[narayan]

[quote=ameaa;3210316]

Originally Posted by narayan

Thanks Ameaa. Yes it does get a bit unsettled if you go over a pool of water. I guess that would be the case with most cars. /QUOTE]

I haven't noticed this in other cars which i have driven. Anyway knowing this feature and being little careful should solve it. Have you felt any discomfort with your left leg on long drive? I noticed that the storm front seat sits slightly lower from floor than Dicor..

Happy Motoring..

Ameaa
The Storme seating position is not as perfect as the Dicor as I mentioned in my opening post but as such I did not find any discomfort during this trip on account of that. But taller people ( 6' + ) might have an issue but I am not sure on that

[narayan]

FE update:
Distance covered : 856km
Conditions : 4 lane highways ( with about 20kms in city )
Ac usage : 60% only
Method: auto cut off to auto cut off
FE : 14.45kmpl
Speeds : 80-110kmph

[narayan]

Got 15.5kmpl for the return trip with 80% ac and speeds of 100-120kmph. Would be really pleased if it touches 17kmpl in the high ways ! Will post city FE by september since the beast is running very less in city and mostly in the highways

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by narayan

1) Wiper speed : Earlier I thought it was unique to just the Vista but now I realise its again one of those Tata "features". The first wiper speed wipes the glass once in about 11-12 seconds and the second speed is once a second I wonder why Tata did not put an intermediate speed. So in the typical rain that you get in Chennai which is quite moderate, speed 1 will be really slow and you will even forget the wiper is on and speed 2 is super fast that the wiper blades start squeaking on the glass sicne its already getting dried up fast. Not sure why they cant think of such simple things

+1. The first position is way too slow even in light drizzle, and more often than not I end up using the press down feature to clear the water instead. No. 2 position on the other hand is too fast for the same drizzle. Also the top (fastest) position is inadquate for really heavy downpours I feel, especially as your speed increases.

6) Pronounced wind noise from the rear side kept bugging me. I am wondering if its air moving through the 2 holes in the black plastic grab handle type of fitting above the 3rd row glass.

The technical term used by the Tata folks is "wind cutting" noise. I get it too. There is hardly any road noise. If this wind noise is solved, things will be really silent.

Originally Posted by ameaa

Did the beast tend to change direction when you speed through puddle of water?

Originally Posted by narayan

Thanks Ameaa. Yes it does get a bit unsettled if you go over a pool of water. I guess that would be the case with most cars.

Yes there is a perceptible shift felt of the back end when the truck hits a pool of standing water at speed. It is not a pleasant feeling, but no, its not as drastic as the big beast changing direction either.

Another thing I noticed (purely involuntarily) is that when going through such pooled water at speed, even if you slightly touch your brake, it instantly activates the ABS. Again a feeling that will take some getting used to!

Originally Posted by Strangerintown

This is strange. My 2008 Safari 2.2 has pretty evenly spaced intermittent wiper speed settings and it is actually quite easy to find the appropriate speed for the given rain. I wonder why they would try to change something that does work!

Another feature in such a cateegory is the light the Dicor's have under the hood for the engine bay - missing in the Stormes. Can it be retrofitted by the TASS guys itself, using the Dicor parts and wiring?

Also, Dicor LX comes with front seat arm rests and rear wash and wipe - both missing in the Storme LX.

Another nice feature in the Dicor missing in the Stormes is the anti skid pimpled rubber surface given to the center console between the two seats (where you can place your phone, coins, etc. Also there in the receptacle for all the door handles.

Noticed that the Storme doors are significantly heavier and close with a better thud than the Dicors though. Except for the very heavy tailgate in the Dicors.

[Strangerintown]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Another feature in such a cateegory is the light the Dicor's have under the hood for the engine bay - missing in the Stormes. Can it be retrofitted by the TASS guys itself, using the Dicor parts and wiring?

Also, Dicor LX comes with front seat arm rests and rear wash and wipe - both missing in the Storme LX.

Another nice feature in the Dicor missing in the Stormes is the anti skid pimpled rubber surface given to the center console between the two seats (where you can place your phone, coins, etc. Also there in the receptacle for all the door handles.

Agreed. The light under the bonnet is very useful and I am not even sure that removing that would really involve a material cost saving. However I am sure that should be quite easy to get installed separately as the light is stand alone and does not really need to touch the existing wiring harness.

Removing the armrest on the LX is also strange given that the USP of the Safari is it absolutely unparalleled comfort.

However one feature that I am very glad that Tata has included across the board is the ABS as that should have always been there in this beast!

[Reinhard]

Hey, hearty congratulations on the Storme. Wishing you unlimited safe & happy miles with it. Make your own road!

Well, your review actually had me petrified for a moment. It mentions my thoughts, list of vehicles compared (even including the THAR), decision making, pros & cons...word for word really. Even those of the better half!! These are the exact thought processes that we've been through & finalized on the Storme (well as of now) EX . (I somehow can't live without a rear wash+wipe.) What more, even I have a Vista .

