[procrj]

Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I am good-fortune,
Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more,
need nothing,
Strong and content, I travel the open road
- Walk Whitman, Poem of the Road

Enthusiasts love speed and free revving engines, Highway cruisers love their crossovers and compact SUVs. All I need is a little bit of this and that from both of the above, and a lot of space
Here is my SWOT analysis of the TUV 300 based on the 1K Kms that I have driven in the last few days



SWOT Analysis - TUV 300 Manual T8




Probably the best view of the Tank


Lets put a smile on your face

[procrj]

The old work horse: As on July 2014,My 5 year old WagonR had done 40K kms and was still running strong but the really long drives that I wanted to do were not materializing as my better half was not very comfortable sitting in the car for long distances as every single undulation and bump was directly transferred to the rear seat. Apart from that its a beautiful car and in 6 years, it has never once failed. Thankfully the car will still remain at home but will be relegated to small city runs for my parents and the occasional trips to Chennai.

Recent shot of the car - 50K km

[procrj]

What is your poison? My hunt for a replacement began in June 2014 and here is the list of mandatory features that I (and wherever I say I, I mean me with the blessings of my better half) was looking at

Must have

1. ABS+Airbags - no compromise on safety given the madness I witness on Bangalore roads
2. Comfortable 5 seater with a roomy cabin - the WagonR had spoiled us for space. It has so many slots and places for storing just about everything
3. Decent suspension that can handle mid sized potholes without sending shock waves into the rear seat
4. Good mid range with relatively linear power delivery - should be able to pull with 4-5 adults onboard
5. Boot should be accessible from the rear seat - this was a firm order from the home ministry and even after a lot of convincing & cajoling, I could not get this removed/relaxed
6. Front power windows - have this in my WagonR and hence this is the minimum benchmark
7. Not more than 10L on road as my usage pattern and other financial commitments would make anything above that a little out of reach

Good to have

1. Reliable Diesel heart - helps with the running costs and also tends to have better pulling power under load
2. ACC - not a must in Bangalore but would help in the long drives
3. Foldable rear seats - WagonR has so much flexibility and this has really helped us move homes a few times
4. Steering mounted audio & phone controls + a decent music system - typically listen to classical/instrumental with a little bit of 80s/90s rock thrown in
5. Touchscreen HU + Navigation - a little ambitious given my budget but there is nothing wrong in hoping. The top end baleno does have this for under 10L
6. Tachometer - wanted it on my next car as I wanted to keep the diesel in the right poweband
7. Alloy wheels
8. Digital MID with FE and DTE
9. Rear parking sensors/camera

[procrj]

The hunt begins :Because of point 5 in the must have list, a lot of sedans/compact sedans like the ford classic or figo aspire were automatically excluded from the list. In-spite of that, I did fall in love with 2 gorgeous cars and seriously considered bloody mutiny by over ruling the home ministry.

T1 - Tata Zest: July 2014 and the new zest completely bowled me over. Right from the design to features and price, it was the complete package and total VFM. I was glued to YouTube reviews and the official review thread while my be(i)tter half dismissed the car after one cursory look at the side profile (ah- point 5 my nemesis!). After a couple of test drives in Sep'14, I was floored and seriously began to reorder my finances as I was sure that this would be my next car. But after a week of discussions and another long test drive, better sense (i.e my wife) prevailed and with a heavy heart I decided not to book the Zest.



Source - Team BHP official review

When the Bolt was launched, I was not convinced with the pricing and hence did not seriously consider the same. After a few months when the discounts started coming in, I did take a test drive of the vehicle but was not sure if I wanted to drive another small hatch for the next 6-7 years. In between, started looking for used cars within my price range but did not zero in on any as I was really not impressed by what was on offer. And by then another 'T' had all my attention.

T2 - Toyota Etios: It started with a cab ride from the Airport where the car was zipping at 100 kmph and I neither felt the speed nor the surface undulations in the car. This was early Feb 2015 and the next weekend I walked into the Toyota showroom to test drive the Etios diesel. When the turbo of the 1.5 diesel kicks in the power surge makes you want to floor the pedal and race away! Once again the wife was not impressed and point 5 raised its ugly head.




Source - Samba's ownership thread

Drove a friends Etios to mysore & back and while this reinforced the positives of the car, it also did highlight what it cannot do. Gave my better half another opportunity to say ' I told you!'. After the drive, I had to remove the current gen Etios from the consideration list and hope that Toyota would launch an updated Etios with better interiors or bring in the Vios.

