[vsrivatsa]

Now for some details of what this coating is actually about, here is a brief from the 3M Catalog:

3M™ Body Schutz™ Rubberized Coating Black
A 3M undercoating with corrosion protection, high-build capabilities, excellent spray pattern and coverage, and sound deadening qualities. This product gives the coarsest texture of all 3M undercoating products.

Features:

1. Coarse texture
2. Good Coverage
3. High-build capabilities

Advantages:

1. Match desired OEM texture
2. Easy to apply, consistent final appearance
3. Match many desired thicknesses, great sound deadening

Benefits

1. Customer satisfied with final appearance of repaired car
2. Excellent aesthetic appearance when finished
3. Significant reduction of chipping and road noise

Dry time is typically 30 minutes at room temperature.



City All Set for the Under Chassis Coating




View of the Under Chassis


Now lets get to business, once mounted and raised high, the car was clearly wrapped with some sheets to ensure the Spray of the Under Chassis coating does not spill onto the sides or painted areas of the car.




Covering of the Car with Sheets to Prevent Accidental Spray on Painted Areas of the Car




Covering of Silencer Pipe



The 3M Technicians also are well equipped with helmets and masks that prevent the spray from causing any unwanted damage. Also as they raised the car the under chassis was clearly visible. The front engine portion is covered with a fibre protection guard. This area is not coated with the
3m Schutz. Also any areas which have fiber coating were clearly marked out with protective sheets. The Silencer Unit along with the piping was also covered with sheets to ensure that the coating is not sprayed onto it. This is because he Silencer pipe gets heated up during running. Once these steps were taken the can of 3M Schutz was fitted to the Spray gun and the under chassis coating was done.




View of the Bay where the Coating was Sprayed




Fitting the 3M Schutz Can to the Spray Gun




3M Schutz Can (See Arrow)





Under Chassis Coating being Sprayed




Under Chassis Coating Spraying Continues



3M Paint Protection Film (PPF)

While the UnderBody Coating was going on, I checked if they would be willing to do the 3M Paint Protection Film only for the Outside Rear View Mirrors. After consultation with the Main person, they agreed to do it. They did recommend that I add the PPF to the front and rear bumpers as well but I decided that the OVRMs are the ones that are prone most to scratches and said I would want it done only for the OVRMs.


PPF Sheets




PPF Sheets - Ready to be Applied




They got the sheets of PPF and applied it to the OVRMs along with a soapy liquid. Once applied they pushed the liquid out and the film was secured tightly on the applied surface. The additional parts of the film were cut off with great care using a blade.



PPF Sheets - Application in Progress




PPF Sheets - Application in Progress




PPF Sheets - Application in Progress




The OVRM with PPF Sheet




PPF Sheets - Extra parts that need to be cut out post Application




PPF Sheets - Extra parts being neatly cut out



3M Car Care JP Nagar, Bangalore - Overall Experience

My experience with the 3M Car Care JP Nagar was a happy one and I was impressed with the quality of the work done, the skill of the people as well the attention to detail from Mr Ashok who personally supervised most of the work going on. The technicians are also well trained and do the work with confidence. The Service Center itself is also large and has well divided bays for each area of work so that people can work without interference from the work going on in the next bay. The car was delivered at 12-15PM which included the additional work of adding PPF for the OVRMs. Post billing they also collected feedback about the work done. I would say the work done was good and would recommend people in need of services offered by them to proceed without concerns

Thanks for reading my Post - hope it was useful

Complete Address:
Magical Touch, #1106, 24th Main, J P Nagar Phase I
Opp. to KFC, Bangalore - 560 078
Phone: 9632399779/080-41642233

[Geo]

Thanks vsrivatsa, for all the details. You are really keeping all of us on the edge of our seats

[anilagdr]

Yes vsrivatsa, your pictures definitely did a lot of talking. Good and useful post here. I did visit the 3 M @ HSR layout some time ago, but this place @ JP Nagar appears to be a bigger and better one.

[Amyth Prabhakar]

Hi vsrivatsa,

Did you also get the teflon coating or waxing done

They have opened a new branch close to my home, on bull temple road, basavanagudi. its been quite a while since all these stuff was done on my car at showroom. Time for some clean-up !!

[Vahanam]

Vsrivatsa,

Thanks for this helpful post. I got a good idea of what to get done for mine when it arrives. Amidst the anxious wait for my idtec, this post is like a cheer leader!!

[Rollingwheels26]

@vsrivatsa How useful is the 3m Body Schutz Rubberized Coating ? Is it really worth it I mean have you noticed any difference in NVH levels inside the car ??


