[ishan0278]

Originally Posted by Apex1815

Since you are Paint expert in cars, what is your opinion on After market Anti rust coatings for Cars ?

Hey Buddy, Sorry have been offline for a while. Thus the delayed response.

You can get anti rust coating for cars. but just make sure that the rust is cleared before the coating is applied. As you must know, rust is like a cancer.
It needs to be removed and then any coating over that is advisable in case the vehicle has had some age to it.

[PetrolheadYk]

Hi All,

I'm taking the delivery of my AX5L P AT Nebula Blue this weekend in Mumbai. Booked in 2nd week of June.

[LiveToDrive2404]

Originally Posted by ishan0278

You can get anti rust coating for cars. but just make sure that the rust is cleared before the coating is applied. As you must know, rust is like a cancer.
It needs to be removed and then any coating over that is advisable in case the vehicle has had some age to it.

Is this advisable for new vehicle ? or can we get this done after a year or two ?

[TheMadEmperor]

A JOURNAL OF MY PURCHASE EXPERIENCE

Adios Amigo

My precious i20 (2011 Magna) was the car I learned to drive in. I was the one behind the wheel 90% of the time, enjoying the reliability and dependability of my jet-black beauty for 13 years. Despite pressure from friends and family, I had no plans to sell it anytime soon. But everything changed in April during a trip to my hometown in Kerala. The drive was smooth until I crossed Madurai, but on the way to Rajapalayam, there was a problem with the clutch or gearbox, and the car came to a halt. It was towed to Srivilliputtur, but miraculously upon arrival, the car was back to its peppy self. The mechanic and myself drove around for about 5 km to ensure everything was fine, and luckily, I was able to continue my journey to my hometown. While driving past the old British railway bridge near Thenmala, I decided that it was time to part with the machine that served me for so long.
Ever since I took that decision, my i20 never stopped giving me trouble. I was supposed to go to Salem on a Saturday for a business meeting, but had to hitch a cab because the vehicle suffered a rat bite incident leading to the fuel leakage.

So many cars, So less Options

One of the main reasons I kept delaying the sale of the i20 was partially because of the fact that I like old-school cars and do not like the modern curvy designs prevalent in modern cars. So, the decision to purchase a new car gave rise to a new set of dilemmas, “Which car to buy? What options do I have? How much should I spend on one?” etc
I decided, its time to buy an SUV rather than a hatchback (because of the lack of good hatchbacks and not wanting to replace an i20 with another) or sedans (I think the only options were Slavia, City, Amaze and Virtus), which filtered down the options to the following:
• Renault Kiger
• Kia Sonnet
• VW Taigun/Skoda Kushaq (VIN 23)
The following were rejected:
• Venue
• Breza
• Fronx
• XUV 300
At the time of shortlisting, XUV 300 or XUV 3XO did not pique my interest and I decided that I will visit the dealer showrooms of various manufacturers to see the shortlisted rides.

The Choices

May 1 was the day I decided to go check out the shortlisted cars.

Kiger: Back in the day, I always wanted to buy a Duster. In fact, two of my friends own Dusters, and they always vouch for it being a well-built car. This resulted in a sweet spot advantage for Renault. The showroom experience was fine, the SA was quite good explaining the features, pros and cons of the vehicle. The SA kind of hinted at checking out the 3xO (the visit was like 2 days after the launch). TD for the 2024 variant was not available, and hence did not do the Test drive.

Sonnet: Went to the Kia showroom from the Renault showroom, as I kind of wanted to finalize between the two. Kia showroom is a Kia showroom, as in I felt the SA there was too laid back, and was not trying to sell the car, probably because those cars seem to be selling like hotcakes. At least in Bangalore, you cannot travel 5 minutes on the road without spotting a Sonnet or Seltos. I was not particularly happy with the iMT powertrain because of the lack of clutch (Yeap, that’s the kind of guy I am) and the pricing quoted by the showroom felt a bit high for the features being provided especially after checking out the Kiger. Did not take a TD because of the lack of non IMT Manual powertrain on the higher trims.

Taigun (Vin23): I read a post about people buying VIN 23 Taigun and Kushaq on TeamBHP. I found an online ad from Kun motors about the same and got in touch with them. The SA who contacted me was very prompt and they offered me a Topline Taigun Automatic in Blue for 19L. Decided against the Taigun because of the powertrain, cost and reviews from TeamBhp.

