[manveet]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

For hard core off-roading, production exhaust system routing will not work. Please see the South Africa event photographs for details. So simple yaar! .

Dear DB ji,

I tried finding these pictures on TBHP but could not. Request you to please direct me to where to find them?

Is this below the routing you are referring to? Performance Auto in Delhi has also used the same routing on some of their vehicles.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-ve...ml#post3337331

[desertfox]

Did what DB bhai suggested. The Mahindra ASC charged me Rs. 650 for it saying there was nothing wrong and it was done on my instructions in the first service.

Will post a pic of the part they think was faulty and changed but the problem is not over.

Last week it rained in gurgaon, the parking lot behind my house in a small small was all muddy and full of slush. Engaged 4WD went through the slush and the aqueak from the wheels returned for a few minutes and then went off. 4WD was engaged just to get out thats it. After that it was 2H.

Meanwhile my nephew has really taken his Thar to the tailors. Chief benefeciary being Chadda of Azad 4x4.

Snorkel, new front grill, new bumpers, front facing seats, rock slider, antena, auto windows, a taiwani winch that cant pull an atv out, all kind of lights, plastic boxes to put your feet in, lights on the roof like a GMC yukon. God.

He wasted some Rs. 300,000 on it.

Anyway I asked him to ask for the OE seats and got a smaller seat installed behingd the passenger seat making it possible to slide it back and recline.

Asked him to sell the two other spare seats to a scrap dealer.

If I fix a partition ( AC curtain ) will the seats recline back all the way ?

Feel a curtain is useful as the AC does not work sufficiently well in this heat.

Will get one from Bimbra till I get a hard top fitted from Prabhu of Hyderabad need to ask him to ship me one.

Ading pic of what was changed inside the wheels. ( front wheels )

[desertfox]

I am quite sure the above is far from what DB bhai had suggested. Dont have a Mahindra catalouge to identify, let DB himself comment on what has happened.

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by desertfox

Did what DB bhai suggested. The Mahindra ASC charged me Rs. 650 for it saying there was nothing wrong and it was done on my instructions in the first service.

Will post a pic of the part they think was faulty and changed but the problem is not over.

Last week it rained in gurgaon, the parking lot behind my house in a small small was all muddy and full of slush. Engaged 4WD went through the slush and the aqueak from the wheels returned for a few minutes and then went off. 4WD was engaged just to get out thats it. After that it was 2H.

Meanwhile my nephew has really taken his Thar to the tailors. Chief benefeciary being Chadda of Azad 4x4.

Snorkel, new front grill, new bumpers, front facing seats, rock slider, antena, auto windows, a taiwani winch that cant pull an atv out, all kind of lights, plastic boxes to put your feet in, lights on the roof like a GMC yukon. God.

He wasted some Rs. 300,000 on it.

Anyway I asked him to ask for the OE seats and got a smaller seat installed behingd the passenger seat making it possible to slide it back and recline.

Asked him to sell the two other spare seats to a scrap dealer.

If I fix a partition ( AC curtain ) will the seats recline back all the way ?

Feel a curtain is useful as the AC does not work sufficiently well in this heat.

Will get one from Bimbra till I get a hard top fitted from Prabhu of Hyderabad need to ask him to ship me one.

Ading pic of what was changed inside the wheels. ( front wheels )

I have a similar problem with my 3 months old Thar.
It squeals;more when its dirty;after a wash,it gets better.
At times it vanishes after driving for 2-3 kms and comes back once i stop and roll again.After sales want to replace front bearing,but they dont have it in stock.

[desertfox]

Modifications done so far:

Installed 3M original carpeting to improve cabin insulation
Changed rear passenger side seat with a smaller 2 seater version from another Thar. This helps recline the passenger seat all the way back and improves the recline.
Got the tein tandem break booster installed as a free upgrade from ASM.
Installed a custom made seat cover for front seats with 3 inches of foam padding. This will settle down to two inches.
Greatly improved driving position and seating stance.

Next - Hyderabad HT with removable panels. The Airconditioning is not good enough to cope with the delhi heat.

The temperature here exceeds 38 deg C already.

[desertfox]

Some off roading pictures from yesterdays trip

[desertfox]

Most of the people who own Thar CRDe vehicles have complained it is a coolant guzzler.

My own experience is that under present summer conditions in North India it consumes about 250 ml of coolant ( Recommended Mahindra Maxmile Purple ) in a 500 KM run.

If we keep topping it up is there a danger of sedimentation in the radiator tubes ?

It must be the water which is evaporating, what about the solutes in it ?

Should we replace it with coolant or add water to the coolant reservoir to prevent too much sedimentation.

What would be a viable solution.

Is this problem also there in Scorpios with the same CRDe engines ?

[desertfox]

NITRO SHOCKERS

I am sure some off roaders on this forum would have fitted their Thars with Old Man EMU, Rancho, Tough Dog, Ironman shockers and lift kits.

How did the steering geometry and drive shaft travel alter ?

What alterations happened when Composite / Carbon Fibre leaf springs were refitted to the original leaf spring positions ?

Anybody tried repositioning OE leafsprings ?

Now we have four Thars here in Gurgaon and the other three owners - all close associated keep asking these questions.

Another question - Is there an old Pajero type spring adjustable seat base available anywhere ?

[desertfox]

Small problems continue to crop up every day.

Yesterday went to the ASC again. Got the entire tail gate lock assembly replaced under warranty.

Fortunately the work was completed in about 45 minutes.

