[ashis89]

Completed the last leg of this 1650 km solo trip, Vijaywada to Bangalore with a night halt at Hyderabad. Two tankfuls of fuel consumed for the whole trip. The drives themselves were a mix of slow cruise or fast blasts (after a long time, that's!)


Vijaywada to Hyderabad drive remains a bliss. Two small patches where road work is going on and one has to slow, rest is smooth 4 lane highway. With the revised speed limits of the ORR, that's brisk too. The ORR is a wonderful piece of infrastructure conceptualized for the future. A Bangalore resident like me appreciates it a lot! Traffic has increased at some of the exits like Gachibowli or Financial District but I can always cruise a few additional kms take the Kolur exit like I do now.



Started from Vijaywada around 5:20am and reached Lingampally by 10:30am. Refueled on the way after Kodad (T2T 18.1 kmpl). Food trucks are my preferred stops for breakfast, especially when I travel alone. Good food with least waiting time.





Yesterday, started from Hyd at 2:30pm and reached home in Bangalore by 11:30pm. Started late deliberately so I can enter Bangalore late evening and yes, I love night driving. Few small breaks including one at Pista House Anantapur where I gorged on some egg puffs! Got some rains after entering Bangalore and those few minutes of rain needed me to wade through inches of water at places.
Odo is a little shy of 70k.

4 fours ago, in Nov 2019, I was driving from Hyderabad to Bangalore and during the same hours of the day. I had clicked similar pics that day as these below



The DTE is very non-linear. Moved slowly when the tank is full and falls quick towards the end. Note the DTE says 355 kms to go when the current FE is 18.8kmpl.


After covering 220 kms and the end of the trip, DTE said 70 only. Funnily the overall trip had also increased to 19.2kmpl


On a side note, I have fallen in love with the stock music system in Coyote. All thanks to the recent return to an iPhone after good 4+ years with Androids. The sound output from an(y) iPhone is much better which reflects in the sound quality when streaming over Bluetooth. Clear notes, deeper bass. I am even forced to reduce the volume 2-3 notches than what I had maintained with my Android phones all these 4 years. A recent post by TEG on the Sonet audio thread brought my attention to lossless format on Apple music. I tried that which upped the game further. Bluetooth or Carplay (wired connection improves sound even further), Amazon Music or Apple Music; I am a happy man when it is the iPhone doing the job. Drives are even more love now.


I reset this trip meter post each service. The trip meter time resets as it reaches 100 hrs. So I captured this before it reset. ~48 kmph for the last 5k kms. Mostly long drives have resulted in good avg speed and good FE as well.

[dhruvagarwal]

Originally Posted by ashis89

The juddering from the clutch, when starting from standstill, is also felt on some occasion.

Originally Posted by ashis89

Clutch and Brakes Overhaul

During the last trip, I felt the clutch slipping at times and decided to replace it.

Did the clutch overhaul help with the juddering when starting from standstill?

We have a 2019 HTX Petrol MT, and are experiencing the juddering. It's surprising because we've driven only 24k.

Coming from a Honda City (that had similar pattern of use) where we had to do absolutely no maintenance apart from regular oil/ filter changes, this is a stark difference.

Even the knocking sound from steering is present. Didn't know these are common issues! During last service the technician didn't even acknowledge these, because we couldn't reproduce it!

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by dhruvagarwal

Did the clutch overhaul help with the juddering when starting from standstill?

We have a 2019 HTX Petrol MT, and are experiencing the juddering. It's surprising because we've driven only 24k.

Coming from a Honda City (that had similar pattern of use) where we had to do absolutely no maintenance apart from regular oil/ filter changes, this is a stark difference.

Even the knocking sound from steering is present. Didn't know these are common issues! During last service the technician didn't even acknowledge these, because we couldn't reproduce it!

Yes and No.

The juddering was gone post replacement but appears intermittently after a couple of thousand kms. It isn't as significant as it was before the replacement, felt at times dependingon how I release the clutch. The last time I got it checked, clutch was 2k kms old and the technician said that we need it more time to bed in. Now it is 7k kms since change. Time for another checkup it seems.

The worm shaft seems to be a known issue and technician agreed after a brief ride on a bad stretch of road. Please mention these issues opening the job card so they will look into it seriously.

I see you are from Bangalore. Which service center do you visit?

[dhruvagarwal]

Originally Posted by ashis89

Yes and No.

Please mention these issues opening the job card so they will look into it seriously.

I see you are from Bangalore. Which service center do you visit?

Thank you for the prompt reply. Will make it a point to mention these while opening job card, and try and get it resolved this time around.

