Thank you everyone. I guess the remaining part of the story will answer some of the questions
July 17th, 2010 : Test drove the i20 crdi, on the ORR in Sarjapur road. I liked the chunky looking design and the top end model was fully loaded. After spending a considerable time in the showroom, checking the various options, booked the i20 asta crdi by paying 10K and was told the waiting period was 6-8 weeks.
Change of thought process : Around the 1st week of August, me and my friend were having a casual talk over a smoke and this lead to the complete makeover. We started the conversation about various cars, its features etc and he said one of his friend just sold a scorpio for around 8.5L, which was a 2008 model. This installed the idea of a used car and also with my own accent fetching me 3.5L, boosted my confidence and stepped into the 2nd hand market, hoping I could find a good deal. (The process happened, without the cancellation of i20 )
Why Scorpio?:
This car has made a massive impression to many enthusiasts, ever since its launch and I was one of them, but I never really dreamt of owning one or even try driving this car, because of its sheer size. The first time I even thought of owning this 'Monster' was when I realized I can get a used Scorpio for below 9L, 3 weeks ago. Over a period of time, came across plenty of articles and read reviews about Scorpio, its different models and mainly about mHawk engine. Though many complained about its handling, it was the engine that got all the appreciation. This attracted me. So, I zeroed it down to 2007 or 08 model, with the mHawk badge. I was excited about this idea, but I knew it would be a bigger task to even try finding one and even more tedious, to verify its history. Another reason was, having driven a sedan for few years now, I thought this would be a good option. I decided to give it a shot!
4th August, 2010 : My first drive on a Scorp!
This is the first time I sat inside a Scorp, which was a White 2008 VLX model and took it for drive. I felt like a 'King'! Its tall commanding driving position, clear view ahead and the space inside simply blew me away. On the same day decided to cancel the i20. This was the end for Hyundai and my money was towards M&M.
The 2nd hand market : I knew I had two options. Either I buy the car directly from the seller or visit a Used-Car showroom (i.e, through a dealer).
I first decided to visit a dealer, which was National Motors on Lalbagh Road. There was a White 2008 model (the same car I drove), which had done 37K kms and was quoted 8.5L, however it was already owned by 2 of them. The car was in excellent shape though. The next day, I bought Ad-Mag and Free-ads, to check if there was any sellers, but dint find even one ad, for a 2008 model.
The next few days, I used to finish work by 3 or 4 and head to a used car showroom. Visited atleast 5, well known showrooms (Like Classic, Brigade, Silicon, National etc) and dint find the one that met my needs. Provided my contatct numbers, informed them about my priorities and requested to call me if they get one.
August 11th, 2010 : The day I met my big boy!
Received a call from Jayanagar Autoz, that they have a 2008 model. Went to the showroom and was flattered the moment I saw this huge shiny black hunk parked under a tree. Following are the details about the car.
Model : Mahindra Scorpio VLX, January 2008.
Purchase and Service : Bangalore
Number of owners : 1
Kms done : 44,321
Documents : RC book, LTT, Insurance, Service Manual, Owners guide, duplicate key.
The dealer quoted 8.75LI knew few things about how to check if its a accident free car and that’s the first thing I did. It looked to be in a good condition. The dealer said he had all the documents, including the service history, but dint take a chance. Knew a guy from Sireesh Auto (near Silk board), called him and provided the Vehicle Number. He said the services were done here and the last service done was in May, with 43K in the odo. Informed the dealer, that I will take the car to a local mechanic, near my house and get it checked. He agreed.
August 12th : Took the car to the mechanic and had him check it thoroughly.
Verification process : This is how I verified the car.
1. Called the Insurance company to check if there is any claim done. No claims done and he had a ‘no claim bonus’ last year.
2. Opened the hood and verified that the Company plate, with the Engine number, Chassis number was intact
3. There are these tiny little scoops at the front, (where the company plate is fixed), about 6 to 8 of them at the front, that confirms that the car has not met with any major accident
4. Tapping the sides of the car (right next to the headlights and above the wheels). If there was any repair done, it comes with a hollow sound, something similar to when you tap a plastic pipe. If it has not, it should come with a normal fiber sound.
5. The windshield, shows the year of manufacture with the company logo on the right bottom corner
6. The doors (all four of them), except the rear, has about 3 to 4 little dots, just below, were the door lock is located
7. All the tyres have a unique code and specifies the manufacturind code. Mine was (CF..1107). So its Nov’07.
8. Besides all these, the mechanic checked the engine oil, tyre wearing and drove the car to check any rattling or unusual noise.
A thumbs up from him after nearly an hour, went back to dealer. After many hours of negotiation with the dealer and owner, they settled it for 7.8L. Paid the dealer a token advance and booked the car. Decided to pay 3L as DP and the remaining in loan. Loan was approved in 3 days and signed it for 3 years.
Delivery was taken on Friday the 20th of August.
I would like to thank all the TAI’ans again as they have helped with their valuable inputs.
@Raj_5004 – A Special Thanks to you Sir. I have read all your reviews and seeing you own 3 of these beasts, was quite an inspiration and shows how reliable this car is.
@mukeshus – Thank you for all the information you have posted on your ownership thread, which was of immense help.
@Cooldhaya – Yes, I did want to have a car with good mileage but after lot of thought, decided to compromise on FE over Power and Space.
I guess the car gives about 10Kmpl in city and around 13 on highways. As of now, I’m driving the car within city limits and just did a tank full. Will check the mileage by this weekend and will keep the post updated.
Cheers
Avinash
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