Urgent help needed, Buying Safari

I am planning to buy a 2006 TATA Safari VX 4x4, It has 36,500 kms and the person selling is second owner, I had it checked with mechanic and he says vehicle is in good condition, can anyone tell me what is the best price i can pay, the person selling is asking 5.5 lks.

Also i heard lot of bad reviews of owning safari and my freinds are also against it complaining it as a high maintainence vehicle, Can anyone give suggestions on the price to pay and things to look forward after owning a safari. thanks in advance.

Guys my 2 cents..i owned a scorpio for 4 years and must say i pretty satisfied with it. When i decided to upgrade i was divided between Scorpio and Safari. Almost everyone advised me against buying a Safari and most forums also encouraged me to either go for a scorpio or a Innova. I went ahead and bought a Safari. One year later...this is my story

SAFARI ROCKS...i am totally in love this car and i am glad i wasn't influenced by these forums and the naysayers . Scorpio is a decent buy and you wont go wrong by buying it...but Safari is nirvana.

Having owned both, in my opinion Safari is the king !! its gives me an adrenalin rush even after a year..i now know about 20-30 Safari owners and the all feel the same. 

i aint saying buy a Safari..but dont get influenced by nay sayers..all the stories abt Safari is perception..half the guys writing that here have never driven or owned a Safari...once who have...will only have good things to say..

Ok, What will be fair price to pay for this 2006 Safari VX 4x4. please let me know. thanks

Ganesh , you can see carwale's used car valuation price in your city to arrive at a fair price.

The safari 2.2 vtt is a good vehicle .

carwale valuation shows the fair price as 5 lks, but i think even 5 lks is high for a 2006 jan safari especially with the maintaince costs involved owning it. thanks

Ganesh, I think the 2.2 vtt dicor was launched in 2007 and this is a 2006 vehicle. So I think this is the older safari model - can you confirm ?

If this is really the older model then I would not buy it. Always go for the new 2.2 vtt.

Ganesh,

FYI..the tata safari DICOR and the new tata safari 2.2vvt dicor are two different vehicles with totally different engines.

The initial tata safari dicor launched in 2006 ran to beginning 2007 and was scrapped due to consistency of the engine.

The all new tata safari 2.2vvt dicor is a very good vehicle with a low noise engine delivering almost 17kmpl on an average in 50-50 city-highway mileage with ac.This is what my friend is getting on his new safari.

The resale of this particular dicor of 2006 make should be low. In my opinion avoid it.

Regards,

Vinay Pillai

thanks guys for your replies, I will start looking for 2.2 vtt engine safaris, when was exact month and year the 2.2 vtt engines were produced, what year should i be looking at? thanks once agian.

Actually it has nothing to do with 'consistency of the engine'.  They decided to go with the trusted 3 litre engine from the 407 LCV for the first common rail engine probably because there would be one predictable or known factor - this was the first common rail engine from Tata, I guess they didnt want a new engine (2.2) AND new technology (common rail) together.  Hence they probably decided to trial out the new technology on an old and proven engine while they continued testing and development on the 2.2.

My friends with access to Tata test mules had driven the 2.2 engined Safari (test mule) at the same time they launched the 3.0, so its a fact that the 2.2 did exist at that point in time.

However, the 3.0 was a truck engine at the end of the day and refinement wasnt its forte.  It is, however, an engine with bucketloads of low-end torque that is very useful off the road, and a very strong mid-end that makes it a joy on the highways.  

THe 3.0 engined Safari is a great highway performer where it can cruise all day at speeds of over 100 kmph without any stress.

For those who like to go off the beaten trail, the 3.0 was also capable of crawling through most stuff without breaking into a sweat.  Earlier this year, we climbed up a totally broken path up a mountainside without touching the accelerator (except at the hairpin turns) - the vehicle pretty much climbed up by itself, both feet were off the pedals for the vast majority of the drive.

You have an offer of 5.5 lakhs for the 4x4 VX, a vehicle that would've cost its owner close to 14 lakhs in 2006 (4x4 costs a lakh over 4x2).  Yes the engine has been replaced with the new  2.2 (much smoother, more economic and with more output but without the mid-end rush and crawl-ability of the 3.0), but the engine is not out of production because some of the export Xenons still go with the 3.0 engine, and the 407 will soon have the same engine (if not already).

The VX is the top-of-the line version with Airbags, ABS, Leather everywhere, DVD players and screens, etc etc etc and a lot of other bells and whistles.  If you ask me, 5.5 lakhs is a damn good price for a vehicle with ALL features AND 4x4.

You will not find a 2.2 Vx 4x4 at this price.  Not even a GX (next model), if you ask me.

If all you want is a big vehicle and you dont really care for all the other features and conveniences that come with the VX, wait for a 2.2 - you will find an LX or EX within the budget mentioned.

Similarly if you dont really want a 4x4 - you will be able to find a 4x2 VTT within your budget.

BUT - if you're looking for a 4x4 and you want all the luxury, conveniences and safety features that come with the VX version, I think 5.5 lakhs is a good price for a vehicle, especially since it will still be under warranty for almost a year more (48 months was the warranty).

What you will lose out on (as compared to a 2.2) are:

1.  Refinement - the 2.2 is much much more refined.

2. Top Speed - the 2.2 has 138 bhp to the 3.0's 115, this translates to a much better top end.

3. Acceleration - the 2.2 shoots out of traffic lights much better, as good as most cars around and much better than any other SUV within that price range.

Consider it this way - the 2.2's power curve is like a 'U'', it accelerates fast from standstill and gets to speeds of over 120 better than the 2.2.  The 3.0's power curve is an inverted 'U' - its strength is mid-range performance, which is why it does well on the highways.  It is the king of the 80 - 140 kmph band, but is slow off the blocks from standstill and is restricted to a top speed of 140 kmph.  I've had my 3.0 de-restricted and the max it can do is 165 kmph, and even then the progress from 140 to 165 is a bit slow.  THe 2.2 races from 120 kmph to 170 comfortably and can do more.  But then the 2.2 goes offroad and gets stuck because its torque is only available at higher rpms, making the driver revv and spin his wheels.  This is where the 3.0 clatters past at close-to-idle rpm, with no drama or theatrics.

I've tried to explain the differences between the two engines, I hope its of some use.

NOW

If you decide not to go for this 3.0 VX 4x4 at the price mentioned, please let me know what your location is.  I have an unsolicited buyer for my 2005 EX 4x4 at 5 lakhs, but I hadnt planned to sell my truck to him.  However, if your location is close to Kerala I wouldnt mind coming over to take a look at this VX 4x4 at 5.5 lakhs, because I'd be trading up substantially for just 50k more.  Without losing my ability to go offroad!

EDIT:  Just saw your location Nashik.  Too far!