[MileCruncher]

Originally Posted by GrayBerry

Hi MM,
Thanks for you links. It did help me, but yet to decide. To make things more clear - I want a 4X4 with decent highway drives and family friendly vehicle. Thar CRDe is great, but lacks AC, hardtop and is only 3 doors. So Thought of Bolero VLX (let go of 4X4 for other advantages). And yes budget is a constrain, max 8Lac)
Cars wont help as the roads I drive are bad. Scorpio, Safari and Sumo are not my taste.

I suggest you go right ahead and get the Storm. Fits your needs!

[MudMover]

Hey GB, my comments in bold against your specific requirments.

Originally Posted by GrayBerry

I want a 4X4 - contact Milecruncher for understanding how to use the 4X4 feature of this jeep.

decent highway drives - yup, with this engine you can happily chug away all day at a decent speed. Infact this engine is the only thing I like about this jeep!!

family friendly vehicle - yup, this jeep is very friendly towards the family... it can swallow a whole family & its lugguage (i usually don't pack, I just throw the stuff into the back) and spit them out at the other end of the journey in generally the same condition. Of course, the family may not be necessarily friendly towards the jeep or it's driver because of the jumpy ride!

budget is a constrain, max 8Lac - bullseye!

the roads I drive are bad - elephantseye!

Personally I feel this jeep looks best in the chocolate shade. I've seen only one Storm in that shade. What color are you planning?

[GrayBerry]

MileCruncher: Thanks. Looks like I will end up with a Bolero.
MM: Here's the catch - I want 4X4 only for my photography trips. By-the way my family consists of me, my better half and my 2 year old son.
So do you still suggest Bolero??
I some how liked the white one. thought it is good for our hot summer.
I have two months to decide,.

[MudMover]

Originally Posted by GrayBerry

Here's the catch - I want 4X4 only for my photography trips. By-the way my family consists of me, my better half and my 2 year old son. So do you still suggest Bolero?? I some how liked the white one. thought it is good for our hot summer. I have two months to decide,.

GB, if you are set on the Bolero I feel you should go for the 4X4 variant of the Bolero (whatever _ _ X it is called). Comeon man! When your heart wants to go looking for that perfect snap, you need to be able to drive your heart wherever it wants to go. So if you love photography why compromise on the 4X4 bit? You need to see the ownership report of a Toyota Fortuner guy called 'nilaranjanray' on this forum to understand what I'm saying.

I also think the non-crde Bolero might actually be more comfortable than the crde Bolero -- reason? (he-he-he) the non-crde bolero is a 'slow mover' so it'll bump you around 'slowly' (Zor ka jhatka dheere se!) whereas since the crde bolero goes faster, it'll typically go over all the rough patches faster and give you the jhatkas more strongly . I have a 3-year old daughter and frankly, I would have prefered a Scorpio.

Originally Posted by n.devdath

During night, at times, the headlights suddenly become slightly brighter for a second or two, as if someone has pushed in more current into them and then they are back to normal.

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

This is a rectifier regulator problem. Get it checked ASAP as it can spoil your battery with high voltage.

I experienced the same problem this weekend while driving back from Kerala. Strangely, in my case such electrical malfunctions happen only when I'm driving at night with a full load of people! Murphy at work here?!!

It started off with the discovery that the hazard warning lights were not working. Then a little while later I felt as if another vehicle behind was dipping the lights for a pass. Looking behind I saw no one... then it happened again and I realised it was my own lights which were automatically dimming and brightening and the same was the case with the a/c as well. Finally the high beam stopped functioning. I'll anyways be going for the 60K service tomorrow. Need to know one thing -- the thingy which is used by the service centre to measure voltage... is it called a 'multimeter' or 'ampmeter'? I want them to test the voltage variation in front of me so that I can make sure they've understood the problem.

There were a couple of body damages which I got repaired from a local workshop in Kerala, including the front bumper. Don't know whether they messed with the electricals or not. Also, does anybody know any junkyard/scrapyard-like place in Bangalore from where I can source some of the damaged plastic parts for my bolero?

[GrayBerry]

Originally Posted by MudMover

GB, if you are set on the Bolero I feel you should go for the 4X4 variant of the Bolero (whatever _ _ X it is called). Comeon man! ------jhatkas more strongly . I have a 3-year old daughter and frankly, I would have prefered a Scorpio.

Thanks MM.
Sure to that. Will keep you posted.

[MudMover]

Got my bolero serviced last week. Strangely, since I specifically asked them to omit the usual brake servicing, 'engine care' and 'a/c care' treatments - the service was treated as a 'general checkup' and not as a 'paid service' (no big difference except that they still make a pile!). Basically, I had got the brakes checked last week from Kerala so didn't want M&M to bother with the brakes again and about the other two 'cosmetic treatments', the less said the better.

Two major issues were coolant leakage and alternator malfunction. In order to rectify the coolant leakage issue they had to drain the engine oil but they refunded the cost of the engine oil & oil filter. For the alternator issue they replaced a part in it. After getting the vehicle back from service I started getting a sound from the engine compartment while accelerating, upon taking it back they said they'll have to keep it again for a day and asked me to bring it back this week since they were overbooked. Meanwhile, I had to give the bolero to another garage for denting and painting of the front bumper which I'd damaged after hitting a pillar while reversing. After the bumper repair while peeping under the hood, I traced the sound to a missing bolt of the engine cover (indicated by red arrow below, similar to the bolt shown by the green arrow). Got a new bolt put today and the sound is gone.



