[joybhowmik]

Nothing much to report - except that R3 continues to do well. A challenge of sorts has reared its ugly head.

Wifey's dearest friends and their family are-a-visiting, and they want us to chauffeur them to destinations such as Hardwar, Rishikesh, Mussoorie and Dehradun. Probably a drive through Rajaji National Park thrown in for luck.
Wonderful you say?

But I can't but help feel a bit .

You see, with their family and ours - we will be 4 adults, 2 teens and 1 kid. All seats will need to be deployed.

The agenda requires more than a night's halt.

Where does the luggage go?

I have to look for carriers - not too expensive (< ₹ 10,000) , easily removable (thumb screws), and should not foul with the OEM ski-racks. Besides, they should not disturb the structural integrity of the cabin (no deformation of the roof allowed) and ABSOLUTELY no drilling required.

From what I gather here.. Ajanta Fazer is to be avoided. Hiker has a few products but I did not find an in-depth review; besides the current models shown on the site did not show the carrier with the OEM ski-racks. Bimbra does make a few products but their 4x4 site only features roof-racks for the Thar... leading me to believe they are not as committed to the likes of R3.


Now before I start the round-robin of phone calls, and listen to the avoidable sales pitch litany ... would a few kindred souls lend me their wisdom?

I would rather hear from your collective (but personal experience) of the product; not something predicated on "my friend has this or that"!

[joybhowmik]

The Hardwar trip was accomplished without the obligatory roof rack, by a combination of being packed in like sardines and leaving some unnecessary bits and pieces of luggage behind.

Suffice it to say, creature comforts had to be sacrificed at the altar of keeping R3 stock.



Then we left for our annual sojourn to Kolkata (see post here) and R3 was all but forgotten for some time. On our return , I noticed it was time to get R3 serviced.

This would be R3's first official service.

I had remarked earlier in this post about a problem I had seen with the fuel meter. There was an issue of a delay in the fuel meter reading at full tank.


The advise from the SA had been, to wait till the service was due, as a rectification would involve dismantling the fuel tank and checking the sender. Yes, it was an issue that had been noticed in a few scorps before mine.


There were also a couple of minor issues - a slight noise from the rear, and a loose seat arm-rest that needed to be looked into.

And thus , duly an appointment was made, and R3 made an appearance at the usual service point, with very little fuel in the tank.



Formalities took some time to accomplish as there was a long wait for the SA. This is perhaps due to the fact that the dealership is short handed - an effect of the cold weather, and an equally cold economy.

The fuel meter problem
The underbody was carefully inspected particularly at and around the fuel tank area, without the benefit of an underbody wash. This is one area where Toyota (I can't help but compare M&M with them), does go one step ahead. It's important to perform an underbody wash before hoisting the vehicle on the lift.

This is how the fuel tank looked - while still attached to R3


Next , the fuel o/p lines were disconnected. As with the tank, these are also not made of metal.


The U bolts holding the tank in place were removed next, and the tank dropped out. It's pretty big. Now I know where the 60L goes.


The Fuel o/p lines.


that attach to the white lid shown here


Removing the white lid requires a specialist tool.


And that was cause for a long wait, as the necessary tool had been borrowed by their sister establishment a few km away.

So while the wait ensued, the oil was changed, 6.5 L of new oil filled and the drain nut tightened to 33 N-m.


The tool finally arrived, and the rest of the process was underway.

Taking the lid off


Removing the sender.


The sender was then attached to the ECU (usual way), and the float was manually moved, while someone monitored the dashboard. As the float itself was freely moving, there was no reason to believe anything other than normal behaviour would result at the other end.

The resistance at the sender's terminals was next measured at the two opposite positions of the float - and the values were 24 and 173 ohms respectively. These too were apparently within the design tolerance.

Finally, a laptop was used to check for error codes from the ECU. Absolutely clean as a whistle.

Which left me a little as to the source of the observed problem.

Nothing was to be achieved by a spot of armchair analysis, and so, I gave the instruction to tidy up.

