[raj_5004]

Its been a wonderful 2 years & 36k kms with my scorpio. today i am in the mood to sum up some of the most sad & interesting moments with my buddy- the scorp.

2007 end:
My brother buys a safari 2.2 which was just launched a few weeks back. Initial impressions of the safari was great but frankly, i dint enjoy driving this 140bhp monster as much as my older 110 bhp non-crde scorp.

Feb 2008:
Autocar India India reveals the first drive of the mHawk scorpio. Their view was that though the ride & handling has increased only marginally, the engine is a big leap forward in terms of refinement & power delivery. but i was a bit disappointed that its 120 bhp compared to 140 bhp in safari.

April:
Went to a Mahindra A.S.S & TD the mHawk scorpio. While driving the car, a huge grin was visible on my face! i was totally fascinated by the auto wipers/headlights, TPMS, cruise control & such, no matter what others say, i loved it! this car made me smile & my love affair with scorpios continued!

Initial May:
We decided that our older non-CRDe scorpio had run enough (http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...orpio-glx.html) & it has to be sent to kerela & we thought of a replacement. We already had an innova & i suggested the scorpio mHawk, but of course! but my family was more keen on a hatch or sedan since we already had the safari & innova. did some test drives of quite a few cars but nothing could capture my heart the way the scorpio did.
One thing i knew was people would buy the scorpio only & only for its engine. its a gem, as i always say.
Luckily, could convince my parents that scorpio is the best. the low running costs & nil maintainence of the older mahindras supported my claim!

Mid May:
A friend suggested that safari was a much better option as Tata has solved the "turbo lag" issue & the car is much better now. Went to the tata A.S.S. again & TD the safari. i could adjust with the panel gaps, the dash quality (even mahindra is not great in these!) but i simply dint like the engine. it was nowhere as refined or as fun to drive as the scorpio. {if any safari fans are reading this- sorry folks, this is purely my personal opinion.} moreover, my past experience with tatas has not been good. even my brother's 5 month old safari started showing small troubles. So, it was the scorpio for me, again! of course, family thought i am nuts!

24th May:
Went to the mahindra A.S.S to book the scorpio, again did a TD for fun & payed the advance. Wanted a java brown scorpio but mom like scorpio only in diamond white. so next day, along with the balance payment, booked a white top end scorpio VLX. was promised delivery on 31st may.

27th May:
Went to the A.S.S' stockyard to check my car & did a thorough PDI. Gave a thumbs up for the registration.

30th May:
My brother was gifted with a baby boy!

31st May:
I was gifted with a scorpio! I went to the A.S.S in a rickety cab. the driver was driving at a sane 30-40 kmph. i was damn anxious to drive my prized possession & this made me very very irritated. Finally i reached the venue, did the puja & drove off my car. The feeling was amazing. though everything from the driver's seat seemed similar to my older car, the feel was not just the same. it was a totally different scorpio.

Initial days:
I had quite a few memorable events with this car. The initial days were spent in running in the car carefully. I also wanted a nudge guard i had seen in BHPian shankar's scorpio badly. after a lot of running & searching here & there, i finally managed to get hold of one & installed it in my car. i feel it totally changed the character of my car, for good.

After running in, some of the best drives i had was on the mumbai-pune express highway. IMO, the scorpio feels the most comfortable between 90-110kmph. the car felt rock steady compared to the innova (again my opinion!) & dint have the floaty feeling the innova gave. it was only in the ghats with the tight corners that the innova had an edge. but again, the scorpio with its power easily used to overtake a slow innova. i will not compare my car with my bro's safari on this forum (many know the reason!). so no matter, what people say about a toyota, its quality, space, ride, blah blah blah, i loved my scorpio more... just because it was more involving to drive & dint perform like a taxi, as is the case with innova! also, apart from the space, i found the scorpio's seats to be more comfortable for my heavy build than the innova's "made-for-japs" kind of seats.

Later on:
This car did give me some issues like door squeaking, expansion valve issue, AC issue & the likes. this took out some of the fun from a good ownership experience, but nevertheless, a good drive on this car made up for it. infact, i got so attached to my car that i used to talk to it! every morning, the voice assist used to tell me "welcome to your scorpio...." & i used to wish it back "good morning"!!! {do i need a doc?} anyways, i knew the engine so much that if our driver fills diesel from a different pump other than my usual bunk, i immediately used to know even if i am just sitting in the car, as if the engine complains to me!

