[narenteam]

Originally Posted by procrj

With 3 road trips planned in the next 5 weeks, I think the tank will end up doing close to 7000 km by the end of march

procrj,
You are indeed on a roll! I envy your ability to take off on the frequent road trips!

[procrj]

Originally Posted by AutoIndian

If you continue at this rate I am sure you will cross the 50K mark in under a year's time.

I don’t think I will continue at this rate.Will eventually slowdown in Apr/May because of the heat & crowds.

Originally Posted by narenteam

I envy your ability to take off on the frequent road trips!

Advantage of living in Bangalore. So many places in 300 km radius that can easily be covered over the weekend. Add to that one day drives which are 200-250 km and you will never be bored as long as you have a ride and decent company.

[rajpvrm]

Awesome pics, procrj. And congratulations on completing one month with the tank.

I like the fact that 85% of time your tank is cruising on highways.

Looking forward to your update on DIYs. Especially, interested in how you plan to fix additional tools in the 3rd row and easy fill for the spare wheel.

Happy driving!

[procrj]

Originally Posted by rajpvrm

Looking forward to your update on DIYs. Especially, interested in how you plan to fix additional tools in the 3rd row and easy fill for the spare wheel.

Additional tools - the plan is to replicate and place this below the boot mat after securing the bottom with velcro strips

Source - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/car-en...oot-civic.html

Easy fill - plan is to use a flexible extension and cut a hole in the side cover and provide a permanent fix for the nozzle. In two minds about cutting a hole in the cover as the car is just a month old
Edit - Might actually drill that hole at the bottom of the cover so that its out of sight and is not an eyesore & at the same time kids/miscreants wont have an invite to stuff it with random particles


Source - Aliexpress

Source - Official Review

After weighing the pros & cons (and looking at my bank balance) , I think I will stick to the 3M Mat DIY for the tank for the time being. Problem with these mats is they keep moving about and the solution for the same is velco. Plan to do this mid march.

[Sirvoicar]

Originally Posted by procrj

Easy fill - plan is to use a flexible extension and cut a hole in the side cover and provide a permanent fix for the nozzle. In two minds about cutting a hole in the cover as the car is just a month old
Edit - Might actually drill that hole at the bottom of the cover so that its out of sight and is not an eyesore & at the same time kids/miscreants wont have an invite to stuff it with random particles

Procrj, I suggest you drill a hole inside the cavity behind the detachable logo. I am not sure if a 5" tube can reach there, but this position would be the most cosmetic and practical position on the wheel cover. I am waiting for your experience. Q: can you get a longer tube?

[procrj]

Originally Posted by Sirvoicar

Q: can you get a longer tube?

Yes you get 11" tubes as well. Great idea - it's better if it's inside the cover. Not sure when I find time for this as I am travelling next few weekends.

[procrj]

Just back from a 800 km round trip to Hampi. The tank was on a roll and had absolutely no issues on good roads, bad roads & dirt tracks Added bonus is an FE of 14.88 kmpl with 100% AC Eco mode.

[rajpvrm]

Nice pic, procrj.

All of my 1 month and 1700 Km of ownership has been on the streets of Mumbai.

I really envy you.

Keep going, happy driving!

[procrj]

Originally Posted by rajpvrm

Keep going, happy driving!

Thanks rajpvrm. More pics of the tank as well as the ruins posted on my hampi travelogue

[procrj]

Day 41 and the odo stands at 5001 kms
Thoroughly enjoying the ride and comfort of the tank



Points to note:
- Haven’t had any issues after replacing the vacuum modulator & resonator
- Apart from the increased diesel clatter during the first few minutes of driving in the morning, the only other niggle is the driver side door rattle which comes up only during low speed driving
- Pick up - check, torque - check, quick overtakes in 2 lane roads - check, high speed lane changing - check, straight line braking - check, bad road handling - check, ground clearance - check, turning heads - check. The tank ticks almost all the boxes when it comes to sane speed highway driving
- FE is hovering at 14.5 - 15 kmpl and this is the sore point. I was hoping that the tank would return 16+ kmpl on highway drives but that is not to be. Not a deal breaker for me but still better FE would have meant lower cost per km
- All fluid levels are OK and nothing leaking or dropping alarmingly
- Body roll on curves is present but not alarming. I did take a couple of moderate curves at 60-65 kmpl and there was significant increase in body roll. Hence should limit speeds to 50+ kmph when driving the twisties
- 100 kmph comes up at little less than 2500 rpm. Sorely missing a 6th gear, which could have helped reduce the rpm and maybe increase power delivery & fuel consumption
- Just after 110 kmph, the steering wheel starts to vibrate left to right in very quick time intervals.I had observed this when I had driven the TD car as well. Googled this and the common cause is supposed to be out of balance wheels. Will get WA+WB done and then check if this problem persists
- I have pushed the car to 3500 rpm a few times and the engine + wind noise is very loud and the car does not feel very comfortable to drive at that speed

March has just began and I have many more miles to go before the quarter ends

[justintime]

What speed in kilometers does 3500 rpm reaches? Apart from wind noise and steering vibrations, do you noticed any other negatives?

[procrj]

Day 60 and the odo stands at 5600 kms
Long weekend coming up and a quick drive to pondicherry is on the cards. Haven't spent much time with the tank over the last 2 weeks due to work & other commitments on the personal front.

No new niggles to report and the car is performing as expected (touchwood). FE saw a dip during the last fill and was probably because of 2 reasons:
1. I had refilled near Tumkur on my way back from Hampi and the BP pump did not give me a machine generated bill. Which probably means I was shortchanged
2. Drove primarily within the city in B2B traffic



Used Addon D (40 ml for 40L of diesel) when I refilled fuel over the weekend and the plan is to evaluate change in behavior & FE.

[procrj]

Over the last couple of weekends the dwarf has been climbing up hills (Ooty & Sringeri) and chugging along the twisties. Did climb the 36 steep hairpin bends of Kalhatty and the dwarf never ran out of breath.

The odo stands at 8.4K km and I am totally loving it


Dwarf watching the sunset near emerald lake, Ooty

Have posted a short travelogue of the Ooty trip here

[AutoIndian]

Originally Posted by procrj

Over the last couple of weekends the dwarf has been climbing up hills (Ooty & Sringeri) and chugging along the twisties. Did climb the 36 steep hairpin bends of Kalhatty and the dwarf never ran out of breath.

I always felt the tank is tailor made for the hills. Meaty low end torque, RWD, sharp approach and departure angles, ample ground clearance all these characteristics make is perfect fit for the ghats and hill roads. No wonder then climbing the Ooty & Sringeri ghats must have been a cake walk for your Red Dwarf.

Have posted a short travelogue of the Ooty trip here

Wonderfully written travelogue with some fantastic pictures. Wonder when I will get a chance to take my Orange Tank to the Nilgiri hills

[procrj]

Originally Posted by AutoIndian

I always felt the tank is tailor made for the hills. Meaty low end torque, RWD, sharp approach and departure angles, ample ground clearance all these characteristics make is perfect fit for the ghats and hill roads.

Agree with the points you made. It drives beautifully in the hills and never fails to put a wide smile on my face.

Wonderfully written travelogue with some fantastic pictures. Wonder when I will get a chance to take my Orange Tank to the Nilgiri hills

Thanks Deepak. You should make time after the rains to meet the windmills near Chitradurga and relax in the green hills.