My Ivory Tusker: Mahindra Bolero 2021 B6 (O)


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She's currently at 9k on the odometer and 9 months old, everything has been touchwood so far with the exception of 2 failures;

1. Air Conditioner Vent on drivers side failed, its Open/Close linkage broke and the vent would remain closed due to air flow, I juggad fixed it by inserting a flat-head and snapping the flap off, beats spending 1.5k for the spare, only downside is that at full blast the flap rattles a bit before settling down.

2. Rear Passenger side tyre blasted while driving at around 60kmph, this happened yesterday and I'd immediately taken her to the showroom to claim warranty, not sure how it would turn out but fingers crossed.
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Here's the Dashcam footage of when the blast happened, as you can see the car wasnt upset at all so I'd kept driving for a bit before parking.


As for modifications, I've done the following;

1. Hardwired a Dashcamera, lesson learnt was to never trust the auto cut-off even if the camera is from a reputed brand such as 70mai, 11.4V is just not enough, my Bolero even though started with a Key has the one-touch-start setup and it would not start if the battery volts are too low, so as a fix both leads of the hardwire kit are tapped into fuses that power-down with the ignition key.

2. Have Disabled the Micro-Hybrid auto-start/stop feature as it was getting on my nerves, the process is simple, using a jumper wire I'd shorted the leads that initiates switch action which triggers the ECU to disable the feature as a fail safe.
MicroHybd.jpg


I do not like giving my car to the ASC for service and hence everything is DIY, the service record so far is;

1. 5000 km's, changed the Engine Oil, since the Bolero has been available for over 2 decades there are several engine iterations, mine is a mHawk D75 3 Cylinder and before this came the mHawk D70 4 Cylinder, so the reason for mentioning the same is that I got the oil capacity confused and filled in 6 Liters instead of 5 Liters, haven't bothered to drain the extra oil but this is something to keep in mind, the mHawk D75 requires only 5 Liters of Oil. Also to note the Oil Filter that comes from factory is smaller in size, I had it replaced with the larger commercial one which has a replacement interval of 20k km's. Also the Oil Filer is hard to access considering that the mHawk D75's engine bay is cramped, so a Cup Wrench is a must, the conventional strap/chain type tools wont work, I've tried.

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The car has been driven on several terrains including off-road sections, if you're from the South of KL then know that she has been up Rosemala as well, though who are we kidding it is a soft-roader at best since a 2WD with an open differential is in effect a 1WD. :D

Now coming to the FE, her MID has once shown 28kmpl but from my tracking on Fuelio the average is around 14 kmpl and the best is around 17kmpl.

Would I recommend the Bolero to anyone? Not really, but if you're like me and prefers to keep a car for really long then there aren't much options and the Bolero is a strong contender considering its runtime, however please do opt for the base model, mine is the top spec one and the only reason I was strong armed into this is cause my marriage was around the corner and short notice delivery was a concern, plus the stigma of driving a "Base Model" for marriage. Having said that I do enjoy the cornering lights at times when driving through rural sections at night.

So that's about it folks, stay tuned for more! :)
 
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mayankdixit

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Please post more pictures of your cars,and the diy ( like oil change, filters etc) associated with them. Would love to see them.
Which oil (grade and brand) you filled up in bolero??

p.s please pardon my nosing, but was very curious that why was there radio silence from your side for such a loooong time? I mean there were zillions of diy and car pictures and car talk we members could have been shared with,no??
 
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Thread Starter #3
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Please post more pictures of your cars,and the diy ( like oil change, filters etc) associated with them. Would love to see them.
Which oil (grade and brand) you filled up in bolero??
Sure would, my next Engine Oil change for the Bolero is coming up and I'd post detailed pics of the same. As of now I am contemplating whether to change the differential oil as well since I'd be hitting 10k on the odo soon, first car with a differential so a bit clueless.

My Engine Oil change intervals are 5k km's, basically I change at half of what the manual recommends as I wish to keep my cars for a really really long time, oil used last time was Motul DSM;

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I cannot for the love of me recall the grade, I believe it was the standard 15W40 that diesels come in, it is the first time I'm using this oil as my usual preference among Diesel Oils is the Rimula R4 as I have extensively used the same in my motorcycles.

As for other DIY's, once a tree fell on the Bolero's hood and it got dented, a buddy of mine who is another hardcore DIY'er helped to fix it;

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it was our first go at dent work and I did make some amateur mistakes but all said and done we're please by the output.

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Above is the Before and After pic of our DIY Dent Repair. There is a small fold remaining but I've decided to live with it.

