[rohan_fonseca]

Originally Posted by misquitas

My same query was towards the safety door switches on the read doors. I had to pay Rs 30 apiece (plus Rs 100 as labour charges) to fit the two switches (the slots are already provided) in the two rear doors so that the cabin light illuminates if these doors are not closed properly.

Melvyn

You serious! Aren't there any govt norms layed down for that?

[mithun]

In my 2001 Alto LX, the switches are there in all the 4 doors and there is no rattling in the doors.

[gpa]

Originally Posted by ranjithrnair

I own an Alto VXI 2002 model. There is a huge quality difference with the current Alto and the old one. The old one is far better than the current model.

Can you elaborate a little more on this please?

Thanks,
gpa

[Gansan]

gpa,
My brother-in-law owns a 2004 Alto LXi. Compared to mine, it has
a) Thicker sheet metal. Just feel the spot in front where the jack is to be placed. Two layers of sheet metal are folded there. In our cars, just squeeze the two layers between your fore finger and thumb. It yields! Not in the old models.

When I noticed a few micro dents on my hood, the fellow at MSM said because of thinner sheet metal, such dents happen if some small stone hits or a small fruit/seed falls from a height when parked under a tree. Looks like even if some kids drop a few peanuts from a car going in front and it hits us at some speed, this will happen!

b) Fabric in the side walls of the boot - mine is bare.

c) Light switch in all 4 doors.

Just a few that came to mind immediately.

[gpa]

Originally Posted by Gansan

When I noticed a few micro dents on my hood, the fellow at MSM said because of thinner sheet metal, such dents happen if some small stone hits or a small fruit/seed falls from a height when parked under a tree. Looks like even if some kids drop a few peanuts from a car going in front and it hits us at some speed, this will happen!

b) Fabric in the side walls of the boot - mine is bare.

c) Light switch in all 4 doors.

Just a few that came to mind immediately.

Gansan,

An interesting observation. The sheet metal is fairly thin in the Alto, it could be possible that the guage of metal used was changed. Not a very smart move I must say. Something I can recall off my mind now--My Alto has the fabric covering in the boot and came with door switches on all 4 doors. I remember your car had a rear parcel shelf as well. Well, that's something that is omitted on mine as a standard fitment. Correct me if I'm wrong, but did you get the parcel shelf as standard or was it an add-on?

Regards,
gpa

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by gpa

Gansan,

Correct me if I'm wrong, but did you get the parcel shelf as standard or was it an add-on?

I paid Rs 1400 for it! But it is not sturdy enough to support the speakers. Speakers still had to go on the boot door.

It can be removed in a jiffy to create boot space though, and is MGA.

[amit_mechengg]

well we have already gone offtopic in the modding alto thread
mine is 2004 alto, with no rattles and no body squeaks and with trims in the boot as well as switches on all the doors etc etc.

the Fact : alto lx 2004 - Kerb Weight= 740kg
Alto Lx 2009 - Kerb weight = 735 kg

dont know where exactly they cut down the 5 kgs. is it sheet metal or something else. all euro III versions are lighter by 5 kgs than the previous versions.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by amit_mechengg

well we have already gone offtopic in the modding alto thread

Right! While visiting MSM, I saw a 3 cylinder engine block with a price tag of about Rs 12050/- in the display case. No idea if it was for 800 or alto.

My doubt: Can we buy a bigger engine, that of A-star for example, from Maruti themselves and modify the Alto? I am not going to do it anytime soon! Just curious.

[amit_mechengg]

Originally Posted by Gansan

Right! While visiting MSM, I saw a 3 cylinder engine block with a price tag of about Rs 12050/- in the display case. No idea if it was for 800 or alto.

My doubt: Can we buy a bigger engine, that of A-star for example, from Maruti themselves and modify the Alto? I am not going to do it anytime soon! Just curious.

what you see in the display glass is the half engine of m800 or the omni.

i dont think a-star engine on alto will be feasible option. it will cost a lot.

[Technocrat]

One can buy Half engine from Maruti but thats not the problem, the problem is getting it registered with RTO which is not allowed.

[im_srini]

Originally Posted by amit_mechengg

what you see in the display glass is the half engine of m800 or the omni.

Yes, the block of the M800, Omni, Alto (Lx) are basically the same. A "half-engine" from Maruti consists of a new block, pistons, connecting-rods, & a crankshaft. The half-engine is positioned as an alternative to the traditional reboring that is done while overhauling engines. Incidentally, the F10D half-engine is ~24K, the G13B half-engine is ~32K & the G16B half-engine costs ~66K. The half-engine is just the first step though, beyond it you'll need to get the head, timing-case, wiring, ECU, etc. to have a new running engine - as you can see it can get pretty expensive, pretty fast.

It's also not as straight forward as it seems. Case in point, I was looking to get a new crankshaft for lightening a year back & was told there were two versions. The older crankshafts were ~7K & the newer crankshafts ~4K. Only the older crankshaft design was compatible with my engine but they were no longer in production - the only way I could get a new crankshaft was to get the whole half-engine itself ! I didn't. I was informed that nowadays you cannot get just the block or crankshaft for the F10D - you'll need to get the whole half-engine !

Originally Posted by Technocrat

One can buy Half engine from Maruti but thats not the problem, the problem is getting it registered with RTO which is not allowed.

Are you sure ? A half-engine is a legitimate buy from Maruti - you even get a new engine number on the new block. So long as the engine is compatible & is offered in the car in question, I don't think it should be a problem (for example, the F10D which was offered in the Alto Vx).

