[Gannu_1]

Update at 4 years and 1,10,000 km:

She's completed 4 years of ownership on October 7th and crossed the 1.1L mark while I returned from home during the Dussehra weekend. Time surely flies! It doesn't feel like she's been with me for over 4 years now.



2016 - 17: 28,512 km

She keeps munching miles like nobody's business. We drive to Palakkad and back, twice a month plus the frequency of visits to our shipyard at Kattupalli has been steadily increasing which keeps the odo ticking (and the fuel bills as well!). The good thing is, the car hasn't broken down so far and has been reliable as ever save for those wear-and-tear parts. The timing belt will be replaced at the 1.2L km service and the clutch + flywheel as well - it has become hard. I am told that it is best to replace the flywheel along with the clutch and pressure plate. The other parts have been holding up well.

Since I was at home for Vijayadashami, we did the customary puja after giving her a wash and wipe:



I'll share a few updates:

First things first, the ownership thread is inching closer to 1 million views:



The last 1 lakh views has come up in less than 5 months! And I'm not sure what keeps this ownership thread ticking! If anything, this is just a boring logbook of my ride.

Replacement AC vents for the driver and co-driver side:

The co-driver side AC vent's directional controls broke sometime back when a friend hit it hard. The driver side's controls became brittle and gave up a few months back. So when a good friend Sheethal told me that these vents are available for less than 1000 bucks a piece, I got a pair without giving it much thought. Well, these are now being Made in India by a Pune based OEM and thus ends up being cheaper. It used to be imported from Europe before; in fact, if the VIN of my car is entered in the system, it shows up as 5000 Rs per unit + 50 days lead time for sourcing them! Uh, no thank you!



Difference between the opening/closing mechanism of the stock vents (left) and the new vents (right):



Part number: 6R0 819 703 AG VAL, 6R0 819 704 AG VAL
Price: Rs 1834 (Rs 917 each)
Source: VW service center, Hubli

Boot liner replacement:

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

d. The stock boot liner is also a bit flimsy and I intend to get it replaced with a thicker ply (maybe 4 mm) covered with a speaker-box carpet and the VW OEM handle from the Golf and the likes (image). This is the part:

Attachment 1651012

Done and dusted!



I had a piece of large cardboard from the packaging of a shoe rack. Removed the staples at the edges and opened it up, used it as a template by cutting it in the shape of the stock boot liner:



Bought a 6 mm thick marine ply of 4’ x 3’ size (man, I hate these imperial units!) from the local market, a boot liner material from a local shop that deals with cloth and matting material, called our friendly neighbourhood upholsterer who does these household upholstery jobs and handed him the materials. Took him a few hours and he returned with the finished boot liner with some slick workmanship:



The 3 hinges were screwed to the sheets using csk screws and the ends were neatly trimmed:



Paid him 500 bucks for the labour. Totally worth it, I say. The boot liner neatly folds at the hinges.

Price: Rs 1400 (Rs. 350 – mat, Rs. 350 – 6 mm ply, Rs. 200 – Fevicol SR998 + SS304 hinges + CSK screws, Rs. 500 – labour)
Source: Local market

A new front grill:



Got bored of the honeycomb GTI front grill plus it was a pain to clean the grill - dust and insects used to creep into every nook and cranny of the honeycomb structure and I would use a discarded toothbrush to clean it once in a while. The entire car would take an hour to clean and this grill would take another hour! Decided to change it to the Cross Polo's grill for a change.



Had it sourced from my old dealership at Navsari and the stores in-charge was more than happy to have it sourced from VW, Chakan and send it through. Hat tip to BHPian chintu_91 to have it packed securely and ship it to Chennai. Swapping it was a 5 minutes job.

