[kkdelhi]

Safari 2.2 VTT Dicor LX 4X2 - Arctic Silver

The thought process -
Before I sold off my Swift, I was contemplating about only two vehicles - SX4 and Safari. Had TD'd both and found both extremely good. One of them would be my next upgrade. Time went by as I watched more and more SX4s and Safaris on the road. Meanwhile, I was enjoying the Swift to the fullest extent - went as far as driving it all the way up to Katra (Vaishno Devi). Excellent piece of machinery manufactured by Suzuki and a good friend. (See my garage for pictures.) No rattles, nothing. Liked everything in it except the wafer-thin and fragile bumpers. Both the front and rear bumpers had their share of two cuts. Other than that, the vehicle was super. However, an upgrade was imminent.

Thought hard about SX4. Good ground clearance, alloys, nice looks, more complete car (as in sedan compared to hatch), and feature-full (was thinking of ZXi). It looked big from every angle except the front. Then, gave a thought to the rear seat - will it comfortably seat two or three? What about the protruding armrest? Will I be able to take my family of six (4 adults & 2 kids) and luggage comfortably all the way up to the hills or on a long trip? Then, I saw something that I had experienced in my Swift - dented bumpers on several SX4s around me. Moreover, something in me kept saying that SX4 will not remain with me for long, as I would always have this nagging thought with me to upgrade to an SUV sooner or later. So, why not go in for an SUV right away?

For the same reason, the Safari was in my mind but a little further away. I was thinking of taking one step at a time. Hatch -> Sedan -> SUV.

The final step -
Finally, somewhere in the middle of October, I prioritized on what I wanted from my next car - solid build; good amount of space; worthy of taking long, comfortable trips, especially to the hills; ability to take abuse and still look good; and road presence. And the answer that bounced back was 'Safari'. The added advantage was that it would look equally good taking to office or to a marriage party.

The next question was whether LX or EX? A price difference of over 1,50,000/- and about 16 extra features in EX. Took a pen and paper and sat down to determine how many of these extra features were actually required and how many could be done without. A few calls to some accessories dealers and the decision was taken. It would be the LX.

The booking was done and the finance sorted out. The wait was of two weeks and I set about looking to sell my Swift. And then I realized that no matter how lovingly you have kept your car and no matter how carefully you have driven it, the market prices are driven by such unusual factors as the month and year of manufacture, the kms travelled in it, the kind of fuel used, etc. But that's another story for another day. Suffice to say that I sold off my Swift at a trustworthy place at a reasonable price.

The delivery day -
A week ago, I was told that the truck had arrived at the dealer's. On the day of delivery already fixed by me, I went to the dealer right after lunch. I saw the Safari had just been washed and was being cleaned. The PDI OK sticker was on the windscreen but I decided to do my own. I walked around the truck twice, carefully looking for any scratches or dents. Satisfied there weren't any, I sat on the driver's seat, cranked the engine and stepped out. The sound was normal. Kneeling down, I looked under the body. No leakage anywhere except the water dripping due to just-finished washing. Switched off the engine, pulled the bonnet lever, and slowly pulled the bonnet head; was pleasantly surprised to see that it lifted itself up smoothly on hydraulic jacks; took a good look inside and shut it down. The interiors looked fine, the two-tone seat covers looked especially good. Checked all lights, indicators - all working well.

Stepping back, I took one final look at the truck before doing the billing. It looked big and burly, dwarfing all other cars around. I gave a mental thumbs-up and walked in for the paperwork.

The margin money was paid, the invoice taken, and the DL number selected. While they fixed the number plate, the owner's manual was handed over to me. I asked for extended warranty booklet and the battery warranty card, both of which were promptly handed over to me. A service schedule sheet was also given to me. And then the salesman did what was completely unexpected. He took a picture of me with the vehicle. I returned the gesture by clicking him with my truck. The sales manager then gave me a half-kg box of sweets. I looked at the box and then at him. I shook his hand vigorously, hugged him and profusely thanked him for the half-kg sweets that he had given me. I poured out my emotions and told him how blessed I felt and how the half-kg box went perfectly with a large vehicle like Safari. He saw through my talk and smiled sheepishly. Thinking I had embarrassed him enough, I took the keys and drove out of the dealership. The first stop was at an IOC pump to fill the truck adequately. Then I drove home.