I think when I find the money & finally buy the Storme, I'll simply provide a link to your thread and do a +1 to it. Or copy & paste with your consent. haha.

Good luck!

[condor]

narayan

1) Wiper speed : Earlier I thought it was unique to just the Vista but now I realise its again one of those Tata "features". The first wiper speed wipes the glass once in about 11-12 seconds and the second speed is once a second I wonder why Tata did not put an intermediate speed. .. Not sure why they cant think of such simple things

Originally Posted by ebonho

+1. The first position is way too slow even in light drizzle, and more often than not I end up using the press down feature to clear the water instead. No. 2 position on the other hand is too fast for the same drizzle. Also the top (fastest) position is inadquate for really heavy downpours I feel, especially as your speed increases.

Guys, looks like you are missing the speed setting of the intermittent wiper.

Originally Posted by Strangerintown

This is strange. My 2008 Safari 2.2 has pretty evenly spaced intermittent wiper speed settings and it is actually quite easy to find the appropriate speed for the given rain. I wonder why they would try to change something that does work!

They havent changed it - the feature is very much there, and is well set.

Push the wiper stalk up one level, it will move to intermittent speed.
There is a rotary knob on the wiper stalk which you can use to set the speed. Rotate it towards you for faster speed, and away from you for slower speeds.
Push the stalk to 2nd level (upwards) for low speed wiping.
Push the stalk to 3rd level (upwards) for higher speed.

Narayan: 6) Pronounced wind noise from the rear side kept bugging me. I am wondering if its air moving through the 2 holes in the black plastic grab handle type of fitting above the 3rd row glass.

ebonho: The technical term used by the Tata folks is "wind cutting" noise. I get it too. There is hardly any road noise. If this wind noise is solved, things will be really silent.

Windnoise not pronounced at about 100, though it could be more at the speeds Narayan mentioned

ameaa :
Did the beast tend to change direction when you speed through puddle of water?

narayan : Yes it does get a bit unsettled if you go over a pool of water. I guess that would be the case with most cars.

Yes there is a perceptible shift felt of the back end when the truck hits a pool of standing water at speed. It is not a pleasant feeling, but no, its not as drastic as the big beast changing direction either.

No such problems - but I am using Michelin Latitude Cross.

[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by condor

Guys, looks like you are missing the speed setting of the intermittent wiper.
They havent changed it - the feature is very much there, and is well set.

Push the wiper stalk up one level, it will move to intermittent speed.
There is a rotary knob on the wiper stalk which you can use to set the speed. Rotate it towards you for faster speed, and away from you for slower speeds.
Push the stalk to 2nd level (upwards) for low speed wiping.
Push the stalk to 3rd level (upwards) for higher speed.

A bit of an example how TATA fails to market good features.
A picture from my ownership thread should help the needy understand the points that Condor has explained very well.

This is from a Vista. The rotor on the LHS stalk controls the delay in intermittent mode. The rotor on the RHS stalk controls the headlamp leveling. One of the best implementation & integration of both these features IMHO.

[narayan]

Originally Posted by Reinhard

Hey, hearty congratulations on the Storme. Wishing you unlimited safe & happy miles with it. Make your own road!

Well, your review actually had me petrified for a moment. It mentions my thoughts, list of vehicles compared (even including the THAR), decision making, pros & cons...word for word really. Even those of the better half!! These are the exact thought processes that we've been through & finalized on the Storme (well as of now) EX . (I somehow can't live without a rear wash+wipe.) What more, even I have a Vista .

I think when I find the money & finally buy the Storme, I'll simply provide a link to your thread and do a +1 to it. Or copy & paste with your consent. haha.

Good luck!

Thanks Reinhard - good to note that there have been many similarities !

Originally Posted by condor

Guys, looks like you are missing the speed setting of the intermittent wiper.
They havent changed it - the feature is very much there, and is well set.
Push the wiper stalk up one level, it will move to intermittent speed.
There is a rotary knob on the wiper stalk which you can use to set the speed. Rotate it towards you for faster speed, and away from you for slower speeds.
Push the stalk to 2nd level (upwards) for low speed wiping.
Push the stalk to 3rd level (upwards) for higher speed.

Condor : Thanks but this procedure looks quite cumbersome compared to what I have gotten used to from Honda/Maruti/Hyundai where the movement of the stalk upwards or downwards by itself changes the intermittent wiper speed.

I am not sure why the stalk has to be first moved to intermittent AND THEN a rotary switch to set the speed ? In fact movement of the stalk itself gives different speeds. Why did they have multiple speeds in the stalk then ? I am puzzled !


