[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by Ankur@VNS

Mr. Avinash (Ravenavi) is very fine gentleman, and his valuable suggestions & guidance can be taken by any fellow bhpian who wish to visit this beautiful place.

It is worthwhile to note that, despite of his busy schedule, Mr. Avinash took me for a brief ride of his city

Thank you so much for the kind words, Ankur. Do visit again, this time with a longer holiday schedule and with your family in tow.

Originally Posted by niranjan.mulye

My AX7L manual diesel has completed 8000kms now and I can definetly vouch that the gear shifting has become smooth which was a bit hard between 1st and 2nd gear in the initial kms.Not hyundai smooth but definetly better than before.

This is so reassuring to hear. Thanks, Niranjan.

The same is also mentioned in the Owner's Manual, as I had stated in my post above. Under the Starting and Driving Part 1 - Manual Transmission section (6.9).

Link - Owner's Manual for the XUV700


Steel your hearts and nerves for what you are about to see.

The procedure to enable Auto Headlamps via the OEM accessory kit is simple, as long as you find the two couplers (one for the feature, other for the power supply) behind the dashboard easily and quickly!

When they are not found/well-hidden from view despite continuous, desperate efforts, this is all that happens:-

Part number and price details of the Automatic Headlamps kit.



The two sets of the kit. Top one contains the touch-enabled sensor (inside the yellow pack) and bottom one is the power coupler.


The lower plastic cover of the steering assembly, duly removed.
Dated 21st March 2022.


One whole hour of searching after removing the front right AC vent too and no cables found.
Guy decides to dismantle the top parts and look directly behind the dash!


The two tops of the display cover come off.


And, the display comes off too! Previously held in place by 8 screws.


How it all looks from the driver's side. Heart in mouth!


Central beam's VIN number matches some other XUV7OO,
manufactured on the same date from the same Assembly Line.


Finally, the first bunch of cables are found. And what a find those are!
Almost all of the AX7's features are here, disabled and well hidden.


Power couplers not found for the next hour and half, even with the passenger side's dash portion below dismantled.
Accessory guys give up and a senior tech from the Authorised Service Center is called over to search and identify powered sections under the dash.


He finally finds a source to power up the Auto Headlamp sensor touch switch.


One more hour of fumbling for the correct connection continues, and in the end this blue wire becomes the final power source.


Fitting everything back neatly and in it's place takes another full hour (and in complete darkness, with the torch sections in our cellphones being the only sources of lighting).
All removed screws and packings duly fitted back, including the glovebox which takes nearly half an hour.



Finally, 5 full hours later, the task is completed.

Good things out of the experience - No rattles from the dash/display observed till now, and the Auto Headlamp touch switch works like a charm!

Bad thing out of the experience - Don't let a heart patient be subject to this, ever again! The closest I came to a second heart attack in the span of one year.

[Rolling_Stock]

One of the finest reviews to read through.
While Phoenix review was KGF-1, the ICARUS review is KGF-2.
Reviews are best written by ardent car lovers, full of energy and attention to every detail.
I hardly sit inside a car other than to drive and it is one of the main reasons why I hesitate to write a review as I would not do justice to readers expectation.

Thanks to RavenAvi.
Thoroughly enjoyed the experience!!

[sbm]

@Ravenavi, as you have shown there is a accesory kit for autoheadlamp feature. Are any other kits like power folding mirror, cruise control etc available as genuine accesory from Mahindra. I feel an SUV of this size must have power folding mirror. I mean it won't be even possible to fold the mirror from driver seat due to the car's width of someone needs to do so on a busy traffic lane.

[kamath93suraj]

Congratulations RavenAVI for your ICARUS Wishing you long healthy and properous life.

I wanted to know how is the driving experience of diesel manual when compared to more powerful petrol manual.
Does the torqy diesel over power the more powerful petrol?
and how are they on gear shifts.
It would be of great help if you could shed some light on this as I am confused between petrol manual and diesel manual from enthusiast perspective. (mileage doesnt matter)

Thank you

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by Rolling_Stock

While Phoenix review was KGF-1, the ICARUS review is KGF-2.
Reviews are best written by ardent car lovers, full of energy and attention to every detail.
Thoroughly enjoyed the experience!!