The experience -
It is now one week and the odo shows 425 kms. So far, so good. It is the first ever diesel that I have driven. Have already got used to the following:
- heavier engine sound
- heavy clutch
- cheaper fuel

The highs:
- the SUV look and feel (first time ownership of an SUV, and long awaited)
- high, commanding driving position
- excellent visibility all around
- loads of space (kids now have their own preferred area - the jump seats area)
- getting down from the high seating as compared to leaning down and getting out in my earlier Swift

Things that will take time getting used to:
- receiving preferential treatment in traffic
- leaning across to the glove compartment after taking off the seat belt
- learning to remember that it is still the running-in period until at least 1500 kms
- reversing with sixth sense on
- letting it remain parked while doing small errands on my bike

Accessories added:
- gear lock
- remote keyless system
- DVD headset and four speakers
- fog lamps
- sunfilm
- mudflaps (rear only)
- mats
- door protectors

And, now, the pictures:

[akshay4587]

Congrats for your new Beast
nice colour choice.

[unni.ak]

Congrats on the new acquisition!!

Go ahead, Reclaim Your Life...

[kb100]

Congratulations KKDelhi!

What deal did you get from the dealer? Any year end discounts etc?

[HappyWheels]

Congrats KKDelhi!

Wishing you many more miles of happy and safe motoring!

Would like to add one more point to your 'Things to remember list':
- to let the engine running for 30 to 60 seconds before switching off after a run.

And do post your rides pic in the Safari owners thread!

[harry2223]

congrats on your buy. safari is the best suv in its line and even in line above it.

[greenhorn]

just curious, did you get the 24+12 or 24+24 month extended warranty? In case you got the former, do upgrade to the latter ASAP
and remember to check the engine oil they use. your beast needs API CH4+. TASC's are prone to using API CF4 oils on everything

[dr_know]

Congrats!! I have always liked the Safari, just one thing that bugs me is the uninspiring dash, a little too bland for my taste. Do update us as you tame your beast!!

[d3adlythegame]

Congrats bro, but would like to suggest you to get seat covers. I just personally feel that the default covers of safari, ruin the look of the car.

[raj_5004]

congrats kkdelhi, nice review. waiting for your initial more detailed ownership review.

[aditya.86]

Congrats kkdelhi. Another beast on the forum. Waiting for a detailed review.

[kkdelhi]

Thank you all. A more detailed review will follow soon.

Originally Posted by kb100

Congratulations KKDelhi!
What deal did you get from the dealer? Any year end discounts etc?

Just the one that has been going on for some time now - 50% off on insurance; in other words, a cash discount which in my case came to 14k. Of course, I saved another about 8k in insurance as well because I transferred my previous NCB from Swift.

Originally Posted by HappyWheels

...Would like to add one more point to your 'Things to remember list':
- to let the engine running for 30 to 60 seconds before switching off after a run...

Sure. That's another big change for me. Though the 'wait' sometimes is killing, as people outside wonder what I am doing and waiting for what.

And do post your rides pic in the Safari owners thread!

Sure.

Originally Posted by greenhorn

just curious, did you get the 24+12 or 24+24 month extended warranty? In case you got the former, do upgrade to the latter ASAP and remember to check the engine oil they use. your beast needs API CH4+. TASC's are prone to using API CF4 oils on everything

I got the 24+24 ext warranty.
Thanks for the heads up on the engine oil brand. As advised by many here, will change the oil and filter at 1st service.

[greenhorn]

those are the engine oil grades actually. recommended brands would be Castrol GTX diesel ( not GTD) , mobil delvac MX etc

[dadu]

Congratulations, welcome to the club, use normal diesel and with SystemD (instead of premiums). TASC uses Exxon Mobil Super 1000TM, check specs in my ownership report, post made today.

[kkdelhi]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

those are the engine oil grades actually. recommended brands would be Castrol GTX diesel ( not GTD) , mobil delvac MX etc

Ok, got it.

I'm just itching to go on a long drive out of Delhi as soon as the run-in period is over.

There are a couple of things that I don't get:
1. Manual says depress the clutch and crank the engine. Is that really the way to do it? What if the vehicle starts without depressing the clutch?
2. Manual mentions two indicators for low fuel warning - the fuel tank symbol, and the LED next to it. I have only seen the LED glow until now. BTW, how much fuel is approximately left when the low-fuel LED glows the first time?
3. I understand the 'express down' feature on the driver's side window, but why this feature is available individually on other windows? Does anyone think that is helpful?