power kicks in quickly, and accelerates the truck. Like their diesel/petrol engine, the Ace Gold CNG engine is super responsive, and the truck handles effortlessly, be it narrow/congested roads or amidst a road full of traffic. 

What makes the drive a delight is smoother steering, rather soft gear shifting, gentle padel usage. The wider windshield offers quite a superb outside view with a rather comfortable driving position. The seats are well-positioned and cushioned, and easy access to all the controls make sure the fatigue doesn’t set in even on day-long trips. And the unique gear shift advisor helps you in better driving across all operating conditions for mileage gains.

And at the heart of this truck is Tata Motors BS6 technology that combines driving performance and superior mileage keeping in mind customers profitability. Ace Gold CNG gets a powerful engine that produces 19.4 kW of power at 50 Nm of torque, and also higher gradeability of 29% ensures you climb the fly-over or steep curve easily.

Essentially, the CNG powertrain isn’t much different, it still gives the necessary higher power, peepy torque without any compromise on mileage which is a huge positive of this truck. So, you’re assured of faster cargo delivering each trip without any performance or mileage compromise, thus keeping your earning potential intact.

Should you buy one?

After spending time driving this truck, we can say with confidence that the Ace Gold CNG doesn’t fail to impress on key areas. Tata Motors has done an incredible job in packaging this little truck that offers a total experience to the owners. Especially, if this is your first-ever truck, Ace Gold CNG comes with performance, practicality, affordability, less maintenance along with Tata Motors widest service network when you need it the most. 

After serving millions of customers and ruling the category for so long, Tata Motors clearly understands the segment and customers well. Hence, Ace Gold CNG offers you an entry into the coveted four-wheeler truck segment without paying a hefty price to purchase and operate.

The Ace Gold CNG price starts from ₹ 5.63 lakh making it highly affordable for first-time buyers. This little truck ensures you save significantly by spending less on maintenance and earn more by carrying segment-best 640 kg of payload without losing on either power, performance and peaceful ownership experience. All of this enables you to make more money every month by smartly delivering cargo/logistics productively, every single time!

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