[100BHP]

It arrived in our family in December 2015 & slowly became an integral part of our family . It was a safe, no nonsense car meant to drive my family from point A to point B in comfort & safety. The pleasure of driving it was an additional advantage which my wife & myself relished on our long holiday drives. My kids named it “PO” – The Big Fat Panda !

Then it died a sudden death on 1st May’17 & mystery is yet to be solved !! This is the ongoing story of my Scross 1.6 delta.

Day 1 (1st May’17) : I was coming back to my home in Greater Noida after dropping my kids at school in the morning . Just before reaching home, the car suddenly dropped power & it shut down. The malfunction light came on . I cranked it again & it started normally & I reached my parking without any issue or power loss. But the malfunction light remained on. I was wondering as what could have happened as last service at MASS Rana Motors, Okhla , New Delhi was done a month ago.
When I opened the bonnet to see the engine bay, I was shocked. It looked like someone has taken the hose of oil & sprayed liberally on the engine bay. Every part of the bay was covered in oil, battery tray was in half a cm deep pool of oil The hood was covered in oil from inside .
But I never knew that this is the start of a long nightmare. It will rip apart the notion & faith of me & my friends in façade called Maruti which proudly states that it is Numero Uno in CSI since last 17 years .
I tried calling Rana Motors at their help line all day but nobody picked up the phone.





































Day 2 (2nd May) : Started calling the Rana Motors again in the morning & this time help desk picked up the phone & told me that SA of last service will contact me shortly. No one called for 2 hours . I called back & was asked to talk to head of customer care, Ms Anjali. Again I was told to wait & she will call me after her lunch. Again waited for 2 hours & called . This time I was told to call Nexa helpline number & register my issue there only . By this time it was already late in the evening . So, I called the same & told them that there is oil spray in the engine & I need to get my car checked by someone . They agreed to send the van in 1 hour to my place . But it was already dark & getting late, so I requested them to send someone next day at 11 AM .

Day 3 (3rd May) : The MASS guy from Rohan Motors Greater Noida reached promptly on time & I had to re register the call again at nexa help line . He opened the hood & checked the bay visually. When he opened the air filter, it was time for 2nd shock – there was a pool of oil inside the filter box also. He cleaned the bottom of box promptly with cloth – so my pic here does not show the original pool of oil. So it was decided that car need to be towed to Rohan motors . So I called Nexa again & they gave my number to their partner company & they sent a the flat bed to pick up the car & drop it at Rohan’s . But customer need to pay for all the towing expenses.. Thank you very much !! FOR PREMIUM NEXA SERVICE.
Got the job card opened only when I went to service head office & told him that it’s a Scross 1.6 issue . The SA took one look at the issue & told me not to wait any longer as this will be inspected tomorrow .
So I went back to my office & asked few of my contacts for contact details of Maruti’s service head.
When I got it, I shot off a letter to him along with all pictures & requested him to look into this issue promptly as I was having a feeling that this was something serious & MASS is not equipped to do anything about it.

Day 4th : Mr. PK (Let’s call him this now) called from Delhi office & told me that he had received instructions from factory to inspect the car himself & he will be coming to Rohan’s on 5th May . I agreed & told him to “NOT TO DO ANY ANALYSIS UNTIL I AM THERE , ALL ANALYSIS TO BE STARTED IN FRONT OF ME”. Told him to call me whenever he reaches there.

Day 5th : Didn’t received any call till 11 AM – so I was getting anxious, I Called PK & he told me that he was already at Rohan’s . So, I promptly rushed to Rohan’s . When I saw the group of people poking inside & outside the car with laptop etc, I immd. Got suspicious . I asked PK how long he has been doing it & was told that they are here from 9 AM .
I asked them about the error code & prompt came the reply “Sir, there is no error code, it’s a mechanical failure & it does not show any error”. This lie was going to be told million times in coming days. I was told that I am not to worry about anything as this case is being monitored by factory now & I will be informed asap . So I left them there & went back.

Day 6th : Received no calls from PK till afternoon, so tried calling him. He was driving somewhere, so told me that he will call later .

