ABS motors: a FIAT service option in Gurgaon!

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by Sushubh

well yeah. the damage has been done. scratches on the windshield of my less than 20 day old linea. i have sent a frustrated email to fiat guys.

Well i think you didnt try to get water first then use wipers. If you hold and release the wiper/washer stalk within very very short interval of less than 1 sec water jet will throw on windscreen to make it wet, after 2-3 times pull it up for 4-5 secs to spray more water and wipers will start.

I do it and my windscreen never gets scratched, dont know how windshield got scratched so much, bosch wipers give minimal scratches, maybe you used it on dry windshield many times.

[vipul_singh]

Rama motors people are getting real aggressive. Got a call from them to get my "Tata car" serviced there. They offered me a 10% labour charges discount, free pick-up and drop facility for the car, too (as if I would let that happen).

Any comparision between Samyak (Elegant) and Rama? The downside with Samyak is that they need very close supervision to get the job done properly, and you need to get your head together with the mechanics to diagnose problems. But if you are OK with both, then they are very good.

Is Rama any better at problem solving? What about spares?

[architect]

Vipul, to answer your question, I think Samyak is better than Rama with fiat cars, atleast the Palio / Siena / Petra / Uno variety.

I am on good terms with Aditya, director at Rama and he is making a lot of effort. You are well looked after and the facilities are nice. You get a 10% discount on labour as well if you are a PUG member.

BUT

Rama has only one mechanic, Rakesh, originally from Dynamic and Vivek auto, who knows Fiats, their Service Advisors are still unfamiliar with the complications of a Fiat engine and electricals. Hence, your trouble-shooting capabilities are restricted to what Rajesh can do.

Samyak, on the other hand, has the collective knowledge of Sharmaji, Raju, Neeraj and the electricals and body shop guys who know quite a bit about Fiats. In fact, probably, they are second best only to Vivek Automobiles in terms of knowledge and experience with Fiat cars. (the fact that few of us want to go to Vivek Automobiles is another story altogether!).

So, for regular service, Rama Motors is fine. For trouble shooting and problems, its either Samyak or Vivek Automobiles (only if you can get the guys at Vivek to change their attitude and get something done).

Regarding close supervision and learning on the job with the mechanic, I guess that's part and parcel of owning a Fiat and you will really need it everywhere. . I guess a lot of people don't do that and still manage a trouble-free experience. Maybe we should change our attitude!

[Sushubh]

you mean to say fiat linea comes with bosch wipers? or you have them installed from somewhere else? i guess i can try finding out their center here in gurgaon. the wiper nozzles are a major fail. i get abs guys to fix their orientation everytime i go there and they just won't work fine for me.

anyways, i have another problem i need your help with.

in the boot there is a very small area which has started rusting. a 5mm radius i guess.

abs said that that could have been a factory issue and that area was not painted properly. so it has now rusted in rains.

the solution suggested was a spray of rust removing solution and a patch work (with paint i guess).

is that the right suggestion? should i contact fiat for this? is this covered under warranty? essentially what should i do!

[coolboy007]

Linea has a fault with seat height adjuster, whenever we enter or exit the thigh touches the lever and it automatically goes down.
I was frustrated with this niggle and contacted Fiat who sent the part to ABS motors, gurgaon and ABS called me to come todat in the morning.

I reached serv centre at 11:30 AM and within a minute the SA came to me to ask my issue upon which i told him about the call they gave yest. They told me to go in cust lounge to which i denied sayin they had ruined my dashboard last time changing AC vents.

They took my car to service bay and started removing seat, SA Mr Arvind came and said to take car out of there and take it to quick repair bay outside. I took a walk and reached there and within 5 mins the SA again comes and says to take car in basement.

Now, i lost my cool and started shouting and told them "you wanna change or not, if yes do it here or am going back and mailing Fiat about it". (Mechanic told me they wanted me in cust lounge so such dramas). I immediately took my phone out and called the best person there, Works manager Mr. Ashok malik and told him am going back.

He came out and told everyone to not say anything to me and let me stand where i want. He took me to his cabin and offered tea which i accepted.

1:30 was lunch time and work was 60% done, the seat is bolted by so many nuts that it takes a lot of time. By 3:00 they had done everything and were bolting the seat back. Amit(Vahanpujari) called me and said he had just reached his serv centre (must be getting work done).

By 3:30 gate pass was made and i was out of the serv centre with full happiness because:

1. The only niggle in my Linea was now solved and dad was also happy as he had to keep pulling lever up.

2. My interiors werent scratched this time, gave a tip of 100 to the mechanic for keeping my beauty intact.

3. They took 4 hours but this was 1st time they were doing anythiing like this so its ok.

4. 70 kms completed and seat is where it was, also exited and entered 4-5 times.

