What do you chaps think of the new Mahindra Bolero?

[dev]

Hi Mack The Knife,

Been reading this with topic for a while and i want to add a few things. I have had Bolero for the last five years. Have recently added tubeless Bridgestone tyres to it.
Mine was stolen and then recovered from U.P. after the thieves fell asleep at the wheel and drove it into a roadside ditch.
Was redone cosmetically and has been serving me well ever since. Okay I have driven this even in a ploughed field with no hassles. It is like driving on snow but it just goes through everything. I have also reversed up a mountain with it in garhwal as the hotel driveway was that narrow.
Then I have also used it to pick up my stranded team mates while white water rafting at Rishikesh. So you now the typical stone river bed type of scene, went in and out with no 4X4 etc.
Once I managed to forget that there was a huge stone square left as a do not park device by a kindly neighbour. In the morning in my rush I didn't see it. And so this stone was stuck underneath my jeep. Not knowing what to do I drove forward and back to getrid of it imagining torn gear boxes, diesel tank and all the horrors that my mind could bring up.
I lost the huge piece of granite and looked under with a mirror. What me worry... there is a huge heavy metallic plate guarding the innards.

If you take into account the fact that the average Delhi guy's vehicle gets battered every once in three months, I am still alive. Have driven it up to hundred a few times but i normally do highways at about eighty. Hey, its a jeep after all. The only place where the mahindra's can't cut it is the power windows and all.

Dust will jam them pretty often and replacements are real costly. Otherwise for your fishing and city work its a good ride, the kids will love the jump seats at the back. And did I mention the fun of being caught in a deluge?

Regards,

Dev

[Mack The Knife]

Thanks, Dev. Just the sort of first hand opinion I was looking for.

As for buying one... Ummm.....not too sure. Still got my eyes on that Ford but first I physically need to check their ground clearance claim of 198mm with a tape measure. Stranded friends can jolly well wade across, I have no intention of playing Dick van Dyke in Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang.

80 kmph will have me nodding at the wheel. I could have murdered that Asif for me making me drive at 60 to 70 kmph during our trip.

Monish, what is your take on the Bolero?

Mack The Knife

[dev]

Them new ones be having turbo engines, might just be the ticket for an otherwise very sturdy and reliable vehicle. After I found mine in U.P. it had been lying on its roof in a watery ditch. The local mechanic jump started the jeep, with another battery after pumping the diesel. It had one head light shooting 12 o'clock and yet it drove back to delhi from Lucknow and the power windows were still working!!!!
The rear had been pinched in the jaws of a crane but still it rattled home all 450 km. That is the only reason why I put up with crappy service stations and all the vehicle is a gem.
Will possibly outlive most fords. Try a turbo version out, might be better at clipping down the highway. But I don't push the speed cause look at the shape of the thing kubelwagon meets perfect vastu . And I find that I enjoy getting there more than reaching. Oh and the company(mahindra) is fabulous. I'll write about that in another thread.
Regards,
Dev

[Mack The Knife]

And I find that I enjoy getting there more than reaching.

Just the opposite here, I cannot wait to get off the tarmac and hit the dirt road to the cottage by the lake.

However, I better slow down. According to an astrologer friend I am to have a bad road accident this coming Feb. What a bloody bore if that were to happen!

I look forward to your post on the company. Still haven't ruled out any vehicle completely.

Mack The Knife

[dev]

Look I have worn various rings and stones on my fingers for more than half my life. My daughter had a full life and destiny line. Yes I did check.

Destiny is all, no one can predict anything. But slowing down while off roading makes sense and it nice to have a friend around in me old age.

So get a slightly slower car. (Hint hint). I shall do my company write up by tomorrow.

Regards,

Dev

[Sakobav]

Mack The Knife

If I may add to Devs mail..Bolero is cheaper to fix, parts readily available and sturdier than others

Rgds

[mundaire]

My maternal uncle has owned some form of Jeep/ Mahindra pretty much all his life - a WWII MJ Ford Jeep, a CJ3B, a Jeep Wagoneer, a MM540, a WWII MJ Ford Jeep again, a Bolero, a Scorpio and now a CJ3B again! I guess for some people it's almost like a relegion... something like the Apple fans in the computer world!

As Dev has pointed out, they do have their share of failings even now... poor electrics being one of the major ones. But these days they do offer a great warranty - this same uncle of mine had his Bolero engine die after 50-60,000 Km on the clock (within warranty) and they (the dealer in Hisar, Haryana) replaced it with a brand new engine without a murmur.

He then sold the Bolero and bought a Scorpio, this time (while traversing Rajasthan) the driver managed to break something (I think he went over a large rock or something) which caused the engine oil to completely leak out, and he did not notice this till it was too late - the engine died...

Once again, the Mahindra chaps were quite sporting, and while it was obviously the drivers fault, they said they (the Scorpios) did have a design defect in the oil filter design which made it vulnerable to such damage. So once again the Mahindra dealership (this time the dealer was in Bikaner, Rajasthan), replaced the entire engine with a brand new one! While this might not impress our overseas compatriots, such levels of service from an Indian auto company is fantastic to say the least! And the fact that they could make available new engines within days at Hisar and Bikaner - makes it all the more impressive!

Try getting even a minor Ford part in such smallish towns - forget about the entire powerplant!! I would doubt you could even find a Ford dealer outside of major cities...

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[Mack The Knife]

Dev, Navdeep and Abhijeet,

Your posts regarding cost and availability of spares is definitely making me do a rethink.

Having driven an 800 for close to 10 years (I had access to a fleet of the latest imported cars before that but that was a case of borrowed feathers), I was looking for something with a little more refinement than a Bolero or Scorpio. Despite all the gimmicks, I don't consider a Scorpio to be very refined. The ride quality, for one, reminds me of camel back rides at Juhu Beach. The Ford Fusion does come at a competitive price now but what you say about spares, etc. also needs to be taken into account.

