[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Now, I needed an alternative and easy access to DOT 3 brake fluid. All DOT 3 fluid in the open market is crimson (very strange) while DOT 4 is light amber/clear as is the OEM stuff.
But I'd always prefer to go with genuine clear or light amber coloured DOT 3 from a reputable manufacturer or OEM like Maruti as an alternative source. .

I know. Once some mechanic topped up the brake fluid of GG with aftermarket stuff available in petrol pumps. It became red and went away only after some 3-4 flushes with genuine fluid.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

I know. Once some mechanic topped up the brake fluid of GG with aftermarket stuff available in petrol pumps. It became red and went away only after some 3-4 flushes with genuine fluid.

Most of these petrol station attendants have no clue about the requirements. Generic fluids do not work every time for every car. I don't even let a petrol station attendant clean my car's front windshield forget top off any oils or fluids.

Incidentally Toyota does not prohibit or discourage owners from using aftermarket fluids. TKM's brake fluid is about 2x more expensive than aftermarket DOT 3.

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Most of these petrol station attendants have no clue about the requirements. Generic fluids do not work every time for every car. I don't even let a petrol station attendant clean my car's front windshield forget top off any oils or fluids.

.

True. It happened during the days when Maruti didn't promote fluids as they do today. Back in early 2000s, MGO and MGBF were unknown. There was a MASS named M/s City Automobiles which was adjacent to a petrol pump. All their lubes requirements were fulfilled by that petrol pump.

GG has got good supplies of Servo engine oils, HP Thanda Raja coolant and likes in it's early days(till 2005 atleast when a new Dealership opened near my house and we started giving our cars there).

[sharma_sanjeevi]

Attaching pictures of my car. Taken Today.
Kindly excuse the car is dirty since, was driven in rains.

Dear Shashi,

As I was assuming earlier that the bulb on Heater Assembly illumination which fused. Is not the one which I purchased from MGP. It is some other.
Attaching Pictures of the Holder and Illumination Assembly. It is something different in my car.

Please suggest, where can I get this holder & bulb. Could not find part number in Parts catalogue which I have.

We opened the instrument cluster cowl and checked.
I have cleaned the Instrument Cluster. 20-22 years of black dust was accumulated on Dial & inner bulbs all cleaned up. it is now as good as new.

I accidentally moved the needle of Fuel Gauge and moved it from its original indication of fuel at that point in time. However, I made it to the position again which was there. Will it function properly, when power connectors are connected ?

regards,
Sanjeev

[sharma_sanjeevi]

UPDATE: I Guess these are T3 Sockets & Bulbs if I am not wrong. I searched the internet, your confirmation required!!

[Leoshashi]

My car doesn't have a bulb on the heater illumination knob, although I see a provision to install it. I checked the same in couple of other 800s too(1998 and 2008), they all had the same arrangement.

[sharma_sanjeevi]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

My car doesn't have a bulb on the heater illumination knob, although I see a provision to install it. I checked the same in couple of other 800s too(1998 and 2008), they all had the same arrangement.

Thanks Shashi!!
Any pointers, is the holder & bulb T3, and where can it be procured ?
If not possible to procure, then how this knob is illuminated in your Car and other 800s which you mentioned ?
Nowhere, this whole unit in the picture which I attached is mentioned in parts catalogue.

Hope, you liked the pictures
Apologies for so many questions in one post!!

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by R2D2

@Leoshashi, what spec brake fluid does Maruti use now? DOT 3 or DOT 4? And what colour is the genuine MSIL brake fluid? It is available off the shelf from a Maruti dealer?

Some more pics of the different quantities in which they come:

100ML



250ML



500ML



Meanwhile, a teaser :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UALhTmu9Oas

Regards,
Shashi

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

Some more pics of the different quantities in which they come

Thanks so much! Very kind of you to take the pains to provide me these details. Much appreciated, Shashi.

I may pick up a litre or two for my Palio 1.6. It is in desperate need of a thorough brake flush. One of the outlets is relatively close to my home. Thanks for the addresses to help me choose the closest one. Thoughtful of you.

Meanwhile, a teaser

I know this wiper mod will be as good as a factory fitted assembly.

[parsh]

Originally Posted by sharma_sanjeevi

As I was assuming earlier that the bulb on Heater Assembly illumination which fused. Is not the one which I purchased from MGP. It is some other.
Attaching Pictures of the Holder and Illumination Assembly. It is something different in my car.

Please suggest, where can I get this holder & bulb. Could not find part number in Parts catalogue which I have.

Sanjeev,

Is the base diameter 10mm or 8mm?
If it is 8mm it is T3.
If 10mm, it is T4.2.

You can easily get from AliExpress. However, the material quality is not great but light is decent.

[sharma_sanjeevi]

Originally Posted by parsh

Sanjeev,

Is the base diameter 10mm or 8mm?
If it is 8mm it is T3.
If 10mm, it is T4.2.

You can easily get from AliExpress. However, the material quality is not great but light is decent.

Dear Parsh,

Thanks for response, checked Base Diameter after seeing your post.
it is indeed 8mm, hence, it is T3 Socket

Surely, will order from Aliexpress. Thanks again for showing the way forward.

Regards,
Sanjeev

[parsh]

Originally Posted by sharma_sanjeevi

Dear Parsh,

Thanks for response, checked Base Diameter after seeing your post.
it is indeed 8mm, hence, it is T3 Socket

Surely, will order from Aliexpress. Thanks again for showing the way forward.

Regards,
Sanjeev

Great.

