[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by DKG

It's now nearing a year since I bought the Thar and using it as a daily driver (alternating with the Fiat) I can honestly say this is a fine vehicle. I was never convinced by the logic of people buying junked 550's from army disposal and spending lakhs of rupees doing them up as Wranglers. For people who desire a modern iteration of the old Jeep this simply is a fantastic offering. The engine is a delight and addictive in it's acceleration. I love it's ride thanks to the front IFS and the overall feel of the vehice. A new car always has it's special experiences and the Thar is no exception. As I use it daily I really do feel Mahindra came out with a gem in the Crde Thar. I haven't added an a/c yet but will do so before next summer.

I haven't done any Offroad driving so cannot comment on that aspect of the vehicle. Want that new car feel to wear off before I venture Offroad with it.

As mentioned earlier there remain one or two irritants, namely a thud in the right B pillar when you go through a pothole at speed and the poor lumbar support for the seat. I intend correcting the latter with a improved seat cover, especially for long drives.

I like the utility of the vehicle. A week ago I needed to carry some metal beams 5 feet long and could easily load the car up with the stuff.

There have been no problems with the mechanicals over the year. The car starts on one tick and runs smooth with no noises from the suspension or drivetrain.

Mahindra could actually plan a small two door SUV with permanent steel hardtop on this platform, provided it meets future safety norms. It's a fun car to drive and highly recommended for anyone who love this style of vehicle.

Dear Deepak - hello after a long time and thanks for your comments. Now it is proved umpteen number of times in various Thar communications on this forum that M&M has got a new and successful platform on which they can now build a lot of things.

You have indicated "metal body", yes, it makes better sense than going in for the FRP stuff. The route is to go in for low volume tooling with contract manufacturing, even if it is a shade costlier than the field FRP stuff, customers will go in for it as it would be backed by company policy. There are guys in Nasik who will jump at this business, provided level 1 drawings are given to them, which can be easily done. CMVR can also be met. I am also using this forum to repeatedly indicate that the time is right now, the customer base is established, the brand cum product is moving off the showroom floor, now is the time to do a limited edition of the "real" Thar", like 521 which you had driven, only mechanicals, absolutely minus the cosmetics that such programs normally get associated with and also get bogged down with. Customers are wise, they don't fall for cosmetics any more. I hope the thinking is on these lines so that these things can happen.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[sudev]

@DKG: Time for an update with pictures? You are not using this vehicle as it should be.

@DB: Nice inputs based on your experience. Thar needs better body to make it more appealing.

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by Parm

im posting two photos of your thar, i would like to know if this is a defect, and if yes, was it rectified by you!

the two tires circled in red, the left tire facing little to the left and the right tire facing straight!

if its not a defect, then i think im seeing things!

Good observation, even I am curious.

Originally Posted by DKG

That could very well be a slightly off centre steering when I took the picture. In any case a certain amount of toe in is essential for steady vehicle tracking. Haven't had any reason to doubt the wheel alignment but when it goes in for service will have it double checked to ensure its within the specified norms.

IMHO, this appears to be an issue. The left wheel seems to have turned more than right by a considerable margin.

[DKG]

Originally Posted by sudev

You are not using this vehicle as it should be.

Since we met last been grounded at home and so even the biking trips came down to short rides. I want to do Arunachal Pradesh in the Thar and hopefully someday soon will plan a trip. hope you are well

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Originally Posted by sudev

DB: Nice inputs based on your experience. Thar needs better body to make it more appealing.

Dear Sudev - I love your comment Sir! Please read my reply.

Yes, you are correct. I exactly know what needs to be done to the body to overcome the niggles and make it more appealing, parts, time, cost, control, business case, everything. But if you get exactly one minute (every alternate month, mind you) to say what you want to say, that too with the "omni-present sensor board" pre-sensoring (by around 70%) of the single slide allowed and then telling you with glaring eye movements to rush through that one minute, with half the guys reading sms's when you are trying to talk to them to get a decision, how can things actually happen?.

In the last one year, except for the AC, which every customer overwhelmingly fought for, for which I had pre-developed the canopy to be what it is, otherwise that loop would have led to AC failure and then people would have told the bosses, "see Sir, I told you, AC cannot work in soft top, but these fellows, you know", 2 "nagoba" brackets covering the instrument panel sides (cobra is "nagoba" in Marathi, the brackets look like a cobra, so we called them so), an immobilizer (somebody scored brownie points, customer benefit was incidental), a lid for the fuel filler and changed door pads, what else has happened? The guy who knew every single body sheet metal panel by heart with part numbers, retired in November 2011. Alas! But I still have optimistic hope.

Dear Deepak - what happened to you? Why are you grounded at home? Please bounce back soon Saar! All my best wishes are with you always!

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[ACM]

^^ But then the same company also came up with the XUV and for that matter much earlier the Scorpio - much more refined products - surely feedback mechanism would be strong for such products to come up and also constantly improve. Yep all products are not and cannot be star products or cash cows but yet the development processe would not/ should not be different from vehicle to vehicle.

[Floating Axle]

Originally Posted by DKG

It's now nearing a year since I bought the Thar and using it as a daily driver (alternating with the Fiat) I can honestly say this is a fine vehicle.
========
Therenhave been no problems with the mechanicals over the year. The car starts on one tick and runs smooth with no noises from the suspension or drivetrain.

Hello,

Good to read your views & experience about THAR. It boosted my moral a lot as I recently booked THAR. Hope to interact with you once I get possesed.

Kind regards.

