Team-BHP > Team-BHP Reviews > Long-Term Ownership Reviews


Reply
  Search this Thread
133,654 views
Old 7th September 2015, 11:28   #151
Senior - BHPian
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Pune
Posts: 1,907
Thanked: 2,748 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post
After I drove off, the a/c is back to its usual cooling.

Any pointers on what could be the problem ?
I would suggest you to get the condenser fan checked. It seems when the car is stationary the condenser is not getting enough air from the fan.During motion the combined air draft due to movement and air from the fan is cooling the refrigerant effectively.

Last edited by rakesh_r : 7th September 2015 at 11:29.
rakesh_r is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 7th September 2015, 13:39   #152
Senior - BHPian
 
vnabhi's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: DC -> DC
Posts: 5,958
Thanked: 2,385 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post

Had stopped at a shop to pick up something, leaving the motor running (for a/c) since folks were in the car. When I returned in a few minutes, the interiors felt warm / muggy. After I drove off, the a/c is back to its usual cooling.

Any pointers on what could be the problem ?
I had a similar problem with my Fiesta, and after a couple of months it turned out to be a minor leak in the AC evaporator coil. I'm not sure if this could be the case with the Baleno though, as Fords are known to have issues with such coils.
vnabhi is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 7th September 2015, 13:55   #153
BHPian
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: bangalore
Posts: 570
Thanked: 1,456 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post
Guess 10 years for cars is like age 50 for humans. Some creak here, a joint issue there. Since last few days have been noticing a problem - the a/c does not seem to work when the car is idling (during say a few minutes of waiting), but absolutely no issues with cooling when the car is on the move.

Had stopped at a shop to pick up something, leaving the motor running (for a/c) since folks were in the car. When I returned in a few minutes, the interiors felt warm / muggy. After I drove off, the a/c is back to its usual cooling.

Any pointers on what could be the problem ?
Had a similar problem with my Baleno, so suggest you first try and clean the condensor fins which may be blocked. I remember I had to change mine and it wasn't cheap.
keroo1099 is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 15th December 2015, 23:40   #154
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Lately there was a slight hesitation with cranking and when I looked up the log-book, the 3rd battery was in its 4th year.

In the pre-maintenance-free-battery days, one of the regular maintenance items was to top up the distilled water in the battery once in few months.
But Amaron and others spoiled us with their maintenance-free batteries so much that we only check the battery when we find it weak.
Anyway, I topped up the fluid, without much success - maybe at 3 years 10 months, it was too late in the day.

Since the last thing I want to happen is be stuck in traffic with a dead battery, I got a new Amaron fitted last week at a shop in OMR - near Sangeetha restaurant.
In 4 years, the price has remained the same - Rs4000. No inflation for Amaron or is it the competition forcing their hands ?
Anyway, after deducting 500 for the old battery, cost me Rs3500. Feels good everytime I now crank the car.

The Amarons are the 2+2 year types and the previous two batteries almost managed to hit the prescribed life of 4 years, falling short by just couple months.

Last edited by supremeBaleno : 15th December 2015 at 23:43.
supremeBaleno is offline  
Old 16th December 2015, 20:32   #155
Distinguished - BHPian
 
Mr.Boss's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: GPS signal lost
Posts: 2,810
Thanked: 7,452 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post
Lately there was a slight hesitation with cranking and when I looked up the log-book, the 3rd battery was in its 4th year.
Man, we are sailing on the same boat.
Couple of weeks our baleno refused to crank, driver charged the battery and it's working like a charm now. Yet to check the performance in person.
Mr.Boss is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 12th June 2017, 14:47   #156
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
Various maintenance updates

Over the past many months, quite some maintenance was done on the car, though I was not prompt in logging them here.

Timing belt change (30/11/2016) : Maruti mandates changing the timing-belt every 100K kms. I was only at around 85K kms in November'16, but the car
was ~12years old & since age is also a factor with rubber belts, had it changed at the trusted workshop near my home in Kerala.
Gates timing belt (Rs1680) + Tensioner bearing (750) + AC fan belt (360) + Labour (Rs1410) = Rs4200

Some other niggles resolved :

1) AC not cooling on idling : This was traced to the AC fan not working as rakesh_r correctly pointed out in this thread. The car came with Panasonic fan as OE. We were looking at getting a replacement fan when my mechanic friend suggested we just open up (only the cover, not the internals) & after that when the wire was connected, the fan started working. So back it went into service.

