[methecupid]

Originally Posted by powertrain

So came back without getting a service done & happy with their honest approach.

5000km interval is plain rubbish; unfortunately Honda and a few more have found a way of scare mongering.

Nevertheless, you should be in good hands, considering the the car would be out of warranty by now and that Hallmark Honda isn't something people swear by. Plus I know Manoj Sir is a huge advocate of synthetic oil, and going by the condition of his own car, I have very little to doubt. Let us know how your experience goes once you go back. Their approach is really commendable.

[ar.abc]

Note from Support: Post moved to relevant thread. Please limit smileys to 2/post. Thanks!

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

I havent actually used the services of these guys but they could be worthy of a look judging from the reviews.


www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai/175451-multi-car-workshop-s-k-karzone-navi-mumbai.html

I visited S K Karzone multi car service centre in Nerul, Navi Mumbai on this friday, 31st march. Our Alto LXI BS III 2008 model has completed 8.5 years and crossed 78,500 kms. It was driven by me for initial few years and since last 4 years my sister has been driving it almost everyday. For a brief period of about a year, one day in a week it used to be driven by a driver who was hired for a day to ferry my mom and her friends to the market and temple and all. So the car has not really been with a single driver and as it is nearing the 80k kms mark, it was begging for some much needed repairs and general maintenance care.

I have mentioned in my previous post about some of the major repairs/replacements the car has undergone before like new set of tubeless tyres, clutch assembly replacement, front suspension change etc. This time around, there were quite a few issues like rattling from various places/parts of the car (I could not exactly zero down on the exact areas), lack of pickup, harshness while pressing clutch pedal, wiper blades alignment not right, engine oil had become almost black! and the list goes on.

I listed all the problems I could feel and see in the car. Took a prior appointment to check if they are overloaded or not, went to their workshop and discussed with Sachin, the service advisor. He was a complete no nonsense person, very straight in his approach and his point was very clear - "if we can fix a problem, we will fix it. If only a specific part needs to replaced, we will replace only that part and not the complete assembly. If a certain component can run for another couple of thousands of kms, let it run as of now and we will change it later." I quite liked this approach, instead of the stance taken by MASS or dealer workshops offleecing customers by suggesting heavy replacements and repairs, not to mention their inflated labour charges and taxes!

We took a test drive. Sachin pointed out the exact reasons from where the noises were coming, checked the engine bay (which was covered in dust completely) and suggested the following things which need to be attended right away:

1. Engine oil change. He advised semi-synthetic oil.
2. Oil filter change.
3. Cleaning air filter. He said no need to replace air filter.
4. Replace alternator belt and AC belt.
5. Clean AC filter (I think he mentioned some name I cant remember)
6. Replace front shock absorber assembly. (Last year we had changed the front suspension but the shock absorber was not changed as it was good at that time. Now it was time to change it)
7. Replace both front wheel bearing
8. Replace one front brake pad (other one was good I guess)
9. Right hand steering boot
10. Replace both rear shock absorber
11. Replace wiper linkage (one piece, the other was OK)
12. Tappet cover packing (there was some oil leakage visible inside engine bay)
13. Complete interior cleaning (The car is hardly ever cleaned from inside properly)
14. Minor servicing like greasing all door handles, window handles, front bonnet hinges, applying anti rust sprays at some places in engine bay where there was visible rusting etc.

The left side rear tail light assembly was loose as a bracket was broken. Sachin suggested that he will fix the problem instead of changing the entire tail light assembly as the lights were working fine. I liked this attitude (often missing in MASS guys).

Following were the works he suggested which could be taken up after 5000 kms or before any long outstation highway run:

1. Timing belt (there are visible cracks)
2. Clutch assembly (the problem of low pickup is also partially because of the clutch wear and tear)
3. Underbody anti-rust coating before monsoon.

Since these works were not urgent, he suggested not to do them now and the car can run fine till they definitely need a replacement. He also suggested there was no need to change coolant, brake oil, gear oil as all of these were fine and were supposedly checked and maintained by my sister recently.

The car was handed over to the service centre on friday morning. Sachin called me up at around 12 noon and gave me an estimate of 20k - 21k !! I asked him to go ahead with the work. I visited their service centre in the evening and saw work happening in full swing. I spent some time witnessing our beloved alto getting much needed attention and care. There were a few more cars which were being attended. But most of the people were bus attending to the alto (or maybe I felt that way!).

Next day, on saturday, I called up sachin and he said he will deliver the car in the evening. By 3 pm, I received a call from sachin. He informed the car is ready and at 4:30 pm, I went to the service centre along with my sister and dad to take delivery. We took a test drive and I could feel the difference. First impressions were that the car was quiet clean - both from outside as well as inside! Engine was much quieter, smooth. Pick up felt a bit better but I guess the clutch replacement will make it better. Or maybe now I am used to driving 1000cc engines and this 800cc engine feels under powered to me. No rattling noises whatsoever. All in all, a good and much needed maintenance work.

Total bill amount was Rs. 20,336/-. They charges VAT @ 13.5% and service tax. We paid in cash as they charge extra (transaction fee) for cards. Although the service and repair bill went high, but I think maybe it is justified since the way this car has been driven by multiple drivers, my sister learned driving on this car and we never bothered to do any major parts replacements and were driving merrily with all the minor and major rattling noises!

