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The long-term Mahindra Scorpio S11 Adventure Edition review thread

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Ricof4e
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The long-term Mahindra Scorpio S11 Adventure Edition review thread

#1

Post by Ricof4e »

Good morning all,

As the title suggests, in this thread I shall give a detailed review of my experience of the vehicle over the next few years. My wife and I flew out to Windhoek on Friday afternoon and took delivery of the vehicle on Saturday morning. Ahead of us was a long 720km drive which meant that we would have some time to get familiar with the vehicle with all its thrills and spills.

This thread will be updated with the good, the bad and the ugly as time goes by.

So here goes:

1) Why the Scorpio?

Simple really. My wife has been fiddling with the notion to start a mobile clinic and we needed a simple, rugged SUV vehicle to deal with most arduous gravel roads in the north of Namibia. The vehicle had to be capable of towing a caravan (mobile clinic) and most importantly, it had to be fitted with a proper transfer case and a low range box. Secondly, and for our private use, we craved a vehicle with decent off-road capabilities with which we could do a bit of touring and go off the beaten track when we felt like it. Mechanical simplicity with some amenities was a must.

We looked at a few vehicles, mostly 2nd hand, and although there were a few good options, we never really felt comfortable with a MUX or Everest or Fortuner - it just didn't fit the bill when it came to mechanical simplicity and would be expensive to repair if something went pear-shaped. Furthermore, second hand vehicle prices are insane at the moment. The only other vehicle that could match the description was either a troopy or a 76 series - both of which were good options. But, to find such a vehicle under R500k meant it would have to be 8 years or older with +250k km on the clock.

In this regard, the Mahindra started to make sense. It fell nicely into our budget requirements and it came with a decent service plan and warranty to boot. It was also cheaper to insure. But one of the main reasons were that M&Z Motors got behind the brand - in Namibia they are the agents for Jeep, Mercedes, and Alfa Romeo. They are well known for their ethics and service delivery.

2) Why the Adventure Edition?

First and foremost, I am not a fan of any "special edition". It gives manufacturers the excuse to charge an exorbitant mark-up for relatively little additions to a vehicle. But not so much with the Adventure Edition. It has larger tyres and rims, a bit more ground clearance, decent front and rear steel bumpers, decent recovery points, better approach and departure angles and undercarriage protection plates over some important bits. I did a quick calculation, if we were to take a standard S11 and do the same mods as with the Adventure Edition, we would have paid R13k more. Mods (properly done by a reputable supplier) are very expensive in Nam.

3) What the interior like?

My wife and I had a long discussion about this because it is difficult to reduce to words. Best way to describe it: it is like driving a large Jimny crossed with a 110 Defender (the older more preferred model). The seating position is commanding and it conveys a sense of sitting on top of the road rather than on it - if that makes any sense. Although the steering wheel can only move up or down, I found it very easy to get into a comfortable position (I am 1,92m tall). Both the front seats has an armrest which I think was a clever addition. Its a bit higher up than a standard center console but the more stouter gentleman would perhaps find it a bit intrusive. At one stage during the trip my wife took a nap, so she reclined her seat and mentioned that the seating position with the arm rest felt like sitting on a lazy boy and she quickly dozed off to the sound of diesel engine. Another drawback of the arm rest is that you have to swivel it to its upright position before you can undo the seatbelt - but that is a minor niggle.

The seats, although fitted with a combination of faux leather and cloth, is surprisingly soft, plush and generally a nice place to be in. I am sure the softness will dissipate over a few years and will most properly not wear as well as other seats in more expensive brands. This can be mitigated to a certain extent with some proper seat covers, but it will have to be custom made due to the arm rest.

The back seat (or 2nd row seat) is just as comfortable. It reclines and slides forwards or backwards (mainly due to get access to the 3rd row seats). Its bottom bench is quite wide and measures about 58cm from the back rest to the end of the seat. In comparison, my Wildtrak's seat measures at 47cm. The most noticeable attribute is not rear legroom per se, but the fact that rear occupants' legs can rest at a 90degree angle. From the top of the bench to the floor is 49cm (my Ford comes in at 37cm).

