Remembering the Daewoo Nexia | A Lesser-Known Sedan from 1999

Indian automotive industry was not always the way it is now. There was a time when a few companies were trying to get a hold of this market. Companies like Maruti Suzuki made a strong presence while the veterans like Hindustan Motors and Premier started to lose at their own turf. Among the other companies was Daewoo. A company that was way ahead of its time! And in their short span of 7 years, the company tried to introduce world-class luxury to the Indian customers. One such was the Daewoo Nexia. Let’s take a look at what all it had to offer.

Daewoo Nexia | Engine Specifications

The Daewoo Nexia was launched in 1999 and was basically a powerful version of Daewoo Cielo. Cielo was launched back in 1995 and was not able to grab much of the Indian automotive marketplace.

Read that? An automatic transmission! At the time when other carmakers were struggling to provide 5-speed manual transmission, Daewoo provided Indians with a car that had an automatic transmission paired to a powerful engine, even if compared to some best selling cars nowadays (You know if you know!). Daewoo Nexia’s engine had a Multi-Point Fuel Injection (MPFI) system that the rivals lacked. To give you hint, Honda City’s first generation was able to produce 110Nm of torque. But the engine was not the only thing the car had to offer!

The Nexia was ahead of its time with class-leading Comfort and Safety

Daewoo Nexia was way ahead of its time! It had a powerful air conditioning system, all thanks to the powerful engine that was able to deliver performance and power to the AC, even in slow-moving traffic. Interiors were really plush. With comfortable seating and a responsive suspension system, the sedan was really great to drive. Daewoo Nexia had height-adjustable driver seat, separate dome lamps for rear passengers, armrest at the rear, AM/FM stereo with cassette player and much more. The car was loaded to brim with features.

For the safety front, the car came with the collapsible steering column, a unique 3-stage bumper that can mitigate the impact forces during a collision, front disc brakes, front and rear fog lamps, child safety locks, side-impact bars, electric rear window defogger and so on… the list of safety features just goes on and on.

The Daewoo Nexia looked good!

The Nexia was simply elegant! There were no over the line design elements that would have made the car look ugly. The sleek headlamps with integrated turn indicator and the body-coloured bumpers at the front are a feast to the eyes. The rear spoiler according to the company was not only there for the aesthetic appeal but also to reduce the lift at higher speeds, which was inevitable given the power specs of the engine.

Why did the Daewoo Nexia fail?

Nexia did get a lukewarm response from the customers because of its unique design but couldn’t stand in the market for long and was discontinued when the company retired from Indian in 2002. Indian market at that time was not much inclined towards a huge list of features. The high price of over ₹6.5 lakhs at that time kept the customers at a distance. Even the ones who made the decision to buy the car were fed up of the pathetic service channels of Daewoo and non-availability of the parts. Rivals such as Honda City offered reliability and trust which Daewoo was not able to deliver. Thus, Daewoo Nexia faced the wraith of the company’s failure to understand the Indian market. Whatsoever be the reason, Daewoo Nexia was one of the best sedans at that time, and that fact can never be changed.

Check this out: What really went wrong with Daewoo Cars in India?

What do you think about the Daewoo Nexia? If you own one, share your experience of the ownership via mail @gomechanicblog@gomechanic.in.

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