The wait: Its June 2015 and I wait for Creta, S Cross & Jazz with baited breath. Hyundai & Maruti decide that daylight robbery is legal and declining quality of honda cars (no offense to people who own any of these) ensured that I only view these threads without seriously considering any of them. The Figo aspire is launched at mouth watering price and drives like a charm but Point 5 comes barreling down the road to sideline this American beauty. Never did seriously consider the Ecosport as the rear bench space was not generous and the Duster was outdated & out of reach thanks to Vitamin M constraints. Even though there were steep discounts on offer in November for the Duster, the bad service experience stories made me ignore the duster/terrano twins.

No Brainer: All this while, the Ertiga had been ticking almost all the boxes in my head and having driven it once in 2013, I knew that that this is a no brainer. All it takes is one test drive in August and the home minister is drooling over the comfort level and ride of the car. After reading multiple ownership reviews and threads on the forum, I am convinced that this LUV is tailor made for me. But with the facelift around the corner, I decide to wait for the same before cleaning out my bank account.


Source - Parag's Ownership thread. Anyone who reads his ownership reports will believe that the WagonR & Ertiga are the safest bets when it comes to long term ownership and other other car manufacturers should stop making cars in these segments Hats off to you Parag for your DIYs and your simple but effective preventive maintenance philosophy

[procrj]

The big T: Mahindra launched the TUV 300 early September and while I did look at the spy pics, the pre launch uncamoflaged pics and the launch updates, It did not make a big impression. All of that changed on the evening of 22nd October when Captain Rex's Black Tank filled my screen. I read the thread 3-4 times and kept staring at the pictures for a long long time. The tank had come crashing into my life and managed to push everything else to the back of my head.


Source - Captain Rex's ownership thread. Still maintain that the tank looks best in black.

23rd October was Vijayadashami and I was not sure if the M&M showroom would be open. Walked into one right next door and was surprised to see customers walking around. One look at the tank and I was floored. Looked massive, interiors looked good, fit & finish was also pretty good and the view from the driver's seat was simply awesome. Requested for a test drive and was given the T8 AMT. A quick 10 minute spin around the block and came out impressed. Details Here

The next few days were spent reading every post and thread on the forum which mentioned the TUV300. After which I started looking at just about every article and review of the Tank. There were times when I watched the same video over and over again and still was not satisfied. On 27th October I took a long test drive of the manual T8 and came out a happy man. My better half also fell in love with the Tank and it was clear that the Tank was our primary contender. Detailed Impressions

Then came the official review on 28th October and it confirmed everything that I had experienced during the test drives and at the showroom. While the previous drive answered a few questions there was still this lingering doubt about its performance and handling on open roads at high speeds. Scheduled another long test drive for the 31st of Oct and spent the next few days eagerly waiting for the same. On the 31st October, I drove the Tank for 2 hours in varied traffic conditions and was completely satisfied with what M&M had put together. For me it was the complete package and I knew that the T8 red would in all probability be my next ride.Detailed Impressions

Based on all the TDs of the car & inputs from owners & prospective owners, the report card for the Tank looked like this


Are you looking at me?

[procrj]

Ertiga SHVS While I was making up my mind regarding the tank, I was also keeping an eye open for the new Ertiga SHVS. On 8th Nov I was driving back home and saw the new ertiga on display and decided to check it out. Walked into an empty showroom and the display car was the new VDI SHVS. Got behind the steering wheel and the front seats are very comfortable and the height adjustment range is good. Under thigh support is better than the Tank and the huge windshield gives you a great view of road ahead. Spoke to the SA and he mentioned that the TD vehicle will be available in a few days time. And all this time, somewhere in the back of my head there was this small voice that kept saying “the tank is better, the tank is better” . Compared to the tank, the ertiga felt like filet mignon – good, tender and wrapped in layers but not all that tasty! (no offence to ertiga owners) OT: Whats with all the beige!

10 big ones on a Red T8

All this waiting and watching was really getting on my nerves and In the end it came down to a simple question: Did I enjoy driving the Tank? The answer was a resounding YES!. Every time I drove it, I walk out with a grin like a kid entering a candy store! That sealed the deal and with approval from the home ministry, I decided to book the red Tank. The next week was spent reading multiple threads on the forum regarding EMI, finance options, insurance etc and I must say that Team BHP is like a wishing well. As long as you have the patience to search for something, you will find a thread/post that talks about it.

On 19th Nov after work, I booked the Red TUV 300 T8 Manual variant.
Ex Showroom: 8,63,861
Road tax+RTO: 1,34,939
Insurance: 22,000
On Road: 10,20,770

After reading about SBI Loan + OD facility and the flexibility that it allows, I opted for the same through the dealer even though HDFC was offering lower fixed interest rate.

