[fiat_tarun]

Originally Posted by Smartomotive

Build quality of Mahindra after colliding with a motorcycle. ...

Airbags did not deploy, not even one. It halted but the right portion is broken as if it hit something heavy.

...

Really sorry you had to go through this incident, but like already mentioned airbags will deploy only when the impact crosses a certain calibrated deceleration and not for every impact. In low speed impact accidents, the seat belts are more than sufficient to prevent injury.

Coming to the damage, it looks like the bike has impacted the drive shaft / front wishbone area directly and hence the wheel breaking off. Otherwise, the damage to me looks normal after a pointed impact from something like a bike.

There is a defined protocol for tests like NCAP and hence no 2 collisions will be the same. I hope your vehicle is repaired to your satisfaction and you have a smooth ownership experience beyond this.

[SamDiablo]

Hi All,

First of all apologies for the long post.

Having taken delivery of my XUV700 AX7L Diesel few weeks back (4th Oct) and driven over 5K, I thought that it’s time to share some of my observations and experiences here. My usage has been 40% city and 60% highways.

Search: Was on lookout for a 3 row vehicle for quite some time now. Booked and canceled XUV500 and Endeavour before Covid stuck. When I look back I think those cancellations were for some stupid reasons. It was like trying to find faults in vehicles which served the purpose and even went beyond it.

Booking and Delivery Experience:

Booking: Booked AX7L Petrol AT on 14th Jan 2023 with Sireesh Auto, Silkboard, Bangalore. Changed my mind midway and booked AX7L Diesel AT in Jul end. Was so desperate to get this within this year that booked couple more with Ananth Motors also (both AX7L Diesel AT, one of them being AWD). All the bookings were for Midnight black color. As per Mahindra website my original booking was still showing Jan/Feb 2024 and all other bookings were going all the way to Jun/Jul 2024! Meanwhile was test driving most of the direct competitors as well as some from across segments. Final list of vehicles that I test drove, including diesel and Petrol XUV 700 were: Alcazar, Carens, Kushaq, Taigun, Tiguan, Compass, Meridian, Gloster, Safari, Harrier, Virtus, Slavia and new Verna. All the vehicles test driven were top variant of respective models and always AT. Was not interested in Manuals. Sometimes ended up test driving multiple times. XUV700 itself was test driven for more than 200Kms all put together. The more I drove any other vehicle, more I was getting firm in my mind and heart on who is going to be my next love! Don’t want to write why I was not keen on other vehicles post test drives as I think over a period of time it was all about what are the positives of XUV700 rather than any issues/short comings in it or others. I’m sure that had I not gone for XUV700 I would have gone for a Turbo Petrol (my second and third choice were Alcazar and Carens respectively).

Delivery: Sireesh Auto staff in Bangalore stuck to their original promise of delivering within Sep/Oct. My sales advisor and his manager were very patient with me throughout last 5 months as at time I used to enquire and press them almost on daily basis! Delivery itself was very smooth with no issues during PDI or delivery. On delivery day it took only 30 minutes to complete the paper work. They had filled up approximately 20 liters of fuel in the tank. I would recommend Sireesh Auto, Silk Board to anybody who lives near this part of the town. Sales Advisor Jagdish was super helpful right from booking day to delivery and after that also. In between was offered red, white and silver color AX7L AT (Diesel) by Sireesh Auto and Electric Blue AX7L AWD by Ananth Motors, but due to family (and probably myself also) pressure had to decline all these as kids were adamant on getting mid night black color. I was ok with white and silver also.

Few observations, both positives as well as “Even Better if”. I would not dwell too much on features either present or missing as these have been documented well on this thread.

Even Better If (not in any particular order):

1) I would like to have a little more under thigh support for all seats (especially driver and front passenger). Reason being when you use lumbar support on driver’s seat, it pushes you away from back rest and hence it decreases under thigh support. This I noticed during my first long drive and I had to re-adjust driving seat arrangement to make a good balance between lumbar support and under thigh support. Maybe this is a unique problem to me only as I have long standing back issue and I need good bit of back support.
Lumbar Support: adding to the point above lumbar support adjustment although fine in itself is not very useful for me as the back rest becomes too stiff when fully inflated. If I’m not using lumbar support adjustment, back seat support comfort is ok but it then there is gap between back and seat cushion. Hence in my case I had to order an aftermarket back support cushion which has more or less solved both this and above (under thigh support) problem.

2) Drive mode adjustment (Zip, Zap and Zoom): Changing drive mode is a three step process and is very distracting especially if you are at high speeds. I switch to zoom mode only when I’ve crossed 80km/h and know that more or less I’m going to be driving beyond this limit for some time continuously. A more user friendly procedure with not requiring touching screen would have been better. I’m not sure what purpose zip mode serves as I don’t see any significant increase in fuel efficiency. Maybe it is because of the way I drive.
Auto Engine off functionality is at time very frustrating as every time your speedometer touches zero engine stops. When you are stopping at traffic signals etc it is fine otherwise it is not useful. I have started turning it off every time I start a drive.

