DECIDING AND BUYING TERRANO 85 PS DIESEL
It was since long I was planning to change my car from TATA INDICA DLS V2; to a new car. [Fiat Linea, Toyota Innova, Maruti Ertiga, Nissan Sunny & Renault Duster [all are with diesel engine hearts].
I had lot of expectations on Renault Duster and I had almost zeroed in on booking the DUSTER. I had held myself from booking Duster; as I was wanting to buy it for just Dynamics. Then Duster was a great success; I was hoping that the 4wd Duster shall be launched soon in India. Though I am not an hardcore offroader; the specs of 4wd duster looked exciting to me. However the 4wd Duster looked like a mirage and still is. Though it is exported to UK' from India it is not offered in India.
Then true story of Renault After sales service emerged in Hyderabad and I was disgusted to see the set-up not improving in-line with SALES of Duster. I took this matter to Renault and they seemed to be least bothered to address it, till date. So I put my plan off of buying Duster.
In year 2012; then I finally decided to go with Innova; the vehicle was too huge for my requirement as I have concern with the parking space at home. So finally dropped of buying Innova.
Mid of 2013 decided to finally buy a car and was closely watching the development of Duster cousin from Nissan - code named NH79. Since 4wd design and components for Duster are from Nissan, I was hoping that NH79 will have 4wd
Nissan christened NH79 as Terrano. When Terrano was unveiled on August 20th, 2013 - I was disappointed to know that 4wd variant is not being launched. The other primary fact going with NISSAN was the After sales service in Hyderabad is better as compared to RENAULT. It is a pity that till date, RENAULT's action is not being felt to improve their AFTER SALES SERVICE.
Then I was in dilemma whether to spend Rs 3,00,000/- more for Terrano? The Expected Showroom price for Terrano for the spec I was looking at was Rs 11,50,000/- [assuming Media NAV system in place]; equivalent of Duster 85 ps RxL [O].
So I started looking at the alternatives again. The more options in the market just adds to confusion and ensures we stay in loops. The 2 alternatives I selected do not have any link to each other:-
1. Mahindra Verito [ignoring the Taxi image, I just did not care for it! Mercedes and Innova have taxi plate; but still people love, buy them and not bothered about Taxi image on these vehicles].
2. Maruti Ertiga [Practicality and did not want 7 seater option - this is actually 4 seater if you would like to carry the luggage].
I had a series of discussion with my friends and colleagues. Then I concluded to go with my heart that is for NISSAN TERRANO. Pre-booking for Terrano was expected to be started from 1st Sep 2013. With the confidence of Duster mechanicals being retained and all my sources updated me the shortcomings of DUSTER being addressed by NISSAN - I decided & booked the TERRANO on August 30th, 2013.
Few of my friends were surprised to know that I have booked the car without seeing and driving the car around. I took this risk; for 2 reasons as I needed the car before 1st Nov 2013.
Color choice I had handed over to my spouse. She came up with choice of Bronze Grey or Pearl White. I decided to go with Bronze Grey as White will be difficult for me to maintain. The variant I was sure of; by 30th Aug 2013 they were published.
So booked with the options clear XL-D Plus [85 PS] and Bronze Grey color. Requested the dealer to book a vehicle and get this as my specs are clear and there is no change.
Every now and then in my free time I was looking for update and review or release of TERRANO to the market. I was just glued to internet and dreaming of driving the new car at the earliest!
On Sep 24th 2013 late night; I got to see the CAR TERRANO XV at the dealer. Sat in the car and convinced that I am right; door shut quality looked better at the first instance.
The Audio system did not have MEDIA NAV; review suggested that it is available as after fitment costing ~ Rs 45,000/-. I was bit disappointed.
Then XL-D Plus specs were published and I was surprised to see that Reverse Parking Sensors are not available; which is available in Duster RxL [O].
To have Reverse Parking Sensors, I did not get tempted to go for higher variant and engine specification of 110 PS, as I wanted 85 PS Engine for the least turbo lag it offers - as most of my driving is in City.
Why I chose 85PS over 110PS?
1. Majority of time [not km] I drive in city - 110PS is sluggish even in 2nd gear and is comparatively having harder clutch,
2. Since the use of clutch is more in city this was a major deterrent.
3. Comparatively in city traffic, 85PS is expected to give better Fuel efficiency.
On October 6th, 2013 - I did a detailed review of the car - which included checking the cabin space. My biggest concern was this smaller than Indica? Got convinced that the car cabin is more wider than Indica.
There were some observations; which came to my notice:-
1. The road visibility [bottom] when the driver seat is adjusted to lowest height indicated a poorer road visibility. I was not aware what was the standard height of the seat and could not visualize the seating position.
2. The bumper fitment seems to have uneven gaps.The bottom of the bumper near the Turbo inlet; seem to shake a bit more - this made me concern on the bumper built quality.
I was in split mind whether to retain or withdraw the booking of the Terrano. The main concern being the Road view.
Finally decided to go ahead with TERRANO XLD 85 ps.
