[himanshugoswami]

Hi Folks,

Till now I had been a pretty satisfied Indica Turbo owner, having rakd up approx 5000 kms in 4 months. The car consistently gave me 17 KPL in the city with AC and 20 on the h/w.

But my honeymoon with the turbo tourned sour this weekend. I had gone from TVM to Ernakulam for some work on Friday. WHile going, the car behaved impeccably and with speeds of about 90-100 kph, with AC on, it gave me 21 KPL!.

On the way bac on saturday, I was coming back alone.
I had just crossed Alleppey around 10 A.M. and about 20 Ks out of Alleppey, i got an absolute clear stretch of road, so I decided to open the car up a bit, sinc eit was due for its first service upon return to TVM. so the speedo started climbing from 90 and all was fine till 120. when I crossed 120, there was a strange sound, like to coins were rubbing together (of course the sound was much loder than that!) I switched of fthe steroe and immediately dropped the speed to 100, the sound went away. then, I was cruising at 100 and came upon a truck. while overtaking the truck (at this stage the turbo was on full boost!) i again heard that sound (Speed about 110-115) and then there was a loud hissing noise. Now I was really worried, and the traffic position was such that I could not lift off the throttle rither. SO I floored the accelerator, got clear of the truck and pulled over. All this while the sound got worse and was sickening!

I switched off the car, waited for about 15 minutes before I opened the bonnet. When I opened the bonnet there was a pungent burning smell, and I could see smoke/steam all over. Now I was really worried. I was stranded int he middle of the highway, in an area where I did not know the language! ( I am not from Kerala!)

Anyways, I remembered reading somewhere tha tIndicas have a limp home feature. So i turned on the car and drove back to TVM at a steady 60 KPH, no AC.

As soon as i reached TVM, drove straight to Kulathunkal motors workshop ( The TASC in TVM). It took them about 5 miutes to diagnose the problem. They said that the plumbing for the Turbo had sprung a leak, causing turbo malfunction, and the turbo will have to be replaced! I said ***!!!! This is a brand new car dammit! Anyways, since it is under warranty, I will not have ot pay for anything. He further said that there was some problem with the oil pump and there was premature cylinder corrosion. He could not confirm if the two problems were related. SO as i write this my car is int he workshop, where it will be for a week, and I have decided to sell this car off as soon as I get it back. My confidence in tata is really shaken after this!

(my 3 year old esteem in Delhi with over 65k has NEVER given me ANY problem till date!)

Cheers

Himanshu

[jkdas]

Lucky that you managed to get back to Tvm. Call me if u get stuck next time and want help within Cochin-Tvm stretch.

I thought Tata had a nice product with thsi Turbo Indica. Teh premature thing is a common problem with Turbo Indicas?

[himanshugoswami]

Thanks JK...will do. But hopefully wont have any furhter problems

[humyum]

Himanshu..Buyin Tata small car is the biggest mistake everyone makes..they are good at making bigger cars like suv nd trucks..but making small cars is just not their cup of tea..There are lot of problems in their cars...My friend has an indigo..nd he has already changed almost half is car in the 15000 km it has run..

[drifter]

Originally Posted by humyum

Himanshu..Buyin Tata small car is the biggest mistake everyone makes..they are good at making bigger cars like suv nd trucks..but making small cars is just not their cup of tea..There are lot of problems in their cars...My friend has an indigo..nd he has already changed almost half is car in the 15000 km it has run..

There are literally more than 5000 units of indicas being sold. How can you say its not tatas cup of tea? I had an indica petrol...it had given me great service. My friends '03 indica diesel has been performing flawlessly.

Im not defending tatas quality which is questionable at times. But it also has to do with the dealers, when you give your car for service, some dealers are known to charge you for things that havent been actually replaced (personal experience). If your dealer is honest, i dont think there should be much issues regarding maintenence.

I still think the indica is the best thing that ever happened to the indian market.

Drifter

[nitrous]

Buyin Tata small car is the biggest mistake everyone makes

U have no idea what u're talking about ,don't u??

Drifter, u're SOO right!!

