[anjan_c2007]

This buyer had a look at the MG Hector Plus, Tata Safari and Hyundai Alcazar but was not impressed. The XUV 700 was to be launched soon so he decided to wait. The SUV and its pricing impressed him. He booked a petrol AX 7 variant in the silver shade. Soon he realised that the silver shade didn't impress him whereas in midnight black it looked good. No changes were allowed by M&M once a shade was booked. He got lucky and his SUV was delivered very soon as the booking materialised, despite others waiting given the year long waiting list. In fact he is the second lucky customer to get this SUV in Jabalpur. While driving home, he noticed issues with the ADAS functions that were not working. Taking the SUV back to the dealership he reported the defects. They opened up the XUV 700 and could not rectify the problem despite trying since a few days. Seeing the SUV in such a condition at the dealership, the buyer agitated the matter and told the dealer that he be given the cost paid since he was no longer interested in owning this vehicle. To his surprise he very soon found that M&M would offer him a replacement in his favourite midnight black shade.

The alacrity with which M&M responded positively is indeed praiseworthy and is a shining example for other car makers to emulate.

Source: https://www.cartoq.com/mahindra-repl...-problems/amp/

[IamNikhil]

Just saw this video on YouTube a couple of days back. Amazed at the proactive customer service exhibited by Mahindra in this case.

However, I'm perplexed as to why they couldn't rectify the problem with ADAS? If the problem itself warranted a full replacement of the vehicle, this points to the fact that it was a grave one for sure.

Nonetheless, this chap is one lucky customer!

[sarathlal]

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

The alacrity with which M&M responded positively is indeed praiseworthy and is a shining example for other car makers to emulate.

True that! One amazing (and an extremely rare) customer centric attitude by a car manufacturer.

Originally Posted by IamNikhil

Nonetheless, this chap is one lucky customer!

Yep, and is he the first such customer in our auto landscape?

[Engine_Roars]

I would not see this is a win for us Indian customers. ADAS is a complicated tech and to have it failed in first few KMs is a big failure on Mahindra's part.

Mahindra has just tried to save their face by replacing the car, they did not want this to be one of the first impressions of their showstopper product.

[Rolling_Stock]

Originally Posted by Engine_Roars

I would not see this is a win for us Indian customers. ADAS is a complicated tech and to have it failed in first few KMs is a big failure on Mahindra's part.

Mahindra has just tried to save their face by replacing the car, they did not want this to be one of the first impressions of their showstopper product.

Kudos to Mahindra for being proactive, unlike Tata that handled the Safari Saga poorly by neither having control over the dealer, nor able to provide a convincing response to the customer.

However, this incident has opened a Pandora box on ADAS's applicability and adaptability for Indian conditions. Only time will tell.

[fhdowntheline]

In absence of regulation around safety tech, I hope manufacturers look seriously at any issues instead of just making this a one off case. What is it that could not be repaired or replaced? On a regular day there are so many incidents which do not warrant replacement of a part by the dealer service, forget replacement of the vehicle. So why the alacrity in this case?
Tomorrow if someone is not happy with the brake response of a Bolero Neo will that person get new brakes or a new car?

[anjan_c2007]

The news links for this good deed done by M&M:

https://www.cartoq.com/mahindra-repl...lops-problems/

https://www.news18.com/news/auto/mah...m-4537799.html

[naveen.raju]

What I feel is - when the tech advances, the people at dealer/service level aren't trained properly. This was experienced in the 3 cars that I owned.

Swift - Absolutely no hiccups. No tech except for the aftermarket headunit.
Ecosport - Very less tech but no issue.
Creta/Grand i10 - Anything that's tech related, they haven't been able to provide an answer like AVN issues, ABS sensor issue etc.

Even when I drove the XUV 700, I mentioned about the ADAS where the auto brake was applied in the wrong scenario. Even if I had one, I would never use this feature. The auto brake reminded me of the ABS issue that I had.

