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Old 28th May 2016, 18:37   #286
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New updates!

After 4 years of road usage, I finally succumbed to the convenience of basic power accessories! I finally installed power windows and central locking (for the three doors) sourced directly from Autocop in Bangalore.

Wow! What a difference! And to realize I manually wound the windows up and down for the past four years!

Costing around 11k, the basic installation was done by Autocop in Bangalore. However, I had my mechanics in Coorg re-engineer the locking mechanism in the rear door. It has been done so beautifully that I wonder why Mahindra does not provide central locking and power windows as OE!

During the weekend, I had the opportunity of driving down to the backwaters of the Kabini Reservoir for a family gathering. I chanced upon one of my favorite spots - a grassland surrounded by water on all three sides. Though the water has receded considerably, I was tempted to take photographs of my Jeep in those picturesque settings, and here they are!

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-1.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-2.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-3.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-4.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-5.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-6.jpg

Over the past 10 days, the drive from Bangalore to Coorg, Kabini has been an absolute pleasure after my Jeep's recent (Mobil) oil bath!

Last edited by cpbopanna : 28th May 2016 at 18:44.
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Old 29th May 2016, 06:38   #287
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Re: Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe

Vwry Nice ! Wallpaper quality photos sir ! I have been holding out on the power windows and locks so far as well. Its now almost 4 years of ownership (one more month to go) for me.
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Old 29th May 2016, 07:33   #288
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sjcherian View Post
Vwry Nice ! Wallpaper quality photos sir ! I have been holding out on the power windows and locks so far as well. Its now almost 4 years of ownership (one more month to go) for me.
Thanks Sushil!
You should go for the power windows and central locking.
Mark my words, if properly installed, they indeed make a sea of difference and you will regret that you hadn't installed them earlier!
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Old 31st May 2016, 05:01   #289
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Re: Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe

Great thread sir, I read all the 20 pages and wow it was entertaining and informative.
Now the jeep bug has bitten me after the enfield bug. Why are there bugs all over.
This is probably a good bug to be bitten by.

Just wanted your suggestion that should I got for the new Thar of try to get hold of a second hand older model.
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Old 1st June 2016, 00:30   #290
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Re: Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe

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Originally Posted by kanu2k15 View Post
Great thread sir, I read all the 20 pages and wow it was entertaining and informative.
Now the jeep bug has bitten me after the enfield bug. Why are there bugs all over.
This is probably a good bug to be bitten by.

Just wanted your suggestion that should I got for the new Thar of try to get hold of a second hand older model.
Thanks for the appreciation Kanu!

The new Thar is mechanically better but aesthetically worse than the old Thar!
However, I am personally not a fan of buying pre-owned vehicles, especially Jeeps; since only God will know how they have been (mis)used!
With the Green Tribunal planning to restrict more cities where diesel vehicles (with engines above 2 litres) may be sold, THIS IS THE TIME to buy a
brand new Thar!

Regarding bugs, there are good bugs and there are bad bugs.
For your luck both the Bullet and Jeep bugs are the good ones!
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Old 1st June 2016, 01:24   #291
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Re: Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe

I too am not a fan of pre-owned vehicles but was thinking of starting to save money for future. I'm married now.

NGT have gone nuts I think, banning vehicles without proper analyzing of data. Anyways for the new Thar aesthetics can be modified I believe in many places but that will take time due to budget constrains. Well waiting for a long test drive booked on Friday, lets see how it goes. I may book it ASAP.
Do help me please if I have any question about the vehicle. PM me your number if you want.
Also any recommendation on which dealership is good to buy from in Bangalore? I live near EGL Domlur.

Thanks
Karan
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Old 1st June 2016, 10:13   #292
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kanu2k15 View Post
I too am not a fan of pre-owned vehicles but was thinking of starting to save money for future. I'm married now.

NGT have gone nuts I think, banning vehicles without proper analyzing of data. Anyways for the new Thar aesthetics can be modified I believe in many places but that will take time due to budget constrains. Well waiting for a long test drive booked on Friday, lets see how it goes. I may book it ASAP.
Do help me please if I have any question about the vehicle. PM me your number if you want.
Also any recommendation on which dealership is good to buy from in Bangalore? I live near EGL Domlur.

Thanks
Karan
I bought mine from India Garage.
But I understand that their quality of sales and service has gone down the drain (not that they were excellent earlier)!
Perhaps you should try somebody new like Ananth Cars or Sirish Automobiles!
For service though, I would recommend Chrome Motors on Mysore Road!
(Incidentally Chrome Motors are just an Authorized Service Centre, they do not sell vehicles)
I have PMd my contact number!

Last edited by cpbopanna : 1st June 2016 at 10:18.
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Old 31st July 2016, 09:17   #293
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Ultimately - Black!!

