[raj_5004]

Originally Posted by PAVAN KADAM

Buddy, the 2.2 DICOR, is much quiter than any petrol cars present.

yes, last i have heard is that BMW is taking a lesson or two from tata on how to make their petrol sedans more refined than the diesel safari... pun intended.

Originally Posted by vasudhir

I had the TD of the Scorpio VLX y'day. First impression is "Awesome power and pick-up". The satisfaction I got from the scorpio TD is far better than the TD experience I had with the Safari last week. Of course, the TD of safari was limited to 10 mins around the showroom which was not a great experience.

- The Safari feels very huge for driving, that was not the case with Scorpio.
- The pick-up of scorpio was definitely better than safari.
- When I did the TD of safari, I fealt that I should retain my fusion for city driving.
- After the TD of scorpio, I feel there is no need for Fusion.

I will be doing one more round of TD of the safari on open roads for a longer duration to judge it better.

Any inputs on what to look out for during the TD is welcome.

Rgds,
Sudhir

pavan, read the sentence marked in bold.
the safari is a great SUV and it has lots of its own positive virtues, but please do not think it is the only good vehicle around. try to be a bit transparent in your comments & not over-biased. please produce facts & not just baseless statements. no offence meant brother.

@ vasudhir: buddy, you will have to decide which is your higher priority- highway driving or jungle driving! space or driving comfort... then evaluate these cars on that basis. both are quite different in nature & thats a good thing for you.
regarding pick up & acceleration, the scorpio is better & that was the only reason i bought the scorpio instead of the safari. but if highway driving is your bigger priority, i feel safari will be more apt for you.

[shankar.balan]

is this vehicle purchase intended for personal use with lots of long drives with a bit of wildlife photography thrown in?
Or is it meant primarily for jungle use with lots of wildlife photography thrown in?
looks like the thread's lost its way somewhere.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

is this vehicle purchase intended for personal use with lots of long drives with a bit of wildlife photography thrown in?
Or is it meant primarily for jungle use with lots of wildlife photography thrown in?
looks like the thread's lost its way somewhere.

Seeing the cost of his lens it looks primarily jungle use so don't know why 2WD softroaders should even be discussed.
Now 4X4 M&M 540 is not available and 4X4 Scorpio is a pipe dream ,And Mahindra Major can not be registered in Bangalore
only 3 choices are there in Budget Gypsy King , Gurkha ( ?? ) and 4X4 Safari

If it is Petrol just 2 Gypsy and 4X4 Safari Exi , Seeing the cost Gypsy wins.

[vinod_nookala]

Vinod,

My choice is either Gypsy or the Bolero. I TD the Bolero SLX this afternoon. I plan to TD the VLX and Gypsy tomorrow.

Now, leaving aside 4x4, which one is better the SLX or the VLX ? I am also considering the option of Stinger (the modified VLX) as there is some space at the back to stand and photograph by placing the tripod on top (which I have done before). Not sure if the leasing company will allow that modification.

Not sure which is better (and matured technology) - The DI Turbo or the CRDe.

Now coming to the 4x4, I normally would not go out in rain/slush in forest for photography. If I have to, then I can get one from any of the resorts just for the monsoon (as it's off season and no regular tourist). But for rest of the year, from what I have seen, the 2WD is more than enough for our forest and terrain.

Thanks to all of you, I am getting there

Rgds,
Sudhir

vasudhir,

Looks like your family driven needs are becoming more important than the basic reason why you are going for another vehicle- Wildlife photography! Hence if highway performance is what you need then Bolero SLX 4wd is ruled out. I wouldnt recommend VLX as it is a 2wd. The jungle tracks may look doable but why do you want to take a chance? One cloud burst and you are stuck!! Please do not ignore 4wd!

In short, based on my opinion and opinion by others-

• Pure wild life photography- Gypsy King
• Highway drive + Wild life photography=TATA Safari
• Highway drive + City Drive + Wildlife photography+ reliability= Scorpio (After Selling Fusion)

As i can see-

• you are not keen on Gypsy (so rule that out)
• Among TATA safari and Scorpio check who can provide you 4x4 version rather fast. pick any of them you will not go drastically wrong!
• M&M still can provide you with punchy old 2.6 crde engine with 4wd. This way you dont have to maintain 2 vehicles. Fusion can go. If they cant chuck them!

Now all depends upon who can provide you 4x4 version faster.

p.s- Dont go with Safari Petrol (your company will get ruined)

[R_R]

Originally Posted by vinod_nookala

vasudhir,
Among TATA safari and Scorpio check who can provide you 4x4 version rather fast. )

I do'nt think the new 'muscuar' Scorpio is available in 4x4 yet. MM still selling the older version, last time I checked.

[razor4077]

Originally Posted by PAVAN KADAM

Yes i heard about it, but now they dont do it, i've confirmed.

Strange. M&M dealer in Cal still says they do. Didn't know they had different sales policies in Bangalore.

Originally Posted by vinod_nookala

• M&M still can provide you with punchy old 2.6 crde engine with 4wd. This way you dont have to maintain 2 vehicles. Fusion can go. If they cant chuck them!

Now all depends upon who can provide you 4x4 version faster.

Originally Posted by R_R

I do'nt think the new 'muscuar' Scorpio is available in 4x4 yet. MM still selling the older version, last time I checked.

This is what I know too... that they sell the 2.6 CRDE with 4wd on special order.

[MileCruncher]

Hi Sudhir, Did you finally decide which one you are going for?

There are a lot of people here who can't sleep peacefully until they have have your decision, so that they can argue more .

[siddartha]

there is more fuss going on in this thread than the team bhp women's meet thread.

