[Shome]

Originally Posted by ash_blore

My assessment of A* is that its primarily a city car. Can be driven on the highway but its not built for that.
Also I would be skeptical of going above 90/100 kmph in a A*. Stability with stock tyres is a huge concern @ any speed beyond that.

Apologies Ash but your assessment is absolutely incorrect. A-star is a dream to drive on the highways. Performance is good, stability is amazing as long as you can live with the Engine noise. The car just bites the road on a curve (Mumbai-Pune expressway) at speeds of even 130+ with stability and grip. Have you tried driving the vehicle at length and at high speeds?

The stock tires according to me are more than sufficient/efficient for high speed driving. I have upgraded to Michelin XM1+ 175/70R13 and honestly speaking, that has not made much of a difference in handling. The only thing that has reduced is the noise from the tires while the steering, which already had very good feedback, has become slightly stiffer.

[ash_blore]

Originally Posted by Shome

Apologies Ash but your assessment is absolutely incorrect. A-star is a dream to drive on the highways. Performance is good, stability is amazing as long as you can live with the Engine noise. The car just bites the road on a curve (Mumbai-Pune expressway) at speeds of even 130+ with stability and grip. Have you tried driving the vehicle at length and at high speeds?

The stock tires according to me are more than sufficient/efficient for high speed driving. I have upgraded to Michelin XM1+ 175/70R13 and honestly speaking, that has not made much of a difference in handling. The only thing that has reduced is the noise from the tires while the steering, which already had very good feedback, has become slightly stiffer.

Well my opinion is not changing. I wouldn't drive my A* anywhere near the limit. Actually I wouldnt drive any car close to its limit. This is purely based on safety aspect and nothing else in mind.

[supremeBaleno]

^^^ I do see the safety aspect w.r.t small cars on highways. But I guess that would apply to almost all the hatches we have in India, especially the tall-boys like WagonR, Santro, i10, Spark, Nano etc.

BTW, I did not get what you mean by the underlined portion of "Can be driven on the highway but its not built for that." ? Are you referring to the build quality ? Or the lack of airbags in the AT version. The top-end MT has airbags though. BTW, if build quality is a concern, the Etios-sedan weighs almost the same as the A-Star - would the Etios qualify as a highway car ?

[k_nitin_r]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

BTW, I did not get what you mean by the underlined portion of "Can be driven on the highway but its not built for that." ?

The Maruti Esteem owner's manual suggests avoiding speeds of over 100 kmph. Yet, on our highways, you would be holding up traffic and can get knocked by an over-enthusiastic driver if you stick to the rule and stay under 100 kmph in speeding highway traffic on NH7. The gearbox and chassis of the Esteem are certainly not rated for speeds over 100kmph though you can reach speeds of up to 160 kmph, which is strongly discouraged (high engine rpm and low vehicle stability).

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by k_nitin_r

The Maruti Esteem owner's manual suggests avoiding speeds of over 100 kmph. Yet, on our highways, you would be holding up traffic and can get knocked by an over-enthusiastic driver if you stick to the rule and stay under 100 kmph in speeding highway traffic on NH7. The gearbox and chassis of the Esteem are certainly not rated for speeds over 100kmph though you can reach speeds of up to 160 kmph, which is strongly discouraged (high engine rpm and low vehicle stability).

I agree to the extent that any light car will loose stability on bad roads. In case the road surface is as per standard (it is normally so upto 3-4 months after a resurfacing!), then any light car can be driven beyond 100. I have driven my Esteem upto 135 and my Alto K10 (A* is much heavier 895kg vs 765kg) upto 120 on smooth highways. It is another thing to drive these cars on a "normal" NH where there are myriads of undulations and pot holes. In such case even 100 is dangerous, as the light car will loose traction easily.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by k_nitin_r

The Maruti Esteem owner's manual suggests avoiding speeds of over 100 kmph. The gearbox and chassis of the Esteem are certainly not rated for speeds over 100kmph though you can reach speeds of up to 160 kmph, which is strongly discouraged (high engine rpm and low vehicle stability).

I think you are mixing up things. I had a quick look through the e-manual of the Esteem and what they mention is in context of running-in period ie. during the initial 1000kms, we should not exceed 100kmph. See a snip taken from the manual.


So, it is untrue that it's GB and chassis are not rated for use above 100kmph. Boss, given that the Esteem happens to be one of the favourites in track-racing & drag-racing (where they do speeds much above 100kmph) should make it clear how they fare at high speeds.

I do agree about it being light-weight leading to stability issues at high speeds.

[humveeguy]

Hi guys.. I have a question on the AC performance. Today I made a short trip to Mysore road from Bangalore city at noon on my new astar AT. Loaded with 2 adults. Though the hatch easily took most of the bad roads, I found that the AC is very very feeble and not enough to chill or put us in comfortable driving atleast the front seat passengers!. I end up putting blower in top with lot of fan noise. Whats your opinion ?

On top of that I was not able to move the car above 40 kmphr most of the time..overtaking is almost impossible with AC ON. Well I was using D mode only, as most of the road inclinations are less. Im thinking whether, do I need to put in D3 or 2 mode while in AC :(

hg

[jacksons]

Originally Posted by humveeguy

Hi guys.. I have a question on the AC performance. Today I made a short trip to Mysore road from Bangalore city at noon on my new astar AT. Loaded with 2 adults. Though the hatch easily took most of the bad roads, I found that the AC is very very feeble and not enough to chill or put us in comfortable driving atleast the front seat passengers!. I end up putting blower in top with lot of fan noise. Whats your opinion ?

