[hondadude]

Originally Posted by triedeverything

How come the ground clearance of the Scorpio is not mentioned on their web site or in their brochure?

That's because it is less than even SX4 . I believe Scorp's ground clearance is 180mm (google) and if that is indeed the case, it is less than every SUV available in Indian market. That is probably the reason they don't advertise it.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

yes I agree this is a bit odd

one of the key things in an SUV is GC and as such it is a huge "confidence inspirer" so not mentioning it doesnt make sense

See my response above. The way I see it, there are tons of folks who have been to Ladakh etc in Scorpio so the ground clearance is "good enough", whatever is the number.

[shankar.balan]

i ve not driven to ladakh and all that but my scorpio chugs along peacefully on bad rutted tracks through mud etc in our south india hill stations.
also in bangalore whenever I go over one of those wild home-made speedbreakers I bless the more-than-sufficient GC of my scorpio
i constantly see a number of other car drivers struggling, slowing down to almost a dead halt and then crawling up and down those self same speedbreakers gingerly but the scorp goes over them without any hassle.

Originally Posted by hondadude

That's because it is less than even SX4 . I believe Scorp's ground clearance is 180mm (google) and if that is indeed the case, it is less than every SUV available in Indian market. That is probably the reason they don't advertise it.



See my response above. The way I see it, there are tons of folks who have been to Ladakh etc in Scorpio so the ground clearance is "good enough", whatever is the number.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by hondadude

That's because it is less than even SX4 . I believe Scorp's ground clearance is 180mm (google) and if that is indeed the case, it is less than every SUV available in Indian market. That is probably the reason they don't advertise it.



See my response above. The way I see it, there are tons of folks who have been to Ladakh etc in Scorpio so the ground clearance is "good enough", whatever is the number.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

i ve not driven to ladakh and all that but my scorpio chugs along peacefully on bad rutted tracks through mud etc in our south india hill stations.
also in bangalore whenever I go over one of those wild home-made speedbreakers I bless the more-than-sufficient GC of my scorpio
i constantly see a number of other car drivers struggling, slowing down to almost a dead halt and then crawling up and down those self same speedbreakers gingerly but the scorp goes over them without any hassle.

You cannot compare a ladder on frame chasis SUV GC to a car GC.
First of all, for SUVs, its laden GC.
Secondly, GC is the lowest point of the car. In cars like scorpio/innova etc., is the center diff.
So if you climb a huge speed breaker, the center diff will also rise with the rear wheels climbing the speed breaker.

In trail driving, more than the lowest point, its the average GC which matters. In a car, even in SX4, the average GC will be much lower. Infact there will be lot of points close to the 190mm GC of the vehicle.
In Ladder on frame chasis vehicles, if you can somehow avoid hitting the low center diff of the car, rest of the vehicle parts sit much higher.
So inspite of having lower GC on paper, an innova or a scorpio will fare better than sedans on extreme bad roads with deep ruts

[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

You cannot compare a ladder on frame chasis SUV GC to a car GC.
First of all, for SUVs, its laden GC.
Secondly, GC is the lowest point of the car. In cars like scorpio/innova etc., is the center diff.
So if you climb a huge speed breaker, the center diff will also rise with the rear wheels climbing the speed breaker.

In trail driving, more than the lowest point, its the average GC which matters. In a car, even in SX4, the average GC will be much lower. Infact there will be lot of points close to the 190mm GC of the vehicle.
In Ladder on frame chasis vehicles, if you can somehow avoid hitting the low center diff of the car, rest of the vehicle parts sit much higher.
So inspite of having lower GC on paper, an innova or a scorpio will fare better than sedans on extreme bad roads with deep ruts

Paper specification GC though is helpful at times for a quick comparo but do not take them as ultimate guide. A look at the underbody of both SX4 and Scorpio will make it clear. I absolutely agree with what Tanveer has said here.

[shankar.balan]

thanks- this was well clarified by TSK!

because I ve driven my Scorp on tracks in the hills which are usually frequented only by tractors etc, typically the tractor gouges deep tracks on either side leaving a nice "mud-hump" in the middle of the track - for the most part the Scorp goes through easily, as did my earlier Bolero, Gypsy and so on - but there are times when I feel safer if I drive with one set of wheels on top of the said "hump" and one set in the rut itself.