5. Not just lever but whole assembly was changed which costs Rs 7500

By 4:00 i was at Haldiram's for lunch as i was damn hungry, i had thought it would take 1-2 hours and had no breakfast. Would reco that place, excellent food.
Ok, this is not a travelogue, here are some pics of job done and final photo of relative position of levers.

Am glad that i bought a fiat car against everyones wishes and am getting a service which very few manufacturers give. Excellent service once again from Tata-Fiat and ABS motors, they solved my niggle again.

Am happy i bought a Linea, three cheers to Fiat.

[Sushubh]

i face the same problem every time again and again at abs motors.

as soon as i reach there, they would tell me to go to the customer lounge.

the car would remain at the service bay with no work done.

yesterday, when i was there to get the engine error message reset, it took them 2 hours to get it done before i could drive back home.

i have tried to remain cool and calm every time i have been there and i end up getting totally frustrated every single time.

the guys there simply do not want to work. they do not care if you are in a hurry or you have been there multiple times before to get the same problem fixed.

i have tried contacting mr. ashok malik but he seems to be more interested in staying in his cabin working on his computer than checking if the work is being done properly in the service bay.

you yelled at them. you had to contact fiat to get the seat height adjustment fixed (mine is still not fixed). and yet you claim you got excellent service from abs motors.

i have no idea what poor service would be if you believe this kind of behavior is excellent.

my problems with my car with abs motors has failed to resolve for me till now:

1. every time i drive me car through a pool of water at a slightly faster speed, the display starts yelling 'check engine'. the solution by abs: drive very slow through any patch of water.

2. wiper nozzles. they simply do not spray well enough one of the six exits actually throw water at so much height that it ends up wetting the rear wind shield. solution: none. they try to adjust it every time with no solution. i even asked to replace the nozzles but nope they seem to be not interested.

i have not tried to get the seat height adjustment problem fixed till now because it is turning out to be a major hassle to get fixed. i have no idea if i have the patience to deal with them to get this thing fixed if it is going to cost the company Rs. 7500 for each car.

the problem with me is that i cannot shout. if i feel disgusted, i just prefer to take my car and come back home. i have been thinking about going to rama motors in delhi. waiting for my RC to arrive so that i can take that drive to okhla.

personally speaking all fiat linea owners on team-bhp should collaborate and get the company to fix the seat height adjustment problem nationwide for free without individual efforts. how many people are going to do what you have done? i guess i would have to make similar effort before i can get that problem fixed on my car. contact fiat (hoping they would respond to your query... they have not responded to any one of my messages one of which involved rusting problems on a one month old car), get them to send the necessary repairs to the respective service station. visit the station, yell at the people out there. make a scene, get them to do the repair work for you. while hoping they do not scratch your car (which is becoming a major issue as per the reports i have read on this forum).

in my own car, people at abs motors have practically made a mess of the sensor box at the right side of the steering wheel. it has been opened so many times that it remain lose permanently showcasing the gap. very annoying.

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by Sushubh

i face the same problem every time again and again at abs motors.
as soon as i reach there, they would tell me to go to the customer lounge.
the car would remain at the service bay with no work done.

Shushubh, its for our own safety that they dont allow people to roam around in service bays where they handle cars and have put them up on hydraulic lifts.

i have tried contacting mr. ashok malik but he seems to be more interested in staying in his cabin working on his computer than checking if the work is being done properly in the service bay.

Dont know about you but whenever i have been in trouble he has always helped me out. Today also he scolded SA and then noone told me to go out of service bay. Had a nice long chat with him for 30 mins in his cabin.

Regarding work being done, the mechanic was working non stop for 4 hours with just a 30 min lunch break. They had told me that it is their first car for such repar and it would take time.

you yelled at them. you had to contact fiat to get the seat height adjustment fixed (mine is still not fixed). and yet you claim you got excellent service from abs motors.

Dude what matters is that my PROBLEM WAS SOLVED. I accept that i do a wrong thing when i stand in service bay, if i stand 10 others will demand the same. Where will mechanics work?
1 email to Ceo, mangesh and top brass of Fiat and my seat height assembly was changed which costs 7500 with no Q's asked. Fiat wouldnt do a voluntary recall for this thing as 7500 is no small amount. Those who complain get work done, not all use seat height adjuster anyways.

