[Jignesh]

Originally Posted by coolboy007

Fitment of CNG kit - New Line Motors
The engine was smooth as before, revved neatly to 5000 RPM and the difference in pickup can only be felt once you switch to petrol after driving on CNG but still its very very less.

Hello Coolboy007,

Good to know that your Car feels great even on CNG. Also it was really a great decision - not to sell this Car & go for a Diesel hatch. Linea is indeed a very good Car to own & drive.

Also your CNG mileage figures of approx 19 without AC are really good. This means running cost of less Rs. 2 per KM, which is even lesser than best Diesel hatch.

Shall I request you to post couple of pictures of Car's boot after CNG kit was installed? I want to see how much boot space is left for free usage. Also is low ground clearence after installing CNG cynlinder is a major issue?

Thanks,

[coolboy007]

Tyre change update
The Goodyear GT3's were counting their last few days, my friend owns a tyre shop in Delhi and i had requested his father for 2 Bridgestone Turanza in 195/60R15 - stock size of Linea. The front 2 tyres had significant tread left as one had burst at 22k kms and i bought one new tyre and brought the new one from the spare so these were shifted to the rear and the new tyres were put in front.

Due to some issues, no stock of Turanzas was coming so i was offered MY02 and i instantly agreed, have MY01 on my Vento from past 5000 kms and am impressed with them. Was thinking of going for Michelins but i prefer driving carefree and compromising a little on ride quality and noise than straining the neck every time and looking for potholes. Have had a good experience with Bridgestones and would continue with them.

The tyres are brilliant, the steering has become light and noise has gone down by almost 60-70%, will update later on other aspects after a few thousand kms. Am so impressed than will change the rear 2 tyres as well next month.

A special mention to the brilliant HPS of Linea, every day i drive the Vento, i wish i could get pull this steering off and install it in there, those who feel the drive, its very difficult to get adjusted to EPS - in plain, EPS sucks

Originally Posted by kkg

Good to know that your linea is performing as it should, even with the CNG. Could you please post a pic of the trunk open, want to see the usable capacity remaining for the luggage.

Thanks, am uploading all the photos below so than you can judge the luggage capacity.

Originally Posted by Jignesh

Also your CNG mileage figures of approx 19 without AC are really good. This means running cost of less Rs. 2 per KM, which is even lesser than best Diesel hatch.

Kind of a joke but Linea costs half of what my bike costs to run per km

Shall I request you to post couple of pictures of Car's boot after CNG kit was installed? I want to see how much boot space is left for free usage. Also is low ground clearence after installing CNG cynlinder is a major issue?
Thanks,

Linea has the largest boot in the C segment and that has aided in still having significant luggage space even after adding a 14 kg cylinder. It still can carry 2-3 big bags.

Mere 2 anmol ratan - Linea and Vento


Both the rides together in the parking lot


Beatiful design, that gaping hole from where some one removed the cover


Hit on the running board due to a drunk biker


Luggage space left with the 12" Infinity sub in place


Boot left with the woofer out - can still carry a lot of stuff


New MY02 tyres


A side view of the tyres


The interiors have held up well in these 4 years - no broken or falling plastic and still shines


MY01 on Vento

[coolboy007]

Had exhausted my limit for photos, a still few left.

Kudos to the paint quality of FIAT, on the rear left door, theres a deep dent as an auto rickshaw banged it as he couldnt brake on time, it got a dent but not even a dot of paint chipped off


Change over switch - just start the car, start moving and it automatically comes on CNG without any jerks or anything, smooth as butter


The indicator now has 3 bars left (1 consumed)


Already run 70 kms on 1 bar of gas (2nd will fall in another 20-25 kms), total range of around 200 kms these days

[Autocop]

The boot space left with CNG tank seems to be quite OK. Wise decision to move to CNG. You can enjoy driving the beauty without putting a hole in your pocket. In fact with CNG fitment, Linea may be cheaper to drive than your Diesel Vento. Wish you a many many happy miles/smiles with the beauty!

Had been to Bridgestone Authorized Dealer (Mayur Tyres) for getting Wheel Alignment/Balancing done on my Linea. The MY-02 is newly launched Premium Tyres from Bridgestone. Got to see the MY-02 at the dealership and the tyres indeed looked very good. They are also available in 16" size 205 55/R16 (for T-Jet and new Emotion owners) . Good choice, you may want to get all 4 tyres with the same brand/model. Good luck!

