Mahindra Scorpio CRDE

Mine is an amber red 8 seater Scorpio(CRDe) SLX. Mine was the first vehicle with this colour in trivandrum. A lot of people used to think amber red is a bad colour..but after I brought it out...a lot of customers came personally to see the colour and instantly fell in love with it.

PROS:

The bonnet scoop gives it the sporty looks but it doesnt do any other purpose.The new front bumper is just brilliant.All new version of the scorpio comes with non-additional spoiler with light....and along with the tower lights the back looks more astonishing than ever.Now the water jet at the back is fitted into the spoiler. I guess this is better than shooting from beneatch the glass like in the older version.I like the new all ONE colour look rather than the old dual colour.The foot lamps are useful and good looking too....especially with the theatre effect dimming.The bumpers being fibre and extremely flexible and strong, doesnt break off but it bends and saved me a few times from getting into trouble.

CONS:

Water collects in the bonnet scoop.

Mahindra has not come up with a new protective bumper for the new scorpio. That makes it vulnerable to scratches.The range of my remote control is very poor.Its not the battery.

INTERIOR:

The new pilot seats at the front with hand rest is very helpful. The illumination inside is awesome too. You can control the direction of the lights inside (itsrotatable.) The light around the keyhole is a brialliant idea too. There are extra switches avaible for extra fittings. The fog lamps switch is attacthed to the one controlling the head lights.The new scorpio comes with a movable middle row. There is handrest in the middle row too.The space is just awesome. I have travelled with 11 people sitting inside. All were sitting too.(not one in others lap)You can fold the back and middle row, and not just that u can remove the entire back row if in needof extra space.Tiltable steering is helpful too. The steering wheel is big and comfortable to catch.The seats are awesome, very comfortable, you can ride for hours without breaking a sweat.Moreover, u get a very good view of the road (unlike INNOVA and so many others.)Airconditioning is very effective for front and middle row.SLX comes with a music player with provisions for SD CARDS and USB PORT. (cool too).And it has 4 speakers too...and also has provision for 4 more.The voice assist system is a real cool stuff .There is built in NIPPON security system with the SLX.

CONS:

Plastic quality is extremely poor. My power window lock button broke in the 3rd day, My Ac airflow   buttons broke too. One of my AC vent is broken inside. The utility box in the front is very flimsy. It wont close unless u put ur hand exactly at the center beneath it . It doesnt have any lock too.Door openin from inside a bit difficult at times. U have to pull hard.(for some doors).The location of front power window buttons is in the center. It is difficult to access them sometimes without taking your eyes of the road.The MP3 player is not of cool quality. Shows Cd read error with perfectly working CDs. Another recent develpment is that when I press the button to go to the next song. It shuts down.

Built in seat cover looks dreadful. Had to put on another one.There is this plastic piece under the front seat which is sharp ( it is totally unwanted and bad design).The AC position in the middle row is a result of bad design too. It freezes the legs of person sittin directly in front of it, but doesnt even cools the people at the rear.The new Air cons in the front arent all that user friendly. U cant rotate it beyond a small angle.The gear shift from 1st to 2nd is tough especially when u start using it after a while of rest.The power steering return from the completely turned position is poor.

Ride Quality:

PROS:

Some people complaing about its braking but I have felt it good.It has saved me from serious accidents too. But owing to its size and weight hardcore drivers might find it a biiiiiiit slow.If you are an auto fanatic like me you will enjoy driving the scorpio.There is no bouncing at the back due to the new coil spring suspension at the back. Trust me at this coz oooooh in qualis and the previous scorpio it used to be hell for people at the back. Now its heaven.Great control even at 130Km/hr...thats my personel top speed.The new tubeless tyres works well in adding comfort. Would be better with alloy wheels.Everything works with sensors (not cables like in the old days.)

CONS:

Scorpio rolls around a bit due to its high centre of gravity and height. You should be careful when taking sharp turns in wet (even dry) roads at high speed if u dont wanna flip over.Due to the fact that the whole system works with sensors and not cables the response is minutely slow.(but the sensor system is much safer.)

Engine and hardware:

Engine is the most powerful in its segment.ALL of the scopio CRDe owners I have known are more than happy with the power and engine quality.I havent heard of a scorpio breaking down due to engine trouble.The power just thrills you. I have to take it out for a ride once in 2-3 days just to get the exhilaration.The accelaration beats even the petrol vehicles. Not recomended to ride with rock songs just coz you might forget to check on your speed.The noise is like 1/2 of the previous version .It grows more silent with long use.(when engine gets proper seating.)And trust me , one cant see smoke coming out of its exhaust except while starting in the morning.

CONS:

None that I am aware of.

MAHINDRA CUSTOMER CARE:

I am a bit dissappointed in this sector. Firstly, the price was hiked by Rs10, 000 AFTER I booked the vehicle. And they didnt even tell this to me. I was furious when I found it out. I contacted Mahindra through website only to see no response. I then send around 100 mails threatning them that I will approach media if not responded and guess what the next day Manager of mahindra (not from dealer but original company) called me in my mobile. But ofcourse I didnt get a discount , neither did I get a special offer. Secondly, the spoiler didnt first come with the vehilcle,   I wouldnt have probably got it if I hadnt asked for it. But I had to call then over a 100 times until they fixed it for me after 3 months.(ie 0ct 2006)

Fuel efficiency:

I get 10.5 in city with AC

In highway I have got 13.5 when I went to kodaikanal.

feel free to ask me any questions.