[Seran Manian]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Storme refresh has been reviewed. Review should be out within next 2 weeks. Even earlier if possible.

Wow, that sure is a very good news. Would love to hear the same for XUV500 face-lift. No review is near perfect as that from Team-BHP. Thanks for the info. Awaiting the post.

[xbox360]

Here is a gist of my observations over past 2 weeks of ownership of my 2015 Storme which includes daily commute and also a 14 hr roadtrip (to and fro).

Firstly, the additions to the stock vehicle -
1) I am not sure if its the weather to blame, but I found that the AC was not cooling the cabin as fast as I had expected (don't ask me what the basis to my expectation is, just expected it to be better and that's it). So I did two things, firstly sent the vehicle to the service station for an AC gas top up but more importantly added sun film. I am not sure of the brand just went by the advice of an accessories guy I have been shopping with for my past vehicles and opted for one with reasonably high transparency.

2) The dark colored seat fabric that come with the vehicle are extremely classy and so is the black felt like carpeting. Within a day or two I realized that these will not stand the test from my kids and I got seat covers and matting for the boot done. This turned out to be a lifesaver during the roadtrip I went on over the last weekend

Now the first impressions. All I can say is 'Love it; Love every aspect of it'.

You can stop here or read on for details


For daily commute I found this vehicle so much easier to manage compared to my earlier 2.2 Safari
1) The cabin noise is close to nil
2) Clutch is as light as my i10
3) The brakes no longer have the submarine style dive dive dive feeling and are extremely crisp and inspire confidence
4) Mileage within city came to ~11 km/ltr

Now on the 14 hr roadtrip which I completed over the weekend with 5 adults; 3 kids and one night's worth of luggage; I observed the following -

1) Very composed and comfortable ride even on even the most uneven and unkept roads.
2) Car does 110 at around 2.1k RPM; hence cruising at 100+ is extremely easy and does not feel like its taxing the vehicle in any way. At one point my wife looked at the speedometer and was surprised that we were doing 110, she felt that we are doing 70-80.
3) The 5th gear has surprisingly good range. I did not need to downshift after slowing down to 55-60 and could easily overtake vehicles; in fact I felt that there is more juice available on tap if needed for tighter overtake attempts. All this with a fully laden vehicle was even more heartening
4) Not sure how to describe this last one. The vehicle somehow gives you a feeling of safety which I think is very important as it allows you to be yourself and not worry while on the road. My family describes this feeling as what they would expect if riding in a tank.
5) Mileage front, got ~12.5 in my onward journey and 13.5 km/ltr on my way back. Maybe the difference is because I travelled on 8 lane national highways in my onward journey and was doing 110 most of the time and on my way back I took the route via state highways wherein my avg must have been ~90 km/hr

The only major thing I miss is not having front facing rear seats. I was hoping to see in this refresh which would have made it a real 7 seater instead of the 5+2* it is now.

To sum up all I can say is - I am happy being the king of the road again

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by xbox360

1) I am not sure if its the weather to blame, but I found that the AC was not cooling the cabin as fast as I had expected (don't ask me what the basis to my expectation is, just expected it to be better and that's it). So I did two things, firstly sent the vehicle to the service station for an AC gas top up but more importantly added sun film. I am not sure of the brand just went by the advice of an accessories guy I have been shopping with for my past vehicles and opted for one with reasonably high transparency.

I get the same "inadequate AC" feeling off late in Pune sumers. Especially when the black vehicle has been cooking in the sun for some time and the front windscreen is HOT. I can feel the waves of heat radiating towards me, even as the AC tries to cool the cabin.

2) The dark colored seat fabric that come with the vehicle are extremely classy and so is the black felt like carpeting. Within a day or two I realized that these will not stand the test from my kids and I got seat covers and matting for the boot done.

Same experience here. Loved the OE fabric and color, and hated covering it up. And having to pay handsomely for that on top of it.

2) Car does 110 at around 2.1k RPM

This is a change. First gen Storme does 100 at around the same rpm.

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by ebonho

I get the same "inadequate AC" feeling off late in Pune sumers. Especially when the black vehicle has been cooking in the sun for some time and the front windscreen is HOT. I can feel the waves of heat radiating towards me, even as the AC tries to cool



This is a change. First gen Storme does 100 at around the same rpm.

That's the black car tax...I had the same issue in my black and real earth GX. That's why my Storme is pearl white. And believe me it makes a world of difference, even when parked in the severe Hyderabad sun at 12pm.
You folks should try 3m transparent tints with uv protection for the front 5 windows, had it on my GX and that cuts the heat down drastically. No Mumbai cop ever noticed those tints.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

You folks should try 3m transparent tints with uv protection for the front 5 windows, had it on my GX and that cuts the heat down drastically. No Mumbai cop ever noticed those tints.

I know bro. Have a white Baleno for the same reason. And for that reason, the Safari just had to be black, tax or not.

Next summer for sure. Only the windscreen is really necessary. Noticed the window glasses are noticeably not as hot.

[Seek]

Originally Posted by xbox360

Here is a gist of my observations over past 2 weeks of ownership of my 2015 Storme which includes daily commute and also a 14 hr roadtrip (to and fro).


3) The brakes no longer have the submarine style dive dive dive feeling and are extremely crisp and inspire confidence

Hey xbox360 Thanks for the "review"! Can you please elaborate on the brakes a bit. I test drove the pre face lift version and found a lot of forward-backward pitching while braking. Is this reduced in any way in the new version?

