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Old 27th March 2012, 22:11   #1
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The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

This was a first for me and coincidentally a first for the showroom too. Let me explain.

I don't buy new vehicles. Always have bought a single owner, well-maintained, less driven second hand vehicle. This saves me the warranty blues and prevents me from tearing my hair in frustration while dealing with the ASCs. I've an excellant FNG who takes care of all my vehicles and I've never ever had a problem.

The Bull Sr, my TCIC Tata Safari 1998 4x4 driven by wife, had grown old and needed replacement. I was wanting a 4x4 for myself and was seriously contemplating a Pajero BS III (118 BHP). While quite a few Endy 4x4 came my way, I wasn't interested in that behemoth though I would've preferred its manual 4x4 lever anyday over the electronic on-the-fly version. I had shortlisted three vehicles in order of preference:

1. Pajero
2. Scorpio CRDe 4x4
3. Safari 3.0L 4x4

A search for any of these spread over a few months in 2011 did not bring satisfactory results. I found out that owners of a 4x4 seldom sell them.

The budget too was a constraint - my upper limit was 10L. And then I heard about the LX 4x4 from the M&M stable. It was supposed to be a bare bones vehicle, the USP being a 4x4 system with a MHawk 2.2 Ltr 120 BHP engine. Funnily enough quite a few showrooms of M&M were not even aware of this model.

Fortunately, Sterling Motors, Gurgaon had heard and was aware of this model. On an enquiry on phone I was informed that the on the road (OTR) cost of this vehicle would be around 10L + and this needed to be booked and delivery would take place in 6 to 8 weeks.

A quick consultation with my FNG and other knowledgeable friends and owners of Scorpios helped in making up my mind and I decided to book this model. This was going to be my first new vehicle.

What I didn't know then was that I was going to be the 1st customer of Sterling Motors to book & buy a LX 4x4.

Tuesday - 24th Jan, 2012 - 10:30 am

Reached the new Sterling showroom on the Old Delhi-Gurgaon Road, Near Atul kataria Chowk, Opp Air Force Station, Gurgaon, with family in tow and was greeted by the sales staff and taken to Sumit Singh Nagar, Dept. Sales Manager (Scorpio). He was going to handle my car personally throughout till delivery. Sumit showed me the fact sheet, explained the nitty-gritty, offered my family & I a cup of coffee and gave me the proforma invoice. I gave him a cheque of Rs.50000/- as a booking amount and a Black LX 4x4 was booked for me. By evening the order would be passed on to the manufacturer and in about two days I would get the booking reference number.

Proforma Invoice

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-quote.jpg

At 13:35 I received a SMS from Sumit:

"Your order No. is 100064551 placed on 24.01.12".

Now the real grind started. I had to contact my bank to get a loan. I called up Axis Bank where I've my personal account as well as company's account too and asked them to send an executive. The executive landed up in the evening in my office and collected the relevant papers.

My earlier Scorpio - The Bull - a GLx and a 2004 model was financed by ICICI Bank. I had completed the loan in 2011 and they would've financed this new vehicle without asking for any papers. But they were offering me the loan at 12.75% for 5 years. That was quite a bit. Axis Bank said that they would give me a special rate of 11% for 5 years as I was one of their valued customers. It was so nice to hear this.

Two days later I received an email from M&M giving me a link and user ID & password to track online the status of my vehicle's build-up. When I had asked Sumit for the approximate delivery date he had said that it would take 6 to 8 weeks as no stocks are kept for LX 4x4. The production starts only when a booking is done. This meant that sometime in March the delivery would be done. But I was in for a shock. When I checked the online status on the given link it mentioned 25th April, 2012 as the delivery date.

There were thick rumors that the Govt., is going to levy a cess on the diesel cars in the forthcoming budget and also increase the excise duty. Rumours quoted a figure of 1L + increase on the diesel cars post-budget. This was an alarming situation. Now my single point agenda became to get the delivery in March itself. Search began to find contacts in M&M who could push up my order and get the delivery before the budget announcement.