The test drive came up next, and that was an opportunity to fill the tank again. Lo and behold , the fuel meter behaved perfectly!

I am very averse to scratching my head in public, however, you will understand and perhaps excuse my transgression for said indulgence.
The TS saw that and remarked - that it's because the car was switched off. I would really need to see a few more instances of such behaviour before believing what I heard.


Loose bits and bolts
On return to the service point, the tail-gate hinge was adjusted, arm rest tightened, and the bolts securing the body to the chassis were given a once-over.


And thence on to the wash area.


The bill was printed. I had been charged for 7L of oil. So , I asked for 500 ml in kind, and was duly compensed.



I had brought the car in at 9:30 AM. By the time I left, it was 4:30 PM. Long day.

In comparison - the Toyota (Milemuncher) had it's 70k service done the day before. In and out in 1.5 hours and that included a pre-wash and a post-wash. Ofcourse, Toyotas don't have many fuel meter issues. There's something to be said for the Japanese.

[behaln]

Many congratulations for your R3. Nice name for your steed.
Now you are ready for extreme ladakh expedition.
It would be nice to read a hands on comparison between innova and Scorpio.
Happy motoring.

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

The test drive came up next, and that was an opportunity to fill the tank again. Lo and behold , the fuel meter behaved perfectly!

Well, "Self Heal" is just one of Scorpio's most famous attributes. I guess it kicked in for you this time...!!

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

The bill was printed. I had been charged for 7L of oil. So , I asked for 500 ml in kind, and was duly compensed.

What was "MechCare" mentioned in your bill?

[joybhowmik]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

Well, "Self Heal" is just one of Scorpio's most famous attributes. I guess it kicked in for you this time...!!

Yes. It's incredibly eerie how the smaller things take care of themselves. Almost as if there were elves at work!

What was "MechCare" mentioned in your bill?

A fancy name for lube

[SS-Traveller]

R3 seems to have incurred damage to the marked area. The paint shade appears a little different (repainted?), and the plastic end of the nudge guard has obviously cracked. Who rear-ended R3, and what was the damage to the other vehicle?

[joybhowmik]

January 23-24 was the first long distance drive on R3 in 2016.

The family went off to Agra - just because there was a great deal on a nice hotel. As that would be a full moon night, viewing/photographing the Taj from the skylight deck was something we all looked forward to.

We started from our residence in New Delhi at 2 PM, and to my amazement had completed check in formalities at 4:30 PM. No doubt, I owed this to a bit of Italian driving after the recent oil change, and to a larger extent on the cruise control.


Overall impeccable behaviour on the YEW, and nothing substantial to report , other than the fact that I managed to get to Agra and back on a single tank , and still had the reserve left over , to ferry me to office and back on Monday.


The fuel meter problems have not come back yet -touchwood!

Discovered that the Auto Lamp function does NOT turn the fog lights on even if the fog light is turned on. Hmmm - bug or "works as designed" ?

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

R3 seems to have incurred damage to the marked area.

refer post 60.

[joybhowmik]

Friends
Happy to report that R3 has finally given me the ability to ride past motorable tracks.

The latest acquisition is a BnB bike rack, that I purchased from Yusuf Sarai for Rs 5400 (incl. a 10% discount).

I had been looking for a 4 cycle carrier that would be compatible with both Milemuncher and R3. However the ones I could find on amazon required a two-inch receiver , which in turn would mean removing the tow ball from R3. That and the 100% duty made a 4 cycle carrier a difficult acquisition. So, I had to settle for something that can carry 3 cycles. The 4th cycle would need to be carried inside or a roof rack would need to be installed at some point.

Here's how R3 looked as I backed up onto the major road and went my way!


The license plate,and the reverse parking sensor were obstructed due to the cycle tyres, implying a higher mount point the next time these babies hitch a ride on R3.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

Happy to report that R3 has finally given me the ability to ride past motorable tracks.

Does a bike rack installation need an endorsement from the RTO on the RC card, or is it temporary and can be removed at will?

Cheers,
Vikram

[joybhowmik]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

Does a bike rack installation need an endorsement from the RTO on the RC card, or is it temporary and can be removed at will?