This solved the AC issue and now the car chills up like a freezer, as it used to do when new.

2) Windshield spray not working :
This was traced to a faulty spray pump (Part# 38410M66131) replaced with a new one for Rs270. Fixed.

Total for above 2 items was Rs500 (including the cost of the pump).

3) Headlights : The lights are pathetic & have been like this for years now. To illustrate, the single headlight of our Scooty is much better than the stock lights on my Baleno. Overtime, one of the headlight glass kind of glazed/dulled over. While I still managed with it in city, during my last Chennai-Kerala drive I found it difficult to drive with the pathetic beams.

One option was to change the headlamp assembly (costs R3600 a piece), which I was OK with, but was not sure if it will fix the problem. Another was to retain the assembly & move up to 100/90 lights. I was hesitant to do this as it might affect other road-users. But given the pathetic lights, I went in for this change, with a Philips relay. It is much better now, though still same as or maybe less than the stock light on our Swift.
Relay (950) + 2 bulbs (500) + Labour (200) = Rs1650.

Other checks :
1) Disc brake pads were checked - still have quite some life left & so not changed. These are the OE pads that came with the car & done 85K kms.

2) The faint sound that comes when steering is turned fully to one side : During the TD with my mechanic, he was finally able to hear it & confirmed that this comes from the shock-absorber & putting a sleeve on it will fix it. Since it is not the drive-shaft as I feared, I left it at that - can live with it.

The car in for timing-belt change :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-balenotimingbeltchangenov2016.jpg

The OE Panasonic AC fan :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-balenopanasonicacfan.jpg

The windshield water-pump :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-balenowindshieldwasherpump.jpg

Quote:
Originally Posted by rakesh_r
I would suggest you to get the condenser fan checked. It seems when the car is stationary the condenser is not getting enough air from the fan.During motion the combined air draft due to movement and air from the fan is cooling the refrigerant effectively.
You were right about the possible cause.

Last edited by supremeBaleno : 12th June 2017 at 14:48.
supremeBaleno is offline   (4) Thanks
Old 12th June 2017, 15:37   #157
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Missed mentioning an issue that was noticed - a very minor gear-oil leak. Due to lack of time, this was not addressed & will be taken up during next service.
supremeBaleno is offline  
Old 20th June 2017, 10:51   #158
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
Re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 80K update on Page 9

Got the 90K km service done on 17-Jun-2017 at Gulf Automobiles, Mavelikara (KL).
Odo reading was 87760kms. The previous 80K service was done at 77715kms.

Main tasks :
- Oil & filter change
- Fixing the minor gear-oil leak mentioned in the previous post
- Radiator flush & fill with new coolant.
- Rotate the four running tyres

Engine Oil 3.3L : Rs980
Oil filter : Rs100
Coolant : Rs200
Distilled water : Rs60 (to dilute the coolant)
Selector shaft oil seal : Rs120 // this was causing the gear-oil leak.
Gear oil 250ml : Rs70
Labour : Rs800
------------------
Total : Rs2330

Other pending task is to have the front bumper painted. Plus address some nicks/scratches/dents on the body.

Last edited by supremeBaleno : 20th June 2017 at 10:53.
supremeBaleno is offline   (2) Thanks
Old 28th September 2017, 14:07   #159
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone

Over the last 10 months, the Baleno has done 5 trips between Chennai and Kerala. In the late 90s, I would just take our M800 / M800Dx and do this drive at the drop of a hat. Straight after work on Friday evening and down to Kerala, driving through the night. Used to take 14-16 hours. But after marriage and kids, train became the preferred travel option.

Now after many years, when I did these drives, I saw how much I enjoyed the driving. The roads have become much wider (in TN) and better laid - can do it in 12 hours or lesser. And even quicker if not for the 120+kms of winding curvy ghat road in KL, which takes me 4hrs or more to cover.