Now I've got 2 spare front grills lying around! Cleaned them up thoroughly and stored them in the cupboard:



Part number: ZSB 6R0 853 651
Price: Rs 6500
Source: VW dealership, Navsari

12V to USB converter:

Got this tiny 12V to USB converter to power/charge the dashcam for the upcoming road trip:



It fits in a finger tip - it is that small! The 2 leads had to be connected to a 12V source which was tapped from the cabin light. I decided to do a bench test at home before connecting it to the car. And that shows my DIY bench PSU in action - it can output +3.3V, +5V and +12V (sufficient to test HIDs and 100W halogen bulbs as the PSU can output 34A through the 12V rail). More on it in a different thread.

It has a tiny SMD LED which glows red when it is powered. I decided to cover the exposed circuit using 2 rounds of heat-shrink sleeve and used cable ties to secure the 2 cables together:



Price: Rs 50
Source: Aliexpress (Link)

Bosch wipers:

The stock wipers which were close to an year old had started streaking and the wipes weren't clean. I had gotten them from a local supermarket in Korea when I had visited last year (dirt cheap - some 400 Rs. for a pair!) but I loved the design - it wasn't the usual frameless type but resembles the ones that the Corolla Altis and Elantra comes with. It has a plastic frame over the wiper that looks slick! Anyways, they had given up and I decided to get something quickly and placed an order for the normal blades on Amazon. Got it delivered the next day.



Installed them the same day and tested them while driving to our shipyard. Works well! No streaking and no noise. I can live with those frames for some time.

Part number: Bosch 3397010057
Price: Rs 410
Source: Amazon (Link)

DIY pressure brake bleeding kit:

Sourced all the parts required to do the pressure brake bleeding just like the Gunson Eezibleed bleeding kit:



Got the plastic bottle from the local plastic shop (it was originally an oil dispenser but the bottle cap was perfect for fixing 2 brass barb fittings), the transparent tubing from a local hardware shop, all the brass fittings and o-rings set from Aliexpress. Now I just need to find some time to assemble everything and do the bleeding!

I read through the VW workshop manual which states that the ABS equipped cars can be bled through the normal bleeding procedure. VCDS is used to activate the ABS module before each side is bled. Plus, since the clutch also uses the same master cylinder, the clutch must also be bled during this process.

LED bulbs:

Ex-mod MPower pinged me sometime back and asked me if I wanted some stuff from the States as his parents were visiting and he could send it through them! I couldn't be happier! Thanks a lot Deep - I owe you a big one! Instantly hit up eBay and Amazon and checked for offers on the Philips LED bulbs for the tail lights, reverse light and indicators that I was longing for a while now.





Let the results of the swap first speak:









The brake lights are way too intense! In the evening while I return from work, I take the foot off the brake pedal and pull the parking brake when the car is stopped in the middle of a traffic or I am waiting at the signal. The indicator bulbs are what took me by surprise however - these Sylvania LEDs were cheaper than the Philips equivalent but the brightness is really good and the front indicators create an arc on the headlight when it flashes - looks swell! I saw the white reverse light on some Audi recently and it looked kickass - something different from the usual halogen bulbs and that is honestly what triggered this entire purchase.

Upon swapping the LED bulbs for the indicators, hyper-flashing does not happen on the outside but it does on the instrument cluster which is a little annoying as I am used to the normal pace of the flashing sound but I'll get it fixed with inline resistors later.

Brake lights:

Part number: Philips X-treme Vision 12898RX2 LED 1156 P21
Price: Rs. 1715 (26.39 USD)
Source: eBay

Indicator lights:

Part number: SYLVANIA ZEVO 1156 Amber LED
Price: Rs. 3022 (46.5 USD; 23.25 USD/pair)
Source: Amazon

Reverse light:

Part number: Philips Vision 12898B2 LED 1156W P21W
Price: Rs. 2124 (32.68 USD)
Source: eBay

Permatex brake grease:

Also got a bottle of this chyawanprash for the brakes. Considered to be the best in business, the cap comes with a brush built-in for the application.