While we are at this, another feature I am a bit puzzled with ( and I hope Condor will come up with some explanation for that as well ! ) is the windscreen wash function. Both in the Vista and the Storme, after the water is sprayed and the wiper moves a few times to clean the windscreen, there is a long pause and one final wipe occurs. I really feel that final wipe is not required because the earlier wipes would have more or less dried up the windshield. This "feature" was not present in my i10 or OHC. Is there any knob or button or lever to be pulled/pushed to prevent this final wipe

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by narayan

While we are at this, another feature I am a bit puzzled with ( and I hope Condor will come up with some explanation for that as well ! ) is the windscreen wash function. Both in the Vista and the Storme, after the water is sprayed and the wiper moves a few times to clean the windscreen, there is a long pause and one final wipe occurs. I really feel that final wipe is not required because the earlier wipes would have more or less dried up the windshield. This "feature" was not present in my i10 or OHC. Is there any knob or button or lever to be pulled/pushed to prevent this final wipe

Beg to disagree bro. Than final swipe is very useful, coz from the left there is an irritating trail of residual water that trickles down across the windscreen after everything is nice and clean and clear. This last swipe helps clear that, as well as some splash spots.

If anything, I am not too impressed by the rear wiper blase rubber. It does not give a clean streak free area like the front ones, and always leaves those streaks at the two extremes. This happens when the rear glass is dry and dustry and you want to clean it. Not in pouring rain, when the streaks are not there.

[suman]

Originally Posted by narayan

Yes it does get a bit unsettled if you go over a pool of water.

Originally Posted by condor

No such problems - but I am using Michelin Latitude Cross.

What Narayan (and others) described sounds like aquaplaning to me - could happen irrespective of the tyre and one should be careful when flying over patches/pools of water.

[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by narayan

Condor : Thanks but this procedure looks quite cumbersome compared to what I have gotten used to from Honda/Maruti/Hyundai where the movement of the stalk upwards or downwards by itself changes the intermittent wiper speed.

I am not sure why the stalk has to be first moved to intermittent AND THEN a rotary switch to set the speed ? In fact movement of the stalk itself gives different speeds. Why did they have multiple speeds in the stalk then ? I am puzzled !

You see, all other cars you mentioned, have this wiper configuration -
Intermittent
Slow
Fast

While almost all Tata vehicles upwards of Vista, have this-
Intermittent 1
Intermittent 2
Intermittent 3
Intermittent 4
Intermittent 5
Slow
Fast

Out of which, the first 5 are covered by the 1st upward position of the stalk. The actual delay between the wipes is controlled by the rotary switch. Do you not see the flexibility on offer here? you can make the intermittent delay smaller / larger depending on the amount of drizzle.

Originally Posted by narayan

While we are at this, another feature I am a bit puzzled with ( and I hope Condor will come up with some explanation for that as well ! ) is the windscreen wash function. Both in the Vista and the Storme, after the water is sprayed and the wiper moves a few times to clean the windscreen, there is a long pause and one final wipe occurs. I really feel that final wipe is not required because the earlier wipes would have more or less dried up the windshield. This "feature" was not present in my i10 or OHC. Is there any knob or button or lever to be pulled/pushed to prevent this final wipe

The final swipe is intentional. And I think you are the first person I know to object to it Most of the times, after a wash wipe, some amount of water is thrown upwards towards the roof by the wipers. After a few moments those drops unite and form a small stream down the windshield towards the bonnet. That final swipe is configured to tackle these residual water drops (that generally also contain the dust from the earlier wash+wipe) and leave the glass as clean as possible.

Trust me, brand the car as anything other than TATA, and this feature would be boasted of as "PREMIUM" & "Intelligent" by all the pundits. And no - it cannot be disabled. You'll have to live with it I'm afraid.

[condor]

Suman da, agreed.
But possibly lesser with asymmetric tyres ?


On another note mentioned earlier in the thread, I have not seen water splashing back on to the windshield.

Originally Posted by Reinhard

Trust me, brand the car as anything other than TATA, and this feature would be boasted of as "PREMIUM" & "Intelligent" by all the pundits. And no - it cannot be disabled. You'll have to live with it I'm afraid.

LoL !
Good one, @Reinhard.

Narayan & others - pls check out how the intermittent speed wiping works, and you should be set.

[CharlesA]

Originally Posted by condor

On another note mentioned earlier in the thread, I have not seen water splashing back on to the windshield.

Sorry to hijack your thread Narayan

Water indeed does not splash back on the windshield. Will try with some more water LOL.

The intermittent wiper settings do work...but have not got used to it and the steering blocks the view on what setting it is in while driving..

The hydroplaning effect is there though and the first time it occurred I was scared. Have been careful after that to reduce speed while going through puddles since then.

Has anyone changed the music system and what setup are you running.

[ebonho]

Speaking about hydroplaning, how can a vehicle as heavy as a tank hydroplane? Its a little difficult imagining a 2.5 ton monster suddenly floating on 1-2 inches of water. But yes, I guess that's what's happening, since everyone seems to be reporting it. I have not heard the Dicor guys report this though - or do they also get it?