[kaviprem]

Sarcar, Congratulations and welcome to Safari club of TBHP !
Its always good to own a Safari and very nice to see someone else driving Safari on the road.

I always tend to go as close as possible to the other Safari whenever I see one, especially, the RED ones 2 reasons - I couldnt get one since I didnt approval from my daughter and its not sold any more !

Congratulations Sarcar, you have got a great vehicle not to own, but to POSSESS. Have a safe drive and put on some healthy miles

Prem.

[benbsb29]

Nice writeup, really enjoyed it!

As for the road presence factor, having just upgraded to a Scorpio from an Ikon, i can feel the same. Do keep the thread updated on a regular basis, we'd love to hear of your dragon experiences.

Sunday, 17 July, 2011
The First Drive
It was almost 1 PM in the afternoon and I was trying to get my family out for a ride. The first ride. Especially, my mother-in-law is here, so what a better way to make an impression. Finally, the roly-poly-juggernaut of a family decided that they wanted to go Forum or UB City. Big duh.

I got the car out and started to amble through some of the alleys inching my way towards the Old Madras Road. The last thing I needed was a city drive. I could slowly feel the mood in the car change. Countrymen were starting to like it.

Twenty minutes later, we found ourselves having crossed KR Puram, driving east, ready to take a turn left (North) towards Budhigere/Devanahalli. (For non-Bangaloreans, this is completely in the other direction than UB City/Forum.)

By this time, people could not stop having enough of the car. So, I made the last call for the point of no return - "If we turn left, then we wont be home before the next 3-4 hours. You all game ?"

2 kids, 4 adults replied YEAH in unison. So, Hiccup had no other choice to swerve left and hit the road to Devanahalli.

The mood went from "Loving it" to simply ecstatic. The huge speadbreakers near Budhigere looked like molehills. All I could hear was the sound of wind against my face and intermittent requests to bump up the volume. For once, Munni songs, did not seem that bad ;-)

The report card by that time looked stupendous !

Ride comfort A+
Spaciousness A+ (God be nice to them, they were used to a Santro earlier)
Big car bully-ability A+
Music system A+
Overtaking power A+
Looks A+
Rear seats A+

The car had clearly won the crowd over. What began as an inane city mall trip ended up as a day-trip to Nandi Hills ! The rest in pictures.

Toothless is a showoff. Loves getting clicked.


Passenger's view.
Here's where I broke that we are going to Nandi Hills and lunch would be indefinitely postponed. People could not care less.


Luckily, we found a place to eat on Nandi Hills road and changed our plan. Semi-decent place with ample parking space.


The customary chrome shot.


Greetings from the land of M.F Hussain



An absolutely commanding view of the terrain.


Wait now ! I was overtaking, not driving on the wrong side !



Rear seats are a good place to grow up.


Sleep in heavenly peace



A moment of sadness
I am trying to keep the speedo under 80 and the RPM under 2500, preferably 2000, to ensure a nice break-in of the powerplant and transmission.
While going up Nandi Hills, I could feel the engine a bit out of breath. Just after curve 37 (I won't mind if you dont remember which one this is :-), the incline on the bend was too steep and I could not summon enough power to go through. The RPM fell and the engine stalled. I tried, thrice, to fall back down the slope, restart the engine, put the beast into first gear and climb the incline. But failed. It was bad. There was silence in the car and someone even offered to step out and push.

I felt bad for Toothless. I could sense that it was probably more of me not being able to comprehend the correct clutch ratio than anything else. [And after 3 days, I still have not got it 100%]. Anyway I finally got the car to move on, but the sour taste remained. The smell of overheated clutchpads is not pretty.

The rest of the journey was smooth. Some great pics follow. I drove about 150 km, no sagging, no tiredness. Some intermittent brake squealing at the fag end. Does brake dust form so early ? Nothing else to report, just a wonderful drive. Hope you like the pics.

On the way down, parked the car SUV-style on an upslant scenic overlook.


When your car takes you places you've never been before, you see things you have never seen before.



The front of this car has an eagerness that's hard to beat.


I don't know how I got this shot, but it looks ubercool


Looks that kill. Looks to die for.


