[mac187]

After going through your previous thread of your Scorpio, I was waiting for this one.

Kudos on the new recruit and to your writing.

[amitwlele]

@Guderian - Great snaps. Waiting for the interior pics as well.

You really pulled a fast one on the watchman.

I guess we are going to get a wonderful travelogue from you as well pretty soon. I read somewhere that you are planning lots of KMS.

[Ricky_63]

Great write up. You sure are or should be in the creative dept of an advt agency !! Am I "write" ??

Anyway, it was a pleasure to read the buying experience & shall look forward to updates on the thread.

All the best for your new acquisition !!



Cheers

[noopster]

You funny, Guderian. And Fleet Admiral Togo Heihachiro is gorgeous, do pass on my humble konnichiwas

I drove my friend's T Fort in Bangalore recently and the street presence is simply deadly. I love the way the roads open up for one when you're driving this monster! Am not much of an SUV guy myself but the Fort is one great looker. It's a pity Toyota saw it fit to do the interiors just like cousin Innova. But that's probably how they're able to keep costs down and sell so many of these.

Do keep posting- this is one thread I'm addicted to!

[comfortablynumb]

Loved this pic and its caption - "Growling at a Captiva across the road:"

2 more pics would have really hit the spot - the padded walls of your parking and the watchman's expression when you drove out of the dealership!

Cheers,
Vikram

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by mac187

After going through your previous thread of your Scorpio, I was waiting for this one.

Kudos on the new recruit and to your writing.

Hi Mac, Thanks.

Originally Posted by amitwlele

@Guderian - Great snaps. Waiting for the interior pics as well.

You really pulled a fast one on the watchman.

I guess we are going to get a wonderful travelogue from you as well pretty soon. I read somewhere that you are planning lots of KMS.

Hi Amit, Thanks once again. Shall try and get the interiors snapped on the weekend.

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

Great write up. You sure are or should be in the creative dept of an advt agency !! Am I "write" ??

Anyway, it was a pleasure to read the buying experience & shall look forward to updates on the thread.

All the best for your new acquisition !!

Cheers

Thanks for the good wishes and appreciation Ricky. Keeps the juices flowing. Nope, am not anyway connected to an ad agency. But in a function where a lot of creativity (devious even ?) is generally required !

Originally Posted by noopster

You funny, Guderian. And Fleet Admiral Togo Heihachiro is gorgeous, do pass on my humble konnichiwas

I drove my friend's T Fort in Bangalore recently and the street presence is simply deadly. I love the way the roads open up for one when you're driving this monster! Am not much of an SUV guy myself but the Fort is one great looker. It's a pity Toyota saw it fit to do the interiors just like cousin Innova. But that's probably how they're able to keep costs down and sell so many of these.

Do keep posting- this is one thread I'm addicted to!

Thanks noopster. Shall try my best to keep the thread going !
The T Fort and particularly the Admiral is a delightful vehicle indeed.
Shall pass on your Konniwhatchamacallitzs to the Admiral.

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

Loved this pic and its caption - "Growling at a Captiva across the road:"

2 more pics would have really hit the spot - the padded walls of your parking and the watchman's expression when you drove out of the dealership!

Cheers,
Vikram

Hi Vikram - Shall try and get the cladded bay snaps on the weekend.

[Ricky_63]

OK - so you must be a lawyer then !! (no offence to anyone)

Do post more pics, BTW how do you rate the brakes of the Fortuner vs those of the Scorpio ? Was your Scorpio a 4x4 also ?



Cheers

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

OK - so you must be a lawyer then !! (no offence to anyone)

Do post more pics, BTW how do you rate the brakes of the Fortuner vs those of the Scorpio ? Was your Scorpio a 4x4 also ?



Cheers

Hi Ricky - Nope not a Lawyer either. (Can't help cracking one of them Lawyer jokes - Q: How do you differentiate between the bodies of a skunk and a Lawyer lying on the highway ? A: There are skid/brake marks around the skunk's body !)

My Scorp was not a 4X4, how much ever I wanted it to be and believe me when I went to select the same in Sept 2005 and was sure I wanted a 4X4, I was dissuaded by the Dealer from going for one. I persisted and the guys then threw their trump card - delivery in 6 months. As I desparately needed a new vehicle what with the old Zen having all but thrown up its tyres - I threw in the towel and bought a 4X2. Not that I regretted it at all !
And no the old chap didn't have a ABS or any such thingamajig either.