I was thinking of getting it for my Brio (your City's youngest sibling ) since she lacks cladding in the rear wheel well but wanted to confirm it's sound deadening properties and usefulness against chipping !

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by Amyth Prabhakar

Did you also get the teflon coating or waxing done.They have opened a new branch close to my home, on bull temple road, basavanagudi. its been quite a while since all these stuff was done on my car at showroom. Time for some clean-up !!

Amyth,
No I did not go for any Teflon Coating or Waxing. I had been to the Bull Temple Road Branch as well but was not very confident since it has opened recently. Based on what I have read on this forum, Teflon coating lasts only 6 months and is inferior to the 3M coating.

Originally Posted by Rollingwheels26

@vsrivatsa How useful is the 3m Body Schutz Rubberized Coating ? Is it really worth it I mean have you noticed any difference in NVH levels inside the car ?? I was thinking of getting it for my Brio (your City's youngest sibling ) since she lacks cladding in the rear wheel well but wanted to confirm it's sound deadening properties and usefulness against chipping !

Rollingwheels26,
In terms of anti-corrosion, the general opinion on the Forum has that its optional (Nice to Have). But at Magnum Honda they kept insisting on it and it would have costed 5,500 if done at Honda Showroom. So I decided this is a better approach and lower cost. On the topic of sound deadening I am yet to do any highway drive post the coating. Its supposed to mainly reduce tire noise while on high speed drives. In terms of masking the engine noise, I have not felt too much of a difference.

[vsrivatsa]

Bangalore - Coimbatore Highway Drive Experience

Just back from a good 950 km drive from Bangalore-Coimbatore. The car has now clocked 6400+ kms and hungry for more long drives and highway driving.

Here are some details from the driving experience and some photos from the drive. I took the NH7 (Hosur Road) and went to Coimbatore via Salem. Started early in the morning at around 6-15 AM and weather was really pleasant and I kept the windows open as I drove.

Once onto NH7, I started to make very effective use of the Cruise Control Feature. With No AC, a Cruising speed of 80 kmph, the mileage indicator kept climbing. When I checked the MID after crossing Krishnagiri, the MID topped at around 30.8 kmpl





I felt this is the max. that one can extract from this engine. Also, it started to warm by then, so I gave up the mileage game and decided to switch on the AC.

I took a snapshot of the mileage again near to Salem and the mileage showed a super 28.7 kmpl !





The other learning I had from this driving style of 80 kmph is that one needs to brake less, there is lot of time to react and possibly a very safe speed for cruise control operation. Also the driving fatigue is nil in this mode of driving.

Post Salem I accelerated and did a consistent speed of 100-110 kmph and when I reached Coimbatore, the MID showed a display of 23.7 kmpl.





I immediately re-fuelled the car to full tank and the calculation showed a mileage higher than MID of 24.24 kmpl!



Some pictures from the drive across Coimbatore and outskirts:

Parked opposite "Hot Vada" Resturant in Coimbatore





Pictures taken at the base of Marudamalai and uphill: / URL





















Pictures Taken near the Velliangiri Mountain Foothiils: / URL



















































Pictures taken on the way close to Poondi / Isha Yoga Center:
















Stayed in Coimbatore for a couple of days and returned again starting early in the morning. I completed the Bangalore-Coimbatore distance of about 360odd kms in 6 hours with 2 breaks of 20 minutes each in between. Cruise Control is a blessing on this highway and when I reached Bangalore, I did not feel even a bit tired of the 360 odd kms which had been covered.

On the way back:











Thanks for reading my post, more to come soon...

[anilagdr]

Originally Posted by vsrivatsa

Bangalore - Coimbatore Highway Drive Experience

Just back from a good 950 km drive from Bangalore-Coimbatore. The car has now clocked 6400+ kms and hungry for more long drives and highway driving.

Great vsrivatsa. I wonder how you kept your car in such a spic and span condition even after such a long drive.

Cruise Control is a blessing on this highway and when I reached Bangalore, I did not feel even a bit tired of the 360 odd kms which had been covered.