On top of that I was not able to move the car above 40 kmphr most of the time..overtaking is almost impossible with AC ON. Well I was using D mode only, as most of the road inclinations are less. Im thinking whether, do I need to put in D3 or 2 mode while in AC :(

hg

I think your AC has a problem, in Delhi's hottest temperature (read 46), I have never ever switched to at full speed and initial 3rd level of fan at start, I come down to second level within 7 to 10 minutes.
Do get it check at service station for Gas or faulty compressor.

[ash_blore]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

^^^ I do see the safety aspect w.r.t small cars on highways. But I guess that would apply to almost all the hatches we have in India, especially the tall-boys like WagonR, Santro, i10, Spark, Nano etc.

BTW, I did not get what you mean by the underlined portion of "Can be driven on the highway but its not built for that." ? Are you referring to the build quality ? Or the lack of airbags in the AT version. The top-end MT has airbags though. BTW, if build quality is a concern, the Etios-sedan weighs almost the same as the A-Star - would the Etios qualify as a highway car ?

Not built for the highway means
a) No airbags
b) Suspect brakes (AT brakes could be better)
c) stock wheels not the best for the highway

Inside the city its just awesome. With the arrival of the A* AT, my accent is doing about 200KM a month!!

[pgsagar]

Originally Posted by humveeguy

On top of that I was not able to move the car above 40 kmphr most of the time..overtaking is almost impossible with AC ON. Well I was using D mode only, as most of the road inclinations are less. Im thinking whether, do I need to put in D3 or 2 mode while in AC :(

hg

No need to use D3 or 2. Just use kickdown mode. Push a little hard down on throttle and watch the car drop a cog or two down on transmission and take off. I do it all the time. On this count, it's just brilliant. Drove a friend's ANHC S-AT extensively. Trust me A-Star AT which costs nearly one third is not far behind ANHC in this aspect. It's indeed surprising to see what its little 3-pot motor can do. I'm loving it.

[humveeguy]

Originally Posted by jacksons

I think your AC has a problem, in Delhi's hottest temperature (read 46), I have never ever switched to at full speed and initial 3rd level of fan at start, I come down to second level within 7 to 10 minutes.
Do get it check at service station for Gas or faulty compressor.

This is very good news from u. My car is just 1 month old and Im wondering why the AC is not good. Also, when I switch on the AC there is very noticable drag/loss of power making me go only in straight line and I cant take any fast startup etc from halt. Do you also get a power loss with AC like in a diesel car ?

hg

[humveeguy]

Originally Posted by pgsagar

No need to use D3 or 2. Just use kickdown mode. Push a little hard down on throttle and watch the car drop a cog or two down on transmission and take off. I do it all the time. On this count, it's just brilliant. Drove a friend's ANHC S-AT extensively. Trust me A-Star AT which costs nearly one third is not far behind ANHC in this aspect. It's indeed surprising to see what its little 3-pot motor can do. I'm loving it.

Hi sagar. What is kickdown mode ? Is it like keeping the car in D mode and push full throttle to get the required torque ? Will this work even with AC on.

I have silly doubt also : Do we need to push the brake while changing between D, 2 and 1 ?

hg

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by humveeguy

What is kickdown mode ? Is it like keeping the car in D mode and push full throttle to get the required torque ? Will this work even with AC on.

Yes, he meant to push the throttle hard, which will make the car go down to a lower gear aiding overtaking. This takes getting used to if you were earlier driving a manual because in MT cars, we dont slam the A-pedal to overtake - we shift down and then give throttle input. And yes, will work with AC on.

Originally Posted by humveeguy

Do we need to push the brake while changing between D, 2 and 1 ?

No, you dont need to. But why would you keep changing between D, 2 & 1, unless you were driving downhill ?

P.S.: BTW, please avoid posting the same query in different threads - helps no one's cause.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by humveeguy

This is very good news from u. My car is just 1 month old and Im wondering why the AC is not good. Also, when I switch on the AC there is very noticable drag/loss of power making me go only in straight line and I cant take any fast startup etc from halt. Do you also get a power loss with AC like in a diesel car ?

hg

A* has the same engine as my Alto K10, and the AC is fantastic. Please note that due to small engine and heavier car, especially with 4 persons AC will impair performance.

If the AC is not cooling and the car performance falls with AC on then, the AC heat exchangers - radiator in front and the evaporator inside may e clogged, so even though the compressor is working full time, the heat exchangers are not able to do their work. Get the radiator fins cleaned during power washing. Have the MASS check the evaporator for obstruction. Normally a lot of leaves find their way here!

If there is low gas, then the performance will not drop much. In fact when my Esteem's gas leaked, there was no loss in performance if the AC was switched on.

In my Alto K10, the performance hit with AC is noticeable at speed below 60, after that you hardly notice the difference. In fact at higher speeds, I have noticed that even FE is not affected all that much. With AC I have to shift to 1st gear at speeds below 15 km/h, while without AC, low speeds even starting can be carried out in the 2nd gear.

[jacksons]

Originally Posted by humveeguy

This is very good news from u. My car is just 1 month old and Im wondering why the AC is not good. Also, when I switch on the AC there is very noticable drag/loss of power making me go only in straight line and I cant take any fast startup etc from halt. Do you also get a power loss with AC like in a diesel car ?

hg

No its not like a drag though marginal power loss can be felt but nothing like a drag. Car month old or a day old, it can go wrong and best way out is to get it checked as it is its in warranty period, so don't worry and get it checked.