Comparision of the brakes - I frankly find the Admiral's brakes much better - must be because of the ABS. A little better than the demo T Fort as well because the demo vehicle was a 2009 piece and in April 2010 they increased the size of the front discs as I see it. So overall fairly good. Also at high speeds the braking on the Scorpio was rather scary as it pitched, yawed, rolled and screeched - exactly two times, when I got a little too adventurous for my liking. Otherwise very smooth sailing as I am a defensive, conservative driver. So overall I'd vote for the TFort brakes.

[suman]

Heartiest Congratulations & this is a thread after my own heart as I too go through the dilemma of "Next is what" - my Safari just completed a little over 4 years & 4 months in which I've notched up 100k kms & though nothing is wrong at the moment, we too are pining for "something new"!

Must hook up with you over PM some time. You seem to be very very lucky with the delivery period (my FND quoted 4-5 months when I checked a week ago) & you've been even luckier with the price (what with the murky CKD mess that's in the offing). Sigggghhhhhh......

And, loved your style of writing....rated the thread 5 stars & will be following it keenly

[SS-Traveller]

Brilliant report! Apart from a firmer ride than the Scorp, you must be enjoying the better gearshift.

Two questions - first, do you find the H/L low beam inadequate? And secondly, at the price, which is more VFM - the Yeti or Admiral Togo? (since you checked out both).

[Guderian]

The Story Continues......into the Present !

Accessories:
As mentioned in my earlier post, I tried to keep the accessories to the minimum. Firstly I gave a close attention to the so called 'compulsory' accessories and clearly told the FNSM that i wouldn't want the fancy and unnecessary stuff and that he could pass on to the political class buyers (who are currently the category buying the highest number of TForts) with my compliments but certainly not with my money ! (As it is they are flicking enough money from the tax I pay to the government !)
The FNSM murmurred a wee bit and gave up. I cut out the 'muffler cutter', window visors and TFort mats. What I ordered in place of that is Anti Rust treatment - Wurths (6.5K and was really wurth, sorry, worth it in Mumbai's climatic conditions !) and Innova's rubber mats for sheer practicality (learnt from another member here and a TFort owner Nilanjan !).
In addition for Mumbai's roads ordered the grill guard and the cladding. Both horrendously expensive but no choice. Hate the current lot of chrome bull bars available for the TFort in the Indian market, though I would have preferred what was available in the South African markets.

This is what was/is available here - common to Innova and the TFort, "they" said: (Ahem....Cough, Cough !)


And here are some snaps of what is available elsewhere !

Would love to have this mean fender and integrated bull bar !


Or these soft ones:


Also liked the Bonnet Protector here:


Saw one of these when I recently (before I got the Admiral but after booked it - or else would have given him a chase in the TFort) went to Karjat for a training programme - but the silver mica TFort sped away in the opposite direction !

And I would love one of these tents !:


Enough of drooling ! Back to work - the total cost of the accessories ordered:

Anti rust - 6500.
Cladding - 19427.
Grill Guard - 14918.
Floor Mats (Rubber) - 1053.
trunk Mat - 363.
Total - Rs. 42,261 - Too much ?!!

Am really glad I ordered the Innova floor mats and trunk mat besides the cladding. Not sure about the grill guard - looks a little fragile.
Does anyone have any idea where one could get the Bonnet Protector etc in Mumbai/India ? With the Admiral peeping out of the stilt parking it would be a good idea to annoy the pigeons up on the building ledge/s !

[danny25]

Congratulations!

I must acknowledge you for your absolutely gripping style of writing. It was a lot of fun reading it. In fact, I've read the whole report twice .

The joke played on the watchman too was hilarious.

Wishing you lot of enjoyment with the admiral.

[nilanjanray]

Congratulations! Good to see a fellow Fortuner owner being a fellow military buff! OT: Have you read Panzer Leader? Btw, loved your writing style :-)

I too lusted over the Ironman and ARB bumpers before opting out (dangerous to people, heavy, requires suspension upgrades).

I didn't go for the nudge guard since it seemed a bit flimsy. Let me know how it behaves. Iis there place/are there holes to fit extra lights?

I am sure you won't regret your decision. The Yeti is great, but I would think twice before taking it to offbeat places or rough using it. Besides, it looks like a large WagonR when parked beside the Fortuner :-)

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by suman

Heartiest Congratulations & this is a thread after my own heart as I too go through the dilemma of "Next is what" - my Safari just completed a little over 4 years & 4 months in which I've notched up 100k kms & though nothing is wrong at the moment, we too are pining for "something new"!

