Mahindra vs Kia service & customer approach; Few striking differences

As a happy Mahindra owner, it has become the first car company I recommend to my relatives, friends and others in my social circle.

BHPian wadewilson recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Received the ECU update today. Surprisingly ours was the only Facelifted Seltos at the camp (ours is a Diesel Seltos FL). Update was done through their tablet by plugging into the OBD port. Observations after the ECU Flash:

• Steering feels lighter and more manoeuvrable. Earlier the steering was stiff (for me) and the EPS unit felt like the hydraulic unit on our Isuzu D-Max Pick-Up.
• The car picks up speed like butter now. Earlier when I would floor the gas pedal, all I'd get would be a loud engine sound and then very slow progress. Now, the car feels more sprightly and agile. I used to dread driving the Seltos and would rather take my XUV700, however now, after the update, the car finally has good acceleration and I feel like that 250Nm of torque is being put to good use. Performance seems similar to my Hyundai Creta (2018 Facelift - 1.6 Diesel).
• CEL didn't pop up as of yet but it's just been a few hours so will have to wait and watch.

Might be slightly off topic but I have to say, being a first time Mahindra owner as well as a first time Kia owner, there are some striking differences in the way the companies approach their customers.

With Mahindra, whenever I face the slightest of niggles with my XUV700, I tweet their social media handles and immediately within a few minutes I get a call from them and they try to solve my issue by connecting me with the nearest service centre and also directing them to ensure that the issue is resolved and to submit a report after the car has been checked. Yes, parts failure has been more on my XUV700 and as a company, Mahindra needs to address their QC issues. But, the fact that they keep the customer in the loop and also reach out and listen to their grievances make me a happy Mahindra owner and it has become the first car company I recommend to my relatives, friends and others in my social circle (after informing them about the niggles of course )

With Kia, it's very different. After purchasing our Kia Seltos, we started facing CEL issue from the 2nd day of ownership, I tweeted about the issue but rather than even responding to it, they simply ignored it. Now, it could be argued that Kia India gets a lot of tweets and they can't pay attention to everyone, but I'm pretty sure even Mahindra gets the same if not more tweets and yet they are proactive. I waited on Kia to respond to the tweet for days but to no avail and in frustration I deleted my tweet. Few months later, Kia's service centre calls me to inform me about the crucial ECU update which I did today. It seems to me that Kia India focuses solely on service centres as a point of contact between them and the customer, instead of focusing on social media as well which many people use to air their grievances these days.

Overall, the CEL niggle and Kia's handling of the same has left a sour taste in my mouth.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.