[zavegur]

Thanks again gentlemen. You do a fabulous job reviewing cars.
I think where it clicks for T-BHP is that at least 2 mods do the review- this makes the prose unbiased at all times.

Z

[narasimhan.iyer]

Thanks Auto warriors

Could not imagine how your unbiased reviews have influenced the decision of thousands of car buyers. Your efforts at keeping the forum free of marketing influences is commendable.

[RGK]

One of the interesting threads in T-BHP. Understood the nuances of analysing a new car and share a detailed review.

Hats off to the entire team

Will BHPians be allowed to participate in the review if logistics are taken care by the individual?

[ILTDrive]

Next time they offer you those goodies, instead of declining them, ask them to ship it to all the active members of TBHP. We are, after all one community. <<GRINNING>>

The two questions I had, number plate and how each MOD gets his rotation have already been answered, though I still like to believe that the number plates are stuck onto each car and all the mods tear each others hair to review a premium car will let me sleep in peace at night.

[cosmopolitan]

Wow What a write up GTO.

The greatest power of teambhp is the Moderators and and the thousands of bhpians who share their experience. Whenever I am asked about any cars by my friends I generally tell them " FOR AN UNBIASED REVIEW SEE TEAMBHP ".

I would like to thank all the Moderators for taking quality time from your busy professional schedule for delivering us the best reviews.

[shipnil]

Dear mods, thanks for this very insightful thread! After reading this, my respect for you guys have gone many notches up. I had no idea this much effort is put in by you guys to bring out those marvelous reviews.

[MaxTorque]

Thanks GTO for narrating all steps involved in conducting media drives. I have a small doubt, what happens If the vehicle gets damaged during the event? Who will be responsible for the losses?

Originally Posted by MaxTorque

what happens If the vehicle gets damaged during the event? Who will be responsible for the losses?

Here is the answer for your queries:

Originally Posted by GTO

Who bears the cost of damage? The manufacturer, although I've heard of a case or two where the repair bill was sent to the journalist. One manufacturer made it mandatory to have their driver accompany reviewers after their high performance Rs. 1 crore car was smashed sideways into the wall by a magazine.

[MunnabhaiMBBS]

Originally Posted by GTO

• Nearly all media test drives ...

Rush,

Fantastic write-up, you have well documented the data collection process. However, if it doesn't bother you much, would you also mind sharing the data analysis and final review write-up process followed by Team-BHP mods team?

Thanks in advance.

[er.sudhansu]

nicely written GTO for the benefit of readers. It must be an truly educating experience having the chief engineers sit beside you throughout the drive and get first hand queries answered.... not much different than a formula-1 driver getting technical inputs from his pit lane crew.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by vigneshA

is there like a post review conference again

Originally Posted by arakhanna

Just curious, do the OEM's solicit views of the reviewers? Is there a questionnaire that the reviewers fill in post the event?

At some, yes...at most, no.

Most marketing / PR folk know the car is already in production (no changes possible) and hence don't care about your critical appraisal of the car.

On the other hand, the more inclined technical folk (at a few events) will sit down with you and take notes on areas of improvement.

Pricing seems to be one of the key aspects in our market. Are rough figures brandished and are the OEM's interested in feedback on the same.

Pricing, yep. There have been drives where the pricing wasn't decided yet, and feedback was taken on what we think the right price points are.

like parts falling off etc.

If you spot a part falling off, a software bug, a rough edge...the answer is consistent = Pre production prototype . It greatly annoys me when I see the same (unsorted) problem in an initial ownership report here.

Also is there a great deal of interaction with other reviewers leading to exchange of opinions

There's really no time for a great deal of interaction. Except at the dinner party where you anyway spend most of your time getting additional info from the business & technical dudes, there's hardly an opportunity to socialise.

Sure, over lunch or during the airport transfers, some comments & opinions are exchanged, but they aren't excessive.

Originally Posted by naveen.raju

Do they really allow you guys to paste teambhp stickers onto the cars when you do the review?

Yep, and we make sure to take them off before returning the car.

Originally Posted by Indicruz

A curious question though - how do Mods rotate the review responsibility? Do you guys fight with each other when you get an opportunity to review a high end performance car?

Originally Posted by newtonMeter

Awesome insight! Just one query. How are mods selected to review which vehicle?