In Good Company: Flanked by two military trucks


This is Presence


Before I sign off, I'd like to say Thank You to all those who left kind congratulatory messages. Just want to say that some you have Safari threads running on Tbhp which I subscribe to and read and to be frank, you have strongly influenced me to buy this dragon.

Grinning is something Toothless excels at. He has many of them.
Here's his Thank You grin.

[IronH4WK]

Beautiful write-up and well narrated! Your story just might have sealed my decision on our next vehicle!

The last picture, couldn't have agreed more - looks exactly like Toothless's grin!

Edit: Beautiful pictures

[recker_us]

Congrats on being the proud owner of Safari. I love that dual tone of colors.

Originally Posted by sarcar

Sunday, 17 July, 2011

While going up Nandi Hills, I could feel the engine a bit out of breath. Just after curve 37 (I won't mind if you dont remember which one this is :-), the incline on the bend was too steep and I could not summon enough power to go through. The RPM fell and the engine stalled. I tried, thrice, to fall back down the slope, restart the engine, put the beast into first gear and climb the incline. But failed. It was bad. There was silence in the car and someone even offered to step out and push.

I felt bad for Toothless. I could sense that it was probably more of me not being able to comprehend the correct clutch ratio than anything else. [And after 3 days, I still have not got it 100%]. Anyway I finally got the car to move on, but the sour taste remained. The smell of overheated clutchpads is not pretty.

I went to Nandi Hills in my Safari 2 weeks back. It was fully loaded with 6 well built adults and 2 kids. I don't remember coming down to first gear at any time during the climb. Its was mostly done in 3rd gear and had to move to 2nd gear towards the top.
Once you get used to the correct clutch ratio, the Safari drives like a charm on the slopes.

Originally Posted by kaviprem

I always tend to go as close as possible to the other Safari whenever I see one, especially, the RED ones

Congratulations Sarcar, you have got a great vehicle not to own, but to POSSESS. Have a safe drive and put on some healthy miles

Prem.

Thanks Prem !! You're right, a Red (both Mineral and the Standard) Safari stops hearts right there and then. TML takes some strange decisions but as long as we have our Safaris, they can be forgiven ;-)

On possessiveness, you're right -- I can feel it and I am liking that.

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

Beautiful write-up and well narrated! Your story just might have sealed my decision on our next vehicle!

That'd be lovely. In case you go for that, do PM me so that I can subscribe to your ownership thread.

Originally Posted by recker_us

Congrats on being the proud owner of Safari. I love that dual tone of colors.
..
Once you get used to the correct clutch ratio, the Safari drives like a charm on the slopes.

If I'm not mistaken, you too have the same shade right ?
Thanks for the note on the clutch, I hope things get better once I am over the 1000 mile break-in hump.

Originally Posted by Reinhard

Hey Sarcar!

Hearty congratulations on Reclaiming your life! Wish you unlimited safe & happy miles with the beast! ..Do post more pictures including the interiors as well please. Enjoy it to the fullest!

I have put in some more. See if you like it !

Originally Posted by verditer

PS: Regarding the trouble you had cranking - do remember that the immobiliser kicks in after few mins of inactivity and if the key is not in the keyhole. I think during your puja at dealer and then at the pump, both times immobiliser had kicked in - you have to press the unlock button on the remote to deactivate immobiliser and be able to crank start the engine. Check it out.

Thanks a lot verditer for your kind words. Your explanation is very plausible. Right now I have not faced this issue again, so in a wait-and-watch mode.

[HappyWheels]

Congrats Sarcar on the purchase. Wonderful write up and pictures.

Originally Posted by kaviprem

...I always tend to go as close as possible to the other Safari whenever I see one, especially, the RED ones 2 reasons - I couldnt get one since I didnt approval from my daughter and its not sold any more !...

Kavi: Guess, if we get around to meet in our vehicles, I should ensure a proper chilly-lemon treatment for my vehicle. LOL!

Originally Posted by sarcar

...Thanks a lot verditer for your kind words. Your explanation is very plausible. Right now I have not faced this issue again, so in a wait-and-watch mode.

Next time you face the non-start issue, first have a look at the dash to see if the "Lock" symbol is blinking. That should put things to rest.

[nairanupg]

I have decided on my next set of wheels. And an awesome colour combination too.
But how is the plastic and the cladding holding up. My friends red safari has had this irritating rattle since the first month. Awesome looking beast though.
Consider mounting crash guards on the front. it should give toothless a grin.

