Team-BHP - Mahindra Scorpio-N Review
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Quote:

Originally Posted by Gypsian (Post 5363315)
So then the only MT 4WD is z4. The above trims are all 4WD AT.

Sorry, I think I should have been more elaborate. The 4WD is available in Auto with the Z8 variants. in Z4, its available with only a manual gearbox.

Well played Mahindra! Guess we'll have to wait and see if they have priced the AT/4WD variants correctly.

But even with this pricing, I am just hoping they have passed on the cost of 4WD hardware generously to the consumer, so that they don't have to kill off the 4WD variants in future citing 'low demand'.

The thing that bugs me most at this point, is the lack of enough mainstream options (No, Thar isn't one) in the market if one is seeking 4WD/AWD +AT combo in the mid-price range.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Passiautonate (Post 5359464)
- Speed breakers were no match to the car suspension but road adulterations and imperfections were really unsettling at low speeds. Second-row seat occupants were getting tossed around even at low speeds. Comparable to Fortuner but HEXA is still the benchmark here. TATA please bring the HEXA back, it will definitely be valued more now.

- Body roll is there. My advice- go easy on throttle especially on curves if you have second-row passengers.

Thank you so much for sharing this, exactly the bit I was looking for! I drive a Hexa and was keen to know whether the pentalink suspension would measure up to the benchmark set by the Hexa.

With nothing else coming close, guess I'm sticking to my Hexa for as long as I can.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bibendum90949 (Post 5363316)
With ScorpioN, isn't that the only option for people who're looking for a true blue SUV with 4*4 capabilities in that price bracket. The next best option sits at 50 lakhs+. Tata must be rueful now that they didn't consider 4*4 hardware for the Safari. It has sort of given M&M a free run with Big Daddy's pricing. And of course these are "introductory" pricing, so immediate price hikes are certainly on the anvil.

Scorpio is going to push Fortuner into even more premium territory with prices north of 60L which would enable N to occupy the 30L price bracket comfortably. (A repeat of old times)

Scorpio as a vehicle had very little worry about cross shopping if you look at its sales numbers through XUV, Duster, Creta etc coming to take a share of its sales. For those who needed a rugged utility vehicle on a daily basis M&M was and is the only option, those customers won't even bother to look elsewhere. This market is very important , a basic RWD/4WD with MT will do here, no need of fancy electronics.

I have added Z4 4WD MT in the cart. Not in any hurry, will be happy to wait for a year. Can anyone please help me understand what is expected on road price for this variant ( based on ex showroom price declared by M&M) in Bangalore ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by iTNerd (Post 5363213)
4WD available only in MT trim.


I will happily take the chance with a BS4 than to always worry about DPF issue, filling adBlue etc. with BS6. And if the ban on BS4 do comes into effect in Delhi, it won't matter much to me as I stay in NCR Noida and I don't commute much in Delhi. I would start worrying if the ban for BS4 is enforced on NCR by NGT. Until that time, I would continue using BS4 and enjoy the stress free ownership without worrying DPF, adblue and whatever restrictions are put on newer diesel cars.

Brother, Noida is very much part of the NCR and you never know when the state Government decides to enforce the rule strictly!
Just ask hundreds of BS4 diesel car owners from Gurgaon whose impounded cars are waiting to be scrapped!

Wow, that's a stiff premium for the AT. IMHO, Mahindra is clearly going for profits. After all, it is a seller's market, the AT is brilliantly matched to the engine and the truth is, AT customers are less price sensitive. If they want the AT, they want the AT.

Brand Scorpio is also incredibly powerful. It is to the 15 - 20 lakh segment what the Fortuner is to the 40 - 50 lakh segment.

I took the Diesel AT out on a recent road-trip. About ~400 km. It's a deadly combination, even the lady loved it and was insisting on driving it on the expressway. Will be putting up a short post with highlights & my observations in August.

Quote:

Originally Posted by theZULU (Post 5363226)
I think your perception about the likely applicability of this proposed is not quite correct. Per various news reports it will be applicable in entire NCR. Though i am in the same boat as you, as i am based out of Greater Noida. :p

Please check the attached url for more info.

https://www.cartoq.com/delhi-ncr-bs4...r-control/amp/

Though price for 4WD is not easily digestible. But anyways days before they disclosed the pricing, I was tilting towards petrol for the very same reason of uncertainty of diesel in NCR.

