Mahindra Scorpio 2014

                               

Welcome our car expert Mr. Sanket Udyawar on Checktheride this is his first piece of work and many more to come. Sanket has been car enthusiast since his early age and taking his enthusiasm further to a professional level and helping with his views to understand the product through his knowledge what he has develop over years.

 Mahindra Scorpio was the first SUV from the Mahindra stable built for a global market. It was launched way back in 2002 with a mid life facelift being given at 2006. Indians love their SUVs and inspite of being a 12 year old model the Scorpio still managed to sell in healthy four figures(4k+). However it started to get too long in tooth. Come 2014 Mahindra finally decided to give its second best-selling model (code named W105) a new facia.

WHATS NEW

The new Scorpio looks more like a facelift than a completely new car and it cannot be mistaken for anything else other than a Scorpio. It sheds it butch looks for a more slender and modern look and tend to lose some of its old charm (looks being subjective). The front gets new dual projector headlamps with static bending technology with led eyebrows that act as a DRL.  

                             

                           

The side profile remains the same as before with doors being carried over from the previous car.  Scorpio now gets the all new 17 inch alloy wheels  but  the big gap between the wheel and the arch makes it look a size smaller.

Coming to the derriere of the car nothing much has changed here except for a two tone matte effect given to the rear door. Designer at Mahindra were lazy enough to design the rear of the car so thought of giving a plastic treatment, considering it to be out of the world design. The tail lamp goes the led way and looks cool at night with good illumination.

                            

INSIDE THE MAHINDRA SCORPIO

                           

As soon as you pull those grab handles you are greeted with two tone interiors and a neatly laid out dash which is a big improvement over the outgoing model. Plastic quality has improved considerably but still not up to the mark. The door unlock handle looks flimsy and feels like it can easily break if used with a heavy hand.

Space inside the cabin is more or less the same. The isolation from external environment still persists. What you get is a two tone grey with blue combination fabric seats. The front row seats are large and supportive.The long gear knob and tonnes of unused space between passenger and driver seat spoils the spacious feel. Individual arm rest does add to the driving pleasure. The only ergonomic error by Mahindra is that once the doors are closed, there is no way you can access the seat height adjustment lever due to the dearth of space. The only way you can make adjustment is by keeping the door open (obviously not while driving). The infotainment is located perpendicular to the floor and at the knee length, so while driving dive your head under dashboard to see the maps while the individual sitting next to you takes care of the road.

                         

The middle row seats are comfortable with ample headroom and leg room though they are a tad upright. They are neither too firm nor too soft. Wide seats and flat floor means 3 people can sit abreast comfortably. The last row seats are the side facing jump seats and are good for children or short adults albeit only for short trips. Safety of the occupants in the last row is a big question!! You can opt for the front facing seats and are a better option in my opinion.

ON THE ROAD

 We test drove the fully loaded s10 2wd version. The car is built on an all-new platform which is lighter and more rigid than the outgoing model. Mahindra has updated  the suspension and the ride quality has improved to great extent and results in less pitching while going over undulated surface and is a boon in a pot hole ridden city like Mumbai with only the larger ones being transferred to the cabin . However the front end still dives under hard breaking. 

Handling is safe and predictable. Its not a corner craver and it won’t bring out the racer boy in you as body roll still exists . You get a commanding view from the driving seat and the car is quite easy to manure in traffic despite its large size. The engine is carried over from the previous car which is not a bad thing having healthy performance figures with two states of tune. The 2.2 liter mhawk engine produces 120bhp along with 280nm of torque and is the engine we drove. You also get a 2.5 liter m2dicr engine good for 75bhp and 200nm of torque. You do get the diesel clatter and I would not call it a refined engine but the noise and vibrations are well within acceptable level. The engine pulls cleanly from standstill and you don’t have to work the gearbox much. The gearbox is from the Xylo and its not the best gearbox out there but the shifts are smooth and positive however you do feel the vibrations. The steering wheel is borrowed from the XUV500 which is light and easy in city and weighs up a bit as the speed increases. We cannot comment on the fuel efficiency figures as it was a short drive but will update It once we do a thorough test drive.

CONCLUSION
The scorpio has come a long way since its launch in India and helped Mahindra to gain foothold in passenger vehicle segment. The car has improved almost in every department. A advise to Mahindra to compete with the foreign brand, improve quality of the vehicle and not just load it with tonnes of gizmos. However the top end pricing gets close to the XUV500 W6 model which is far better equipped vehicle with better space and power and is positioned a segment above Scorpio. But still it remains more of a people mover than rugged SUV, M&M have left marginal difference between it's two offering spoiling the customer for choice and targeting a larger market share of SUV segment.

ALTERNATIVES

RENAULT DUSTER

MAHINDRA XUV500

SAFARI STORME

NISSAN TERRANO

TECH SPECS

Wheel base          -    2680

Overall width       -    1820

Overall length      -    4456

Overall height      -    1930

Reviewed by Sanket Udyawar

Feedback on sanketudyawar@gmail.com

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