[Tushar]

Originally Posted by AutoIndian

Tushar, isn't the ground clearance mentioned as 191mm in the brochure and even on TUV website?

Originally Posted by theroadrunner

However, like someone mentioned earlier, the Sales person mentioned the ground clearance is 191 MM against 184 stated here.

The figure has been varying from 190 - 191 mm. To avoid any confusion, we've had the 184 mm figure confirmed directly by Mahindra (as GTO stated).

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Is there any reason why manufacturers shy away from offering their AT variants for reviews? Ideally they should be offering one variant of all engine/transmission combinations. What is the point in holding back?

No reason as such. Usually, the test drive vehicles are provided before or just after the launch, which means the vehicles are from the initial production batches. In some cases, the focus is on the MT variants since they're usually the bigger sellers, so ATs take the back seat.

Originally Posted by Argan365

Do we know about the driving experience with the AMT and if the Auto does enough justice to a vehicle of this size.
Also is this the same AMT that will make its way into its premium sibling, XUV ?

We will be getting our hands on the AMT soon, so will have to wait till then to share any inputs. I don't see the XUV500 getting an AMT. The XUV500 is a premium offering and buyers at that price point will want a proper AT.

Originally Posted by GKMahajan

I have now decided to stick to automatic vehicles only. Twice I have fixed a TD of the AMT and failed to reach! My bad!
After going through your very thorough report, I shall have to make it happen

Yes! Make sure you go for that drive and do share your first impressions on the AMT.

Originally Posted by ikoneer

How is the body roll and bounciness of the Tank, Assuming if its going to be a single or double occupancy most of the time, is the ride comfortable?

I once traveled in a scorpio with 5 passengers and did not like it, was getting bounced throughout the ride, can it be the same with the Tank?

As stated in the review, the TUV300 has the same chassis as the new Scorpio. It's a ladder-frame SUV, and bounciness + body roll will be very noticeable. If you want the cushy ride of a sedan, best look elsewhere.

Originally Posted by Thilak29

That means, in the city traffic signal a two wheeler guy/bystander beside my car knows exactly when to open the door and scoot with laptop bag placed in the rear seat

It's definitely a feature that comes with its issues. As highlighted in the Honda City review:

Originally Posted by GTO

As much as I like auto-locking, I detest this auto-unlocking. What if I have my laptop or kids on the back seat?

[karthikd21]

Thanks Tushar for a wonderful review! Mahindra has made the 2nd row foldable unlike Bolero, good stuff

Did you get a chance to do some hill driving? With the smaller engine, I am wondering how would it pull with 5 onboard and luggage when compared to Bolero.

[catchjyoti]

For me the shape of TUV 300 is good but the length is smaller than ideal. If Bolero could have been given with the TUV 300 interiors I would be very much interested in it. I just love the macho yet understated looks of the Bolero.

[narenteam]

Originally Posted by karthikd21

Thanks Tushar for a wonderful review! Mahindra has made the 2nd row foldable unlike Bolero, good stuff

Good review by Tushar and team! :clap
It would been twice as sweet if had come a few weeks earlier.

Does TUV offer foldable rear seats on all variants? Do the seats fold and roll over, or just fold?

[AutoIndian]

Originally Posted by narenteam

Good review by Tushar and team! :clap
It would been twice as sweet if had come a few weeks earlier.

Does TUV offer foldable rear seats on all variants? Do the seats fold and roll over, or just fold?

Only the top end variant, T8 has the foldable middle bench. Also it seems just the back rest folds down and the complete seat does not tumble fold like in the Innova, Lodgy or Mobilio.

Originally Posted by karthikd21

Did you get a chance to do some hill driving? With the smaller engine, I am wondering how would it pull with 5 onboard and luggage when compared to Bolero.

I have not done hill driving, but when I took the test drive along with family we were 5 adults and a kid. The TUV didn't break any sweat while starting from speedbreakers or climbing on inclines. The generous torque coming at very low rpms helps its case. I am sure this will be the most sought after car for driving in hilly terrain. A rear wheel drive, good low end grunt, robust build all these are the usps of this car.

[neil.jericho]

Phew! Does anyone do a review better? Well worth the wait as always.