The Decision

On 4th May, I decided to go back to the Renault showroom to do a test drive and book the Kiger. Stopped at Mahindra Sireesh Auto on the way because of the crowd attracted by the new car. They had a MX3 Pro on display. The car looked quite good. The bonnet looked a bit over designed but in a good way, at least in my opinion. Checked with the SA (One of the best SA’s I’ve dealt with and was extremely helpful. Will talk more about it later) regarding a test drive. Apparently, the showroom had not received any TD vehicles and the SA promised to inform me when TD was available. I decided not to head on to Renault that day because I wanted to take simultaneous test drives to decide and finalize. I spent the entire week watching all kinds of reviews on Youtube regarding both Kiger and 3xo. The SA called me on 8th May to let me know that TD vehicles are available, but sadly I was not in town during the weekend and hence couldn’t take the TD that week. I was not disheartened because the booking had not started. In the meantime, I checked with the SA on what would be the delivery estimate for AX5 AX5L and AX7 for which the answer was 2-4 months for AX5/AX5L and 3-6 months for AX7. Over the next few days, I decided that If I am purchasing the 3XO, AX7 will be the one that I’ll book.

I went for the long-awaited test drive of the vehicle on 15th of May. The SA had arranged for the AX5 trim with the TCMPFi engine. The next 20 mins was fun. The engine oozed power, the vision from the cockpit was amazing, the build quality was excellent. I felt at home behind its steering, and I decided I am buying the 3XO. I was sure that the Renault couldn’t match up to the exhilaration that I experienced driving the 3XO.
Post the Test Drive, had a lengthy chat with the SA, and booked the vehicle after getting a commitment from the SA that the car will be delivered before 15th of July.

The troublesome i20 Sale

The next step was arranging capital for the purchase, and it was time to part with my old friend.
I contacted both Spinny and Cars 24 for selling the i20. Both the companies did inspections and checks. Spinny offered 1.95L for the car whereas Cars24 lowballed me with an offer of a measly 1.54L. On further negotiations with Spinny, the offer went up by another 15k bringing the amount to 2.20L. I decided to wait it out till I get an offer of over 2.4L.

Meanwhile, my i20 never stopped giving me trouble over the next week and a half. The Power steering stopped working one fine day, and I ended up having workout sessions driving the car around. While driving back home from Domlur during rains, this mini board flew right into the bonnet leaving major scratches and minor dents, which made me reconsider the price. I called Spinny the very next day and settled for 2.2L offer. Spinny team was very professional and did one more inspection before the purchase. They deducted 3k from the offered amount because of damaged key remotes. After the necessary paperwork, 2.08L was transferred, while 10k was held, due to be paid when the RC transfer happens.

Cars24 came back 1 week later with an offer of 2.57L, and I do not know if I was too impatient and lost out on that extra amount. Anyhow I was indifferent about the situation and was excited about the prospect of having my new ride soon.

The Long Wait

The wait was long. Well, I did have my Interceptor for my office trips and fun rides, but the i20 was being missed badly. The delay posts and speculations on the manufacture of top end models of the 3XO just fuelled my worry that the delivery won’t happen on time. The SA was patient with me, and would answer every time I called her to check on the status. I also started looking for options after 15th June.
Around the same time, I read about VIN 23 Jimnys being sold by Nexa showrooms and decided to go check it out. Jimny was amazing, but it felt underpowered. Bangalore is not a city where the Mountain Goat’s overall potential could be realized, but at the same time it was a machine worth owning. The SA at Kalyani Nexa promised me that he could deliver Vin 24 Jimny within 15 days. I told him about the booking predicament with 3XO. I promised him to initiate booking on 12th July if I did not get any updates on the 3XO delivery.

Days came and went by with no updates on the vehicle. The SA was trying her best to give me clarity, but it was understandable that she did not have proper updates on the dispatched vehicles herself. On 11th July, I called the SA to inform her that I was planning on cancelling the booking. The alternate option I offered was the allotment of AX5, in case the same can be delivered before 20th. The SA asked me to send a mail to her manager with citing the same.

Two things happened in the afternoon. Around 2:30 PM, I got a notification from Spinny informing about the RC transfer of the i20. Around 5:15 PM, I got a call from the Sireesh Auto SA informing me that the 3XO is allotted in the AX7 trim in the colour I wanted. I was elated and overjoyed. The SA informed me that the vehicle allotted to me was meant for some other customer, but their team had moved the allotment to me because of the Email.

I immediately headed to Sireesh Auto, to start off with the purchase process. The SA requested me to apply for finance through their finance team. Another request was to procure the insurance for the vehicle from Mahindra, as it would add on to her bonus. The Insurance amount was a bit steep, quoted price as per the pricing chart was 63k. The SA informed me that the insurance pricing on the chart was bloated I will have to pay around 45k for the same. I furnished a few quotes from Acko and Royal Sundaram at 29k and 38k respectively to negotiate. The SA informed that they cannot match the Acko price, but will try to match the price quoted by Royal Sundaram.

