Wanted to buy a hatchback, instead ended up buying a Mahindra XUV 3XO

It is our family’s first AT Car, and the Transition from Manual to AT has been really great so far All thanks to the Aisin Sourced Torque Converter.

BHPian ZohiAres recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

First of all hello everyone.

This is my first ever-post here.

I have been avid reader for several years, but this is my first time posting something. So excuse long post.

Here is my overall Experience :

I took delivery of XUV 3XO AX5L AT (White) on 5th June.

Decision to go for XUV3XO :

We are family of 4 and I’m 24, My dad drove maruti 800 during my initial years and after that we went with santro ziplus, years passed and we decided to go for Ertiga VDi around 2013. It was my favourite, It had tons of space, we would go vacations with cousins, I learned my driving in it, so many good memories. It been wonderful 2,25,000+ kms with it and hopefully more to go.

As our family started to move and live in 2 cities, we were in the need for a good hatchback and I immediately chose Altroz.

I took test drive and found it good but, as someone who occasionally pushes harder I felt there could have been a little bit more(I know altroz racer was around the corner) adding to that all my family members found it uncomfortably low since they all have been accustomed to Ergita’s stance.

Rest of the hatchbacks in the market were having compromised rear seats so choose to move to cross over

The options were

1. Nexon
2. Venue
3. Sonet
4. Brezza
5. XUV 3XO

1. Nexon - with recent QC issues and several issues faced by my closest friend I was skeptical, but final nail on the coffin was terrible showroom experience, I had to push for 2 months to get a TD, and there were so many glitches in the TD nexon with displays and instrument cluster and I was informed by Sales Personal that since the TD was in high demand they couldn’t service it So, even though it had perfectly fitted my requirements I choose to not to proceed

2. Venue and

3. Sonet - they both had everything I could wish for and more, but for family, It was a severe compromise at the rear space. (again their standards were from ertiga)

4. Brezza - since we already had suzuki we chose to explore other manufacturers this time and power figures were comparatively low in comparison with the competition.

5. XUV 3XO - It ticked all the boxes, The Space, Engine refinements, stance,power figures and looks.

I would regularly read new post in this thread and earlier thread. The opinions on its looks, really surprised me, because I would rate myself as very choosy and will not easily compromise on looks. I respect other’s opinion But, for me the design, it actually looked great it’s even better than its sibling 700.

Variant Choice :

As a family We are planing to own this for more than 10 years and beyond and we choose to make full payment.

So the confusion was between AX5L vs AX7L

AX7L With its features over AX5L came a struggle i.e, white seat cover harder to maintain, 17 inch wheels but slightly compromised ride due to its lower profile.

Additional subwoofer which can be added later.

I could not justify myself with price difference which was over 2 lakhs

May be if we went for financing, I wouldn’t mind the negligible difference in EMI but that was not the case here

So, I went with offline booking which was for 11k on may 15th for AX5L AT.

Pre Delivery:

On 25th our SA called and informed that AX5L AT White has been loaded and its headed towards their dealership and asked whether we would like to opt it. My father absolutely preferred White over anything, So we opted for white, SA persisted me to pay the full ex-showroom amount since there is huge competition for it amongst their dealership for that i gently rejected and explained to him that as we already own a car and there is no need for any hurry and i wont initiate payment until I get to look at the car.

So on 29th of may, the car reached the yard, SA invited us to take a look. Me along with my family went and checked all the side and took photos from all the angles it was full of dust and SA promised us that they will clean it thoroughly before the delivery.

Then I took a leap of faith and settled the ex-showroom price amount, I gently rejected their insurance since even after their maximum discount it costed double what others quoted.

Then came the shock, I have previously informed them that I would be temporarily registering it and I would permanently register it in Where I live i.e, Karaikal. SA informed me that it would take more than 2 weeks to get temporary. Next day We had to go to RTO for my father’s DL renewal and choose to ask the details of it from them directly.

