[shankar.balan]

thats nice info Mr HVK.
thanks!

I had gone to the ASC yesterday to pay up my pending bill ( for the 40K service). I took the chance to meet the Service Manager and spend time with him.
Also took the opportunity to change my Scorp AC Vents - the ones that came in 2008 werent very nice nor good at throwing air out. So since M&M themselves reverted to the earlier AC vent shape in the MHawk versions, I chose to put those MHawk type AC Vents in my vehicle. The AC throw is much better than before - especially now that it is humid-ish - one likes the air throw efficiency to be higher!
I ve taken one more step and removed the 2 jump seats from the back, freeing up a humongous amount of space in the luggage bay! truly amazing. the seats of course are in cold storage at home under wraps. And will be given to the potential buyer of the vehicle when i do decide to sell/ upgrade it some time.
The Service Manager had one more pointer. He said as far as the Oils are concerned, to prolong the overall life of the vehicle, to do a complete oil change every 10K kms, engine oil, differential oil and gear oil. While the manufacturer recommendation is that the oils are changed less frequently, this was his advice - based on experience he said. Since it is not too excessive a cost if one uses the manufacturer recommended oil grades I think this is worthy of consideration.
If one does about 12000-14000km in a year and typically services the vehicle once every 6 months, I think this is a good way to go if one intends hanging on to the vehicle for a longer time.

[MileCruncher]

I have recently bought a Getaway 4X4 and was looking underbody in the front suspension area. The front suspension is IFS but doesn't have coil springs.

Can someone explain the functioning of this suspension system?

Cheers

[SPIKE ARRESTOR]

Ani, if you have the coil springs at the front, you will not have space for the drive shaft to pass through (in this case) to the wheel center line. Hence, as an alternative to the coil spring a torsion bar arrangement is used. Let me see if I have a pic to clarify further.

Spike

PS- Today is off na? Go underneath the truck it will make things clearer.

[Styler]

HVK Sir,

Great tips, I have a 7 year old Scorpio, and at the next service I will make sure to get all the Fuel Pipes and the Turbo Rubber pipes replaced.

One Question to you HVK Sir. For our Non-CRDE Scorpios it was recommended to change the Engine Oil every 5000 kms. How often do you change Engine Oil, and what Oil do you use ?

Styler

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by Styler

Great tips, I have a 7 year old Scorpio, and at the next service I will make sure to get all the Fuel Pipes and the Turbo Rubber pipes replaced.

For our Non-CRDE Scorpios it was recommended to change the Engine Oil every 5000 kms. How often do you change Engine Oil, and what Oil do you use ?

Styler

Except for the oil change after the first 5,000 kms, oil changes in my Scorpio have been once every 10,000 kms. I have been visiting ASC every 5,000 kms and we check the oil condition but seldom has the viscosity or condition of the oil necessitated earlier change. There have been some occasions when I have changed earlier too.

Till October 2009 (~2,10,000 kms), I have been using the standard Maximile engine oil, but from then on, I have started using mineral oils like Chevron Delo 400 and Mobil Delvac. Never used synthetic oils. The use of the Chevrons and Mobils has led to smoother engine performance and better FE.

I will share my updated long-term maintenance log book in the coming weeks (need some updation and corrections).

[Styler]

Hi,

HVK Sir, I have not got the Fuel Injectors opened and Cleaned till now. I am thinking of getting this at a MICO Service Center. The ASC people have no way of getting the injectors cleaned, nor do they recommend it. Have you ever got the Injectors opened and cleaned ?

I have been using Mahindra Maximile / Crown available at the ASCs till now. I have been changing every 5000 kms till now . My Scorpio has done 80000.

I always have avoided getting Other Engine Oils, as I was unsure of a reliable place to buy genuine Third Party Oils.

And do you guys get the Non Mahindra Mineral / Synthetic Oils put in at the ASCs ?

Styler

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by Styler

Hi,

HVK Sir, I have not got the Fuel Injectors opened and Cleaned till now. I am thinking of getting this at a MICO Service Center. The ASC people have no way of getting the injectors cleaned, nor do they recommend it. Have you ever got the Injectors opened and cleaned ?

I have been using Mahindra Maximile / Crown available at the ASCs till now. I have been changing every 5000 kms till now . My Scorpio has done 80000.

I always have avoided getting Other Engine Oils, as I was unsure of a reliable place to buy genuine Third Party Oils.

And do you guys get the Non Mahindra Mineral / Synthetic Oils put in at the ASCs ?

Styler

No, I have never cleaned the injectors so far. I have relied on the flushing/decarbonising treatment which the ASCs love (because it is expensive and debatable whether it is really effective) and also use premium diesels intermittently. Never used System D additives in diesel. I have visited Bosch service centres and they will clean the injectors, but I have never done so. In view of the recent problems with the fuel systems, I am thinking of doing so next fortnight.