Aluminium to Black:
The remaining legacy of the original Thar - the aluminum foot-boards stuck out like a sore thumb!
I decided to replace them with the foot-boards from the new Thar
After buying a set of new foot-boards from India Garage, I decided to remove the existing ones and install the new ones myself.
Alas, the holes did not match - so away I went to my work-shop to customize the fit!
Whilst at the workshop, I noticed that if the foot-boards were installed as provided, they would be too-close and too-high to the body of the Jeep; making ingress and egress difficult!
So back to the drawing board, a sub-frame was fabricated out of a 2" x 4" GI square section with suitable mounting points, which was attached to the existing holes in the underside of the Jeep body. To this sub-frame, the foot-board is fastened.
Whilst this arrangement sounds simple, believe me it took a good 6 hours to attain a perfect mount, none of the holes are symmetrical and therefore the entire fabrication required extensive measurements and engineering!
Anyway, the end result is good!
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-foot-steps.jpg

Floor-coat:
Whilst at the work-shop, I had planned to coat the inside of the tub with an anti-corrosive sealant.
With my years of experience with Jeeps, I am yet to see a single Jeep which is 100% water-proof; during heavy showers or a proper service, water manages to enter the tub through the sides of (front/rear) doors/front wind-shield hinge and snake their way around the tub-floor, remain under the rubber mat and slowly corrode the floor.
Whilst the solution is to remove the mats and wipe/blow-dry the floor after each 'adventure', sometimes it can be extremely time-consuming and impractical!
So I decided to improvise! I purchased 4 cans of (400 ml) German anti-corrosive coating called 'Unter-Schutz-Spray', a thick Matt Black aerosol paint. Whilst at the work-shop, I removed all the seats, (a herculean task considering the forward-facing rear seat with its own frame, the audio amp, speakers, wiring) and sprayed the sealant all over the tub. Now, during the monsoon, I shall just use small foot mats on the floor, and after each journey, the floor will require a simple 'mop' to get it dry. Even if I do not mop immediately, it will not matter, since the water cannot penetrate the metal!
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-antirust-spray.jpg

Last edited by cpbopanna : 31st July 2016 at 09:20.
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Old 9th August 2016, 10:40   #294
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Re: Ultimately - Black!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by cpbopanna View Post
Aluminium to Black:

Whilst at the work-shop, I had planned to coat the inside of the tub with an anti-corrosive sealant.
With my years of experience with Jeeps, I am yet to see a single Jeep which is 100% water-proof; during heavy showers or a proper service, water manages to enter the tub through the sides of (front/rear) doors/front wind-shield hinge and snake their way around the tub-floor, remain under the rubber mat and slowly corrode the floor.
Whilst the solution is to remove the mats and wipe/blow-dry the floor after each 'adventure', sometimes it can be extremely time-consuming and impractical!
So I decided to improvise! I purchased 4 cans of (400 ml) German anti-corrosive coating called 'Unter-Schutz-Spray', a thick Matt Black aerosol paint. Whilst at the work-shop, I removed all the seats, (a herculean task considering the forward-facing rear seat with its own frame, the audio amp, speakers, wiring) and sprayed the sealant all over the tub. Now, during the monsoon, I shall just use small foot mats on the floor, and after each journey, the floor will require a simple 'mop' to get it dry. Even if I do not mop immediately, it will not matter, since the water cannot penetrate the metal!
Attachment 1535816
You are right Bopanna,

I have noticed same issue, water tend to stay below the mat and corrode. My Thar is less than a year old and I can see spots of rust.

I am also planning to do this. I am curious to know how did you spray it? Any video would help.
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Old 9th August 2016, 11:18   #295
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Re: Ultimately - Black!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by aithalsandy View Post
You are right Bopanna,

I have noticed same issue, water tend to stay below the mat and corrode. My Thar is less than a year old and I can see spots of rust.

I am also planning to do this. I am curious to know how did you spray it? Any video would help.
Sandeep

Spraying the ant-corrosive treatment is quite easy, it is an aerosol can, just shake the can (agitator ball within the can mixes up the paint), aim and shoot - just make sure it is a light coat, spray layer by layer.
If the coating is too thick, will take ages to dry!

Please make sure that the floor is clean, absolutely dry before spaying the anti-rust treatment!

The problem is removing all the seats - in a stock Thar, there is no issue, just a couple of bolts (the nuts are welded to the underside, so no problems)

However in my case, I have front-facing rear seats mounted on a frame and attached to the floor. Also, I have removed the tool-box welded to the floor (please refer my earlier posts - Page 10) and mounted the passenger front seat on a fabricated frame.
Therefore, the removal and re-installation of seats, music system itself took close to 3 hours!