What else i want? Have contact VW for a 16 lakh Jetta problem and they have not called me back yet

i have no idea what poor service would be if you believe this kind of behavior is excellent.

Go to Indian car dealerships and read Courtesy Honda thread. You standing besides your Accord and SA going off even while you ask him to stay. Thats called poor service, not if the guys want me to sit in cust lounge.

every time i drive me car through a pool of water at a slightly faster speed, the display starts yelling 'check engine'. the solution by abs: drive very slow through any patch of water.

GC of Linea is low and everyone knows that. When you drive through a pool of water, maybe water is entering your ABS sensors which is triggering off the warning. If it vanishes after you come out then you shouldnt care.

2. wiper nozzles. they simply do not spray well enough one of the six exits actually throw water at so much height that it ends up wetting the rear wind

Cant comment as i havent faced this issue. My funda is clear:
If you want to enjoy AC cust lounge and problem cleared without even visitin ser centre then should have got a Hyundai or Honda So far Tata mechanics have to go a long way in achieving that.

i have not tried to get the seat height adjustment problem fixed till now because it is turning out to be a major hassle to get fixed.

Only for you. Theres a long list of guys here who have done that and Rajeev kapoor is not our relative list is, Coolboy007, Vahanpujari,neotraveller,nehamit. We had to send 1 mail to fiat people and part was sent without any dilly dailying.

i have been thinking about going to rama motors in delhi. waiting for my RC to arrive so that i can take that drive to okhla.

I suggested you that much earlier. When 1 serv centre doesnt help why drag their tail? I have got good links in ABS now and get any work done, regarding time taken. There are 20 other cars waiting before me and am no VIP that they do my car first. I have to wait patiently.

personally speaking all fiat linea owners on team-bhp should collaborate and get the company to fix the seat height adjustment problem nationwide for

It would never happen, why so much laziness in a single mail to top brass of fiat. If you need addresses or nos i would give you. They would take much lesser time for your car as they know how to do it now.

in my own car, people at abs motors have practically made a mess of the .

In short, for you nightmares of owning a FIAT are true. Bad luck, you are the 1st one to be so annoyed.
I have posted pics in my thread about the work done and it was so good, barring SA telling me to go here n there eveything after that was perfect.

Whenever you go, just tell me will call Mr. Ashok and tell him to help you out as much as possible if you want and am sure he would.

[Sushubh]

Let me tell you my experience watching 'people' roaming around in their service bay. I was sitting in their customer lounge checking all the action from the window. I noticed 2 guys roaming around. They were not mechanics as they were dressed casually. They came around my car, opened the door, sat inside it, chatted for a while, came out and continued their routine. Probably they wanted to check out the Linea (later found out that he was getting his indica serviced). No one bothered to tell him to get out of the service bay. No one told him to not 'mess' around with another customer's car. This is my experience at ABS staying 'out' of the service bay. On each of my visits there, i have noticed at least 3-4 'regular' guys roaming around the service bay.

as for my own previous experiences. apra seems to be magical when it comes to fixing 'minor' problems like these. and i am talking about problems which should not 'exist' in the first place.

as for a voluntary recall... i accept that this is not a security issue. but. i read about the same problems before i bought my linea. i faced the problem with my own. can anyone confirm if they have fixed the problem in the new units being manufactured? or are they still shipping the car with the older mechanism (coz its cheaper?).

i am taking your advice. and would shoot an email to Fiat (i have 2-3 email IDs, but please PM me the ones that worked for you). if possible send me the format of the mail you sent. i would use the same and see if fiat guys fix the same problem for me without much hassle.

i have nothing against fiat. i dropped the idea of buying a City because i fell in love with this car. but fiat is making it extremely tough to justify my frequent visits to ABS. everyone around me 'amusingly' asks me why the hell did i sell my swift vdi abs to get a 'fiat'.

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by Sushubh

This is my experience at ABS staying 'out' of the service bay. On each of my visits there, i have noticed at least 3-4 'regular' guys roaming around the service bay.

You would have said the same for me too as i was also roaming around the service bay seeing how he is working with the seat. My car was parked in quick repair bay near entrance and when he was fitting back the seat i stood there.

can anyone confirm if they have fixed the problem in the new units being manufactured? or are they still shipping the car with the older mechanism (coz its cheaper?).

Well its not cheaper by any means. Visit my thread in Intitial owner reports, size is same, weight is same only the lever has been made smaller. Nothing about cheap or expensive, its just that the older design was wrong.

i am taking your advice. and would shoot an email to Fiat (i have 2-3 email IDs, but please PM me the ones that worked for you). if possible send me the format of the mail you sent.