Thank you so much for the words of appreciation, Rolling_Stock!

Originally Posted by sbm

Are any other kits like power folding mirror, cruise control etc available as genuine accesory from Mahindra.

No accessory kits for power-folding ORVMs or Cruise Control. They can be ordered from the Authorised Service Center after tracking down their part numbers.

Originally Posted by sbm

I feel an SUV of this size must have power folding mirror. I mean it won't be even possible to fold the mirror from driver seat due to the car's width of someone needs to do so on a busy traffic lane.

Tell me about it. This is a must-have for any SUV, specially a D-segment one.

I am definitely getting this enabled. Hopefully soon.

Originally Posted by kamath93suraj

I wanted to know how is the driving experience of diesel manual when compared to more powerful petrol manual.
Does the torqy diesel over power the more powerful petrol?
and how are they on gear shifts.
It would be of great help if you could shed some light on this as I am confused between petrol manual and diesel manual from enthusiast perspective. (mileage doesnt matter)

Thank you, kamath93suraj.

The 182PS diesel MT is as good to drive as the 197PS petrol MT. On flat roads with outright acceleration, both are a match to each other, with the petrol attaining higher speeds quickly but the diesel isn't too far behind either. Torque is 40Nm more in the diesel, but you hardly feel the difference when you drive the petrol back-to-back with it. Inclines, twisties, ghat sections all are brushed away with equal nonchalance.

Gear shifts seemed smoother in the petrol, from my single test drive experience in March. Shooting through the MT gears is easy with the short, quick shifts and the mStallion responds very quickly to the speeds. The diesel's initial two gears are a bit hesitant in shifting, but after that all is good. See my post above about the gears smoothening out as the kilometers pile on.

If you enjoy driving, specially a car with such a humongous set of turbo-charged engines under the boot, both cars ensure that you are sitting in the driver seat with a silly grin pasted across your face. If you enjoy driving solely as an enthusiast and are indifferent about all other factors, I would recommend the petrol MT over the diesel MT. It is a rocket!

[sbm]

@Ravenavi, can you update the mileage you're getting on your car. Various youtube videos are claiming 13-14kmpl in city. Is it really so?

[avinash_m]

Congratulations on getting home the Icarus and wish you a million happy miles on it @RavenAvi!!

I have always admired attention to detail on your threads and this one just proves the point yet again! It was interesting to see the mention of Jeypore; I have very fond childhood memories of Jeypore, Kolab and Koraput when my uncle used to work as a doctor there (Kolab/Jeypore). Another uncle had a business setup and used to frequent between Koraput, Paradip and Bhubaneswar, in his Diesel Amby. Had the good fortune of accompanying him a few times and it was great fun, traversing those ghats!

Interestingly, we've lot in common that way as I also have a CG background (Bhilai/Raipur). Hope to catchup with you sometime there, during my next trip to Bhilai.

Cheers!!

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by sbm

@Ravenavi, can you update the mileage you're getting on your car. Various Youtube videos are claiming 13-14kmpl in city. Is it really so?

They are mostly correct. Depending on how one drives the diesel inside city conditions and on the mild to moderate traffic on city roads, FE figures hovers between 13-16 kmpl. I have yet to experience bumper-to-bumper traffic in my city, or a traffic jam, to check FE figures for that worst case scenario.

But, the worst I have scored till now is 13.2kmpl, and the best is 15.7kmpl. This is as per the EcoSense calculation in the Trip(s) Summary section in the AdrenoX Connect app. Also, average for the past 520 kms of running comes to 14.2kmpl, that includes a highway trip of ~185 kms.

According to the latest in the Fuelio app, the FE for the last refill to refill comes to 13.43kmpl. This is in peak summer with the AC on everytime.

