The Mishap and the background
I just moved to Gurgaon from Bangalore and had a mishap with my Linea Diesel, a few days ago. A big stone lurking on a dark road, car on left, divider on the right and I see it a second before the car is about to hit it.
I was at about 40kmph, and went straight over it. Beauty of it was, it was kept so strategically that there was a dip in the road just before the stone so the car bounces and hits the stone, HARD. The sound was deafening, the car started making a loud sound and we were in a state of shock.
I was sure the damage would be significant but it was a new road and I was with family so decided to carry on until i reached a known place. There were no warning lights, but the car was sounding like I got a free flow. Went to a relatives place, took a torch and tried to look at the underbody. I could see the protection plate bent just under the engine, scratches on the exhaust pipe, a small dent in the underbody.
There were no leaks, but there were vibrations while disengaging the clutch after engaging the first gear or the reverse. I was thanking God that the car was still working, the hit was such that I wouldn't have expected ANY vehicle to go unscathed, unless it was a Hummer.
Showed it to a local garage the next day, initial estimate 15K for various things and they hadnt even opened the safety plate yet. The only saving grace I had was that I had a 0 Dep policy, but I had no clue of what to expect from the infamous Fiat Service stations. There were 2 options I had in gurgaon, Torque and DRS and both seemed to have online reviews which made my heart sink.
Decided to go to DRS Gurgaon and see how it goes.
The Actual DRS Gurgaon Experience
Here is how it went - I called DRS, told them that I wanted to get my car checked and get an estimate for accident repair done.Reached the service station by 12PM, was greeted by a guard at the gate who asked me to park the car inside while they make an entry.
I left the car there, and went inside the office where the Service Advisors were. The SA I met was Pradeep, he greeted me and I told him my sad story. He heard me out patiently and came out with me to check the car.
Opened the job card for noise for underbody and said we will add stuff once we check it. We go inside the workshop, where all the lift bays already had cars being worked on. He spoke to the others and said it will take me an hour and a half to 2 hours for a slot. I was okay to wait.
2PM - A bay is vacated and my car is on the lift. Pradeep gives it a look, checks the dents, and says that we need to change the engine mount and we can hammer the safety plate into shape. I was quite surprised, the car was vibrating, the hit was really bad, it was making a sound like the exhaust was broken (couldn't see any breaks anywhere though). Told them that I wanted to get it checked completely and needed an estimate before I decided on insurance.
He then mentioned that in his opinion the bill would be under 3K and it would be a 20 min job to mend the car.
I was flabbergasted. There was no way in the world a car would survive that big a hit and have a bill of 3K. All he said was, "Sir, its a Fiat. Trust me, the safety cladding under it isn't plastic, it can take hits which you cant even imagine.I guarantee you, that's all that its going to be."
I asked them to remove the safety plate and show me the engine mount. He got them removed, the mount seemed to have taken a hit but I couldn't figure out more. In another 15 mins, the mount was changed, the plate hammered into its right shape, fitted back and I was told to take the test drive.
I was completely sure that this wouldn't work. Well, I was wrong.
No sound, no vibrations, the car drove the way it used to before the hit. I tried my best to find faults, I couldn't. It was back to what it was. While I was there, i asked them to clean up the AC pipe as it was blocked and water was seeping into the passenger side foot-well. That was done in another few minutes, and the water in the carpet vacuumed as well.
Final bill - 2465.
They could have easily asked me to leave the car, given me an inflated bill knowing I had a 0 dep, but they didn't. They listened, diagnosed and gave me exactly what I needed. Didn't try to sell me anything, just asked me if I was satisfied and gave me their number if I ever faced any issues.
DRS has a happy customer in me.So does Fiat.