Sometime in mid-February Axis Bank approved my loan application for 5L. I had asked for that much only. The Bank sent an advise & D.O. to Sterling informing them of the finance.

I received a SMS from a friend on 22nd February that warmed my heart:

"The vehicle is being billed from Nashik on 24th. So in another 8 to 10 days it should be available at dealership for delivery".

A day later another friend texted:

"Msg from GM Quality, M&M - latest update; billing on 27th Feb means del will happen around 10th Mar".

This was good news and I would beat the budget blues.

Tuesday, 28th february, 2012 - 11:30 am

It was a Tuesday when I had booked the vehicle and when this SMS came again it was a Tuesday.

At 11:30 am my mobile beeped; a message had come. I was driving and thought would look at the message later. As I stopped at a signal for the lights to turn green, I looked at the text - it was from M&M - "Dear Customer, Your Mahindra vehicle has been rolled out of production line and is in transit to your dealer. This is a system generated SMS, please do not reply. For any further information call us on 1800 209 6006 (or) mail us at customercare@mahindra.com".

I called Sumit and mentioned him about this message and he confirmed that they too had received an email to this effect.

Yiippeee...! The excitement was building up.

I knew that the LX 4x4 was a bare-bones vehicle and didn't come loaded with the usual bells n whistles. It would come shod with steel rims and some Indian rubber. I had already made up my mind to replace them with OEM alloys and Yokos.

I love Punjabis for their loud & gaudy behaviour. They are known to do things out of the ordinary. Why am I saying that?

Who in their "right frame of mind" would replace the company alloys and put the "dhinchak" variety of alloys? Who else but a large-hearted Punjabi. And where would you find them in abundance? Of course "saadda" Punjab.


Contacted my good friend Deepak Kataria owner of Star Wheels in Gurgaon and he arranged a set of 4 brand-new OEM alloys in Chandigarh, though ideally I would've loved 5 of them. Got to know later that the company provides only 4 alloys and the stepney has a steel rim in the current crop of M-haw-haw VLX models. This meant that I wouldn't have to bother about the offset issues that is generally associated with after-market alloys. The catch was to pick them up and I was scheduled to go on 4th March (Sunday) to do so. But that was not to be. A mild bout of food poisoning put me in bed on Sunday.

Called Deepak and informed him of my condition and he asked me not to worry as he would arrange to get the alloys transported to Delhi.

6th March, 2012

Axis Bank's executive messaged me - "DD #: 978520 did. 25th Feb, 2012 for Rs.486864/- dispatched to dealer".

Sumit called to say that the container had arrived and he was trying to get the PDI done the same day itself so that he could deliver my vehicle on 7th.

Everything was working with clock-work precision.

7th March, 2012

Sumit called to say that the PDI could not be done as the vehicle could not be offloaded from the container due to rush.

8th March was Holi. Everything would be closed. This meant the off-loading & PDi would happen on 9th and maybe on 10th Sterling would give the delivery of the vehicle. But 10th being a Saturday, I would not take the delivery. This effectively meant that now the delivery would happen on 12th that was a Monday. I consoled myself that I shouldn't rush in these matters.

TB II comes home.. 

9th March, 2012

It was a half-day at Sterling Motors, Gurgaon on the 7th March. Sumit Singh, Dept Manager Sales (Scorpio) had said the previous day that he would call & let me know if TB II would be handed over to me on the 9th or the 12th. With baited breath I waited for the call. When I couldn't wait more, I called Sumit at noon to find out. He told me that most probably the delivery date would be the 9th.

A few words about Sumit. He was the one who was handling my case personally from the day I had booked TB II. Sumit was proactive, courteous and provided me with regular feedback from time-to-time. While I had heard & read the horror stories from the new buyers and had braced myself too for the same, Sumit's attitude came as a pleasant surprise.

