Tata Indigo Catches fire

kicha · 17th March 2010, 13:46

Thank you all, for your responses.
Apologies for the delay in replying to your queries.I am trying to get more details from my friend.Spoke to him in the morning and yes he's having a tough time getting the insurance claim and as expected the dealer now has started to beat around the bush by not giving him a clearer picture on how to deal with this situation or what caused the fire and giving him all illogical reasons.
I will post all those details as soon as I hear from him.
Once again thanks for your responses guys
cheers

kicha · 22nd March 2010, 10:08

This is the email I received from my friend today morning.

"I purchased this car Tata Indigo LX Diesel in July 2004 from Nawab Motors, Noida.Since then this car has been driven single handedly by me.The said car has been well maintained adhering to periodic service schedules that have been done only at authorized service stations (Nawab Motors, Noida, Rawat Motors, Peeragarhi, Delhi & Shah Motors, Noida)
On the night of 17th Feb 2010 Time 7:45 PM the car’s engine compartment caught fire when it was parked at Mayur Vihar Phase I opposite Acharya Niketan Market, Delhi.Once the fire was doused & after all formalities (FIR & Fire Force authority queries), the car was towed to Shah Motors, Noida.

Next day on evaluation of the car I found that the whole engine compartment was burnt along with the headlights & bumper.The car is under Reliance General Insurance coverage.Three surveyors had been employed by the company to assess the damage & on 8th March the surveyors informed me that the total expense for the damage is Rs 2.4 lacs, of which the insurance company would bear only 45% of the cost, as there is 60% depreciation in metal (5.5 Year old Car) & 50% on plastic parts.I have got approvals from the insurance company for repairs, but I asked the dealer not to take any action since I had raised the issue with the CEO of Tata, through an email.Mails in their forum started floating around & the dealer was pulled up.The dealer(Shah Motors) who was speaking in my favor all this while, changed his stance & sent me an email, marking the higher authorities at TATA as well, saying that I had missed 3 services (60K, 65K & 75K) & the wiring harness was tampered with, as I had installed auto cop & stereo system from outside which is not as per their specification.He also supported his claim by sending photographs quoting the cause of fire.I called him up & told him that the Stereo system & Auto cop were installed right from when the car was new & all the wires had been checked by his own service mangers when the car was serviced at their service centre 4 times (80K, 85K, 90K, 95K) & was cleared by his team.He had no answer to this.The photographs of wires shown by him were taken from the inside of the dashboard, which is not even burnt.

The Car when crossed 90K had a heating problem which was referred to the service incharge at Shah motors.They did a complete Engine Head Change & the total cost was around 30K.However the problem still persisted which resulted in 2-3 visits to the dealer for the top up job, post which the heating problem subsided.But soon another problem came up where, inspite of the engine being switched off & the keys removed, the AC fan, AC & headlights were operational.This was again referred to Shah motors, where it was diagnosed as a capacitator malfunction which was under the dash board.Changing the capacitator resolved the issue.

The car has covered 97000 KMS & I am contemplating on 2 choices.
1)Either I should get it repaired by pressurizing Tata Motors to pay for the expense, however they can come back strongly saying that I missed 3 services & the so called wire tampering has happened. Then I need to shell out 55%(Aprox) of the total 2.4 lacs & get this car repaired with 1 year guarantee on all new parts installed.

2)Get the insurance company to declare total loss of the car, considering the value of the car being 3 lacs by the insurance company, I need to get 2.7 Lacs as per rules, however as per the insurance surveyor (going by his experience) the insurance company may pay only the Market value of the Car which is anywhere between 1.5 to 1.75 Lacs.

I have not replied to the mail from the dealer, but in touch with the dealer on the total loss angle (nothing given in written) & in touch with the Customer service manager of the company. I have clearly suggested to the dealer I will not accept a total loss, if the insurance company pays less (planning to mail higher authorities in reply to dealer’s mail if things don’t work or also take the consumer court angle). Putting a lot of pressure on the dealer to use his contacts with the Insurance company to get me a good deal for total loss.

regds"

S5157 · 25th March 2010, 17:09

Its a scary incident. Two days ago I saw an indigo Marina in Fire on Vytilla- Edappali Bypass near Ernakulam causing the huge traffic Jam. Is there any Problematic component in Indigo which is causing this as this the third Indigo which I have seen catching fire on middle of the road.