For 2 highway trips of 180+ kms, the highest FE achieved was 20.7kmpl. Overall FE for highway trips stands at an impressive 18.1kmpl. This is with speeds between 80-85kmph, also with AC on all the time.

Will update more in the days to come.

Originally Posted by avinash_m

I have always admired attention to detail on your threads and this one just proves the point yet again! It was interesting to see the mention of Jeypore; I have very fond childhood memories of Jeypore, Kolab and Koraput when my uncle used to work as a doctor there (Kolab/Jeypore).

Thank you so much, avinash_m.

Great to know about your south Odisha and CG connections. Do look me up whenever you are traveling again around these parts. I am always happy to meet a fellow TBHPian.


So, in the period where me and Icarus are getting to know each other a lot better, I keep finding new and exciting things about the 7OO, specially in it's AX5 iteration, which makes me a lot happier.

This is one of them:-

Select "Selective Unlocking" in the AdrenoX Setup in the HU, and when you unlock your car the first time, only the driver side and the boot doors are unlocked, with a single blink of the front sequential turn indicators and lighting up + 2 successive blinks of the DRLs.
Press Unlock a second time, the DRLs blink again, and the 3 passenger doors unlock.
This is immensely helpful for situations when you are the sole occupant of your 7OO and you need to toss in some everyday things into the boot while on a trip.

That's not all.

Keep the Unlock button pressed for a few seconds when you unlock your 7OO for the first time, and together with the selective unlocking of the driver door and the boot door, the skyroof also slides back to open fully!

Never thought Mahindra would give this very useful feature in it's mid AX5 variant! Bye bye, hot air inside the cabin when the car is parked under direct sunlight in summers.

Keep the Unlock button pressed.



Skyroof opening.



Skyroof glass sliding back.



Skyroof fully open. Neat!




There's more.


Press the Lock button once and the 7OO refuses to lock with 5 continuous angry horn beeps, obviously because the skyroof is open!

In this situation, keep the Lock button pressed for a few seconds and with two swipes of the front sequentials, the 7OO locks itself back with 3 horn beeps and the skyroof slides back shut.

Skyroof glass sliding back inwards.



Skyroof closing.



Also, press Lock once to lock all the doors of your car with a single swipe of the front sequential turn indicators, then press Lock again to enable the Find-My-Car/Follow-Me-Home feature with the headlamps turning themselves on.


The Service Reminder Alert popped up on the MID as soon as Icarus crossed 800kms on the ODO and keeps reminding me every time I turn the key to start him up in the mornings. Will be headed to the Service Center this weekend to get it completed.

Start in the mornings and you are greeted by this visual after the opening animation of the 7OO running across both screens is over.


Alert keeps showing in the next (user enabled) menu too, on the top-center.


Under the "Alerts" section of the MID.


Merely viewing it doesn't help. Comes up as a fresh alert again when the 7OO is completely shut down and started up again.



ODO is currently at 901 kms.

[naveenchhillar]

Hello Sir,
what is this Auto Headlamp device that you got in your vehicle ? Is it the same which enables Headlamps to be ON as soon as it gets dark outside (or even when you are passing through tunnels) ?

Was that so important to get it done in your car ? Just curious to know. Hope you won't mind the answer.

It was there in my 5OO but I didn't use it even once in my 10 years of the usage.

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by naveenchhillar

what is this Auto Headlamp device that you got in your vehicle ? Is it the same which enables Headlamps to be ON as soon as it gets dark outside (or even when you are passing through tunnels) ?

Yes, it is the same as the Auto Headlamps feature usually given in higher variants of a car. It uses an ambient light sensor mounted on the front windshield and automatically enables/disables the headlamps & taillights as soon as the sensor detects that the light nits around the 7OO have gone below/come above certain thresholds.



You can enable or disable this sensor from the inside, from the backside of the sensor, which shows the ON/OFF status of the touch-based switch module.