[narayan]

Xbox congrats on your new ride. Do post some pics of the interiors. Your clutch comment is exactly what I had made on my review as well. Try putting a good quality sun film for the windshield. Helps a bit. But as such I haven't faced any issues with the ac after nearly 2 yrs in Chennai. The mileage figures you reported are typical running in period figures. Pls be prepared to see a drop after running in because you will be keeping up higher speeds post that. 😀

@seek - were you applying brakes very quickly in which case any body on frame SUV will experience some dive but the Storme doesn't dive at all under normal circumstances unlike the Dicor

[xbox360]

Originally Posted by Seek

Hey xbox360 Thanks for the "review"! Can you please elaborate on the brakes a bit. I test drove the pre face lift version and found a lot of forward-backward pitching while braking. Is this reduced in any way in the new version?

Frankly I do not notice any such rocking motion. My frame of reference also is the old 2.2 and hence maybe my sensitivity is much lesser than yours. My older vehicle used to dive forward when braking and I used to feel that the shell may actually leave the chassis when braking hard.

Himanshu drove my vehicle a couple of days back and his vehicle is the 2014 Storme. Maybe he can tell how this aspect compares.

[Seek]

Originally Posted by narayan

@seek - were you applying brakes very quickly in which case any body on frame SUV will experience some dive but the Storme doesn't dive at all under normal circumstances unlike the Dicor

Hi narayan, my experience with the braking was in regular city traffic and while braking for speed breakers from 40-60 kph on the inner ring road near guindy in chennai. In both cases there was a distinct pitching motion. This is my only niggling worry since the last time my family sat in a xylo they all threw up within 45 mins citing a similar reason as discomfort. The test drive vehicle i drove was a pre face lift storme. In anycase waiting for a test drive of the face lift version for now.

[storme'd]

Has anyone used system D or Abro diesel injector cleaner in their beats? Is it useful? What's the correct way to use it? Benefits? Thanks.

[himanshugoswami]

Originally Posted by xbox360

Frankly I do not notice any such rocking motion. My frame of reference also is the old 2.2 and hence maybe my sensitivity is much lesser than yours. My older vehicle used to dive forward when braking and I used to feel that the shell may actually leave the chassis when braking hard.

Himanshu drove my vehicle a couple of days back and his vehicle is the 2014 Storme. Maybe he can tell how this aspect compares.

In terms of brakes, i see no difference in the refresh in the refreshed Storme and my 2014 Storme. The difference is in the suspension set up. Its a marginal difference but overall the new storme seems to be slightly more stiffly sprung and that contributes to marginally better dynamics- that is not to say that the original storme is not good- its brilliant actually and a significant leap from the Dicor, just that the refreshed storme takes it a notch higher.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

In terms of brakes, i see no difference in the refresh in the refreshed Storme and my 2014 Storme. The difference is in the suspension set up. Its a marginal difference but overall the new storme seems to be slightly more stiffly sprung and that contributes to marginally better dynamics- that is not to say that the original storme is not good- its brilliant actually and a significant leap from the Dicor, just that the refreshed storme takes it a notch higher.

So they've made a really good setup even better. Impressive. Because the first gen Storme itself is a sweet handling 2+ ton beast.

Tata has thus over the years improved :

The suspension

The handling

The steering feel and precision

The turning radius

The braking

The shift quality

The power and torque, and overall drive feel and performance (pickup, top end)

The gearing (or is it the mapping?)

The engine refinement and overall NVH

The lights

The quality and finish of the interiors

The paint quality and finish

The rattles and squeaks and misc other noises/vibrations


Where I feel they have not improved enough or sometimes (subjectively) probably slipped back a bit :

The looks (including the tailgate wheel)

The fuel capacity (now addressed I think)

The inability to hold alignment indefinitely (or at times even achieve it)

The weight

The 3rd row still not front facing, still short of a proper 7 seater


The above is my read of the product purely from a product perspective, and is colored in no way by extraneous human elements (Tata Motors, Dealership, Service, Spares, etc.).

[narayan]

Originally Posted by Seek

Hi narayan, my experience with the braking was in regular city traffic and while braking for speed breakers from 40-60 kph on the inner ring road near guindy in chennai. In both cases there was a distinct pitching motion. This is my only niggling worry since the last time my family sat in a xylo they all threw up within 45 mins citing a similar reason as discomfort. The test drive vehicle i drove was a pre face lift storme. In anycase waiting for a test drive of the face lift version for now.

Seek - as others mention, the Storme suspension is quite stiff ( not stiff as in uncomfortable but stiff to the extent that no pitching happens ). So either I am unable to understand the specific situation where you tried this or more likely the test drive car has been badly abused and hence its front shocks may be at the end of its life.

[Seek]

Originally Posted by narayan

Seek - as others mention, the Storme suspension is quite stiff ( not stiff as in uncomfortable but stiff to the extent that no pitching happens ). So either I am unable to understand the specific situation where you tried this or more likely the test drive car has been badly abused and hence its front shocks may be at the end of its life.

Yes, I too suspect the suspension of the test drive car since it was 20k kms old. Waiting to test drive the new one.

Other than this I found it to be a fantastic vehicle. I checked out the xuv500 and Scorpio over the weekend and they are no match to the storme on space and driver's view.

[Storme_on_d_way]

@ebonho, that was a brilliant sum-up. Precise and accurate.