Mahindra Bolero

 Mahindra Bolero

  

     The Mahindra Bolero, known for its ruggedness has been India's best selling SUV for a long time now, always making it into the top 10 models sold every month. Why is this under-powered machine so popular with the Indians when the rest of the world gave it a terrible rating?? I find out..

   This particular piece finished in metallic green gives us the answer. Acquired in 2003, it has run about 1.5 lakh kilometers. 0-100 time cannot be estimated as the 65 horsepower Peugeot sourced 2.5 litre diesel engine doesn't allow the needle in this 1.5 tonne beast to cross 80. The ride in the city is harsh and the acceleration is lethargic but decent for a machine this big, and the brakes have no bite at all. The vehicle decelerates slowly. But none of this matters. What really matters is how this car has served us, going about its duty without complaining. What this car does so beautifully is connect with you emotionally. It is not just another regular car which you buy, use and sell. This car has a soul, a desirability factor, which is missing in many cars sold nowadays. It does not have four wheel drive but it has taken us to many places where any normal car wont dare venture. You drive this car not for its performance nor its off road abilities, but for it's "that's why you drive a Bolero" feel quoting my uncle.

 

   It is nearing the end of its life now but it still does not hesitate to carry on with its work. A new car will soon replace it for the office run and weekend drives but the Bolero will always remain in our hearts.

Volkswagen Polo GT TSI review

Volkswagen Polo GT TSI

Introduction:

Welcome everyone to the brand new Polo.. err.. well.. it looks like a normal Polo yes but this is the Polo GT TSI. Considered as the hottest or let’s say, the warmest hatchback in India along with its twin, the Polo GT TDI. This is Volkswagen’s way of attracting the younger generation to the brand and adding some excitement to the line up.

Exterior and interior:

The Polo GT TSI looks like a normal Volkswagen Polo from the outside. It now has a GT badge on the grille and “GT TSI” written on the D-pillars. Moving to the rear, the “Volkswagen” and “Polo” badges have been replaced by “GT” and “TSI” badges. Other than this there are no visual differences between the regular polo and the the gt tsi which is a shame. The wheels are the same alloys found on the high end polo,. 185/60 R15 tires. It comes with fog lamps, halogen headlamps and heat insulating windscreen as standard.

Coming to the interior, it still has the same layout of the regular polo. But there is an increase in the quality of plastics used and the fit and finish is good. The accelerator and brake pedals are made from aluminium and looks sporty. The GT TSI comes loaded with equipment. You get a new 2-DIN audio system with aux-in, USB and a SD card reader. You also get ABS, dual airbags, ESP and hill hold function.

Drivetrain:

Volkswagen have concentrated on the drivetrain of the car. It comes with a direct injection, turbo charged 1197cc petrol engine producing 103bhp at 5000rpm and 17.8kgm of torque at 1500-4100rpm. It is mated to a 7-speed DSG gearbox. This is a dual clutch automatic transmission feeding the power to the front wheels. Turbo lag is contained and it is hardly noticeable. Turbo kicks in at about 1400rpm.The power delivery is linear and pulls well upto 150kmph. The 1140kg kerb weight allows the GT TSI to hit 100kmph in 11.34 seconds from standstill and reach a top speed of 185kmph.

The transmission comes in 3 modes- D, S and M. D is the normal drive mode, S is the sport mode and M allows you to have manual control of the gear changes.

In D, the gear changes are seamless and can hardly be noticed as there is hardly in loss in power during transition. It upshifts quickly in the interest of fuel economy. In Sport mode, it holds the gear longer and upshifts at the redline. The shifts are more brutal when compared to the drive mode.

The engine is on the noisier side and sounds pretty unpleasant. But while driving its sounds a bit sporty. Volkswagen claim a fuel efficiency of about 17-18kmpl on the highway in drive mode and 12kmpl in sport mode.

Ride:

The suspension setting for the GT TSI is different form the regular polo. But the ground clearance remains the same. Considering the name and sporty intent of the car, I was expecting a harder suspension setup. But I was surprised by it’s soft setting. This results in a smooth and comfortable ride. Only the sharper bumps are registered as a thud.

