[kavu75]

Originally Posted by evoque

I am planning to give my Laura now for clutch replacement and suspension work. This is the first time I am asking Naveen to do something major like a clutch change. Will give feedback as soon as it is done (next week).

Have you done with the clutch changes. How is your experience?
I am getting some vibration and sound while running first gear on my 6 year old(61k km done) Aveo. Even my 60K service i got a feed back from Chevy people saying i need to change the clutch on next service. I am little afraid of taking to Chevy as they will be replacing the complete unit even it's not required.
What is your recommendation on approaching Naveen for this work.

Thanks.

[Ajith-s]

Today I got fog lamps (bought from a dealer) fitted on to my Civic SMT.

They did a very good job. Charged me Rs. 750. (Not sure if this is low or high, a couple of other places I checked quoted higher, from 1200 to 1800)

Also did a quick overall check-up. Naveen was very nice, and seemed very knowledgeable (as noted earlier on this thread). He genuinely likes Cars and loves to talk, and is ready to give you tips and advice. He told me how long my brake pads will last, and how long I can run the stock tires (33,000 run). There is a crack on the rear bumper (near the nut that is used to fix it to the car body), which HASS and even other garages have said "cannot be mended, and you need to replace the bumper". Naveen said, "we can repair it".... I also got my brakes cleaned.

Anyone going there for the first time may be taken aback by the "small scale" of his operation. But I don't think that should be the sole criteria for judging Automechs.

Naveen was also very pleased to see the T-BHP sticker and to know that I am member!...

I will definitely go back to him....

[kavu75]

I have met Naveen earlier this month to check the vibration from clutch.
We did some test drive and couldn't able to reproduce the issue as i reported earlier(Though some minor vibrations are there sometimes). He told me not to do anything now and just keep a watch.

[amitk26]

This is to put out a public note of appreciation for Mr. Naveen.

He saved me from a possible big rip-off without charging any money.
I am not writing this in haste it is after full one month and nearly 2.5K KM driving.
In Short ( Longer version provided at the bottom of the post)
-------
My Front left wheel had some wobble , Instead of scaring me he just tightened the wheel FOC and asked me to drive for couple of days and try.

I went back to him on Saturday after driving some 100 KM the solution was holding good and got the following additional jobs which were done to my utmost satisfaction with at very nominal price.

1. Coolant replacement , I got the coolant replaced at A.S.S some 2 years ago so thought it is right time to get it done. Replaced with wurth coolant
and distilled water.

2. Engine protection plate had taken a hit and one bolt was missing also it was gathering rust, So got it painted with rubber paint and refitted properly.
I had done 3M rust protection but they just apply to under-body and not to engine protection plate.

Story in Detail
-----------------

Actually I went for wheel balancing and alignment of my Safari and front left wheel had little play , Alignment guy told me to show at a garage and comeback after the issue is fixed else I will be wasting my money on Alignment.

Since T.A.S.S at concord is far away from my office and going to them means at-least half day job just to understand the problem I took the vehicle to Sejal motors which is next door to my office and owner showed me play in the front bush and gave estimate of some 12K with parts.

Now I had some doubts over this estimation because apart from bush he included every damn part including lower and upper arms, ball joint, tie rods etc, so I came back.

I was little disappointed but thought of showing it to Naveen before I take it to concord for estimate , Naveen saw and just tightened the lower arm nut and said it is fine just drive it. Still I insisted on suspension OH estimate but he just said he will give me over phone if there is any need. No need to say that need did not arise after that.

[jeeva]

An update:

Auto Mechs garage has moved to the plot next to the previous garage.
Naveen personally takes care of all the works being done there-all mechanical works, electrical, AC, tinkering, painting, Accident repairs/Insurance claim and other customs upgrades as well. He and his team works on everything from Maruti 800 to Skodas, Fords, GM brands, Land Cruisers and all kinds of imports.

Most custom tuned vehicles from his immediate neighbor Race Dynamics comes to him for all kind of mechanical/upgrades and painting works. Besides, he has been a full time mechanic (@ pitsop) at different rally circuits and teams.

Humble and honest is how I can best picturise this gentleman.

Some pics:

[n.devdath]

Has anyone tried getting one of the Indian SUVs like the Scorpio/Safari serviced/repaired here?

If so, can you share the feedback please?