Some other points:
1) many complain about the voice assist system. they find it irritating. i dont know why they dont just simply switch it off (mahindra had provided a switch) if they are so irritated? i dont feel its irritating so its kept on in my car.
2) many owners have also complained about the erratic functioning of the auto wipers & TPMS. luckily, in my car, it has always worked perfectly till now with no issues at all.
3) Many friends of mine have ridiculed me for driving a "mahindra" when for the same amount, i could buy a honda or chevy. there are others who never even gave the scorpio a second glance. who would want to drive a mahindra? these friends have changed their opinions after driving my car, some even recommending a scorpio to others! there was one guy who had bought an innova even without TD the scorpio or safari. his comment was "i cant believe this is a mahindra!". now all of them think differently about a "mahindra". all the credit goes to the engine & nothing else.

The good, the bad & the ugly:

I loved the leather seats by G sport-
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...ts-mumbai.html

Also i love my ICE, though i desperately need to upgrade it-
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/sound-...pio-2-2-a.html

I cant forget the day when a thief pierced open my car-
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street...t-attempt.html

Here i put an end to my story though the rest would continue in due course... picture abhi baaki hain mere dost!

[TaureanBull]

raj that was a very nice story. I have read all your threads on Scorpio. You are the only one in forum to own three of them. I am sure not many would be there outside forum too. I love this vehicle and if All iz well then I would buy it sometime mid next year once I return from here.

Your detailed review of each and every service/addition/repairs has been wonderful.

I will ask in few questions before I make the final purchase.

[raj_5004]

thanks buddy. i am sure you will be buying one very soon. next year means maybe mahindra will launch the all new scorpio by then.

[anjan_c2007]

Raj loved every bit of your write -up. Especially touching is the fact that you talk to your SUV.
I too feel the same way about the Scorpio.Its a mighty SUV and though I post some niggling problems on my thread the fact of the matter is that I have fallen in love with it! It pampers you every moment and follows your orders to your full satisfaction.
Its rugged appearance even scares the hell out of oncoming Innovas which simply make way!
For the Hondas and Chevys I would not comment on the top class engine finesse of Hondas but would surely debate on the structural stability of the Honda cars sold in India during accidents.These get deformed with minimal impacts.
And the Chevrolets sold here are the lower end Daewoo range from S Korea that GM took over.The Chevrolet brand has been degraded with these cars.In fact GM should have introduced another brand name but with Opel bombing here they played safe with a popular badge.

[raj_5004]

thanks anjan. absolutely agree to whatever you said. the view of the road from the driver's seat, the street presence & the lively performance of the scorpio is something i have not experienced in any other car. this is what makes you fall for the car.

[m_upreti]

Hi, got it from someone with M&M, in 2011-12 there is another SUV coming in the CRV / Vitara range which is currently under testing.

Scorpio will get some of the gizmos over from the Xylo (Drive Info, Roof A/c etc) but it will be more or less the same as the current one.

Originally Posted by TaureanBull

raj that was a very nice story. I have read all your threads on Scorpio. You are the only one in forum to own three of them. I am sure not many would be there outside forum too. I love this vehicle and if All iz well then I would buy it sometime mid next year once I return from here.

Your detailed review of each and every service/addition/repairs has been wonderful.

I will ask in few questions before I make the final purchase.

Originally Posted by raj_5004

thanks buddy. i am sure you will be buying one very soon. next year means maybe mahindra will launch the all new scorpio by then.

[4x4addict]

Originally Posted by m_upreti

Hi, got it from someone with M&M, in 2011-12 there is another SUV coming in the CRV / Vitara range which is currently under testing.

There is a thread on this with a lot of pictures etc... News has been around for a year now.

[vijaythacker]

crisp,detailed ownership report Raj.also congratulations on your ownership mate.Wish you and your ride many more happy miles ahead.

[raj_5004]

thanks vijay. btw, long time, no see?!