Part number: Permatex 24125
Price: Rs. 941 (14.49 USD)
Source: eBay

ONR Wash and Wax:

I exhausted the bottle of the ONR Wash and Wipe so got this bigger bottle of ONR Wash and Wax. The Wash and Wipe was out of stock at most places. I pinged Eco Car Care, Bangalore on their WhatsApp and they were quick in their response.



With 2 litres of water, a capful of the liquid, 7-8 microfiber towels and 1 hour, this is the result:



I am a big fan of waterless wash now. Except when the rain gods decide to play crazy!

Price: Rs. 2358
Source: Eco Car Care, Bangalore

Super fine steel wool:

Got some super fine steel wool of 0000 grade to clean the windshield:



The windshield must be dry before the steel wool is rubbed. Works wonders as per some of the videos I've seen on Youtube - will see if this works when I use it on the rear quarter glass first.

BTW, this kind of photography is done using steel wool:


(Source: Google Images)

Price: Rs. 133
Source: Aliexpress (Link)

That's all for now. This year's big road trip starts tomorrow morn 4 AM!

[Lone Ranger]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

The last 1 lakh views has come up in less than 5 months! And I'm not sure what keeps this ownership thread ticking! If anything, this is just a boring logbook of my ride.

Boring logbook of my ride indeed! That's like describing Halo as just another FPS. I don't know know how many people have mustered up the courage to carry out modifications on their VWs just after reading this thread. And what I really like about the stuff you've done is that they are utility and function oriented, and not all about improving 0-60 or 40-100 or any such combination of numbers

[baskar]

You are an inspiration to other VW owners. Having time to spare is one thing but doing these level of modifications is something else. More importantly explaining this in simple terms is even better.

Hats off to your contribution to this forum. Your modifications are functional , serve a purpose for every day use and most importantly don't burn a hole in the pocket.

I own a 2012 Passat Highline and wish I could muster courage to do some of this if not all.

Hats off to you

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Lone Ranger

Boring logbook of my ride indeed!

One of the best threads on the site. It would not surprise me if a few people who don't even have a Polo look in here!

Thank you for your continuing remarkable writeup on you and your remarkable car

[MartinVirage]

Kudos! On the 4 years ownership. Truly one of the most detailed and ambitious DIY filled threads in Team BHP!

From a fellow Volkswagen Owner!

[PapaBravo]

Super thread Gannu_1. Got directed through FB feed & went through the whole thread. This is indeed a bible for useful DIYs on a Volkswagen. The most useful thread for any VW owner on forum. I liked the whole narration & attention to detail.

She sure doesn't look 1 lac+ old. Was great to meet you & see it in person on the trip.

Happy mile munching !!

Regards,

Pawan

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

This year's big road trip starts tomorrow morn 4 AM!

And it got over sooner than I had thought!

We got back from our trip to Kolkata and Bishnupur via Vizag and Puri last Monday and we loved it!

I'll pen a travelogue when I find some spare time but until then let me share some bits here. This trip was this year's major road trip. Wife and I undertook this trip through the 4-laned and 6-laned NH 16 that forms one quarter of the GQ from Chennai to Kolkata. We covered 4075 km in 10 days touching Vizag and Puri en route. We also drove to Bishnupur from Kolkata, famous for its terracotta temples after having read about them on the forums (link). We did some shopping on the last day, drove back with some everlasting memories of the places and swore to return as we intend to cover some more places towards that side.

A lot of things worked in our favour during the course of the trip - Fastag (helped immensely saving a lot of time), the weather (it started pouring on the day we departed from Kolkata during the return drive), the car (didn't break down anywhere despite the mileage she's clocked), accommodation (Rs. 20 for the SBI holiday homes/guest houses with parking provision) and our health (despite having food from the dhabas and roadside eateries). I didn't have the slightest clue how this drive was going to be especially with the wife in tow since she isn't used to waking up early (3:30 - 4 AM so we can hit the road by 4:30 - 5 AM) or help me navigate or do the honours of filling up our log book (I keep one for long road trips since it helps with the stats at the end of the trip like the expenses, fuel economy etc). But man, I was totally surprised - she did amazingly well! Hat tip to her! And as far as I was concerned, I just wanted a getaway from this hectic work schedule and drive to some new place. And since we didn't touch the east coast so far, we decided to travel towards Kolkata. Which meant Vizag and Puri falls on the way so we decided to cover those as well.