[coolboy007]

Faced a strange issue with my Linea's clutch again , an year ago the clutch slave cylinder had broken (there was a recall for the same part) and the car was stranded as the clutch pedal went completely down and refused to come up, i called the Tata service center, they had towed the vehicle and replaced the clutch slave cylinder under warranty.

The car was behaving fine from past few days and today when i started driving the car, just 200 metres from my home, the gears turned super hard, i managed to go about 2 kms when all of a sudden the clutch became extremely soft and was refusing to come up, my heart sank and i thought the clutch will break down, the clutch refused to engage now, was in 2nd gear and somehow stopped the car by the side in 2nd gear and switched off the car (the clutch failed to engage and the car stalled).

Once the car was switched off, the gears became smooth again, now i started the car, pushed the clutch but the car refused to go in 1st gear, since i had done this drill an year back, shut the car, engaged 1st gear, started in gear and somehow managed to bring the car back home driving 2 kms extremely slow.

Checked the slave cylinder but its not showing any signs of leakage, midway while coming home, now the clutch has hardened to an extent that i can only push till first 20% and the rest of pedal is rock hard. There is also a glazing/metallic sound coming.

Called my SA and he said car will require a clutch overhaul, mine is s 1.4 petrol Linea which has done 46000 kms. Is the clutch shot or is it an issue with slave cylinder or release bearings?

[coolboy007]

Time for an update :
As the destiny turned out, my clutch kit was shot and that is the reason why the car broke down all of a sudden. The slave cylinder also had a minor leak which my mechanic fixed. For the past few thousand miles, Linea was mostly driven by my father and sister and they failed to recognise the symptoms of a failing clutch, it broke down in my hands the second time

Called Kashyap Fiat and they were stupid enough to send a Scorpio to tow the car, i blasted the CRM over phone and told him how silly he was to think i would send my car like that, said thanks and that i would never return to Kashyap again ever in my life.

Called a friendly local garage, he arranged for the towing, car went away at 5 PM and was ready with a clutch change by afternoon 2 PM. The total cost was around 11000 which included :

Clutch kit - 4000
Labour - 3000
Transmission oil - 800
1 litre top up engine oil - 900 (mobil 1)
brake oil - 400
Towing - 1500

Though 46000 is a bit early for a clutch change but i attribute it to full city driving for past 17000 kms coupled with poor low end torque of the 1.4 engine.

Car has transformed after the clutch change, seems Fiat has redesigned the clutch assembly and the clutch is smooth as feather now, extremely light like those in 2012 Linea/Punto, performance has got a big gain. Car is inching closer towards the 50k mark.

I got the car CNG'd at the 30,000 mark - it has done 16000 kms on cng.
16,000 on petrol = 16000/12 (fe) = 1333*72 = 96000

16,000 on CNG = 16000/18 = 888*46 = 40000
Net savings of 56,000 out of which the kit had costed 49,000 - its time to save now. These days without AC, it returns a healthy 20+ kms/kg.

Yes it is true that these european cars start cropping issues every now and then once they are past 40k kms or 4 years, this is the earliest that a clutch has required change for any car in our garage so far.

Over with the clutch fiasco, the elastic pads/strut mounts are again acting up , the same metallic clanks every time the steering is turned. Had got them changed in march this year and they have again gone kaput, had paid a good 4 K to get them changed.

Will be shooting a mail to Mangesh and try getting elastic pads changed under goodwill warranty, i should not pay for the same part which has gone bad in 8 months/ 9000 kms, its not that my driving style can ruin the strut mounts.

I just wish that after elastic pads the car doesnt throw any tantrums for the next 6-8 months, its getting a bit hectic now with frequent visits to A.S.S, got the service done in march, blower motor + rectified replaced ( 9k) in september + clutch failure in nov (11k) and now elastic pads.

[Abh1nav]

Originally Posted by coolboy007

Time for an update

I was looking to buy a used Linea with 30-40k Kms on the ODO, but after reading about your experience, I'm really confused if I should go ahead with the decision.

Is the clutch-related problem you've mentioned, common to all Fiat Lineas?

[nkg77]

Originally Posted by Abh1nav

Is the clutch-related problem you've mentioned, common to all Fiat Lineas?

Slave cylinder related issues was common for the first set of Punto and Linea, once they were changed to metallic ones clutch related issues got reduced. My Punto has covered 41k kms and has shown no issues till now.

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by Abh1nav

Is the clutch-related problem you've mentioned, common to all Fiat Lineas?

