Mahindra Scorpio review - Engine and Transmission |
Engine and Transmission
The engine has remained an excellent positive for the Scorpio since its inception. Originally a turbocharged indirect injection later upgraded to a common rail unit which mahindra calls CRDe. This 2600cc 4stroke turbo-charged intercooled common rail develops a very credible 115bhp at 3800rpm and 28.3kgm of torque between 1700-2200rpm. Couple this its 2510kg kerb weight and you end up with a very heavy SUV. The weight though is pretty much the same as the safari, but because this engine has been engineered to perform, the performance shows and how. The scorp has excellent bottom end, it pulls extremely well from low down, but it gets even better once that turbo kicks in. There is a surge of power with the 2.5 ton behemoth lunging forward eagerly. There is one thing though, the tachometer is calibrated till 8000rpm, but the scorp can barely manage 4500. I agree its a diesel and that it isn't meant to rev all that much, perhaps then they should have had the tacho calibrated to 5000rpm or so. At least to avoid disappointments. Summing it up, I would prefer the engine on this to that on the Safari because it feels much much more alive. Although the Scorpio engine feels very alive, it still manages to return 9-11kpl on an average, which is very good.
The transmission on the other hand isn't as happy a story as the engine. The Scorpio has a 5 speed manual gearbox that is a little weird if you ask me. Notice the photo of the interior, the gear lever is at an angle to the dashboard. For some strange reason, the scorpio has all its gears at an angle. No, I'm not saying that its a big flaw, but I'm sure mahindra could have done without such a system. The gear ratios are well selected and can keep the engine on the boil, but overtaking may require some amount of downshifting. The clutch is very progressive and petrol car drivers may cause the engine to whine while getting off the clutch, but its light and easy which makes it that much more easy to use, especially in taxing city conditions.
Design and interiors
Ride and Handling |
![Mahindra Scorpio crde engine](javascript:openwin("largephoto.asp?imagename=scorpeng.jpg&imagetitle=Mahindra Scorpio crde engine"))
![Mahindra Scorpio interior](javascript:openwin("largephoto.asp?imagename=scorpioint1.jpg&imagetitle=Mahindra Scorpio interior"))
![click to enlarge](javascript:openwin("largephoto.asp?imagename=scorpeng.jpg&imagetitle=MAhindra Scorpio crde engine")){kind=link}
![click to enlarge](javascript:openwin("largephoto.asp?imagename=scorpioint1.jpg&imagetitle=MAhindra Scorpio interior")){kind=link}