[callrakesh]

Finally, I have booked STORME VX 400 4x2 Urban Bronze colour. I am taking delivery this weekend.

[methecupid]

Originally Posted by callrakesh

Finally, I have booked STORME VX 400 4x2 Urban Bronze colour. I am taking delivery this weekend.

Congratulations Rakesh, it's an awesome acquisition. You must be very lucky to find the variant in the color you wanted buddy, wasn't so lucky! Wishing you miles of fun up ahead..

[sourabhzen]

Originally Posted by callrakesh

Finally, I have booked STORME VX 400 4x2 Urban Bronze colour. I am taking delivery this weekend.

Congrats!
How are you getting it? Where are you registering it from? I am still waiting for ban to get over.

[callrakesh]

Originally Posted by sourabhzen

Congrats!
How are you getting it? Where are you registering it from? I am still waiting for ban to get over.

I am buying it in Dehradun, where I grew up. I didn't want to wait further for 1.99L version launch.

[avinash_m]

Hello again to all the 400 fans and critics! I am back here to post a short ownership review of my Mar 2016 manufactured Astern Black 4X2 400.

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed are entirely mine; please feel free to accept/differ with it.


Brief Background:

I first test drove the 400 back in Nov last year, just after it's soft launch. I was pretty much sold after that but still took a TD of the XUV as well, around Feb after my lil' one's arrival, to get a feel; took wifey along for an unbiased opinion and was quite confident that she'd like the XUV more. But she didn't; specially on the ride quality and roominess aspect. We never saw the Creta as it never felt/looked like an 'SUV'; similar case with Duster as the cabin felt too cramped, never TDed it. My humble Ritz felt more roomy than it; anyway let me start.


Delivery Experience:

This was pretty smooth; completed the formalities a day before the delivery. I opted for the following accessories from the dealer end:

1. Floor Mats (Set of 4)
2. Reverse Camera (Tata brand, dash mount)
3. DRLs
4. Fabric Seat covers.

Big shout to following individuals from Venkataramana motors for ensuring a smooth delivery experience and also for being patient with my TD queries and those long PDIs in the hot sun!

1. Balashankar Reddy
2. Kumar
3. Sadgun


Living with the beast:

It's been a month and I've only covered about 1200 Kms so far in purely city driving with a mix of occasional open roads and bumper to bumper traffic. Didn't get a chance so far to take it out on the highway primarily because of my lil' one; he's still too small to plan long road trips. I will plan for a Hyd-Bhubaneswar-Bhilai-Hyd drive in Dec.

Pros-
1. Enormous road presence and footprint. At least for me since I graduated from a humble Ritz!
2. Outstanding visibility. This is another aspect I just love about the 400 (and Safaris); I am much confident now maneuvering the beast in traffic. The combination of high seating, big ORVMs, windows contributes towards this aspect.
3. Torque: This is intoxicating to say the least! The way it pulls from just about 1700-1800 rpm is to die for!! At the same time one has to be careful not to overdo it specially if graduating from a much smaller engine/car.
4. Ride quality has always been a forte of the Safari and it is no surprise in the case of 400 too.
5. Six Speed transmission; I'll mention this for the additional cog only as that really helps the 400 to cruise in a relaxed manner.
6. Space; again an aspect which has been discussed at length already. I won't add anything new.

Cons-
1. Rattles/Creaks, I'll just mention the areas. Steering wheel (over bumps), driver's side window creaks, left front passenger door rattle. Not bothered now; will point them out in first service.
2. Click sound from clutch; I'd pointed it out in the PDI as well but was told it's fine. However, I noticed I can avoid that if I release the clutch gradually.
3. Left front door was misaligned from day one and made a bad noise while closing. One visit to the service center and I was in and out in 10 mins flat with a good fix.
4. Probably nitpicking but the indicator and wiper stocks are not aligned when in 'off' position; the indicator stalk aligns when one puts on the right side on.
5. Nitpick again; the horn pad is a bit of a reach for my hand/fingers.
6. Not sure if this is just my observation but I do hear a distinctive suction-sort-of noise while trying to pull in any gear under low rpm and 3/4th throttle; has anyone observed that and is that a problem?
7. I couldn't figure out the temperature display on the MID; does it really work? I've tried the manual instructions to no avail!

I was a just a kid when the Safari was launched way back in the late 90s; had always admired the way it looked and moved on the road! Not sure I dreamt of owning one ever as that was the case with every new car launch back in those days! But the Safari always had tugged at my heart ever since, and I'd pretty much decided on realizing this dream for my next upgrade even before I was ready for one. Thank you Behram Sir/TATA for giving us the 400!!

