[KVS]

Dear All,

Apologies for delayed response. I was away and did not have access to Internet.

Originally Posted by Strangerintown

You will get used to it! I too graduated to the Safari after driving an Indica for 6 years and am as comfortable with it as with the Indica. Actually I never had any trouble with the Safari even on day one!

I'm surprised you found the ORVMs inadequate. I always thought they were pretty huge and gave a very good view. The only thing you cant see are short objects immediately behind the vehicle. The reverse camera takes a little time to get used to. But you will develop the judgement soon enough.

Strangerintown:
I was worried about the size of the Safari and it took time to get adjusted.

The OVRM is small compared to the size and also the spare wheel blocks the view. There was a Maruti 800 behind my vehicle and I could not see it in the mirrors.

Originally Posted by Saurabh M

Congrats KVS on your Black Beast. It sure looks stunning.

I would be interested with the Hella Rallye 4000 part. Please let me know where you are planning to source them from though I am not from Pune. Also, please let me know the suggested retail price for an original pair. I would be interested to get a pair for my car as well. Please PM me if required.

Saurabh:
Thanks a lot!

I have not done the research on this yet. I will certainly let you know, once I have the details.

Originally Posted by Path_Finder

Congrats KVS on acquiring the black beauty!!
I read with amusement your day one experience. Good that you did not give up and will soon get used to all nuisances. Good luck and wish many more miles.

Path_Finder:
Thanks a lot!
I am getting used to it.

Originally Posted by jaysmokesleaves

Congrats KVS on ur new Safari. Indeed very wise of you to get a 4x4. Do take good care of the black color. Looks very nice.
You will get used to driving the Safari over time. Parking in tight sections will always remain challenging but the acquired skill will definitely help with other cars.
You will begin to appreciate it more as you drive outdoors. Safari with 4x4 and good ground clearance and excellent suspension will take you places you only thought were impossible before. The 4x4 is truly fantabulous. Ive been using it quiet often now and it really performs. Off the road is the only place where i now really appreciate the Safari. It covers for all its shortcomings.
Do get your second remote from the dealer. Its standard even with my EX.
Happy mile munching.
cheers:

jaysmokesleaves:

Thanks a lot for your wishes.

I have not tried the 4X4 option yet. Will do that soon. I am planning for a long drive during the Christmas break. Hope I will be able to do that.

I have collected the second remote from the dealer.

Cheers

KVS

[getsurya]

KVS,

Please buy a pair of 'bulls eye'(convex mirrors). These can be sticked to the corner left of both ORVMs which shall remove the blind spots(your maruti cars' example). They sell from Rs.200-Rs300. Get a proper convex angled one as there are lot of flat mirror 'look alikes' which come cheaper.
I use them on all my cars & SUVs and find them extremely useful.

[drvhplyevraftr]

KVS,

Congrats!!! Safari in black looks stunning. Also how do you rate the Alpine 9861 DVD HU that comes OE with the VX model?.

[Avin]

nice choice on the color. safari looks agressive in black.

congrats.

Avi

[KVS]

Originally Posted by getsurya

KVS,

Please buy a pair of 'bulls eye'(convex mirrors). These can be sticked to the corner left of both ORVMs which shall remove the blind spots(your maruti cars' example). They sell from Rs.200-Rs300. Get a proper convex angled one as there are lot of flat mirror 'look alikes' which come cheaper.
I use them on all my cars & SUVs and find them extremely useful.

Thanks getsurya. I have seen people using it. Won't it block the images?

Originally Posted by Avin

nice choice on the color. safari looks agressive in black.

congrats.

Avi

Thanks Avi. Black color maintenance heavy color.

Originally Posted by drvhplyevraftr

KVS,

Congrats!!! Safari in black looks stunning. Also how do you rate the Alpine 9861 DVD HU that comes OE with the VX model?.

drvhplyevraftr: I have used Sony, Blaupunkt and Alpine. I am not an expert in this field, however based on the sound quality I felt Alpine is best.

Cheers

KVS

[getsurya]

KVS, the bulls eye lenses do not block your vision or images. I find them extremely efficient.

[extreme_torque]

KVS... Congrats!
But improperly fitted seats on a brand new car is just not acceptable. I mean how can this happen? What were the quality inspection guys were doing, before the vehicle leaves the factory? Or maybe Tata doesnt have a concept of quality especially when it comes to Safari.

[Dry Ice]

I second that.

Originally Posted by Avin

nice choice on the color. safari looks agressive in black.

congrats.

Avi

Congratulations!! Get a carryboy type bullbar, fibre stuff, fit some fogs and the Safari would look even more aggresive.

Sensing your desire to go off-roading with the Safari, I'll closely follow your threads! Only thing, while you are at it, don't leave your camera behind. The most important gear for OTRs

[hrag]

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

Get a carryboy type bullbar, fibre stuff, fit some fogs and the Safari would look even more aggresive.

Anything in front of the existing bumper will only incur more damage off the road. Anything on top of the bumper should be OK but be prepared for some damage of plastic parts / sidesteps / bumpers etc. if you want to get into serious off-roading.

[Dry Ice]

Originally Posted by hrag

Anything in front of the existing bumper will only incur more damage off the road. Anything on top of the bumper should be OK but be prepared for some damage of plastic parts / sidesteps / bumpers etc. if you want to get into serious off-roading.

You have done some amazing things with your beast SirJi, so I guess you know best. I was reffering to the one which bglrsrini has put on his ride, (considering the science of crumple zones etc) it sure looks cool.

[KVS]

Originally Posted by getsurya

KVS, the bulls eye lenses do not block your vision or images. I find them extremely efficient.

Thanks getsurya! I will buy these ASAP.