The light quality if you want to see on T4.2 is as below as was installed in my Innova. I had got blue LED ones. You have quite a few colour options there.

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by parsh

Great.

The light quality if you want to see on T4.2 is as below as was installed in my Innova. I had got blue LED ones. You have quite a few colour options there.

Thanks Parsh for the timely help, much appreciated.


Updates:

1. Brake Overhaul:

Issues with the brakes:

• Brake fluid was around 2 years old, and was starting to change its color.
• I had a feeling of spongy brakes, probably needed bleeding
• Current brake pads were downright crappy. Lots of brake dust and Zero bite. I don't know how the car was stopping.

I had one spare set of Bosch Aftermarket pads(Rs. 250 from Amazon ), but my SA Dhiraj recommended me not to use them as for 800, they aren't great. He told me about one more expensive brake pads which Maruti has recently introduced. The regular brake pads from KBX costs Rs. 450-600 for the set. This particular set was from TVS Girling(also had Rane printed on it) and it retailed for Rs. 808 for the set. Also the color was different, not sure about the material.

Also, my mechanic Arjun wasn't happy with the effort required by the handbrake, hence he started dismantling the rear drums. It truly needed an overhaul, as lots of dust and rust came out. He cleaned the internals throughly, sanded the back plate, painted it with a heat resistant Rustoleum paint(Seriously Hats off for the patience) and installed everything back. The sub cylinder of the LHS wheel was a bit leaky and it was promptly replaced.

End result: Much better bite, and after driving around for around 200kms, I am happy to report that it doesn't give out much brake dust too.

Total Bill: Rs. 1500(Rs. 808 for brake pads, Rs. 213 for wheel cylinder and rest labour plus taxes).

Also the car badly needed a quick wash, which was done after the brake job.

The incredibly dirty and rusty rear wheel drum



The new more expensive alternative to regular pads







Service under process





This one needed lots of cleaning



Attachment 1772328



Cylinder sub assembly:



Update regarding Dhiraj: Extremely happy to inform you all that my SA Dhiraj has been selected and appointed as the Chief of Technical Training by MSIL for Bihar and Jharkhand region. He is now an MSIL employee, and will be receiving all perks which an MSIL employee gets.

That's an incredible achievement for him, and I wish him all the best in all his future endeavors. While Golden Goose and we all will miss him, I'm happy he has finally achieved what he always wanted. Added benefit is, he won't feel homesick now, as his current posting is very near to his family. Since Jharkhand also comes in his jurisdiction, he will be visiting Ranchi too in couple of months. Hence we'll keep hearing from him.

A pic of the man with his favourite machine:



Regards,
Shashi

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

I had one spare set of Bosch Aftermarket pads(Rs. 250 from Amazon ), but my SA Dhiraj recommended me not to use them as for 800, they aren't great. He told me about one more expensive brake pads which Maruti has recently introduced. The regular brake pads from KBX costs Rs. 450-600 for the set. This particular set was from TVS Girling(also had Rane printed on it) and it retailed for Rs. 808 for the set. Also the color was different, not sure about the material.

While I admit there may be differences in raw materials used to produce the friction material on different brake pads, I've been experiencing Bosch aftermarket pads on my car for about 2 weeks now. Initial impression is positive, for a new set of pads they are good and there's a long way to go before they bed in. And at less than 1/4th the cost of OEM (also Bosch BTW, the braking system hardware is also by Bosch) they're worth the money. But no screeching so far. Negatives? I expect these semi metallic pads to wear down faster, eat through the rotor faster, produce lots of dust BUT have good bite which I want. The OE pads did just that so I am perfectly ok if these exhibit the same behavior provided there is no compromise on braking efficacy. Time will tell. But if these pads don't perform as I expect i.e. as well or hopefully better than OEM they'll be discarded and replaced with either OEM, Textar or Delphi parts

I noticed you used Permatex ceramic..just a word of caution. You are aware that I also have that very same caliper grease and though Permatex does say it is safe for rubber etc, there have been a few reports of this grease swelling up rubber boots and the caliper pin rubber bushing (present on only 1 pin if at all) and causing the pins to stick with expected negative side effects. Just keep an eye on the brakes and check the boots after about 5-6 months. The TVS pads look better made for sure and it has the cut down the middle is probably for cooling and to provide a visual clue on min thickness before replacement when you look through the caliper 'window'

I have ordered glycol rubber grease (part # 08887-01206) from the ASC which is the stuff Toyota recommends for all its brake caliper applications including internal piston seal/ring.

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Negatives? I expect these semi metallic pads to wear down faster, eat through the rotor faster

Yes it had lots of metallic particles. Dhiraj told me he had used these for 800s and couple of other cars and performance wasn't satisfactory. The set is still lying in my car unused.

I noticed you used Permatex ceramic..just a word of caution. You are aware that I also have that very same caliper grease and though Permatex does say it is safe for rubber etc, there have been a few reports of this grease swelling up rubber boots and the caliper pin rubber bushing (present on only 1 pin if at all) and causing the pins to stick with expected negative side effects. Just keep an eye on the brakes and check the boots after about 5-6 months.

This is something which Dhiraj had warned me about on the day of first usage, months back. He just told me this: "This grease may create some issues" and kept quiet. I requested him to elaborate but he kept quiet. After that whenever my car went in for any kind of work, he used to inspect the boots. Now after you posted this, I understood what he was doing.

I will keep an eye on the rubber parts.

I have ordered glycol rubber grease (part # 08887-01206) from the ASC which is the stuff Toyota recommends for all its brake caliper applications including internal piston seal/ring.

How much do these cost??

Regards,
Shashi