It was specially important for me because we have frequent weather changes a lot in the area where I live in and drive around, specially during the rainy seasons ahead. It gets dark very quickly here and the sun disappears in a jiffy, and while driving the car or negotiating ghat turns without having to fiddle with the headlamp switches, the auto headlamps feature is immensely helpful. It also helps a lot when one is driving into/backing into a darker section from a well-lit area, specially without the reverse camera.

Plus, you get to have an extra cool, feel-good feature in your car!

For details, check the first two pictures from this earlier post of mine.

[RavenAvi]

A few quick updates:-

1) Got Icarus officially registered on May 25th, and received the RC today via post.

Final cost:-

19,04,034.00 = Paid to dealership (Ex-showroom, TCS, Insurance, Shield, TR)
------------------
x1,60,573.00 = Registration Charges @ 9%
xxxx4,300.00 = RTO Fees, Hypothecation, Smart Card, Postal Charges + Agent Fees
xxxx5,000.00 = Choice number (A OO deserves a 00 number!)
------------------
20,73,907.00 = Final OTR, with FASTag pending
------------------
xxxxxxx848.00 = 3rd row LED light + Keyfob Cover (from Amazon)
xxxx14,035.00 = 1st set of OEM Accessories from dealership (Mudflaps free)
------------------
20,88,790.00
------------------

2) The AdrenoX HU infotainment supports more than one Bluetooth connection, but just 1 smartphone device is enabled for calling/navigation AND music, or a 2nd smartphone is enabled for music playback only. Both phones cannot be used for calling or music playback at the same time.

I have been using my Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra since delivery day, and the wireless Android Auto has been a boon.
Today, I connected my iPhone 12 to the system and it connected in a jiffy, but then my S21 got disconnected. Browsed into the Phone menu and under Connected Devices, it showed both phones but with separate "Phone" & "Music" icons displayed beside them. The S21 Ultra had the Android Auto icon beside it.
You can choose between the phones which are paired with the system - either 1 phone for both calling & music functions, or 1 phone for calling & 2nd phone for music. Not both phones for both functions.

Also, Android Auto automatically starts the Wi-Fi connectivity in the smartphone. Just a heads-up for those who were wondering about this and asked me over PMs.

3) Hill-Hold is automatic and works like a charm. It keeps the 7OO absolutely still on an incline for a full 3 seconds before starting to roll forwards.
My home's parking space is at a slight increasing incline from the road in front. The big-sized ORVMs are a real boon for backing up into my garage, because the 7OO is a tight and snug fit in this space and calculating the millimeters on both sides of Icarus is imperative. Specially the side step in marble in front of our drawing room's door, which is the one major thing to be taken into account when reversing in.

When there is stuff to be taken out from the boot, I back up halfway inside, shift into neutral and pull up the handbrake. The Start-Stop feature takes over and the mHawk shuts down by itself while the icon flashes on the MID. Once the boot is emptied, I crank Icarus back up by pressing the clutch. With the brake pressed, I slot back into 1st and release the handbrake. The automatic Hill-Hold comes into action and I start backing up again from halfway up the incline, with the 7OO absolutely still.

4) The 2 rear parking sensors do their job well and have improved range to cover the rear corners of the car, but are delayed by a full second in detecting objects/obstructions.
Be mindful of this if you are backing up with the help from these sensors.
The alert distances are measured in 3 colour shades - Green (above 100 cm), Yellow (between 50-100 cm) & Red (less than 50 cm).

5) The Start-Stop feature works most of the time but there have been instances when it didn't work and the key needed to be turned back manually to shut down the 7OO.
After slotting into Neutral, enabling the handbrake and releasing all the pedals, the Start/Stop icon in the MID starts flashing but the 7OO doesn't shut down. But at other times it shuts down smoothly and roars back up as soon as the clutch pedal is pressed. Possibly a bug. Am not too bothered by this.

6) The Hill-Descent Control is enabled/disabled from the respective button given on the right side of the steering. It displays on the MID accordingly.