[jeeva]

Well, the bottle green Sierra in the second pic, used to be mine.
That and my ex Bolero and Scorpio were maintained by him.
I've never had a Safari, so can't comment on that, but have seen a couple of them with T-bhp stickers over there for service.

[vinayrathore]

After going through all the good reviews about Naveen, have today given my Accent CRDi to him. I recently drove all the way to Bangalore from Delhi and near Belgaum it over heated. Since then, it is constantly throwing water as air pressure builds inside the radiator. I discovered this after hose pipe leaked twice without engine over heating again. I had to drive all the way from Belgaum with radiator lid open and pouring water every 30 kms. First doubt I have is the gasket but Naveen says since Oil and water have not mixed, its not gasket but something else. Any pointers from the experts?

Naveen will let me know by tomorrow after a thorough check.

[Ravindra M]

Originally Posted by vinayrathore

After going through all the good reviews about Naveen, have today given my Accent CRDi to him. I recently drove all the way to Bangalore from Delhi and near Belgaum it over heated. Since then, it is constantly throwing water as air pressure builds inside the radiator. I discovered this after hose pipe leaked twice without engine over heating again. I had to drive all the way from Belgaum with radiator lid open and pouring water every 30 kms. First doubt I have is the gasket but Naveen says since Oil and water have not mixed, its not gasket but something else. Any pointers from the experts?

Naveen will let me know by tomorrow after a thorough check.

@vinayrathore : Has the problem been identified ? If yes, please update. One of my friends is also having similar issue.

[itsashishsharma]

I had given my 2011 Swift for a paint job at some other garage in Koramangala, also, I asked them to fix a sound that is coming from below the bonnut, Driver's side, as if it was related to steering column/calliper. They called up and informed me about worn out suspension, some other things, and acc to them, so much needed to be replaced/fixed and expenses could climb upto 25-30k.

I could not believe them, as it is a fairly new car, well maintained too. I told them not to touch anything but the paint work and searched t-bhp for a good garage. As soon as I got my car back, I headed straight to Naveen's place, left to work after explaining what I have been quoted/informed by the other garage. In after-noon, Naveen called me, to tell that the sound is fixed, and I could take the car, it was ready, he told me everything was file, no replacement was required. I went there in evening, took a test drive, and sound was really fixed. He told me that only thing they have done is greasing the caliper and fitting it tightly, and he charged me Rs. 150 for that.
Thing to notice is that he knew that I was quoted a ridiculous amount for nothing, he could still charge me 7-8k and I would still appreciate his honesty from my point of view, but he did not. I recommend him to all my friends, and to everybody else.

[vinayrathore]

Originally Posted by vinayrathore

After going through all the good reviews about Naveen, have today given my Accent CRDi to him. I recently drove all the way to Bangalore from Delhi and near Belgaum it over heated. Since then, it is constantly throwing water as air pressure builds inside the radiator. I discovered this after hose pipe leaked twice without engine over heating again. I had to drive all the way from Belgaum with radiator lid open and pouring water every 30 kms. First doubt I have is the gasket but Naveen says since Oil and water have not mixed, its not gasket but something else. Any pointers from the experts?

Naveen will let me know by tomorrow after a thorough check.

Originally Posted by Ravindra M

@vinayrathore : Has the problem been identified ? If yes, please update. One of my friends is also having similar issue.

Sorry for the delayed revert as was traveling.

After a thorough check, Naveen called me the next day and confirmed its the gasket. Actually it had not completely gone so thankfully water and oil did not get mixed. He gave me an estimate of around 15k that included gasket, complete head overhaul, de-carbonizing of the cylinders, complete flushing of the cooling system and main belt, Oil and filters change. I also told him to change all hose pipes.

The time frame he said would be a week. The work started and I visited a few times in between. The week ended but the work was still on. The delay he said was caused at the Lathe as it required precision work on the head. The entire head surface has to be aluminum welded and then turned on the lathe machine. The pattern has to match by the last mm.

Anyways, the car was ready on the 10th day and the cost was 14875. He could not source the original hose pipes and has asked me to check this month. Over all I am pretty satisfied by his workmanship. Car is back to running smooth as it always has.

Since I also am thinking about a complete paintjob, I checked out a black SX4 and a metallic beige esteem being painted. Compared to an almost new Verna parked nearby, the cars being painted looked way better. He quoted me 30k for the complete paint job which I guess is pretty decent price.

BTW Advaith Hyundai quoted me 55k for the head overhaul and 70k for the paint job.

