Jun 16, 2006 06:40 PM
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The decision to buy
Having been driving a Ford Ikon 1.6 ZXI for the last three years, I have often quizzed myself about my motives for moving to a 'sluggish diesel'. In the interim period, I have twice made up my mind to go diesel, visited the Mahindra showrooms and then gone zipping back home with the incredible Ikon, happy not to have pandered to my whims. Two recent events however pushed me over - the launch of the butch looking new Scorpio (will call it the '06 Scorp here on) and the govts' failure to contain surging fuel prices. I gave in to the Scorpio last week.
The dealer experience
Sterling Motor Co., Gurgaon is a far cry from the chic Honda/Ford/Toyota/even Maruti showrooms that literally suck you off the roads and ensure you have one of their steeds stuck to your backside by the time you leave. Its not typically Mahindra either. I'd put it somewhere in the middle of the evolution cycle. The staff however, are mighty helpful, polite without being cloyingly sweet (and irritating) and know how to close the sale. The vehicle currently runs a min. 4 weeks waiting period and zero discounts. But their instinct for a month-end sale and my Bengali nose for a bargain, finally saw me drive out a spanking new, gleaming Black CRDE SLX, a week from sealing the deal, wearing free fog lamps to boot! You want bargain prices? Wait a few more months. Right now, the model is a rage and the fuel price hike too fresh.
The Car
I'll be honest - when Mahindra launched the Scorpio 4 years back, I was mighty disappointed. I thought the design was OTT (over the top), too contrived and even hated the headlamp which caught a packet of praise everytime somebody sat down to pen a review. And the tail lamps - where were those again?! Over the years, the design must have grown on me, or I have grudgingly come to approve of it everytime one brushed past my Ikon, threatening to carry my wing mirrors away with their 'jet-wash'.
The '06 Scorp is a looker. Especially in Passion Red I thought. But middle age and a receding hairline prevented me from inviting 'mid-life crisis' jokes at the expense of that colour. I chose Black. Paint finish is top of the line. Shut lines are acceptable. Plastic claddings continue to be warped and one is better off with the matt finish, but then you dont get that in an SLX. The new lights are a little too loud. Love the bulging barrel effect. Loathe the faux ox-tails above them. The rear has two major design setbacks per me - too flat/vertical but then it saves tooling costs I guess and puts this behemoth in your garage and mine. The wiper - wish it was a thick, stubby affair like the Tucson. This one looks too delicate and out of place on a big butt.
The profile's nice in a butch kind of way. Short overhangs. Lower glass area/roofline would have made it sexier in the Ford Endeavour kind of way, but this is fine too. The rubber beadings on the glasswork have improved, but still have miles to go in terms of finish. The new ski-racks are just too cool. But not enough to inspire me into skiing. Front's good too. New air-dams look mean. The bonnet scoop is a dummy. Looks good. Feels stupid.
The interiors are a revelation once again. Queer mix of Indian improvisation and some very classy bits. The bottle/mobile holders on the doors are utilarian but look a bit geekish. Ditto for the PDA holder on the dash. The Ikon habits have me fumbling for the window winder buttons on my right even now, and I still turn on wipers when wanting to signal a turn! But I sure can soak up the captain seats. There's a voice valet that welcomes you in the car, tells you to put your belts on, fill up gas, replace engine oil, divorce the wife etc. Neat party trick with friends. Irritating when caught in the wrong mood. I'd leave it on though. The seats themselves are comfortable all through, and with some smart packaging, you can actually fit 8 on a road trip, provided nobody gets greedy on leg-space. There's adequate room. I am six feet tall. I should know.
The Drive
I drove an Ikon. Still do. So you know I am not going to be too kind to a 2 tonne lumbering behemoth. Its like this - the Scorp is no Md. Ali. No 'dance like a butterfly, sting like a bee' stuff. Its amazingly pliant on its new rear springs (5 link set-up, one of the 43 new features!), and it goes like stink too, once you hauled the tach past 1500 rpm. For a diesel ie. But does it ever roll! You are better off providing barf-bags behind each seat. So in a nutshell - plush rides on city roads, creams those little sharp edged ruts (but you need to go gently over the rounder-profile breakers - the rebound action on those new springs can flatten your passengers heads if not strapped in!)
The steering is supposedly improved over the last version. I haven't driven that, so I have no benchmark. What I do is from the Ikon. Plainspeak - if the Ikon is like writing with one of those 0.5 mm push-lead pencils, this is like a very fine thick nibbed foountain-pen. Feels nice and smooth, but not as direct. Typical SUV I guess. You just need to adapt to the new driving style. The high seating is sure-fire ego trip. You kind of leer down at everyone else, all smug and oh so cool. Until a Prado pulls up in the next lane. The steering is adjustable for rake. Not necessary to disturb the standard setting if you are tall. But the floor-seat geometry is weird. If you are in thin soled shoes, you'd be resting the clutch foot on the balls of your feet most of the time. Can get painful on long hauls.
Have not been able to check the fuel economy yet. But the way the filling routine has been for the last week or so, the smiles are here to stay. I intend doing cross country to Assam in this from Delhi. And a haul to Lahaul (sic) somewhere in between.
If I get one encouraging feedback to this review, will be fired enough to put the highway behaviour of the beast online for all of you too.
Cheers!
