[nirmaljusdoit]

Great review and awesome pics !!

Any idea why the superb captain seats in the Innova havent been carried over into the Fortuner ??!!

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

Is there EBD?

Yes, the Fortuner is equipped with Electronic Brake Force Distribution.

I am a great fan of the highway ride of the Safari

That won't change after a drive in the Fortuner. But then, the Safari wallows like a boat which the Fortuner doesn't.

Originally Posted by sam003

Good review GTO, but I feel they were missing sporty colors too.

You betcha! I have already put in my recommendations to Toyota and hope that rich maroons and greens make their way here soon.

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

Not all know how to drive SUV and use the engine braking.

Diesels by themselves aren't good at engine braking (WRT petrols).

3) 2WD version availability. This is necessary. How many will use this car offroad ? This can reduce cost, increase FE a bit which is good for average Fortuner user.

As mentioned earlier, the Fortuner diesel is not built in 2WD anywhere.

5) Assembly in India. Why not CKD route ?

It's already assembled in India. That's key to the competitive price (alongwith Innova part sharing).

Originally Posted by muni

@GTO:
Excellent review as usual and the pics also look sharper than before. Is that from the new Pana LX3.

Get this, I just got delivery of the black Lumix LX3 yesterday. 2 days too late for the Fortuner test, yet well in time for the tests coming up . Will post in detail on the digital cameras thread.

It would have looked more decent if they had chosen a dark grey shade instead of the Fake wood in the central console and on the doors.

Market preferences dictate the beige colour + wood panelling (plus, the liberal use of chrome). I'm a fan of beige (and black interiors too) and have no problem with the interior shade.

I am eagerly waiting for the yaris which IMO is what Toyota needs to focus although looks very similar in proportions and looks to the Swift.

Absolutely. Did you look up my recent thread on Toyota's dealership expansion? They are definitely expanding the network to support a volume car.

Originally Posted by SkyWalker

The huge success of it will provide some good sense of direction to other manufacturers - perfect pricing makes a difference.

It does indeed. I'm glad Toyota didn't go the Jazz way to command a huge premium for the T badge. A well-priced 20 lakh product has 5,000 confirmed buyers in 13 days, but a premium-priced 8 lakh product has only 2,600 customers in 2 months! Stuff for a case study man.

Originally Posted by jkdas

Can you compare the braking part with respect to the heavy alternatives we get to buy here.

Will compare to the upcoming Endy.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by v1kram

Great review GTO and thanks for the PM too.

Hey, thanks to you for the prompt reply on this thread!

I have lived with my Fortuner (2.7 VVTi) for the past 18 months and clocked approx 80,000 kms (at an average of 5000+ kms per month & 3 months of my vacation), all i can say it's an absolute "WORK HORSE".

Finally IMHO, it's more of a WORK HORSE than LUXURY SUV.

Exactly what I mean to convey through my review. The Fortuner is a work horse like few others.

* Average/poor brakes

I see its not an India-spec problem.

* Max speed restricted to 160

Umm, why? We definitely went over 160 kph.

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

Looking forward to all the diesel SUV action ahead !!!

Originally Posted by lamborghini

What ricky is trying to say is that the CR-V diesel will give a tough fight to Toyota

I'm pretty certain the Fortuner's initial success & market response have had competitors call in overnight meetings to tune their strategy (read = diesel SUVs). I say, bring them on!

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Regarding the 3rd row, the space shown in the pic is when 2nd row pushed completely back?

Nearly, yes. If middle-row passengers are willing to compromise (by moving their seat ahead), then the last row comfort can be improved. But only just so.

[v1kram]

Originally Posted by Dippy

I am surprised at Toyota not offering basic braking safety features even on the more bigger engined variants. I think Indian Fortuners can forget about getting rear discs anywhere in the near future. Braking is a major issue.

True, toyota need to provide discs at rear too. Most of the time i feel like the vehicle just slows down, doesn't stop. Adding to that there is a weird noise when braking in uneven surfaces.

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Apart for the stopping power i think this vehicle works well, as v1kram said and thats exactly what i would look for in this category. Humble suggestion to members to stop comparing with Crv (we have been living with one for couple of years), its just a crossover ie a raised sedan. And apart from sedan like drive, wont be able to/doesnt deliver anything that an SUV does!