Originally Posted by tsk1979

So inspite of having lower GC on paper, an innova or a scorpio will fare better than sedans on extreme bad roads with deep ruts

[Caramelo]

Originally Posted by hondadude

That's because it is less than even SX4 . I believe Scorp's ground clearance is 180mm (google) and if that is indeed the case, it is less than every SUV available in Indian market. That is probably the reason they don't advertise it.

wow!! really i never ever thought about it! u opend my eyes bro! SX4 seem a lot more apealing now . i wished they had 4 matic or x drive type awd SX4 SEDAN!! i know about the sx4 hatch has that 4x4!!

[triedeverything]

The difference in GC between the Indica and the Scorpio is just 15mm... or 1.5 cms? There is so much difference in height. Difficult to believe that the lowest part of the Scorpio is just 1.5 cms above the Indica's. Have I missed something?

[druva]

Originally Posted by triedeverything

The difference in GC between the Indica and the Scorpio is just 15mm... or 1.5 cms? There is so much difference in height. Difficult to believe that the lowest part of the Scorpio is just 1.5 cms above the Indica's. Have I missed something?

oh yeah. you triedeverything, but missed tsk's post

Originally Posted by tsk1979

You cannot compare a ladder on frame chasis SUV GC to a car GC.
.....
So inspite of having lower GC on paper, an innova or a scorpio will fare better than sedans on extreme bad roads with deep ruts

[triedeverything]

TSK may be right most of the time. However, there are situations when the wheels can go into a deep pothole or slip of the road because of idiotic oncoming drivers overtaking even when there is no option to. In such cases, the lowest part of the vehicle is just that - the lowest part! The same situation is different if you are traveling on the Innova, wrt the SX4

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by triedeverything

TSK may be right most of the time. However, there are situations when the wheels can go into a deep pothole or slip of the road because of idiotic oncoming drivers overtaking even when there is no option to. In such cases, the lowest part of the vehicle is just that - the lowest part! The same situation is different if you are traveling on the Innova, wrt the SX4

Not exactly , Scorpio and Safari have a rear differential where as SX4 is FWD . There is no flex on the axel so the 190 mm ( scorp) and 205 mm ( safari ) never reduces on hump.

so even though GC may be nearly same, In case of Suv apart from differential rest of the car is much higher. Also differential will scrape if and only if you choose to take a hump or stone exactly in middle of the tyres and drive over it . In safari there are 4 rubber roller arm on either side of differential to protect differential and engine sump guard also prevents hit if there is a hmp in middle and you drive on it.

In SX4 the 180 CM is without any protecting rollers or sump guards.

[4x4addict]

@amit: Want to correct misconception about the Scoprio and Safari ground clearance differences. Mahindra uses the lowest point in the differential while Tata uses the lowest point in the body but above the differential. If you look at differential measurements, Tata Safari is also at about 180mm.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

@amit: Want to correct misconception about the Scoprio and Safari ground clearance differences. Mahindra uses the lowest point in the differential while Tata uses the lowest point in the body but above the differential. If you look at differential measurements, Tata Safari is also at about 180mm.

Nope please use a scale and measure from lowest point at rear.
How do I know this well the Lowest point anyway is front suspension component at 84mm , It was set to 89mm for my Safari and at the time of wheel alignment A.S.S asked me if he should lower to factory setting of 84 mm , I preferred the stability in place of clearance and After Shim adjustment I asked him to measure the GC also and it was the quoted value using a steel scale ( the one which they use to set the suspension height )

[4x4addict]

@amit:

The measurement of the GC from the lowest point in the diff for the Safari is not 205 mm. Tatas have picked some mid point under the body for this measurement. This subject has been discussed extensively in some thread inthe 4x4 section. Manufacturers use different methodology for GC which is not always comparable.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

@amit:

The measurement of the GC from the lowest point in the diff for the Safari is not 205 mm. Tatas have picked some mid point under the body for this measurement. This subject has been discussed extensively in some thread inthe 4x4 section. Manufacturers use different methodology for GC which is not always comparable.

The lowest point is protector rubber roller next to differential in Safari which is just a few mm below diff. and if you place a Scale on a level surface it is indeed 205 mm there is no cheating. You some how don't believe this so why don't you measure yourself.
Anyway this was not the focus of this thread , you can hold on to your views but in case you want to verify it is a simple procedure that can be done on any product sample quite easily using a simple scale.

[4x4addict]

@amit:

I don't have a Tata Safari, else I would have crept underneath with a scale. I had picked up a brochure of the old TCIC safari when I was planning to get one. I recall this from then.


If you have measured it, I will take your word on it.