[vasudhir]

My mind is fluctuating a lot between the Scorpio and the Safari. I did a TD of both the vehicles y'day on the same route. I took the Sarjapur road and after around 6km, took a deviation on to a country side mud road. Let me jot down a few points what I observed:

Both were demo vehicles and as per what the person told, it was being used as a TD vehicle for around 6 months (both of them)

1. The smooth ride on highway is evident in the Safari. There was a small amount of rolling effect in the scorpio compared to the safari.
2. The maneuverability of scorpio in city roads is much better than Safari.
3. The breaking of Scorpio was better than Safari.
4. The turning radius of scorpio came in handy where I had to take a U turn on the mud road. It took some effort for the safari.
5. During the Safari drive, I frequently used to hear some kind of a squeky noise from the back. It was intermittant. We could not figure out where it was coming from.
6. I was impressed with the initial pick-up of both vehicles. The engine was very responsive.
7. Of course, I could feel the bulkyness of the safari, but not the scorpio.

The funny thing was, I was out for lunch today and almost every scorpio I saw on the road was followed by a safari and vice versa. The 4x4 in the safari is attractive. But looking at my friends who have taken their vehicles in the forest for photography - not many times they have used the 4x4. It's good to have, but not a must for our forest condition. And of course, I have been doing photography using my matiz and now fusion for more than 6 years.

I have got the quote for leasing the scorpio. I am yet to get the quote for safari. I will decide on Monday and place the order.

From now till Monday, inputs are still welcome.

Rgds,
Sudhir

[amitk26]

OK Would suggest you do two more test before you decide

(1) Take a test drive on totally dug up broken road the kind which you expect to find in villages( not mud trail , mud is soft) You need to do this both as a driver and sitting in middle row asking sales person to drive above 20 kmph.

(2) Drive in gravel surface such as freshly dug up road with JCB and check first and second gear of which vehicle take you out easily.

There is a flyover work going on ORR near to Sarjapur road evading few barricades may give test surface but then don't know latest situation.


I hope this can help to decide for your wildlife requirement.

[raj_5004]

hi vasudhir, since you have never required a 4x4 in these 6 years, it indicates your usage does not really need a 4x4. but then, you never know when it can come handy. having a 4x4 in your vehicle will be a good thing for you. but i feel, that should not be the deciding factor for you, that can be one among the priorities.

looking at your judgements, i feel you are more inclined towards the scorpio (6 out of 7 points are in favour). but presently it does not come with a 4x4, the safari does. its your call!

[chandan]

I've done a lot of jungle trips in Karnataka & taken many pictures too,including the big cat & elephants from close range.I have a friend who used to have access to the core areas in Kabini.The best vehicle for this purpose is undoubtedly Gypsy.Being extremely refined,we had encountered many animals from up close, taking them by surprise.4WD is absolutely necessary as the banks of the backwaters are very tricky to negotiate.Also,the black soil being very sticky,you cannot take a chance.
Although I have an MM540,I never recommend any diesel vehicle in the jungles.

[phamilyman]

Another funda which people here seem to have not mentioned in recent pages (pardon if i'm wrong):
Gypsy is ultra quiet and being lightweight, takes all terrains and allows you to track animals without fuss.

That is IMPOSSIBLE in a clattering diesel engine (ignore any safari/scorpio fan who says otherwise).

I would suggest LPG installation, which would improve ride quality (anecdotes from friends of loading its rear down with sacks of sand abound), and you would get a really lovely vehicle. Add in a ~30k customized hardtop and you can shoot from the sunroof!

Why don't you speak to COUGAR for more? He owns a Gypsy and can tell you lots about it. He volunteers with most Maharashtra tiger NGOs and has spent enough time tracking the big cats (unlike most guys on the forum).
Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve- Jan 2006 - ridden
Tadoba - June 2007 - a set on Flickr - on Gypsy.

PM me for his number, if you'd so desire.

[Samurai]

Sudhir, having a 4x4 opens up a whole new range of possibilities in the jungle. Don't ignore that option.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

Another funda which people here seem to have not mentioned in recent pages (pardon if i'm wrong):
Gypsy is ultra quiet and being lightweight, takes all terrains and allows you to track animals without fuss.

That is IMPOSSIBLE in a clattering diesel engine (ignore any safari/scorpio fan who says otherwise).

I would suggest LPG installation, which would improve ride quality (anecdotes from friends of loading its rear down with sacks of sand abound), and you would get a really lovely vehicle. Add in a ~30k customized hardtop and you can shoot from the sunroof!

Why don't you speak to COUGAR for more? He owns a Gypsy and can tell you lots about it. He volunteers with most Maharashtra tiger NGOs and has spent enough time tracking the big cats (unlike most guys on the forum).
Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve- Jan 2006 - ridden
Tadoba - June 2007 - a set on Flickr - on Gypsy.

PM me for his number, if you'd so desire.

Everything here is OK except 2 things which are not very clear to me.

1. LPG installation will improve ride quality , How ? As far as I know fitting LPG lowers the power , So a 45 Bhp Gypsy will further go down and while this may be of use to lower running costs on highway , I do not think it is of help in jungle.

2. How to pull strings to buy a new Gypsy
Buying a Gypsy is not easy dealers insist that it is no longer sold and try to convert you to another one from Maruti stable. Actually I personally inquired about Gypsy earlier but standard answer from ALL dealers in bangalore was sir it is made on order only for Army and there is no Civilian sale. After this they try to sell you a hatch which is readily available.
I was not T-BHP member at that time and later learnt on one thread that it is made to order for Civilian sale as well with about 3 months wait period.

So probably some contact in MUL may be of help here