[IshaanIan]

Very good to see customer rights being upheld without a fuss here in India. I only wish Mahindra would do something about our very own member's XUV500 that badly injured his son when it crashed and none of the airbags opened. I suppose it is easy to replace a vehicle that is brand new and in demand (perhaps they will pawn it off to another customer or use it as a test drive vehicle?).

Expecting local service center folks to know how to do anything more than attach a new bumper or change the oil is foolish here in India. These people are simply not paid enough for their 'labor'; they roll up to the service center on Splendors, get paid peanuts and we expect them to understand how sensors operate and function? Heck they can barely even check valve clearances that too with supervision. Even folks that might be passionate about vehicles will have that passion killed if they ever enter the field of automotive service in our country. No matter how much we complain this situation will only improve once we respect the field of automotive service and learn to value the ability/knowledge of a service advisor. Only then will it become a job that someone might aspire to and only then can we expect some real actual professional help.

[vigsom]

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

he very soon found that M&M would offer him a replacement in his favourite midnight black shade.

This reminds me of a case of a friend's Ford Ikon Flair sometime in 2006 or 2007 that was taken back by Ford and the full money refunded; I don't exactly recall what happened but it was about the engine not performing satisfactorily. Here, however, the car was taken back after some 4 months of trials when the dealer, and then Ford couldn't figure out what as wrong.

Originally Posted by Engine_Roars

Mahindra has just tried to save their face by replacing the car, they did not want this to be one of the first impressions of their showstopper product.

Wonderful and swift move by Mahindra, which, am sure will give the owner some solace. But I'm keeping my fingers crossed, hoping the owner doesn't face the same issues in the replacement vehicle.

Originally Posted by naveen.raju

What I feel is - when the tech advances, the people at dealer/service level aren't trained properly

Completely agree.

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

this situation will only improve once we respect the field of automotive service and learn to value the ability/knowledge of a service advisor. Only then will it become a job that someone might aspire to and only then can we expect some real actual professional help.

This is a classic case of demand for cheap labour overriding competence. Competence isn't given priority in any sector these days, especially in customer service.

[VW2010]

Did they have another option at this stage of the product cycle. Absolutely no. The noble gesture is beyond noble but necessity. If they did not replace the car, I am sure half the people who are taking a risk on the first generation mahindra would back off immediately. To me this replacment was the best bet for the company to save their face to cross the first year and first lot of delivery. I am absolutely sure we will hear stories how the manufacturer replaced earlier but now offering only repair in another 6 months time.

Call me skeptical but I understand the marketing and brand image in this gesture.

[abhishek46]

If the ADAS had failed, Mahindra could have simply replaced the camera,radar, other ADAS Hardware etc.
I don't understand the reasoning behind replacing the whole car.

Are we sure that the vehicle was registered in customer's name, and then it was replaced.
OR it was simply a PDI reject?

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by abhishek46

If the ADAS had failed, Mahindra could have simply replaced the camera,radar, other ADAS Hardware etc.
I don't understand the reasoning behind replacing the whole car.

It needs some talent to be able to properly identify the issue related to ADAS or any modern tech. Especially for Mahindra since its their first model to come equipped with such features. Hence they failed to fix it for two days after which the resolution was to replace the car.

On the other hand, I would be surprised if they replaced a car that was already registered in the customers name. Thats some real customer centric attitude.

[Dry Ice]

Happy for the owner, but it’s definitely a one off thing. I would not be surprised if this feat isn’t repeated.

To me, it probably indicates that M&M engineers needed more time to diagnose the issue and possibly wanted to get the vehicle back to the plant or R&D center. Dealerships obviously have limited resources. The owner, naturally, would object to this sort of a thing even if provided with a loaner. So, good call in the end.

I hope they are able to pinpoint and rectify the issue for others based on whatever they learn from this vehicle.

[CEF_Beasts]

The video has been taken down, what could be the reason?