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-   -   S-Cross' suspicious build: Towing rips out the tow hook & front members (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/technical-stuff/203093-s-cross-suspicious-build-towing-rips-out-tow-hook-front-members-9.html)

Sorry, this was an incorrect towing method which caused the bumper to rip off. I have towed a Swift with my Bolero during my Mumbai-Leh-Mumbai driving trip, and although it was the first time for me, I knew that I had to ensure the line was taut before attempting to actually pull the Swift. Apologies if this is too direct, but it is the case here

After observing this thread for the last couple of days, I feel most of the posts are more interested in finding fault with the way the towing happened, than asking why it happened in the first case.

For me, it points to a design failure - these are parts which should withstand abuse and the manufacture have not factored in the amount of force applied to this particular part, which resulted in easy failure. I hope the manufacturer reach out to you and offers an explanation at least.

Leaving the picture of how the part looks on a Punto:




--Anoop

Forget the broken member, good or bad technique and all that...Lalu sir, just let me know which brand tow-rope you guys used that stood the strength of the brutal Scorpio torque and the heavy SCross with people inside it on the incline and ultimately ripping out the tow hook...still kept itself intact! :D

On a serious note, has this been brought to the notice of Maruti? If yes, have they put any word with you officially?

Regards,
Saket.

This is why we should have our own desi Clarkson-May-Hammond for our country. This could be an interesting hypothesis - (imagine desi Clarkson saying this) - "Is the S-Cross of inferior build? There's only one way to find out."

The scene cuts to a plush green field, where James May stands with a towing vehicle and a long chain in hand. The blowing wind ruffles May's hair, just as much as it sends the grass in the background into ripples.

He proceeds to hook the tow-truck to a S-cross. Guess who's at the wheel? A grinning Hammond. You know mischief is afoot.

Hammond asks us to imagine that he's a very "green" towing operator. Or that maybe he's tipsy. He lets loose on the towing job - with harsh jerks, sudden turns etc. We get to observe the outcome. The S-cross's front rips off. James May gets very cross at Hammond.

The duo proceed to similarly tow a TUV 300, a Creta, a Yeti, an Ecosport and a Nexon, in that order. We should really get to see what happens then. Man, I'd totally pay money to see such a show and in particular, that episode.

I see people blaming the towing-operator, others blame Maruti. So here's the thing, in Marketing and product design, there's a concept - you don't blame the customer, in ordinary circumstances at least. If the ordinary customer (or his friends) aren't experienced at towing and as a result, they mete out some unintended punishment to the car being towed (which is very likely), a good product designer would build some additional safety margin into the product in terms of material strength of the underlying parts.

In this hypothetical desi automotive holy trinity's episode, we would get to see which products have that additional bit of strength built into their structures. I don't have a dog in the fight and would love to see a comparison of how each of these vehicles fare with similar abuse.

In conclusion of this hypothetical desi top gear segment, James May would reveal to the audience that Maruti never intended for the front tow hook to be used. Clarkson would exclaim that that's absurd. James May would state that no, everyone should read the manual of every product first. Clarkson would ask the in-studio crowd - "how many of you have read your car's manual thoroughly?" The lack of more than a few raised hands in the crowd would prove Clarkson's point. Clarkson would say "And on that bombshell, it's time to end. Good night folks...", as the camera zooms out and the credits come on the screen.

Hey buddy, you had me in splits :uncontrol. That was hilarious, and in the mean time drives home the point :thumbs up.

I am sorry for your situation. But I was just bursting with all these pent up thoughts that I just had to express.

And I remain grateful that the automotive industry actually had good designers and engineers. I mean, what if they'd kept on blaming the customer?

ABS-equipped brakes wouldn't have ever happened. We could have had auto manufacturers stipulating that "unless you're a blonde-haired Finnish guy with the surname Hakkinen, thou shalt not brake on roads with loose sand/pebbles, even if it means that thou shalt meet thine maker". All those poor souls and their worldly bodies smashed up because they "weren't supposed to brake hard on surfaces without traction". Phew! You can be sure I am thankful for the few good engineers and product designers that are out there in the automotive industry.

Hello MARUTI/NEXA, Are you guys seeing this??:eek:

You must escalate this very obvious Manufacturer's Design Flaw. BottomLIne. The SCross cannot be towed. I wonder how the Rear Hook is. Maybe we should do this a Part of a Test Drive when we check out Maruti Cars.
THAT would really wake up the dealers and Maruti. Also the Public would be instantly aware of this Little Used but Neverthless, Now declared - Useless feature

For me, there's a lesson learnt. When I buy my next car I will take note to carefully read the emergency towing section in the manual for any 'gotchas' and caveats. If the towing eyelet isn't meant to tow the car in case of an emergency after a break down either on an incline or with one or more wheels stuck in mud then the part is not fit for purpose.

Was watching a Video and this thread came to my mind. Would love to know which part on Brezza did they use to play this game? Was it the axle or does Brezza get a rugged rear tow hook ?

https://youtu.be/JjV3pU-Z9X4

Looks like the rope was attached to the rear tow hooks on both cars.

Slightly off topic:

This reminds me of the time I witnessed a bike that braked a second too late and brushed the rear of an SX-4 in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Presumably it was so gentle that I didn't see any one get out of the car.

A second or 2 later, the SX-4 pulls ahead, and its entire rear bumper comes off as clean as a loose wrapper.

Interesting to note that other than the OP, nobody seems to have towed a SCross. Super reliable vehicle?

Regards
Sutripta

Probably they are all doing duty in cities only, and owners not risking a cross country ride with their cross over :uncontrol

Seems they are all wise :D

^^^
Time to update the Flatbed-German cars thread?

Regards
Sutripta

I witnessed a very similar accident but the car was a S Cross (first gen) which was mildly bumped by a bike. Immediately the lower part of the bumper came off and fell on the road. The upper part was slightly dislodged on one side. This was more than 2 years when the S Cross was barely few months in the market.