Brakes:

The only disappointing part about the drive was the brakes. They did not have a linear feel to them. The initial part of the pedal travel did not cause any reduction in the speed of the vehicle. After that, it causes a sudden reduction in speed which is unpleasant and takes some getting used. The brakes after that initial bit, were linear. The brakes issue may be down to that particular car. It needed servicing and was driven hard by prospective customers.

Specifications:

Engine
Engine Type		4 Cylinder
Displacement (cc)		1197
Max. power output [PS (kW) @ rpm]		105 (77) @ 5000
Max. torque (Nm @ rpm)		175 @ 1500-4100

Transmission
Gearbox		7-speed DSG Automatic

Exterior dimensions
Length (mm)		3970
Width (mm)		1682
Height (mm)		1453
Wheelbase (mm)		2456
Track (mm)		Front-1463, Rear-1463
Tyre size		185/60 R15
Minimum ground clearance (mm)		168

Future of engines

Future of engines

(this article was written at the end of 2013)

Starting at the 2013 Geneva Auto Show, we saw the start of a sudden shift towards hybrid supercars with the LaFerrari, Mclaren P1 and now the Porsche 918 spyder.

Also, we see a sudden trend to reduce the number of cylinders. The new BMW M4, for example will have a 6 cylinder engine instead of a V8 engine which was used in the car it is replacing. The M4’s V6 is claimed to be 25% more fuel efficient than the outgoing V8. The BMW X5 will also have two four cylinder engines for the first time. The 2015 Mustang will have an option of a 4 cylinder engine for the first time. A Mustang with just 4 cylinders?? It is rumored that the 2016 Mustang GT350 which is replacing the GT500 may not use the current car’s 5.8 liter V8 but may use a 5.0 liter V8. Formula1 has also seen a constant down-sizing of engines. From a naturally aspirated V12 to a turbo charged V6 which will be used from the 2014 season.

Fig: BMW M4’s inline 6 cylinder engine.

Yes, turbo charging seems to be the answer for higher power outputs with reduction in fuel consumption. AMG have confirmed that they will soon switch to turbo charging. So their brilliant 6.2 liter V8 will become history.  Even BMW M division say there will be a switch to turbo charged engines in the long term. But will this spoil the pure driving pleasure offered by a naturally aspirated engine? Yes, there will be turbo lag. But advanced engineering and the latest technology and materials help in reducing this problem. But, it cannot be eliminated. Hence, a turbo charged engine cannot offer the smoothness of a naturally aspirated engine. Hence, Quattro division of Audi feel that performance cars will not shift to turbo charging. Enthusiasts will definitely be disappointed. They will miss the roar of the V8's and hope that the purity of the cars like the E92 M3 are not lost. The other recent changes are the use of hybrid technology.

Called KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) in supercars and hypercars. These cars use a combination of electric power and internal combustion engines to propel themselves. The electric energy can be used to obtain bottom end torque. This helps engineers to concentrate more on the mid and higher ranges of the I.C.Engines and extract more power from these areas. BMW's i8 uses a hybrid system. The engine is just a 1.5 liter 3 cylinder unit developing 228hp. The battery is a 7.2kWh lithium-ion battery developing 129hp. Combined power output is 357hp. The LaFerrari, Mclaren P1 and Porsche 918 spyder have combined power outputs of 950hp, 903hp and 887hp respectively. Complete electric supercars also exist like the SLS AMG Electric Drive and Tesla Model S.

Fig: Layout of SLS AMG Electric Drive

You don’t have to spend on fuel and the cars are environment friendly. They provide catastrophic level of performance [the SLS has 4 electric motors powering the wheels (1 motor per wheel) having a total power output of 739hp] but they have their drawbacks. Limited range is their biggest disadvantage. They take hours to charge completely and are expensive to buy. To counter this problem, BMW’s i3 comes with an optional gasoline tank which is used to generate electricity and increase range. So what bought about this sudden change?? It is mainly due to the ever increasing fuel costs (supercars have very low mileage and, for higher performance, use high octane petrol which is more expensive than regular petrol) and stringent emission rules which require lesser amounts of CO2 coming out of the exhaust pipes. Whether you like it or not, turbo charging and hybrid technology seem to be the way ahead.