Scary experience in Indigo on the trip to Ooty

shankaranand · 22nd February 2007, 16:31

This happened in November when we were on a holiday trip

The planned trip was like this
Bangalore-vynad-ooty-coimbatore-bangalore

The first 3 days went without any issue and we roamed around Vynad in my Indigo SX absolutely without any problems.. In between, We had filled diesel at a HP petrol pump in Sultan Battery..

After Vynad, we started going to Ooty.. We came to Gundlupet had lunch and started towards ooty.. Post Bandipur, the car started feeling sluggish in the first hair pin bend and I had to get into first gear to cross it. I sensed something wrong since Indigo performed bigger climbs with aplomb in 3/4th gear in Vynad.. Still we said, let us keep going and see what happens..

Just 30 km before Ooty, there was some burnt rubber smell.. We stopped, opened the bonnet and found some rubber smell.. But could not identify anything else.. I planned getting a complete check once we reach Ooty and was praying nothing happens before we reach Ooty.

It was close to 5PM and we were 16km away from Ooty and first of the hair pin bends started and my car just refused to climb it even in 1st gear. It was fully loaded with 4 adults and I thought that might be the reason. We opened bonnet and didnot notice anything.

Few Qualis guys stopped and enquired what's wrong. When I said it is not getting power, they just suggested cooling off for 15 min and then ride in 1st gear/2nd gear all through.. But one of them scared us saying that it is not safe during evening hours.. Since there were ladies and children, we decided to climb down and check the car at the near by town.

We climbed down and took it to a mechanic in the nearby town. He checked and found nothing wrong with the car. Since it was brand new car just after 1st service, they were also hesitant to remove everything and check. Call to concorde motors bangalore did not help much..

It was getting Dark and We decided against going further and stayed overnight in a nearby resort. The day after that, we abandoned ooty plans as I was still not confident about the car and decided to drive back to Mysore.. All through the way, I could sense the car was not fine with something wrong in Power delivery..and drove slowly to reach Mysore. Let the car cool off for a few hours..We refilled at mysore

But surprisingly, the drive from Mysore to Bangalore was good..

A day later, I took it to Concorde and he did a thorough check and said everything is fine..It was as if the issue never existed.. He said it may be due to the fuel refilled in Kerala..

I am totally confused..Did any of you experience something like this?

Steeroid · 22nd February 2007, 16:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by shankaranand

In between, We had filled diesel at a HP petrol pump in Sultan Battery..

<<<<PROBLEMS>>>>>>>>>

..We refilled at mysore

....................

But surprisingly, the drive from Mysore to Bangalore was good..

I think you know the answer - bad fuel.

tsk1979 · 22nd February 2007, 16:51

I once had a similar problem on the highway after filling fuel.
On the next refill the problem went away and power delivery came back to normal.
Since its a new car get all the fuel filters checked, including the one in the fuel tank. If there is residue in fuel tank get it flushed and cleaned. Its a 200rs job, and will ensure your Fuel pump going a long way.
Loss of power delivery happens due to bad fuel or due to engine overheating, which is easily discoverable by the temp gauge. Your case seems that of adulterated fuel.

Steeroid · 22nd February 2007, 16:56

I think we should start a Fuel Station Blacklist here on TBHP. Members can report pumps where they have had bad experiences after refuelling so that it will prevent others from going to the same place.

We should have a fixed format which includes:

City
Pump Operator (Petro Company)
Pump Owner
Location
Issues Faced - Bad Petrol/Bad Diesel/Bad Service/Unethical practices

navdeep · 22nd February 2007, 16:57

make sure you fill your tank from company owned pumps. Percentage of adulteration reduces.

revharder · 22nd February 2007, 16:58

it seems as if the fuel was culprit.
you did one good thing to return to civilisation in such situations with family members.

rks · 22nd February 2007, 16:59

Adulterated fuel, no doubt. Once on a long drive in a Maruti 800 (1995 model, carb) I could feel a distinct difference after filling up on the highway. There was a loss in pick-up and the engine seemed to be spluttering a little. I suspected spark plugs, but the problem went away after refilling fuel in Bangalore city.

msdivy · 22nd February 2007, 17:05

Hi shankaranand, sorry to hear that you have to miss Ooty and more so since its because of the car (of all things). It appears due to bad fuel, otherwise it would have atleast climbed on 1st gear.

