[nivatakavacha]

Hi All,

I checked out the KUV100 at Zulaikha Motors at Velachery, Chennai today and there was a huge crowd at the dealership, all to look at the new Mahindra vehicle. The TUV300 in the far corner looked forlorn like the elder sibling who lost all the attention after the birth of the next child

1. The car looked decent enough to me, except for the rear and the wheel arch area. That part looked downright ugly to me. Attached a few pictures taken of a body kit which is available as an accessory.

2. I test drove the Diesel car and that would be my primary req. The engine was responsive, even from a very low rpm level, unlike the 1.3 Fiat engine that I drive in my Dzire. The initial pull was decent but the Diesel clatter filters into the cabin but I don't mind it. I liked it.
2. Initially I moved the seat to the lowest level (as I normally do) and got it and it was downright uncomfortable for me. I had to move the seat up to get to a comfortable position. And being 6 feet, I moved the seat back almost to the back. In that "ideal" position, I felt that the steering wheel was a bit lower that what I would have liked but I could get used to it.
3. The biggest surprise was the gear level. The gates are well defined and it slots really well. I enjoyed this "new" experience. With the "arm rest" in position, I could comfortably rest my left arm and use the gear lever. But I don't know how it will hold up in long drives.
4. The space at the back is decent when the front seats are not all the way back but my head brushed the roof.
5. There is body roll, but the suspension has been tuned for comfort. I went over a particularly bad stretch of road (kudos to the SA who encouraged me to go off-roading) , and the car went over the bumps really well.
6. This car feels and is more spacious than the Celerio and the Grand i10.
7. The quality of plastics inn certain areas are really bad, Mahindra-isque
8. The waiting time for top end models is about 14 weeks as per the SA.

Overall it is a decent and capable car. Good work Mahindra!

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by rohitz

I was advised by my friend that don't add up accessories from Mahindra Dealership they charge u extra. So I am planning to buy them later after picking up my car from them, I just asked them for the coating, for which they advised that they will do it form 3M and charge 9000 for it, It includes underbody n upper body coating. Is it a good deal?

If you want to save money, get everything aftermarket. Please check with 3M directly on the price for the same service, am sure you'll save BIG!

[Balaji31582]

Do we have the t-bhp review done? Can the mods kindly let me know when the review will be posted ? This is just from a curious new car seeker

[Balaji31582]

Originally Posted by nivatakavacha;

2. I test drove the Diesel car and that would be my primary req. The engine was responsive, even from a very low rpm level, unlike the 1.3 Fiat engine that I drive in my Dzire.
5. There is body roll, but the suspension has been tuned for comfort. I went over a particularly bad stretch of road (kudos to the SA who encouraged me to go off-roading) , and the car went over the bumps really well.


Overall it is a decent and capable car. Good work Mahindra!

Thanks for the update. Since you have a dzire, could you please give your opinion about the ride quality between KUV and dzire?

[nivatakavacha]

Originally Posted by Balaji31582

Thanks for the update. Since you have a dzire, could you please give your opinion about the ride quality between KUV and dzire?

Hi Balaji,

The TD I had was short and I did not take the KUV100 above 60 km/hr. In that short ride, I felt that the Dzire felt more planted in its ride quality and suspension setup is not bad either. in the KUV100, there was more body roll and a wallowly feeling to the ride, probably because the height is more as compared to the Dzire. The suspension setup was decent enough but it will get some getting used too.

Regarding ergonomics, Dzire definitely felt much better to me, probably since I am used to driviing it on a daily basis.

Hope that answers your question. Another important factor to consider is that I've not heard good things about Zulaikha's A.S.S. More than buying, I think that factor will be the deciding one for me.

[Balaji31582]

Originally Posted by nivatakavacha

Hi Balaji,

The TD I had was short and I did not take the KUV100 above 60 km/hr. In that short ride, I felt that the Dzire felt more planted in its ride quality and suspension setup is not bad either. in the KUV100, there was more body roll and a wallowly feeling to the ride, probably because the height is more as compared to the Dzire. The suspension setup was decent enough but it will get some getting used too.

Regarding ergonomics, Dzire definitely felt much better to me, probably since I am used to driviing it on a daily basis.

Hope that answers your question. Another important factor to consider is that I've not heard good things about Zulaikha's A.S.S. More than buying, I think that factor will be the deciding one for me.