3) Blind Spot Monitoring screen has design flaws in my view, 1) it brings up a rectangular box like shape with one side having a concave shape (left or right depending on which side turn indicators you have chosen). Now this screen itself is very small and because of curvature on one side the video looks distorted. 2) When it is dark outside, video feed is pretty useless. Lastly this screen is only visible when you are steering wheel is straight on it’s default position, if your steering wheel has turned you can’t see the blind spot monitoring screen. I think implementation of this in new Seltos is much better. Again I think some of it can be solved by changing the software implementation?
At times I felt that there is a lag of 1-2 seconds in camera feeds for 360* view. It creates issues sometime while reversing or parking in tight spaces. Strangely, at times there is no lag.
Lastly, my natural (or acquired) driving style is that I hold the steering wheel at 1’O or 2’O clock. Because of this there is not much elbow support available. I’m trying to adapt to this by holding the steering wheel at 5’O or 6’O clock position. But still would have liked driver side elbow rest area to be bit with more real estate and also to be little closer.

Niggles faced till date:

Only one till now 😊. One fine day after 3 weeks and odometer at 2.2k km, while going to office, I stopped for a purchase mid-way. Till that time everything was fine. When I started the engine again, the infotainment screen just froze on home screen view. Re-started the engine couple of times but screen remained frozen. Drove to office, no issues while driving but was not able to adjust AC temperature. Is this something that others have also observed when the infotainment screen goes bank or just freezes? Anyways, at office parking restarted the engine after couple of hours and everything was back to normal. I found a funny side in this an told myself that in 1st month of ownership one niggle was very much required to feel part of XUV700 community!! Good that it was a minor one.

Good things:

1) Steering: In spite of it’s size I find it to be very easy to drive in city traffic. I guess it’s because of super light steering and brilliant gear box. At high speed drives steering weighs up nicely, especially in Zoom mode.


2) Engine and Gear box: I've driven mostly petrol cars before owning this and some very good ones. In fact I liked the thrill (pull, engine sound, sensation on accelerator pedal) of petrol cars so much that that I was originally not very keen on a diesel engine. But because of my yearly usage (25-30 km) and the very good feeling that XUV700 test drive vehicles gave I opted for diesel. Whenever somebody use to mention about “mid range torque” of powerful diesel vehicle I always wondered what the fuss is about. It maybe my ignorance but I used to think that torque delivery of good petrol engines available nowadays is also very good, at least to my satisfaction. But after this 4K km I have started to understand what is the meaning of mid range torque of a diesel motor. This engine and gear box combination is so well mated that whether it is pulling ahead in city after traffic signal turns green or on highway irrespective of your speed it shows no hesitancy in surging ahead. Sound and calmness of engine between 40-80 band is relaxing and seemingly invites to you press the accelerator pedal. Engine noise is not annoying at all for me.

3) Music system is as per my view very good. Different options of filed position and surround settings are worth experimenting. When volume of system is above 10 (max is 30) it insulates you from all the outside noise. In fact at times I can’t hear noise of even my own vehicle (even horn).


4) Drive modes: Zap mode is more than sufficient in virtually every situation. I feel that above 80km/hour Zoom mode takes this car to another level. The steering becomes very confidence inspiring, breaks add extra bite and pressing accelerator pedal at times gives you a push back on your seat. I have felt that even behavior of suspension changes and they become little firm. I was not able to find any supporting review video or documentation on the suspension behavior changes. Please can somebody validate this and give more insight on how this happens or is this just my imagination? In my opinion zip mode is not very useful as it makes hardly any difference to mileage. May be it is just the way I drive.


5) Mapples is working fine for me. Again touch wood! Not faced much issue with Vi connectivity also. The default setting that I use in city or highway is to project full maple navigation screen on instrument cluster. That frees up my main infotainment screen for toggling across music and other things. Moreover, having the navigation screen on instrument cluster gives a feel good factor! Reminds me of Audi’s infamous cockpit view from where it all started!! Hope in future this is possible with Google Maps also.

6) Suspension is very good in most of the situations, only at low speeds on steep breakers I have felt vertical movement.

7) Family is happy with overall comfort and space available. No complaints till date about seat comfort, cushioning, ride quality etc. Only thing is that they would have liked to have height adjustment for front row passenger as well and my kids felt that giving electric adjustment for only driver is unfair!

Haven’t taken many pictures, but here are a couple.




Thanks.