Day 7th : No calls, no response, no phone pick up – Complete Silence !!
Day 8th : No calls, no response, no phone pick up – Complete Silence !!

Day 9th : Phone switched off now ! Tried again after few hours & Voila, this time PK picked up the phone and told me that his colleague (Let’s call him MU) will call me soon . I was having a feeling of dread that my car will be in MASS for some more days.
MU called me after sometime & on day 9th I was told very politely that “ This failure is due to fuel adulteration & the engine need to be completely replaced – All expenses will be borne by customer (approx. 4 lacs) as this is not covered under warranty & insurance (including engine cover)” - CHECK MATE – now your move, Fool !
I was dumbfounded & shaken to the core – i terminated the call . - I work with LG electronics in Greater Noida & there are hundreds of diesel cars of LG Employees including Maruti’s which get filled from same petrol pump here from last many years – never came across such cases . Moreover there are thousands of diesel cars running here in greater noida which get their fill from this pump – there should be mass breakdown of all cars filling here !! This pump is HP owned & biggest pump in the city . I have also used this pump only as I live in this city .
Called MU again to get my quota of stupidity – I was not full yet – asked him how was it detected ? ? I was again dumbfounded – they have opened the entire engine without any permission from me not even any intimation regarding the same. MU replied that they found less pressure in 1 bore & upon checking found that piston dimensions have changed & there are slight aberrations inside the bore. This decision is the decision from their Technical & Quality Team from Factory .
Now I had my quota of stupidity filled & was satisfied for the day ! Now I was getting emotional – Our PO was dead ! Heart ripped open ! Waiting for some major work !
I shot off the mail to service head (attached)

Day 10th : Got call from MU in the morning. Now some more members from their Technical team wants to come & inspect the engine etc. I told him that “Before I receive the Interim report from them, I am not authorizing any more inspection of the engine or car etc” . disconnected the call on this note but I came to know afterwards that there would be no interim report & they have continued their tests .

Day 11th : Went to visit the PO at Rohan’s & all the feel good factor of NEXA went out of the window & door. My 17 months old baby was looking like a pile of junk . Had a look at the opened engine & wrote another mail to “You Know Who! “























Day 12 : No update


Day 13 : No Update

Day 14th : Tried & some how got contact of Executive Director – Technical Team & wrote to him to provide the correct solution. If they are taking time to investigate some issue – atleast provide me a timeline as when I will get my car repair started & provide me a loaner car

Day 15th : MASS service head called & offered me a Wagon R as loaner vehicle –by evening it changed to swift . This day ended with none.

Day 16th : Called MU and updated him about the same – I was offered celerio . I asked him whats the policy for someone who has bought the most premium offering of Maruti . Gave him my mind that why NEXA is a failure for MARUTI – when you can’t provide end to end premium experience to customers, when you don’t have people trained to handle issues differently, when you have not developed infrastructure to handle the differentiation factors – NEXA will remain a wet dream.

Day 17 : No update

Day 18th : Received the call in the morning when I was getting ready to start for office – ciaz is reaching my place as loaner car – signed the papers & received the car .



Coming to the end of the story :
1. 19 days over and Still waiting for my to come home
2. From Maruti Suzuki team & MASS still There is NO report or explanation for what happened to their latest experiment called DDIS 320
3. It’s a might of a giant against the plight of a customer who just wants to have some peace of mind after investing of hard earned money.
4. Utterly disappointing experience with the country’s most trusted brand !!
5. Such an inexperienced, disorganized and unprofessional service was never expected.
I’m writing this to share my despair and hope that my friends here will try to put across my voice in whichever best capacity to help solve matter and get my beloved S-cross back.

Lastly, I hope someone at Maruti with experience and passion takes on the responsibility and brings in sanity in resolving the issue.

[100BHP]

Attaching the communications with Maruti below :

[tazmaan]

Originally Posted by 100BHP

.
I’m writing this to share my despair and hope that my friends here will try to put across my voice in whichever best capacity to help solve matter and get my beloved S-cross back.