Few Pics; please don't mind the quality as they were taken from phone:

[iabhishekkumar]

Originally Posted by avinash_m

Hello again to all the 400 fans and critics! I am back here to post a short ownership review of my Mar 2016 manufactured Astern Black 4X2 400.

Cons-
7. I couldn't figure out the temperature display on the MID; does it really work? I've tried the manual instructions to no avail!

Let me be the first to congratulate you here for the new acquisition. Wishing you miles of niggle free drive.

Regarding the temperature display on the MID, does it show 0 degrees always while blinking? If that is the case, then you need to purchase the ambient temperature gauge separately as seems that Tata does not provide that as standard fitment even with new Storme.

I also purchased the same from Tata and got it fitted and it started displaying the correct temperature. If I remember it correctly, it costed me around 500 bucks.

Nice pics! Can you tell me whether those are white projector headlamps? If yes, have you got the same stock from Tata or you have changed after purchase?

Cheers!

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by avinash_m

Hello again to all the 400 fans and critics!

Congratulations Avinash!

Though I have a 4WD Scorpio S10, I visit this thread as this is the only other alternative and as we are looking at a second car, this may well be it, in 4X4.

And please avoid seating your wife with your small baby in the front, ask her to take the rear seat with the child and do invest in a baby/child seat.

[jeepster]

Originally Posted by Seek

Twist is on the return we are bringing his dad's 15 yr old stock MM540 jeep back for an engine transplant in Chennai.

So the questions are:
1. Can the storme tow the MM540 especially over a longer distance, let's say 100 Kms?

Yes, The xenon xt with similar (320nm) drive-train has towing capacity of 2500kg.

You need a tow hitch for your Storme, Sadly its not available in india.

some pics of tow-hitched storms by tata. (all 320nm versions)

From official Facebook page.

Originally Posted by callrakesh

Finally, I have booked STORME VX 400 4x2 Urban Bronze colour. I am taking delivery this weekend.

Congrats.
Please do a proper PDI.

Originally Posted by avinash_m

This was pretty smooth; completed the formalities a day before the delivery. I opted for the following accessories from the dealer end:

2. Reverse Camera (Tata brand, dash mount)
3. DRLs
4. Fabric Seat covers.

Congrats.

Please share the costs of the accessories.

[avinash_m]

Regarding the temperature display on the MID, does it show 0 degrees always while blinking? If that is the case, then you need to purchase the ambient temperature gauge separately as seems that Tata does not provide that as standard fitment even with new Storme.

Thanks! Nope; I couldn't even get the MID to go into the temp mode, per the instructions on the manual. Btw, let me clarify (if I didn't mention earlier) that I am referring to the ambient temperature reading on the MID, not the engine temp; that's already there. I am guessing you're referring to that; if not then are you saying I'll have to buy a new MID display which can show temp along with the already existing info?! What I fail to understand is why does the manual mention it if it's not there at all?!

Nice pics! Can you tell me whether those are white projector headlamps? If yes, have you got the same stock from Tata or you have changed after purchase?

Those are OEM from Tata; I just put the DRLs (below) from the showroom. DRLs are also a Tata approved accessory and comes with a year warranty.

Originally Posted by Sheel

Congratulations Avinash!
Though I have a 4WD Scorpio S10, I visit this thread as this is the only other alternative and as we are looking at a second car, this may well be it, in 4X4.

Thanks Sheel! I too am a 'silent' visitor on your Scorp thread.

And please avoid seating your wife with your small baby in the front, ask her to take the rear seat with the child and do invest in a baby/child seat.

Yep; in fact child seat and rule are in effect now! This pic was just out of the showroom and I was a bit too excited to have them while taking delivery, that I forgot the child seat part.

Originally Posted by jeepster

Congrats.
Please share the costs of the accessories.

Thanks! Sorry, I don't know the breakup. There's an accessory component of Rs 18500 /- in the price break up in which you can include what you want. I initially had thought of letting go and a get a cash discount, but finally took the plunge as the Camera was a necessity and DRL looked really cool. Had to bargain a bit as the dealer informed me that DRL alone is about 14K (including color matching). Hope this helps.

More Issues:

The front cabin light (behind the windscreen) has malfunctioned; it flickered for a couple of days and now barely glows in the door open position. This wasn't an issue during PDI. I have to say though that the light assembly is cheaply put together; pushing the buttons almost feels like the plastic cover will come off.

The steering also has started making faint creaking noises during full lock maneuvers

[jeepster]

Forgot to add the towing information.

Please google Flat Towing.

Its safer than normal towing with steel wire-rope/pipe used by mechanics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTr1IG6IwEY

https://www.facebook.com/nikhil.more...5896419134691/

but Flatbed is the safest/fastest solution to transport any vehicle.