I have chnaged engine oils (with oil supplied by me) at ASCs although they are never happy about customers bringing in their own stuff (that is where my long-standing relationship and loyalty has helped). In the past 1 year, I have stopped patronising ASCs because of their irreverent attitude towards old Scorpios and poor quality of service, and preferred to have it done myself by independent mechanics under my personal supervision.

Please change all rubbers and if changing belts do not forget to change the pulleys too (although ASCs keep telling you there is no need)

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by MileCruncher

The front suspension...doesn't have coil springs.

That's what happens when you take the Tornado swimming in the Bay of Bengal - the coil springs melt and disappear in the salt water!

Jokes apart, here are a couple of links that explain things quite well: Torsion-Bar Springs, Torsion Bar, and Independent Suspension - 4 Wheel and Offroad Magazine.
Car Bibles : The Car Suspension Bible page 4 of 5.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

No, I have never cleaned the injectors so far. I have relied on the flushing/decarbonising treatment which the ASCs love (because it is expensive and debatable whether it is really effective) and also use premium diesels intermittently. Never used System D additives in diesel.

HVK, do try System D like you use premium diesel - i.e. occasionally. Before you start getting your ASC to open up the injectors and physically clean them, try a couple of tankfuls of System-D. And do certainly clean out the diesel tank at an FNG - if it hasn't been done yet, I would say it's a must. My observation & experience is that more crud is left behind in the tank when using premium diesels (I ran my Indica and Accent on an exclusive diet of Xtra-Mile, until the Accent's fuel pump filter choked up one day - and the service manager at HMP showed me a long list of cars who faced the same problem), although I am at a loss to explain why. I now use regular diesel with occasional System-D.

Also, flushing / decoking the engine is not something I like - I would rather change engine oil back-to-back twice in a 10k-km interval (though my oil change interval is not allowed to exceed 8k-km on the Scorpio, even if it means an extra trip to the ASC).

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

HVK, do try System D like you use premium diesel - i.e. occasionally. Before you start getting your ASC to open up the injectors and physically clean them, try a couple of tankfuls of System-D. And do certainly clean out the diesel tank at an FNG - if it hasn't been done yet, I would say it's a must. My observation & experience is that more crud is left behind in the tank when using premium diesels (I ran my Indica and Accent on an exclusive diet of Xtra-Mile, until the Accent's fuel pump filter choked up one day - and the service manager at HMP showed me a long list of cars who faced the same problem), although I am at a loss to explain why. I now use regular diesel with occasional System-D.

Also, flushing / decoking the engine is not something I like - I would rather change engine oil back-to-back twice in a 10k-km interval (though my oil change interval is not allowed to exceed 8k-km on the Scorpio, even if it means an extra trip to the ASC).

Thanks for the tips, I also have stopped doing the flushing/decarbonising treatment sometime ago, but was forced to do it in the middle of this trip at Trivandrum in a desperate bid to find a quick solution to the power loss that was happening in dangerous situations like when I was overtaking at high speeds.

[shankar.balan]

introduction of system D along with a tank ful of diesel does make a perceptible difference in "feel". It also marginally improves FE if one keeps to about 90-110 on highways. I have experienced the same.

[condor]

@Kumar saab, Sys-D should help your Scorp. I have tried Sys-D on my Sumo, and use it regularly (not every fill).

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

introduction of system D along with a tank ful of diesel does make a perceptible difference in "feel". It also marginally improves FE if one keeps to about 90-110 on highways. I have experienced the same.

Originally Posted by condor

@Kumar saab, Sys-D should help your Scorp. I have tried Sys-D on my Sumo, and use it regularly (not every fill).

I was going to ask this question in the fuel additives thread, but since you guys have brought up the topic, will ask it here instead:

I use normal diesel in my Scorpio. What should be the typical frequency of using System-D? Once in 5 tank fulls?

Cheers,
Vikram

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

What should be the typical frequency of using System-D? Once in 5 tank fulls?

Either 1ml/litre every 2nd or 3rd tankful, or (what I do) 0.3ml/litre (15 ml per tankful of around 40-45 litres) regularly.

[getsurya]

HVK,

Thank you for your wonderful reports and tips. They always help.

[shankar.balan]

I usually do this SYSTEM D thingamajig once a month. I am brand agnostic in this aspect and use either this System D or the other STP Diesel Additive which one can buy for Rs 180 in Reliance Autozone.

Under normal circumstances I do a Full Tank fill up job (35-40 litres typically in one fill up),on average twice/ thrice a month except if we travel out of town to Ooty or Coorg in which case we use more Diesel - atleast 2 full tanks for such a trip including the up and down and internal driving around.

Both these additives do contribute in some measure at least because the vehicle just feels happier, smoother and somehow cleaner. Acceleration is better and FE improves too - by about 1kmpl give or take.

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

I was going to ask this question in the fuel additives thread, but since you guys have brought up the topic, will ask it here instead:

I use normal diesel in my Scorpio. What should be the typical frequency of using System-D? Once in 5 tank fulls?

Cheers,
Vikram