Other than that I haven't really driven the car much to work on it or take enough pictures, though going forward would ensure to make posts as detailed as possible.

p.s please pardon my nosing, but was very curious that why was there radio silence from your side for such a long time? I mean there were zillions of diy and pictures and car talk we could have been shared with,no??
I was active on TeamBhp but got banned as the mods lacked mechanical knowledge and thought my posts were gibberish. Came to TAI as I've seen hardcore DIY'ers like Dilip flourish without criticism as other members also seem to be more into the technical stuff.

Also I am or was basically a biker until I got married in March 2021, though I've been driving for the past 14 years I got into cars around the time I got married so I'm a novice to be honest, other than the Bolero I also have a Alto that was also bought around the same time as the Bolero, she has clocked about 17.5k on the odo and was my recent companion for a drive from Trivandrum to Mumbai and back and has been DIY maintained as well.

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Hoping to create a separate thread for the Alto later when time permits. :)
 

mayankdixit

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I appreciate you DIYs a lot.
You might want to look more closely into Motul dsm turbo in your next fill because although as you said Your Motul has grade 15W40 ,BUT , its only recommended for bs3 and 4 only . I believe your bolero is bs6?? It requires a different grade.
 
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Thread Starter #5
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I appreciate you DIYs a lot.
You might want to look more closely into Motul dsm turbo in your next fill because although as you said Your Motul has grade 15W40 ,BUT , its only recommended for bs3 and 4 only . I believe your bolero is bs6?? It requires a different grade.
Yes mine is BS6, but here's the weird catch, I have gone through the manual and it doesn't specify the grade of oil and calls it "Special Engine Fluid" I did try searching for the prescribed oil online but couldn't find it anywhere, hence the reason why I decided to go with what was readily available with my dealer.

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I had used Shell Taxi in the Alto and found it good, Shell says it's compatible for the Bolero as well however I didn't see a API Cx grade mentioned on the bottle;

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So was wondering if it would be fine to use in the Bolero, it's grade is 5W30, another option is the pricier Rimula R4 which is a API CI4 grade oil and 15W40 grade.

Fact be told I really don't bother with the specifics, simply get what's reliable and cheap and change at short intervals and it has worked too well for the Motorcycles I've owned, however with cars I'm still on the learning curve. :)
 
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Appreciate your interest in DIYs and your experiments with oil. But I signed up on this forum after reading your thread because I wanted to clarify something and hope that would help you or at least others in making the right choice.
  • Cars with DPF, ie including your Bolero need oil with low ash content. That is called as low SAPS oil which otherwise would foul with the DPF and cause early regeneration/failure which is going to be an expensive fix. The oil you have used is not a low SAPS oil and is rather a very basic oil which is why the manufacturer has mentioned its compatible only until BS3 engines that too without EGR. Beyond that, this oil isnt recommended.
  • Thats the very reason Mahindra has not recommended using even their own earlier oil except when in emergency.
  • Hence please drain the current oil and replace with any engine oil which is suitable for DPF equipped engines.
And regarding using Shell Taxi in Bolero, just forget it. Its ACEA ratings are nowhere close to using it on a DPF equipped engine. You need an ACEA E9 or C1.
 
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Thread Starter #8
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You need an ACEA E9 or C1.
Thank you for clearing that, I have returned the Shell Taxi as the packing seemed dubious.

As an alternative and due to the next oil change coming up sooner than expected I had picked up a 5L Can of Mobil Super 1000, this is not in compliance with the grade you have mentioned, which I tried to find online but failed.

I have reached out to my oil distributor and he is also clueless, so would you be kind enough to suggest an oil so that I can place an order for the same. The closest I could find with a ACEA rating is Castrol Magnatec SUV which is rated A3/B4.

Congratulations on your sensible purchase.

Wishing you lakhs of happy and safe kilometres.
Thank you kind Sir.

As an update, Mahindra and Bridgestone after a lot of shifting blame and BS'ing have agreed to offer a goodwill of 75% on the MRP of the tyre, so I would have to pay a shade under 2k from my pocket to replace the tyre that blew.

The process is not hassle-free the blown tyre would have to be couriered to Bridgestone and only then would they issue a replacement, this is in addition to the weeks of haggling for goodwill. Quite inconvenient to say the least, though I do appreciate Mahindra for footing in 30% of the cost when Bridgestone only offered 45%.

I was under quarantine so couldn't go ahead with the replacement or really clock any decent miles, would share further updates as and when possible.

Thank you everyone. :)
 
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Attended the South Zone B.O.C(Bolero Owners Club) Meet!

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While reaching the spot I managed to bang my rear number plate due to exploring the articulation of the rear end, and fellow enthusiast Noufal was kind enough to help me fix the number plate that was held in place by rivets, a PUTA cause when one broke, part of the rivet blocked the mount so he used a regular wood screw as a temporary fix.

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As for an update, next oil change would be at around 12.5k on the odo. As for the tyre that blew, Mahindra offered goodwill and I had to only pay 1k for a replacement, the market price of the tyre was around 7.5k, Thank you Mahindra! It was a painful affair that took over a month to resolve but I'm grateful things were favourable to an extent.