Ours is serviced with VST Yeshwanthpur.

[ashis89]

4 years and 70000 kms up!

This year has been very busy with official work and personal work (even this post came a week late). That meant a few holiday trips but lot of trips for personal work in between whatever break we could afford. So I ended up driving a little more than 20k kms in the past 12 months.







A little sedate driving these days means the FE has been good.












Costs have also increased this year. A clutch overhaul, new front discs (and pads) and an unfortunate untimely tyre replacement. The steering worm shaft and the driver side power window assembly were replaced FOC under extended warranty.



The slight increase in service cost is due to me opting for a 3 prepaid services plan. The average service cost remains around 7k unless I opt for any extras like ac cleaning.


I renewed the insurance again with Tata AIG with the same riders and paid 20.7k.

Nothing to complain, business as usual. Happy man, happy machine

[Sufficient_shop]

Originally Posted by ashis89

4 years and 70000 kms up!

Nothing to complain, business as usual. Happy man, happy machine

Man, you are singlehandedly inspiring me to track, analyse and share the ownership experience of my car (due to be delivered today). Thank you so much.

Sorry, if this has been answered already, may I know what app are you using to track all these?

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by Sufficient_shop

Man, you are singlehandedly inspiring me to track, analyse and share the ownership experience of my car (due to be delivered today). Thank you so much.

Congratulations and the all the best for your new ride.

Sorry, if this has been answered already, may I know what app are you using to track all these?

App is called Fuelio. Available on both Android and iOS.

[ashis89]

A fast drive and a CEL surprise!

Needed some break from work so drove down to Valparai over the long weekend. What better way to unwind than to carve the winding roads!

It was planned at the last moment, just a week in advance. So we could book stay for 2 days in one place while another day at a second property. That turned out to be good as both the places were very different and had their own charm.

Knowing the demand for stay, I knew the traffic would be high. Starting at 5AM, the traffic was still higher than what I expected. A quick breakfast break at A2B Thoppur and after multiple stops to click pictures, we made it to the Stanmore bungalow by 2:20PM. The drive was a mix of relaxed cruise and a fast one. Also tanked up at a Bharat Petroleum bunk at Pollachi before ascending the hills.














Only 15/40 hairpins were covered and this was the view. Aliyar dam seen in the background




A Compass and Crysta were the parking mates on the 1st day. Later in the evening, another Crysta and Compass arrived. So the Seltos was flanked by 2 Compass on one side and 2 Crysta on the other







Next morning, we were to drive to a private tea estate for some birding. It's 6:30AM and I start the car. The idle RPM is slightly higher due to the altitude BUT the CHECK ENGINE light stays on. For the first time, the CEL was on. Observed for a few seconds but the car sounded fine and drove fine as well. A minute later, I turned off the engine and restarted. CEL was gone. Just like that. Never came back in the past 500+ kms and it has been business as usual.




Ignoring this small incident, the 3 days were spent roaming around the tea estates, trekking into jungle, birding, spotting few animals like wild dogs, river otters, Gaur, lion tail macaque, wild hare, wild cats, fowl, etc., enjoying sunrise, walking along streams and stuffing ourselves with a lot of tasty food. Some of the roads needed mild offroading but Coyote didn't complain.













Mrs.A clicked these while I was lost in my thoughts












On the last day, woke up to a drizzle. So no sunrise. But we still trekked to the hill top which overlooks the Anamalai Tiger Reserve. Post breakfast, we started the return journey around 11AM. Few breaks on the 40 hairpins and then I went heavy on the pedal until Thoppur. It was fun gunning the CRDI engine, with Coyote charging ahead whenever I needed it to. Traffic beyond Thoppur was crazy and so I was laid back. Reached home at 9PM.





Thick fog engulfed the hills while we were descending


Happy and rejuvenated!


Even with a heavy foot, I ended up taking 90 mins extra on the return leg mostly due to the extra heavy traffic and some detours




Service center visit

That lone CEL was still stuck in my mind. I had also been experiencing a slight occasional clutch judder and slightly hard gear shifts. Earlier today, I got some time so called up Prashanth at Epitome Kia who booked an appointment for me immediately. After a quick TD, the technician hooked up the computer. The DPF was clean, the ECU had the latest software version and didn't have any errors. He was not able to confirm why the CEL came but mentioned that if there was a permanent issue, the error code would have stayed in the ECU. Since it was not, there's nothing to worry. The clutch was bled and now gearshifts are smooth again. After a 2nd TD, I was out of the service center. All this in 80 mins and free of cost although I am still curious about the CEL.

Odo stands at 710xx kms.