[SamarthaLS]

I was washing the car as usual and inspected the underbody for any leakage and shockingly found diesel leak marks on the tank, and the hose pipe connecting the diesel tank had a lot of diesel spill marks. I was shocked. On the call, the service manager told me it might be a rat bite, but inspection today found that it was an issue with the diesel hose pipe and would be replaced under warranty. If not observed, it would have created a mess as the diesel was not dripping down on the floor.

[Roraxuv]

Hi Folks,

I have a XUV700 AX 7 (non Luxury model) purchased in Jan 2023. It does not have the sequential indicator lights . Could anyone please confirm if sequential indicator lights are only standard in the Luxury (L) model? Also, can we expect this to be in any of the future (non Luxury model) upgrades ? Also, please let me know if anyone has been able to install these from the service center and if so, what are the approximate costs?
Thank you!

[SamarthaLS]

Originally Posted by Roraxuv

Hi Folks,

I have a XUV700 AX 7 (non Luxury model) purchased in Jan 2023. It does not have the sequential indicator lights . Could anyone please confirm if sequential indicator lights are only standard in the Luxury (L) model? Also, can we expect this to be in any of the future (non Luxury model) upgrades ? Also, please let me know if anyone has been able to install these from the service center and if so, what are the approximate costs?
Thank you!

Yes, sequential indicators are standard in Luxury (L) model alone. I dont think it will not be made available for lower trims.

It is available in service centre and you can have it installed which will cost you approximately 18-20k

[niranjan.mulye]

Originally Posted by SamDiablo

Hi All,

,

4) Drive modes: Zap mode is more than sufficient in virtually every situation. I feel that above 80km/hour Zoom mode takes this car to another level. The steering becomes very confidence inspiring, breaks add extra bite and pressing accelerator pedal at times gives you a push back on your seat. I have felt that even behavior of suspension changes and they become little firm. I was not able to find any supporting review video or documentation on the suspension behavior changes. Please can somebody validate this and give more insight on how this happens or is this just my imagination? In my opinion zip mode is not very useful as it makes hardly any difference to mileage. May be it is just the way I drive.

Thanks.

What you have observed about suspension getting a bit firm in zoom mode is true. I have observed the same behaviour. Though it is not documented anywhere online.

[sunilsoft]

Originally Posted by Roraxuv

Hi Folks,
Also, please let me know if anyone has been able to install these from the service centre and if so, what are the approximate costs?
Thank you!

Yes the tail lamps can be ordered from the service center and it's a plug-and-play replacement and can be done in 30 minutes. The part nos. of the Tail lamps are:

1. 1703AW600011N Rs.4378
2. 1703AW600021N Rs.4378
3. 1703AW600031N Rs.4650
4. 1703AW600041N Rs.4650

[himanshu_trikha]

Originally Posted by SamarthaLS

Yes, sequential indicators are standard in Luxury (L) model alone. I dont think it will not be made available for lower trims.

It is available in service centre and you can have it installed which will cost you approximately 18-20k

I brought home an AX7 Petrol AT ,couple of days back and it has front sequential indicator but rear one is normal blinker type.

[blackdiesel]

Originally Posted by niranjan.mulye

What you have observed about suspension getting a bit firm in zoom mode is true. I have observed the same behaviour. Though it is not documented anywhere online.

Originally Posted by SamDiablo

I have felt that even behavior of suspension changes and they become little firm. I was not able to find any supporting review video or documentation on the suspension behavior changes. Please can somebody validate this and give more insight on how this happens or is this just my imagination?

Isnt this the same as FSD?
"The all-independent suspension set up of the XUV700 was developed with varied road surfaces in mind. XUV700 offers class leading performance through multi-link suspension with stabiliser bar & FSD (Frequency Selective Damping) technology."

PS: Admin, sorry, missed quoting the messages in my earlier post.

[SamDiablo]

Originally Posted by blackdiesel

Isnt this the same as FSD

With limited knowledge on the subject and whatever I've read online, FSD behaviour depends on movement of the vehicle. How come just a flick of a switch change the behaviour of suspension system so much?

[Sommos]

Originally Posted by alamodein

Yes, I did through with the arrangement I had in mind.

Originally Posted by blackdiesel

Thank you for the detailed post on how you found a fix for this 'design flaw'. Pls share your experience so far with this product, it's placement & usage.

Thanks to the first post by alamodien, I have also gone for a similar "jugaad" in my car.





I have used fire retardant 1.5/2.0 mm normal copper cable that is used in the household for the extension.

Originally Posted by Roraxuv

Hi Folks,
Also, please let me know if anyone has been able to install these from the service center and if so, what are the approximate costs?
Thank you!

I was told by the GM-Services at the ASC, that they have instructions from M&M to maintain product differentiation.
Nonetheless, if you have cordial relation with the ASC folks then you can certainly get the rear sequential lights from them. Actually you need only two set of lights that are fitted to the tail gate. The other two sets that are fitted to the side fenders are the same as your current one. This way you can save some cost.

