Mahindra Bolero....

Dear friends Please note I am writing this review based only on driving experience and not on ownership experience.
First impression and looks.......:
Bolero looks good from all sides and angles but only from a distance. when you get closer, you can see uneven gaps in many places, for instance the panel gaps (between the body and bumper both rear and frontal , quality of plastics used for wheel arches, interior plastic quality ) is uneven and ugly.The fit and finish is not even average both inside and outside the bolero.Even the beeding on the sides in the top model is not fixed perfectly.it is opening and showing the paste used for sticking it in many points. (To check this i went to a dealer showroom there were about six bolero's on display and none of them had a perfect fit and finish and on top of it the sales person agreed that boleros come from the factory like that only????) Well ...Yes!!! the bolero looks macho from front.But when you look at it from the sides or from the rear  at close quarters you will really not feel so , In fact you may feel my god this could break easily on impact or like wise...The head light lens and assembly  looks promisingly of lighting up the darkness ahead of you satisfactorily .The rear light lens looks decent.The graphics on the sides could be better ( Crde engine). Atleast  the Crde version could sport a roof spoiler factory fitted and better sound system and alloy wheels..Nothing to say about DI Turbo looks plain and bland.There is only one horn provided behind the front grill, the horn looks cheap..
Interiors :
The interior space is nothing to rave about. The dashboard is small and primitive ,the plastics scream of cheap quality.The dashboard is utterly useless you cannot keep anything on it.i would say maruti omni had better dashboard. The door pads are not better. In the Crde version the front doors had a small map holder which is useful but built cheap.And there is a door handle at the bottom of the door i couldn't understand the purpose of that and neither the sales person could .the DI turbo has just plain door pads no holders or so...The seats are stiff and bench like in the rear and the head rest pokes on your neck.really the rear seats took me to my good old school days where we used to sit in stiff wooden benches.Coming to the front seats the bucket seat looks good but once you climb on to them they r not a bit comfortable. In fact they feel like a different version of the rear stiff seats.The seat is the same in Both the engine versions.The roof material looks average. The steering feels ok to drive sufficient  enough. the bolero is suitable only for 4 to 5 people and not 7 or 8 like they advertise.
Driving it:
There are two types of engines offered (1). Crde 2.49L & 97HP.(2).DI Turbo & 68 HP.
(1). Crde 2.49L & 97HP
First about the Crde engine.The engine is quite silent and once inside and windows rolled up the cabin noise is not harsh or too much The noise level inside is acceptable and less compared to other boleros .The power steering is excellent.Braking is also good.The engine response is very good.The engine feels good to drive and overtaking in city and highways will not be a problem.The Air-con is also good.
The CRDE engine is good.
Comment: The Crde is good but if you look closely at the front grill you can see the Inter-cooler for the turbo-charger,I personally feel that the inter-cooler is placed way too forward... in case of any frontal impact it will be first one to get damaged even if the total impact is less..I hope you understand what i mean..A front bumper guard will he helpful to a certain extent..
(2).DI Turbo & 68 HP.
The Di engine is really a miserable and shitty engine to drive. The engine response is bad and even without A/C the pickup is not that much.The power steering and Air-con remains the same as above.The only good part is mahindras claim a mileage of 14 to 16 in city which i think is not bad if at all it is true.(But i doubt it)The badge on the bolero screams turbo but the engine hardly moves ..
The DI Turbo is very average or below average. I think my old vehicle has better pickup .
Gearbox feel :
The gear leaver of the bolero ( both engines ) are placed in such a way which is difficult to access and shifting to second gear makes you feel that toy are trying to shear off the gears from the shaft , and my god shifting to reverse is really pain in the backside, very crude and not a bit smooth. gear box is poor in both engines..
Reliability:
Both the engines score 100% for reliability factor both engines have been around for some time and proven their capability and reliability both in city and beyond it..And i believe that the spares will not cost a bomb.Bolero is definitely suitable for Indian roads.It has the go-anywhere ability.
My personal choice:
Personally i would prefer a used, good condition CRDE bolero and do up the interiors nicely and make seating comfortable (definitely i will have to replace the front seats and re-cushion the rear seats ) and add a good amplifier and a sub-woofer, sport a roof spoiler, remove the lousy looking graphics,If possible try to relocate the inter-cooler at a relatively safe place,fix a couple of extra driving lights , keep riding the bolero happily ever after ...
Will i buy a NEW one ??
I would never want to buy a new bolero because
Considering that a guy pays 7.4 lac for the CRDE engine or a minimum of 6.10 lac for the basic version if DI Turbo engine What he gets is a something worthy half of the money he pays. I would say the maruti alto or even 800 have better interiors.
Bottom Line: 
The bolero is compaCrde engine ,Power steering, NVH levels inside cabin, A/C ,DI engine , interiors,cheap plastic quality, poor fit and finish, Gear box,