Dadu,
Good choice of color!! I have an arctic Silver 4x2 EX too! Got it from Concorde Motors - 7th Nov, 1010 kms to date....
ICE location - Once I had to push my masters hand away (not a good thing) in order to make way for the first gear while she was trying to operate the buttons. It doesnt matter on the other gears though, they keep distance.
Agree... the remote's a help. plan to buy a iPod adapter, and a steering remote from blaupunkt, if one's available.
Clutch Operation - If you rev high(above 2k RPM) and then press clutch and change gears, you get a feeling as if something in the clutch assembly is grinding each other with some noise and vibration in the clutch, mostly on 1 & 2 gears. Clutch is soft and easy to operate otherwise.
The engine settles down after a bit of running ( or u get used to it!! ), but i find it very smooth and the noise ( even cold start ) much less after the 1k mark.
Instrument Panel/Speedometer - The angle of the panel is not appropriate to keep an eye on while driving and some indicators get blocked by the steering wheel.
A silly thought, but you may want to experiment with the seat height, and backrest angle to give you a more comfortable driving position.
Driving around - The time taken for me to travel between office has not increased or decreased, although you have to be more careful since its a big mass and can't shift lanes like in your small cars.
The positive side is that Autos *do* stop for the safari, if you give the accelerator a 'toot'....
I am also developing a habit of looking at the L-ORVM, as it was not required in my previous drive.
Same here! those two wheelers are a pain otherwise. On the lighter side, I get some fun in scaring them and the car wallahs, once in a while when they come too close.
Reversing is a problem as you have no visibility of even a 2 wheeler standing behind due to the height of the Safari. Plan to get a reverse camera later.
Tata should offer this standard on the safari.
The middle seat headrest also block Left side view while reversing, I have raised them but need to decide if removal is a better option.
I push the orvms out as much as possible showing just the edge of the car in the mirror, and use them primarily for reversing. The rear view mirror, I use to gauge the distance between the car and the other objects. The camera is a big advantage.
Some findings/ Questions
- The Kerb weight of the Safari is as per ISO:1176
- Turbo whistle can be heard if you drive with open windows
I find it settles down after some running in.
- The wheel size scares you for the effort involved in changing it after puncture. Plan to buy a portable pump using 12v CL point, atleast you can reach the nearest puncture shop with its help.
Do let me know if such a jack is available somewhere in Blr.
- What is the ambient temperature setting in the Speedometer LCD used for ??
- Is there a way to program the Remote Locking security system to lock on vehicle movement and not after 5 sec of engine start ??[/quote]