[Torque&Power]

Worst nightmare for a Car Enthusiast is the sign of rat entry inside car.

I dealt with this horror for last 10 days. While I was out of station for 2 weeks in November, my XUV700 was parked inside garage and it became a home for a rat. After returning, when I got into my car, there was a pungent smell inside he cabin. I shockingly found rat droppings, pee marks on seats/ mats and greasy footprints all over the plastics/ dashboard. By that moment, it was quite obvious that my innocent & defenseless XUV had been physically harassed by this little baddie.

I opened the bonnet. Although the engine area was full of rat droppings, footprints & greasy marks, I didn't find any kind of chewed wires/ hoses. Then, I inspected insides of the car & found out that the rat entered the cabin through co-passenger's footwell area, might be through air ducts. I turned on the car. Luckily, got no errors in the MID. Then, I noticed the damages done by the rat. The cabin lights/ roof lamps & microphone were not working, the power windows were rolling down but not rolling up.

Next day, I took the car to Mahindra Service center to find the extent of damages done by the rat. I asked them to check the whole car for any unseen/ critical damage done by rats. To which I got a stupid reply "Sir, Jaise-jaise sytems kharab honge, vaise-vaise pata chal jayega damages ka". I got a serious headache after hearing this unprofessional reply. What kind of skilled manpower Mahindra service centers have recruited.

Driver Side A-Pillar Wiring Chewed


Service Centre dude removing all the grab handles, Sunshades, Cabin roof lights


Notice the dismantled Removed A-Pillars, B-Pillars Panels


Technician had to jump inside the roof liner to remove the chewed insulation debris


Some chewed insulation debris








During repair of wiring, it was found that the rat moved through the A-Pillars to the roof liner and also chewed away the insulation/ padding inside roof liner. I never eat/ drink/ store/ litter food in my car. Actually, nowadays, manufacturers have shifted to Soy-based insulation in cars for environment friendly reasons, but it can also attract hungry vermin. Didn’t they find any other goddamn substance on earth that is less seductive to rats?

Overall, it costed ₹ 8000 and 3 visits to the service center to repair the damages done by these over-curious creatures.

The service center advisor became emotional after looking at the destruction done by the rat and offered free washing & polishing as a token of sympathy



Coming on to the steps that I take now to avoid such experience in the future-
1. Use my car. Seriously. If I hadn't left my car untouched for 14 days in the first place, I would have easily avoided the fiasco.
2. I have sprayed rat repellent inside the engine area.
3. Strapped tobacco leaves in a pierced packet inside engine area.
4. Planned to place a Sticky pad nearby car

Yesterday, I placed a Sticky pad with a scoop of peanut butter underneath the car engine. The little devil was not able to resist it & got trapped. I thoroughly celebrated the revenge. I freed the rat at some distant place by pouring oil over glue.

Criminal Arrested


Took my darling to its favorite park (Yamuna Expressway) to spread its legs. The white beauty is running bold & fast again. Happy Ending.

[arungowda]

This is my first ‘hi’ to the forum.

I own XUV700 AX7L D AT AWD, I would like to share following two learning with you all, few of them might be knowing those already.

1. To enable Alexa or Android auto voice assistance, single press of ‘Voice /Call disconnect’ switch on the steering wheel enables Alexa voice assistance, likewise, long pressing of the same switch will enables Android auto voice assistance.

Next one. When android auto google navigation is on in the car display, simultaneously we can still play USB also instead of getting music only from android auto supported music application like YT Music/Spotify…

2. Start navigation to your specific destination in the mobile google maps app and then connect android auto to the car, also ensure USB is connected to specific port of car. First start playing songs from USB, use SRC (Source) switch on the steering wheel if required to select playing USB. When USB is playing, do a long press on ‘Voice /Call disconnect’ switch, with that press, android auto voice assistance will get enabled, but don’t give any voice command, simultaneously, at this stage google maps will start displaying on the screen. With this, you can have navigation ON and USB playing.

This is useful for me, because when I start using the car in the morning, I listen to chants which are in USB and at the same time I can have navigation ON in the car display too. Hope these will help the forum.

[Mr.Bangalore]

is there an option to install or replace with normal indicator instead of sequential for the rear.
As the current blinker is too small at the edge and is not noticeable from the distance

[joethedriver]

Originally Posted by PaddleShifter

Software error:
i) Restart the car once after you have parked the car for an extended period of time (for hours or overnight). Does the error no longer appear?

Yes, parked it overnight and the next day issue is gone. Did a software update 2 weeks back and the service manager said it might be a software issue and asked me to observe if the same issue happens again.

Thanks for your help.