We went there and we got suprised when they informed us that it takes only half a day to complete all the process

We called the SA and informed him that we have spoken with RTO, We will take care of all proceedings in RTO, and requested him to apply as soon as possible.

On 3rd of june, we visited RTO himself and told him that we have an application for temporary registration and he verified the address proof and instructed us to show the vehicle to the vehicle inspector, Which the Showroom guys forgot to bring it on time. We instructed them to complete the registration process within that day.

Before leaving, we informed our expected delivery date that is on 05th of june.

Delivery :

On 5th june They were able to deliver as promised with some-short comings, they installed accessories expect for seat covers and parcel tray (which is nil stock still). They installed fog lamps did all the wirings but i was informed by the technician that it requires a software update to work and they haven’t received it for AX5L to upload it to our car. And there was very slight paint damage in the front bumper area, I suspect that it happened when they were installing fog lamps. However I decided not make a scene on the date of delivery and told them that I would come in person within few days to rectify all. We gave chocolates for the whole staffs and took delivery and went home. We were given 20 litres of petrol as complimentary.

Post Delivery :

I went to the dealership after couple of days and showed them the paint chip that needs fixing. They asked me that they would need two days in order to fix. But I had already planned a trip with 3XO, So I informed them that I would give it during its first service and I have instructed them fix everything during the same time.

Initial Impressions :

Drivability

I have been driving very conservatively and haven’t gone over 40% throttle to keep it under 2.5k - 3k rpm as of now and will continue to do so till I hit 3000kms in the odometer. Few Things I have noticed they are, The shifts are smoother and barely noticeable but I feel that the 2nd gear is being held on longer than other gears. Once I conclude my conservative throttle i might enjoy that but until then its painful. The breaks are on point. Mahindra needs praise for its suspension setup. The car Handles really well and glides nicely and smoothly over rough patches and potholes easily. I might have more on this after I drive extensively after 3k kms mark. Only issue I faced in drivability so far is that The steering needs constant corrections while throwing the car around the corner and will take some time to develop the confidence.

Cool Things I found so far :

Electronic parking brake automatically dis-engages if the driver seat belts are fastened and accelerate pedal is pressed. (With or without autohold)

Adrenox app shows realtime tyre pressure and temperature

Google maps can be projected over the instrument cluster in full screen while using wireless android auto. (I saw a misleading video that it only supports mapmyindia)

Load sensor seat belt warning for all passengers including rear middle seat

There is parallel and vertical parking assistance in camera view settings which lays out guidelines accordingly to help in parallel and vertical parking

Mapmyindia works well and somehow more trustworthy than apple maps could ever be.

As per user manual there is a fan underneath the wireless charging pad, which helps to cool the phone.

Ergonomic Issues :

Many people noticed the glare on the instrument cluster but for me including that the glossy finish behind the infotainment display directly points sun’s reflection at my eyes (All the glare issues i faced were between 11:30 AM to 1:00PM)

The front door pocket has two bottle holders and in co-driver side if one of the front bottle holder is filled with bottle the glove box opening is hindered.

Rear seat’s is okay when seated with legs stretched but once in knees up poise it lacks under thigh support. And head rest adjustability is limited in the rear.

Other nitpickings :

The infotainment screen takes good 30 seconds to over a minute to boot after a long break

Adrenox app sometimes takes more than a minute to connect to the car’s remote functions and sometimes times out within 30 seconds.

AX5L misses out on LED cabin lights instead halogen and there are no lights in the boot area as opposed to AX7L

No Carplay as of now, but expected to arrive with an update soon. but I honestly feel that if manufacturer advertises a feature , it must be available from day 1. period.

Conclusion :

It is our family’s first AT Car, and the Transition from Manual to AT has been really great so far All thanks to the Aisin Sourced Torque Converter. The fundamentals of car are very well sorted and efforts Mahindra has put on developing really shows, when you drive. The ADAS suite works flawlessly, The overall space inside the cabin is great and feels at home and reassures the decision We took to go for XUV 3XO.

Thanks for reading such a long post

Have a great day !

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