Regarding the 3rd row, the space shown in the pic is when 2nd row pushed completely back?

EDIT: Honda dude is right, Crv is Civic platform.

Can't compare Fortuner and CRV, both serves different purpose.

Originally Posted by GTO

Hey, thanks to you for the prompt reply on this thread!
Exactly what I mean to convey through my review. The Fortuner is a work horse like few others.
I see its not an India-spec problem.
Umm, why? We definitely went over 160 kph.

Brakes are issue in Fortuner, we have couple of more Fortuners in our company, all share same issues irrelevant to 2.7/4.0VVTi.
Regarding maximum speed, not sure though why there is an auto cut off, is this not the case with indian specs?

[sun]

thanks for the precise and well laid out review.

I would like to know one thing.. what was the RPM while cruising @ 100 kmph in 5th gear ?

[sushanthr77]

A Fortuner at this prise will eat the rest in this price bracket in India. The Indian variant looks slightly different from the one I see in UAE.

Having traveled extensively as a passenger in both the vehicles mentioned in the title, I'd like to make a few points.

01. The front seat comfort of the Pajero is far superior to Fortuner.
02. Fortuner's rear seats do not comfortably accommodate three passengers. The Pajero does a better job here.
03. The third row seats in Fortuner can be used only for kids. The Pajero feels a bit more roomy here as well.
04. I find the interiors of the Pajero (all black) slightly more up-market than the Fortuners.
05. The ride is very stiff / hard in the Fortuner. Every bump and unevenness can be felt. Mitsu has a lot more softer suspension.
06. Pajero's high speed stability (140kmph+) feels more assuring than the Fortuners.

If I am not wrong, they both fall in the same price bracket here in UAE. Sadly its not the case in India.

Some how the Mitsu feels a lot better as a Passenger ;-)

[4x4addict]

@sushantr77L:

Montero and Fortuner are in different price brackets. The direct compentition from the Pajero/Montero is the Prado and not the Fortuner. Forutner is one leg below the Prado. How about comparing the Fortuner with the Range Rover or Landcruiser Amazon?


To the Pajero owner who did not feel the power difference between the Pajero 2.8 and Fortuner, I suggest checking out the difference in the 0 - 100 times of both vehicles. A difference of 5 seconds is not trivial. The Pajero is geared very short to compensate for the lack of power so you don't feel it underpowered below about 60 kmph. On the highway you will struggle to keep up with a Fortuner. Above 120 the pajero engine is straining at a very high rpm due to the short gearing.

GTO: You owe 150 bucks that I just spend on the latest Autocar India magazine. Your review and photos are better than theirs. I bought the mag before I saw this thread.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by v1kram

Regarding maximum speed, not sure though why there is an auto cut off, is this not the case with indian specs?

Nope, no cutoff @ 160 kph at all.

Originally Posted by sushanthr77

01. The front seat comfort of the Pajero is far superior to Fortuner.
02. Fortuner's rear seats do not comfortably accommodate three passengers. The Pajero does a better job here.
03. The third row seats in Fortuner can be used only for kids. The Pajero feels a bit more roomy here as well.
04. I find the interiors of the Pajero (all black) slightly more up-market than the Fortuners.
05. The ride is very stiff / hard in the Fortuner. Every bump and unevenness can be felt. Mitsu has a lot more softer suspension.
06. Pajero's high speed stability (140kmph+) feels more assuring than the Fortuners.

The Pajero you are comparing the Fortuner to is sold as the "Montero" in India. At a price of 53 lakhs on the road. It is the previous gen Pajero (discontinued in most parts of the world) that sells in India at 23 lakhs and is a direct competitor to the Fortuner (you'll see a pic on the first page of both). The previous gen Pajero is beaten in nearly all areas by the Fortuner, while the Montero (which you speak of) is in an entirely different segment with its price of 50 lakhs.

[karpusv]

Originally Posted by amit

....Considering the high dimensions of this SUV, wouldn't it difficult to pull down the tail gate to close it? What if women are operating the gate?

How about this. Guess its not been addressed here before.