6) I have lost count of the number of times I have heard the starting music of the first song of my 32GB USB drive any time the key is turned after a shut down. The last played/half-played song is conveniently resetted back. And this USB drive is not even fully loaded!
I feel that the much better option is to stream songs while driving.
Dug out an old 16GB drive and loaded it about 50% with songs, and started using it from today. Let's see how the AdrenoX system handles a smaller USB drive, that too with nearly 7GB of free space in it.

7) Enquired about the auto/power-folding ORVMs today. I am told that the switch can be fitted but the default AX5 ORVMs have to be replaced since they don't support auto/power folding. Have asked for full details on this.

8) Ordering parts from the authorised service center for a new fitment requires payment of an advance as a token. The reverse camera of the AX7 hasn't been ordered yet due to this problem, which they conveniently forgot to inform me. I have asked them to send me a full quotation of the reverse camera + associated parts and the auto/power folding ORVMs + associated parts, after which I will take a decision.

9) I was also informed about an available 17-inch OEM AX5 alloy wheel from another 7OO which has been replaced by the owner because it got scratched while backing up. The scratches are quite superficial and the other owner is willing to sell it at a discounted price. I have quoted a price for it, after repeated assurances from the Service Manager and Sonal that this alloy wheel can be used easily as a full-sized spare for Icarus. Let's see.

10) The horn of the 7OO is loud. As in L-O-U-D! I keep seeing people riding 2-wheelers in front of me turn around in sheer annoyance if the horn blares anywhere near them. Very much required given the state of traffic plying on our roads today. Gets a thumbs up from me.

[Phantom 510]

How does the dpf behave during the city commutes? Did Icarus needed any regen till date? What about the def top up? Thanks!

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by Phantom 510

How does the dpf behave during the city commutes? Did Icarus needed any regen till date? What about the def top up? Thanks!

No abnormal behaviour. Works smoothly like a charm.

No regen is needed till now.

I keep a tab on the DPF levels every morning before kicking off for the day, and right now it's at 90% and all-green. No top-up is needed yet.


Regarding the 5th (spare) full-sized wheel, this is the condition of the almost-new alloy wheel from the other 7OO I was talking about. This was replaced by a new alloy wheel by the other owner.



Scratches can be seen on the top 4 spokes and a few on the body between those spokes.

He's asking 10K for it. I have quoted 5K. Might go up to 6K max, not more.

What say, guys? Worth chasing or should I get a brand new one as the spare? A new one is priced at 15,655, as per m2all.

My practical mind says that the spare will be used sparingly, pun intended. So this should be good enough.

[sbm]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

No abnormal behaviour. Works smoothly like a charm.

I think you should use the spare regularly and follow five tyre rotations as this will increase the life of all tyres. In the picture, the alloy looks good to me, and your new alloys will also get a few scratches over time anyways due to puncture repair or otherwise. I would suggest making an offer of 7.5k, and he would probably agree. Even if you don't want to use the spare regularly, buy it for 7.5k.

[jithin23]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

No abnormal behaviour. Works smoothly like a charm.

No regen is needed till now.

I keep a tab on the DPF levels every morning before kicking off for the day, and right now it's at 90% and all-green. No top-up is needed yet.


Regarding the 5th (spare) full-sized wheel, this is the condition of the almost-new alloy wheel from the other 7OO I was talking about. This was replaced by a new alloy wheel by the other owner.

Attachment 2317327

Scratches can be seen on the top 4 spokes and a few on the body between those spokes.

He's asking 10K for it. I have quoted 5K. Might go up to 6K max, not more.

What say, guys? Worth chasing or should I get a brand new one as the spare? A new one is priced at 15,655, as per m2all.

My practical mind says that the spare will be used sparingly, pun intended. So this should be good enough.

For spare this is fair enough Sir! You can go ahead with this as the the spare will remain hidden and unused 95% of the time. Did the same when I downsized the wheels on my EcoSport T+ as I got a set of 4 from thunder variant and 5th wheel was the dilemma.

I'm excited to see if cruise control can be retrofitted in AX5 as the buttons are available I believe. Let me do some searching for the CC buttons as well