So this was the schedule:

Day 1 - Oct 14 - Chennai to Vizag - 820 km
Day 2 - Oct 15 - Local sightseeing at Vizag
Day 3 - Oct 16 - Vizag to Puri - 430 km
Day 4 - Oct 17 - Puri to Kolkata via Konark Sun Temple - 540 km
Day 5 - Oct 18 - Local sightseeing at Kolkata
Day 6 - Oct 19 - Kolkata to Bishnupur to Kolkata - 360 km
Day 7 - Oct 20 - Local sightseeting + shopping
Day 8 - Oct 21 - Kolkata to Puri - 500 km
Day 9 - Oct 22 - Puri to Rajahmundry - 700 km
Day 10 - Oct 23 - Rajahmundry to Chennai - 620 km

And this was the route:



Here're some random snaps:

At Bavikonda, Vizag:


The INS Kursura submarine museum, Vizag:


The AP-OD border:


At the Puri-Konark marine drive:


Somewhere on the Puri-Konark marine drive:


The Sun Temple, Konark:


The Victoria Memorial, Kolkata:


The iconic Amby taxi of Kolkata:


The St. Paul's Cathedral, Kolkata:


The Great Banyan in the botanical gardens:


The Madan Mohan terracotta temple at Bishnupur:


The Ras Mancha temple:


The Kalachand temple:


The Pancha Ratna temple:


The Jor Bangla temple:


The terracotta collectables:


The canyons at Gongoni:


The Howrah bridge:


The entrance to Puri:


At the Chilka lake:


At the N5 food plaza above the Ongole toll booth:


The Vizag coast from Kailasagiri:


At the Hogg market, Kolkata:


Drinking tea the Kolkata way:


L to R - BHPian PapaBravo, yours truly and D-BHPian BlackPearl :


Here's our log book (made with used A4 sheets BTW) entries:










And as the trip concluded, the car was a wee bit short of 1,15,000 km on the odo:


The current set of Michelin P3STs have clocked over 76000 km! Going by the tread depth, they can last another 4-5k km. Seriously Michelin, what is the secret ingredient used for the manufacturing of these babies?!

And before I close this note, I owe my gratitude to Parag bhai for the route and stay suggestions, timely weather updates and keeping track of us at all times, BHPians PapaBravo and BlackPearl for the unplanned mini meet and suggestions, my wife for being a great co-driver during the trip, our parents for the prayers (specifically dad for the guest house bookings), the Almighty for the luck that rode alongside us and our ride for having brought us back home safely!

[BlackPearl]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

And before I close this note, I owe my gratitude to Parag bhai for the route and stay suggestions, timely weather updates and keeping track of us at all times, BHPians PapaBravo and BlackPearl for the unplanned mini meet and suggestions, my wife for being a great co-driver during the trip, our parents for the prayers (specifically dad for the guest house bookings), the Almighty for the luck that rode alongside us and our ride for having brought us back home safely!

It was our pleasure to meet you and your steed. You have maintained the polo immaculately and it surely does not show it's age or mileage. Wish you many more happy miles and "modding".

[shibujp]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

And it got over sooner than I had thought!

We got back from our trip to Kolkata and Bishnupur via Vizag and Puri last Monday and we loved it!
And as the trip concluded, the car was a wee bit short of 1,15,000 km on the odo:
Attachment 1690230

The current set of Michelin P3STs have clocked over 76000 km! Going by the tread depth, they can last another 4-5k km. Seriously Michelin, what is the secret ingredient used for the manufacturing of these babies?!

I always think that trips like this are as much a break for cars from the humdrum of traffic and the office commute as it is for us. After long trips I always felt that cars run just that little bit smoother and faster. Great to see you piling on the miles on that Polo.

