[vinay_ss]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Man I don't think any car ABS equipped or not will stop in 20-30 feet from 100kmph. Your gonna be flying for sure after hitting that speed breaker.

Akshay, what i meant was an appropriate distance where the car would have stopped just in time in a normal braking. I am comparing the same distance if i was in a Tjet. I just feel it may not stop, given the same braking distance available. Not sure if this is due to the fact that the shudder in the brake pedal gets me nervous, as if i am harming the car, and hence loosen the pressure on the brakes or if it is actually a problem with my brakes.

To keep it simple, is there any way to assess if the brakes in the tjet are not defective, other than the dealer confirming its fine, based on a technician's test drive and reasoning that "this is common in ABS braking"

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by vinay_ss

To keep it simple, is there any way to assess if the brakes in the tjet are not defective, other than the dealer confirming its fine, based on a technician's test drive and reasoning that "this is common in ABS braking"

Try driving another Linea TJet and then see how those brakes are. Owning a Punto I know the car does make you push more because of the stability and sometimes the brakes feel less powerful because I'm going that much faster than I would in another car.

[cranky]

Yes, that is also an issue. Added to this is the fact that at 80 the T-Jet feels like it's crawling (if there is no other traffic), and that is the legal limit on most Indian highways.

There is another issue - the manual states that brakes may take some time to bed in fully and maximum brake performance can be expected only after 5000km. Tyres too need the outer hard layer to wear away a bit.

30 feet is extremely optimistic from 60mph. the estimated distance to brake (panic braking with instant reaction) from that speed is about 130 feet. Here's a link that relates it to the speed.

Vehicle Stopping Distance And Time

At 60mph you're going to be travelling at 88 feet per second. if the breaker is 30 feet away, you'll hit it in less time than it takes you to see it's there.

I get your point though - but illustrative examples are dangerous. You have seen the 80 ft road in your city - does it look like eighty?

At speed, distances are a *lot* shorter than they look.

[Sivasankar]

Friends, sorry to bring up my query again... my friend bought a Punto MJD and the tyres were changed to Acelere when he asked them to do so...

My doubt is which are better - Good Years or Apollos?

Originally Posted by Sivasankar

Guys, I recently visited a Fiat - Tata showroom and was surprised to see a Linea T-Jet base version sporting Apollo Accelere tyres. Isn't Fiat fitting the T-Jet with Good Year tyres anymore?

[cranky]

Not sure about the Aceleres.

The Goodyears are reasonable balance between wet and dry grip. Not performance tyres. Not quiet either. They may be slightly harder compound, so are a bit noisy and ride is very slightly stiff (not uncomfortably so).

The Aceleres may be slightly worse off but not sure you'll notice any practical difference unless you're goosing it, and then I'd rather trust the Goodyears (I could be wrong in doing so, but I'll take my chances).

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by Sivasankar

Friends, sorry to bring up my query again... my friend bought a Punto MJD and the tyres were changed to Acelere when he asked them to do so...

My doubt is which are better - Good Years or Apollos?

The Apollos, without a doubt. The OEM Goodyear tyres are utter crap.

[julupani]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

The Apollos, without a doubt. The OEM Goodyear tyres are utter crap.

Goodyear tyres have their plus points. They are a very high puncture resistance and high durability. In our Punto, even after 20k kms, not a single puncture and the tyre is still practically as good as new. I wouldn't be surprised if it lasts beyond 50k kms.

The worse point is noise, these tyres are extremely loud. Its almost irritating to drive over 80kmph with the window rolled down. Grip levels are not exactly the best, and she squeels quite a lot, but I cant say that the Acceleres are any better in this regard as I have not tried them out in a similar car or size.

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by julupani

Goodyear tyres have their plus points. They are a very high puncture resistance and high durability. In our Punto, even after 20k kms, not a single puncture and the tyre is still practically as good as new. I wouldn't be surprised if it lasts beyond 50k kms.

.

I had Goodyear GPS2s on a Getz which I had, they kept getting punctures, and I've heard the same about others too.

Yes they do last very long, but then who wants to keep a bad tyre for 50k kms?

