I have always admired Safari’s great looks for a few years now but it was after the recent drop in prices (approx. 1.5 lacs in June ’06) and a desire to move onto diesel (lower running costs + cleaner burning fuel) and SUV (don’t need one when I am 60) that I took a closer look at this vehicle. Only the Indian SUVs came close to my already stretched budget! And a natural first choice based purely on looks put the Safari ahead of the Scorpio. A decent test drive (Concorde, Bangalore – friendly and not pushy at all) and I was hooked. The test drive itself was OK - I need to get used to diesel (compared to my old Hyundai Accent petrol) and it’s vibration and sluggishness. I also need to get used to the space inside - it is huge, however the quality of interiors was a little disappointing - the plastic used was cheap molded type, clearly lacking in quality. Same with the upholstery fabric - very cheap quality, must replace types. The braking was fine except for the fact that the vehicle seemed to pull a shade towards the left. The other odd issue was with the sound the power steering made when making an U-turn. Rear seat riders (wife and daughter) enjoyed the quick cooling from the overhead AC, felt secure in spite of the rocking and swaying on short stretches of rough roads. The only other disappointment was the lack of airbags in the EX variant. My research from the Internet and talking to friends leads me to suspect about poor service, lack of readily available parts - but I still went ahead and got one.
I changed the upholstery to leather (Rs 34k-) and plan to turn the side clading to the body color (approx. Rs 10k-). I am quickly getting used to the vibration and find the acceleration decent. The brakes on my vehicle is fine - no pulling to one side, and the power steering is far quiter than the test drive. Also after adding higher grade diesel, the engine vibration seems to have come down. A lot more Safaris will sell if the dealer demos a well serviced car. I believe that it is fair value for money, amazing space, and a sure head turner of a car.