The latest trip was in Sept for the Onam holidays. While going KL -> TN, we stopped over at Kodai for 3 days. During the return, it was a straight 700km drive from source to destination and I wanted to see if I could do it without refuelling midway.

Distance : 697kms (including ~120kms of ghat roads)
Route : Chennai - Trichy - Dindugul - Theni - Kambam - Kumily - Chgy - Mavelikara
Passengers : 2 Adults and 2 kids, with 100+ kg of luggage
Driving : Spirited - to the extent road and traffic permit.
Fuel tank capacity : 51L - tanked up at Chennai

And I was able to reach home without refuelling midway.

After tanking up at Chennai :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-dash1.jpg

With tank at 3/4th :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-dash2.jpg

With tank at midway :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-dash3.jpg

With 1/4 tank remaining :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-dash4.jpg

On reaching home :
My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-dash5.jpg

BTW as seen in the last snap, the odometer hit 90K kms on reaching home.

It's 12.5 years old, but the FTD part is still intact. With reliability & minimal servicing being bonuses.
supremeBaleno is offline   (7) Thanks
Old 24th October 2017, 22:26   #160
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post
The car just completed 90K kms last week during a Kerala - Chennai drive. During the long drive, at certain occasions I felt like the braking wasn't as great as usual. Will be looking at replacing the disc pads after a check-up with my FNG.
Had posted this on the how-long-your-brake-pads-lasted thread. The issue I noticed was that sometimes, when I brake, the pedal seems to travel more than usual, with the feeling of lacking brakes, then usual braking kicks in.

Took it to my usual FNG (Gulf Automobiles) and the front disc pads are still good & not due to be replaced - looks like the stock OE disc pads will touch 1-lakh kms on odometer before needing replacement.

Opened up the rear brakes and couple of the brake shoes look worn out (these were TNG brand fitted in 2012 at Ignite, Chennai). Get both R & L brake shoes changed to new TVS-Girling pads. The Left brake cylinder had a slight leak - fixed by changing the rubber-seal at one end (the mechanic called it 'kit'). Brake fluid was topped up.
P.S.: The Right brake cylinder was changed in 2012 at Ignite.

Total damage : Rs.1300 (BrakeShoes-660, rubber-seal-75, plus brakeFluid & labour).

I did not get a chance to drive the car after the above repair. However, the mechanic said that the original issue (brake pedal goes way down with no braking action, then brakes kick in) still exists and this is due to the Brake Master Cylinder which needs to be replaced to fix this. The part is available only to order.

Team-bhpian LeoShashi provided details of the part :
Part No: 51100-61G01
Name: CYLINDER ASSY BRAKE MASTER
Price: Rs. 12295

This weekend I will be driving the car to see how it feels after the brake-shoe change and understand if the original issue still exists and it's severity. Then will go ahead with ordering the part.
supremeBaleno is offline   (4) Thanks
Old 24th October 2017, 23:23   #161
Distinguished - BHPian
 
Nikhilb2008's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Bangalore
Posts: 5,196
Thanked: 10,128 Times
re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone

You've got a great car there! You've cared for it and it shows.

Today's cars generally speaking arent as fun to drive and reliable as cars of a different era.

Wish you many more years of enjoyable driving!
Nikhilb2008 is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 24th October 2017, 23:54   #162
Senior - BHPian
 
gururajrv's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: KA 01-09
Posts: 1,237
Thanked: 2,429 Times
re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post
It's 12.5 years old, but the FTD part is still intact. With reliability & minimal servicing being bonuses.
This reminds me of my Baleno LXi 2006 - this car does engages with the driver so well, which no other car of the current gen does to be honest! I'd got this for me in Jul 2013 when the odo was reading at 65k kms. Such a gem of a machine it was. I drove it extensively for 3 years and later sold it to one of my friend who was keen on buying it from me when I came up with a decision to switch to Brezza last November. It was running on headers, custom exhaust, K&N and 15 inch Plati alloyes covered around in Bridgestone Potenza rubber. There was no issues at all with the car except for gradual clutch plate replacement that happened at 90k kms - now the car has crossed nearly 1.05L kms and is surging ahead (touchwood!)