Simhi · 26th March 2010, 19:07

First Nanos and now Indigos. Not a good sign for Tata who are trying to up their quality with introduction of Vista and Manza. Hope, we don't here these new models catching fire.

vivekgk · 25th May 2010, 19:11

I don't think this is an Indigo specific or Tata-specific issue. Look at the 'Accidents in India' thread, there are lots of vehicles of many brands catching fire. IMO, it's just that the ambient temperatures are so high, and the safe temperatures inside the bonnet are being exceeded all the time.

This mishap occured five years after the purchase of the car. Since the car had no trouble all this time, it can't be a manufacturer issue or an accessories issue. I suspect shoddy work by the service center or some kind of fuel leakage/bad wiring.

devarshi84 · 26th May 2010, 00:34

It's not an Indigo specific issue. I have seen a Hyundai Accent and an OHC burning in Ahmedabad.

Either wrong aftermarket installation or mishandling by the labourers at the dealership service station.

However, since the car has covered close to 1,00,000 kms and more than 5 years, I doubt if Tata will support the case.

harry10 · 26th May 2010, 02:22

Our indigo caught fire while driving in feb.
The damage was quiet similar.
However we got the total loss claim so the financial damage to us is minimum.
And we did not had any after market accessories also!

djay99 · 28th May 2010, 11:18

kicha, any update on the claim or repair?

tanwaramit · 30th May 2010, 15:41

not sure if this case is resolved yet. Read todays HT, it mentions that the insurer is liable to pay IDV as per rules and regulations. They cannot say that they will pay only market value of the car (for total loss).

It is mandatory for them to pay IDV value.

Ranjan Sharma · 30th May 2010, 16:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by tanwaramit

not sure if this case is resolved yet. Read todays HT, it mentions that the insurer is liable to pay IDV as per rules and regulations. They cannot say that they will pay only market value of the car (for total loss).

It is mandatory for them to pay IDV value.

That is correct.

I forgot what do they do if the total cost of repairs are above IDV value? Total loss?

ranjith.rajaram · 4th June 2010, 19:34

Man bad for Tata brand, I have read couple of nano stories but not the Indigo.

17th March 2010, 13:46	#16
kicha BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: 18° 55' N, 72° 54' E Posts: 29 Thanked: 3 Times	Thank you all, for your responses. Apologies for the delay in replying to your queries.I am trying to get more details from my friend.Spoke to him in the morning and yes he's having a tough time getting the insurance claim and as expected the dealer now has started to beat around the bush by not giving him a clearer picture on how to deal with this situation or what caused the fire and giving him all illogical reasons. I will post all those details as soon as I hear from him. Once again thanks for your responses guys cheers
	() Thanks

