BHPian rudra_shiv recently shared this with other enthusiasts:It’s yet another day, yet another surprise!A week ago, on a sunny Thursday, I was all set for a family gathering. As per my usual ritual-start the car, let it idle for three minutes, and ease into the journey-I had barely gone 500 meters from my house when I realized I couldn’t slot the second gear. Not exactly the kind of surprise you want with a car full of in-laws and family members staring at you as if I was trying to rewrite the laws of driving physics. With mild embarrassment, I safely pulled over and restarted RUDRA. The gears finally slotted, but the shifting was hit or miss-sometimes smooth, sometimes notchy. Confused but hopeful, I decided to give it another shot the next day, especially since I had a 60-kilometer trip ahead. The next day, as fate would have it, reverse gear decided to take the day off. After many attempts at coaxing it, including the classic move-forward-a-bit trick and disengaging the parking brake on a slight incline, I finally managed to get it in reverse. Of course, this wasn’t before fielding a few sarcastic sword fights from my mom and wife for my choice of vehicle. Once on the road, the gears behaved like a temperamental artist-smooth at times, but unpredictably notchy. Adding to all this, I was also noticing a 10-15% drop in Fuel Efficiency. Usually, the MID used to read 12kmpl and AdrenoX giving a 11.5kmpl, now I was a bit shocked to see the readings of 10kmpl & 9kmpl respectively (even the Tank2Tank I checked has gone down). Here is the quick byte of the whole issue In the middle of this delightful drive, I reached out to Mr. Dileep (GM CAI), who kindly suggested checking the fluid level in the Master Cylinder. Unfortunately, I couldn’t definitively assess if it was at the right level. He suggested sharing some pictures/videos with him. We could not conclude the fluid levels from the pictures. Mr. Dileep assured me that a technician would come by to check the fluid and see if bleeding the clutch would help. He did speak to me in a comforting manner and reassured me that this could be solved + nothing major. And this is how the Brake Master Cylinder looks I felt there was a mild seepage in the brake master cylinder which is here Meanwhile, I posted my woes in our ever-reliable WhatsApp and Facebook groups. The responses were both comforting and concerning-turns out, I’m not alone. Some owners are simply living with the issue, while others have had to replace synchronization gears, concentric slave cylinders, or even the M-Shifter and Shifter Cable. At this point, I was questioning my loyalty to Mahindra. Should I have chosen another car instead of blindly following the love and loyalty that I had towards the brand? Mr. Dileep tried to reassure me, saying it was likely a minor issue, but that did little to quiet the nagging doubts about the reliability. The technician arrived as promised, and tried bleeding the clutch, but that didn’t help. He confirmed that the one I posted in the picture above on the seepage is not a leak, it is grease accumulated with dirt. During this whole process, found the battery is turning out bad which is yet another surprise. A pick-up was arranged, and I requested a standby car since I had family plans. Mahindra graciously provided a Marazzo loaner, and the next day, the CoTek and Service teams ran diagnostics. They found a leak in the Clutch Master Cylinder, which had allowed air into the system, causing poor gear engagement. The part was to be replaced under warranty, and the car was promised back on Monday. I made it clear that I did not want another surprise breakdown and urged the team to thoroughly check RUDRA. Though they did a good job, I couldn’t help but think that no amount of good service could compensate for the questionable quality levels of Mahindra. They apologized and reassured me it wouldn’t happen again, though I’d like to believe them. The culprit that created the whole fuss This is where it is positioned Glad that they deduced it very quickly and acted upon replacing the part duly. Of course, these are all minor things but such issues might just spoil your day and peace of mind. At this point, I hope it’s a one-off manufacturing defect, but I can’t help feeling uneasy about taking RUDRA on long drives. After all, in my two years and 24,000 kilometers of ownership, I’ve already dealt with:A micro-relay failure, leaving me stranded in traffic (right after a canister replacement, no less)LCA + bush replacementVacuum pump replacementThe infamous floaty feeling issueAnd now, a faulty Clutch Master CylinderMahindra undoubtedly has an internationally competitive product, backed by strong engineering. My decision to choose Mahindra was driven not only by my admiration for iconic models like the Scorpio, XUV, and THAR/MM540 but also by a deep sense of pride in supporting a “Made in India” brand. However, it’s concerning to encounter quality issues with certain parts, which has been disappointing given my longstanding trust in Mahindra’s engineering and reliability. While I remain hopeful that this is an isolated manufacturing defect, it has unfortunately cast doubt among family members, some of whom had recommended alternatives like a pre-owned Innova Crysta, a sedan (my mother’s preference for years), or even German and Korean models. For someone who has been passionate about the brand Mahindra, this situation has been a personal letdown, and I sincerely urge the company to address these quality concerns to maintain the trust of loyal customers like myself. Here’s to hoping the next family gathering will be less eventful-on the car front, at least. On the way home with RUDRA, I took the opportunity to refuel at Shell. This time, a pricey fill-up of about 40 liters of Shell V-Power set me back 5.3k. Yup, the Shell V Power in Coimbatore costs 121.4Rs. Not sure what they use in Shell that bumps the unleaded Petrol costs by ~20-25% and this is not a RON95 either. Hope the FE numbers get back on track and bring back my smiles! Since it was a little tiring day, thought of having the Filter Coffee at Shell Deli-Go, and checking out the experience. Their coffee was just okay though! I will keep this thread updated on how the FE numbers stand with Shell V Power. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.