So since morning today, I was tingling with excitement but didn't let that surface. Meanwhile DK (Deepak Kataria) had informed that the alloys had arrived from Chandigarh and I could pick-up from a shop in Karol Bagh. I left office at about 2 pm to go to Karol Bagh and enroute I got a call from Sumit that TB II was ready to be delivered to me. This was the news that I was waiting for. Picked up four 16" original alloys of the latest design and rushed home. I had already called home to tell the folks to get ready.

In the midst of all this joy, there was a tinge of sadness. The seniormost Bull - Safari 4x4 (1998) was being decommissioned today. Reached home, parked The Bull and alongwith family members went to my FNG in the Safari. The Safari was being left under his custody for him to find a new home. With a last wistful look at the Safari, left for the showroom in FNG's Scorpio with Rakesh at the wheels. Reached Sterling and there parked on the side was TB II. Rakesh & I gave a lookover and I went inside while Rakesh went back to his garage.

Sumit warmly greeted my family & I, offered water & coffee and initiated the paper work. I had already made it clear that the registration & insurance would be taken care by me and Vaibhav my insurance agent also arrived there to do the needful. All the paperwork took about an hour and in the meanwhile TB II was being readied. I told Sumit not to put the ribbon on the bonnet as I don't like it. Finally at 17:36 TB II's keys with the kit and a box of chocolates was handed over to us and photographs clicked.

Sumit handing over the keys etc., to my daughter

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-2177.jpg

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-2178.jpg

With a half turn of the key the engine sprang to life & settled to a silent purr. The odometer read - 7.2 kms. Fuel gauge needle was on red. Slotted Ist gear, eased the clutch and off we went. First stop was at a petrol pump to fill diesel. 24.92 ltrs of normal diesel was filled from a BP pump and then we proceeded to the temple. Vehicle worship was done, coconut broken and the truck driven over four lemons placed underneath the wheels.

Rushed home, dropped wife and daughter, loaded the 4 alloys and alongwith my son drove to DK's. He was waiting for me. The alloys were taken out and shod with Yokohoma Geolander AT-S 255/65 R16 rubber and balanced. Four steel rims with MRF Wanderer 235/70 R16 tyres were given to DK. I retained a steel rim with the Wanderer in the stepney. Alignment was found to be ok.

While driving to home from the showroom and then to DK's I observed that the vehicle was pulling to the left. I mentioned this to DK. He said that with Yokos it would go away. Alas, it didn't. I told DK after reaching home. He would check it the next week.

Came back home and parked where all these years Safari was parked. Sunday the 11th was the scheduled day when the accessories fitting would be done. Would love to deck-up this bare-boned truck.

Last edited by gd1418 : 28th March 2012 at 01:01.
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Old 28th March 2012, 01:00   #2
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Saturday - 10th March, 2012

In the morning photographed The Bull & The Bull II standing side-by-side.

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-5917.jpg

Before you all point out the tilt, it is due to the uneven surface and the camera angle.

Reached DK's in the morning itself and a thorough check revealed that the camber was out hence the vehicle was pulling to the left. On inspection it was found that the Left side had 3 shims and the Right side had 4 shims. In a procedure that took about an hour, a shim from the right side was removed. Exhaustive test drives were taken and it was found to be alright. i was told to come back after a few hundred Kms for a check.

Drove to work from DK's. MHawk's 2.2 Ltr engine has oodles of power. M&M has reduced the gauge of the body shell thus making the vehicle lighter. The engine was begging me to floor the pedal, but I was cautious. I had to run this for 1000 Kms without exceeding 2K on the RPM and not touching 100 kmph on the speedo.

Office staff was excited & happy to see the new vehicle. Ordered Rasmalai for all of them and rewarded my subordinates. Left office early and went to Bikarnelwala in Sector 29, Gurgaon and ordered 35 boxes of motichoor laddoos. I had to distribute them to the entire staff at my FNG - Rakesh Motors and all the guards in my condominium.

Tomorrow, a Sunday, was going to be a big day for me and TB II. Accessories were to be fitted according to my desire & specifications.