This thread got me back the old memories I'm attaching my ex-propeller here;

Name:  Baleno.png
Views: 1313
Size:  368.5 KB
gururajrv is offline   (3) Thanks
Old 25th October 2017, 12:00   #163
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008
You've got a great car there! You've cared for it and it shows.

Today's cars generally speaking arent as fun to drive and reliable as cars of a different era. Wish you many more years of enjoyable driving!
Thanks. Indeed looking forward to many more years of fun with the Black Beauty !!!


Quote:
Originally Posted by gururajrv
This reminds me of my Baleno LXi 2006 - this car does engages with the driver so well, which no other car of the current gen does to be honest! This thread got me back the old memories I'm attaching my ex-propeller here;
True, they don't make them like this anymore. Your Baleno looks sweet.👍

Attaching some recent pics taken during the Kerala monsoons.

My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-imageuploadedbyteambhp1508912920.132319.jpg

My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-imageuploadedbyteambhp1508912952.866357.jpg

My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone-imageuploadedbyteambhp1508912983.994279.jpg
supremeBaleno is offline   (3) Thanks
Old 25th October 2017, 12:20   #164
Senior - BHPian
 
gururajrv's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: KA 01-09
Posts: 1,237
Thanked: 2,429 Times
re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno View Post
True, they don't make them like this anymore. Your Baleno looks sweet.👍

Attaching some recent pics taken during the Kerala monsoons.
Thanks Supreme - it’s a car like no other to be frank. Your car is black? It’s my favourite colour but didn’t get to buy one when I was on hunting spree. But wasn’t disappointed as the silver filled in well within me. Highway driving is a breeze on this sweet looking sedan. Headers made sweet humming sound whenever the engine came alive. I miss that. I wasn’t a big fan of Baleno until I drove it for the first time when I planned to purchase it. Only drawback is the GC
Whenever it scraped on deep potholes, it used to bring immense pain as each time it used to scrape the modified exhaust lines which I was worried of it falling off sometime.
gururajrv is offline   (1) Thanks
Old 5th December 2017, 12:25   #165
Senior - BHPian
 
supremeBaleno's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Chennai / Kochi
Posts: 5,545
Thanked: 2,693 Times
re: My Maruti Baleno LXi. So what's new, right? EDIT: 1,00,000km milestone

Quote:
Originally Posted by supremeBaleno
This weekend I will be driving the car to see how it feels after the brake-shoe change and understand if the original issue still exists and it's severity. Then will go ahead with ordering the part.
With quite some long drives over the last month, I got ample chance to test this out. While no braking issues at hi-speeds, the issue could be seen now and then at low speeds, eg when slowly approaching a hump. Looks like I need to get the Master Brake Cylinder replaced for complete peace of mind.

Last month was at the FNG to have the following niggles looked into :

1) The ac-not-cooling-at-idle was unfortunately back. And from prior experience we knew that the culprit would be the AC fan which was not running and thus affecting the cooling. Once opened up and cleaned / serviced, the fan was back to working condition. However my mechanic told me that the brushes of the fan motor were close to needing replacement. Since it is tough to source the brushes alone, he said he will customize the brushes for me once the current set is totally gone.

2) The radiator fan also seemed to be not working always - never noticed any abnormal hike in the temp gauge on the dashboard though. After some debugging, traced to some connection issue in the relay. Working fine now.

3) There was a very minute leak in the water-pump hose, from which coolant seepage could be seen. Tried to source a fresh hose, but could not get one. For now, the mechanic has patched it up with glue and a piece of hose.

4) The rear left power-windows had been erratically working for sometime now. Initially the glass won't go up, without few presses of the button. Then advanced to a stage where it wont move up at all - needed to manually pull the glass up with hands. Finally it reached a stage where it just wouldn't stay closed - pull it up, will fall down after sometime. This was affecting security & also the a/c cooling. Diagnosed to the power-window winder assembly (motor is fine). Part not available locally. For now, the power to the motor has been disconnected and window pane stuck in place.
Need to replace later.

Total damage : Rs900.
supremeBaleno is offline  
Reply

Most Viewed
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Team-BHP.com
Proudly powered by E2E Networks