Story of my TUV cancellation - I had spoken to and emailed the SA from Sireesh Auto, Bangalore on the 16th of October confirming my cancellation of the TUV automatic. I was told it would take a few days to refund the full booking amount of Rs 20,000. On the 21st I wrote to the SA again asking him to confirm if the transfer was done. I called him and he said that he will get it done after the extended holidays since he hadnt checked his email account in several days (!!!!!) and forgot that I called and cancelled my booking and hence didnt start processing it


He had promised to update me first thing on Monday (26th) which he conveniently forgot to. When I called him that evening, he said there is nothing that he can do to expedite the process (receiving a call from M&M to ask why I was cancelling) and that it will take 2 days to reach my account (i.e. today). When I gave him a polite piece of my mind, he said that he will expedite the process immediately. Of course he had no explanation for how he would expedite a process that he was unable to expedite in the first place


Today evening I finally got a call from a lady working at Sireesh Auto asking why I cancelled. I explained that the long delivery period swayed me back to the Honda Jazz and I complained about the delay in processing my refund. Once again I was told it would take 2 more working days (i.e. the 30th) to get it which would make it a grand total of 14 days since actually cancelling my booking.


I have explained that since the dealership has messed up, I am expecting them to refund my booking amount with interest accrued for 11 days (14 - 3 processing days). I will write to M&M to let them know the situation on the ground. After going through this baffling experience, I really dont know if M&M dealerships have highly incompetent staff or if its just the dealer pulling out different tricks to sit on booking amounts for as long as possible.


Now that I have a first hand account of what things are really like, I know why their dealerships have such a terrible reputation and will stay away in future. Once bitten, twice shy.

[karthick_b]

An outstanding review that deserves a 5 star rating. Some of the vocabulary used in the review were a stroke of genius. You guys inspire me to come and test drive a new product every time a new car review shows up in Team BHP. Please invite me for a review of another brand new product. I am open, am open.

Right coming to the product, having seen some TUVs running around (or should I say, 'tank'ing around) on the roads of Chennai, the car has terrific road presence. It is a very unique design and breaks the monotony of fancy modern cars that have sharp lines and creases. I feel that although the car splits opinions for its design now, it will surely be a classic a decade down the road, just like the likes of the Tata Sierra, Safari and Bolero. Mahindra have made a decent product, especially coming from the disastrous Quanto. I just wish, the Scorpio or Thar's engine is launched with more features as a T10 variant some time later. Then the TUV300 can redeem itself for its rather modest performance.

[AutoIndian]

Today I talked to the Dealership Sales Manager (DSM) and M&M's Pune Area Sales Manager (ASM). The one Verve Blue TUV3OO-T8 that was likely to be billed to the dealer has not been billed yet. So my hopes of getting a quicker delivery were dashed. The DSM mentioned that all out of state billing will happen till 29th Oct and billing for Pune happens on 30th and 31st, Pune being nearest to Chakan plant where the TUV is manufactured. He is hoping that around 70 odd TUVs will be allotted to this dealership. He said that he will be able to confirm on 1st Nov afternoon, whether my car is in the dispatched lot or not. If yes then it may take 2-3 days for unloading the car at their Phursungi stockyard and another 3-4 days for RTO registration. I am hoping against hope that my car arrives in that lot and I get the keys at least on Dhanteras.

[karthikd21]

Originally Posted by catchjyoti

For me the shape of TUV 300 is good but the length is smaller than ideal. If Bolero could have been given with the TUV 300 interiors I would be very much interested in it. I just love the macho yet understated looks of the Bolero.

Exactly my thought. Though not many might like the shape of Bolero, it still wins for me even on TUV300/Scorpio. I won a Bolero and would have been the most happiest with the new interiors.

[samabhi]

Outstanding review as usual. I finished a long test drive (~45 minutes) of the T8 AMT variant this morning and returned back to my office. Refreshed the TEAM-BHP home page as always and was pleasantly surprised to see this review. And I could relate to everything that is mentioned in the review as its still very fresh in my memories.

I drove the car for a good time in different conditions - B2B traffic, empty roads, potholes and no roads. Initial impressions :

AMT : Mixed feelings. There are two modes as with all the AMTs. Automatic vs Manual. The mode should be set to Neutral (N), press the brake pedal and then start the engine.

