Highest reading on the odometer!

arun_josie · 21st October 2016, 14:19

Unusual taxi driver:

It’s a commonly known fact that most of the taxi/cab drivers are very particular about the maintenance cost and hence they ignore scheduled services and also push the life of certain auto parts till death.

But, yesterday I came across an OLA driver who drives a Indica and sounded more like an auto enthusiast than a taxi driver. The information that he shared with me regarding maintenance of his car was really surprising, especially coming from a cab driver.

Current ODO of his Tata Indica(2008 model) is at 481762 Kms and I am sure no one will be able to guess this number right without seeing the ODO. The car was so well maintained with very minimum rattles considering that it’s close to 5L Kms mark. Especially those belt noises which we normally hear from Indicas were missing. The engine sound was very smooth as well. He claimed that, there has been no engine work till date.

Highest reading on the odometer!-20161020_115321optimized.jpg

Here are some of the information that he shared regarding his maintenance activity,

Tyres:

Tyre replacement is done every 60-70K Kms based on the condition.
He prefers Bridgestone always, and doesn't consider cheaper tyres.
Tyres are replaced as a set of 4 only.
He doesn't go by the tread left in the tyres, if it gets hard for his standard then replacements are done.
And he said, harder tyre affects the life of Shock Absorber and Suspension as well. So he prefers a early replacement.

Servicing:

All filters and engine oil changed every 6-7K Kms.
For engine oil, he always prefers Castrol Oil.
Yearly checkups/servicing done at TASS (Concorde) without fail
Minor servicing done at a known workshop. That too only one specific guy works on his car.

Part Replacements:

He always sticks to good brand, no matter what the cost is.
He doesn't prefer duplicate/low-cost parts or parts from used market.
He is on the 3rd clutch assembly now. All replaced at TASS.(Replacements were at around 2L Kms, 3.5L Kms)
He also mentioned about the suspension, shock absorbers replacements but I don’t remember those numbers.

His Route preference:

90% of the drive is on the city roads
He tries to avoid traffic-heavy route as he feels it affects the clutch and gives lot of stress to engine. So, he doesn't accept trips during peak hours or takes a longer route.
Same with bad roads as well, he prefers taking good roads.

Above all, he doesn't allow anyone else to take his car. Till date it’s only him in the driver seat except the test drives taken by the workshop guys. He gets a FE of around 14-15 on city roads and 20 on the highways. Highest being 22-23 Kmpl.

At the end of this shot trip, I wanted to take pic of his car but missed it due to a incoming call.

His driving was good too! Overall it was a nice experience and rarely we come across such drivers.

Thad E Ginathom · 21st October 2016, 18:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Unusual taxi driver:

It’s a commonly known fact that most of the taxi/cab drivers are very particular about the maintenance cost and hence they ignore scheduled services and also push the life of certain auto parts till death.

But, yesterday I came across an OLA driver who drives a Indica and sounded more like an auto enthusiast than a taxi driver. The information that he shared with me regarding maintenance of his car was really surprising, especially coming from a cab driver.

Current ODO of his Tata Indica(2008 model) is at 481762 Kms ... ... ...

A whole string of smilies is not enough for this guy, that mileage, and his car care. Two doesn't come near. So I won't put any.

But wow... nearly half a million Kms, as a cab! And the car is in good condition.

I seem to remember hearing that German cab drivers do this sort of mileage and more, but there are obvious differences, just one of them being the word Mercedes!

Otomobil · 21st October 2016, 20:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Unusual taxi driver:

Tata Indica(2008 model) is at 481762 Kms and I am sure no one will be able to guess this number right without seeing the ODO. He claimed that, there has been no engine work till date.

That's an impressive number on a ODO for any car.

I see that Check Engine light is on ! Wondering what it could be ? O2 Sensor, Spark Plugs.

landcruiser123 · 21st October 2016, 21:44

Oh man. That's incredible mileage for any car in India, especially a Tata one. Hats off to the cabbie for maintaining his car really well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Otomobil

I see that Check Engine light is on !

An old joke:

In Tata Cars, you should worry if the check engine light doesn't appear.

deetjohn · 21st October 2016, 22:40

What a brilliant story! A well maintained Indica cab with that big a mileage is mighty impressive.

Good day for Tata over here today. The preview of Hexa left a smile and this one tops it now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Otomobil

Wondering what it could be ? O2 Sensor, Spark Plugs.