Abhinav, after spending 4 years with this car, i would suggest that you go for it without any second thoughts. Clutch related issues were in earlier batches (including mine) where the slave cylinder rod was plastic and used to break, Fiat did a recall and replaced for all the affected owners, its a different story that the then inefficient Tata A.S.S forgot to inform me about it and i had a breakdown.

All european/german cars will have small niggles or issues that keep popping up once a few months and that is a compromise you need to make for supreme driving pleasure and the solid vault like build. This time my clutch plate gave away and it was no fault of Fiat whereas things like elastic pads/strut mounts going bad is a design defect which was later rectified with new ones. If you are looking for Honda/Toyota type peace of mind then stay away from Linea.

Mine were modified ones but seems Tata people didnt fit the cover properly and these have again rusted, once am back in Delhi, will mail Fiat and take their opinion on it, service levels in Delhi are good and Fiat officials respond quickly to mails.

All the best for your hunt, its a pleasure to drive this car swiftly through corners and puts a grin on my face even after 4 years, try to find a car which has atleast an year of extended warranty left so that you are safe if any issue crops up.

[evillife]

I am sorry to revive an old thread but please be patient and have a look at the list of reasons I have
1) Pre Team BHP Era - This was not too long ago, I was looking to upgrade my 'Layla' aka Maruti Esteem and after hours of Online searches and reading multiple threads on FIAT Linea including reading this thread end to end I ended up buying a FIAT Linea 1.4 Fire Emotion (Black) 32K on ODO. I wanted an Emotion Pack but could not find one and even though my head was telling me to go for the Fiesta s and the Manza s I could not get over Linea and the passion it brought out from you guys. Hence I had to comment here .

2)Taking a chance to check from you guys about Team BHP Linea Clubs, India or Bangalore. Well I guess there would be better places(read threads ir forum) to check it but to hell with it, this is a place of passionate Linea owners for years now and I grew up reading these posts so why not here.

3) The third and most important reason. Revive this thread, Crank up the old passion maybe. We still dont know the end of the CND Linea story.

Cheers

[coolboy007]

This sad photo pretty much sums it up, the car had recently completed 6 years and i was about to update this thread after a long time. Had just got the car serviced with a nice pampered 3m wash+wax done, it was shining in all its glory before this happened the very next day.

Had taken my dog to a vet in Janakpuri when i was patiently waiting for the light to turn green so that i could take a u turn, some 10 seconds later i heard a loud bang and saw a biker in my rear view mirror. I immediately got out to see the situation but that moron without even apologising, sped away into the bylanes. The driver of a honda city told me that he must have been at 50-60 as he was speeding rashly and his iron leg guard hit the bumper. The vault like build ensured the bumper clips did not come off and there was zero damage to boot as well since he banged and scratched the whole bumper.The bumper has taken so many rear endings in these 6 years but this time the impact speed was too much. This is the first damage in 6 years where i needed to send the car for bodywork repair. The chrome strip did not break , some solid chrome there.


Have given it for repairs today to a friend who owns a body shop garage, instructed him to repaint the front bumper as well as it had a few scratches and the running board which had a small dent.

Car has done 60,000 kms out of which 30,000 have been on cng, this car is used as a daily workhorse and is doing its duty well, will update the thread thoroughly once car is back in 3-4 days.

[PGNarain]

Sad to see the beautiful derrière of the Linea damaged this way.

I have been lucky in that my car has till date not suffered such a rear end shunt (though there are scratches galore)- except on one occasion when I braked hard and a Honda active bumped into me. However, true to the build quality of the Linea - there was not so much as a scratch to show for it, though the chrome strip became loose. Fixed it with a quick Sunday DIY job. Hope your car gets back into shape soon, and if I may suggest - perhaps you should use this opportunity to also replace the Team - BHP sticker, which looks decidedly faded!

[coolboy007]

With a very heavy heart, have put the car on sale. I would have loved to keep it but there is no parking space for our new BMW and we have to let go of our beautiful Linea. We are still trying to work out some thing so that we can keep her but things don't look too rosy. Will update the thread once it is sold, she has served us beautifully till now and am sure to have tears rolling down my eyes when she goes away.

I want her to go to a home who can take equal care of this car, if any bhp'ian is interested or their relatives want it, do ping me. There is nothing as satisfying to note that your car goes to a good home.

http://classifieds.team-bhp.com/buy-...at/Linea.html/