MAHINDRA

GUSTO

TEST RIDE

REPORT

AMIT DWIVEDI10/10/2014

Mahindra GustoThe name and the design of “Gusto” both possess the Italian touch literally meaning- enjoyment and enthusiasm in execution. But also it sounds more like a gust of breeze

Again the tag line “Break Free” recalls the good old memories of “Bolero break free”, which might, as well, be good-luck charm to replicate the success story.

Styling and

Looks

Sales Pitch

• The exclusive website www.mahindragusto.com offers a very simple test ride booking option by just providing one’s name and mobile no. Later an outbound call from the call centre collects relevant details and suggests the nearest dealer for test ride

• In this case the showroom visited for test ride was Pandey Motors, Adarsh Nagar, Unnao

• The sales pitch by the showroom staff was two fold-first focus on the innovative features and second the comparison of the scooter vis-à-vis competetion mainly Activa and Maestro

• Although the sales man was not interested for a test ride but was more keen on emphasizing the comparative chart along with the demonstration of the USPs like- Height adjustable seat, Front kick and “Centuro” like features

• The test ride was given on a patch of side road with brick laid lane to verify the company’s claims of smoother riding experience

Riding Experience

Mahindra’s refined and silent engine combined with the front telescopic suspension delivers a really smooth ride even on bumpy brick laid ‘in-road’ of the town.

The 12” tubeless tyres and the extra ground clearance also plays an important role when encountered with pot-holes on a bad road.

Stability and Maneuverability is also quite good given the long wheel base and front telescopic shock absorbers which transmit minimum vibrations from the road to the handle.

Engine is refined and smooth while revving at a speed of 40-50Kmph. Very little vibrations are felt even while throttling from stand still. Although the pick-up seems to be lower than other scooters.

Seating position is upright and comfortable due to broad seat cushion design. The seat length is also more than sufficient for a pillion. Sufficient leg room is available for tall riders also.

Braking is somewhat below expectation as the response is lower in proportion to the effort when compared with Maestro/ Activa.

Distinguishing Features

Height Adjustable Seat

GUSTO is India’s first scooter to offer a Height Adjustable Seat enabling the riders of different heights to use the scooter comfortably.

The feature is something quite common in cars but definitely a very innovative and useful feature for a family scooter.

The scooter (Vx variant) offers two seating positions 1 & 2 (saddle heights- 735mm and 770mm)Height can be adjusted by simply pulling a latch and raising or lowering the front seat rest

1

2

Distinguishing FeaturesFront Flip Open- Non Return Seat

The seat is unique and flips open from the front, unlike traditional rear flip open seats of automatic scooters.

Another ease factor is that the seat once opened for accessing boot space/ filling petrol need not be held with caution to stop falling down due to the self locking mechanism.

A spring loaded stopper self-locks the seat in up-right position and prevents it from falling back until and unless it is pushed back to its normal position.

Distinguishing FeaturesEasy Front Kick

GUSTO comes with a smartly designed motor-cycle styled kick which offers the rider ease of starting the scooter while being seated. A smart innovation indeed.

Effectively, the rider can kick-start the Gusto while seated, without having to get down and kick start as is the case traditionally in automatic scooters. This according to Mahindra, gives Gusto riders a sense of novelty, like that of kick-starting a motorcycle

Distinguishing Features

Remote Flip Key

This is a feature which Mahindra has already introduced with the launch of Centuro. The stylish key opens like a switchblade. Along with the “find me lamps” button it is adorned with a blue LED light to illuminate the key-hole in the dark.

The second key is a normal duplicate key as usual.

Distinguishing Features

Find Me Lamps

Another feature inherited from the Centuro which in-turn borrowed it from cars is the call out beep thru remote for finding your vehicle in a parking place.

There is also an option of silent search i.e. by just blinking the turn signal lamps without the alarm sound so as to spot the vehicle in dark

Distinguishing Features

Guide Lamps

Coming of age the scooter has also adopted guide lamps from Mahindra’s 4-W inheritance.

The guide lamps remain lighted for almost4-6 seconds even after the ignition is killed, showing the path ahead.A not so useful yet smart distinction among the class.

Distinguishing FeaturesTelescopic Shock Absorbers

Another first in class offering in the segment which gives advantage over competition is the front telescopic suspension with air springs.

It not only absorbs bumps fairly well but also improves handling. The suspension also negates out bumps to the handlebars, giving rider a feel of stability and control.

Activa 125 offers the same suspension but with a “step-up” cost.

Distinguishing Features12-inch Tube less Tyres

A feature which literally places the Gusto higher in the class is its large 12” tubeless tyres both front and rear. It also justifies the seat-height adjusting feature to overcome the extra saddle height.

Large tubeless tyres gives not only improves ride quality of ride in tackling pot-holes and improving maneuverability but also gives the Gusto the highest ground clearance in its segment at 165mm.