Ok will do so via PM shortly. Am sure you too will be helped out. Also list current issues in your mail and ask for a replacement of washer nozzles.

i have nothing against fiat. i dropped the idea of buying a City because i fell in love with this car. but fiat is making it extremely tough to justify my frequent visits to ABS. everyone around me 'amusingly' asks me why the hell did i sell my swift vdi abs to get a 'fiat'.

I know, after coming to terms with good Maruti service its hard to see Tata guys ignoring you. You need to be stern with SA's but share a good rapport with mechanics there. They will always do your work nicely.

[Sushubh]

well yeah. a couple of mechanics are almost sympathetic towards me as they see me visit again and again. whenever they see me around, they would pass a gentle smile and would come to ask me... what now. almost feels funny. i have been hoping to avoid visiting ABS before the first (!) service as i have just done 1800KM in the last 1.5 months.

the sensor problem is probably the biggest worry for me right now. i fear the sight of water on the road coz the bug would mean i would have to drive all the way to abs (the last 500mt to their service center is like HELL). the problem does not disappear on its own as the abs guy told me it needs to be reset using the fiat supplied computer system (OMG!).

i would do exactly what you suggest here. send an email to fiat mentioning all the unresolved problems and hoping for the best!

one of the biggest annoyances occur when the abs mechanic would take me to another customer's linea and show me the same 'issue' i have been facing. that too has happened twice before. the message is, it is the usual behavior in all Lineas. I bet they would have the same response for me if i argue about the seat height adjustment problem. now that you have confirmed that they have handled your case and resolved it, it gives me a solid base to get it resolved in my linea as well!

three cheers to fiat linea owners on team-bhp.

i hope i do not end up sounding like a whining SOB !

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by Sushubh

well yeah. a couple of mechanics are almost sympathetic towards me as they see me visit again and again. whenever they see me around, they would pass a gentle smile

, atleast someone is sympathising. The mechanics are good there but SA need some beahaviour lessons i think.

the problem does not disappear on its own as the abs guy told me it needs to be reset using the fiat supplied computer system (OMG!).

Dont ABS have the fiat supplied computer called Tech2 scanner? Techno Auto has that. I have bought my car from there and they had mixed up my code cards but eventually i was given mine after connecting my car to Tech2 scanner.
They said yeh "10 lakh ka hai sir". If it can be reset at once, call Techno auto workshop and ask for it.

Car going in water, i dont worry much. Usually dad takes Scorpio whenever there are heavy rains but water level till half length tyre of Linea doesnt bother me. Just keep revvs high and go away, today also water was standing everywhere in Gurgaon especially the inner stretch to ABS where my Linea's underbody scraped twice because i couldnt see what was beneath the water.

now that you have confirmed that they have handled your case and resolved it, it gives me a solid base to get it resolved in my linea as well!

They have all records and you have my cars regn no. Just tell them that, once the part reaches ABS you need not worry, they have to install that without any Q's. You call me anytime on weekends and i will affirm that i got it changed for my car.
Fiat tells serv centre and they place order for that spare part.

[Sushubh]

i end up scrapping the underbody of my car almost every time i visit abs. roads are awful on the last three lanes that leads to the service station. in fact, abs guys can at least consider fixing the road just in front of their own service center. i guess that is asking for too much!

i frown at my CM who continues to make big claims about his achievements in newspapers and magazines (latest issue of outlook has a 4-5 page advertisement about it).

abs has that laptop like device in a box that connects to the car. the system found no problem in the engine. but was used to reset the indicator (yellow box like icon on the console) which got active (with a warning message 'check engine' in the display panel) the last two times. i have no idea about what code cards you are talking about :o

is techno auto a fiat service station? i thought only dhingra and abs are in gurgaon region. but then you are from new delhi i see.

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by Sushubh

leads to the service station. in fact, abs guys can at least consider fixing the road just in front of their own service center. i guess that is asking for too much!

Yups thats asking for too much. hehe. All workshops are in such areas, the trucks and trailer go by and break all roads. Rama, okhla has big craters in roads, ABS has no roads and Techno has a full kuccha road without any tarmac for a few kms. Wonder what would happen in rains

i have no idea about what code cards you are talking about :o

You kidding me, its a small credit card type card which has a key code and a electronic code which is needed sometimes. Didnt your dealer give you? Check in documents and glove box.

is techno auto a fiat service station? i thought only dhingra and abs are in gurgaon region. but then you are from new delhi i see.

Yups it is. Its in Najafgarh area.