Invariably on our Ooty trips car would be full (with people & luggage) and I always shift to 1st gear (on NHC, Accent) before taking any of those 36 hairpin bends. I don't feel confident on any higher gear. Does anybody have experience doing those hair-pins in higher gear?

rjstyles69 · 22nd February 2007, 17:10

@shankaranand, thanks for that info. Since I drive to Wayanad quite often will stay away from this bunk. Looks like I know this bunk in Sultan Battery.

@Steeroid, great idea. Since most of us travel around lots and prefer driving,would be nice if we had a thread only for that..

Quote:

Does anybody have experience doing those hair-pins in higher gear?

Uphill or downhill

? Uphill I have gone gone up to the 3rd gear with 4 people. Generally would shift to 1st gear at the hair pin bends and then change to the higher gears eventually.I love to drive here in the nights , an absolute adventure.

OT : For people travelling towards Wayanad and Ooty never refill at the petrol bunk(Indian Oil) in Gundlupet. One of the worst places to refuel from.

himanshugoswami · 22nd February 2007, 17:11

Y would adultrated fuel cause burning rubber smell?!!

From his posts, it sounded more like a clutch issue to me.

shankaranand · 22nd February 2007, 17:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

Y would adultrated fuel cause burning rubber smell?!!

From his posts, it sounded more like a clutch issue to me.

I had this same doubt.. That is why I asked Concorde guy to do a thorough check.. They did not find anything wrong in clutch.

I always refill in Shell pumps in Bangalore.. Concorde folks also recommend that.. But the Service person told me even in Shell, sometimes there may be issues due to the particular dump they receive.. I have not experienced anything so far..

But sometimes, engine feels rough while other times, it will be really smooth.. Although I am a Mechanical engineer by graduation

, I must confess, my knowledge of Car issues is limited.

Is there a thread that focus on fixing small issues yourself?, finding out what is wrong ?.. That will be of great help to ignorant drivers like me..

deepakhon · 22nd February 2007, 17:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by himanshugoswami

Y would adultrated fuel cause burning rubber smell?!!

Good question.

BTW, I am travelling to Wayanad the week of 4th March. Please let me know some good petrol bunks where I can fill. Is the petrol quality also as bad as the diesel quality around these places? ( I drive Palio 1.2). Also, let me know what all bunks I should avoid.

We are planning to stay at Wayanad for 3 days. We are planning to drive down to Calicut from Wayanad. I guess the best option for us will be to tank it up at Bangalore and hope that there is enough fuel to take us to Calicut and tank it up there.

shankaranand · 22nd February 2007, 17:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by deepakhon

Good question.

BTW, I am travelling to Wayanad the week of 4th March. Please let me know some good petrol bunks where I can fill. Is the petrol quality also as bad as the diesel quality around these places? ( I drive Palio 1.2). Also, let me know what all bunks I should avoid.
.

My suggestion, is get a Full tank at a branded Pump in Mysore.

That should be sufficient to cover your wayanad trip and comeback to Mysore..

In the worst case, fill only part of fuel sufficient to get back to Mysore.

werfish · 22nd February 2007, 17:25

I had a bad fuel issue and the car refused to even go over road humps in 1st gear if i stop in front of it.Then noticed that there was lots of black smoke on increased rpm.the guys at prerna workshop at Old Madras road cleaned some valve and i was back to normal.

werfish · 22nd February 2007, 17:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by deepakhon

Good question.

BTW, I am travelling to Wayanad the week of 4th March. Please let me know some good petrol bunks where I can fill. Is the petrol quality also as bad as the diesel quality around these places? ( I drive Palio 1.2). Also, let me know what all bunks I should avoid.

We are planning to stay at Wayanad for 3 days. We are planning to drive down to Calicut from Wayanad. I guess the best option for us will be to tank it up at Bangalore and hope that there is enough fuel to take us to Calicut and tank it up there.

Try filling in those premium fuels in oustation bunks,there would be less chances of those being adulterated.