[sushanthr77]

Originally Posted by GTO

The Pajero you are comparing the Fortuner to is sold as the "Montero" in India....the Montero (which you speak of) is in an entirely different segment with its price of 50 lakhs.

At that cost, buying a "Montero" would be ridiculous simply because the difference in cost between them is enormous!

Since most Indians love big diesel SUVs, I think Fortuner will push CR-V, Endy, Captiva and probably Accord, Superb, Camry etc to oblivion.

BTW, am I the only one who feels that the rear profile looks very similar to Innova?

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by Dippy

I am surprised at Toyota not offering basic braking safety features even on the more bigger engined variants. I think Indian Fortuners can forget about getting rear discs anywhere in the near future. Braking is a major issue.



If the Grand Vitara DDIS is priced in the 20 to 21 lakhs range, the Fortuner may have some competition but again the Vitara feels smaller in size compared to the Fortuner. I don think the CRV diesel will pose a threat to the Toyota mainly because of the sticker price.

The petrol CRV is already frightfullt expensive now and the diesel will only be more pricey. The CRV is not really an SUV anyway. The Endeavour is old now and I didnt find the face lift too impressive either. It would be interesting to see how it would fare against its Japanese counterpart.

The VW Tiguan will definately not be cheap by the time it hits our roads and going by European standards, it will be expensive to live with and reliability issues cannot be ruled out, two areas where the Toyota comes out tops.

@dippy

I agree with most of what you said - the Grand Vitara with a deisel will surely be a popular vehicle. Given that it costs around 16L ex-showroom, I am sure the price of the deisel will remain in the 18L range. Now that should be interesting to watch.

As for the Tiguan - agreed that it is German so expensive to maintain over the Jap counterparts - BUT the feel of a German car is indisputeable & better than it's asian cousins. Having said that - I agree that the Japs will rule to roost as the economics would work favourable for the Japs

I just hope the Tiguan is in the low 20's - then there will be competition worth watching !!




Cheers

[1-Testosterone]

Originally Posted by sushanthr77

Since most Indians love big diesel SUVs, I think Fortuner will push CR-V, Endy, Captiva and probably Accord, Superb, Camry etc to oblivion.

How come it can push Superb to Oblivion? Fortuner doesn't even comes close to Superb in most of the things....in fact, superb is in different league altogether. You're comparing a luxury saloon with an old school SUV.

[karpusv]

Originally Posted by bj96

Saw one near Pune Central signal on university road from behind- almost missed it. Looked like another Innova V from behind in the crowd of vehicles till I found the Fortuner badge. The missing spare wheel on the tail gate takes away the Jeep-ish look. Road presence? yes from front but disappointing at the back. I like SUVs with spare wheels bolted on the tail gate. My personal view.

-BJ

Is it really difficult to make out the visible difference in the tail lamps, shape-wise? Not to mention the positioning height of the lamps?

And if you were to mount the spare wheel on the tailgate, then the open door would just fall down under the weight of the wheel, unless you add high capacity hyd. struts.

[neoonwheels]

Interiors of the Fortuner are ugly for a car costing 18L+. But then who cares when it has clocked 5K bookings

[Dippy]

Originally Posted by v1kram

True, toyota need to provide discs at rear too. Most of the time i feel like the vehicle just slows down, doesn't stop. Adding to that there is a weird noise when braking in uneven surfaces.

Bang on Vikram. That is exactly what me and Rehaan encountered during the braking we did. I think braking is the major issue which Toyota needs to address at this time.

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

@dippy

I agree with most of what you said - the Grand Vitara with a deisel will surely be a popular vehicle. Given that it costs around 16L ex-showroom, I am sure the price of the deisel will remain in the 18L range. Now that should be interesting to watch.

As for the Tiguan - agreed that it is German so expensive to maintain over the Jap counterparts - BUT the feel of a German car is indisputeable & better than it's asian cousins. Having said that - I agree that the Japs will rule to roost as the economics would work favourable for the Japs

I just hope the Tiguan is in the low 20's - then there will be competition worth watching !!


Cheers

Agree with you completely. The German build quality is second to none but sadly the same cannot be said about the reliability factor.

Wishful thinking about the Tiguan in the low 20s but lets see.