[ashis89]

An emergency and then some work related travel meant Coyote was lying idle for 20 days. Being in hurry, I hadn't got a chance to put it under cover. And so, I found it under a thick coat of dust.


I was also apprehensive that the 4 yr old battery might not withstand the long idle. But car fired up as usual today. Got him washed at my usual place today, and refueled. Next 2 weeks might have little activity for him but I will put under a cover.

[ashis89]

Another week of no activity for Coyote as I was travelling. But I ended up driving quite a bit across NCR, UP and UK, a Maruti....err Toyota.

During the travel, a last minute change in plan forced us to book a self-drive Zoomcar - a 2022 Toyota Urban Cruiser MT, 45k run and in decent condition. After spending 2 days, driving ~600 kms, I thought of penning down some observations of the UC in comparison to my Coyote.



1. Engine, GB and performance: Perfect city car, nimble on its toes and quick enough for city drives. The bottom end is perfect and the short gearing means one can potter around in any gear without requiring to downshift. Even with 3 adults and lots of luggage, the car could crawl about in 3-4-5 gears in slowing moving Delhi traffic. The light clutch and slick gearshifts added to my comfort. Out on the highway, it does take some wringing but doesn't disappoint. 100 at 3k+ rpm means I kept missing the 6th gear throughout the trip. That and the outright torque of a CRDi engine. I have driven this engine on the Ciaz and S-Cross but those came with Hybrid assist (this doesn't I believe). FE on the MID was 14.6 kmpl but never checked T2T numbers.

2. Brakes: The progressive brakes felt very good to use but the Seltos sheds speeds faster under hard braking. The Toyota had worn out tyres and hence I didn't push the car.

3. Handling: Ride quality was very good. However, even with full load, the car didn't feel as planted as I would like. The super light steering is a delight in the city but doesn't weigh in much as speeds increase. I had the same observation for the S-Cross.

4. Seating and cabin comfort: It is a comfortable 4 seater BUT not for me. The driver seat travel is limited which left me wanting 2-3 inches of extra space than what it offered. Result was my knee pressed against the dashboard and a weird angle for my ankles throughout the trip. I ended up with a sore left knee and both ankles after each 300 km drive. The passenger seat travel is slight better and I didn't hit the glove box in short 5 km drive that I did. The under-thigh support was also not enough for me leading to the weird ankle angle.

5. Boot space: The slanting rear hatch limits the boot space. We could fit 2 full size suitcase after keeping them standing flat against the seatback, along with 2 laptop bags. Our other case car was a new 2023 Brezza MT which could take 3 full size suitcase, standing perpendicular to the seatback. All this due to the relatively flatter rear hatch design of the new Brezza.

A beautiful sunset behind the smog veil as I entered Delhi



Yesterday, when I got in my Seltos, I felt like moving from a studio apartment into a 2bhk house. Seating higher with excellent under-thigh support and so far from the dashboard with option of moving further away! But when I started driving, a long wide cabin, heavy clutch, heavy steering and weight of a heavy car reminded me of their presence. So did the torque. I would take the Brezza/UC with a better front seat anyday for city use. Not the highway.


Now back to my Coyote. Although it was only 6.5k since last service, I got the 90k service done yesterday as I have some trips for next few weeks.



It was a routine service with 2 observations:

1. Fix the throw of the RHS fog lamp
2. AC was cold but wasn't bone-chilling like 4 years ago





Being Sunday and skeletal staff available, this service took longer than I expected. I reached Epitome Kia at the appointed 10AM and left by 4PM. I asked them not to polish the car but do a waterless wash + vacuum only.

Since I had opted for the 3yr/30k km service package, I only paid Rs.1044 towards some consumables (windshield liquid, alloy weights, grease, etc.). Also opted for their 3 year RSA plan by paying 3.5k.



















The vent temperature shows 8.5C which I feel is not enough but I will observe for some more time as the AC cools well today. I am yet to check the fog light.


We also saw paw prints of rat in the engine bay (probably due to extended non-use) but didn't find any bite. Hopefully they won't visit further once I start driving more.

[ashis89]

Drove to Bhubaneswar yesterday with a few days break at Vijayawada. Apart from some really dense fog before Chittoor and bad roads along the way, no other problems on this 1500 km trip.
From this


To this


And crawl through this








Of the two tankfuls, first one returned 16.8 kmpl and 2nd one was 17.7kmpl. Thanks to some city use and being stuck in long traffic jams on either of the travel days.