[humyum]

Hey dudes ..offcourse i do..see i can give u many explanations regarding this..dont know u guys will agree or no..
Indica=Too heavy..i agree its spacious..but spacious always does not mean it has to be heavy..Rear Suspension..inadequate for the kind of weight it has ..leads to premature wear of tyres..nd bad handling...u guys must have seen this happenin to lot of indicas back tyres )( ..i hope u guys understand what i am tryin to say..nd lots of other things..
Indigo=Again Very heavy..same back suspension problem...Feels like a truck from inside while u drive..In the same range drive the esteem nd u ll know what a car is ...Indigo indica..heavy spares cost..nd comparivetly..marutis spares are dirt cheap..Mileage Front..Esteem is way ahead than the indigo..
Pick Up wise..Esteem Rocks..nd with the same power of 85 bhp..indigo is much slower than the esteem..why..coz its very heavy
Tata small cars are fail cars..just because they sell in huge numbers does not mean..they are perfect..cars like esteem which has performed flawlessly since its debut..nd wins in every field compared to a tata indigo..
Although i am just condemming tatas in their small nd mid size cars like indigo,indica nd marina..in cars like SUV,TRUCKS..tata rocks..

[drifter]

I totally disagree with the spares parts. Tata spares are one of the cheapest around.

Have you seen the esteem, its cramped, unsafe in comparision. Infact, its no competetion for the indica let alone the indigo.

Esteem is faster only because its lighter...try having a crash in both the indigo and the esteem...you will fare better with the indigo/indica always!

Tata small cars are fail cars..just because they sell in huge numbers does not mean..they are perfect..cars like esteem which has performed flawlessly since its debut..nd wins in every field compared to a tata indigo..

Well according to your post, esteem is the better car...i still dont see them selling in the same numbers...

How can you say the esteem has fared better...it was selling because there was no competition to it in its times....now look at it, with the arrival of competition, who even thinks about buying an esteem.

Waiting for your reply.

Drifter

[himanshugoswami]

Having owned both the esteem and the Indica Turbo. lemme add my two cents worth.

The esteem has a bullet proof engine that is the life of teh car. It can bring a smile on any car lovers face. I mean, just drive the car for sometime to experience it. that apart, there is not much going for the esteem as a new car. for a little more money, there are better choices available.

The indica/indigo are bigger cars, no doubt, and definitely safer too- no question. But htese cars are unrefined and crude. Plus, as my experience has shown, at least in my case it proved to be unreliable.

the only reason these cars are selling in huge nos. is the VFM factor and our obsession with Diesel.

but hte engine parts of the indica and indigo are way too heavy. I mean, the petrol and diesel share the same block!!!!

At hte end of the day though, no car is perfect. each one is a compromise....

so to each his own i guess.

FOr me, I will never buy a tata vehicle again. My next hatch will be the swift.

[Zappo]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

Having owned both the esteem and the Indica Turbo. lemme add my two cents worth.

The esteem has a bullet proof engine that is the life of teh car. It can bring a smile on any car lovers face. I mean, just drive the car for sometime to experience it. that apart, there is not much going for the esteem as a new car. for a little more money, there are better choices available.

The indica/indigo are bigger cars, no doubt, and definitely safer too- no question. But htese cars are unrefined and crude. Plus, as my experience has shown, at least in my case it proved to be unreliable.

the only reason these cars are selling in huge nos. is the VFM factor and our obsession with Diesel.

but hte engine parts of the indica and indigo are way too heavy. I mean, the petrol and diesel share the same block!!!!

At hte end of the day though, no car is perfect. each one is a compromise....

so to each his own i guess.

For me, I will never buy a tata vehicle again. My next hatch will be the swift.

I think it can also be an aberation Himanshu. Think about it... it can very well happen. I mean it is no failure as such in real sense. A hose probably pried loose. Can always happen, can't it? Afterall they are always attached by metal rings with screws (mostly). Of course as the screw probably got loose and then fell resulting in the hose springing out from the joint you had an unpleasant experience. But then these are things that can happen with any thing which has moving parts and all... Normally, if you are lucky you catch these things during your weekly check up under the bonnet.

A real problem is when either the gearbox all of a sudden jams... or the differential fails... or even the engine seizes (though again the root to many such problems lies with negilgent upkeep of the car).

Next time on, be sure that you do check once under the bonnet on a weekly-basis, and of course before you take the car out on a long drive. and take heart... your TDi still rocks man.

[himanshugoswami]

real problem is when either the gearbox all of a sudden jams... or the differential fails... or even the engine seizes (though again the root to many such problems lies with negilgent upkeep of the car).