As Ajmat replied, it depends on your area of core expertise (SUVs, offroading, luxury cars, mass market rides, motorcycles etc.) & availability too. As an example, Anshuman is an authority on DSGs as he's put so many kms on his Laura DSG. Check the review of the Rapid DSG out and you'll know that level of detail is possible only when there's familiarity & expertise.

Originally Posted by Sutripta

From the point of view of dessimation of technical information, which manufacturer is best? And worst?

Rather than manufacturer, it really depends who you can get a hold of / strike an open conversation with at the event. And even at the same event, one engineer can be a lot more forthcoming than his colleague.

By now, a lot of them are familiar faces and hence, we know who we'll get the required information from.

Originally Posted by Simhi

latest model of Toyota Corolla Altis

Sorry, somehow we just missed out on that one. Hopefully, sometime soon.

How mature are the PR agencies with respect to negative reviews? Given that Team BHP is unbiased and articulate, it would not escape their attention.

We don't care. As long as we know our review is accurate - whether good or bad - we're happy. Our objective is 100% accuracy, not pleasing anyone.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Majority of the media drives are over 2 days and it's almost weekdays. That's because for full time journos they are working and a weekend drive event is them working on a weekend! Whereas we prefer weekends so we don't have to take leave from our regular work.

So true! I would love for every media drive to be held over the weekend only.

Originally Posted by Funny

This was a wonderful read. Thanks team.
I was wondering, has there been any instance where you guys couldn't manage to attend a press drive?

I don't remember any new car drive that we've missed attending yet.

Originally Posted by commonman

Man,what a lot of work to do ! I really wonder, is this part of any journalism program/course?

I think the best part about the Team-BHP Core Team is that none of us are professionally trained in journalism (we're business / engineering / IT / design / law majors). That's why we were able to start from a clean slate, bringing our own style of reporting. We also continuously improve....look at the difference between our first review (Ritz) and the latest. It's quite evolved.

What helps us come up with good reviews is simply...the love of cars.

Originally Posted by prashanthyr

Can we put in officially or widely acknowledged issues / recalls (and solutions) of the car in question along with the official review?

It's very difficult for us to keep updating the 100+ official car reviews with new developments on recalls, feature list changes etc. etc.

What we do insist however, is that each major development gets its own new thread. That's why we encourage people to spend time researching on the forum. Put in the effort and there's not a detail you'll miss.

Originally Posted by Sutripta

What is the equation between TBhp and a) the bike manufacturers, and b) the commercial vehicle manufacturers.

Honestly, we don't have an equation with any manufacturer, whether it's for cars, bikes or CVs. Reason being we don't have a business relation with them (as we don't accept advertising for new car models, and don't do 'sponsored advertorials' in exchange for $$$).

If the product is relevant, we want to review it for our readers. If the manufacturer offers the vehicle to us, great. If not, we'll find the car from someplace else.

That said, of course, we should get around to reviewing 2-wheelers as comprehensively as we do cars.

When are we getting our own test equipment? (Can one hire ARAI facilities?! VRDE I'm sure is out of bounds.)

We can definitely get a V-BOX if BHPians want those stats for each car.

Does anyone push for factory visits?

You bet! And we thoroughly enjoy them.

Ford

Jaguar

Tata

Hyundai

Eicher

Mercedes

Piaggio

Originally Posted by drmohitg

One of them being how does a car maker decide as to whom to call?

Also there are so many different shows, national and then local, TV and print, followed by magazines and multiple internet forums. How does a car maker decide whom all to call?

Depends entirely on the readership / viewership you have.

How much has there attitude changed towards TBHP per se given the phenomenal growth of the forum with every year.

Because of our independent nature & unbiased reporting, there's definitely a load of respect for our community.

Originally Posted by humyum

The best part about Team-Bhp reviews are that there is no mirch masala, no 'I have to please these manufacturers'

Our funda is clear: The review should be as accurate & informative about the car as possible. We write reviews for BHPians...not manufacturers. BHPians have made Team-BHP what it is today.

when you drive the car which has been reviewed makes you say 'HECK THIS IS EXACTLY HOW THE REVIEWER HAD SAID IT WAS'.

Believe me, nothing makes my day more than to read a fresh ownership report that echoes the observations we made in our official review. I read each & every new ownership thread that goes live.

Originally Posted by Nithesh_M

This is very painful to hear. Some people never let go of their college shenanigans.

I'll share a jewel or two with you.