The Automatic mode is very comfortable, but feels sluggish once it crosses the 3rd gear. At low speeds, it took off very cleanly with a gentle push on the accelerator. Loaded with 5 well built adults, the car picked up speeds of 60KMPH in no time, after which the response to the throttle is not linear. It was more like there is no response to the throttle input for a couple of seconds and then it suddenly moves ahead. This was not so pleasant and I could even hear the gear shifts with the music volume turned down. I couldn't get a chance to test beyond 80KMPH, but it did feel like it could reach higher speeds without any fuss.

The manual mode is the best mode to use. One needs to upshift only for higher speeds and the response is far better and as expected with manual gear changes. I felt this gave more control over the vehicle's acceleration than using the Automatic mode. The downshift happens automatically whenever the car slows down. It took a while for me to get used to this, but once am comfortable it was very easy to maneuver the car in heavy traffic conditions.

I havent test driven the Manual one yet and cannot comment on which one's better. Nevertheless the convenience of using AMT in Manual mode is a very pleasant experience. Overall the gear shifter is very sleek in design and I would have liked it to be little more sturdier than it is now.

With no clutch pedal, there is sufficient space to rest the left foot. But I was little uncomfortable through out my test drive. I generally prefer to keep my foot straight to rest and there is a obstruction in the foot well while doing so. This made me to point my left foot towards the middle and its not a comfortable position to sit in for a long time.

Another important criteria for me was the suspension and I must say I am not satisfied with it as it felt bouncy. But it did tackle bad roads with ease and it also passed the dreadful humps in Bangalore without any underbelly scrapping.

The front seats are very comfortable to sit in and I could easily get to my desired driving position. Fit and finish is leaps ahead when compared to other Mahindra cars and everything felt very tight. It would be great if Mahindra provides the quanto middle row reclining seats in TUV300 as well. The current middle row bench is not at all a comfortable place to sit in for long drives.

Also I would have liked the steering feedback to be softer at lower speeds atleast, as my wife would also be driving this car (if at all we buy one). That probably is going to be one of the main deal breaker for me. And then the absence of seat belts or at least lap belts in the last row.

To sum it up, the over all experience with the car is neutral and I might have to take few more test drives to make a decision.

Positives :
- Diesel, 5 + 2 SUV with AMT
- Space
- Commanding view of the roads
- Tough build
- Price

Negatives :
- Not so sophisticated as the rivals available at this price range
- Bouncy Suspension
- Middle row seat comfort

[CAPTAIN REX]

Thanx Tushar and team for the wonderful review with stunning photographs to compliment the review. Adithya, though, does not seem pleased when you asked him to try out the jump seats.

The review has set my mind at ease, since I had got the TUV before the official review came in.
The review helps establish that I made the right decision in buying a black T8 Tank.

One concern that I wanted to clarify was on the steering wheel. Did you feel that the steering was not fully returning to the center after making a turn ?

[carwatcher]

Awesome Review !!!

I learned so many things from the review about TUV which was till now being looked by me as a facelift of Quanto. I am sure there would be others who would be thinking like me.

One common issue I have noticed across all the reviews, be it of any car, the size of IRVM is pointed out as small, but what I have noticed is that in any car you name, the IRVM fully covers the rear glass area (not an inch less), so what extra benefit will it give if its made larger, the rear glass area will remain the same.

I also liked the spacing between clutch and brake pedal even though it results in removal of dead pedal as I found on some cars that just for the sake of giving dead pedal, the gap is reduced and which surely would be uncomfortable.

The design of the TUV is timeless and the rear stance looks awesome. At the same time the fixed footrest is potentially dangerous while reversing IMHO.

I was under impression that you can't change just like that the seating capacity of any vehicle without RTO approval, so I think that the DIY removal of third row seats could attract challan if the RTO/Traffic Police insists or has the rules been changed recently, I have no idea. I was once challaned by RTO for removing the middle row of my Omni E.

[ezee]

Awesome review !

Officially its a five seater or 7 seater ? Can any owner confirm whats written on RC under Seating Capacity?

[karthikd21]

Originally Posted by carwatcher

Awesome Review !!!

I was once challaned by RTO for removing the middle row of my Omni E.

Oh my god, I never knew this! I have been driving with only one jump seat in the back in my Bolero since past few months as it provides additional luggage space after removing one Jump seat. I will put the other one back today

[cmayur]

Fantastic review in true BHP istyle.
All that waiting has paid off. Thanks Tushar and team BHP for providing such a great platform for people like us..