[amolpol]

@velu, I believe that the safari is an amusement machine. It will entertain you on the road and traumatize you in the garage. I've learnt to ignore smaller things but there are always newer issues to keep you thinking. Having lived with an enfield does help in keeping cool through rough times, afterall its a machine and can go bad at times. It's a way to create the man-machine bonding.

Originally Posted by verditer

Where do you service, by the way? Just curious.

I service it at Prerana on Old Madras road. Been with them for 5yrs now so have developed the love-hate relationship.

[kaviprem]

Originally Posted by amolpol

I service it at Prerana on Old Madras road. Been with them for 5yrs now so have developed the love-hate relationship.

Try once the Concorde Motors, Off Hosur Road. It might be a long drive from Old Madras Road, but worth a try once.

If you need a personal reference, I can get you. PM if you are interested.

Prem.

[bantejas]

Originally Posted by kaviprem

Try once the Concorde Motors, Off Hosur Road. It might be a long drive from Old Madras Road, but worth a try once.

If you need a personal reference, I can get you. PM if you are interested.

Prem.

In my view, they too are horrendous! My truck has been there for 9 days this month for a stupid clutch issue. My AC issue the blower losing its intensity after being run for 3 hrs continuously has not been fixed for the past 1.5 yrs which started after some service from the Concorde Hosur Road. I wouldn't recommend that place to anyone who wants to start all over again with that TASS relationship again :o).

Tejas

[amolpol]

Originally Posted by bantejas

I wouldn't recommend that place to anyone who wants to start all over again with that TASS relationship again :o).

Tejas

Tejas, write to TML through their website, it works in getting the right level of attention.

Moving to a new TASC is like choosing between a known devil and an unknown angel. I had bought my Indigo from Concorde and moved away from their service when they tried to convince me that the power steering in a diesel car should feel heavier than a manual Santro. I got the PS pump changed at Prerana since they found a leak and that fixed it.

I have some contact with the head of Concorde at Hosur Rd, but I don't want to ring him up for every service I do there. With Prerana, its a small setup and they know my car and the small history behind my escalations. So that usually is enough to get work done!

Bottomline is that there is no world-class TASC and they aren't even consistent in the mediocre job they do. But, I knew all of this when I bought the monster so it helps in keeping my cool through such frustrating times.

[amolpol]

Got the 15k service done last week and took the beast for a spin to Goa. This time there were no issues to be reported! Everything seemed to be fixed except that a squeaky noise was introduced in the front passenger seat. This is inspite of having a WD40 billed to me in the service invoice!

The 15k service included changing all oils, fuel filter, oil filter and regular service routine. They were also supposed to fix everything else that was either not working or acting up in the past few weeks.

The A/C now starts up at all speeds and the Engine light never came on through the 1400kms trip. I had asked for the 3M interior cleaning to be done and they did a wonderful job, only to have it spoilt again during the trip. I was actually impressed by the seat fabric cleaning job, they were able to make them look new whereas they were all stained with my daughter's footprints and food items earlier. In the end, it was money well spent!

I guess all is well that ends well!

[yogeshnaik]

Congratulations! You have made a great choice. Happy miles ahead wishing you good luck and drive safely. From the picture it looks like the side cladding are of black colour, it is shining. It also comes in grey. Black looks beautiful.

Please also share your experiences with pictures if possible once you are done with some miles.

[amolpol]

A rather frustrating sequence of events today, I'm saddened to see that the beast has to undergo it's first cosmetic surgery. At a super busy JC Road junction, a Maruti Esteem guy who wasn't paying much attention hit the car from behind and then did a ghastly act of reversing the car to cause more damage than what it initially was. The result is a totally broken rear bumper on the Safari



I couldn't even give a piece of my mind to the driver since he already seemed to be in pain with a rather long cut on his face. I guess that's what got him distracted and he missed the brakes. Now, I didn't really comprehend how he got the injury in the first place while he was driving, but it did look like a fresh thing and he had blood on his handkerchief, so I just let it go. The traffic cop at the signal advised me to report the incident at the Kalasipalayam police station, which I did but it ain't going to help me with my situation.

Sad thing is that it happened when I was going to JC Road to add a set of auxillary lights in preparation for the big road trip to Ladakh which is starting just 2 days from now. The biggest question running in my mind was whether I can get the car fixed without impacting any of the travel plans.

After making a few calls and a bit of pushing some people around, I finally managed to get the car to the TASC for repair and I'm hoping it will get done in a day so that my plans don't have to change. Lets see how it all unfolds tomorrow!

Wish me luck

[Lukeskywalker]

Ouch!! That is a bad hit, I'm sure you can go in for a new bumper and it won't take much time to fix it, maybe you can even get it painted once you are back, what company insurance have you got, maybe I can put in a word if it is where I know people. All the best on your Ladakh Trip.

[amolpol]

Originally Posted by Lukeskywalker

Ouch!! That is a bad hit, I'm sure you can go in for a new bumper and it won't take much time to fix it, maybe you can even get it painted once you are back, what company insurance have you got, maybe I can put in a word if it is where I know people. All the best on your Ladakh Trip.

It's going to be a new bumper for sure. They're going to get it painted tomorrow so hopefully I'll have it back on Friday. The car is under company lease so the leasing company takes care of everything, basically there's no liability for me to pay anything for accident repairs.