[iabhishekkumar]

Originally Posted by avinash_m

Thanks! Nope; I couldn't even get the MID to go into the temp mode, per the instructions on the manual. Btw, let me clarify (if I didn't mention earlier) that I am referring to the ambient temperature reading on the MID, not the engine temp; that's already there. I am guessing you're referring to that; if not then are you saying I'll have to buy a new MID display which can show temp along with the already existing info?! What I fail to understand is why does the manual mention it if it's not there at all?!

I was also talking about the ambient temperature display only. In my beast, I had to get a ambient temperature gauge installed as a separate accessory to be able to show the temperature reading on the MID. Else, the MID used to show 0 degrees always.

What I understand now is that the MID in the newer Storme does not even get the same MID or at least the settings in comparison to what I have (mine is a 2014 320 NM Storme VX 4X2). In that case nothing much can be done.

The manual might still be the old one that they are carrying through.

Cheers!

[callrakesh]

Last week, after booking the STORME VX 400, I ordered the Team-BHP stickers. Took the delivery of my STORME on Sunday, Jun 12, pasted the sticker and did 300+ kms on day one.



I have named it 'Rhino'.

Driving Santro for the last 14+ years, the first thing that comes to mind while riding the 'Rhino' is the feeling of Power and Royalty. On the road, during the 300 kms drive, I was letting the small 'impatient' vehicles overtake me, because 'With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility'.


I look forward to posting my initial ownership report before I go for first service.

[avinash_m]

Originally Posted by iabhishekkumar

What I understand now is that the MID in the newer Storme does not even get the same MID or at least the settings in comparison to what I have (mine is a 2014 320 NM Storme VX 4X2). In that case nothing much can be done.

You're probably right; I plan to get it checked in the first service. Hoping there might be a chance the steps mentioned in the manual are not correct and there's still a (another) way to display.

The manual might still be the old one that they are carrying through.
Cheers!

Correct; thankfully, it is of the 2015 version. They don't have one for the 400.

Originally Posted by callrakesh

Took the delivery of my STORME on Sunday, Jun 12, pasted the sticker and did 300+ kms on day one.

Congrats Rakesh; wishing you many million happy miles with your 'Rhino'!

[quote] I was letting the small 'impatient' vehicles overtake me, because 'With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility'. .

Second that! That's specially true in the first 1000-2000 kms where one has to be under 2000 rpm. This is excruciating specially since the engine starts hitting that sweet spot from 1700 and you've to let go of the throttle @ 2K; can't wait for the restriction to be over!

[Seek]

Originally Posted by avinash_m

1. Floor Mats (Set of 4)
2. Reverse Camera (Tata brand, dash mount)
3. DRLs
4. Fabric Seat covers.

Congrats! Lovely colour, thats the one I wanted but had to settle for the now-likeable pearl white. Can you confirm where is the reverse camera display installed on the dash. Left / right / center? I opted for left and now realise I hardly look at it. More like using it once at the start of the reversing to see if there is someone behind especially in the night. After that I rely more on the voice that speaks out the distance.

Originally Posted by jeepster

Yes, The xenon xt with similar (320nm) drive-train has towing capacity of 2500kg.

You need a tow hitch for your Storme, Sadly its not available in india.

some pics of tow-hitched storms by tata. (all 320nm versions)

Originally Posted by jeepster

Forgot to add the towing information.

Please google Flat Towing.

Its safer than normal towing with steel wire-rope/pipe used by mechanics.

Thanks Jeepster for the detailed response and pics / video link. What I thought of as a simple tug-along job is actually an entire world of complexity. The tow hitch is a neat and useful accessory. But based on some googling i find that it doesn't come cheap.

Originally Posted by callrakesh

Last week, after booking the STORME VX 400, I ordered the Team-BHP stickers. Took the delivery of my STORME on Sunday, Jun 12, pasted the sticker and did 300+ kms on day one.
'With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility'

Congrats and Ditto on the "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility" - from someone who graduated from a honda city to the storme, its exactly my feeling too. I did a 2700 Km road trip from chennai to tadoba and back effortlessly last month.

[avinash_m]

Originally Posted by Seek

Congrats! Lovely colour, thats the one I wanted but had to settle for the now-likeable pearl white. Can you confirm where is the reverse camera display installed on the dash. Left / right / center? I opted for left and now realise I hardly look at it. More like using it once at the start of the reversing to see if there is someone behind especially in the night. After that I rely more on the voice that speaks out the distance.

Thanks!! It's on the left side against the A pillar; remember I'd asked you about it!? True; I also haven't gotten used to looking at it, relying mostly on mirrors except when at really tight spots. Do have to say though, that the visibility is really good even at night.