Intolerable wait

Dec 10th came and went and I was still waiting for a confirmation from my SA. Managed to get in touch with him and he mentioned that my car should be billed to them on 16th Dec. 4 PM Dec 16th I call my SA and his manager speaks to me. He mentions that M&M have not alloted Red T8s and hence I will get my car in Jan. Dropped a stinker to TUV Area Sales Manager and he responds that even he cannot help. So I wait for Jan and spend the last few weeks of 2015 grounded at home and not tearing around in my tank.

This wait was a very trying period as I was tempted to walk into a Nexa showroom and pick up the S Cross 1.3 Zeta because of the discounts that were on offer. Managed to restrain myself from walking into a nexa showroom for 15 days and on 2nd Jan the SA calls and confirms that a Red T8 has been billed & shipped and I should get it in 10 days.

The KUV100 launch plus the Pongal/Sankranti festive season prolonged my wait. All I wanted was a glimpse of the tank. And given my luck, there is a sudden deluge of TUV owners talking about recalls, breakdowns and bad service experience. All said and done, the wait did nothing to improve my experience or my state of mind as I already had a to do list for the parts that need to be changed even before I got my tank.

The only upside was that I got my dashcam & the hardwiring kit before my car! I never really had to wait for anything this long in the recent past - only other thing that comes to mind is watching The Dark Knight and then realizing that there are 4 long years before the Dark Knight Rises hits the screens. And I am sincerely praying that the Tank will be the like the Joker in Dark Knight an not Bane in TDKR

[procrj]

Gimme Red!

After a lot of follow up and some harsh words from my end, I finally got the ms SA to agree to show me the tank on morning of 17th Jan. Took a printout of the detailed PDI doc that Autoindian had shared and went to the showroom. The PDI did not reveal anything alarming and the the car looked to be the real deal. More details here

Look at that Grin


I was ecstatic and gave my go ahead to register the car. Again after multiple follow ups & reminder messages, the SA mentions that he will need my photographs & ID proof, which he had failed to collect on the 17th. At every step & stage, the dealer or SA have missed/forgotten something or the other and I have had to go back & share the same. The entire experience with India Garage Palace Cross has not been something to remember and Mahindra will have to work with their dealers to improve the same.

D-Day H-Hour

Reached the showroom at 11 am and walked down to the delivery bay to find the car in a sad state. There was dust all over and rain on the previous day only made matters worse. I had made up my mind that I will not let anything ruin the day and hence was ready to take anything that India Garage or M&M will throw at me. Spoke to my SA who apologized for the state of the car and told me that it will be clean as a whistle in 30 minutes. I waited for him to put together all the documents and carefully went through all them to ensure that the engine & chasis number are right and my name is spelled correctly in all the docs. Signed the docs and gave the SA his gift and distributed sweets to other folks in the showroom. We then walked down to the delivery bay and I see that the car has been given a cursory once over. I see support staff polishing the wheels, trying to reach the center of the roof to clean the same etc.

I give up and ask my SA to hand over the keys. After the obligatory photo ceremony, I finally climb into the tank with a big grin plastered all over my face. I start the car and drive into the maddening crowd hoping that the tank will take me far far away



Little did I know that M&M (Murphy & Murphy?) had other plans in store for me. The joy of sitting behind the wheel of a new car was just beginning to sink in and I see that the battery indicator is still on. I drive to the fuel station and get a full tank of fuel & still the indicator stays on. I call my SA and he connects me to the service center head, who I had spoken to a few days ago to check if my tank had a recall for resonator or FDM. Long story short, I ended up driving 10 km to the service station to get the problem fixed. Looking at the bright side, I got to experience Mahindra's customer centric approach at the showroom & service center within a few hours of buying a new car. What joy!!!

Approach a service advisor who immediately took the car to an empty bay and checked the fuse & other connections. He then called a technician who then played around with the sensor and asked the advisor for a spare. The spare came from a new TUV which was in the workshop for the PDI (I am guessing). Changed the battery sensor & viola, all is OK. It took 20-25 minutes for the problem to be fixed but I had to wait almost 40 minutes for a job card to be create and then closed.

Finally found a stretch of relatively empty tarmac and drove for about 45 minutes to get a feel of the car and check if brakes, headlights and all other parts of the car are working the way they are meant to. Drove close to 130 km on the first day and at the end of the day, I was a happy man. Thanked god & murphy for a relatively hassle free day and went to sleep praying that my nightmare of getting stuck on a desolate road in the middle of the night never comes true.


