[sreejinair]

Well if its true then it needs 9 liters of diesel to start the vehicle. Anyways I want to thank you for your support and I really appreciate you taking efforts to help me out here. If you have any top management emails of GM please PM me when you get a chance.

Originally Posted by keyur

Discussed this with a couple of friends from GM and VW. They say that all the other issues are unfortunate. But the engine starting issue is a low diesel issue and cannot be attributed to the car. It's better to have a decent quantity of fuel in your vehicle and ensure that the gauge is atleast at or above the Empty mark.

Will try and forward this to someone at GM.

[carfreak77]

Really sorry to hear about your unfortunate experience shreejinair. You have clearly received a lemon. Rust on a brand new car is unacceptable. I have been wary of GM India's service reputation and your experience makes me even more wary. In the US however, GM has got an excellent reputation in all departments.
I am sure they will resolve the issue for you (they have to!!). Once again sorry for your experience.

[keyur]

I don't think it would be 9 litres.
Probably, the initial amount of fuel would be very less - just enough to start your car. When you drove to the friend's and stopped your car, the drop in fuel could have led to some air getting into the fuel pump. So later, topping it might not have solved the issue. Out of the latter 5 litres, maybe a single litre could have done the job!

It's generally not advisable for diesels to get low on fuel as if the fuel pump runs dry, you might have to prime it or bleed it to get the air out! Just topping might not work.

I think that when the mechanic went under your car's hood, he must have bled the pump. Once the air was removed, the pump could pull the fuel!

[sreejinair]

Originally Posted by keyur

I don't think it would be 9 litres.
Probably, the initial amount of fuel would be very less - just enough to start your car. When you drove to the fuel pump and stopped your car, the drop in fuel could have led to some air getting into the fuel pump. So later, topping it might not have solved the issue. Out of the latter 5 litres, maybe a single litre could have done the job!

It's generally not advisable for diesels to get low on fuel as if the fuel pump runs dry, you might have to prime it or bleed it to get the air out! Just topping might not work.

Are you sure that the service guys did not do anything near the fuel pump?

The service guys did something under the hood and checked the ecu using their scanner

[keyur]

Check the edit. I re-read your experience and edited my earlier post.

"I think that when the mechanic went under your car's hood, he must have bled the pump. Once the air was removed, the pump could pull the fuel!"

[HotChillyPepper]

Originally Posted by keyur

Check the edit. I re-read your experience and edited my earlier post.

"I think that when the mechanic went under your car's hood, he must have bled the pump. Once the air was removed, the pump could pull the fuel!"

Optra has got electric fuel bleeding. Turn the ignition key from ACC off to ON position 3 times within a gap of not more than 5 seconds and at the end of this action immediately press gas pedal multiple times consecutively.

The ODBII diagnose port should be within few feet away from the steering column by spec, hence it cannot be under the hood. In optra it is right below the steering column.

In most probable case Why they asked the owner to get fuel is simple: they wanted to avoid him seeing what they were doing with the brand new car. Most probably all they did to resolve the problem would have been an ECU reset by just removing battery, or through the ODB scanner. And mostly the car would have already started before even he came back with more fuel, who knows.

[keyur]

Originally Posted by keyur

Check the edit. I re-read your experience and edited my earlier post.

"I think that when the mechanic went under your car's hood, he must have bled the pump. Once the air was removed, the pump could pull the fuel!"

After writing this, I had a hunch that there could be the possibility of autopriming the fuel pump in Optra. So I read through the manual and bingo :

Check page 7-14 and 7-15 (Fuel Filter section)
It mentions the following procedure for auto priming :

Turn the ignition key to ON, wait for about 5 seconds and turn the key to LOCK. This operation should be performed more than 3 times with the engine off.

When to perform the priming operation

• If the vehicle has been run out of fuel
• After draining water from the fuel filter
• After replacing the fuel filter

See, it pays to read the manual

Originally Posted by HotChillyPepper

Optra has got electric fuel bleeding. Turn the ignition key from ACC off to ON position 3 times within a gap of not more than 5 seconds and at the end of this action immediately press gas pedal multiple times consecutively.