For the life they give, Michelins are totally worth the extra you pay. I had a feel of this when I used a set of XM2+ on my Swift. 30K kms and they hardly broke into a sweat where as my Yokohoma ES100s started their end of life. Though the ES100s were quite a bit better in terms of grip and braking performance. At 76K I would be on my second set of ES100s/S Drives for the Polo.

Looking forward to the timing belt change experience. You have not replaced any suspension components other than the top mount bushes for the front strut so far have you? Lower arms, links rods the like?

Drive on,
Shibu.

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by shibujp

Looking forward to the timing belt change experience.

I am planning to get the belts and the clutch assembly changed at the same time. There's a directory entry on an FNG here who specialises in VAG cars. I'd want to give him a try.

The issue with the VW service center is: distance (25 km one way through maddening traffic) and possible remap of the ECU for the dieselgate fix which I'd want to avoid.

Originally Posted by shibujp

You have not replaced any suspension components other than the top mount bushes for the front strut so far have you? Lower arms, links rods the like?

Plus the Bilsteins.

I'd want to get the feedback of this FNG for the rest of the components like the rear suspension bushes, drive shafts, lower arms, link rods, wheel bearings etc. No unusual noise or unwanted bumps so far so I'm assuming they are in a decent nick.

On priority, I need to get the brake fluid changed. I'd be doing that during December.

[arun_747]

The issue with the VW service center is: distance (25 km one way through maddening traffic) and possible remap of the ECU for the dieselgate fix which I'd want to avoid.

Hi Gannu,
Any particular reason for avoiding "Diesel-gate" fix. Kindly let us know. Thanks.

[Gannu_1]

• She crossed 1.2L km few days back.
  
  
  
  The last 15k km came in pretty quick (less than 4 months) thanks to the Kolkata trip.
  
  
• The following services have to be done within the next 2 weeks:
  
  
  1. Oil change service
     
     
  2. Timing belt kit + water pump replacement service
     
     
  3. Clutch pack replacement service
  
  I'll do the oil change service at my apartment parking lot/basement. This time I opted for a 5L can of Liqui Moly TopTec 5W40 and a 300 mL bottle of Liqui Moly Ceratec. Upon inquiry, the Liqui Moly engineer says 4 L of oil + 300 mL of Ceratec may be poured into the engine:
  
  
  
  Got a great deal from a Liqui Moly vendor for both - Rs. 3800 for the 5 L TopTec can and Rs. 2000 for Ceratec. I am not too sure if Ceratec works as advertised - have heard a lot of good reviews on VW's TDI engines but could be snake oil for all you know but I'll post back with the results. The dealer's name is Amit and he can be contacted on 838 four zero 939 four one.
  
  

• Originally Posted by Gannu_1

  I am planning to get the belts and the clutch assembly changed at the same time. There's a directory entry on an FNG here who specialises in VAG cars. I'd want to give him a try.

  Spoke with Mr. Jai Prakash (from our directory entry) and have told him my concerns. Will be dropping my car at his garage in Perambur during January first week.
  
  

• Originally Posted by Gannu_1

  On priority, I need to get the brake fluid changed. I'd be doing that during December.

  Done and dusted!
  
  Got the brake fluid changed 2 weeks back at an FNG. As much as I wanted to attempt it myself, I ran short of a pair of jack stands - just have a pair with me and it was too late to source another pair. So decided to go to the neighbourhood MyTVS garage and get this done.
  
  Here's the setup I'd made for draining the stock fluid:
  
  
  
  A cable tie holds the tube in place near the cap so it doesn't come out of the cap and ensures that the end of the tube touches the bottom of the bottle:
  
  
  
  Not visible in the pic - a small hole drilled, to vent the air off as the bottle gets filled with the fluid.
  