[TaureanBull]

Originally Posted by m_upreti

Hi, got it from someone with M&M, in 2011-12 there is another SUV coming in the CRV / Vitara range which is currently under testing.

Well, a its very personal opinion that I prefer Scorpio as I think its a VFM. If it has a model in Vitara/CRV range then it wont be VFM/out of my budget and I would prefer some other SUV.

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

There is a thread on this with a lot of pictures etc... News has been around for a year now.

Can you please send the link?

[raj_5004]

here is the link buddy-

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...7-29-32-a.html

[m_upreti]

Originally Posted by TaureanBull

Well, a its very personal opinion that I prefer Scorpio as I think its a VFM. If it has a model in Vitara/CRV range then it wont be VFM/out of my budget and I would prefer some other SUV.
Can you please send the link?

You are right, in that range it is better to go for a tried and tested model (a.k.a. CRV or likes) instead of spending on the unknown.

Scorpio is VFM for money given the price & TCO.

[raj_5004]

Today my car went for its 40k servicing.

Some minor issues were:

1) RHS front footboard light was not working
2) Driver door sensor for cabin light (and VAS) was not working
3) Rear seat rattling

I was under the impression that the suspension must have taken some serious beating as because of the monsoons, mumbai roads resemble moon's surface now! Coupled to that my impatient nature, the car had its share of abuse this monsoon. the A.S.S checked the suspension & everything seems to be alright.

The A.S.S has replaced a nut from the clutch pedal which used to make a 'tick' sound sometimes. They have also replaced the fuel filter which costs Rs. 1445/-.

Total damage to my wallet:

Rs. 2820 including labour & taxes.

All the issues have been sorted except the rear seat rattling.

A.S.S claims "sir, itna sound to hota hain har gaadi main, aapka gaadi to phir bhi acha hain". (translation - "sir, little bit of rattling is present in every car, you car is still better"). Such crap excuses is a trademark of Mahindra's A.S.S.

[m_upreti]

Originally Posted by raj_5004

Some minor issues were:

1) RHS front footboard light was not working
2) Driver door sensor for cabin light (and VAS) was not working
3) Rear seat rattling

All the issues have been sorted except the rear seat rattling.

A.S.S claims "sir, itna sound to hota hain har gaadi main, aapka gaadi to phir bhi acha hain". (translation - "sir, little bit of rattling is present in every car, you car is still better"). Such crap excuses is a trademark of Mahindra's A.S.S.

Great going Raj, thankfully Navi Mumbai is slightly better in terms of roads. Recently travelled to Mumbai (all the way to Nariman Point & Malad) the roads are in a bad shape, but thankfully I didnt have to drive courtesy the official car.

Despite the monsoons your car seems to be in a perfect shape.

As far as the excuses from M&M guys are concerned they are standard.

1. Gear Stick Viberates - "Sir I will show you my car it is worse than this" - Sr M&M Guy
2. Gears are not engaging - "Sir this is big car, gear will be heavy" - A.S.S. service rep. (I thought he was talking as if i had purchased a 2nd hand truck instead of a 10 lac + vehicle.)
3. Vehicle is wobbling - "Sir it is not aerodynamic, it will viberate at speeds" - Service Rep.

and the list goes on and on....

[raj_5004]

This is what i read from the scorpio website:

Labour charges for services rendered are by an hourly flat-rate as per A, B, C classified cities. These have been pre defined by M&M and each job is charged by the standard number of hours that is necessary for the job. (The calculation will be done on the basis of - hours for job multiplied by flat rate for the city. For example: If you’re in Mumbai, where the hourly rate is Rs. 375. A two and half hour job would be charged at Rs. 375 x 2.5 hours = Rs 937.50.

so if i look at my bill, labour charges levied on me for-

1) replacing fuel filter: Rs. 230 = 0.61 hrs (by above calculation) = approx 37 mins (do they need 37 mins to change a fuel filter?)
2) door switch: Rs. 80 = 0.21 hrs = 13 mins (reasonable)
3) clutch pedal adjustment = Rs. 110 = 0.3 hrs = 18 mins (reasonable)
4) spring pivot DR SH = Rs. 380 = 60 mins (i dont know what this means & what have they done!)