Thanks a lot for your quick response. I am planning to take a TD, but not in this week as I know there will be a mad rush as we have only 3 mahindra dealers within chennai. Meanwhile, I have been in Dzire and I really liked the way it rides, atleast in its segment.

[karthick_b]

Hi folks, i have just got information from a reliable source that there have been 3 kuv100s with a case of broken front axle shaft. The shaft has been sent to bill forges factory at bangalore for a complete redesign. Mahindra will now start testing the vehicle with the newly designed front axle shaft for its stability. According to my source, all kuv deliveries will be on hold and delivered vehicles will be recalled for fixing the new axle shaft after all testing has been done with the redesigned shaft. Also, there have been reported cases of engine failure (petrol) and gearbox issues in a few cars.

[msk_kapoor]

Originally Posted by karthick_b

According to my source, all kuv deliveries will be on hold and delivered vehicles will be recalled for fixing the new axle shaft after all testing has been done with the redesigned shaft.

Hi can you tell me where you got this info from? I still see that deliveries havent started in chennai and that the test drive cars are still running as of yesterday.

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by karthick_b

Hi folks, i have just got information from a reliable source that there have been 3 kuv100s with a case of broken front axle shaft.

Is it correct? Or a rumor by competition? Why didn't they identify this serious issue during their test runs? I could see enormous rounds of test runs of this car behind the vacant roads of Mahindra City, Chennai.

[karthick_b]

Originally Posted by msk_kapoor

Hi can you tell me where you got this info from? I still see that deliveries havent started in chennai and that the test drive cars are still running as of yesterday.

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

Is it correct? Or a rumor by competition? Why didn't they identify this serious issue during their test runs? I could see enormous rounds of test runs of this car behind the vacant roads of Mahindra City, Chennai.

This is from a top level person working in Bill Forges, India, a supplier of car components.

[vasanthsm]

I called India garage Bangalore today and they were quite upbeat about the delivery of the vehicles (though dates were not mentioned).

This information comes to me as a shock considering that Mahindra carried out extensive testing before launch.

[sourabhzen]

Originally Posted by karthick_b

This is from a top level person working in Bill Forges, India, a supplier of car components.

This top level person might just have caused some serious harm to the car, even of he doors not exist (it can still be just a rumor).

[rohitz]

Originally Posted by karthick_b

Hi folks, i have just got information from a reliable source that there have been 3 kuv100s with a case of broken front axle shaft.

I took delivery of my Kuv today itself and no one informed me about anything like this in fact the Branch manager handed over the keys to me. So I guess if there is a issue with the axle as you are saying then they would have stopped my cars delivery for sure. I am pretty sure this is a stunt by mahindra's rivals.

[karthick_b]

Originally Posted by rohitz

I took delivery of my Kuv today itself and no one informed me about anything like this in fact the Branch manager handed over the keys to me. So I guess if there is a issue with the axle as you are saying then they would have stopped my cars delivery for sure. I am pretty sure this is a stunt by mahindra's rivals.

Congrats on your new KUV100. Who knows, in another week or two, Mahindra might recall a batch of kuvs to replace the part. I have no intentions to post about something unless I am sure about the person it comes from. Lets wait and see if it is an issue pertaining to a batch of kuvs. I will keep you guys updated.

Note: I am here to post about an issue which could very much be useful for aspirational buyers to be cautious on this issue.

[msk_kapoor]

Originally Posted by karthick_b

Congrats on your new KUV100. Who knows, in another week or two, Mahindra might recall a batch of kuvs to replace the part. I have no intentions to post about something unless I am sure about the person it comes from. Lets wait and see if it is an issue pertaining to a batch of kuvs. I will keep you guys updated.

Note: I am here to post about an issue which could very much be useful for aspirational buyers to be cautious on this issue.

I have forwarded this link to my dealer in Chennai and hope he will be able to clarify this. I am definitely expecting some minor issues in this vehicle as any newly launched ones will have, but issues like broken front axle is a major one and I am pretty convinced this would have been caught with very minor testing itself. What I feel is that Mahindra would have asked their component manufacturer to probably upgrade or redesign the front axle to accommodate a newer engine or for getting the AMT box in place. This would connect the petrol engine failure and front axle discussed here.