However, with the 3rd row seats fitted, there is very little legroom at the back between the 3rd row and 2nd row and between the 2nd row and 1st row. This is not an issue for me as the first thing I did when we got home, was to remove the 3rd row - which was surprisingly easy to do. With these seats removed, the boot space is awesome and it makes the vehicle so much more versatile. It also allows the 2nd row to slide back which creates more than enough legroom between the 2nd row and 1st row - with the driver's seat adjusted to my preference, I can easily sit behind the driver seat. I doubt I will ever put the 3rd row seats back.

Due to the large windows all round, and the high roofline, the cabin is airy and large. In the front row I have 12cm of headroom which increases to 20cm in the 2nd row. Mind you, if the vehicle were to stand in the sun for a few hours, the interior will get hot very very quickly. This can be mitigated to some extent by the use of visors or a slight window tint.

The climate control function works really really well, but due to the size of the cabin, it has to work hard to keep the desired temperature (mine is set at 22degrees Celsius) and can be noisy sometimes. The infotainment system is surprisingly easy to use, but it cheap. So too the sound system. It is loud enough to enjoy your music, but the sound is somewhat hollow.

Make no mistake, the cabin is cheap and riddled with hard plastics. Do not expect a dear layout - ultimately you get what you pay for. But it is easy to clean and it is robust. I won't mind a bit of dust, mud and goo on the dash as I would on my Ford's dash.

4) What is it like to drive?:

Getting behind the steering wheel, you immediately get a sense of "go anywhere". The engine and gearbox combo is sublime and smooth and the addition of a 6th gear is a life saver. Strangely enough I found the 6th gear more responsive than the 5th and at 120kph, in 6th, it hovers at 2600rpms. Perfect.

In town the gearshifts are easy going and the vehicle felt less cumbersome than I imagined. The engine is quite responsive (given its power and torque figures) and on the highway it felt stable and planted (as much as a vehicle of that built would feel). When we drove home on Saturday, we had a strong cross wind most of the time with either light or very heavy rain for the most of the way. The vehicle never aquaplaned nor did it feel unsafe or unstable at 120kph. In fact, you had to be careful not to exceed 140kph. It drove surprisingly well in that weather and the auto-wipers worked well too.

There is some wind noise at the A-pillar at 120kph. But this was expected due to the upright positioning and the gutter running down to the bonnet, although it was much less than I expected. I could easily have a conversation with my wife and could also easily converse over the Bluetooth function.

Now I must stress the following: If you are used to an Q7 or Touareg (or equivalent German brand), you will not like the drive and it would feel like you are driving a donkey-cart. It is nowhere near the refinement levels my Wildtrak nor will it be for brands such as the Everest, Mux or Fortunate either. It will be like comparing a potato to an apple.

The cherry on the cake was the fuel consumption. At 120kph, it returned 12km/l according to the OBC. At the pump, my calculations showed 12,2km/l. Taking into consideration the vehicle's shape, that consumption figure is damn good.

5) Any issues to report?

A few actually. Although M&Z Motors gave us superb service when we took delivery, we drove the vehicle off the showroom floor with a warning light on the dash. This was due to the infotainment system and the TMPS not being able to communicate with one another. When we got home, I rectified this by simply forcing the infotainment system to relearn the TPMS, and after about 5 minutes, all was good and well. Now I must give M&Z credit that they informed me of the warning light when they handed over the keys and undertook to send us new sensors on Monday which would be fitted at their local workshop. They knew we had a long drive ahead of us and I appreciated the heads-up and the suggested remedy. However, had they taken the time to properly read the manual, they would have been able to do what I had done before delivery.

Which brings me to my second issue. The Adventure Edition is fitted with 245/65R17 all terrain tyres while the standard S11 is fitted with 235/65/R17 highway tyres. During the TPMS learning process, I noted that the spare wheel is 235 and not 245 as the other wheels. I will notify M&Z about this and request that they fit the correct tyre to the spare rim.

Third issue: the cruise control function. While driving on the Western Bypass, I activated the cruise control function and it was somewhat disappointing. The speedo needle started to jump around (at 120kph it would move 3-4kph on either side constantly) and this reflected on the cruise control function. There was no getting used to it so I deactivated it and drove the old fashion way. I could keep the vehicle at a stable speed despite the needle jumping around a bit. When we got home, I got underneath the car and located the speedo-sensor on the gearbox. It felt loose (I could wiggle it) and I am 99% sure that is the culprit and I reckon at higher speeds it vibrates and may be why the needle starts to jump around in the instrument cluster. I was tempted to tighten it myself, but as I could not reach the bolt, it is probably best that it is repaired under the warranty. I will report this to the dealer today and see how they handle it.