Must hook up with you over PM some time. You seem to be very very lucky with the delivery period (my FND quoted 4-5 months when I checked a week ago) & you've been even luckier with the price (what with the murky CKD mess that's in the offing). Sigggghhhhhh......

And, loved your style of writing....rated the thread 5 stars & will be following it keenly

Hi Suman, Firstly a million thanks for helping me walk around with stars in my eyes ! Humbly accept the ratings with gratitude.
Can understand your dilemna/dilemma ! It is terrible indeed to part with a trusted companion of any 'kind'. But yes the itch to get something new grows over a period as in every other 'relationship' !
I am not sure what exactly happened vis a vis the time for delivery - whether it was sheer luck or was it something else like sudden drop in demand but the dealers putting up a brave front or genuinely some massive number of order cancellations.
The CBU/CKD duty threat is a real scare. When I read about it it caused me an involuntary shiver - 8 odd Lakhs increase ? Then there was no way I would have gone in for it. And I hope some scatter brained civil serpent, sorry, servant in the Finance Ministry doesn't come out with a brainwave that all new duties should be levied on all sales retrospectively, say from Jan 2011 ! Admiral Togo & I would then sink faster than you can say Tora, Tora, Tora.
But yes seriously that possibility is/would be truly terrible if it were to happen. Do PM me and we'll chat up.

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Brilliant report! Apart from a firmer ride than the Scorp, you must be enjoying the better gearshift.

Two questions - first, do you find the H/L low beam inadequate? And secondly, at the price, which is more VFM - the Yeti or Admiral Togo? (since you checked out both).

Hi Doc - Thanks. The gears in Guderian was actually brilliant and smooth and nothing really to complain about. So I find the gearshift on Admiral around the same, maybe a wee bit better. However the throws are much longer but not a great issue really.
I find the high beam excellent and the low beam average/OKayish. Of course the stock lamps and throws on the Scorpio was nothing to write home about so anything else in comparision would feel good/better.
VFM - Yeti or TF ? Tough one and the wrong guy to ask at this point when I am already biased. However trying to keep my thoughts as objective as possible I would still feel that the TFort is a winner. As I mentioned a tough, honest to goodness vehicle and Inshallah (!) a relatively cheaper one too to maintain.

Originally Posted by danny25

Congratulations!

I must acknowledge you for your absolutely gripping style of writing. It was a lot of fun reading it. In fact, I've read the whole report twice .

The joke played on the watchman too was hilarious.

Wishing you lot of enjoyment with the admiral.

Thanks Danny ! The pleasure is entirely Admiral Togo's !

[Guderian]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Congratulations! Good to see a fellow Fortuner owner being a fellow military buff! OT: Have you read Panzer Leader? Btw, loved your writing style :-)

I too lusted over the Ironman and ARB bumpers before opting out (dangerous to people, heavy, requires suspension upgrades).

I didn't go for the nudge guard since it seemed a bit flimsy. Let me know how it behaves. Iis there place/are there holes to fit extra lights?

I am sure you won't regret your decision. The Yeti is great, but I would think twice before taking it to offbeat places or rough using it. Besides, it looks like a large WagonR when parked beside the Fortuner :-)

Ahhhh......finally - there you are Nilanjan ! One of the threads I was/am still keenly following was yours and thank you ! Helped me to decide fast especially the FE figures. And this morning when driving to work & the Admiral touched an average of 11.1 KMPL I remembered your write up.
Loved your wild life snaps too. Bison is gorgeous. I would have loved to pick up a black TFort, but the trouble I took to keep the black Guderian in sparkling good shape was quite tedious, though enjoyable - so looked at the two lazy man's colours - white and silver. White was ruled out due to the goon association - and silver was, well a class apart. And an ideal lazy chap's boon. Now if the GDW (Gaadi Dhone Wallah) threatens not to come on a particular day I can afford to show him my tongue with impolite noises from the larynx.
As I see it there is no place on the grill guard for holes neither are there any pre drilled holes. Though flimsy, I went in for it due to the comfort factor. You see after 5 years in Guderian with a massive bull bar which kept away all kinds of road riff raff I felt practically naked when driving the demo TFort and very uncomfortable indeed. And hence opted for what I would term a worm bored fig leaf.
Achtung Panzer was a school and college read and want to lay my hands on it again when I have the time.
Thanks for the compliments.