At the drive of a mass market hatchback, someone chose to ask 4 - 5 questions on a souped up international version with 200+ BHP on tap. Questions about 250 kph top speed followed.

At the event of a premium car, someone persisted with questions on why it should be launched in all-electric form, or with a hydrogen fuel-cell.

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Now with this only one point I will continue my argument with Rush. And it will be a never ending one each time.

Hahaha...a never-ending one, Rudra.

Thanks to you, we got this:

Originally Posted by StarrySky

In true T-BHP fashion, the thread on the process behind the official reviews is as detailed as the reviews themselves (including the smaller yet significant things)!!

Thank you, StarrySky!

Originally Posted by zavegur

I think where it clicks for T-BHP is that at least 2 mods do the review- this makes the prose unbiased at all times.

Very true. The presence of a 2nd Moderator is invaluable. You'll notice that our most detailed reviews (e.g. EcoSport) were with 2 onboard. This greatly, immensely enhances the quality of the report.

Let two of us come and give us enough time with the car...I guarantee you a review like no other.

Originally Posted by RGK

Will BHPians be allowed to participate in the review if logistics are taken care by the individual?

You know, I'd love to say yes...but it is a logistical challenge for us to orchestrate the same.

That said, we've frequently engaged BHPians to offer their perspective when they own a chief competitor: E.g. Fortuner owner Guderian for our Santa Fe review.

Originally Posted by MunnabhaiMBBS

However, if it doesn't bother you much, would you also mind sharing the data analysis and final review write-up process followed by Team-BHP mods team?

Our style of working is very unique. Cannot share that data today, but maybe someday, you'll see an article like this on the inner workings of Team-BHP .

[utsav1303]

Originally Posted by GTO

The Cars

• ....we're clear that Team-BHP won't publish an incomplete report. No halfbaked reports for BHPians.

• Quality takes time & Team-BHP Official Reviews are normally the last to go live. Honestly, we couldn't care less....We don't understand the difference that an extra week or two makes for a benchmark review.

That's why everyone wait for Team-BHP reviews. Detailed and unbiased. Its good to know the efforts MODs are putting in to go extra mile before releasing the reviews.

Originally Posted by GTO

The Smaller yet Significant Things

• Manufacturers frequently offer long-termers to us...say, a new car to drive for a year or so. We politely refuse; don't need them because we have real-world ownership reports from BHPians.

• Inexpensive caps, t-shirts, scale models, bags etc. are still okay, but... Manufacturers should do away with gifts.

• An FAQ: Nope, we don't screw on actual Team-BHP number plates on test drive cars. They are photoshopped later on.

• I don't like wasting a lot of time searching for that 'ideal' photoshoot location. If it's close by, fine. If not, I'll find something half decent and focus on the car instead. To me, the car is more important than the backdrop.

Very insightful and fine detail informations. Though Team-BHP deliberately don't put efforts in finding that 'ideal' photoshoot location, the photos do stand out.

Amazed to see the efforts that Team-BHP MODs put in finer details of looking license plate so real.


An eye-opener article. Thanks for sharing! It appears Team-BHP MODs are firing all cylinders for new year bonanza for its readers with Hoodies and now, this article.

[Geo_Ipe]

An extremely informative thread!!

Is it possible to invite non-Mod BHPians too for these official events?? Maybe send out random invites to BHPians who have completed, say, 4/5 years of membership. It would be nice to have a non professional write up as well! And it would be dream come true for us ordinary BHPians to attend such an event!!

Plus, there could be another feature like 'Meet the Mods'! We all know you guys by your screen names and profile pics, but I'm sure we'd like to know more about you guys and your regular lives! Excuse the request if it sounds too personal or time consuming. Just a thought...

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by Geo_Ipe

It would be nice to have a non professional write up as well!

You already have it. None of us are professional writers.

Originally Posted by utsav1303

Though Team-BHP deliberately don't put efforts in finding that 'ideal' photoshoot location, the photos do stand out.

Well, we do try to bring out the best under the circumstances. Once I had gotten a black car to test drive under the harsh Chennai sun. Black car under harsh sun can totally confuse your camera exposure meter, making the car look dull. Finally managed to get this. The background is just some marsh, but the car looks good, click and see in full size.

[jvm_1986]

Wow.Really insightful thread. Thanks to all the mods for taking such an effort for giving us the best reviews.