Last edited by gd1418 : 28th March 2012 at 15:27.
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Old 28th March 2012, 16:40   #3
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Sunday - 11th March, 2012

Batra Car Care, Green Park & Gurgaon. Deepak Batra has been my friend, younger bro, sounding board and advisor on car accessories. He had done up my Safari, The Bull and now TB II. We had sat down and had made a comprehensive list of all what had to be done.

It would be very unfair if I don't mention Manoj, Deepak Batra's employee and electrician par excellance. One just had to tell him what needs to be done and without fuss it is done. Just to give an example, I wanted to fit new Headlamps that come in MHawk in my older 2004 Scorpio. While the HLs were a direct fit the hitch was that these new generation HLs came with beam levelor motors. There was no circuit diagram available. Manoj had one look at another Scorpio that had a levelor motors in the HLs and did the entire wiring with switch in my truck.

Manoj was going to fit all the accessories in TB II.

The jobs to be done:

1. Front windscreen Film - Llumar PP70 - Rs. 3300/-
2. Side/Back film - Llumar Steel 50 - Rs. 6500/-
3. Pioneer AVH-P4450BT music system - Rs. 32000/-

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-avhp4450bt.jpg

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-avhp4450btbak.jpg

4. Rear & Front Speakers - JBL - Rs. 5700/-
5. Reverse Camera

Hole for camera being drilled & filed

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3028.jpg

After fitting

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3029.jpg

The inside view

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3030.jpg

6. Dampening of all four doors & dicky - Accumat Hyperflex - AMT060HF is the HyperFlex car kit for interior panels, trunks and doors. A box of eight 24" x 27" panels. (Six panels installed) - Rs. 2800/- per sheet.

Manoj taking measurements

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3024.jpg

Cutting to size

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3027.jpg

Right rear door

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3018.jpg

Left rear door

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3021.jpg

Dicky door

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3032.jpg

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3033.jpg

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3034.jpg

7. Vehicle Tracking system - Rs. 7490/-
8. Autocop Gear Lock - Rs. 1050/-
9. Autocop Remote central lock - Rs. 3200/-
10. Headrest LED Monitors - Rs. 9800/-
11. Osram Night Breaker 55/60W bulbs - Rs. 1150/-
12. Reverse parking sensors - Rs. 1700/-
13. Electronic Radio Antenna - Rs. 300/-

This was a revelation. The LX 4x4 doesn't have an antenna.

14. Foot steps/Scruff plates - Rs. 850/-
15. Galio Door visors - Rs. 1700/-
16. Speaker Rings - Rs. 350/-
17. Various wiring harnesses - Rs. 950/-
18. Multifunction Daylight running lamps - Rs. 5000/-

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3039.jpg

19. Rat mesh - what in the world is this?

In 2008 I had a vicious attack on The Bull by rodents and one of them died & rotted behind the dashboard. I was travelling to Jaisalmer then and had to suffer to the stench for 5 days. Could never make out how in the world did they enter inside the cabin.

It was only in end 2011 that I found out the place from where a rodent could possibly and easily enter. Actually it was my friend and a fellow Scorpion who found this out in his Scorpio and had come to Batra to get it closed. Following him I also got this done in The Bull and now was the turn of TB II. There are two openings near the bonnet where the wiper motors are located. These openings are for fresh air but also are an inlet into the cabin.

Possibly a pollen filter

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3037.jpg

The opening

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3038.jpg

Covered with wire mesh & selaed with silicon & tightened with screws

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3040.jpg

The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4-3041.jpg

Last edited by GTO : 29th March 2012 at 12:00. Reason: As requested
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Old 28th March 2012, 16:59   #4
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Thread moved to Test Drives section. Thanks for sharing!!
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Old 28th March 2012, 17:02   #5
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Congrats on the new vehicle! Finally, your first new car eh?

since the new vehicle had camber issues, you should have taken it to ASC and gotten it fixed!

That said, loved the mods. And do not worry about antenna. Many cars skimp it. For example in Liva, not just there is no antenna, but even the antenna wire is half length. You have to attach another wire to get it till the HU. Go figure!