If only Maruti would come out with a slightly more refined Gypsy in diesel at not more than 4.5 lakhs.... Now that's one company I have a lot of faith in. Any such thing on the horizon, Abhijeet?

As for this speed thing...would like to point out that I am not one of those reckless boy racers. It's strictly restricted to the highway and only when there is a clear stretch. Trust this clarifies any misconceptions.

Mack The Knife

[Mack The Knife]

Try getting even a minor Ford part in such smallish towns - forget about the entire powerplant!! I would doubt you could even find a Ford dealer outside of major cities...

Abhijeet,

Despite your two examples I am not entirely convinced that the same holds true for Boleros and Scorpios across India. No particular reason, just find it a tad hard to believe. It's something that I need to check for myself but opinions and suggestions are always welcome.

Mack The Knife

[mundaire]

If only Maruti would come out with a slightly more refined Gypsy in diesel at not more than 4.5 lakhs.... Now that's one company I have a lot of faith in. Any such thing on the horizon, Abhijeet?

The diesel Gypsy has been on the horizon for a decade now While they (Maruti) might just get around to it... I wouldn't hold my breath

As a company Maruti seem to have completely lost interest in the Gypsy... the poor sales being the most obvious reason! I mean, I don't know about the South, but up North the only people buying new Gypsys are Government departments and the military/ paramilitary services. Even the cops have swapped their Gypsys for (the much more comfy) Toyota Qualis... There seems to be a thriving second hand market though... people in rural areas buy them cheap and convert them to diesel; they mostly use low vibration Japanese engines like the Nissan (1800cc), Toyota 2c (same engine as the one in the Qualis, only the imported second hand ones come with a turbo)... While a competent mechanic can do a decent conversion, which is (mostly) trouble free - I would not recommend taking this route!

And as to ride quality, the Gypsy is ride is horrendous! The Bolero & Scorpio have a much softer ride, but then that has meant poor handling for both these cars. Yep, they have their share of troubles!

Once again, keeping in mind your usage pattern - I would suggest a second hand Qualis. BTW the grapevine says that Toyota is planning on reviving the Qualis, so if you want to buy one new, you could always wait for a few months (Jan-Feb is when most new models are launched in India)...

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[Mack The Knife]

And as to ride quality, the Gypsy's ride is horrendous!

My back and back-side will attest to that. A better suspension was one of the things I would like to see in a slightly more refined Gypsy.

As far as I know, Gypsy sales down south, seem to refelect those up north. I personally know of only one person who bought a new one in the past two to three years.

Have almost negligible experiece of the Qualis. Looking at them, I find the ground clearance a bit low. Is it just an illusion or actually so. Speaking o the Qualis, what are your views on the Chevrolet Tavera?

Thanks.

Mack The Knife

[dev]

Okay you have forced me to write this at 2 a.m. I have worked on the GM account in advertising and so I 'll repeat what a lot of guys know is that the Chevy badge is worn by cars that GM doesn't make. They are rebadged subaru or whatever gawd have you cars.
Secondly, the Mahindra company is fab. They have their eyes open. When I was irritated at the look and basic pain of reacing their service centres I wrote a feedback on their web page. Screaming about how much I thought their service sucked for their then top most end car. After that they got in touch personally and invited me for a Bolero Day...basically a very sooftie version of the great escape on the Alwar highway. The whole day they fed and entertained us at a resort and two guys singled me out for special attention...i am cheap and the extra coke and pastry soothed my heart .

Next after my car was recovered and all the repairs and all were done, i still couldn't get the dealer to replace the audio system quick enough...he took six months. Then he wouldn't replace the stolen speaker and so I had only one speaker in the back. I let this lie till one day I was angry again. And so I wrote a long letter in their web page about ther short service...always missing the details like wiper fluid, the missing diesel in the tank...the speakers and all. A week passed and I get a call from a senior manager at Mahindra, he assures me that not only will my speakers will be fitted, Messrs skyline will apologise by throwing in a complete free service also. So after a few days I get a harassed foreman calling and saying that I should have told him 'like a friend etc.' My jeep is picked up, serviced with all details paid attention to, no stolen fuel and with new speakers attached.
So if that ain't a great company I don't know what is. I guess another thing is that it can be fixed by most guys across India and it doesn't cost that much spares wise. So I guess I'll root for it till I'm blue in the face. Its a car that's like one of them rifles that shoot straight and go bang everytime.

Regards,

Dev

[Mack The Knife]

Dev,

Sorry to reply so late. Something must have come up and I must have forgotten to reply.

I am well aware GM rebadges. It's hardly a novel practice these days.

I am not sure I would consider a company to be fab if they miss out small details, pinch fuel and make me go blue in the face to get what is rightfully due.

My wife has been driving an Opel (GM ) since November 2003 and we haven't faced any such problems. I suppose quality costs.

Mack The Knife

[dev]

So go ahead by yourself the ultimate GM 4X4... the Hummer. Hmpfff... mumble... mumble...Opel Astra even after we wrote Achtung Baby to warn the customer.

Regards,
Dev

Dev,

Sorry to reply so late. Something must have come up and I must have forgotten to reply.

I am well aware GM rebadges. It's hardly a novel practice these days.

I am not sure I would consider a company to be fab if they miss out small details, pinch fuel and make me go blue in the face to get what is rightfully due.

My wife has been driving an Opel (GM ) since November 2003 and we haven't faced any such problems. I suppose quality costs.

Mack The Knife

[Mack The Knife]

Opel Astra even after we wrote Achtung Baby to warn the customer.

LOL. Nice one!