I am also in Greater Noida. Whatever changes come from authorities is for sure is not going to be restricted for Delhi. It is going to cover neighboring cities as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arinmech (Post 5363148)
Delhi NCR is going to ban BS4 diesel very soon.rl:

Quote:

Originally Posted by buntee90 (Post 5363436)
Brother, Noida is very much part of the NCR and you never know when the state Government decides to enforce the rule strictly!

Just to clarify on the BS4 diesel "ban":

1 It is still a proposal
2 Even if approved, it will come into force only on days when AQI crosses 450.

There is no proposal to permanently ban BS4 diesel vehicles. Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/92948676.cms

Having said that, there is no certainty what hairbrained proposal comes next. Diesel vehicles have become convenient whipping boys in the environment debate.

As for me, I have a Z4 diesel AT in the cart. But thinking of changing it.

The option is Z4 petrol. (Pros: 15 year life, cheaper @ 13.5 exs. Cons: safety kit missing, fuel cost) or Z6 diesel (Pros: safety kit @ 15 exs, Cons: 10 year rule).

I have ruled out ATs for now because of the high premium and low mileage of an already gas guzzling monster.

This is a flawed strategy as a prospective SUV buyer will be in a dilemma whether to go with the premium XUV700 or it's more-rugged sibling Scorpio N. Ambitious pricing of a product like Scorpio N would be gullible only if their after-sale service is as strong or closer to that of Toyota. That said, thanks to this ambitious pricing the sale of Scorpio Classic as well as Bolero will be strong IMHO because in the rural area people are price sensitive.

Reading BHPians' comment that the introductory pricing is on the higher side makes me wonder what will happen when they start increasing the prices with every other round of booking. It looks like Mahindra targeting the D-segment was w.r.t pricing and nothing else. On a side note, Toyota would be grinning with delight as they can plan the next round of price hikes for the Fortuner.

Quote:

Originally Posted by acquillew (Post 5363110)
255/60 R18s only for Z8 and Z8L Automatics. Everything else gets 245/65 R17s over either steel rims or 17 inch alloys (only for Z8L).
Yes, the Z4 AT does get ESC, TCS, Hill hold and Hill Decent control.

On a related note, if one upgrades MT version to alloys at the dealer itself, do they typically adjust for the cost the existing steel wheel ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashwinvardhan (Post 5363152)
and if I want 6 seats then safari is a better option all of a sudden, dreams shattered of a perfect 4wd suv

Safari is still overpriced against Scorpio N when considered with added cost of 4WD. Safari priced at 27 Lakhs top end, we get Scorpio-N 4WD AT, minus some nifty comfort features of safari.

Quote:

Originally Posted by iTNerd (Post 5363213)
4I would start worrying if the ban for BS4 is enforced on NCR by NGT. Until that time, I would continue using BS4 and enjoy the stress free ownership without worrying DPF, adblue and whatever restrictions are put on newer diesel cars.

Apart from Ban from NGT, it is still not worry free for used high end cars, take into consideration the high cost of maintenance, costlier bigger tyres and other services available for such cars.
Quote:

Originally Posted by Kosfactor (Post 5363225)
~ 23L will get you the existing Scorpio S11 Diesel MT in Bangalore.

This thing with added kit, the AT, 4WD etc should cost 4-5 lakhs more - there you have it.

Exactly what Mahindra must be thinking when fixing prices.
Quote:

Originally Posted by Cresterk (Post 5363260)

I do wish Mahindra provided the 185 ps/ 450nm diesel tune for the 4wd at least. The added torque could really help in off-roading situations. They could have just provided the petrol variant in a lower state of tune if they wanted to emphasise that the ScorpioN was a step below in their lineup that badly.

tuning at a higher power may not be possible from Mahindra side. they might have compromised on size of the Turbo to reduce the power tuning and also the price. In the absence of hardware for the tuning, Mahindra may not introduce. After market solutions may be available.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bibendum90949 (Post 5363316)
Many of them can still give the modern cars a run for it's money. The present day feature list may be the only area they lack. Rest of the core fundamentals are largely as good as a modern car.