It's a temporary fitment, and removal is very quick once the cycles are out.

That said, for security one is advised to separately secure the cycle frames to the rear door handle (in scorps) or to the tow hook (in innovas) using chains sheathed in rubber/plastic and a good old-fashioned lock.

One point I forgot to mention, one should not operate the rear window wiper while the rack is in place, else the arm may foul.

[joybhowmik]

About 4 days and 6 months into owning R3 and the odometer reported an interesting statistic: 6666 km tonight.

Its been smooth sailing so far.. barring a few minor gremlins:
1. Nippon/Mahindra must do something about the
a) Pathetic management of ipod
b) Bring back MMI"s avoid next X km routine
Both of these can be easily fixed with a quick flash of the embedded software.


2. The air con vent for the middle row is acting up... fiddling with the rotary control achieved nothing... it's just stuck.

3. Minor noise from doors and the occasional rattle from the windows.


Plans to fit auxiliary lights on hold. Blame it on the economy or just my lazy bones.


But come to think of it... it's by far my favorite ride!

[joybhowmik]

Another milestone touched on Sunday the 27th of March on my way back from Ranthambore


The fuel indicator issue returned , and the day after I mentioned it to Manish ji, it self-corrected.

R3's got a mind of its own...

[joybhowmik]

Friends
Two trips , the first to Ranthambore - where we got to see the Lord - basking in the sun, and another one to Central India - Khajuraho to be precise- where we went to wonder at the awesome architecture of the temples of medieval India.
That R3 would take us to these places and back without a hitch , was a foregone conclusion.

A milestone happened during the journey....


On my return, every thing was running fine, till yesterday morning - when I was presented with the Malfunction Indicator lamp (OBD). The car was behaving fine otherwise.

A call was placed to the emergency road side assistance, and was advised to bring the car in for a diagnostic check. As it was an odd numbered day, I decided to postpone the trip to today.

Not surprisingly the lamp switched off - after a while - and I attributed this to R3's pedigree of self-healing.

My joy was shortlived. The problem returned again in the morning.



Since this was an even numbered day, there was no law against taking the vehicle out on the streets once more.
And so, the run to the Koncept workshop in Okhla was made. While negotiating traffic - the check engine light also comes on. And in a short while R3 goes into Limp mode.


On reaching the workshop Mr Javed, and team hooked up the scanner - and it showed 4 error codes from the ECU



The diagnosis - the ECU is not able to time fuel injection.

R3 now awaits permission from Warranty in aamchi Mumbai for an ECU replacement. Needless to say, pangs of despair prey on my mind.


I am waiting with baited breath for the decision... a trip to the himalayas lies in the balance.

[timuseravan]

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

The diagnosis - the ECU is not able to time fuel injection.

R3 now awaits permission from Warranty in aamchi Mumbai for an ECU replacement. Needless to say, pangs of despair prey on my mind.


I am waiting with baited breath for the decision... a trip to the himalayas lies in the balance.

Its concerning to know ECU needs replacement so soon in ownership
But why is permission needed for warranty replacement? It this not a clear cut case?

[joybhowmik]

Originally Posted by timuseravan

Its concerning to know ECU needs replacement so soon in ownership
But why is permission needed for warranty replacement? It this not a clear cut case?

Indeed.

The SA had made a claim for ECU (ECM) replacement under warranty based on the resolutions presented on the service manual.

Warranty claims require due process to be followed, and evidences to be presented. In this case the response email from Mumbai stated that the diagnostic process has to be followed and asked for pictures.

By the time the pictures were sent, it was already 6 PM. The car had been waiting for close to 6 hours before the response email came asking for clarifications.

As the corporate offices would be closed over the interim weekend, I decided to bring R3 back to the stable.

I will take him back to the dealership on Monday - and hopefully the ensuing 8 hours at the dealership will be sufficient to get to the bottom of the matter.

My drive back home involved a slight detour due to some errands, and during all that time, R3 behaved impeccably.

More later...