Without making any noise, Tata Motors has made a couple of changes to the Altroz range. The premium hatchback has received a new trim level – XE+. As you’d imagine, it sits above the base XE derivative. More on that in a bit because there’s been another change. The XM trim level, which earlier sat between XE and XM+ iterations, has been shelved.

Okay, let’s bring our attention back to the newly-introduced trim level. It gives birth to two new variants – petrol-MT and diesel-MT. The former has a sticker price of Rs 6.35 lakh, whereas the latter costs Rs 7.55 lakh. So, compared to their corresponding XE variants, the petrol-fed XE+ costs Rs 45,000 more, and the diesel one demands a premium of Rs 50,000. But, if you’re wondering, the new XE+ variants cost between Rs 10,000-15,000 less than the now-axed XM variants.

The justification of price difference comes from the list of features. Over the XE derivative, the XE+ offers more stuff, such as follow-me-home lights, remote keyless entry, automatic climate control, auto-folding ORVMs and a 3.5-inch infotainment system mated to a 4-speaker sound system.

Go for the petrol-powered XE+ variant, and you’ll get a 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder motor that puts out 85bhp/113Nm. On the other hand, the diesel version houses a 1.5-litre mill with 89bhp/200Nm on tap. By default, both powerplants come coupled to a 5-speed manual transmission. Unfortunately, the Altroz isn’t available with the turbo-petrol motor in the newly-introduced trim level. Also, sadly, the option of an automatic gearbox remains absent from Altroz’ portfolio. That, however, should change in the not very distant future.

In India, the Tata Altroz competes directly with the Maruti Suzuki Baleno, Toyota Glanza, Hyundai i20 and the Honda Jazz. In terms of price, however, the Altroz also faces heat from two sub-compact SUVs – the Renault Kiger and the Nissan Magnite. So, if you had to spend around Rs 8 lakh on a new car, which one would you buy?