[Durango Dude]

Originally Posted by vinay_ss

Thanks everyone for the responses. My only issue however is that under high speed braking, i feel nervous. Let me illustrate. If at speeds of 100 i spotted a speed breaker at about let's say 20-30 feet distance, and i braked hard in my non ABS equipped car, i would be fairly certain how the car would behave. But in my Tjet, i somehow feel nervous, since the juddering in the brake pedal makes me go nervous. The tJet doesn't sweer one bit off track, and goes exactly where pointed, but there have been instances that i have actually hit the breaker. My driving experience tells me that in a non ABS braking scenario, the car may have not hit the breaker, but the Tjet has taken a hit. Guess, i need to relearn the judgment i have

It depends on the road condition, if there's going to be loose gravel before the speed breaker the car's tyre's would fight for grip and you may hit the speed breaker at high speed. If it was smooth tarmac you may stopped short of the speed breaker.

[architect]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

I had Goodyear GPS2s on a Getz which I had, they kept getting punctures, and I've heard the same about others too.

Yes they do last very long, but then who wants to keep a bad tyre for 50k kms?

On the contrary, my Palio's OE Goodyear GPS2 lasted for 20,000 km without any punctures or noticeable treadwear before I changed to Yoko A-drives.

My A-drives had so many punctures and slow punctures (atleast 8-10 on five tyres) that I had to remove them in 30,000 km, although they performed far better than the GPS2.

Now I have Michelin XM1+ for the last 20,000 km and I have the performance of the Yoko A-drive (slightly less comfort than Yoko A-drives, though) with the puncture proof characteristics of the GPS2. So, XM1+ has been the best for me.

[wannabe-elite]

hi all,

am newly bitten by the fiat bug. in the bud, so to speak.

have a couple of questions :

1) had a test drive of ANHC first, then linea tjet plus, then once again ANHC. need to go for tjet td again. am somehow not satisfied, yet, with tjet. although I think its still better than ANHC in the drive feel, suspension, pickup. am afraid the reason might be the piece shown to me. felt a slight vibration, not sure if the vibration was from underneath the steering/suspension or engine. car was not in good shape. anyone in chennai/elsewhere had the same such issues with TD

2) at the outset, was a bit disappointed with the rear space in tjetplus. too bad for such a good car. but when probing more, found that ANHC would'nt let the front seat slide that much back. so if you slid the frontseats of both cars to the maximum the rear legroom in ANHC was better. have confirmed my thoughts in another website, which says in a diagram that there is a difference of about 14-15 cms in the front seat sliding. rear room is important for me.. but what I am trying to confirm here is that ANHC is not that much better!, any thoughts?

thanks
wannabe

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by wannabe-elite

hi all,

am newly bitten by the fiat bug. in the bud, so to speak.

have a couple of questions :

1) had a test drive of ANHC first, then linea tjet plus, then once again ANHC. need to go for tjet td again. am somehow not satisfied, yet, with tjet. although I think its still better than ANHC in the drive feel, suspension, pickup. am afraid the reason might be the piece shown to me. felt a slight vibration, not sure if the vibration was from underneath the steering/suspension or engine. car was not in good shape. anyone in chennai/elsewhere had the same such issues with TD

2) at the outset, was a bit disappointed with the rear space in tjetplus. too bad for such a good car. but when probing more, found that ANHC would'nt let the front seat slide that much back. so if you slid the frontseats of both cars to the maximum the rear legroom in ANHC was better. have confirmed my thoughts in another website, which says in a diagram that there is a difference of about 14-15 cms in the front seat sliding. rear room is important for me.. but what I am trying to confirm here is that ANHC is not that much better!, any thoughts?

thanks
wannabe

1. I think that particular car wasn't well maintained, could even be wheel balancing issues. There should be no such issues/noises with the T-Jet. Try asking for a TD from some other dealer in Chennai.

2. The City definitely has the roomier second row of the two. If it is going to be chauffeur driven, go for the city. The T-jet's front seat slides back more than the city, you are absolutely right. This is why the T-jet's back lacks some space, but the driver cabin feels really airy. I found the city's cockpit a bit cramped in comparison to the T-jet. However, with the T-jet, a 6 footer cannot sit behind a 6 footer driver. Also headroom is compromised in the t-jet because of the sloping roofline - 6 footers might find it cramped. If those 2 areas are overlooked, on long drives on the highway, I found the T-jet's rear seat to be more comfortable than the city. Under-thigh support is fantastic in the t-jet, plus the City's rear seat ride seems to be a bit bouncy at 100kmph+, maybe due to the softer suspension. No bounciness in the tjet's rock solid setup.

