[G13BB]

Originally Posted by Mr.Independent

I was just checking the spec for the blower - BOSCH GBL 650 which seems to be around 3.7 m3/min. Somewhere I have read that anything above 10 m3/min would have a decent air flow volume(e.g. this one which has cubic feet per min = 450, which I think translates to 12.6 m3/min) to wipe off the whole car fast. Would you concur the same? How much time does it take for you to dry the whole car post wash?

Also how convenient to use a wired leaf blower? Will the wireless one be more easy to use as opposed to wired one?

I went for Bosch GBL 650 as it is enough for me as I've got PPF coating and getting water droplets off its surface is comparatively easy, however, the one you shared can prove to be more effective.

Coming to the wireless leaf blower, I opted for the wired one as I have a charging point in my parking where I usually wash, and it made no sense for me to go for a wireless one. Also, regularly charging / replacing the batteries of the wireless leaf blower can become cumbersome. However, you should be considerate of the length of the leaf blower's wire if you are going for a wired one, you should be able to reach all the corners of the car.

[visionrider]

Congratulations for achieving your dream and making it a reality. I can only imagine the feeling you must have experienced when you took the delivery of the BlackHawk. And don't worry when it comes to us only out toys become bigger not our brain. Happy Motoring to you.

[lemedico]

I noticed a frameless irvm in one of the photos.. Is that stock or aftermarket?
You're telling me the more expensive 7OO doesn't have THAT in any of its variants

[kgt.v8]

Originally Posted by lemedico

I noticed a frameless irvm in one of the photos.. Is that stock or aftermarket?
You're telling me the more expensive 7OO doesn't have THAT in any of its variants

Auto dimming IRVM and ventilated seats were added to Scorpio-N Z8L in past 1-2 months only. Auto dimming IRVM is not yet added to XUV700 but are available in XUV400, XUV3XO and Scorpio-N. I feel Mahindra might add auto dimming IRVM to XUV700 only in 2025.

[Pro_rags]

Congrats on your new car!!. Great writeup. Your childhood toy's pic is awesome. It still makes me feel why didn't I preserve them till date.

[G13BB]

BlackHawk's First Airport Run

Yesterday early morning, I had to go to Bengaluru International Airport to pick up a friend who was returning from the US, and since she had a lot of luggage, I thought of taking my Scorpio N to check how much luggage it could take in the boot, also it would be a good long drive as Bengaluru Airport is not actually in Bengaluru as you all know.

There were three large strollers, dimensions: 32cms X 78cms X 52cms (Width, Height, Depth), and I could horizontally stack them up one on top of the other. Though it was able to take all three strollers, the boot could've been designed better as the hook points of the third row protrude out of the boot floor. As you can see from the image below, the boot floor is very busy, and luggage with hard covers, such as strollers or suitcases, cannot lay flat. Instead, they would be at an angle, eating more space than usual. I could not take pictures, apologies for that, but the below picture would give you an idea of how I stacked three strollers, one on top of the other. The topmost stroller had to be pushed back and placed on the tumbled-down third row as the boot door curves towards the roof, reducing the boot depth.



Source: www.carexpert.com.au

When the third row is folded, the Scorpio N can actually take in a lot of luggage, given that you arrange them correctly. However, it can take a lot more if you are trying to fit in soft bags such as duffle bags or bag packs instead of strollers or suitcases.

Coming to the drive experience, it was amazing, as expected, with great stability up to 80 kmph. Since it is still under the break-in period, I took it slow with variations in speed. I used to slow down and downshift every now and then. Call me conservative, but I believe in proper run-in till 1000kms/1st service. While returning with a full boot, I missed a speed-breaker since it was dark and it was at around 40 kmph when the luggage in the boot jumped and then settled again (Culprit: the uneven boot floor with hinges due to which the luggage is never settled and in place). However, the car handled the bump really well and the second row passengers were not tossed around.

