[aerohit]

TATA Xenon - The best Indian pickup ever built , and , up to global class in its price range.

[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by Mayavi

I think the reason load bay is not flush with the body is to allow the loading area flex room when carrying heavy loads over bumpy roads. This ensures that the ride doesn't become bumpy for the passengers. Without a seperation like that, the whole body flexes on rough roads. This was one of the main criticism of Toyota Tundra's in the US. Ford released a video of the same on Youtube.

Originally Posted by aerohit

TATA Xenon - The best Indian pickup ever built , and , up to global class in its price range.

thats right. if you notice, even the xenon has a xenon has a body which is not flush fitted with the body.

however, the xenon looks much better than the getaway.

[dinar]

The reason for getaway having the bed separate is not for allowing of flex, but to keep the design of the vehicle modular, same chassis, cab can have different bed designs [same is the case with xenon]. Both these vehicles are designed as Utility vechiles, only in India they are shown as life style vehicles.
As for getaways fit, the gaps and the way the bed is mounted is far inferior to the present TL, for get about comparing to xenon.[have not seen it up close] but looking at the pic the quality looks better than the Mahindra vehicle.
The xenon is designed ground up to be a Pick up, not like the getaway[after though]. I know the xenon shares the chassis with the grande, but it was designed to be a pickup and than used in grande not the other way round.

[4x4addict]

Originally Posted by dinar

The reason for getaway having the bed separate is not for allowing of flex, but to keep the design of the vehicle modular, same chassis, cab can have different bed designs

This is not true. You can build a pick up without the load bay separate but as part of the body on the same chasis? Explain why not, if you disagree.. For example look at the picture that GTO posted of the Bolero being converted to a pick up. They have converted the rear to a load where the body continues without a gap to the load bed.

The reason as other pointed out is to allow the body to flex.

[raj_5004]

dinar, pick ups have a seperate load area to allow flex in the load area without compromising on passenger comfort, as pointed out by 4x4addict & mayavi.

[aerohit]

Actually, there is nothing wrong with the rear not attached to the front.
Things change, Technology Change......Honda Ridgeline is a good example.
A very modern pickup truck indeed.




Flex? What flex? The rear coil springs will do the job.

Now nobody will complain, oh wait its a Honda thats why. They cant be wrong. right?? right??

[shankar.balan]

Xenon indeed looks lovely
and yes, it looks better than the Scorpio Getaway
However, this vehicle isnt generally available for us or is it?

sad, because somehow this pickup truck revolution/ double cab thingy never really took off in India at all but at the same time, in neighbouring Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and other SE Asian countries the pickup is amazingly popular. Cant really fathom this.

Originally Posted by aerohit

TATA Xenon - The best Indian pickup ever built , and , up to global class in its price range.

[4x4addict]

Originally Posted by aerohit

Actually, there is nothing wrong with the rear not attached to the front.
Things change, Technology Change......Honda Ridgeline is a good example.
A very modern pickup truck indeed.




Flex? What flex? The rear coil springs will do the job.

Now nobody will complain, oh wait its a Honda thats why. They cant be wrong. right?? right??

The Honda Ridgeline is a very light duty recreational pick up with unibody construction. It is not meant to be used for true commercial use like carrying heavy loads. Many people in the US buy Pick Up trucks as a fashion statement and as weekend warriors. The ridgeline is targeted at them not at the people who actually use their pick ups to carry loads like contractors or farmers, etc..

[aerohit]

4x4addict, i agree .

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Xenon indeed looks lovely
and yes, it looks better than the Scorpio Getaway
However, this vehicle isnt generally available for us or is it?

sad, because somehow this pickup truck revolution/ double cab thingy never really took off in India at all but at the same time, in neighbouring Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and other SE Asian countries the pickup is amazingly popular. Cant really fathom this.

Shankar - these are manufactured in Thailand / India and exported to Africa and Latin American. Not yet released in India though. TATA Ace is probabaly good enough for indian conditions maybe.

When the market is still buying 800/Nano, it is difficult to image DoubleCab being sold in large numbers. Indian Geography doent dictate everything that happens in other countries.

[dinar]

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

This is not true. You can build a pick up without the load bay separate but as part of the body on the same chasis? Explain why not, if you disagree.. For example look at the picture that GTO posted of the Bolero being converted to a pick up. They have converted the rear to a load where the body continues without a gap to the load bed.

The reason as other pointed out is to allow the body to flex.

I meant not JUST flex. These vehicles are marketed as Utility vehicles and the need for different setup makes this type of design easy to modify keeping the cab section as it is.
If a pick up is designed just as life style product there is no need for different load bay styles, even if one wants something different ,one will be able to spend to make it different from others.Even TL,xenon have the same design but as I said they are designed ground up to be pick ups only.