Will post more updates during the next oil Change, that's about it for now.

Cheers!
A.P.
 
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The Bolero has crossed 15k on the odo, and the last Engine Oil change was at 12.5k on the odo.

After the previous incident with the number plate I decided to buy the "Off Road" number plate holder of the 2020 Thar presuming it would be a fit but alas;

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The Thar's PCD was surprisingly smaller than the Bolero's, that really caught me by surprise. So I gifted the holder to a buddy of mine who recently got a Thar.

Now my father was back in town and seeing all this, took a dremel and sheet cutter to the RTO issued number plate and eliminated the backing plate and mounted the light on the actual number plate itself adding some extra clearance;

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Here's the stock backing plate the number plate was mounted to;

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After this we had a ~600km's sprint within Kerala due to my fathers annual leave coming to an end and our relatives being spread around, the drive was comfortable but while returning from Trissur we noticed a new yellow sign on the mini display;

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I've gone through the manual several times but couldn't for the love of me recall what this meant, my father had shared the above snap in the regional automotive group and my friends suggested it was the DPF getting chocked, which was a surprise considering how short geared the Bolero is.

Anyhow, when we stopped for breakfast we pulled out the manual and figured out that the issue was not the DPF but the DEF, plus after we got back from breakfast and turned the Key ON the below message flashed in the mini display for a few seconds;

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So nearing my hometown I stopped at a petrol bunk and got a 20L can of AdBlue from BPCL, it cost me 1.5k, when we'd reached home I used an empty water bottle to transfer the AdBlue to the DEF tank;

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After filling around 18L the tank started to overflow so I closed it and the error went away after starting the engine. Now why did I use a 1L bottle nonetheless a water bottle to transfer AdBlue? Well the ~600km's was done in about 24hours and on KL roads, I was sleep deprived and not thinking straight, even managed to scratch the Bolero a few times for which I bought some sample paint to do the touch-up.

Now realizing that my brain was fried and we had an airport run coming up I took the Bolero to my FNG for a Gearbox and Differential Oil Change;

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This is the oil that was used for both Gearbox and Differential, I do not know the price as the FNG had it in stock, they said they'd poured 2L each but for the GB I could only keep track for a little over 1L, maybe its the sleep deprivation so I gave the FNG the benefit of the doubt. The oil drained from the GB Looked dark but normal, however the oil drained from the Differential was a shocker;

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The Mechanic reconfirmed whether it was 15k on the odo, when I confirmed he said he's changed Differential oil's that ran for well over 50k km's and they still looked relatively new but this was the first time he was seeing pitch black oil come out of a differential.

Now the kicker here is that Mahindra recommends GB and Differential oil changes at 10k on the odo for he first time and I had over extended it by around 5k km's, but other than that the Bolero has gone through a lot of wheel spins, due to a few off-road sessions and mostly due to my driving style carried over from the Zen and Alto, as fast corners does tend to work the differential, at least in theory.

Anyhow, I was charged a total of 2.75k for the GB and Differential oil change, not sure what the price of oil was but they'd charged me for a total of 4 Liters and the rest is for labor.

Me being the cheapo that I am, already placed order for sockets in order to DIY this the next time in hopes of saving a few bucks!

So that's about it folks! Until Next time!

P.S. If anyone is aware of the size of sockets or the GB and Differential drain/fill bolts for the BS6 Bolero then please share the same. One is a Square Socket and the other one is an Allen Key socket that from the looks of it seems to be a size 10.

Regards,
A.P.
 
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mayankdixit

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Me being the cheapo that I am,
Not at all. No way !
We are all cheapo by that yardstick with me being on top of the list !! . I don't even visit FNG for these works.
And if my guess is right ,I have repaired myself about 50 -60 punctures in my various vehicles owned in the last decade (right from activa ,discover, to XUV and Nexon). I never ever go to Puncture Wala after witnessing how he ruined my new tyre a decade back. Will think I am his enemy, if only he comes to know.
 
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mayankdixit

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this was the first time he was seeing pitch black oil come out of a differential.
1) Water may have found its way into the diff. fluid. But then it ought to be milky-brownish.
2) Smell it. If burnt smell coming, then very bad.
3) Additives also add blackness on use.
4) Metal shavings in oil. Did you see/look out in the drained oil. If found, again very bad.

p.s All differential oils turn black after designated kms of use. So there might not be a problem at all.
 
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1) Water may have found its way into the diff. fluid. But then it ought to be milky-brownish.
2) Smell it. If burnt smell coming, then very bad.
3) Additives also add blackness on use.
4) Metal shavings in oil. Did you see/look out in the drained oil. If found, again very bad.

p.s All differential oils turn black after designated kms of use. So there might not be a problem at all.
Ideally Gearbox Oil and Differential Oil's aren't supposed to turn black, reason for that is there isn't any blow-by like engine oil which is also why you'd not get burnt smell no matter what condition the oil is in.