The price launch date was announced as 9th Oct 2013 - the wait just felt longer. FINALLY decided to stick to TERRANO.
Got the delivery of the car in second lot on 22nd Oct 2013.
Finally got the permanent registration of the car on 30th Oct 2013; was the FIRST TERRANO to complete the registration process.
On 31st Oct 2013 with 300+ km ODO reading set the car on a LONG DRIVE to native; covering ~ 2800 km of driving trip. Since the engine was not opened up; had to restrict the driving to engine rpm below 2500 rpm. At my native place since the car was not seen, I had people stop me ask about the performance of the car. The GLARE and ATTENTION, was worth spending the extra money.
Road View [I am satisfied with it]:
On returning back from the trip [~10 days], I got the permanent number plate fixed - Art Leather seat cover fitted. The first engine oil change - though not recommended by NISSAN - from prior experience decided to change the OIL. Since it was out of the schedule I decided to bear the LABOUR COST.
Side view of my car:
The sweet spot of TERRANO 85 PS is when you maintain the engine RPM within 2500 rpm, at most of times. When cruising maintain engine between 2200 to 2700 rpm - This is the spot you get good FUEL efficiency. If you are below at 1500-1900 rpm; the turbo does not get kicked in and your FUEL Efficiency drops.
There was a second Long pending trip to Madhurai and Kanyakumari; which we all started in TERRANO completing another 2600 km on ODO.
The only grunt I had was per MANUAL there was AUTO DOOR LOCK feature when the car picks up speed greater than 7 kmph. In my car this feature was not getting activated as instructed in Manual. Nissan was denying the fact that this feature is not in TERRANO. It was absurd to hear this when MANUAL says and when in SUNNY this feature is available - had to pressurize and finally got this feature activated. I had seen in Duster so was pretty sure this should be available.
There is a MYTH of changing the ENGINE OIL at every 10000 km interval; this does not apply to CITY TRAFFIC. If the Average speed of vehicle is below 30 km/hour - In the Manual the oil change is recommended for every 5000 km. City people please take a note of this! The Dealer or workshop people are not aware of this!
During 2nd week of March 2014, completed the 10000 km and gave the car for first scheduled service. No major complaints observed, The Service bill with engine compartment coating costed ~ Rs 5000/-. Another Rs 900/- for tyre rotation, balancing and wheel alignment.
In April 2014; had 2 long trips totalling 4000+ km, so by start of May 2014 my car ODO crossed 15000 km. I do not regret my decision of TERRANO.
Hats off to DUSTER design engineers; for engineering such a good PRACTICAL CAR.
It was since long I was planning to change my car from TATA INDICA DLS V2; to a new car. [Fiat Linea, Toyota Innova, Maruti Ertiga, Nissan Sunny & Renault Duster [all are with diesel engine hearts].
I had lot of expectations on Renault Duster and I had almost zeroed in on booking the DUSTER. I had held myself from booking Duster; as I was wanting to buy it for just Dynamics. Then Duster was a great success; I was hoping that the 4wd Duster shall be launched soon in India. Though I am not an hardcore offroader; the specs of 4wd duster looked exciting to me. However the 4wd Duster looked like a mirage and still is. Though it is exported to UK' from India it is not offered in India.
Then true story of Renault After sales service emerged in Hyderabad and I was disgusted to see the set-up not improving in-line with SALES of Duster. I took this matter to Renault and they seemed to be least bothered to address it, till date. So I put my plan off of buying Duster.
In year 2012; then I finally decided to go with Innova; the vehicle was too huge for my requirement as I have concern with the parking space at home. So finally dropped of buying Innova.
Mid of 2013 decided to finally buy a car and was closely watching the development of Duster cousin from Nissan - code named NH79. Since 4wd design and components for Duster are from Nissan, I was hoping that NH79 will have 4wd
Nissan christened NH79 as Terrano. When Terrano was unveiled on August 20th, 2013 - I was disappointed to know that 4wd variant is not being launched. The other primary fact going with NISSAN was the After sales service in Hyderabad is better as compared to RENAULT. It is a pity that till date, RENAULT's action is not being felt to improve their AFTER SALES SERVICE.
Then I was in dilemma whether to spend Rs 3,00,000/- more for Terrano? The Expected Showroom price for Terrano for the spec I was looking at was Rs 11,50,000/- [assuming Media NAV system in place]; equivalent of Duster 85 ps RxL [O].
So I started looking at the alternatives again. The more options in the market just adds to confusion and ensures we stay in loops. The 2 alternatives I selected do not have any link to each other:-
1. Mahindra Verito [ignoring the Taxi image, I just did not care for it! Mercedes and Innova have taxi plate; but still people love, buy them and not bothered about Taxi image on these vehicles].
2. Maruti Ertiga [Practicality and did not want 7 seater option - this is actually 4 seater if you would like to carry the luggage].
I had a series of discussion with my friends and colleagues. Then I concluded to go with my heart that is for NISSAN TERRANO. Pre-booking for Terrano was expected to be started from 1st Sep 2013. With the confidence of Duster mechanicals being retained and all my sources updated me the shortcomings of DUSTER being addressed by NISSAN - I decided & booked the TERRANO on August 30th, 2013.
