[ladak.imran]

Sawyer,
At the time of AC fitting, I too had the exact same doubts, about the new parts getting loose on OTR's and add to the rattling and all - but luckily, nothing like that has happened with me yet!

And its a BIG plus, going to the trail in the comfort of an air conditioner!

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by ladak.imran

Sawyer,
At the time of AC fitting, I too had the exact same doubts, about the new parts getting loose on OTR's and add to the rattling and all - but luckily, nothing like that has happened with me yet!

And its a BIG plus, going to the trail in the comfort of an air conditioner!

That is one of my concerns, because as all of us know, the car gets thrown around a lot on bad roads and no roads - more than the Jeeps do, because the Gypsy off roading style seems to involve higher speeds. I can understand the comforts that the AC must confer, in a place like Mumbai. One can do without power steering, but the AC is a must there. I look forward to some more inputs from this very useful thread, and I may then take the plunge myself, and get the install done at the same place in Mumbai.

[ladak.imran]

You're more than welcome to join us on on our OTR's (or in Bombay), to check out my setup in person. I'm sure GS would be more than willing as well..

[gsferrari]

I drove to Chakan and back in the Gypsy yesterday with the AC on. When the compressor comes on there is definite power drop but this is only noticeable on uphill stretches. On plain ground it doesn't make any major difference. You're not going to be overtaking a lot of vehicles doing 100kph anyway.

AC performance is great but I need a small change. I absolutely HAVE to have venting in the foot-well because it gets toasty in there thanks to the engine temps. 10mm heatlon does help but only to a point.

Also had some issue with the superking controller. I think the quality is sub-par. Switching to the Maruti controller given in the car. This will also be better from an aesthetic standpoint.

[Desmosedici]

what do you mean by issue GS, just the quality of the control switch or is it anything else.

[gsferrari]

My stereo setup:

Head-Unit plays MP3 and a few other formats from SD and USB pen drives. It has FM, Bass and Treble controls. It plays LOUD and the quality isn't too bad. Nothing Hi-Fi about it but when you hear it and you keep the price in mind, you'll agree with me.

The head-unit cost me Rs.300 and the Pioneer speakers of questionable authenticity cost me Rs.1200. A total of Rs.1500 for ICE in my Gypsy. I didn't want an expensive HU that would eat-up CDs thanks to the vehicles vibrations so this is pretty close to perfect for me.

Some images:



FM Antenna and a new oversize convex mirror that improves visibility. I can now see all corners of the vehicle with ease.


Right speaker:


Left Speaker:




AC Install Updates:

So the first issues cropped up. The Superking control unit crapped out on me. Some internal component failed and that was the end of that. I drove to work and showed up at work all sweaty and hot. Sripadh picked up the car from work and this is what he did:
1. Ditched the Superking control unit and hooked up to the OE maruti AC controls
2. Used an aftermarket thermostat of high quality with a separate control on the dashboard
3. Tightened up the slack on the throttle cable

The net result is that the compressor cuts out when the thermostat senses optimum temperature has been reached. Earlier the compressor NEVER switched off. This improved driveability to a great extent. The downside is that the Gypsy isn't equipped to handle the load of a compressor coming on at idle and therefore it tends to switch off. This is annoying in traffic/signals and I am having to bump up the revs with my foot just to keep the car from stalling. No problems while running. Now if someone can give me a way to sort this out - please let me know.

So I am closer to the perfect setup but I need to fix the above issue pronto.

Some pics:



Some pics of the Skoda Laura seats I had installed in the Gypsy:





Don't mind the mess...



Finally a picture of the Gypsy with the mirrors installed (Bolero mirrors turned out to be fake and sucky. Need the original ones now)

[offroad_maniac]

Originally Posted by gsferrari

My stereo setup:
The head-unit cost me Rs.300 and the Pioneer speakers of questionable authenticity cost me Rs.1200. A total of Rs.1500 for ICE in my Gypsy.

Thats the best set up one can have. Suits for an offroader.. If it can play songs from a pen drive then no tension about damaging the CDs.
BTW, since yours is a hard top, why dint you installed a nice woofer?

[COUGAR]

Originally Posted by gsferrari

Some pics:

Is this the thermostat control unit? Why do you need a separate thermostat control switch on the dashboard? doesnt the cool-hot slide switch control the thermostat?

What about the heater?

[Amar82]

Originally Posted by gsferrari

The downside is that the Gypsy isn't equipped to handle the load of a compressor coming on at idle and therefore it tends to switch off. This is annoying in traffic/signals and I am having to bump up the revs with my foot just to keep the car from stalling. No problems while running. Now if someone can give me a way to sort this out - please let me know.

Shouldn't the ECM automatically increase the rev's detecting the load on engine, I used to notice the similar thing on Esteem MPFI when you switch on the AC.

However in carb gypsy's you can install a vaccum pump with the carb which increases the rev's when AC is switched on.

[gsferrari]

Originally Posted by offroad_maniac

Thats the best set up one can have. Suits for an offroader.. If it can play songs from a pen drive then no tension about damaging the CDs.
BTW, since yours is a hard top, why dint you installed a nice woofer?