Hope this helps anyone who is concerned about the luggage-carrying capacity of the Scorpio N

[G13BB]

BlackHawk's First Service and 1000kms update

Ownership Experience after 1000kms

The mandatory 1000kms pic:



The Good:
- The Scorpio N is surprisingly easy to drive for its size even within the city, thanks to the super-light steering and easy controls.
- Super-comfortable driving position coupled with great visibility all around makes it very easy to manoeuvre in the city as well as on the highway.
- The 370nm torque for the Manual variant might seem to be on the lower side, but it has enough torque to get up to speeds even with 7 people on board (mind it, it's no hot hatch!)
- There is a noticeable amount of diesel rumble at low RPMs, but past 1500 RPM, up to 3000 RPM, the engine is absolutely refined and silent by diesel standards. So much so that a lot of my friends who do not know much about cars thought it was a petrol.
- The turbo lag is very well contained and does not require a lot of gear changes.
- The body roll is surprisingly well contained for what is a BOF vehicle. Coming from low-slung, nimble cars, my expectations were pretty low, but I was blown away by the composure it showed on the bends.
- High-speed stability is absolutely brilliant, and nothing unsettles the car at high speeds.
- The headlights do a very good job, and the cornering function of the fog lamps works really well.
- The AC is an absolute chiller, and the ventilated seats work flawlessly well even when the speed is set to 1, in Bengaluru weather.
- Decently wide cabin coupled with a relatively flat floor, makes it pretty comfortable for 3 people in the second row.
- The Adrenox app works flawlessly well and has not glitched to date (Touchwood!)
- The wipers are of very high quality and do a great job of cleaning the windscreen in no time along with the washer spray.
- I am averaging 10-11 kmpl in medium to heavy Bengaluru traffic and 14-15 kmpl out on the highways, which is very respectable for a car of this size.
- As most people might think, other road users do not get scared or move out of your way due to its presence. It is a good thing for me as I was never a fan of "Road Presence" or bullying people off the road. Coming from the small Swift, it just feels very normal.
- The TPMS is a boon, especially when the fuel stations are crowded, and it is difficult to get the air checked. The TPMS has proved to be very accurate to date.

The Bad:
- The steering is very very light, although a boon in the city, it does not weigh up very well at high speeds and hence does not provide much confidence.
- The brakes are very strong, but are not the most progressive. The initial bite is very strong and can scare you silly if you are not used to it. The brake pedal feel could have been done better.
- There is a noticeable amount of vibration when turning on and off the engine.
- Even though the suspension is very complaint, there is no escaping the fact that it is a BOF at lower speeds when you go over broken patches. The BOF jiggle is very much present.
- The gear shift quality is not the best and can get a little notchy
- The clutch, even though on the lighter side, has a very long travel.
- The lane change indicator is very sensitive and turns on the indicator itself most of the time.
- Auto headlights are very sensitive and sometimes turn on even when there is enough light.
- I am not an audiophile, but I find the so-called "12 speakers Sony Surround sound" system to be average, gets the job done nonetheless.
- There is a slight delay in the horn, it takes a split second to actually sound the horn after pressing the horn pad.
- The bottle holders on the door are not deep enough to hold a 1L bottle, the cup holders near the handbrake and the ones on the rear centre arm-rest have rubber bushes to keep the bottle in place and avoid rattling, which again makes it difficult to fit 1L bottles.
- The engine becomes boomy post 3500 RPM, but 9 out of 10 times you wouldn't and shouldn't be taking it there, so it should be fine.

The Ugly:
- Even after 1000kms, I am just unable to wrap my head around the fact that there are no height-adjustable seat belts, it rests at an awkward position near my neck which makes it very uncomfortable.
- The auto wipers have a mind of their own, you are better off with using them manually.
- The hill hold assist activates only 6 out of 10 times, so you cannot rely on it completely.
- Mahindra has provided just 2 parking sensors at the rear in a car which costs almost 30 lakhs which makes it difficult to rely on them while parking in tight spaces.
- The frameless auto-dimming IRVM has an outline that reflects high beam lights, which defies the very purpose of the auto-dimming function! They could have just provided a framed IRVM if they could not get it right!
- Android Auto / Apple Carplay disconnects randomly, just like in any other Mahindra car, in such scenarios, I go to the home page and hit Android Auto, it auto connects again within a few seconds.
- Absolutely no AC vents in the 3rd row, which makes them suffocate if at all anyone bothers to sit there which is already cramped.
- Mahindra decided to fit my car with Bridgestone Ecopia tyres, which is the last one I would have opted for.
- The centre console is a fingerprint and dust magnet. Piano black is never an answer for anything in India.

Service Experience (1st Free Service)

The BlackHawk completed 1 month on the 20th of October, which was a Sunday, and hence, I booked a slot at 10 AM with Ananth Cars Bannerghatta Road. Reached on time and handed over the car for service, the assigned service person asked me to remove all the valuables from the car, including the SD card of the dashcam (not sure why, maybe they do not want us to see what they do during the service?) The 1st service includes only a checkup and does not include any oil/fluid changes.