I wanted to get the work done at Prerana given that they've been servicing it all this while, but the leasing company had some issues with their payment terms so had to go to Concorde instead. I moved away from Concorde a few years back when I had the Indigo, but I have a friend who knows some folks so it should work out I guess.

[amolpol]

I got the beast delivered today morning, a new bumper adorns the rear, freshly painted. The car looks stunning again! Tata ASC rocks, but you do have to push them hard to deliver the brilliance.

All I have to do now is get the parking sensors and camera fitted again since the workshop guys told me that they may not have the tools to do it aesthetically.

Anyway, I'm glad that its not changing my travel plans so all izzz well

[Lukeskywalker]

Good news Amol, now have a safe and wonderful trip to the roof of the world.

[amolpol]

It’s a little over a year that I updated my Safari ownership thread and also a full year since our trip to Ladakh in 2012. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travel...himalayas.html The Ladakh trip was a huge success and a big part of that goes to the 2.5 tonne beast which took us through some really amazing places and brought us back safely. This is one car that has made a very special connection with our family and has undoubtedly been a trusty steed for the past three years.

We never realized that we were already at the end of the lease term for the Safari and soon it was time for it to go. The initial plans were to retain the beast for a couple of more years and then upgrade to something better. But based on pros and cons of buying a new car now vs later, we finally decided that it was time to move on.

So this is pretty much my farewell good-bye kind of update for our beloved Tata Safari as it changed hands today morning. The good part is that it's going to someone who is also fulfilling his dream of owning a safari and is super excited about it.



Just to set the context right for all prospective buyers, I know there are a lot of preconceived notions about Tata cars but I’m not going to discuss that here. What I would like to call out is the fact that in these 68000 kms that we’ve done so far, there hasn’t been a single moment of frustration with the car whatsoever and thats what really matters to me. While there could have been moments of adversity with the service center folks sometimes, there are no hard feelings. Moving from a Tata Indigo to the Safari made my transition easier since most of the ASC folks knew me and getting attention of the right folks was not difficult at all. In fact, I can safely say that once they know you, you’re all taken care of nicely.

For about 10L on road when I bought it, the Safari was (and still is) an awesome SUV in terms of driving and passenger comfort. I can say this with 100% conviction because I couldn’t really find a worthy replacement for it in terms of the ride quality, even with options that are twice the price. Finally we had to make a bit of compromise in selecting the successor (more on it later when it arrives!).



From the super highways to the smaller highways and then to no roads in Ladakh, the beast has always behaved well and kept us safe and enthusiastic for more action. Its ability to eat up all the potholes has spoiled both me and my wife and it became one of our basic criteria to judge any car.

I know a lot of people talk about smaller issues about rattles and squeaks that come up occasionally, but for us it’s never been without a reason. With the kind of terrain it has survived through, I have no complaints to make.



Here’s a quick summary of the issues so far – nothing that really stands out.

• The rear door hinge squeaking issue was experienced twice and both the times it was right after our long haul trips through some really bad roads. Moreover, both the times it was fixed to my satisfaction and didn’t come back till the car was driven through some really harsh terrains.
• The check engine light still comes up sometimes, but it doesn’t get me worried since it goes off in a few minutes and there is absolutely nothing wrong the car itself.
• The beading on the glove box becomes loose sometimes, but all it needs is small rubber plug that can be easily done during service.
• The a/c knob had malfunctioned in the first few months, but that was a small fix and it’s never happened again.
• The clutch was worn out at about 58k kms and the whole assembly was replaced in my last service. The pickup was back to how it was when I lay my hands on it for the first time – simply awesome.
• The Michelin LTX AT2 tires did wonderfully through all the terrains I’ve taken it so far and still have some life left. But with the spare tire almost dead after succumbing to the multitude of nails on the western express highway on our way back from Ladakh last year, the beast needs a new set of rubber.

Things about the Safari that I’m going to miss

- The awesome mile crunching ability
- The super comfy middle “sofa” seat
- The fatigue free front seat comfort
- The roomy boot space which we managed to fill to the brim at times
- The “let’s go anywhere attitude” of the car
- The overtaking capability and road presence
- The ever friendly service personnel
- The commanding driving position
- The three point U-turns blocking all traffic
- The 80kph drives on “bad” roads



When I look back over the years, I think all my cars have been very special to us, not because they had fancy features to boast of, but since they enabled our dream to travel to various faraway places and experience them in our own way. The Safari has also made quite a few memorable trips to Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Goa and Ladakh apart from all the other states it has traveled so far. It truly taught us how to "Reclaim our lives" though I still have to learn how it feels to quit on a Monday morning!

I hope it’s going to serve the new owner just as good as it did for us….Amen!

[Lukeskywalker]

Amol, you have summed up the Safari very nicely, I know the feeling of letting a prized possession go, but I'm sure you have weighed the pros and cons before taking the decision. Hope it serves it's new owners well. Lovely pics as usual, so the obvious question, what car next?

[amolpol]

Originally Posted by Lukeskywalker

Lovely pics as usual, so the obvious question, what car next?

Well, the Safari has left a huge void in our lives, so we need something equally big to fill it back. Should have some firm update in the next couple of weeks.

[HappyWheels]

Amolpol,

That was one great post summing up your experience. Unfortunate that you have to let it go.

Wish you good luck on finalizing on your new vehicle.