While taking delivery, we met the owner, our fellow Team BHPian, Manoj Khanna, when the Team BHP stickers on our Alto and on my Celerio caught his attention! . I discussed about the repairs in the car. He personally spoke to sachin and prasad, his 2 service advisors about the repairs done and future repairs suggested. Khanna sir showed us his scorpio and the body coating he does for his customers. A fire proof coating which is done for stealth bomber aircrafts which he imports from abroad. His 9 year old scorpio does not look anywhere near 9 year old! He showed some photos and videos of other cars on which he has done this coating treatment. Absolutely fantastic! My dad was impressed and he said we will definitely get this coating done for our next new car! .

So it was an overall good experience and honestly speaking for the first time in my life, I did not feel as if someone is trying to fool me by pushing costly repairs and cosmetic changes down my throat or for that matter, not doing the committed repairs and servicing. I am happy to find a trustworthy car service centre other than the company/dealer workshops who have gathered a bad reputation recently for being negligent towards customer satisfaction and are only interested in selling the cars and forget about maintenance.

Out of the service centre, we went to get wheel alignment done from a tyre shop which costed another Rs. 300/-. One interesting point Khanna sir mentioned was about how the quality of maruti cars have deteriorated post 2010. He says the K series engines are not good and have lot of harshness and vibrations. The only benefit they provide is mileage. Otherwise, according to him, maruti cars are no good nowadays. Somewhere he may be right. Anyways, this maybe a topic of discussion for some other thread!

Anyone who wants to give this service centre a try, do go for it! Recommended.

Special thanks to @sumeethaldankar for informing me about this place. Thanks.

Mods: I am not able to post this on the S K Karzone Navi Mumbai review thread. Seems like I do not have permission to post on that thread?

Posting the pic of the service and repair charges from S K Karzone Navi Mumbai. Forgot to post it in the previous post.

[methecupid]

Just drove back with my Crysta from an extended weekend getaway and this time had special people towing with me. Parents enjoyed a blissful ride in the back seat and thoroughly at ease with NVH levels - thanks to the additive we put in before embarking on our journey.

@mkhanna, you know what would be great to have? A TBHP meet at your workshop and let me loan that Baleno for a spirited drive on the expressway 😉

[ninjatalli]

Hi Bhpians,
I visited SK Karzone a few times over the last 6 months, once to handle failed injector issue and a failed glow plug in my Vento. Here's a detailed post and experience out at the garage, on my ownership thread.

Post Link: 6th Year update: Injectors replacement, glow plug change and other updates @72,000kms

[swarnava.m]

A few months back, I had dropped off my parents' i10 at SKK Navi Mumbai for a major service. Notably, I had driven it all the way from Goa just for this.
As expected, the team did a stellar job. Flushed the engine, switched over to Bosch semi-synth oil, and added their own additive. The car ran as well as she did when we brought her home, 8 years ago.
The quality of work put out by this workshop makes every visit of mine worth it, whether it be from my residence in Andheri (braving the morning traffic, 1.5 hours each way ) or all the way from Goa. It was a wonderful decision to stick with these folks, and I can't wait to see what they pull off next.

[ruzbehxyz]

Visited SK Karzone again.
Changed the engine oil of my new Endeavour to the company recommended oil, to get rid of the initial metallic parts in the brand new engine. In addition also added the special oil additive prepared by Manoj Khanna.
The beast has got smoother. Yet to test it on highway runs. Had put the same additive in my XUV500 last year and did a Baroda run to and fro (800 kms) on a single tank and still had at least 100 kms to go. Well can't expect much from the 3.2 litre endeavour which is full time 4x4. However the aim is to get a smoother drive.
SK Karzone at Nerul is gaining popularity with its multi vehicle servicing abilities. Well done.

[offroad_maniac]

I tried to visit them again this Feb, but the workshop was shifted somewhere to Nerul MIDC area (as per sec guard there)
Any idea where it is shifted exactly? And any recent visit?

[ruzbehxyz]

SK KARZONE has shifted to the following location :

SK KARZONE
C/o Jiwan Roadlines,
Plot No D 222/17,
Next to JMD SKODA WORKSHOP,
Nerul MIDC.
Navi Mumbai 400706.

This is not far away from the previous location.

[ruzbehxyz]

SK Karzone in Navi Mumbai has been shut down unfortunately. The Bangalore unit is still running.

[offroad_maniac]

Sad to know its closed. Wanted to check if any other good alternative for servicing Mahindra vehicles in nearby Thane, Navi Mumbai.

I am not sure how is Nextgen service center in Thane which is also a Bosch service center.
Mixed reviews online

[sandeepsc]

I had done two services of my fluidic verna there. Very professional and straightforward in their work. Got clutch assembly replaced with few other minor repairs. There was some noise coming from left rear side but no one was able to find out from where noise is coming. Even Hyundai service centre was unable to detect cause of problem. When I visited S K Karzone, Mr. Sachin figured out the problem and said rear brake sleeves are damaged and causing the noise. He repaired the sleeves and since then no noise at all. Last time when I called Mr. Sachin, he said he has quit the job and intending to start independently. Now I think he has started his own garage with partnership at Ulve village. Really sad that SK karzone is not operating now.