You are absolutely right whth that. And I do pride myself in knowing my way around a car's engine bay . Thus i regularly check my car for any oil leakages , coolant top ups etc.

but if you noticed in my post, another problem that the workshop guy mentioned was a malfunction with the lubrication, resulting in premature cylinder wear- that too at 5000 Ks!!

This is a real serious problem in my books.

As regards the plumbing for the turbo, my brother in law has a skoda octavia TDI- run 82000 ks, and no such problem till date. i know that we are comparing apples and oranges here and also that my problem may be a one off, but i sudder to think what would have happened had the cylinder wear not been detected in tme and my engine would have siezed at a critical juncture!

please note that I have also owned a petrol indica, that saw a lot of abuse since it was used by my driver in Delhi for my office work- and we were pretty happy with it since it did the job it was meant for. the expectations were low- so no issues there

but the experience with the Turbo is a different cup of tea

Cheers

[nitrous]

I suggest u get it checked at another place.

Get the compression test done.

[Zappo]

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

You are absolutely right whth that. And I do pride myself in knowing my way around a car's engine bay . Thus i regularly check my car for any oil leakages , coolant top ups etc.

but if you noticed in my post, another problem that the workshop guy mentioned was a malfunction with the lubrication, resulting in premature cylinder wear- that too at 5000 Ks!!

This is a real serious problem in my books.

As regards the plumbing for the turbo, my brother in law has a skoda octavia TDI- run 82000 ks, and no such problem till date. i know that we are comparing apples and oranges here and also that my problem may be a one off, but i sudder to think what would have happened had the cylinder wear not been detected in tme and my engine would have siezed at a critical juncture!

please note that I have also owned a petrol indica, that saw a lot of abuse since it was used by my driver in Delhi for my office work- and we were pretty happy with it since it did the job it was meant for. the expectations were low- so no issues there

but the experience with the Turbo is a different cup of tea

Cheers

Still I think these are some niggles that may come up at times. Once is a bit too early to say it is problematic. And about that cylinder wear... did you check and confirm what the guy at the TASC said was actually true? I know of so many horror stories around Authorised Service Centers in smaller cities... They may be having an old vehicle from one of their known people, or even worse just an old vehicle on which they did a costly replacement (and got paid). Now they want to make a double killing. They will show that replacement under warranty against your car and then get paid again for it.

I know I am skeptical... but then seen so many of those chor-chakaaras that I am rather inclined to cast a suspicious eye at these guys unless I have reasons to believe otherwise.

Let me tell you another experience... actually its already there on the forum on some other thread. In our family we have another Indica... this one a 3+ years old car. It is in a remote place in Bengal. Last year we took it out on a long drive in the searing heat of summer. After a whole day's relentless driving when we were coming back something went pop and some sticky black thing (oil) started oozing out (in fact it gushed out like a hot geyser) from under the bonnet with good amount of smoke. Somehow we brought it and parked it at home. Then after some search we got hold of a local mech who essentially repairs diesel trucks and sumos plying on the expressway. He went out and got hold of a seal (an oil seal popped) as he said these are very generic things and can used across the range. Replaced the damaged seal and also did some good clean up of the oily bay with kerosene... all that effort costed us something less than 400 rupees, I think (of which 150 or so was the seal). The problem did not recur. Only your Indica can give you this kind of peace of mind.

[humyum]

Drifter..as himanshugoswami said..tata cars are crude nd unrefined..nd i agree with u dude..on the space nd crash part...nd look at the esteem in the same front..its so refined...fast as well as fuel effecient..
And about the thing as tata spares are cheap..dude..look at the price of maruti spares..they are the cheapest(among all cars)..nd the most available spares in entire india...
Nd about esteem not sellin in good numbers...Look at the baleno...its a dream car kinds..in performance nd everythin..but then too its sales figures are so bad...
Not every car that is good has to sell..nd the tatas are comparitively new to the estemm..The esteem had its time..when it was sellin like hot cakes..with not any problems ever since it arrived...nd comparitively...indica/indigo are new

[GTO]

Pretty unfortunate that this had to happen to a new brandnew car. Its surely Tatas inconsistent quality at play out here.

That said, it would be foolish to generalise all Tata cars based on a handful of examples. If 90% + of the Indicas on the road were not reliable, you would not see sales figures of a lac plus every year. Remember...word of mouth in India works wonders, and I know of plentiful Tata Indica / Indigo customers who were extremely happy customers.

GTO