22nd February 2007, 16:31	#1
shankaranand BHPian Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 164 Thanked: 22 Times	Scary experience in Indigo on the trip to Ooty This happened in November when we were on a holiday trip The planned trip was like this Bangalore-vynad-ooty-coimbatore-bangalore The first 3 days went without any issue and we roamed around Vynad in my Indigo SX absolutely without any problems.. In between, We had filled diesel at a HP petrol pump in Sultan Battery.. After Vynad, we started going to Ooty.. We came to Gundlupet had lunch and started towards ooty.. Post Bandipur, the car started feeling sluggish in the first hair pin bend and I had to get into first gear to cross it. I sensed something wrong since Indigo performed bigger climbs with aplomb in 3/4th gear in Vynad.. Still we said, let us keep going and see what happens.. Just 30 km before Ooty, there was some burnt rubber smell.. We stopped, opened the bonnet and found some rubber smell.. But could not identify anything else.. I planned getting a complete check once we reach Ooty and was praying nothing happens before we reach Ooty. It was close to 5PM and we were 16km away from Ooty and first of the hair pin bends started and my car just refused to climb it even in 1st gear. It was fully loaded with 4 adults and I thought that might be the reason. We opened bonnet and didnot notice anything. Few Qualis guys stopped and enquired what's wrong. When I said it is not getting power, they just suggested cooling off for 15 min and then ride in 1st gear/2nd gear all through.. But one of them scared us saying that it is not safe during evening hours.. Since there were ladies and children, we decided to climb down and check the car at the near by town. We climbed down and took it to a mechanic in the nearby town. He checked and found nothing wrong with the car. Since it was brand new car just after 1st service, they were also hesitant to remove everything and check. Call to concorde motors bangalore did not help much.. It was getting Dark and We decided against going further and stayed overnight in a nearby resort. The day after that, we abandoned ooty plans as I was still not confident about the car and decided to drive back to Mysore.. All through the way, I could sense the car was not fine with something wrong in Power delivery..and drove slowly to reach Mysore. Let the car cool off for a few hours..We refilled at mysore But surprisingly, the drive from Mysore to Bangalore was good.. A day later, I took it to Concorde and he did a thorough check and said everything is fine..It was as if the issue never existed.. He said it may be due to the fuel refilled in Kerala.. I am totally confused..Did any of you experience something like this?
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 16:51	#3
tsk1979 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 23,717 Thanked: 22,825 Times View My Garage	I once had a similar problem on the highway after filling fuel. On the next refill the problem went away and power delivery came back to normal. Since its a new car get all the fuel filters checked, including the one in the fuel tank. If there is residue in fuel tank get it flushed and cleaned. Its a 200rs job, and will ensure your Fuel pump going a long way. Loss of power delivery happens due to bad fuel or due to engine overheating, which is easily discoverable by the temp gauge. Your case seems that of adulterated fuel.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 16:56	#4
Steeroid Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: N.A Posts: 7,046 Thanked: 2,751 Times	I think we should start a Fuel Station Blacklist here on TBHP. Members can report pumps where they have had bad experiences after refuelling so that it will prevent others from going to the same place. We should have a fixed format which includes: City Pump Operator (Petro Company) Pump Owner Location Issues Faced - Bad Petrol/Bad Diesel/Bad Service/Unethical practices
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 16:57	#5
navdeep BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Pune Posts: 892 Thanked: 4 Times	make sure you fill your tank from company owned pumps. Percentage of adulteration reduces.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 16:58	#6
revharder BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New Delhi Posts: 460 Thanked: 56 Times	it seems as if the fuel was culprit. you did one good thing to return to civilisation in such situations with family members.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 16:59	#7
rks BANNED Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: ?? Posts: 1,238 Thanked: 17 Times	Adulterated fuel, no doubt. Once on a long drive in a Maruti 800 (1995 model, carb) I could feel a distinct difference after filling up on the highway. There was a loss in pick-up and the engine seemed to be spluttering a little. I suspected spark plugs, but the problem went away after refilling fuel in Bangalore city.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 17:05	#8
msdivy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,815 Thanked: 2,826 Times	Hi shankaranand, sorry to hear that you have to miss Ooty and more so since its because of the car (of all things). It appears due to bad fuel, otherwise it would have atleast climbed on 1st gear. Invariably on our Ooty trips car would be full (with people & luggage) and I always shift to 1st gear (on NHC, Accent) before taking any of those 36 hairpin bends. I don't feel confident on any higher gear. Does anybody have experience doing those hair-pins in higher gear?
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 17:11	#10
himanshugoswami Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: !!!! Posts: 2,303 Thanked: 2,619 Times	Y would adultrated fuel cause burning rubber smell?!! From his posts, it sounded more like a clutch issue to me.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2007, 17:25	#14
werfish BHPian Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 177 Thanked: 140 Times	I had a bad fuel issue and the car refused to even go over road humps in 1st gear if i stop in front of it.Then noticed that there was lots of black smoke on increased rpm.the guys at prerna workshop at Old Madras road cleaned some valve and i was back to normal.
	() Thanks