Tata Punch delivery gone wrong: Owner crashes brand new micro SUV while taking delivery

The joy of owning a new car would make anyone excited, and adrenaline runs high. It is in these moments when someone who is not used to a new car, is at risk of making a driving error in nervous excitement.

The Punch was just launched as Tata’s entry into the micro SUV category. It’s small, compact, and capable of mild off-roading. It also secured the highest possible safety rating of five stars at the Global NCAP crash test. This story which comes today from the delivery of the Tata Punch seems to have put this to the test.

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What happened during the delivery?

While taking the delivery of a Punch micro SUV from a showroom, a new owner of the car lost control of his car and crashed it into a wall. At the starting of this video by DSD Cars on YouTube, which has been recorded by a CCTV camera, the new owner is in the driver’s seat and the staff is hanging around for the customary handover photo-op.

A person from the showroom staff is seen explaining some details about the car. The car then shoots forward for a few feet down the ramp towards the rest of the onlooking employees and parked cars. The driver managed to stop the car, however, and the staff person walked away. A few moments later the car moved erratically forward, made a sweeping left toward the exit but instead of moving towards the exit it kept turning left and eventually crashed into a wall.

What we think happened…

Here is what we think happened. The driver was not familiar with automatic cars. The salesperson was explaining to him how to put the Punch micro SUV into Drive mode, and the new driver didn’t know he had to hold the car with his foot on the brake pedal. This is what he realized after a few feet of travel and eventually stopped.

For someone who’s unfamiliar with automatic cars can often get confused with the clutch pedal missing, and it can be a little unsettling to press the brake instead with the left foot. Coordinating the change in foot position and at the same time focusing on slowing the car down is what led this gentleman to forget to straighten the car, and instead, he managed to narrowly miss the staff persons, parked cars, and an expensive luxury SUV.

This could have turned out much worse than this, with serious damage to the car and driver, or the people standing nearby, or both. From what it seems, this damage would not be too bad, barring a dent in the plastics and a kink in the radiator. As the narrator mentioned, it would have been better if the driver would have responsibly asked the staff to clear the obstacles around and hand over the car in a way that would make it easier for the new owner to drive away.

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