As for rat mesh, good idea. Now no rats in your cabin. They can just play in the engine bay.
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Old 28th March 2012, 17:06   #6
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Thank you Tanveer. Aaawww, ASC. I would have wasted an entire day for ajob that took about an hour & thirty minutes. Since this would not affect the warranty in any way, I went where I felt comfy.

Quote:
Originally Posted by tsk1979 View Post

Congrats on the new vehicle! Finally, your first new car eh?

since the new vehicle had camber issues, you should have taken it to ASC and gotten it fixed!

That said, loved the mods. And do not worry about antenna. Many cars skimp it. For example in Liva, not just there is no antenna, but even the antenna wire is half length. You have to attach another wire to get it till the HU. Go figure!

As for rat mesh, good idea. Now no rats in your cabin. They can just play in the engine bay.

Last edited by gd1418 : 28th March 2012 at 17:07.
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Old 28th March 2012, 17:43   #7
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Congrats! Having seen the car in person, i must say - it looks awesome!
I must also commend you on the energy and patience in getting all the mods done! i for one - lack that kind of patience.

Loved the rat filter idea - very useful. Now you need to turn out for a OTR in your new bull

I volunteer for the passenger seat - should this happen.

On the buying exp. - i must say that Sterling has good Sales "managers". Why do i say this? - when i bought my Scorp in 2011 - i had a specific requirement of black color and needed it fast. Had a horrifying time with the sales exec and decided to goto his manager and boy was i surprised with the attitude and handling of this guy. He met all my wishes and even arranged for a car from Sterling Faridabad as these guys did not have a black Scorp. Even though this meant that technically the commission for my car would goto someone in Faridabad Sterling.
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Old 28th March 2012, 17:45   #8
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Heartiest Congratulation GD Sahab,

Glad you landed up a newer vehicle rather than a 9-10 year older vehicle with it's own set of problems.

PS: Ankush's ques is still pending, "party kithhe" ??
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Old 28th March 2012, 18:28   #9
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Congrats GD Saab. The LX 4x4 is indeed a VFM option for those who need the basic comfort and the all wheel drive.
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Old 28th March 2012, 18:33   #10
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Mubarak ho, Guru-ji. However, it was unfortunate that you had to cancel your Gujarat trip on board TB-II - had told you that you would get TB-II before you left for the trip, but you decided to cancel it anyway!
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Old 28th March 2012, 19:02   #11
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Congrats GD bhai. Nice description on your buying experience.
Is the reverse camera and parking sensors integrated ie do they show up on the display.

Last edited by v&v : 28th March 2012 at 19:04.
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Old 28th March 2012, 19:09   #12
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Congrats on your purchase. As said by others a great VFM product. Looking very good in black. Wish you many happy and safe miles. Eagerly waiting for interior photos.
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Old 28th March 2012, 19:17   #13
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Congrats GD1418 on the TBII. Wish you many miles of happiness. The mesh to stop rodents is a very good idea. I need to look at my Bolero to see if there is any such gap. Can you please post a picture of the engine bay and also of the console with the 4H/4L engaged?
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Old 28th March 2012, 19:18   #14
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Congrats on the new acquisition. Here is my string of questions:

1. How much did you pay for the insurance?
2. Were you able to get the regn done cheaper than what is quoted by the dealer? If so, by how much?
3. What did the mods cost you?
4. How heavy is the damping material and how effective is it?
5. What HL bulbs are you using and how is the HL throw now compared to the OEM bulbs if you have changed them?

And lastly, there is not one good picture of the vehicle after all the mods. Please post lots of interior exterior, ICE and other relevant pictures of your Bull. Happy Motoring.
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Old 28th March 2012, 19:32   #15
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Re: The Bull II (TB II) - M&M MHawk Scorpio LX 4x4

Well done gd1418. Great to read about TBII's progress.
Congratulations !
The snap of the two black brothers looks nice. Do put up additional snaps of TBII in detail.
First new vehicle purchase calls for a rousing celebration !
Will be reading with great interest the adventures of TBII here.
Wishing you many, many delightful miles with the new member of the family.
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