A worrying issue is that they replaced the bushes of the Carbon Fibre leafs (which I think they shouldn't have and I completely missed telling them) and now the ride is suddenly jumpier. So I guess I'll have to take the bolero to Motorsmiths (who'd installed the CFLs) and have them check... what a pain! Service bill details below:

[MileCruncher]

Shouldn't the ASC have done the alternator repair under warranty as the VLX enjoys a 2 year/1,00,000 Km warranty?

[MudMover]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

Shouldn't the ASC have done the alternator repair under warranty as the VLX enjoys a 2 year/1,00,000 Km warranty?

MC, when I asked the SA about the alternator repair being covered by warranty he said that if the alternator had needed to be replaced, they would've done so under warranty. What do you think? Can I still shoot an email to M&M customer care and ask for a refund of this repair?

[MileCruncher]

Originally Posted by MudMover

MC, when I asked the SA about the alternator repair being covered by warranty he said that if the alternator had needed to be replaced, they would've done so under warranty. What do you think? Can I still shoot an email to M&M customer care and ask for a refund of this repair?

Absolutely. The RR unit which blew up is a not a regular wear and tear item so if it goes off within the warranty period, you should get it sorted under warranty. The problem with M&M ASC is they don't want to claim warranty as they get less rate paid for labour and the credit for the part only comes in 2-3 months.

[MudMover]

I was getting some sound from the engine, heat in the cabin and loss of power during the last couple of weeks. Since I had some urgent trips to make I'd just ignored it, but today I finally decided to have it looked at. When the SA opened the bonnet at the ASC, we saw a familiar sight...



The picture above was taken in November 2009 at an odo reading of 20000kms, and the same issue has reappeared. It's caused by a leak in the EGR pipe I'm told. Though last time they'd welded the pipe, this time they want to change the pipe. I've been quoted Rs.1500 for the pipe + Rs.2500 for labour (since they have to remove the gearbox assembly as well, to change the EGR pipe). Fortunately/unfortunately, they don't have the pipe in stock so I'll just have to endure the issue for sometime more. It seems this EGR pipe issue is a common occurence among all Boleros. Can other Bolero owners confirm this?

Speaking about the gearbox, during the past couple of drives I've noticed that when I go over those mini 'wave' speedbreakers at a high speed the gear unslots itself and falls automatically into neutral! I hope this will get taken care of when they remove and refit the gearbox assy.

[headers]

^^

@ MM: Your ASC is taking you for a ride..time to take them to task! If the problem was noticed at 20K and it reappears now, it is plain "bad" workmanship. If I were you, I Will NOT pay anything.

Try a warranty replacement

[MudMover]

Got the bolero back today after replacement of the EGR pipe. I'll know how much I have to pay, by today evening or tomorrow since they need to have a meeting with M&M representatives to sort it out. I don't have to pay for the part, so it's only the labour charges which needs to be decided. I'm attaching pics of the old EGR pipe, you can also make out the welding which was done previously.




After Headers' exhortation, I decided to send an email to M&M customer care and they took it from there. Basically I wanted to know why the part was welded the first time around when they could have replaced it under warranty since the vehicle then was in the warranty period, instead of having me pay for all the expenses now since the warranty has expired. I'm satisfied with the dealings till now and looking forward to the charges. The engine has once again become smooth and I did some high rev driving on my way to the office in the afternoon to check it out and enjoyed chewing up some stubborn tavera taxis!

On the negative side, my last year's appendix surgery wounds are aching everytime I drive around in this vehicle. The exessive horizontal and vertical movements, together with the odd forward placement of the gear which causes me to stretch slightly while putting into the first, second and third gears -- all puts stress on the affected area of my abdomen.





So, I want to see whether changing the vehicle will help. Accordingly, I will be handing over the Storm to my father-in-law and take an Indigo CS Ls that he has there. Changing to the Indigo has been weighing on my mind for the past couple of weeks and strangely I'm seeing a lot more of Indigo CS' on the roads now! Today after returning home from the ASC as I stepped out of the Bolero after parking, guess what I see?!!!.... there's an Indigo CS Ls parked right in front of my Bolero in another parking bay! That's a good omen I think.

[MudMover]

Saturday, the 2nd of April was my last drive with the Storm. Though I was never happy with the Storm from day 1, the fact was that it had served me and my family well these past 2 years. It had handled all the abuse I'd put it through, took me and the family on some really long drives and never let us stranded, and kept us safe all this while without ABS, airbags and what have you, through all those triple digit speeds. So when I started out from Bangalore last Saturday, I wanted to give the Bolero a rousing farewell... I wanted to say goodbye to it in style and let it go with its head held high. And did it enjoy it or what? The only good part of this vehicle is its engine and if you keep it around the 2k rpm mark it takes off and how. Be it pesky hatches or arrogant sedans, if you shift the gears quickly on the Storm it becomes a true manifestation of it's name -- STORM!

A priceless conversation I had with my F-in-law:

Me = ".... but I'll miss the safety of the Bolero."
F-in-law (wide-eyed) = "The Bolero is not at all a safe vehicle. Above 80kmph in it is just too dangerous."

Below is the pic taken while I was shifting things from the Storm to the Indigo CS which I'll be using henceforth. You can see the Storm standing tall and proud, what an exit!

[MileCruncher]

So you too bid adieu to your Storm !

I had several incidents like the two with Fords that you have posted and I have always come out smiling. I still remember the bewilderment on the face of the Innova driver chasing me on the twisties between Kushalnagar and Madikeri !

Enjoy your Indigo.

Cheers

[MudMover]

Thanks MC! Hopefully yours and my ownership threads will be a source of inspiration & information for other souls who would like to stir a storm as well.