I am afraid I do not have any videos, but you can be rest assured that the anti-corrosion treatment is worth the cost!
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Old 20th October 2016, 21:54   #296
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Rejuvenation!

53 months, 30,000 km! It has been a long journey for my Jeep!

With all mods complete, 'taking good care' of my Jeep has been at the back of my mind for sometime.
I anxiously waited for a break and rains and voila, today was the day with least probability of rain!
Since I had already treated the inside of the tub with an anti-rust paint, now I planned to get an anti-rust undercoat done.

When I reached the nearby 3M Car Care Center at Indiranagar, I decided to indulge my Jeep further. I added body-treatment to the to-do !

Work-in-progress - Preparation!
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-wip.jpg

The Jeep was first hoisted on the hydraulic lift to carry out the undercoat.
Once that was done, the vehicle was lowered and the painstaking work commenced.
Cleaning of exteriors, vacuuming of interiors, layers of polish on the outside, a coating on the tyres, dash board, hard top!
After nearly 4 hours of continuous work, the Jeep was ready to roll!

What an amazing transformation!
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-front-3-quarter.jpg
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-side.jpg

Last but not the least, the image of the rear which left me with a good feeling that it was a Rs. 6k well spent!
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-rear.jpg

Tomorrow early morning my journey starts towards the coast, then up the mountains...

Last edited by cpbopanna : 20th October 2016 at 22:19.
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Old 21st October 2016, 12:23   #297
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Re: Rejuvenation!

Quote:
Originally Posted by cpbopanna View Post
53 months, 30,000 km! It has been a long journey for my Jeep!
The care taken with the vehicle does show - it still looks as good as new. I somehow felt you may have put a lot more mileage on it.
Wishing you many more happy miles with the Thar !
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Old 21st October 2016, 14:38   #298
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Re: Rejuvenation!

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Originally Posted by sjcherian View Post
The care taken with the vehicle does show - it still looks as good as new. I somehow felt you may have put a lot more mileage on it.
Wishing you many more happy miles with the Thar !
Thanks Sushil!

I primarily use the Jeep within the city, easier to drive - with all other vehicles keeping a 'safe' distance!
Hence the low mileage!

For intra-city use I have a car (an SX4) which I find more comfortable with the family onboard!

Today was one of the days I chose the Jeep, to drive down to Mangalore.
Man, what a drive!
From Bangalore to Hassan, I drove pedal-to-metal (120 kmph +)
The FE tanked to below 9 kmpl! But the feeling was great!

Thereafter, with more sedate driving, got back to my usual 11 kmpl!
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Old 22nd November 2016, 20:44   #299
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Fog-wheel-drive

During a recent visit to Coorg, I had the pleasure of driving through extremely heavy fog in the dead of the night!
I am sharing a couple of lovely pictures!

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-1.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-2.jpg

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-3.jpg

Subsequently, we headed towards the forest area where the fog was more dense and temperature nippy!

Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-5.jpg

Visibility was almost down to zero, and the temperature hovering around 7 - 8 deg Celsius
However with the heater on at full blast and the head-lamps and Hellas on, it was a drive of a lifetime!

The parting shot!
Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe-4.jpg

It had been quite sometime since I drove through such heavy fog!
Altogether a lovely experience!

Last edited by cpbopanna : 22nd November 2016 at 20:51.
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Old 5th January 2017, 11:56   #300
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Re: Call of the wild - Mahindra Thar CRDe

Quote:
Originally Posted by cpbopanna View Post

The new Thar is mechanically better but aesthetically worse than the old Thar!
However, I am personally not a fan of buying pre-owned vehicles, especially Jeeps; since only God will know how they have been (mis)used!
With the Green Tribunal planning to restrict more cities where diesel vehicles (with engines above 2 litres) may be sold, THIS IS THE TIME to buy a
brand new Thar!

Regarding bugs, there are good bugs and there are bad bugs.
I have avidly read the entire thread, chronicling the mods that you have carried out to the Thar. Reminds me of something Churchill said when recommissioning a warship during WWII - "We have put a new barrel around the old bung"

I fell in love with the Classic that was manufactured by M&M in the nineties. At that time I couldn't afford to by it and the PSU that I worked for, refused to sanction a loan to buy the Classic; only the Premier Padmini, Ambassador and Maruti 800 were on the approved list of vehicles.

I am still infected by the 'jeep' bug and am in the market to buy a jeep. Your 'endorsement' of the New Thar, whilst not ringing, certainly helps in coming to a decision.

Like you, I am not planning to use the Thar for hardcore off-road activities; occasional city driving, but mostly long distance. Which means it has to be comfortable, otherwise it will be vetoed by the home ministry.

I understand that Mahindra's have an in-house Customisation Division that modifies the THAR and other SUVs. Have you ever contacted the guys in this division whilst you were modifying your THAR?
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