M&M increased the price of TUV on 8th Jan and hence the final or road break up for my Red TUV 300 T8 Manual variant is:

Ex Showroom: Rs 8,77,104
Road tax+RTO: Rs 1,37,002 (road tax in KA is 15.4 % including the swatch bharat cess, which me the dealer only charged Rs 1,928 for handling & registration)
Insurance: Rs 25,180
On Road: Rs 10,39,286

[procrj]

Reload

I had decided that the dwarf will get the best treatment there is and hence 3M was the preferred destination. Drove to 3M basaveshwarnagar and Shankar, Arvind & Team ensured that all dirt,dust & grime was washed off and the tank was squeaky clean. More details here



Paint Quality
I was unable to judge the pain quality on the day of delivery thanks to how clean the car was & also Mr Murphy’s interventions. The paint quality on body panels, bonnet & roof are consistent but the finishing could have been better. Park a red Zest/Bolt/Zica next to my tank and you will see what I am talking about. I had an opportunity to compare my tank with a red bolt XT and I wish that M&M could deliver better. The bumpers are body coloured but its basically a black bumper that has been painted over. Hence the quality of bumper paint is 2 notches blow the Zest/Bolt.

Would rate them 3.5/5 for paint quality

Hit the Road
Over the weekend of 23/24th Jan I drove the tank for almost 600 km and it was pure unbridled joy. Now I know why some folks just cant let go off their diesel work horses. The torque from a diesel engine is addictive and there were times when I was in 2nd gear at 20 kmph and the minute the car hits the 1500 rpm, it would surge ahead. Not so great that it will push you back against your seat but enough to let you know that the tank has what it takes to really get going when required.

I drove on both 2 lane state highways as well as 4 lane express way and the dwarf did not let me down. With 6 adults + 1 kid on board it was able to easily overtake buses/trucks on 2 lane roads and was very steady at 100 kmph. Steering feels good at high speeds and on the whole the tank is solid as a rock even while changing lanes or braking from high speeds. All said and done this is a 1.6Tonne machine and it helps if you can plan your moves in advance to prevent sudden braking or lane changes.

On flat roads, the tank is at 2200 - 2300 RPM while cruising at 100 kmph and still has a decent reserve of power to reach the 120-130 kmph mark. Only once did I touch 130 kmph and rev needle was at 3000 RPM. M&M should have added a 6th gear and ensured that the tank could do 120 kmph @ 2000 RPM. That would have made this a real mile muncher.

Red Dwarf – City driving experience

The below feedback is based on 350 KM of city driving which was with 100% AC





Red Dwarf – Highway driving experience

The below feedback is based on 700 KM of highway driving which was with 100% AC and includes highway specific feedback. Doesn't mean that the city feedback should be ignored while reading the highway feedback.


Note:
1) FE of 13.5 kmpl was based on primarily city driving in the first 3 days of ownership
2) Have not got a chance to test washers, wipers, defogger, engine eco mode and many other features of the tank. Will update thread with experiences at a later date
3) Value for money and comparison with S Cross Zeta TCO is based on a lot of assumptions for service cost. Don't just take my word for it, pleas do your own math

[procrj]

Key takeaways

Red Dwarf – Rating 4/5

1. Outstanding value for money and well designed product from M&M. Hoping that niggles will not turn into nightmares for owners
2. Tuned for city driving but has enough power to deliver on highway runs. However a 6th gear would have reduced the stress on the engine and made this an even better cruiser
3. Very comfortable front seats and moderate rear bench ensures that you really dont feel the fatigue while driving long distances. AMT in city traffic will be a real boon
4. ACC & Cruise control should have been included at an incremental cost or should have been made available as part on an optional pack
5. Fuel economy – after the first tank full, I drove 500 km and went back for a refill. Dwarf gulped down 37 Liters of diesel which means a FE of 13.5 kmpl. Will wait a little longer before I start to crib about the FE
6. Good build quality. Panel gaps are consistent, dashboard plastics are strong and even under harsh sunlight do not smell, engine protection is big plus, body panels do not flex much.
7. Great headlamps. I have been using only the fog lamp while driving in the city but the low & high beam have good throw. The static bending lamps are very bright and just light up the area on both sides of the tank.

Booking & Delivery Experience – Rating 2.5/5

1. Never buy insurance from the dealer. Always search online & get quotes before you finalize on insurance
2. Drive the car during the PDI. Most dealers do not allow this but some issues will not be identified unless you drive the car. If you cant drive, then start the car and ensure that you carefully check everything possible
3. Follow up for just about everything. Don't assume/presume that its taken care of
4. Evaluate your SA before you book your car. My SA was a trainee – as was the case with most SA's in India Garage Palace Cross. I assumed that the initial enthusiasm will ensure that the SA goes a little further to improve customer experience but I was wrong.
   