6) Off-road capability?

Regrettably, I am yet to take it off-road. There was simply not enough time this weekend to do so. At first glance it certainly looks the part and with the steel front bumper fitted, it will have decent approach angles. The rear steel bumper however will lower the departure angle IMHO. As mentioned above, the engine has more than enough torque to negotiate a slow climb and the gearing will be well suited for beach drives as well.

But is has some limitations: The lack of a locking diff and the positioning of the rear shock mounts will make a rocky climb difficult, but not impossible - one would have to chose the correct line to prohibit any damage to the rear shock mount and side steps. Although the sump is well protected by a robust steel plate, there is no protection underneath the fuel tank. This will have to be rectified. I also noticed there is sufficient space to fit a 20lt aux tank, which I would consider first before fitting a protection plate over the existing tank.

I am sure that despite its limitations, it will be able to do most grade 3 and (some) grade 4 obstacles, but it would require a guide who knows his stuff. But for the most part, I am sure it will do well and hopefully as time goes by, I will be in a better position to elaborate on its off-road prowess.

7) Conclusion:

I guess the best way to reduce a conclusion down to words would be to quote farmer Hogget from the 1995 movie: Babe. After the pig (Babe) managed to gather all the sheep in the pen, it its own distinct manner, farmer Hogget while looking down at Babe with a sense of achievement and admiration, uttered the famous words: "That'll do pig. That'll do".

Some pics:
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#2

Post by Ricof4e »

Reserved.
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#3

Post by iandvl »

Nice detailed post, Willem. As I said on Saturday, many happy and safe kilos. :)
Ian de Villiers

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#4

Post by Ricof4e »

Thanks Ian.
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#5

Post by Mad Manny »

Very well-written and detailed report Willem.
I'm glad you finally have a rugged, reliable and capable Off Road vehicle again (after the Jimny).
"No one ever got stuck - in mid air!"

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#6

Post by Ricof4e »

Forgot to add:

The S11 is advertised as fitted with auto lights and a TPMS as standard. But it's not what you may be used to.

The auto lights work well with the only drawback being that you cannot engage brights from that setting. I reckon it is only meant for when you drive through a tunnel or in gloomy conditions. To engage the brights, you have to adjust the stalk to the usual headlight position.

Much the same as with the TPMS. It does not reflect the actual pressure or temperature of the tyre, but only shows "Ok" on the infotainment system. According to the manual, if the pressure fluctuates by 0.3 bar, it will illuminate an alert signal on the instrument cluster.
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#7

Post by Ricof4e »

Mad Manny wrote:
Mon Feb 14, 2022 11:06 am
Very well-written and detailed report Willem.
I'm glad you finally have a rugged, reliable and capable Off Road vehicle again (after the Jimny).
Thanks Manny.
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#8

Post by Wave »

Congrats on your new ride!

I enjoyed the read. Will keep an eye in this post for future updates
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#9

Post by grahamrob »

Very interesting, thanks for this. And congrats on the purchase.
For some very strange reason this is one of the only vehicles (apart from a patrol) that catches my eye on the road these days.
Have always wondered what theyre actually like, so thanks!

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#10

Post by Ricof4e »

Thanks guys.
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#11

Post by Mike Nel »

I think you under estimate the cost of extras.

The bumper and rims would set you back R30K at least.

Lekker review and congrats on your purchase. Many happy kms.
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#12

Post by AndreasR »

Nice report. Always wondered about these Mahindras and thought they look quite good from the outside but never had the courage to actually look inside one just in case i liked that too and I then felt the itch to buy one.

The long term report will be interesting but from what I have read there is nothing wrong with reliability.

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#13

Post by grips »

Nice report Willem. I am going to follow this. Lots of them driving around here. Even on the mines the numbers are increasing. Enjoy
You will never find me without Stroh or a 4x4 :D

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#14

Post by Johannes »

Nice. Enjoy . They seem te get more popular.

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#15

Post by Paul#25 »

Thanks for a good conscience report Willem. I'll be interested in your experience with it over time. Enjoy testing it's capabilities.
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