[Sushubh]

Alright guys. This is an updated post about my experience at ABS Motors for the first service at 3000KM at ABS.

I had a couple of issues to be resolved. The biggest one was related to seat belt indicators.

One fine day, the indicator simply started malfunctioning. It would not detect that I have my belt on so would turn on the warning light along with the buzzer.

Could not find a way to fix it myself. The buzzer stops buzzing after 2-3 minutes. Had to live with that for a couple of days while I waited for some free time to visit ABS.

Went to ABS today at 9. It officially opens at 9:30. They took in the car. As usual, took their time to start working on the car. Work was started at around 9:45 I think. Service part was done pretty quickly I guess. After that they did the fixes for the seat belt thing and sent the car to wash.

At around 12... I was told that the car was done. I went on a test ride. Noticed that the indicator light had started working fine. Apparently the wire below the driver's seat had broken up which connected the sensor to the seat belt hook. They connected the wire to resolve this issue. By the time I arrived home, that wire was hanging lose below the seat and was creating unwanted noise during the drive. Would have to get that fixed the next time I go there.

Back to the scene... But the buzzer had completely stopped working so no buzz when seat belt was not used. Took a while to explain the problem to the guys. One of the guys even went ahead and asked me if it really buzzed when seat belt was not worn (WTH!).

Anyways, eventually we discovered that the remote key buttons had also stopped working. And the car would also not central-lock the doors automatically as it does usually after driving for a couple of minutes. This is when the seat belt indicator also jumps into action.

They connected the car to their laptop device. Damn, cannot remember the name...

The guy at ABS had no clue how to check for that problem as there was no specific option for seat belt indicator in their software. Luckily we had a senior Tata guy on the premises who got the documentation from the company database.

Apparently, the remote key was erased/resetted. They used my code card to program the remote key. All well. Everything started working fine...

BUT.

They forgot to program the second key. So, that key just stopped working. Car would not start if that key was used.

The guys checked the documentation. Apparently both the keys were to be programmed together. Since we/they did not do that... The regular key was now useless... It cannot be programmed again.

So, the process now is... They contact Fiat which contact Fiat in Italy. They make a new key connected to my car (chassis number or the code card... no clue). I was told it would take at least 15 days for that key to arrive. It would then have to be programmed again. Yey!

So, I left the ABS premises at 2 (5 hours well spent!).

Now, I am not sure about a couple of things. The remote key works fine. They would get a spare regular key for me for free (yey! Blah). The guy said that the key costs around 6000 bucks!

The question is... If the remote key is already programmed. How can they program just the regular key? Would they have to program both remote and regular key again? Blah. Won't the remote key become useless at the time of second programming? Too many questions. No one had the answers.

I just hope ABS guys now know what they are supposed to do to fix my problem with the second key. I would contact them after 15 days to remind them that they have to get me my second key in case they forget about it.

I searched for similar threads here. Found nothing relevant. Except for the fact that I found out today. You can make a maximum of eight keys in one sequence of programming. We just did one key today and I am using that.

Do not lose your code card. Do not lose your car keys. That is my advice to you! The Tata guy told me that if the numbers on the code card are lost, a lot of stuff would have to replaced in the car (ECU included) and that would be EXPENSIVE (I bet in lakhs :P ).

Update: Just got a call from ABS. Code Card Numbers are required for the key. I asked the dude about the programming bit. He said my current key would work fine. They would just program the second key... I would update this thread with updates...

For moderators: I am not sure if this should have been posted as a new thread. Maybe guys here are already well versed with this 'programmed' key mechanism (If Fiat has that, expensive cars would have similar systems!). I posted on the ABS thread because I post my ABS related experiences here!

[dhir_d]

Rusting is the same issue with my car as well. the car has started developing rust in the boot, the door hinges and the inside door panel.
Took the car to ABS. The service guy took some photos of the rusted areas and told me that he would be sending the photos to FIAT .

It is over two weeks now and am still waiting for a revert from ABS.

Originally Posted by Sushubh

you mean to say fiat linea comes with bosch wipers? or you have them installed from somewhere else? i guess i can try finding out their center here in gurgaon. the wiper nozzles are a major fail. i get abs guys to fix their orientation everytime i go there and they just won't work fine for me.

anyways, i have another problem i need your help with.

in the boot there is a very small area which has started rusting. a 5mm radius i guess.

abs said that that could have been a factory issue and that area was not painted properly. so it has now rusted in rains.

the solution suggested was a spray of rust removing solution and a patch work (with paint i guess).

is that the right suggestion? should i contact fiat for this? is this covered under warranty? essentially what should i do!