Looks like the Thar does not like the off road. Without fail every time I take it off road the squeaking sound in the front wheel reappears for some time.

Waiting for DBs answer on the replacement done in the front wheels. No solution found yet as there is no improvement after the replacement of these parts.

A new noise has cropped up from the driver side door. More squeaking sounds. Will have to go to Mahindra service again!

[desertfox]

More problems in Thars continue to crop up.

The fording depth is very limited.

One of our four Thars on Sunday night waded through 3ft of water in a river stream.
Water got into the gear box and rear diffrential.

[desertfox]

DB Sir, I and the team of Thars in Gurgaon need your help in this thread please.
Also how's the Coolant splilling out here outside the driver side door ?

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by desertfox

Small problems continue to crop up every day.

Yesterday went to the ASC again. Got the entire tail gate lock assembly replaced under warranty.

Fortunately the work was completed in about 45 minutes.

Looks like the Thar does not like the off road. Without fail every time I take it off road the squeaking sound in the front wheel reappears for some time.

Waiting for DBs answer on the replacement done in the front wheels. No solution found yet as there is no improvement after the replacement of these parts.

A new noise has cropped up from the driver side door. More squeaking sounds. Will have to go to Mahindra service again!

That is probably due to sub standard parts;probably oil seals being used by Mahindra.I had same problem in mine since day 1,and mahindra recommended bearing replacement which didnt fix the problem.Now i have found a work around to fix it.Just spray the inner side of the wheels with WD40,and no noise comes up.

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by desertfox

Every time I take it off road the squeaking sound in the front wheel reappears for some time. Waiting for DBs answer on the replacement done in the front wheels. No solution found yet as there is no improvement after the replacement of these parts.

Dear Shahidbhai - hello after a very long time, I got your message. I am thoroughly enjoying my work, loving every minute of it and also learning new and challenging things every day. Believe you me, it's fun to sit perched almost on the first floor of a vehicle and drive with lots and lots of raw power under your right foot. These things really go! "Normal" vehicles seem like toys now! .

Anyways, the squeaking noise comes due to ingress of "dust" between the front wheel oil seal and the sheet metal cover which is called "dust cover" . This is nothing new, I have seen such behavior in Maruti 800 / Zen / Esteem cars also (every single monsoon, without fail, my 1987 model Maruti 800 BLB6986 did this). I would just loosen the axle nut slightly (24 size spanner), push the drive shaft a little towards the transmission and apply a little oil / grease into the annular space, put in a new nut (60 rupees) and it is good to go for one full year! You can't do this in Thar as you will have to gain access by removing the free wheeling hub / fixed flange as the case may be and the grease monkeys may not put back the whole thing properly. Instead of WD40 (as Akshay does, nothing wrong with WD40 also), you can spray some oil through a thin plastic tube, it will do the trick! Don't waste your time with ASCs, it's not worth it. If by some odd chance you have opened the whole thing, check that the lip of the dust cover is not bent inwards, if so, just tap it out slightly, the noise will go away.

For coolant, it must be leaking through the heater tubes going inside the firewall. There is no other location in this area for the coolant to come out. Use Maruti Zen heater connection wire clips in this location ("MGP" parts cost 15 rupees each, you need two of these). Size is same and clip design and reliability is very good. When you see the clips that you will remove, you will understand!

For fording depth, just make custom transmission and axle breathers and fit them mounted high. I had done the same thing during AKC / EXAMM. Kya yaar, for you this should be child's play.

Don't monkey around with fancy sounding suspensions (old man emu, rancho, tough dog, ironman shockers, composite or carbon fibre leaf springs etc). You will spoil the handling. This advice is also for the four Thars in Gurgaon and the other three owners, who keep asking these questions.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[desertfox]

Thank you very much Sir.
This will be embedded in Gold and circulated.

DB Bhai what would be a good engine replacement for a Toyota Landcruiser Prado TX ?

I drove one to Nainital last weekend and back. It has a lot of Torque but is very sluggish. My Scorpio or even the Bolero were peppier engines. I used to love the 5VZFE 3400 V6 Petrol engines but this one dissapoints.

[desertfox]

Due credit must be given to the ASC M/s. RR Auto in Gurgaon.
Their floor supervisor was able to diagnose the problem exactly as per DB Sirs recommendation last week.

The clamps were replaced with new ones, Coolant topped up.

Yesterday when I took my Thar for an oil change at 7900 KM to my trusted Jeep mechanic Dharampal in Gurgaon there was no drop in collant level I noticed.

Changed engine oil to Castrol Turbo - 7 Litres 5+1+ 1 Rs. 2300
Original Mahindra Oil filter - Rs. 230
Labour charges Rs. 200

TOTAL - Rs. 2730

I am of firm belief that Castrol CRB Turbo is far superior engine oil to the Mahindra Maxmile Feo that they peddle.

When made by Shell it was of acceptable grade. Today it is made by Indian Oil who themselves get their premium grades manufactured by Mobil Exxcon who in turn use other peoples facility to get their oil manufactures. A bit too much to trace back.

I am OK with an original producer and very happy with Castrol CRB Turbo for Diesel engines like this CRD turbo.

In specification both are 15W40 and API CH grade.

Although in this temperature in North India I would prefer 15W45 or even 20W50

The tailgate lock which was replaced under warranty two weeks ago is giving trouble again.

Am I supposed to take up some rooms at the service centre itself for night service like Boeing 737. ( Check A and Cowling open tests , hydraulics )
Is it a mistake that I own a few Mahindra vehicles ?

The punishment is an unbearable constant pain.