[Gadgetfreak]

Originally Posted by mnemonic

Thanks Sathya. Looking forward to it actually.

On a side note,I got onboard the world of high revs in 2006 with my Palio 1.6, I guess the T-Jet will be a shade lower in terms of revvability than my current ride given that the limiter will kick in a bit early. But the rev with the turbo will be a different animal altogether.

Congrats. Had just started reading the thread and was enjoying so much that I had kept all my work aside to complete reading without any break.

I personally own a Fiat Linea Emotion Pack 2010 Jan 31st model. My car completed 2 years just few days back and i was already planning to check with dealer for the exchange price.

Wanted to change 2010 model with 2012 model majorly for its ground clearance than anything else. I am not sure if the wheel base is the same in older/newer model. If it is the same then company should call its old customers and help them in increasing the GC even in case of some vitamin M has to be spent from customers pocket.

This will help in a great way. I hope Fiat Gennie reads this and says your prayers are answered.

[teknophobia]

Originally Posted by Gadgetfreak

Congrats. Had just started reading the thread and was enjoying so much that I had kept all my work aside to complete reading without any break.

I personally own a Fiat Linea Emotion Pack 2010 Jan 31st model. My car completed 2 years just few days back and i was already planning to check with dealer for the exchange price.

Wanted to change 2010 model with 2012 model majorly for its ground clearance than anything else. I am not sure if the wheel base is the same in older/newer model. If it is the same then company should call its old customers and help them in increasing the GC even in case of some vitamin M has to be spent from customers pocket.

This will help in a great way. I hope Fiat Gennie reads this and says your prayers are answered.

You are aware that Fiat is offering ground clearance upgrade kits for existing Linea owners, right? Appx 15k including labour.

[mnemonic]

Originally Posted by Gadgetfreak

Congrats. Had just started reading the thread and was enjoying so much that I had kept all my work aside to complete reading without any break.

I personally own a Fiat Linea Emotion Pack 2010 Jan 31st model. My car completed 2 years just few days back and i was already planning to check with dealer for the exchange price.

Wanted to change 2010 model with 2012 model majorly for its ground clearance than anything else. I am not sure if the wheel base is the same in older/newer model. If it is the same then company should call its old customers and help them in increasing the GC even in case of some vitamin M has to be spent from customers pocket.

This will help in a great way. I hope Fiat Gennie reads this and says your prayers are answered.

Thanks Gadgetfreak. I guess tekno beat me to the reply with regards to the increase in ground clearance. Do check out the nearest Tata-Fiat dealership and get it done. Will save your beauty of the scrapes.

All the best!

[Gadgetfreak]

Originally Posted by mnemonic

Thanks Gadgetfreak. I guess tekno beat me to the reply with regards to the increase in ground clearance. Do check out the nearest Tata-Fiat dealership and get it done. Will save your beauty of the scrapes.

All the best!

Thanks a lot for this great piece of news. I will get in touch with Service center in charge today itself. My car's 3rd servicing is due to probably will get this GC kit installed along when car visits the beauty FIAT parlor for touchup.

I know this is a deviation from the topic but wanted to check, has anyone installed DieselTRONIC in Linea. How effective is that in boosting performance in terms of power and milleage.

[Gadgetfreak]

Originally Posted by Gadgetfreak

Thanks a lot for this great piece of news. I will get in touch with Service center in charge today itself. My car's 3rd servicing is due to probably will get this GC kit installed along when car visits the beauty FIAT parlor for touchup.

I know this is a deviation from the topic but wanted to check, has anyone installed DieselTRONIC in Linea. How effective is that in boosting performance in terms of power and mileage.

I had called the service center (Malik Motors - Hyderabad) today and was informed that this GC kit for older Linea holders has just been announced in mid/end of Jan and the kits are currently not available at service centers. Does anyone know other dealer's service station currently having this kit.

[mnemonic]

Today was a big day! I finally signed the lease documents for the T-Jet and sent them across to the leasing company. Now all that is left for the Jet to leave Ranjangaon and reach Mumbai, where she will be registered and then delivered to her rightful owner.

