| My take on the Judo/Gurkha
I will try to give my opinion/facts on the Gurkha/Judo 4x4
The wheel base of the Judo is 2750 and that of Gurkha is 2400. So Gurkha is a shorther vehicle than Judo. Therefore by simple aspect ratio calculation , the Gurkha is a more capable offorader than the Judo.
Having said that I really do not know how much more hardcore offroading one needs to do in order to justify a Gurkha.
I am making a very honest and truthful statement here when I say ... I dont know how to get stuck in a Judo. I think the disadvantage of the longer wheel base is nullified by the more than necessary ground clearance.
There is virtually no overhang in the front or the rear. This coupled with the 7.50x16 offroad tires makes it formidable.
BUT IN THEORY GURKHA IS A BETTER OFF ROADER THAN JUDO.
Now my opinion about the vehicle.
(1) It is built like a tank. But unfortunately , It sounds like a tank inside. WHen I bought the vehicle, It was squeaking and rattling. Khivraj Motors in Bangalore were EXTREMELY HELPFUL in fixing all the problems they could fix. The door panels, the door beadings, the dashboard , all had to be tightened.
(2) The engine is a dream come true. I am not saying this with any ulterior motives. I have owned a Diesel Toyota Land crusier in Australia , A Jeep wrangler 2.4 L petrol engine in US, A chevy Silverado 2500 4x4 with a 4.7 Litre V8 engine apart from other cars. In India I have had a Bolero 4x4 and now this car. I would rate the engine of this car amongst the Top two. It is very easy to make enormous horsepower with a big block V8 like a chevy or with fancy electronics and Micro controllers like in the Chrysler Jeep. But it is very difficult to make smooth free flowing power out of a Very Simple, reliable and affordable engine like the OM616 T/C Engine. I am also very biased in favour of diesel engines.
I am not a big fan of fast engines that run on petrol ... a diesel in my opinion produces teh "right kind of usable power" . I have done from 50-130 Kmph on 5th gear in this Judo..so take my statement with a pinch of salt.
(3) The gear box. The gear box is the G-18/5 Mercedes designed gear box. AGain , I cannot say enough good things about it. It feels like butter when you shift . I just love the way the gears obediently go and engage when you give it the direction. WORD OF CAUTION: The gear lever has a long throw. It is not a sports car style short shift gear. There is a lot of displacement needed on the shifter knob to shift gears.
(4) The transfer case. I have heard that the transfer cases of the older Judos and Gurkhas were imported from germany. But My transfer case was apparently made in Chinchwad Pune. I had a long chat with the R/D manager at force motors and he explained a lot of things to me.
I DID NOT BELIEVE IT when they said it was shift-on-the fly transfer case even to low range. 99% of the vehicles will allow you to shift from 2wd to 4wd-high while the vehicle is moving. But you have to come to a halt when you want to shift in and out of 4wd-Low. In this gear box, the 4wd Low also has synchronizers ( I guess). YOu can shift to 4-Low while the vehicle is moving (as long as you are not above 10Kmph...Or atleast I do not have the courage to test that upper limit).
The low range T/C has a ratio of 2.9:1 and The rear drive axle rato is 5.3:1. When I am inside the jungle , I put it in 4-Low and 4th gear and take my feet off the clutch and acclerator and at idling speed , it just crawls along to where ever I want it to go.
(5) Diff Locks. It is Magic. My chevy had a Limited slip differntial... but the difference between diff lock and LSD is light years apart. But one has to be careful and educated enough to use the Locks or one might kill oneself (especially if used at highway speeds )
(6) Interiors. Bad to below average. The vehicle (had) has a lot of rattling, squeaky bushes, I personally got the vehicle with two broken front seats!!!!! The interiors were filthy and the music system looked like it had been bought from "choor-Baazar" in Pune. A speaker was missing. There were only 3 hub caps. The paint was damaged in a few places . I am not exaggerating. You have to see it to believe it. The vehicle is driven from Indore (Pithampur) to it's destination.
Having said that "Khivraj Motors Bangalore" were very Kind and extremely helpful. They are very proactive and were with me all the way through.
They fixed everything free of charge, gave me new interiors(seats) and repainted the vehicle for me at a nominal rate ( I opted for a different colour).
(7) Suspension. Excellent.... There is minimal body roll, because it has stabilizer bars, in front and rear. The independant front suspension works really well with the torision bars. Recently I drove it through the winding roads of wynaad wildlife sanctuary in kerala at 60 kmph. It handled like a car .
(8) After sales support. So far what ever issues I have had with my car Khivraj has handled that for me exceptionally. BUT SPARE PARTS FOR THE 4 WD WILL NEED TO BE ORDERED AHEAD OF TIME. They dont keep those spares in the store. An other Judo 4x4 friend of mine waited 15 -20 days for a spare to arrive from Pithampur. The good news is 99% of the 4x4 spares are built to last the life of the vehicle. Usually the rubber boots , o-rings etc are the spares you would need.
THE PEOPLE AT FORCE MOTORS ARE NOT A VERY HELPFUL BUNCH. I HAVE BEEN TO THE FACTORY IN PUNE TWICE TO COAX THEM TO SELL ME THE VEHICLE. IN THE PROCESS, I HAVE MET THEIR R&D CHIEF, MARKETING CHIEF, SPECIAL VEHICLES DIVISION (MILLITARY VEHICLES) CHIEF. They are all very kind and helpful. But they cant help you get this 4x4. Because they have other things to do. Since this is not a Volume sales item, it always takes low priority. The profit margin for them in theis vehicle is also pretty low.
So expect a few weeks to a month of delay if you order the vehicle.
A/C and Power steering is available as an Option in the Judo.
They are not offering the OM616 T/C I/C engine very easily. The TD2650 produces about 75 HP (as against 90 HP of my engine) but has more torque. The noise level is slightly high.
If they had sold me teh vehicle with teh TD2650 engine , I would have taken it in a heartbeat too... It is not for the engine that you buy this vehicle . It is for it's offroad performance. And while offroad, Torque is what counts.
The OM611 is still in pre production stages.
I know it is a long winded post ...but I have tried to answer all your questions. | 
26th April 2006, 06:01
(2)
Thanks