The only probable cause for them to turn black is that they were brought near their flash point and the only means of that happening in either GB or Differential is by sheer resistance.

Again oil does prematurely turn black when used in an older poorly maintained differential but that's due to the detergent properties of the oil. Mine is practically brand new at only 15k on the odo so that's ruled out.

So all things considered there's only usage pattern to blame for the oil going prematurely black.

Now coming to possibility of water. If you do not change GB or Diff. oil for a long time they do tend to to absorb a lot of moisture and turn darker but that's not the case here as the oil is pitch black.

If there is actual water in the oil then it emulsifies and changes to Caramel colour in the short term and White in the long term, so both are again ruled out due to colour of oil.

The drain Bolt is magnetic and there was some metal paste but nothing concerning, just as much as there'd be for any new machine.

A good number of buddies are mechanics working for different brands, shared the pic with them and they were also surprised why the differential oil is black in a new vehicle. But since everything else was fine advised to ignore and move on. Again I do suspect that the use of Synthetic oils would also have a play in this as they tend to crap out sooner than minerals from experience, again this isn't a bad thing as an oil turning black is at times a sign that it's doing its job, just a bit confusing when it happens to a brand new component with abysmal miles.

Also snapped some pics off the bolts for future reference.

10mm AllenKey is required for the Differential Drain and Fill bolts.

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Will need to get a 10mm socket as it would make life easier in the future.

As for the Gearbox, it's a Square Key, one of my buddies on seeing it said the size was 10mm, I am slightly skeptical as from memory this is a bit smaller than the one I've seen in Maruti's and my friend is a Maruti trained mechanic;

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Will have to source it from R.E. Chennai as the drain Bolt has to be accessed from a hole in the frame protecting gearbox;

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A side snap of the frame in question to avoid confusions;

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Since its a long way to reach the drain plug I'd need a socket rather than a key.

Will update as soon as I source the same.
 
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Thread Starter #15
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Sorry for the delay in updating, fact is there hasn't been much happening and the Bolero has only recently clocked 18,000 km's on the odo.

I did manage to get myself the appropriate sockets for the GB and Diff;

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The extra square is for the Alto, god knows how I will access its drain/fill bolts as it is not the least accessible like the Bolero. Speaking of the Alto she has clocked 22k on the odo and is awaiting an oil change as the previous one was done at around 17k on the odo, as for the Bolero next oil would be changed at 20k on the odo as previous one was done at 12.5k.

Now coming to updates with the Bolero, I had faced 3 concerns so far;

1. Dead Pixel in center info console;
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You would notice that the T of Time is missing a pixel, it went off a while ago and its been like that since, since it was DIY all the way I cannot claim warranty hence would be living with that. My gut tells me that the AC had something to do with this as the Bolero's AC is over the top when it comes to cooling such that is leaves quite a lot of condensation and my best guess is the condensation might have something to do with this.

2. HL High Beam Relay got stuck when turning ON Car;
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This meant even with the car completely OFF the high-beams remained ON, so had confirmed it was a stuck relay by inserting the high-beam relay into the horn relays socket which caused it to blare, so rode back home with the high beam relay in my pocket and once I got home I replaced the stock OEN one with a Denso one I had bought from MS for my Bullet just in case the Bullet decided to show its true colors, but alas it was the Bolero that did.
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Though there is a prominent height difference between the relays everything is working fine now.

3. Random CEL and Limp Mode;
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During a drive we had stopped by a mall and on returning noticed that the Bolero wasn't accelerating i.e the throttle only responded in 1st gear. The CEL was also ON so that meant that the car was in Limp Mode, I didn't have my OBD reader with me cause I'd permanently fixed it in my Bullet again presuming it would show its true colors during a ride, however again it was the Bolero that betrayed me. Since I had quite some distance to go I out of sheer irritation popped the hood and checked the Turbo, Intercooler etc pipes and they all were good, next I checked for oil and everything was perfect, finally at wits end I pulled out all the connectors and the MAF sensor and wiped them clean on my shirt and plugged back in. Started the car and the CEL was still ON but the car was out of limp mode, drove her home and about 30~50 km's from the previous stop the CEL also vanished. Quite strange I'd say, I have not got a reading when the car was scanned so I guess it would remain a mystery, my other enthusiast friends simply rubbed it off saying that it was "Just a Mahindra Thing!", anyhow I am still curious.

So that's about all there is to the Bolero, in addition to the previously mentioned Oil change planned at 20k on the odo I also do plan to change its Air Filter for the very first time.

Until next time then.
Cheers,
A.P.
 

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