Originally Posted by nairanupg

I have decided on my next set of wheels. And an awesome colour combination too.
But how is the plastic and the cladding holding up. My friends red safari has had this irritating rattle since the first month. Awesome looking beast though.
Consider mounting crash guards on the front. it should give toothless a grin.

Congratulations !

I have had no issues yet with rattles but I have done only about 500 km in 5 days. About crash guards, I think its mostly a matter of choice. However, nudge guards attach themselves to the chassis at only two or three points and the impact to the chassis is uneven -- in turn ends up hurting more.

[jkrishnakj]

Originally Posted by sarcar

Car out
16 July, 2011
Parting thought:
The car is too big for my parking spot and I think I got to be extra careful while parking !

Heartiest Congratulations Sarcar !. Am sure you must not have stopped grinning for a few days. I can see you grin in a few shaps showing your reflection. Am sure you will get used to the parking, now that you have the reverse sensor as well.

Wish you many many miles of trouble free drives in toothless.

Originally Posted by sheelz

Hi Sarcar
Congrats on your Beast buddy. I can understand the your happiness as I went through same when I got my Black dual tone Saf GX last December. In spite of all the niggles, you will just fall in love with this vehicle.

And welcome to the club of Beast Owners...

Happy mile munching..Drive Safe

+ infinity to this, and i can relate completely to this.

Originally Posted by bluevolt

(you feel like a politician).

Now i know why i was stopped every 15-20 KM's while driving thru TamilNadu during the elections there.

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

Beautiful write-up and well narrated! Your story just might have sealed my decision on our next vehicle!

Go for it Iron H4WK.

[Dry Ice]

Congrats!! Lovely color combo.

Are you allowed to drive around by just sticking the REGD sign? Shouldn't the temp number be there?

[Lukeskywalker]

Lovely pictures and nice writeup, loved the "toothless story" part, congratulations on your acquisition, heres wishing you many happy miles of motoring.
50k kms and almost 2 years later, I still haven't gotten over the fond looks I give Black Storm.

[recker_us]

Originally Posted by Lukeskywalker

50k kms and almost 2 years later, I still haven't gotten over the fond looks I give Black Storm.

Completely agree and understand what you mean. I am completely smitten by the looks of the beast.. I still cant stop admiring the looks of it sometimes.

The beast has given the beautiful bangalore babes a tough fight for attention. If I see beautiful babe and this beastly hunk on the road at the same time, the hunk wins hands down..

[AlphaKilo]

What is this? Another Safari! My god! Are we TBHPians mad? Inspite knowing its drawbacks we still buy this mad machine. and for once more I am in Love with this India's first desi SUV. Just love the colours and nice writing style. How do you view the rear camera images? Any special screen installed or coupled it with the IRVM?

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

Congrats!! Lovely color combo.

Are you allowed to drive around by just sticking the REGD sign? Shouldn't the temp number be there?

For the first two days, I handwrite the number (got the number on the day of delivery itself). From the third day, I got the number plates.

Originally Posted by Lukeskywalker

Lovely pictures and nice writeup, loved the "toothless story" part, congratulations on your acquisition, heres wishing you many happy miles of motoring.
50k kms and almost 2 years later, I still haven't gotten over the fond looks I give Black Storm.

Thanks, Luke. I hope I can also write similar notes two years down the line :-)

Originally Posted by recker_us

Completely agree and understand what you mean. I am completely smitten by the looks of the beast.. I still cant stop admiring the looks of it sometimes.

I work in an office with a pretty big parking lot, with over 300 cars in my lot alone. Still, I am getting these, "Whoa! Saw your car.". Nice ego trip, I must say.

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

What is this? Another Safari! My god! Are we TBHPians mad? Inspite knowing its drawbacks we still buy this mad machine. and for once more I am in Love with this India's first desi SUV. Just love the colours and nice writing style. How do you view the rear camera images? Any special screen installed or coupled it with the IRVM?

Eight months back, I could never imaging myself buying a Safari. But the day I TD-ed it (and even that was the worst car in terms of upkeep I ever TD-ed), I knew there was no turning back.

The rear camera is planted at the extreme left end of the dash. I know I am overdue on image. Promise to post them soon