Styling and Looks

• Italian styled and developed at Mahindra Two Wheelers’ R&D centre at Pune “Gusto” boasts of a distinctive and bold looks.

• Although a thorough look at the scooter gives a feeling of resemblance to the Piaggio stable; a fusion of Vespa and LML of days bygone.

• Front wing like grills give an attractive look to the scooter combined with the “mahindra” emblem like that in 4-wheelers

• Tail lamp console is also a very eye-catching view of the scooter with “mahindra” prominently appearing in the centre of the integrated side indicators.

Add On’s

Add On’sSleek Design

Sleek and aerodynamic design in addition to long wheel base of 1275 mm gives advantage of better control and maneuverability to the scooter adding the comfort of adequate leg space to tall riders as well.

To improve the heat transfer rate of the air cooled engine the rear inner body the step thru leg space is given air-passage ventilators for better air flow around the engine.

Meter Console

Having an abstract design and analog meters, the console looks appealing. Speedometer comes with usual Eco zone feature.The other two screens split apart shows the turn indicators and High/ Low beam.

The distinguishing feature here is the retractable “Quick Storage” space to hold small items like loose papers, Mobile, coins, keys etc.

Turn signal

Indicator

High / Low

Beam Indicator

QUICK STORAGE SPACE

Add On’s

Technical Specifications1.) ENGINE:-

All Aluminum engine with single cylinder 4 Stroke, Air-cooled Engine

with patented M-TEC engine technology that features a strong crankshaft and bearings, a high inertia magneto with high energy ignition coil, roller rocker arms for valve actuation as well as a silent chain rather than a regular roller chain and an efficient series regulator which is said to have superior power, efficiency and reliability,

to increase refinement throughout the rev range.

A large venturi carburetor and one of the largest diameter CVT clutches means that the Gusto can deliver more power, thereby providing significantly better acceleration

Displacement:- 109.6 cc

Max Power:- 8 bhp @ 7500 rpm

Max Torque:- 9 Nm @ 5500 rpm

Ignition System:- Digital CDI ignition

2.) ELECTRICALS:-

Battery:- 12 V, 6 Ah (Vx variant)

12 V, 4 AH(Dx variant)

Head Lamp:- 12 V, 35W Halogen integrated with LED pilot lamps

Brake Lamp/ Tail Lamp:- 12 V,

3.) TYRE and WHEEL

Tyre Type :- Tubeless

Tyre Size ( Front ):- 90/90 -12

Tyre Size ( Rear ):- 90/90-12

Wheel Size :- 12 inches

Technical Specifications

4.) CHASSIS :-

Frame:- High Rigidity Underbone tubular steel type

Dimensions ( lxbxh):- 1825 x 697 x 1188 cu mm

Wheel Base:- 1275 mm

Ground Clearance:- 165 mm

Kerb Weight:- 120 Kg

Saddle Height:- 770 mm in Higher seating position (Dx variant- single position only)

Saddle Height:- 735 mm in Lower seating position (Adjusting option in Vx variant)

Technical Specifications

5.) SUSPENSION:-

Front :- Telescopic with Air Spring

Rear:- Coil type, Hydarulic

6.) BRAKES:-

Type:- Drum Brake

Front:- Drum size 130mm

Rear:- Drum size 130mm

7.) OTHERS:-

Fuel Tank Capacity:- 6.0 Litres

Fuel Efficiency (ARAI):- 63 Kmpl

Top Speed:- 80 Kmph

Technical Specifications

Colours

The scooter comes in six exciting colors although only three were available at the dealership as on date.

For Vx variant For Dx variant

Iceberg White Arctic WhiteRaven Black Galactic BlackMagnetic MagentaVolcanic Red

Pricing

The scooter is competitively priced by Mahindra to attract the customers. The Ex-Showroom prices for the variants are as given below-Mahindra Gusto Vx: Rs 48,822

Mahindra Gusto Dx: Rs 44,822

Comparison with Competition

An extract from Mahindra Gusto’s official marketing hand-out portraying superiority with peers

Comparison with Competition

But what is smartly slid under the carpet are some really useful features which are missing in Gusto like-

Brakes seems to be a bit hard and less effective at higher speeds. Combi brakes which is a very good option for effective, low effort and balanced braking is what a Maestro or Activa rider will badly miss.

Boot lamp is another utility feature which is missed provided that the scooter is adorned with a number of lamps like LED pilot lamps, guide lamp and flip key light.

Mobile charger is another basic utility which is left out that too when almost every other scooter in the segment is having the feature.

Gusto over-weighs its competitors in terms of Kerb weight (120 Kg) also which is not an advantage in the league where light weight is always preferable from both the user and the manufacturer’s point of view.

Thank You

AMIT DWIVEDI9565033331amitd07@gmail.com