Few of my friends were surprised to know that I have booked the car without seeing and driving the car around. I took this risk; for 2 reasons as I needed the car before 1st Nov 2013.
Color choice I had handed over to my spouse. She came up with choice of Bronze Grey or Pearl White. I decided to go with Bronze Grey as White will be difficult for me to maintain. The variant I was sure of; by 30th Aug 2013 they were published.
So booked with the options clear XL-D Plus [85 PS] and Bronze Grey color. Requested the dealer to book a vehicle and get this as my specs are clear and there is no change.
Every now and then in my free time I was looking for update and review or release of TERRANO to the market. I was just glued to internet and dreaming of driving the new car at the earliest!
On Sep 24th 2013 late night; I got to see the CAR TERRANO XV at the dealer. Sat in the car and convinced that I am right; door shut quality looked better at the first instance.
The Audio system did not have MEDIA NAV; review suggested that it is available as after fitment costing ~ Rs 45,000/-. I was bit disappointed.
Then XL-D Plus specs were published and I was surprised to see that Reverse Parking Sensors are not available; which is available in Duster RxL [O].
To have Reverse Parking Sensors, I did not get tempted to go for higher variant and engine specification of 110 PS, as I wanted 85 PS Engine for the least turbo lag it offers - as most of my driving is in City.
Why I chose 85PS over 110PS?
1. Majority of time [not km] I drive in city - 110PS is sluggish even in 2nd gear and is comparatively having harder clutch,
2. Since the use of clutch is more in city this was a major deterrent.
3. Comparatively in city traffic, 85PS is expected to give better Fuel efficiency.
On October 6th, 2013 - I did a detailed review of the car - which included checking the cabin space. My biggest concern was this smaller than Indica? Got convinced that the car cabin is more wider than Indica.
There were some observations; which came to my notice:-
1. The road visibility [bottom] when the driver seat is adjusted to lowest height indicated a poorer road visibility. I was not aware what was the standard height of the seat and could not visualize the seating position.
2. The bumper fitment seems to have uneven gaps.The bottom of the bumper near the Turbo inlet; seem to shake a bit more - this made me concern on the bumper built quality.
I was in split mind whether to retain or withdraw the booking of the Terrano. The main concern being the Road view.
Finally decided to go ahead with TERRANO XLD 85 ps.
The price launch date was announced as 9th Oct 2013 - the wait just felt longer. FINALLY decided to stick to TERRANO.
Got the delivery of the car in second lot on 22nd Oct 2013.
Finally got the permanent registration of the car on 30th Oct 2013; was the FIRST TERRANO to complete the registration process.
On 31st Oct 2013 with 300+ km ODO reading set the car on a LONG DRIVE to native; covering ~ 2800 km of driving trip. Since the engine was not opened up; had to restrict the driving to engine rpm below 2500 rpm. At my native place since the car was not seen, I had people stop me ask about the performance of the car. The GLARE and ATTENTION, was worth spending the extra money.
Road View [I am satisfied with it]:
On returning back from the trip [~10 days], I got the permanent number plate fixed - Art Leather seat cover fitted. The first engine oil change - though not recommended by NISSAN - from prior experience decided to change the OIL. Since it was out of the schedule I decided to bear the LABOUR COST.
Side view of my car:
The sweet spot of TERRANO 85 PS is when you maintain the engine RPM within 2500 rpm, at most of times. When cruising maintain engine between 2200 to 2700 rpm - This is the spot you get good FUEL efficiency. If you are below at 1500-1900 rpm; the turbo does not get kicked in and your FUEL Efficiency drops.
There was a second Long pending trip to Madhurai and Kanyakumari; which we all started in TERRANO completing another 2600 km on ODO.
The only grunt I had was per MANUAL there was AUTO DOOR LOCK feature when the car picks up speed greater than 7 kmph. In my car this feature was not getting activated as instructed in Manual. Nissan was denying the fact that this feature is not in TERRANO. It was absurd to hear this when MANUAL says and when in SUNNY this feature is available - had to pressurize and finally got this feature activated. I had seen in Duster so was pretty sure this should be available.
There is a MYTH of changing the ENGINE OIL at every 10000 km interval; this does not apply to CITY TRAFFIC. If the Average speed of vehicle is below 30 km/hour - In the Manual the oil change is recommended for every 5000 km. City people please take a note of this! The Dealer or workshop people are not aware of this!
During 2nd week of March 2014, completed the 10000 km and gave the car for first scheduled service. No major complaints observed, The Service bill with engine compartment coating costed ~ Rs 5000/-. Another Rs 900/- for tyre rotation, balancing and wheel alignment.
In April 2014; had 2 long trips totalling 4000+ km, so by start of May 2014 my car ODO crossed 15000 km. I do not regret my decision of TERRANO.
Hats off to DUSTER design engineers; for engineering such a good PRACTICAL CAR.