Originally Posted by extreme_torque

KVS... Congrats!
But improperly fitted seats on a brand new car is just not acceptable. I mean how can this happen? What were the quality inspection guys were doing, before the vehicle leaves the factory? Or maybe Tata doesn't have a concept of quality especially when it comes to Safari.

extreme_torque: I agree with you. How ever by going through the various posts I am/was mentally prepared for these problems.

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

Congratulations!! Get a carryboy type bull-bar, fibre stuff, fit some fogs and the Safari would look even more aggressive.

Sensing your desire to go off-roading with the Safari, I'll closely follow your threads! Only thing, while you are at it, don't leave your camera behind. The most important gear for OTRs

Dry Ice: Thanks a lot!!

I am not planning to put the bull-bar, as I read this can damage the Chassis. Not getting time to get the other stuff done.

Coming to off-roading, I am no expert. Certainly I want to go off-roading, but that has to wait. I have to start from the baby steps. I have not even tried whether the 4WD works or not.

Originally Posted by hrag

Anything in front of the existing bumper will only incur more damage off the road. Anything on top of the bumper should be OK but be prepared for some damage of plastic parts / sidesteps / bumpers etc. if you want to get into serious off-roading.

hrag: I am not very sure whether we can take Safari for a serious off-roading. I wanted this feature to help me in difficult terrain. My Indica gave me problems in gravel and on mud roads.

[KVS]

Part-II (initial days of driving experience)

Except for the first two days, I am pretty comfortable with the Safari now. I even started overtaking the vehicles in the city traffic. Considering the size it is a big achievement.

Most of the Safari owners have talked about the comfort, Road presence etc.. I completely concur with their views. Some of my other observations

1. I get a good view of the road and I can plan the lane shifting based on the traffic ahead. It is very useful and a big advantage in city traffic. I can change lanes depending on the traffic ahead, like the traffic blocked because some one is trying to take a right turn etc..
2. Normally I honk to make the fellow drivers aware about my vehicle, as most of the vehicles do not have the rare view mirrors or they fold them. In my other car (Indica) no one bothers much about it. However in Safari, I get weird stares. I can make out from the stares why are you bullying us, even though that is not my intention.
3. For me eye contact with the people (pedestrians, bike riders, auto drivers) who are crossing the road is important. I can make out whether they want to cross the road now or wait for the car to pass or at least it gives them a feeling that you have noticed them. While driving Indica, people try to have eye contact, however, while driving safari, it is complete contrast. They do not even bother to look at you. They actually look beyond the safari, and of course don't try to cross the road.
4. I managed to get 12.1 km/ltr mileage in the city traffic, driving mostly in 1st, 2nd, 3rd and occasionally driving in 4th gear with 50% A/C. I filled up normal diesel from IOC.

I completed 100 kms yesterday and given the vehicle for first service. Problems reported are:

Hissing sound on full turn of steering steering
Service Manager (SM): It is normal sound in all safari's and not to worry. I have asked him check whether the pressure etc is OK and no issues of housing pipe bursting.

Passenger side Doors assembly is not good. There is lot of space and I can clearly see the assembly inside. I can read "child lock" clearly. See the picture. Is it common in Safari?



SM - Sir nothing can be done. Most of the safari's have the same. I told them to contact TML and get this fixed.


Squeaking sounds in the car.
SM - Tail gate noise. Will fix it.

Makes a funny sound (Kich-kich) while accelerating. I could successfully reproduce the problem
SM - Will investigate and fix it. Not sure where the noise is coming.

Problems in engaging in first and reverse gear
SM - Will look into it.

Once I was stuck in the traffic jam and was driving in first gear with stop and go. During that time I noticed burning smell in the car.
SM - Will check this. Probably clutch related problem.

Some times I am observing Power loss in third gear around 2000 rpm.
SM - They have no idea, what the problem could be. They said they will remove the water and clean it. Not any convincing answer. Lets see what they do.

Audio disturbance in reverse gear and the reception quality is not good.
SM - Will correct the problem.

I will get the vehicle tomorrow or day-after and will give an update on what has been done.

Cheers
KVS

[Dry Ice]

KVS,
Most of the issues that you have listed are quite common in Safari. That however, DOES NOT mean its OK to have them. Do go through this, every issue has been discussed (as in its causes and remedies). When we all know how good the troubleshooting abilities of service center guys are, its better to be informed, afterall, if they can't find the real cause you can always give them a heads up in the right direction.

Share your experiences as and when you get your Safari back.

[kiren]

Originally Posted by Strangerintown

Congrats! You will surely enjoy the beast.

Regarding the headlights upgrade I suggest you try Osram Nightbreakers or Philips Extreme bulbs of the standard rating and see if it serves the purpose before going for an upgrade. A 100W upgrade could cause warranty related issues. I'm using Osram nightbreakers and am quite satisfied. During this monsoon I faced water condensation in my Safari's headlight and got it changed under warranty. However I did notice that at the workshop they specifically checked the bulb rating to see if I had upgraded it to a 100W rating and I got the impression that they could have created some trouble if I had a 100 W bulb fitted!

Is Osram Nightbreaker available easily? Where did you get it from in MUmbai? Thanks

[KVS]

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

KVS,
Most of the issues that you have listed are quite common in Safari. That however, DOES NOT mean its OK to have them. Do go through this, every issue has been discussed (as in its causes and remedies). When we all know how good the troubleshooting abilities of service center guys are, its better to be informed, afterall, if they can't find the real cause you can always give them a heads up in the right direction.

Share your experiences as and when you get your Safari back.

Dry Ice: Thanks for the suggestion. Yes. I did go through the thread, not completely though.