And that feature has ultimately been tamed

[Vahanam]

Quite a great reading. Super Mileage, No tiredness with cruise control and some lovely hills and foothills to drive around. Looks like the whole trip was on cruise control (pun intended)

How was the drive on the ghat section (thoppur etc)? Any cornering experience that you can share

Originally Posted by vsrivatsa

Bangalore - Coimbatore Highway Drive Experience


Once onto NH7, I started to make very effective use of the Cruise Control Feature. With No AC, a Cruising speed of 80 kmph, the mileage indicator kept climbing. When I checked the MID after crossing Krishnagiri, the MID topped at around 30.8 kmpl

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by anilagdr

Great vsrivatsa. I wonder how you kept your car in such a spic and span condition even after such a long drive. And that feature has ultimately been tamed

anilagdr,
Actually on Silver Color the Dust does not show up much and the car looks neat and clean. Yes, initially I had struggled to even activate Cruise Control, now I seem to use it effectively based on the specific road situation.

Originally Posted by Vahanam

Quite a great reading. Super Mileage, No tiredness with cruise control and some lovely hills and foothills to drive around. Looks like the whole trip was on cruise control (pun intended)

How was the drive on the ghat section (thoppur etc)? Any cornering experience that you can share

Vahanam,
Yes, it was Cruise Control to the Max

Thoppur Ghat, the road has been patched very oddly with tar and there are vertical undulations that stretch for quite some distance. This gave an uncomfortable feel rather than the curve itself and hence would not consider this specific section as a measure of Cornering capability.

In terms of cornering, I was comfortable taking the car along banked flyovers with curves at 110-120 kmph with no difficulty.

I must admit that I felt more tired today driving thru dense traffic of Bangalore near Silk Board-Madiwala area at 5-30 PM than the entire 360 km drive from Coimbatore to Bangalore yesterday

[RavenAvi]

Those are some terrific mileage numbers, my friend. With the engine opened up, you are getting some fantastic returns for every last drop of diesel spent.

Some excellent photos to compliment the fantastic run to-and-fro as well.

The best I have achieved with Empress till now has been 27.7 kmpl. Am sure the figures will improve once I cross the 5000-km mark (only a few days more), and the engine fully opens up. Despite it's unrefined clatter at idle/slow speeds, the Earth Dreams i-DTEC is one superb unit when it comes to fuel efficiency, I must admit. Honda engineers must be lauded for this - a big testament to which is that Maruti is claiming to have achieved close to 30 kmpl for their 2-cylinder 800 cc engine for the Celerio diesel, which Honda has already perfected in their awesome 4-cylinder, 1.5L oil burner.

Wishing you plenty, plenty more mile-crunching, happy numbers. Keep revving, but drive safe!

[vsrivatsa]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Those are some terrific mileage numbers, my friend. With the engine opened up, you are getting some fantastic returns for every last drop of diesel spent.

Some excellent photos to compliment the fantastic run to-and-fro as well.

The best I have achieved with Empress till now has been 27.7 kmpl. Am sure the figures will improve once I cross the 5000-km mark (only a few days more), and the engine fully opens up. Despite it's unrefined clatter at idle/slow speeds, the Earth Dreams i-DTEC is one superb unit when it comes to fuel efficiency, I must admit. Honda engineers must be lauded for this - a big testament to which is that Maruti is claiming to have achieved close to 30 kmpl for their 2-cylinder 800 cc engine for the Celerio diesel, which Honda has already perfected in their awesome 4-cylinder, 1.5L oil burner.

Wishing you plenty, plenty more mile-crunching, happy numbers. Keep revving, but drive safe!

RavenAvi,

I agree, getting a C2 Segment Sedan to be the most fuel efficient Diesel Car in the Country is something extraordinary

I am guessing the upgrade to XM2 is also adding a positive impact on mileage since these tyres are advertised for better mileage due to less rolling resistance.

Also, would this further improve at 10K/3rd Service or do you think it has MAX-ed out?

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by vsrivatsa

Also, would this further improve at 10K/3rd Service or do you think it has MAX-ed out?

I would think so.

Amaze i-DTEC owners might be better experts on this by now, but I think that this particular Honda oil-burner has been specifically tuned for maximum fuel efficiency, so it's bound to improve it's numbers (specially on the highway) as it goes on. I think you will continue to get better numbers till the 20K-25K kms mark, after which it should settle down at a particular FE number.

The sweet spots - 40 kph in 4th gear at 1100 RPM (for in-city), and 80 kph in 6th gear (for highway) - are a FE monger's delight. Straight roads, cruise control and the sweet spots, just watch the FE figures rise!

[Geo]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Straight roads, cruise control and the sweet spots, just watch the FE figures rise!

I have read a couple of owner's comments which says cruise control actually reduces FE on Indian roads. We usually don't have long stretches of level roads. So the cruise control actually consumes more fuel in adjusting acceleration to maintain constant speed over roads which aren't level. Manual acceleration gives better FE seems to be the consensus.