[nishantgandhi]

Originally Posted by harishsegar

Tjet is a great car. I own one from the first lot and completed 5k. It's run enough to give a feedback. There is definitely improvement in the overall car but there are still some minor annoyances. For ex: plastic squeaks. I hear them at different places at different times. It's tough to nail down and remove it. Brakes: watch out if it squeals and attend to it early.
Low beam: get height adjusted from the engine compartment. The LB is great but just a little too low.

And yes, irrespective of what anyone tells you, let the car idle before switching off to allow the turbo to settle down.

I have been facing the 'squealing' (or whistling, as I'd like to call it) problem in the brakes of my TJet+. I noticed this right from the first few kms, and thought it's because the brakes are new. However, having clocked 1100 kms as of today, I still hear the sound, especially in bumper to bumper traffic, and when speeds are low.

What is the cause and solution for the same?

[cranky]

It'll take time. I had the same problem for about 2k kms, after which it gradually disappeared. If you do a lot of hard braking it will disappear sooner, if you're a gentle driver it will take longer to bed in the brakes.

Manufacturer recommendation for max brake performance is 5k kms.

I have other issues.

After a very hard hilclimb up and down, and 500 kilometers through UP (with murderers that pass for drivers and terrible roads) the second gear has developed a clicking noise.

Also, from day 1 there has been a slight application of brakes which halts the car automatically (you know when a car has coasted to a halt versus when it has been braked) at very low (lower than crawling) speed.

Plastics rattle a lot specially after some patches of bad road. The dashboard, rear tray are sources of rattle. Not only that, in my car both front driver and passenger window glass have developed shake noise and there are some new, funny resonances at certain speeds. It has been accentuated after one hard drive. Even though I slowed appropriately for rough stretches, they have left their mark on the car.

I will be sending the car to the workshop for checking. The high speed stability and cornering are fantastic - the hillclimb was the most enjoyable I've ever done, but it can't have to go back to the workshop every single time I go on a quick run. That's racing car like, this is a sedan.

[nishantgandhi]

Originally Posted by cranky

It'll take time. I had the same problem for about 2k kms, after which it gradually disappeared. If you do a lot of hard braking it will disappear sooner, if you're a gentle driver it will take longer to bed in the brakes.

Manufacturer recommendation for max brake performance is 5k kms.

I'm a gentle driver. Initially I also thought it will bed in after 1k kms. However, the constant squeaking is making me worried. The sound is more pronounced during my early morning drive to office. However, it is also present in the evening (although intermittently), in the event of sudden braking or breaking-during-crawling-traffic. No grinding sound *touch wood*. Have just sent it to the service center for a quick check up.

Originally Posted by cranky

I have other issues.

After a very hard hilclimb up and down, and 500 kilometers through UP (with murderers that pass for drivers and terrible roads) the second gear has developed a clicking noise.

Also, from day 1 there has been a slight application of brakes which halts the car automatically (you know when a car has coasted to a halt versus when it has been braked) at very low (lower than crawling) speed.

Plastics rattle a lot specially after some patches of bad road. The dashboard, rear tray are sources of rattle. Not only that, in my car both front driver and passenger window glass have developed shake noise and there are some new, funny resonances at certain speeds. It has been accentuated after one hard drive. Even though I slowed appropriately for rough stretches, they have left their mark on the car.

I will be sending the car to the workshop for checking. The high speed stability and cornering are fantastic - the hillclimb was the most enjoyable I've ever done, but it can't have to go back to the workshop every single time I go on a quick run. That's racing car like, this is a sedan.

The clicking noise is scary. My friend had it in her Palio NV way back in 2004 and it was diagnosed as a gear box issue which turned out to be an expensive repair. However, in your case, I would rule that out as modern gearboxes should not be prone to those old problems.

Recently, in my Getz, I experienced this strange clicking noise in 2nd gear after a very long (3k kms) road trip on all kinds of roads. Luckily the car ran fine till the time I sold it, but I never got to diagnose the issue.