evo India – July 2019

LEXUS ES 300H

Mumbai. During the day it’s a busy commercial district

with colonial-era offices, chain stores, street stalls and

road-side vendors selling everything from coconut

water to used books and even gramophone records.

At 3am, it’s a blissful and calm drive through history.

The British built a number of Gothic-style buildings

in the late 18th and 19th centuries – the Chhatrapati

Shivaji Terminus railway station, Bombay High Court,

Rajabai Clock tower, Asiatic Society of Mumbai

Library, National Gallery of Modern Art are a few

prominent ones. The grand and imposing elements of

Gothic architecture helped the British portray Bombay

as a global power. What pleased our shutter bugs Rohit

and Sachin the most was that each of these colonial-

era buildings are extremely well-lit, providing enough

light for great shots despite the ungodly hour. Driving

the Glanza around this part of Mumbai highlighted

its sprightly handling. The premium hatchback’s

suspension is well balanced and is not too hard or

soft. The 16-inch Apollo tyres grip very well and instil

the confidence needed to drive enthusiastically. Even

when the rains were lashing the city, we kept driving

at normal speeds without any issue. What also helps

in improving the Glanza’s handling is its weight. The

‘V’ manual variant has a kerb weight of just 890kg

while the CVT that we drove tipped the scales at

935kg. This makes the Glanza one of the lightest cars

in the segment. Despite being light, Toyota hasn’t

compromised on safety. The Glanza is built on the new-

generation Heartect Platform which ensures superior

crash resilience, enhanced rigidity and improved NVH

performance. The car also comes standard with dual

front airbags, ABS, EBD and BA, complying with all the

safety regulations that have recently come into effect.

It’s 4am now and I realise there’s something

extremely soothing about the post-midnight ambience

of a coastal city. As we drove the Glanza around Marine

Lines, we noticed how life had finally mellowed down

after an utterly chaotic day. The chaos in Mumbai is

incomparable to any other city of the world. A recent

global survey stated that commuters spend 65 per cent

more time on the roads during peak hours than when

DRIVING THE GLANZA AROUND THIS

PART OF MUMBAI HIGHLIGHTED ITS

SPRIGHTLY HANDLING

SPECIAL FEATURE: TOYOTA GLANZA