BLR - BZA


BZA - BBS


Today I popped the bonnet and looked underneath for any rat mischief but couldn't find any. So I just gave it nice wash followed by a Meguirs Wax spray session. Given its extensive wash - wax - wipe - wax - wash - wipe routine, I can only do it here where I have access to a pipe and some time. Results look good but effort is high

The beading effect after the last wash was satisfying







Fun fact:
Recently I realised that some of the routine trip distances appeared shorter than earlier, i.e. at the MID showed less distance than what I knew it to be earlier. I thought some recent road changes/shortcuts reduced the distance and let it be. But then last week, I retraced my old route and still found the distance was less. Even GMaps confirmed that the overall distance should have been higher. Then it struck that I have been running upsized tyres which underreport the odometer by 2%. I added back the error and the trip distances tallied

[ashis89]

Home run comes to an end. This time it was a short visit, 17 days and 3250 kms.



Apart from a quick dash to Puri, most of the time was spent in city errands, driving around in the Coyote and RoadRunner.

Sunset/Sunrise were elusive






Dewy next morning


Also got the PUC renewed for both the cars.


Unlike the onward trip, I did the return leg on two consecutive days. On day 1, I started at 6AM and was in Vijayawada by 5:30PM, fresh as a flower. So much so that I had some errands and did office work for another 8 hours without any struggle.

Lunch break was my usual Punjabi dhaba at Anakapalli


And some small breaks at random places


End of day 1. Vizag bypass and some of flyovers in Odisha, which were work in progress, are ready now. So my travel time has gone down by 2+ hours in this stretch


The 10 hour drive on day 2 was tiring. While some blame goes to lack of rest the previous day, most of the blame would be the horrible road experience between Nellore and Tirupati.

I had crossed Nellore in 3 hours but reaching Naidupet junction took another hour.

Empty roads like the one above tempted me to gun the engine after a long time!


Naidupet junction to Tirupati-Chittoor highway took me 2 hours, the worst part of the trip. Hundreds of speedbreakers, badly joint roads and several diversions later, both my legs needed some rest.







End of day 2. Whatever time I gained in Vijayawada-Nellore stretch, I lost it before reaching Tirupati



The drives themselves were a good mix of fast fun runs and sedate cool cruises. The two tankfuls returned 16.8 and 17.5 kmpl, including 200 kms of city use.


Apart from the one self wash that I had done after reaching Bhubaneswar, I didn't get to clean the cars again. But shine of the Meguirs spray still shows under the layer of dust, 1800 kms later.


Complaints
After driving some time, the gearshifts still tend get hard at times. This is obvious in my long drives. And the AC cooling is very good for winters but needs a revamp for the summers. So effectively, my complaint for the last service are not addressed. Will send the car some time this week to get it looked at.

Meanwhile the 35k run tyres are not bad compared to the newer solo 5k run one. During my fast drives, I was wondering how the handling without these upsized tyres. Maybe next time I will opt for lower profile

[Sreesh1009]

Once again, a quick and nice update!

Could your gearshift issue be due to low/old transmission fluid? Maybe you should get that looked at during your next visit.

Also how long do you plan to stick to the A.S.S?

[sagarpadaki]

Regarding AC cooling issue, I suggest you remove the front bumper and get the condensor and radiator washed with coil cleaner and running water. You will be amazed by the amount of dirt that will come out as black muck. I did this on my car and the cooling has increased by 30% after this. You may try it as well.

Regarding, hard gear shifts on long drives, is the clutch pedal hard to press as well?

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by Sreesh1009

Once again, a quick and nice update!

Could your gearshift issue be due to low/old transmission fluid? Maybe you should get that looked at during your next visit.

Also how long do you plan to stick to the A.S.S?

Kia recommends changing transmission oil at 120k kms. Nonetheless, will send it to the service center next week.

Will stick to ASS for another year until warranty is valid, and then take a call.

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

Regarding AC cooling issue, I suggest you remove the front bumper and get the condensor and radiator washed with coil cleaner and running water. You will be amazed by the amount of dirt that will come out as black muck. I did this on my car and the cooling has increased by 30% after this. You may try it as well.

Thanks for the idea. I have a coil cleaner in my Amazon app basket for a long time now but never placed the order. Maybe now is the time. Any suggestion for a FNG who can help with the job? Or even a AC guy who will do all the needful without overselling?

Kia ASS only suggests using 3M cleaner sprays but I am not sure how effective they are so gave it pass during last couple of services.

Regarding, hard gear shifts on long drives, is the clutch pedal hard to press as well?

Clutch has become heavy again post overhaul, over time. But clutch feel remains consistent over a 12 hour drive. That said, I can 'feel' the gear 'engage', when I am stationary/parking in the basement. As if, the clutch doesn't engage the full 100%.