I'd like some advice from Hyundai owners - are engine parts for the i10 1.2 Kappa engine available over-the-counter ? I'm asking since I'm considering an over-bore for my current engine as a stop-gap measure till such time my much delayed M16A is shipped to me. The stock bore for the F8D & F10D engines is 68.5mm. I've got the MGP second-oversize pistons & rings for the F10D (50-thou-oversize), that's an increase of ~1.27mm. I would like to run a bigger bore - something like 2mm or 3mm bigger. The G13B from the Esteem & the G13BB from the Swift have a bore of 74mm, which is simply too large. Even the A-Star & Ritz engines, i.e. K10B & K12M, run a bore of 73mm - again too large. The Santro & Spark engines run bores of ~68mm, again of little use to me. The only engine I could find that seems to fit the bill, size-wise at least, is the 1.2L Kappa engine of the i10, which has a bore of 71mm. I would like to get a set of i10 pistons & rings so that they can be compared against the ones from the F10D for a possible overbore match, hence my original query - thanks in advance...

[misquitas]

Thanks for all your comments to my posts.

Originally Posted by gpa

Melvyn, MUL does adopt strange cost cutting measure for sure. When I bought my Alto, all four doors had a switch connected to the cabin light. They stopped installing that on a few batches. As for the cigarette lighter, I think they could as well provide it as an add on choice of accessory at the time of taking delivery. A customer could chose between say a perfume or the charger.

Yes, I too felt that the cigarette light/power supply could have been offered as one of those free accessories. And what about a simple left hand mirror and rear door safety switches? Why couldntt they have included that in the free accessories as well? Who knows, maybe MUL may stop supplying some Altos with the spare tyre and may provide it as an optional accessory, like some gearless scoorters!

Originally Posted by rohan_fonseca

You serious! Aren't there any govt norms layed down for that?

Believe it or not, my brother-in-law's Rs 5-lakh Ritz LDI does not have the rear door safety switches as well. After my experience, I asked him to install these switches on his LDI. When he asked the MUL service (Chowgule at Panjim) to install these Rs 30 switches during his first service, their reply was "Sorry there are out of stock!" And talk about govt norms, how many of the public buses here in Goa have working hand brakes or rear signal lights for that matter?

Originally Posted by mithun

In my 2001 Alto LX, the switches are there in all the 4 doors and there is no rattling in the doors.

The issue of providing these four door switches on some Alto batches annoys me. Why should my Alto be "less safe" than other Alto cars? Thankfully, my Alto doors do not rattle (so far!)

Originally Posted by amit_mechengg

the Fact : alto lx 2004 - Kerb Weight= 740kg
Alto Lx 2009 - Kerb weight = 735 kg

dont know where exactly they cut down the 5 kgs. is it sheet metal or something else. all euro III versions are lighter by 5 kgs than the previous versions.

You actually mean to say that our post-2007 Altos (when MUL gave a facelift to the Alto) are lighter by 5 kilos? Does that technically give our Alto a slightly better FE than pre-2007 Altos?

Originally Posted by Gansan

I paid Rs 1400 for it! But it is not sturdy enough to support the speakers. Speakers still had to go on the boot door. It can be removed in a jiffy to create boot space though, and is MGA.

I read somewhere on this forum that installing speakers on the hatch door was not a good idea as it would put some pressure on the hatch door. Is that right? How I wish that the Alto had some provision (like the rear speaker frames on the Santro) to install two rear speakers WITHOUT having to put them either on the parcel tray or on the Hatch door. If there is any way to install the rear speaker frames like the ones on the Santro, please let me know.

Thanks and regards,
Melvyn

[misquitas]

Originally Posted by amit_mechengg

the Fact : alto lx 2004 - Kerb Weight= 740kg
Alto Lx 2009 - Kerb weight = 735 kg

dont know where exactly they cut down the 5 kgs. is it sheet metal or something else. all euro III versions are lighter by 5 kgs than the previous versions.

You could, maybe, attribute the weight-loss to the 'cost down' philosophy of MUL. Read the following article for more details:

'Cost down' Alto to replace 800, dare Nano - dnaindia.com

According to the news article, Maruti has already been "working with vendors on the 'one gram, one component' principle to reduce the weight of each component used in making an Alto car by a gram. This, coupled with other cost saving techniques, could well bring down the price of this 'cost down' Alto rather close to the base version of the M800 or could even within striking distance of the Nano!"

What say? Maybe, MUL may consider an Alto with an FRP body like the Sinpani Dolphin car that was seen in Bangalore some years ago.

Some food for thought. Good night. Melvyn

[gpa]

Originally Posted by misquitas

You actually mean to say that our post-2007 Altos (when MUL gave a facelift to the Alto) are lighter by 5 kilos? Does that technically give our Alto a slightly better FE than pre-2007 Altos?

I don't think the 5 kilos offset on the new Altos are going to make a noticeable difference in the FE.

Originally Posted by misquitas

I read somewhere on this forum that installing speakers on the hatch door was not a good idea as it would put some pressure on the hatch door. Is that right?

They have been installed on my hatch door and over the past year and ~19,000 kms of driving not a rattle or squeak has developed. Just make sure you tighten the mounting bolts/screws every month or so and you will be fine.

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by im_srini

Are you sure ? A half-engine is a legitimate buy from Maruti - you even get a new engine number on the new block. So long as the engine is compatible & is offered in the car in question, I don't think it should be a problem (for example, the F10D which was offered in the Alto Vx).

Array Boss I was replying to this query by Gansan

Originally Posted by Gansan

My doubt: Can we buy a bigger engine, that of A-star for example, from Maruti themselves and modify the Alto? I am not going to do it anytime soon! Just curious.

What I meant is he can buy a new engine from MUL for 1.1 which can be plonked in 800 (I know its not that easy but just saying that its possible) but getting it registered legally would be an issue