What you have mentioned is the process to Reset the Engine Oil Life System, the process to be done after topping up or changing the engine oil (this resets the engine oil lamp). page 7-10 of the Optra manual

Originally Posted by HotChillyPepper

In most probable case Why they asked the owner to get fuel is simple: they wanted to avoid him seeing what they were doing with the brand new car. Most probably all they did to resolve the problem would have been an ECU reset by just removing battery, or through the ODB scanner. And mostly the car would have already started before even he came back with more fuel, who knows.

Could be the case. Sreeji, did the guy put the scanner under the steering or under the hood?

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please use "Multi Quote" option for quoting Multiple posts, instead of creating another back-to-back post.

[sreejinair]

He put the scanner under the steering not under the hood. By the way I was expecting this thread to be more like how to deal with this situation/GM. But I'm glad I'm getting other information as well.

Originally Posted by keyur

What you have mentioned is the process to Reset the Engine Oil Life System, the process to be done after topping up or changing the engine oil (this resets the engine oil lamp). page 7-10 of the Optra manual



Could be the case. Sreeji, did the guy put the scanner under the steering or under the hood?

[keyur]

Originally Posted by sreejinair

He put the scanner under the steering not under the hood. By the way I was expecting this thread to be more like how to deal with this situation/GM. But I'm glad I'm getting other information as well.

So the OBD II check was genuine - no fooling there!
Also, the extra info was to ensure that we don't blame GM where there is no fault of theirs, as I am looking at forwarding this thread ahead!

Someone else in your shoes with this info just needs to fill in the fuel and get the pump primed up - hope this helps someone.

[sreejinair]

Sure thing man as long as it helps people, I'm glad you are doing this. By the way if you by any chance get hold of GM top management email ids, please PM the same.

Originally Posted by keyur

So the OBD II check was genuine - no fooling there!
Also, the extra info was to ensure that we don't blame GM where there is no fault of theirs, as I am looking at forwarding this thread ahead!

Someone else in your shoes with this info just needs to fill in the fuel and get the pump primed up - hope this helps someone.

[Poitive]

Originally Posted by sreejinair

By the way if you by any chance get hold of GM top management email ids, please PM the same.

Or rather, share them here if one is comfortable. It could help many.

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by keyur

So the OBD II check was genuine - no fooling there!
Also, the extra info was to ensure that we don't blame GM where there is no fault of theirs, as I am looking at forwarding this thread ahead!

Someone else in your shoes with this info just needs to fill in the fuel and get the pump primed up - hope this helps someone.

While the no start issue was bad enough,
I think sreeji's main concern or grouse with Soham is that they have opened the gearbox for the speedometer issue without informing him or obtaining his permission. Therefore he needs the relevant assurances from GM

[mdsaab]

Hi Sreeji, that is a horrible experience indeed. You certainly do not expect such an experience from a brand new car. You have spent your hard earned money on a brand new vehicle and surely deserve better than this. The response e-mail from Chevrolet does not seem to comforting, but atleast they have given some clarification on their steps to ensure your vehicle is back up and running.
If the problem persists then please press for a brand new vehicle. Why should you have to live with an unreliable vehicle which will always bug you no end whenever you set out on a drive.
Wishing you luck in getting this issue sorted out at the earliest.

[Torquedo]

Hello Sreeji -

Very very unfortunate that this happened.

My 2 cents would suggest, you should take this beyond the dealership.

Take this matter to the top honchos in GM, do not relent.

I would go a step further in stating that do not accept this vehicle back and ask GM for a replacement (a new one). With the kinda issues that you have faced till now, there is no point in keeping this car, you would always feels apprehensive taking it out for longer drives.

I for one have been planning to book an Optra for some time, but this unfortunate incident has left me groping in the dark.

Wish you all the luck for getting this resolved at the earliest.

[NoRules]

:(

Thats a sad beginning, sreejinair. I sincerely hope this is just a one-off thing and you will have a pleasant ride once this issue is rectified. Not fun at all to have your new car give you problems.

As a prospective Magnum customer this certainly makes me pause.