Neelesh

[DKG]

Originally Posted by Floating Axle

I recently booked THAR

Congrats ! It really is the best iteration of the Indian Jeep. The more I use it the more I appreciate the overall package.

[skandyhere]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

But if you get exactly one minute (every alternate month, mind you) to say what you want to say, that too with the "omni-present sensor board" pre-sensoring (by around 70%) of the single slide allowed and then telling you with glaring eye movements to rush through that one minute, with half the guys reading sms's when you are trying to talk to them to get a decision, how can things actually happen?

Very interesting, Sir, and it gives a perspective of why things are the way they are, and reminds one of the challenges involved in having an entire company deliver value overcoming the all-pervasive, nation-wide problem of indifference and love for mediocrity!

When will we as a people 'RISE'?

[carizma]

Originally Posted by DKG

Slowly getting the Thar into the mood for dirt


Attachment 604791

Sir!! Must say that the Blackened wheel caps are looking great

Spent the day reviewing the Thar on TBHP! Your and carrot_eater's thread made a great read. Two more reasons to convince my head to take the plunge

[desertfox]

I read through this lot.
I wanted to buy a Black Thar CRD e this week, but on seeing your Rocky Beige I am having a serious rethought.

A lot of people have many calculations to comment on but remember, this is the cheapest 4x4 in a bit of comfort option available in the world.

For Rs. 750,000 or $ 13,700 what else would you get ? It can come only from China, firms like Great Wall or Deer can deliver it, they had an LC 90 Prado lookalike and a Landcruiser 80 clone priced at one third price in Sharjah market. Did they sell any I dont know.

But on a serious note from where does the competition come ? There is a market with a 2 month waiting period on the Thar.

TOYOTA

Landcruiser has phased out the LC 90 Prado production. A soft top SWB option with lockable front hubs was available in TZ variant with a diesel engine. If it was introduced in India it would be taxed and would finish at Rs. 15 to 17 lakhs.

A RAV 4 soft top derivative if given sub 4 m tax concessions fitted with a small 1.5 or 2 litre diesel would land up at Rs. 11 to 12 lackhs with the current tax structure.

A Daihatshu Rocky or Firoza soft top version with 1.3 L or 1.6 L Petrol engines would come in at 9 to 11 Lakhs but there would be few takers for 10kmpl Petrol engines.

SUZUKI

The normal Vitara 1.3 L soft top if brought in through the Maruti Route would come in for Rs. 12 Lakhs.

If manufactured here, fitted with the Swift / Ritz diesel engine it would retail at Rs. 8-9 lakhs. This is the closest competition possible provided Maruti are serious enough to do it. The same combination in the Rocky or old Gypsy ( Samurai ) body would cost about 9 Lakhs but is going to get police anf govt. department tender supplies.

TATA - JLR

If the green oval is brought to India in the form of a TD 90 SWB Country Defender it will be a Bolero Invaded class vehicle but with taxes it will cost about Rs. 15 Lakhs. And it is not at all a reliable vehicle.

So my friends - Mahindra is a winner here. Respect it. They are crude, spartan, basic, lack finesse, do not have advanced R & D cannot compete with Bosch in drive train systems R & D is all well taken. But it is a cheap solution.

A very normal drive train system engineer at Bosch in Detroit today is paid a salary of $ 80,000 to 120,000 What does Mr. Anand Mahindra pay an R & D guy ? rs. 30 Lakhs per annum CTC ? So what is expected.

The Thar really is a refined derivative of our Jeep legacy, Kaiser, CJ 5, mm 540 / 550 and now this. It is fine. Cant get better.

Look across the border. What do they run ? Mitsubishi Pajeros and Toyota 70 series 3rd hand vehicles bought for Rs. 12 Lakhs.

In 1999 when I mentioned to some of their politicians that during our elections we buy CJ3B derivative diesel engine jeeps for Rs. 3.5 Lakhs they were amazed. No 4x4 could cross their part of the Thar priced at less than 10 Lakhs.

[ku69rd]

Deepak,
Have been following your thread for quite some time. Can you please update your findings on the car? Also you have mentioned that you are using this as a daily user, did you manage to get the HT? If yes what brand is it and also the cost?

Have seen on the forum where people have changed their suspension set up to composite fiber leaf springs. Do you recommend or planning to do those alterations?

Any changes in the interiors?

[gsbhatia]

Originally Posted by desertfox

A very normal drive train system engineer at Bosch in Detroit today is paid a salary of $ 80,000 to 120,000 What does Mr. Anand Mahindra pay an R & D guy ? rs. 30 Lakhs per annum CTC ? So what is expected.

Are you dismissing 30L/annum CTC as some frivolous little humdrum pay for some unflattering job that few would be willing to take, let alone 80k+ earning Detroit engineer?

I'd be surprised if Mr. Mahindra loosens his purse string to even 70% of that for a Detroit engineer, and at 30L/annum I wouldn't be surprised if their HR runs out of space on their mail servers with the number of resumes they'll receive.

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by gsbhatia

Are you dismissing 30L/annum CTC as some frivolous little humdrum pay for some unflattering job that few would be willing to take, let alone 80k+ earning Detroit engineer?

I'd be surprised if Mr. Mahindra loosens his purse string to even 70% of that for a Detroit engineer, and at 30L/annum I wouldn't be surprised if their HR runs out of space on their mail servers with the number of resumes they'll receive.

I think he is being sarcastic, I am sure he knows in India 30lac per annul CTC is not easy to get, unless you are in senior management of good companies. What is being said is that for the cost constraints, Mahindra has managed a fairly decent job, it could get better, but it is certainly not as bad as a few members here believe.