PDI

I requested for a PDI, especially because I wanted to ensure that the vehicle was not faulty given the way it got allotted. The vehicle was apparently in transit, but the SA promised to quickly arranged for it once the vehicle reaches Bangalore. The PDI happened on 17th of July. I just followed the checklist I found on TBHP and Youtube. The paintjob was impeccable, the engine sounded fine, the electricals were all functional and the AC was exceptional. The following were the two problems I found during the PDI
1. There was condensed AC water flowing out from the underside of the car
2. Three of the tyres were 0224 tyres, whereas one of them was 0124
Spoke to an auto engineer friend of mine, who told me both were not major problems, as apparently water condensation can happen during the first time use if the AC was on for long (that’s what he said) and maybe it was the last tyre of the 0124 before the 0224 series in the lot started.

Some images from the PDI:







Odo reading was 29.8 km. I expected the vehicle to clock another 15-30 kms, during the registration and delivery process.
Since they were no major red flags, I completed the payment. The SA promised the delivery on 19th July 2024, around 4 PM. Also met the accessories guy at Sireesh and added the following as add-ons:

• 7D Mats
• Tempered Glass Screen Protector
• Illuminated Scuff Plates
• Mudflaps

Delivery

Finally, the D Day arrived. I left for the showroom around 2:30 PM. Got some sweets for the SA and the workers at Sireesh. The vehicle was being prepped for the Delivery when I reached the showroom.

The paperwork for the vehicle and the payment for the accessories was completed. The Owner Manual was handed over to me. The SA helped me with the Adrenox installation and it was time. Heading out into the delivery area, a new realization hit me… I had not taken a test drive of the TGDi engine and I did not know what t expect.

The stage was set, the car was ready and I had the keys to my brand-new car. The journey back home was fun. The engine is extremely powerful, more powerful than I expected, especially coming from a 2011 i20.



The odo reading at the time of delivery was 59km. Sireesh Auto added a small giftbox to the overall package, containing a few goodies!!!



There are some niggles on the infotainment system (which lacks Android Auto and Apple Car play) which hangs at times and the Illuminated Scuff Plate does not 'Illuminate'. But that does not change the fact that I am in love with the ride quality of the car. It feels planted, but I do drive cautiously, especially coming from a hatchback.

The vehicle has run around 120kms so far. I will post a detailed review of the drive, MUSIC and other features after I clock a bit more mileage on the odo.

[Stormbringer]

Originally Posted by Bitter_Hitter

On a side note: Is ceramic coated needed for Nebula blue? I have not owned any dark colour car before so not sure if any coating needed or not. I am sure I will not go for PPF coating for this segment, but evaluating options for ceramic coating from well known detailing shops, since I plan to own the car for long term.

I have the grey. I got the coating done outside immediately after taking delivery. I went for graphene coating (it was only a slight increase compared to ceramic and the feel was way better). It cost me 25K. So far, it looks very good and I love the water resistant properties.

[TwinBishop]

Originally Posted by TheMadEmperor

A JOURNAL OF MY PURCHASE EXPERIENCE

Adios Amigo

I had not taken a test drive of the TGDi engine and I did not know what t expect.

The stage was set, the car was ready and I had the keys to my brand-new car. The journey back home was fun. The engine is extremely powerful, more powerful than I expected, especially coming from a 2011 i20.

Congratulations on your new car. Interesting purchase history.

Will be getting my 3XO TGDI in the next week. I also took a TD in TCMPFI variant only. Eagerly waiting to experience the new car with TGDI engine.

[ishan0278]

Originally Posted by LiveToDrive2404

Is this advisable for new vehicle ? or can we get this done after a year or two ?

Best Suggestion is to get it done on new vehicles and maintain it maybe after 2 years as per your usage.

[urbansage]

I finally took delivery of my car on July 14, 2024. The ODO read 40KM at delivery.
The car model is AX5L, TGDI, AT. Colour: Deep Forest

Dealership experience at Anant Cars, Marathahalli -
Sales Executive - Average, stopped picking up calls when there was a delay in delivery from 5th July to 8th to 10th to 14th.
The Management - Excellent - were super helpful and the GM of Anant Cars, Mr. Kiran Kumar, was very empathetic and considerate. He and the Corporate Manager really helped with information and delivery.