[nemo]

Originally Posted by itsashishsharma

I had given my 2011 Swift for a paint job at some other garage in Koramangala, also, I asked them to fix a sound that is coming from below the bonnut, Driver's side, as if it was related to steering column/calliper. They called up and informed me about worn out suspension, some other things, and acc to them, so much needed to be replaced/fixed and expenses could climb upto 25-30k.

I could not believe them, as it is a fairly new car, well maintained too. I told them not to touch anything but the paint work and searched t-bhp for a good garage. As soon as I got my car back, I headed straight to Naveen's place, left to work after explaining what I have been quoted/informed by the other garage. In after-noon, Naveen called me, to tell that the sound is fixed, and I could take the car, it was ready, he told me everything was file, no replacement was required. I went there in evening, took a test drive, and sound was really fixed. He told me that only thing they have done is greasing the caliper and fitting it tightly, and he charged me Rs. 150 for that.
Thing to notice is that he knew that I was quoted a ridiculous amount for nothing, he could still charge me 7-8k and I would still appreciate his honesty from my point of view, but he did not. I recommend him to all my friends, and to everybody else.

Good for you @itsashishsharma. I had the exact same issue with my Fiesta and visited AM with the hope of getting it fixed. Unfortunately my experience in dealing with Naveen has been not as good as yours (and the rest). He had the car for 4 days over 2 weeks and still couldn't fix the issue. I finally had to get it fixed it elsewhere and it turned out to be an hr's job in the end.

I also had some rattling noise in the dashboard and i asked him to fix it. He cited some specific skill requirements for this work and he engaged a specialist from outside. He charged me 2k for it but that guy, after the work, only made things worse.

Naveen is a nice fellow but I found him to be unreliable in terms of meeting time commitments and quality of work. It must have been just me but I wouldn't recommend him to anyone based on my experience.

[gearedup]

Pros:
1. Attention to detail: Attended to every single issue however trivial
2. Good paint work at reasonable cost. (Hope Jeeva’s experience mentioned in Post # 37 was a one-off case)
3. Honest, no nonsense, polite dealing. Does not avoid your follow ups.
4. You definitely end up saving decent sum when compared to any A.S.S, without any major compromise on quality (except maybe where high end diagnostic tools could be required)

Cons:
Time taken: Took 16 days to service a ’99 Zen.

As mentioned earlier here, the time is mainly taken to source different parts – some which are readily available & some which are not.
Eg: Availability of MGP parts may not seem as a concern, but practically for models where production has stopped – sourcing doesn’t happen immediately. MGP Bumper & AC Control Switch from local scrap market - took 1 week (MGP dealer had asked minimum 15 days’ time for the AC control switch, with no assurance)

Outsourced electrical works like Starter overhauling etc

Anyway, I didn’t expect any Local garage to give the Zen back in 2 days I had budgeted 10-12 days.
So, +1 to all previous comments – Kindly do not expect your car back in 2 days if it is for a full service or any other substantial work.

[jeeva]

Originally Posted by nemo

I also had some rattling noise in the dashboard and i asked him to fix it. He cited some specific skill requirements for this work and he engaged a specialist from outside. He charged me 2k for it but that guy, after the work, only made things worse.

Naveen is a nice fellow but I found him to be unreliable in terms of meeting time commitments and quality of work. It must have been just me but I wouldn't recommend him to anyone based on my experience.

Hi there,
Well, I conveyed your feedback to Naveen and he is very anxious to know what went wrong. He says that he showed you all the clips from the bumper, wheel arch and the rear which caused the rattling, apart from the dashboard and even you were so happy to see them get fixed in front of you and promised to return back another Sunday, but instead, this is what he hears now.

Originally Posted by gearedup

Pros:
. (Hope Jeeva’s experience mentioned in Post # 37 was a one-off case)

Oh yeah, it was. There was another painter there, who has been kicked out now. He screwed it up for me.

[itsashishsharma]

Originally Posted by nemo

Good for you @itsashishsharma. I had the exact same issue with my Fiesta and visited AM with the hope of getting it fixed. Unfortunately my experience in dealing with Naveen has been not as good as yours (and the rest).

Hey buddy, I too talked to Naveen regarding your concerns and he tells me similar to what he told Jeeva. He also said that he had your phone number written somewhere, he would find it and call you. If he doesn't, you can also call him and clear things up. He was looking concerned about this.