  I had sourced 6 cans of VW OEM DOT4 brake fluid (part number B 000 750 M1) through a friend of mine from Hubli:
  
  
  
  Thanks a lot Sheethal - really appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule to visit the service center to buy these bottles, pack them and send it over! Each can stores 250 mL of fluid, WBP is rated at 175 'C and is imported from Germany. Costs Rs. 280 per can.
  
  The MyTVS garage is located bang opposite to Prasannalakshmi auditorium on Shornur road next to the Mercy College junction. Here's the Google maps shortcut.
  
  
  
  So we went there around 10 AM on a Saturday (no prior appointments taken) and told them my requirement. Since I had the replacement fluid and the necessary tools with me, we got to the job straight away. The car was loaded atop the hydraulic lift and raised a bit so we could get a glimpse of the brake fluid reservoir by standing atop a small stool (and top it up as necessary) and drain the fluid from all the wheels without crawling too much.
  
  So here's the condition of the stock brake fluid:
  
  
  
  And when I had tested the condition of the fluid using this brake fluid tester I had gotten off Aliexpress (link)...:
  
  
  
  ...all the 4 LEDs lit up brightly suggesting a fluid change is imminent. This tester essentially works on the basis of the conductivity of the liquid in which the probes are immersed in. Since brake fluid is hygroscopic, the stock fluid gradually becomes conductive and the LEDs begin to light up progressively. Handy little tool I'd say.
  
  So picking up where we left off, I took a new 10 mL syringe and sucked some stock fluid from the reservoir:
  
  
  
  We did this 5-6 times so the level went close to the Min. level mark. A larger syringe + a longer tube would make this activity much easier.
  
  The tube was submerged in some amount of the stock fluid drained using the syringe:
  
  
  
  This will ensure that no air is sucked back into the system. Air being compressible, a mixture of air + brake fluid will result in sponginess when the brake pedal is pressed.
  
  The order would be rear right > rear left > front left > front right.
  
  Using the 8 numbered ring spanner, we start off with the RL wheel :
  
  
  
  
  
  Then the RR wheel:
  
  
  
  Almost 300 mL drained from both the wheels:
  
  
  
  Then the FL wheel:
  
  
  
  And the FR wheel:
  
  
  
  And lastly, the clutch also needs to be bled since the clutch is also using the same fluid from the brake fluid reservoir. However access to the bleeding nipple is not straightforward and the air filter box, battery and the battery base needs to be removed.
  
  
  
  At the end of the process, slightly less than 1.5 L of fluid was drained within the system:
  
  
  
  And the reservoir had clean fluid:
  
  
  
  A comparison pic:
  
  
  
  And the brake tester gave it a clean chit:
  
  
  
  As far as the difference in the performance goes, there has been no perceptible difference in the brake pedal feel. It is as firm as it was before without any sponginess or added hardness. Just the same level of feedback. The hardness on the clutch pedal however, has eased up a bit and I can definitely feel a small difference here especially when driving through heavy traffic.
  
  
• I had also cleaned the headlights sometime back. The front glass had developed a lot of dust which had settled inside.
  
  I used two strong neodymium magnets of 15 mm dia., two pieces of microfiber cloth, a thin metallic cable and some iso-propyl alcohol (IPA) spray. eBay retails strong magnets in various sizes and shapes; I got this. And these magnets are incredibly strong - not your average black piece which broke off that speaker driver!
  
  Wrapped the magnet inside the MF cloth and tied it using the metallic cable:
  
  
  
  Sprayed some IPA into the piece, removed the indicator bulb and routed this piece inside the headlamp while using another piece of MF cloth from the outside with a second magnet of opposite polarity:
  
  
  
  Move the piece gradually from one end to another and the piece inside would move:
  
  
  
  
  
  The dirt inside from one side:
  
  
  
  Repeat the procedure for the second headlight:
  
  
  
  
  
  End result - cleaner headlights:
  
  
  
  
  
  
• The current set of Michelin Primacy 3ST tires have now clocked over 80,000 km.
  