The car after driving 100KMs:

Pros:
1. Super fun to drive.
2. No noticeable lag even on Zip mode. Power delivery comes in when needed.
3. Music system is good (is not Harman Kardon, thats limited to AX7)
4. Very roomy cabin. Dont feel any lack of space.
5. Ceat SecuraDrive tyres with the car are good and do not present with much road noise
6. The cabin is well insulated from external noise.
7. Camera quality is brilliant
8. Blind view monitoring and 360 degree camera are good to have

Cons:
1. Android Auto is crappy. I have to turn off Wi-fi and turn it back on, for the phone to connect to Android Auto. Else, it does not connect automatically. I have a Samsung S24 Ultra.
2. Car is a fuel guzzler. Drove with light foot and the range increased (42L, auto-cut, full tank showing 450KM > increased to 474KM after driving a few KMs) but pressed hard on the accelerator literally 2-3 times and the range dropped substantially to 430KM. So, Petrol engines can be avoided if you are looking for fuel efficiency. I am hoping for this to improve on first service.
3. There is only 1, USB A, charging point on the front panel. The USB C Fast charger is not present in AX5L. I was let down as I didnt pay attention at the time of purchase.
4. The TPMS is weird. Keeps fluctuating through the ride. The tyre pressure kept changing from 32 to 29 to 31 and the TPMS was throwing alerts. To counter that, I filled in 33 PSi in tyres and the low tyre pressure alert went away.
5. Auto dimming IRVM lags in Dimming the high beams (weird)
6. The drive mode resets to Zap, every time you turn off the car. You have to reselect the drive mode from the infotainment system after every ignition.


Have not tried the ADAS features yet. Will probably add more as I come across any nicks.

Attaching a pre-delivery picture of my car.

[Sebring]

These coatings didnt last 3 months for me

Originally Posted by ishan0278

Best Suggestion is to get it done on new vehicles and maintain it maybe after 2 years as per your usage.

[ishan0278]

Originally Posted by Sebring

These coatings didnt last 3 months for me

ok this is new. In my crde I had it done and no issues till the ownership ended which was a good 3 years.

I Have put It on my New Thar as well and there are no issues.

What place did you get it done , if I may ask?

[hotshot91]

Hi guys. Need your overview on the below -

While engine was starting up yesterday at the signal through auto start stop, i shifted to 1st gear in between the cranking process as was in a bit of hurry, the engine started making a strange noise like rod hitting sort of and the engine was giving booming sort of rev noise. the noise was very loud and could be heard from inside the cabin as well. The clutch was pressed the entire time. I turned off the car completely and again turned on. After that it started and it was fine. Any idea why this happened and anything to be concerned about??

[Sebring]

I got it from 3M, Sanjaynagar

Originally Posted by ishan0278

ok this is new. In my crde I had it done and no issues till the ownership ended which was a good 3 years.

[ishan0278]

Originally Posted by Sebring

I got it from 3M, Sanjaynagar

Ok, ask the ASC who is the best vendor. They helped me for my cars.

[srivatchsan]

Originally Posted by Nepster88

I would be very skeptical about having sound upgrade from Mahindra, considering the Music I experienced in AX5, and many reviews from others on AX7+(Harman Kardon)

With AX5, I tried hard to like the system by tweaking equalizer, sound modes etc on my 4 test drives in different cars. I think the speaker itself are not clear, and hence I am not happy with it. May be, with OTA, some softwere improvements can be shipped, but I am not sure if Mahindra is investing in tech here. I am planning to go through audio upgrade threads from team bhp and figure out options without voiding warranty.




From Mahindra Accesories list:
1. Seat Covers (Airbag Compatible)
• Premium Ivory Seat Cover
• Red assent (TGDi ) Seat cover
• Sporty Theme Seat Cover
• Black Vinyl Seat Cover

One of the dealership quoted premium Ivory seat covers at 11k, which comes fitted in AX7, so I guess others might be less or around the same price

Here is the updated July 2024 Accessory list with more add-ons for speakers and other items. I hope this helps!

[TheMadEmperor]

Originally Posted by TwinBishop

Congratulations on your new car. Interesting purchase history.

Will be getting my 3XO TGDI in the next week. I also took a TD in TCMPFI variant only. Eagerly waiting to experience the new car with TGDI engine.

Thank you TwinBishop. The powertrain will not disappoint you, but the Steering is a bit vague. Even on "Sports" mode, the Steering is not as heavy as my old i20, and the steering response is kind of iffy at slow speeds. This is advantageous in a way while transiting through slow moving traffic, but I am still not that comfortable with the steering.

Originally Posted by urbansage

3. Music system is good (is not Harman Kardon, thats limited to AX7)

For some reason I found the Harman 7 Speaker System underwhelming. My deduction is that the lack of LDAC is the key reason why my lossless tracks sound kind of off. I am using a starter Walkman and a high end Walkman as the Sources. Have not tested using USB yet though. The USB is not detected while connecting the Walkman in Mass Storage Mode. I suspect the reasoning is that the Walkman has its own internal memory, plus the SD card, and the Info System is not able to determine which of them to load. Will test it out using the high end Walkman over this week, as it has 128GB internal storage.