Cannot be spark plugs for sure. I just cannot imagine 5L KM worth of petrol cost for a cab in our country.

Could be some sensor.

Rahul Rao · 26th October 2016, 10:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by arun_josie

Current ODO of his Tata Indica(2008 model) is at 481762 Kms and I am sure no one will be able to guess this number right without seeing the ODO. The car was so well maintained with very minimum rattles considering that it’s close to 5L Kms mark. Especially those belt noises which we normally hear from Indicas were missing. The engine sound was very smooth as well. He claimed that, there has been no engine work till date.
Tyres:

Tyre replacement is done every 60-70K Kms based on the condition.
He prefers Bridgestone always, and doesn't consider cheaper tyres.
Tyres are replaced as a set of 4 only.
He doesn't go by the tread left in the tyres, if it gets hard for his standard then replacements are done.
And he said, harder tyre affects the life of Shock Absorber and Suspension as well. So he prefers a early replacement.

Servicing:

All filters and engine oil changed every 6-7K Kms.
For engine oil, he always prefers Castrol Oil.
Yearly checkups/servicing done at TASS (Concorde) without fail
Minor servicing done at a known workshop. That too only one specific guy works on his car.

Part Replacements:

He always sticks to good brand, no matter what the cost is.

I consider myself a super heavy user but the maximum I have used a single car is 324000 km this is about 50% more. This was a 2005 Indica which had done well over a lakh km till 2008 when I got myself an Innova and handed the car over to my staff. From then on till 2012 the car had a single driver, I agree with the maintenance this guy has done, we used to used Elf semi synthetic 15W-40 instead of the recommended 20W-40, fully synthetic oils were not common then, and I was apprehensive of a change later on. needed a fuel pump service when odo was close to 2 lakh km. There was visible smoke, and engine needed slightly longer starting crank. The authorised service station had recommended a engine overhaul, just looking at the odo, so I had taken back the car and gone to my local mechanic who had said we should first check the fuel pump, and engine later.

One thing I am sure is that it is only Tata and Toyota vehicles along with the original Maruti 800 that retain the structural integrity of the body, the esteem I had before the Indica had sagged in only 2,40,000 km, with doors not matching the lock on other end, and that too only due to hammering from the bad roads.

Pune based KK travels who operates Pune to Mumbai airport has a huge fleet of Tata Aria, Innova and Xylo, they follow a 3 year 4 lakh km replacement policy, saying they will get decent resale value only when the buyer gets atleast a lakh and half km of trouble free service.

Rahul

csr9 · 19th December 2016, 16:34

My father's 2010 Honda Civic has clocked over 2,47,000 kilometers. Inspite of taking quite a bit of abuse, the car is very reliable. Wish the new Honda's had similar build quality.

manim · 19th December 2016, 17:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by csr9

My father's 2010 Honda Civic has clocked over 2,47,000 kilometers. Inspite of taking quite a bit of abuse, the car is very reliable. Wish the new Honda's had similar build quality.

Good to hear this!

Mine is a 2007 model and is still in near-perfect condition at 1,56,000+ kms.

csr9 · 19th December 2016, 17:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by manim

Good to hear this!

Mine is a 2007 model and is still in near-perfect condition at 1,56,000+ kms.

Looks like they can do 3,00,000+ kilometers without any issues if they are looked after properly. Nothing quite like japanese reliability!!

sumeethaldankar · 25th December 2016, 21:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by csr9

My father's 2010 Honda Civic has clocked over 2,47,000 kilometers. Inspite of taking quite a bit of abuse, the car is very reliable. Wish the new Honda's had similar build quality.

Thank you for this, it is very reassuring. I have plans to keep my used Civic for such high odo readings. Any tips for fellow Civic users will be helpful.

csr9 · 25th December 2016, 22:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

Thank you for this, it is very reassuring. I have plans to keep my used Civic for such high odo readings. Any tips for fellow Civic users will be helpful.

The Civic can safely be used for 2.50 + lakh kilometers. It is the most reliable car in my family. Inspite of being used on pretty bad roads, there are no signs of any rattles. Sticking to timely service schedule is all it requires!

jbpanda · 25th December 2016, 22:50

Have completed 93000 Kms on my Ritz VDi 2011 model and still going strong. Just the periodic maintenance at MS Authorised Service Centres. My father on the other hand has completed 1,40,000 Kms on his Swift VDi 2009 and just refuses to change it.