22nd March 2010, 10:08	#17
kicha BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: 18° 55' N, 72° 54' E Posts: 29 Thanked: 3 Times	This is the email I received from my friend today morning. "I purchased this car Tata Indigo LX Diesel in July 2004 from Nawab Motors, Noida.Since then this car has been driven single handedly by me.The said car has been well maintained adhering to periodic service schedules that have been done only at authorized service stations (Nawab Motors, Noida, Rawat Motors, Peeragarhi, Delhi & Shah Motors, Noida) On the night of 17th Feb 2010 Time 7:45 PM the car’s engine compartment caught fire when it was parked at Mayur Vihar Phase I opposite Acharya Niketan Market, Delhi.Once the fire was doused & after all formalities (FIR & Fire Force authority queries), the car was towed to Shah Motors, Noida. Next day on evaluation of the car I found that the whole engine compartment was burnt along with the headlights & bumper.The car is under Reliance General Insurance coverage.Three surveyors had been employed by the company to assess the damage & on 8th March the surveyors informed me that the total expense for the damage is Rs 2.4 lacs, of which the insurance company would bear only 45% of the cost, as there is 60% depreciation in metal (5.5 Year old Car) & 50% on plastic parts.I have got approvals from the insurance company for repairs, but I asked the dealer not to take any action since I had raised the issue with the CEO of Tata, through an email.Mails in their forum started floating around & the dealer was pulled up.The dealer(Shah Motors) who was speaking in my favor all this while, changed his stance & sent me an email, marking the higher authorities at TATA as well, saying that I had missed 3 services (60K, 65K & 75K) & the wiring harness was tampered with, as I had installed auto cop & stereo system from outside which is not as per their specification.He also supported his claim by sending photographs quoting the cause of fire.I called him up & told him that the Stereo system & Auto cop were installed right from when the car was new & all the wires had been checked by his own service mangers when the car was serviced at their service centre 4 times (80K, 85K, 90K, 95K) & was cleared by his team.He had no answer to this.The photographs of wires shown by him were taken from the inside of the dashboard, which is not even burnt. The Car when crossed 90K had a heating problem which was referred to the service incharge at Shah motors.They did a complete Engine Head Change & the total cost was around 30K.However the problem still persisted which resulted in 2-3 visits to the dealer for the top up job, post which the heating problem subsided.But soon another problem came up where, inspite of the engine being switched off & the keys removed, the AC fan, AC & headlights were operational.This was again referred to Shah motors, where it was diagnosed as a capacitator malfunction which was under the dash board.Changing the capacitator resolved the issue. The car has covered 97000 KMS & I am contemplating on 2 choices. 1)Either I should get it repaired by pressurizing Tata Motors to pay for the expense, however they can come back strongly saying that I missed 3 services & the so called wire tampering has happened. Then I need to shell out 55%(Aprox) of the total 2.4 lacs & get this car repaired with 1 year guarantee on all new parts installed. 2)Get the insurance company to declare total loss of the car, considering the value of the car being 3 lacs by the insurance company, I need to get 2.7 Lacs as per rules, however as per the insurance surveyor (going by his experience) the insurance company may pay only the Market value of the Car which is anywhere between 1.5 to 1.75 Lacs. I have not replied to the mail from the dealer, but in touch with the dealer on the total loss angle (nothing given in written) & in touch with the Customer service manager of the company. I have clearly suggested to the dealer I will not accept a total loss, if the insurance company pays less (planning to mail higher authorities in reply to dealer’s mail if things don’t work or also take the consumer court angle). Putting a lot of pressure on the dealer to use his contacts with the Insurance company to get me a good deal for total loss. regds"
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 17:09	#18
S5157 BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Muvattupuzha, K Posts: 305 Thanked: 191 Times	Its a scary incident. Two days ago I saw an indigo Marina in Fire on Vytilla- Edappali Bypass near Ernakulam causing the huge traffic Jam. Is there any Problematic component in Indigo which is causing this as this the third Indigo which I have seen catching fire on middle of the road.
	() Thanks

26th March 2010, 19:07	#19
Simhi BHPian Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Pune Posts: 627 Thanked: 1,303 Times	First Nanos and now Indigos. Not a good sign for Tata who are trying to up their quality with introduction of Vista and Manza. Hope, we don't here these new models catching fire.
	() Thanks

25th May 2010, 19:11	#20
vivekgk BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 984 Thanked: 1,986 Times View My Garage	I don't think this is an Indigo specific or Tata-specific issue. Look at the 'Accidents in India' thread, there are lots of vehicles of many brands catching fire. IMO, it's just that the ambient temperatures are so high, and the safe temperatures inside the bonnet are being exceeded all the time. This mishap occured five years after the purchase of the car. Since the car had no trouble all this time, it can't be a manufacturer issue or an accessories issue. I suspect shoddy work by the service center or some kind of fuel leakage/bad wiring.
	() Thanks

26th May 2010, 00:34	#21
devarshi84 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Ahmedabad - Tor Posts: 4,024 Thanked: 211 Times View My Garage	It's not an Indigo specific issue. I have seen a Hyundai Accent and an OHC burning in Ahmedabad. Either wrong aftermarket installation or mishandling by the labourers at the dealership service station. However, since the car has covered close to 1,00,000 kms and more than 5 years, I doubt if Tata will support the case.
	() Thanks

26th May 2010, 02:22	#22
harry10 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Faridabad/Delhi Posts: 2,713 Thanked: 3,624 Times View My Garage	Our indigo caught fire while driving in feb. The damage was quiet similar. However we got the total loss claim so the financial damage to us is minimum. And we did not had any after market accessories also!
	() Thanks

28th May 2010, 11:18	#23
djay99 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Ireland Posts: 1,475 Thanked: 544 Times View My Garage	kicha, any update on the claim or repair?
	() Thanks

30th May 2010, 15:41	#24
tanwaramit Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Dilwalon ki Dilli Posts: 1,930 Thanked: 497 Times	not sure if this case is resolved yet. Read todays HT, it mentions that the insurer is liable to pay IDV as per rules and regulations. They cannot say that they will pay only market value of the car (for total loss). It is mandatory for them to pay IDV value.
	() Thanks

4th June 2010, 19:34	#26
ranjith.rajaram BHPian Join Date: May 2008 Location: Pune >> Bangalore Posts: 356 Thanked: 9 Times View My Garage	Man bad for Tata brand, I have read couple of nano stories but not the Indigo.
	() Thanks