5. Loan processing is very quick and you just need to ensure that you provide all the required docs in advance. My loan was processed by SBI in 1 day flat but yes I had applied for the loan and shared the required documents in Nov'15
6. Read & Check every single document before you sign. On the battery warranty, the last digit of my chasis number was missing. When in doubt, go to the Team BHP PDI check list

Why you shouldn't buy the tank?

This is for all the fence sitters and nay sayers

1. You believe that machines should fix themselves without human intervention.Just kidding! If you absolutely abhor spending time at service centers and talking shop with folks on the floor, then please dont buy the tank. Niggles and part replacement are still WIP and it will take a while for M&M to sort all the issues with this car.
2. You believe that corners and twisties need to be handled with minimal deceleration from steady state. There is body roll in the tank and you will have to take corners at sedate mid life crisis level speeds.
3. Mach 1 is slow, you need more! While the tank does do moderately high triple digit speeds, I have experienced figos & i20 zip by while the tank plods on. If your need for speed is absolutely necessary & not definitely maybe, then give this rumbler a miss
4. Phir diesel bharna hai kya? (need to fill diesel again?) FE is not its USP given its weight and if you want maximum output per liter, then Nexa/ Maruti is the brand for you. If the tank returns 16-17 kmpl on highway runs, I will be ecstatic!
5. Where are all the lines & curves? Yes, the tank is downright ugly. In fact its so ugly that it transcends into the realm of strangely beautiful If you believe that build quality & longevity can only be delivered by foreign car OEMs, then the tank is not for you. Its strong like mild steel but in todays world of high strength aluminium alloys, you will feel its bulky & outdated.

I would like to paraphrase the joker & say that the tank is neither an unstoppable force nor is it an immovable object. Its a simple car that helps you deal with all the chaos that's found on Indian roads.

Thanks for reading

[procrj]

Standing Tall


But a Dwarf I am


Ready to roll


Spot me if you can


Steps & ladders


Like a roof over your head


Gotcha in my sight!



The mature side

[procrj]

Matte finish of headlamp cluster looks classy and static bending lamps really light up the corners. Pity the folks driving low slung cars who get caught in the glare of my static lamps


The dangerous edge. Got hit once even though I was careful.


The rattle snake - front driver side window. Door pads are extra thin and flex a little when used


Rear door open wide but still a little hard to climb in as there is no hold. Some kind of handle in the B or C pillar would have helped immensely


Simple and clean instrument cluster. Getting used to the big gear indicator but it has it uses - especially when you are holding the clutch and realize that you haven't seen the gear indicator on for a while


Good quality floor mats. Much better than the plain vanilla rubber mats but still not as good as the noodle mats. Need to DIY the noodle mats soon as the carpet is eating all the dirt & grime



Door shut lines & panel gaps are consistent and minimal when compared to other M&M products or even some competitor products. Doors also close with a decent thud.



Past & Current niggles
1. Battery charging lamp on even while driving - got the battery sensor fixed and problem solved
2. Vibrations in A pedal - Got the vacuum modulator changed & resonator was also fitted
3. Driver window rattle at low speeds - Need to get this fixed
4. Tiny metallic clink sound while changing gears - Could not replicate this at the service center but I can still hear this. Need to monitor

Will keep the thread updated over the course of time. Hoping that M&M doesnt make scapegoats of early adopters and will take necessary action to mitigate/remove problems & niggles.

Thanks for reading. Drive safe

[Rudra Sen]

Mod note: Thread moved from Assembly line to Test-Drives & Initial Ownership Reports. Thanks for sharing this fantastic detailed review.

[procrj]

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Mod note: Thread moved from Assembly line to Test-Drives & Initial Ownership Reports. Thanks for sharing this fantastic detailed review.

Thanks Rudra & Thanks a lot GTO for that nudge

[paragsachania]

Lovely report there!

Its raining TUVs on the forum and that shows how good as a product it is for the Money you pay. Congratulations and here's wishing a fantastic journey on your Red Dwarf.

[AutoIndian]

Many congratulations procrj on getting your Red Dwarf and a wonderful ownership report highlighting your thought process in chosing the tank. Lovely pictures of the tanks with some very good captions. This will be one thread that I will be completely glued to. Here's wishing you a thousands of happy miles with your Red Dwarf.

p.s. Hey Parag I wanted to be the first one to congratulate procrj on his ownership thread going live, but you just beat me by a couple of minutes