The advisor informed me that it would take 1.5 hours and I could either wait at the lobby or he would call me once it was done. I was sure it would not be done within 1.5 hours and hence I left asking him to call me once done.

Got a call at 2:30 PM, and the car was ready to be picked up. Upon reaching, the advisor informed me that there were no issues and the next service was at 10k kms or 1 year (whichever is earlier). The car was not cleaned properly and it was quite dirty inside and out for which the advisor gave an excuse of rain (It had not rained the whole day). I mentioned the same in the feedback and left.

The total bill was 0 as expected.



The mishap on 20th October

After returning from the first service, I had parked the car in front of my house for a couple of hours as I had to go out again. It was parked completely off the road where I would usually park. While leaving, I noticed a hole on the front bumper on the right side, near the fog lamps. My heart sank and I tried to check the CCTV footage in my house which almost covered the car's parked area, but could not make out anything. Everything was fine while leaving form the service centre and nothing had happened on the way back, so even after a couple of hours of brainstorming, I could not conclude on how it happened! I finally gave up and decided to get it fixed the next day.

On the 21st, I visited the same workshop to get it fixed. The body shop executive informed me that the bumper has to be changed as there is a hole which cannot be fixed, the picture below for reference:



The bumper was not readily available with them, but they had already placed an order for 5 units that would reach them within 2 days. The executive gave me an estimate of 13,260rs. I paid an advance of 3000rs and left.

23rd Oct: Got a call from the executive and he informed me that they had received the bumper, he would get it painted and keep it ready by the 24th morning, so if I drop the car off in the morning, it would be fixed by the evening, I agreed.

24th Oct: Dropped the car at 10 AM and collected it by 6 PM. The job was done on time, but was not washed properly once again! It had rained on that day, knowing he would give the same reason again, I just ignored it and left. To my surprise, the final bill was less than initially estimated, a copy attached below:



Since the front fog lamps and sensors are not a part of the bumper, it is easy and cheap to replace the bumper. Kudos to Mahindra for that.

Not the best thing to happen on the day my BlackHawk completed 1 month, but thank god it was nothing major, and it did not happen while driving or due to my negligence! So, everything ended well, and the BlackHawk continues to be an enjoyable companion and I absolutely love the choice I have made. Zero regrets!

Ending the post with a few pics for viewing pleasure

Tell me you are a BHPian without telling me you are a BHPian



"You can go fast, I can go anywhere" Not that the Scorpio N is slow, but with weight over 2 tons and aerodynamics of a refrigerator, it isn't fast either. (Perfect placement of the sticker?)



Flexing the sideway opening boot door.



Takes 1.5 slots at the office parking, cause "Big Daddy" lol



BlackHawk's first Ayudha Pooje:





That's it for now folks, hope it was interesting and insightful. Open to answering any queries on the thread or in the DMs.

Cheers,
G13BB

[G13BB]

BlackHawk's first long drive

Hi folks, hope you all had a happy and safe Deepavali

On the occasion of the festival, we had to visit our hometown near Hassan, Karnataka on the 2nd of November. We left quite early to beat the city traffic and since we had a lot of time to spare, we thought of visiting the Mavanuru Sri Bettada Malleshwara temple on the way.

But first, breakfast
The BlackHawk cooling it's turbo after a spirited run (thanks to less traffic) while we enjoy MTR Masala Dose and Coffee



Shortly after the Channarayapatna bypass, took a left turn where things started to become interesting. The temple is around 8kms off the Bengaluru - Hassan Highway (NH 75) and takes around 20 minutes to reach from the highway. It was a single road filled with curves and the tarmac was smooth initially for a couple of kilometres which soon turned into an average country road with broken patches. The final kilometre was filled with very very steep inclined hairpin curves and blind spots. The Scorpio N dealt with everything without breaking a sweat!

The temple is placed on the top of a hill surrounded by windmills and has ample parking space, was not very crowded when we visited.

The road leading to the temple





Mavanuru Sri Bettada Malleshwara Gudi



The Windmills scientifically installed on the mountain ranges look absolutely massive and it was a breathtaking experience, viewing them from such a close distance for the first time. Most of them were stationery due to the lack of wind, but the ones which were rotating looked absolutely majestic!







BlackHawk enjoying the serene views.





At the end of the trip, we had clocked close to 500kms in the trip which included all types of roads and traffic. With absolutely no hypermiling or focus on mileage, the Scorpio N returned ~15 kmpl which is commendable for its size and weight!

To conclude, this temple is a worthy pitstop while travelling on the Bengaluru - Mangaluru NH 75.