  The tires were swapped when the odo was at 39,300 km (link) before we undertook our trip to Ladakh. To this day, if my memory serves me right, 6 punctures were recorded in all with no other complaints despite the kind of tortures that were meted out to these tires. No sidewall ruptures and no uneven wear. I would do the wheel balancing and alignment every 10k km and rotate them at the same time.
  
  This is the condition of all the tires as on date:
  
  FR:
  
  
  
  RR:
  
  
  
  FL:
  
  
  
  RL:
  
  
  
  Judging by the tread depth, I am pretty sure these would last for another 5k km but I may end up replacing them with another set next month. I am truly amazed by the quality of these tires.
  
  
• The rear wiper lost its plastic cap sometime last week:
  
  
  
  Will buy a couple of replacements this time when I source the other parts. Should be relatively inexpensive. Part number is 5K6 955 435:
  
  
  
  

• Originally Posted by Gannu_1

  Got to apply for a refund from the Surat RTO now.

  As far as the refund from Surat RTO goes, here's how far we've come - we sent all the relevant proof to Surat RTO with a covering letter and they sent us a letter in Gujarati:
  
  
  
  Clueless, I forwarded this to a few friends who had it translated for me and the RTO was essentially asking for the receipt of the tax paid issued by this office which wasn't furnished by us. Looks like we didn't receive a copy from the dealership! So I had requested dad to look into this and he contacted the dealership over the phone, spoke to my sales advisor (who surprisingly was still around!) who had hooked him up with the customer relationship manager who wouldn't help much and started giving excuses. Dad sternly told him that the buyer should have been given this receipt and their office would definitely have it. Turns out, they did and he WhatsApp'd the image to him:
  
  
  
  I had my good ol' friend Moorthy visit the dealership and courier the receipt to me. We received it and sent the RTO, a copy of this receipt along with a letter.
  
  Keeping our fingers crossed now!
  
  
• The instrument cluster had a lot of dirt inside. Opened it and used a blower to clean the innards:
  
  
  
  
• I had to replace the ageing Blaunpunkt BP 2.0 dashcam as it had issues with reduced storage capacity (a 32 GB card could hold less than 4 hours of 480p res. video without audio!). So got the Yi dashcam from Aliexpress during the 11.11 sale for 42 USD.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Quite happy with the output. Unfortunately, I don't have sample clips to share at the moment. Will share a few once I access the files next time. The smartphone app (Play store link) comes in handy to change a few settings and click still pics after pairing with the dashcam using WiFi.
  
  Ended up paying Rs. 1465 as customs duties.
  
  
  
  
• So a few days back, I had opened up the hood and saw some liquid'y stuff atop the engine cover. Upon closer inspection I noticed rat poop around the engine oil funnel area:
  
  
  
  I quickly started the engine to check if the instrument cluster throws up any warning lights (due to wires or pipes cut) but luckily there were none. Shined the cellphone torch into the bay and noticed some movement. The rat was still around. I quickly ran to my apartment upstairs, got a bottle of Hit and sprayed it inside the engine bay and on the floor as well. I didn't see the rat in the meantime - it may have gone or was seeking refuge elsewhere.
  
  I'll only get to know the severity of the outcome on Tuesday morn.

So that's all for now. Merry Christmas!

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

The dealer's name is Amit

Yes I have been purchasing stuff from him since October, and since I purchase in bulk(3-4 friends together), he always gave us a very nice deal.

End result - cleaner headlights:

I was wondering if the same magnetic process can be followed for glass lens HL too??

Regards,
Shashi

[Thad E Ginathom]

Yet more amazing work, Gannu!

That's a great technique with the magnets for cleaning the inside of the glasses!

[torque18]

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

[*]Timing belt kit + water pump replacement service

HI

Just wondering why did you decide to replace the water pump. The service schedule doesn't recommend it i suppose. Any particular reason?

Also, what about the fuel pump? On the Vento thread, a bhpian has replaced both the water pump and the fuel pump.