As things stand today, I expect to get my first glimpse of her in the next 7-10 days and lay my hands on her within two weeks. I have already put up lines on my whiteboard to be crossed out with every passing day.

Now am off to update the "I booked my car thread".

Cheero..

[Sivasankar]

Hi mnemonic,

How much are the dealer's quoting ex showroom for a T-Jet now? And many congratulations on the purchase

Originally Posted by mnemonic

Today was a big day! I finally signed the lease documents for the T-Jet and sent them across to the leasing company. Now all that is left for the Jet to leave Ranjangaon and reach Mumbai, where she will be registered and then delivered to her rightful owner.

As things stand today, I expect to get my first glimpse of her in the next 7-10 days and lay my hands on her within two weeks. I have already put up lines on my whiteboard to be crossed out with every passing day.

Now am off to update the "I booked my car thread".

Cheero..

[mnemonic]

Originally Posted by Sivasankar

Hi mnemonic,

How much are the dealer's quoting ex showroom for a T-Jet now? And many congratulations on the purchase

Hi Sivasankar-

Many a thanks. The ex-showroom Mumbai worked out to INR 950,982. Discounts offered currently are to the tune of 1,40,000 incl free 1st year comprehensive insurance, which I believe is across the country.

[mnemonic]

A quick update: The hornet has landed.

The Jet arrived at the dealership stockyard in Panvel last evening.I can't wait to go and check her out before giving the go ahead to the dealership for registration. Fortune Nerul have been more than responsive and the sales advisor has been a gem to work with so far.

Since am stuck in meetings this whole week, I plan to go day after to check out the car in the stockyard with my brother in law ( fellow bhpian), do a detailed check and click some pics to stare at for the next 4 days/nights.

Thanks to Sandeepmohan's detailed stockyard inspection, I pretty much know what to look for. Hope I don't find any of those am looking for

Will keep the group posted.

cheers,

[Gadgetfreak]

Originally Posted by mnemonic

A quick update: The hornet has landed.

The Jet arrived at the dealership stockyard in Panvel last evening.I can't wait to go and check her out before giving the go ahead to the dealership for registration. Fortune Nerul have been more than responsive and the sales advisor has been a gem to work with so far.

Since am stuck in meetings this whole week, I plan to go day after to check out the car in the stockyard with my brother in law ( fellow bhpian), do a detailed check and click some pics to stare at for the next 4 days/nights.

Thanks to Sandeepmohan's detailed stockyard inspection, I pretty much know what to look for. Hope I don't find any of those am looking for

Will keep the group posted.

cheers,

Hey congrats for the car. Did you check the ground clarence? This is the biggest issue in this car.

Try to talk to dealer and take gc kit complimentary.

[mnemonic]

Originally Posted by AvinashKeezh

Congrats on the T-Jet matchaan. Lemme know when you'll be in BLR, will meet up. I was planning a trip to Kollur around that time, will see how it turns out!.

Apologies Avi- missed your post somehow. Many a thanks and will meet you between March 8th and 10th in Bengaluru.

cheers,

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by mnemonic

Thanks to Sandeepmohan's detailed stockyard inspection, I pretty much know what to look for. Hope I don't find any of those am looking for

Happy to read this. If you need help with regard to a PDI problem, I will be happy to guide/assist.

[mnemonic]

First Sightings:

Laid my eyes on the hornet for the first time day before at a stockyard off the NH-4 near Panvel. The stockyard will go down as one of the best kept secrets of Panvel. The only other undisclosed location I've been to is the Chevy stockyard off Chowk on the NH-8. More on that later. The Fortune motors stockyard is located in one of those back country roads which can lead to a dilapidated warehouse replete with a pyscho and all, and not to mention the approach road which is designed to test the suspension of cars before delivery. I got to drive into it in a 2012 Linea, courtesy the sales advisor of Fortune Motors who was kind enough escort me, my wifey and my BIL to the place. Like all stockyards, the place was filled with dust, grime, gravel and not to mention cars. Almost all cousins from the Indica family, the diminutive Nanos, some Puntos and behold- the Bronzo Scuro Jet which is soon to be mine. While all the other cars were covered in a good coat of 3mm dust, the Hornet (pet name for now) was relatively dust free as she had arrived a couple of days ago from Ranjangaon. I shall not delve into how beautiful she is and how the color suits her and all that, will let the pics do the talking.