I used to be big time into ICE but I decided it is a waste of money because I'd rather have a conversation with someone in the car than listen to loud thumping music. My ears are also getting sensitive to loud noises these days.

Just excuses - I think I am getting old...that's all

Originally Posted by COUGAR

Is this the thermostat control unit? Why do you need a separate thermostat control switch on the dashboard? doesnt the cool-hot slide switch control the thermostat?
What about the heater?

Don't know why they didn't use the maruti thermostat. My guess is that the switch is a dummy but I can't tell for sure. The thermostat they've installed is a high-quality unit.

Originally Posted by Amar82

Shouldn't the ECM automatically increase the rev's detecting the load on engine, I used to notice the similar thing on Esteem MPFI when you switch on the AC. However in carb gypsy's you can install a vaccum pump with the carb which increases the rev's when AC is switched on.

There are no leads on the ECU for compressor sensor or whatever so this can't be done. Not sure if the Esteem ECU will work in the Gypsy as I imagine the maps are quite different. Has anyone tried this?

[Amar82]

Originally Posted by gsferrari

There are no leads on the ECU for compressor sensor or whatever so this can't be done. Not sure if the Esteem ECU will work in the Gypsy as I imagine the maps are quite different. Has anyone tried this?

The ECM should automatically detects the load, there is no compressor sensor i guess in Esteem MPFI. E.g when you start the MPFI engine in the morning it rev's quite high vs normal idling rev setting depending upon the load but i might be wrong, any ECM experts on T-BHP???

[Desmosedici]

Hey GS,

Got Doc Abheeks number from Nagpur if you are interested in those custom bumpers.
Abheek said if we place an order for 4 or more, then maybe he can do some jugaad on the pricing. He said those were thin metal sheets compared to the thickness of the OE bumper hence not sure whether you can fit an Aux lamp on those.

Let me in on your thoughts.

[gsferrari]

My Gypsy is now officially known as "Geoff". Geoff the Gypsy

Geoff carried me and my cousin from Mumbai to Bangalore and back. During this trip over the Good-Friday weekend, we covered 2200kms.

Day 1: Mum - Kolhapur (400km)
Day 2: Kolhapur - Bangalore (600km)
Day 3/4: local running (200km)
Day 5: Bangalore - Mumbai (1000km)

No problems to report except a slight buzzing near the instrument cluster while accelerating in 5th gear.

Modifications done:

1. LED lighting in driver and passenger footwells
2. LED lighting for main cabin
3. LED lighting for the rear cabin
4. 2 x Hella Rallye 4000 (driving beam) with metal rod adjusters to the bonnet
5. Custom free-flow headers, mid-pipe and exhaust muffler
6. K&N cold air intake
7. Replaced stock front bumper lighting with full orange indicator-ONLY
8. Moved parking light into the main headlight cluster
9. Installed side-indicators on the rear bumper to match the front

Got all this done in less than 24 hours and did the "reliability" testing on the drive back to Mumbai. Nothing has fallen off and the rough sounding exhausts have mellowed off as the carbon deposits lined the insides. Sounds GREAT now!

I love the Hella lamps and I hope to have opportunities to use them. Kumta trip coming up this weekend (if not a night OTR) so there will be a chance to flip that switch!

ECM from Race-Dynamics not done yet. Pretty strung out for money at the moment so I will do this next month. It is required IMO as the engine runs a tad lean with the full system exhaust. The performance with the ECM switched on is night and day from stock - I drove another Gypsy with the ECM and boy was it a riot in the city!!

[scooby05]

Originally Posted by gsferrari

I drove to Chakan and back in the Gypsy yesterday with the AC on. When the compressor comes on there is definite power drop but this is only noticeable on uphill stretches. On plain ground it doesn't make any major difference. You're not going to be overtaking a lot of vehicles doing 100kph anyway.

AC performance is great but I need a small change. I absolutely HAVE to have venting in the foot-well because it gets toasty in there thanks to the engine temps. 10mm heatlon does help but only to a point.

Also had some issue with the superking controller. I think the quality is sub-par. Switching to the Maruti controller given in the car. This will also be better from an aesthetic standpoint.

At constant speed of say 90 to 100kms on Expressway did you notice engine temperature going up or was it constant at half way mark?
Are you going for the Race-Dynamics ecm? and how much does it cost?

[gsferrari]

Originally Posted by scooby05

At constant speed of say 90 to 100kms on Expressway did you notice engine temperature going up or was it constant at half way mark?
Are you going for the Race-Dynamics ecm? and how much does it cost?

Constant temperatures at 110kph which is what I was cruising at. I did 1000kms in 13 hours non-stop.

Only when you encounter gradient changes and need to drag in 3rd, 4th does the needle climb up.

Problem now is that in traffic the needle rises fast. Possibly due to heavy clutch usage coupled with lack of air-flow. Also the fact that the engine is running leaner now means less fuel for cooling it down. The last issue I can help once I install the Race-Dynamics ECM.

Cost I cannot comment on because I haven't ordered it yet. Will be installing in May 1st week once my finances recover.