FINTAIL · 26th December 2016, 14:30

Nothing can beat 'em W123's when it comes to outright longevity!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC0oWGkUc9A

On a side note, I find these links very relevant to this thread:

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/09/18/i...million-miles/

And;

http://www.mostreliablecarbrands.com...million-miles/

On a side note, a Hyundai Elantra we used to have a while ago in West Africa did just under half a million kilometers in about a decade or so.

gautham.mg · 26th December 2016, 16:55

This is what my 2009 E8 xylo running at. Pic taken after 7900kms Blr-Arunachal-Blr

FINTAIL · 28th December 2016, 13:41

One million miles, especially for an air - cooled engine is plain and simply incredible!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oxAjgq24Ts

21st October 2016, 14:19	#511
arun_josie Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Bangalore Posts: 3,899 Thanked: 14,916 Times	Unusual taxi driver Unusual taxi driver: It’s a commonly known fact that most of the taxi/cab drivers are very particular about the maintenance cost and hence they ignore scheduled services and also push the life of certain auto parts till death. But, yesterday I came across an OLA driver who drives a Indica and sounded more like an auto enthusiast than a taxi driver. The information that he shared with me regarding maintenance of his car was really surprising, especially coming from a cab driver. Current ODO of his Tata Indica(2008 model) is at 481762 Kms and I am sure no one will be able to guess this number right without seeing the ODO. The car was so well maintained with very minimum rattles considering that it’s close to 5L Kms mark. Especially those belt noises which we normally hear from Indicas were missing. The engine sound was very smooth as well. He claimed that, there has been no engine work till date. Here are some of the information that he shared regarding his maintenance activity, Tyres: Tyre replacement is done every 60-70K Kms based on the condition. He prefers Bridgestone always, and doesn't consider cheaper tyres. Tyres are replaced as a set of 4 only. He doesn't go by the tread left in the tyres, if it gets hard for his standard then replacements are done. And he said, harder tyre affects the life of Shock Absorber and Suspension as well. So he prefers a early replacement. Servicing: All filters and engine oil changed every 6-7K Kms. For engine oil, he always prefers Castrol Oil. Yearly checkups/servicing done at TASS (Concorde) without fail Minor servicing done at a known workshop. That too only one specific guy works on his car. Part Replacements: He always sticks to good brand, no matter what the cost is. He doesn't prefer duplicate/low-cost parts or parts from used market. He is on the 3rd clutch assembly now. All replaced at TASS.(Replacements were at around 2L Kms, 3.5L Kms) He also mentioned about the suspension, shock absorbers replacements but I don’t remember those numbers. His Route preference: 90% of the drive is on the city roads He tries to avoid traffic-heavy route as he feels it affects the clutch and gives lot of stress to engine. So, he doesn't accept trips during peak hours or takes a longer route. Same with bad roads as well, he prefers taking good roads. Above all, he doesn't allow anyone else to take his car. Till date it’s only him in the driver seat except the test drives taken by the workshop guys. He gets a FE of around 14-15 on city roads and 20 on the highways. Highest being 22-23 Kmpl. At the end of this shot trip, I wanted to take pic of his car but missed it due to a incoming call. His driving was good too! Overall it was a nice experience and rarely we come across such drivers. Last edited by arun_josie : 21st October 2016 at 14:29.
	(63) Thanks

19th December 2016, 16:34	#517
csr9 BHPian Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Visakhapatnam Posts: 114 Thanked: 157 Times	re: Highest reading on the odometer! My father's 2010 Honda Civic has clocked over 2,47,000 kilometers. Inspite of taking quite a bit of abuse, the car is very reliable. Wish the new Honda's had similar build quality. Attached Thumbnails
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25th December 2016, 22:50	#522
jbpanda BHPian Join Date: May 2016 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 301 Thanked: 575 Times	Have completed 93000 Kms on my Ritz VDi 2011 model and still going strong. Just the periodic maintenance at MS Authorised Service Centres. My father on the other hand has completed 1,40,000 Kms on his Swift VDi 2009 and just refuses to change it.
	() Thanks

26th December 2016, 16:55	#524
gautham.mg Newbie Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 22 Thanked: 12 Times	re: Highest reading on the odometer! This is what my 2009 E8 xylo running at. Pic taken after 7900kms Blr-Arunachal-Blr Attached Thumbnails
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