[1100D]

Originally Posted by Mayavi

I think the reason load bay is not flush with the body is to allow the loading area flex room when carrying heavy loads over bumpy roads. This ensures that the ride doesn't become bumpy for the passengers. Without a seperation like that, the whole body flexes on rough roads. This was one of the main criticism of Toyota Tundra's in the US. Ford released a video of the same on Youtube.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Morover the load bay has to be seperated from the passenger cabin to let the load bay flex under load on roads where one of the rear wheels hits a pothole. Without this the entire body will flex.

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

This is not true. You can build a pick up without the load bay separate but as part of the body on the same chasis? Explain why not, if you disagree.. For example look at the picture that GTO posted of the Bolero being converted to a pick up. They have converted the rear to a load where the body continues without a gap to the load bed.

The reason as other pointed out is to allow the body to flex.

Absolutely right as far as workhorse pickups go.

But then, the "lifestyle" pickups normally do not "need" to carry loads that would flex the body. Its all about understanding the market segment where your product is positioned. Take the case of Chevrolet Avalanche and Silverado.

Moreover when you have a double cab, you have a half load bay, so possibility of body bending loading is further diminished.

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

This one looks much better but still this vehicle is ugly IMO.

Yeah it still is ugly, even the photoshopped one. But then, the pickup with the MM540 front end still looks macho. That is the vehicle to base a lifestyle pickup on.

Speaking of the Xenon, why dont they bring a passenger carrying version of it, without telling me that the Sumo Grande is the one.

Originally Posted by aerohit

Actually, there is nothing wrong with the rear not attached to the front.
Things change, Technology Change......Honda Ridgeline is a good example.
A very modern pickup truck indeed.

Flex? What flex? The rear coil springs will do the job.

Now nobody will complain, oh wait its a Honda thats why. They cant be wrong. right?? right??

Try selling a Honda ridgeline to a Chevrolet Silverado customer!

[aerohit]

Originally Posted by 1100D

Try selling a Honda ridgeline to a Chevrolet Silverado customer!

Since flex is the issue on this page, and since we are talking about small-trucks (Mahindra, Tata Xenon) there isnt even any need to bring in the issue of flex on such light duty trucks. Even if they do flex, hell let it be so. This is not a Type-R. All pickup-trucks are built on ladder frame - so there will be flex.

I would say there is probably no need bring in the vibe "i know what is sold in america" since the blokes here are focused and talking about pickups for the Indian market primarily. Hell, none of the pickup trucks are seen on local roads, maybe because we have amazing delivery service provided by our businesses. Why buy a pickup truck when Lifestyle will deliver my furniture at my doorsteps on a Tata Ace.

And being bigger/powerful doesnt make Silverado a better vehicle, they are just designed to carry more load. (now rotting away on the dealer lots - that is because an individual owing a pickup truck for "pleasure" is bad economics)

I wont give a damn about Silverado or how big it is, but we could learn a thing or two from Honda about building a full ladder frame topped with a unibody cab and equipped with fully independent suspension and an advanced Variable Torque Management 4wd system. Chassis so stiff that when one wheel would sink up to its axle, the opposite wheel and tire would be carried airborne.

I could go on.....Try selling a Silverado to a Volvo Truck customer. It wouldnt make sense.

[1100D]

Originally Posted by aerohit

I would say there is probably no need bring in the vibe "i know what is sold in america" since the blokes here are focused and talking about pickups for the Indian market primarily. Hell, none of the pickup trucks are seen on local roads, maybe because we have amazing delivery service provided by our businesses. Why buy a pickup truck when Lifestyle will deliver my furniture at my doorsteps on a Tata Ace.

What I was trying to say was that people who need utilitarian pickups dont buy the flashy lifestyle pickups. The context of that statement was that a Gateaway is a lifestyle product, where aesthetics/cosmetics do matter. They have the Camper, the Pik-up and what not that are built for the sole purpose of load hauling where having a separate separable load bay has many advantages, one being modularity.

Infact you have actually brought out an interesting point, that in the Indian context there is no room for a lifestyle pickup right now, unless we get into the wintersports/watersports mode overnight.

[Mayavi]

Take a look at this video

YouTube - Silver Creek

[shankar.balan]

for the most part yes- owners of small businesses who need a utility vehicle would invariably use a motorbike to get around and invest in a tata ace or piaggio ape mini carrier.
Im aware that the issue is certainly not geographical - it is more to do with the psychographics of Indian customers.

Originally Posted by aerohit

Shankar - these are manufactured in Thailand / India and exported to Africa and Latin American. Not yet released in India though. TATA Ace is probabaly good enough for indian conditions maybe.

When the market is still buying 800/Nano, it is difficult to image DoubleCab being sold in large numbers. Indian Geography doent dictate everything that happens in other countries.