Coming to the essentials:

Exterior:

The Bronzo Scuro paint job is top notch and it has some nice sparkles which make her gleam. The panels were clean and smooth, not scratches, dents or blemishes. Huge sigh of relief! Checked out the usual suspects of the chrome bits, and guess what they are in a neat line, no misalignments anywhere. Looks like the QC folks did their job. Rubber beadings seem to be in place, have asked for some glue to be applied before PDI though. Checked the VIN and it is a May 2011 manufactured car, which is what I expected, so check. Went around the car quite a few times and inspected the bumpers, running boards etc from all angles and they were clean. The chrome door handles have a protective coat of plastic which keeps them shiny. One of these was not removed and was still stuck to the chrome, have asked it to be removed at delivery time.



Interior:
Now comes the moment of truth, opened the door, to find all seat plastics in place. Also a nice touch from Fiat is the plastic cover which protects the dash from the sun and heat. The fit and finish seem good, a pic of the notorious steering column stands testament to this improvement. Slotted the key into the slot turned it to find the H sign gleaming. With 17 kms on the odo the car is as pristine as it can get. The stockyard is a good 5 kms from the offloading point in Panvel, so the running is acceptable.




Now checked the other bits in the cabin, dash, seats, gear knob, leather wrap in steering, all is good shape. Switched to the rear and found everything to be neat and clean. The only grouse being the rubber beading of the right rear door, which was a bit frayed round the edges, nothing major, but have asked the dealer to fix it in any case.

Under the Hood and the Boot:

Not that I was going to find much to fault at under the hood, but nevertheless opened up the bonnet and oogled at the T-Jet engine for a bit. The fluids showed some nice vitality which was reassuring. Checked all the connectors and leads, and none was out of place. Checked the engine oil level which was full and the color was deserving of a new car. Went around to the rear and opened up the cavernous boot, initial impressions are that either the boot lid opening mechanism was tight or that the lid is designed to build biceps. With the tool kit wrapped and kept on the side and the spare alloy wheel within, everything was in order in the derriere as well.

I did not test drive the car inside the stockyard as there was hardly any place but will do a good run before delivery. On the whole it turned out to be a fine afternoon, albeit a very hot one. The highlight of the visit being not just my Bronzo Scuro Jet, but also the Oceanic blue multijet which I drove to the yard from the Mcdonalds at kalamboli. . I have been in sedans much more expensive than the Linea but nothing even comes close in terms of ride under Indian test conditions. The suspension is simply brilliant and doesn't let anything filter through, which is a testament to the calibration given the fact that it had 16"alloys on. The last 700 metres to the stockyard was at best a rallying track and the Linea had it for an afternoon snack. On my way back I sat in the rear seat and I must admit that I had a grin plastered widely across my face as the Linea gobbled up the undulations on the road with aplomb. I could have even have performed balancing tricks for kids on this car, such is the flatness of the ride.


As I write, the car has gone to the Bandra RTO and come back to Fortune Navi Mumbai where she will be fitted out with accessories and rolled out for me day after. Have already made up my mind on the ICE and will be getting it done from Ajay once he back from his trip this week. Now I shall head back to the usual mails and calls chore which should keep me engaged till Thursday!

[ajay_satpute]

Wow! The Hornet looks stunning. Killer from every angle.

It might sound like nitpicking, but do I see a small gap at the end of the RHS wheel arch like I have pointed in the pic below? I hope not. I tried to observe the other 3 wheel arches closely and I did not see anything.

[mnemonic]

Originally Posted by ajay_satpute

Wow! The Hornet looks stunning. Killer from every angle.

It might sound like nitpicking, but do I see a small gap at the end of the RHS wheel arch like I have pointed in the pic below? I hope not. I tried to observe the other 3 wheel arches closely and I did not see anything.

Hi Ajay-

Checked out the high res image and it appears to be some reflection play caused by the car parked next to it. Don't recollect seeing anything during the inspection. Thanks for pointing it out though!

cheers,