With ScorpioN, isn't that the only option for people who're looking for a true blue SUV with 4*4 capabilities in that price bracket. The next best option sits at 50 lakhs+. Tata must be rueful now that they didn't consider 4*4 hardware for the Safari. It has sort of given M&M a free run with Big Daddy's pricing. And of course these are "introductory" pricing, so immediate price hikes are certainly on the anvil.

when I bought my Duster (now more than 8 years old), 4WD was not available in duster. Duster 4WD is still relevant and VFM today for soft-roaders and occasional trips to Ladakh/ Spiti and other such places. But with BS6 engines not available in diesel, such options are not available. Thar being impractical ONLY car (cities like Mumbai- we cannot keep/maintain two cars) we only have to resort to Scorpio N for 4WD. Tata even if considers Safari for 4WD, they will be pricing it even worse than M&M and it doesn't seem possible in near future. Safari even without 4WD, is still priced more than XUV/ Scorpio N. with the borrowed engines/Gear box, Tatas are not able to contain the pricing IMHO. Safari commands a premium of 1.7 lakhs for AT, they are not too far behind M&M.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Revention (Post 5363476)
On a related note, if one upgrades MT version to alloys at the dealer itself, do they typically adjust for the cost the existing steel wheel ?

You don't usually get anything for the steel wheels. Expect a maximum of 1000-2000. Mahindra already has the 17 inch alloy on its website as an accessory. It costs upward of 16000 INR.

what a grand strategy by M&M.
I was looking forward to getting a 4*4 AT Z8.

SA had called in all eagerness about pricing and when I am paying 25k advance. I had to tell him not interested anymore. Almost 4.5 lakh more for AT + 4*4 model. with onroad price touching 27 lakhs. I would rather spend a lakh or 1.5 more and get XUV AWD.
Is it going overboard after initial response on launch date and trying to mint money on euphoria? Whatever they are smoking, is not a right substance for sure.

I am happy with the car I am driving right now.

I think, M&M is gambling on few of the trends or facts -

1) Urban preferences have drastically changed to driving AT over MT and rural still prefer MT without concerning much about feature set
2) With higher disposable incomes, urban buyers are willing to spend more on -
2.1) lifestyle vehicle irrespective of the fact if they have a valid use case for it.
2.2) feature sets.
3) Scorpio-N sits with no competition in Sub 30L price bracket as LOF/BOF 4x4 SUV with decent feature set and the nearest comparable ones like ISUZU MUX 4x4, MG Gloster etc are at comfortable distance and ones in the price bracket proximity are FWDs with hardly anyone offering the desired 4x4 capabilities.

However, M&M discounted the fact that these urban dwellers are core Indians and still give importance to value propositions and value perceptions. M&M as a brand, I believe, is far from successfully establishing itself to be worthy of 25L+ brice bracket, more so, after endless stream of issues reported by XUV 700s and after sales services shortcomings therein. Also, their dealerships and workshops operate like government offices, far from the level of commitments and professionalisms desired in the current context of business operations when people pay substantial money to own their offerings.

It would have been sensible for M&M to first win trust of their existing customers by fixing the gaps and work towards elevating their ownership experiences to the levels of Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Maruti etc or making their experiences even better than them before falsely assuming the elevation of their brand value and claiming the premium that they are claiming now on Scorpio-N. It is generally expected that initial buyers of any new products of M&M are the unofficial testers, the only differences from the official testers being that they pay their hard earned money to test those new products and are called owners instead of testers to mask their roles. All painful known ownership stories of XUV 700 established only that.

I had Z8L DAT 4Xplore added to cart but I removed it from the cart after the price announcements of yerterday. That variant of Scorpio-N looks to be 2.5L-3L overpriced and I think it is too high to pay as premium for brand M&M. M&M has not learnt from the first launch of Toyota Innova being successor of Toyota Qualis and the way Toyota had priced the Innova and gradually built the brand.

Sorry, I am out of all desires of owning Scorpio-N now. If I really want to have one in future, I will rent it instead.

I would not be surprised if urban dwellers dump automatic variants or even dump Scorpio-N in the current price offerings. If they do, then the BigDaddyOfSUVs would be mostly seen getting bored of being parked in showrooms or warehouses; contrary to the expectations of commanding the SUV world out there and making The Grand Big Daddy of SUV (read Toyota Fortuner) jealous, which has the value perception that no one could replace but many endlessly tried and has throned the SUV world forever since it came into being.

Best of luck to M&M and Scorpio-N and let us see how the future unfolds for the current offerings set.


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