Lastly, I hope someone at Maruti with experience and passion takes on the responsibility and brings in sanity in resolving the issue.

I am really sorry to hear your ordeal. Its shocking that Nexa has put the blame squarely on adulterated fuel! This clearly looks like a mechanical failure which should be covered under warranty. Every car company in India tries to pass on the cost to the customer without taking any responsibility.

To top it up my blood is boiling looking at the pic where they have dumped car parts on the back seat. How irresponsible can they be?

I suggest you keep fighting and if need be take the legal route, post on Facebook but don't give in!

The only bright side I can see is you have got a Ciaz as a loaner which is good from their side.

[Dr.Naren]

Fuel adulteration killed the engine.. Seriously?? How did they conclude about fuel adulteration? Any testing of the fuel quality was done?

This has happened after you got the service done. I am sure the service centre guys filled in more oil or did not drain the oil fully. Also, I am shocked to see this kind of treatment from Maruti Suzuki!!

[dark.knight]

Originally Posted by 100BHP

Attaching the communications with Maruti below

There is no brand that is 100% reliable, and there is no car that is perfect mechanically.. this is the reason that there are service centers, trained technicians and warranty policies.

Such an incident should have the company leaping forward to find the issues and investigate deeply into what happened, its sad that in India every company from VW (DSG issues), Skoda (pump deuce engine issues/reliability), Hyundai (steering rattles) and Maruti (failures such as yours and many other stories), try to duck behind a bush, become uncommunicative and go about in circles finding every way to put the blame on driver-induced errors instead of getting to the truth.

The thing that sticks out here clearly, is the spray of oil inside the bonnet and all over the engine bay, any idea as to what kind of oil it was? Colour? I'm yet to clearly understand how adulterated diesel would result in this, yes many times engines have seized due to adulteration but never in this fashion. Also shocking is how they have kept the car inside the garage, it looks horrible, engine parts strewn every direction and kept inside the hatch of the car with the rear seats folded (grease, oil stains and muck transfer guaranteed).

I'm a firm believer in reliability and being treated fairly as a customer, all the brands that I use today from phones to automobile, are brands that have served me well and whose customer service to add, was more than satisfactory, the day that changes I'll change the brand too - forever. I'm sure you have better things to do than to investigate the cause of such mechanical failures and run from pillar to post trying to go back to square one. That being said this matter will definitely gain traction now that you've posted it here, I hope the company shares the reality of the situation at the end, and becomes wiser for the same, than to simply find excuses to put the burden of cost towards the customer, they'll only lose by doing so. We're also talking of one of the most cash-rich companies in India, I'd assume its wise to invest where necessary as well.

[SPARKled]

Really sorry to see your ordeal. All the chant of MASS means peace of mind was always something I had doubts on and here I see it with my own eyes. But hopefully they see sense and make good all the nonsense dished out to you so far.

[bhpfaninblr]

From when did engines get so sensitive as to be killed by adulterated fuel? Also how can center guys be so irresponsible in filling in more oil or not draining oil fully. For all owners of diesel engines, this is important to bear in mind. Double check how the oil has been filled into the engine

Here is an interesting article that says how most diesel engine problems originate with the fuel: http://www.diesel-fuels.com/bad-diesel-fuel.php

Originally Posted by Dr.Naren

Any testing of the fuel quality was done?
I am sure the service centre guys filled in more oil or did not drain the oil fully

agree - shocking behavior. Good that you have Ciaz as a loaner. This episode highlights one of the problems of having an imported engine. Cost of replacing engine is 4L?? The 1.3 Multijets on this forum have been rebuilt at 63K or so....Too expensive
Plus, if one did not go for extended warranty, the engine is a writeoff

Originally Posted by tazmaan

The only bright side I can see is you have got a Ciaz as a loaner which is good from their side.

[govindremesh]

I am really sorry to hear about your ordeal, Mohit (100BHP). Fuel adulteration cannot kill an engine- that's why components like fuel filter exist. Maximum it could do is to clog the CRDI system. This is something even more serious. Probably, some component of the engine failed in operation.

However, I would like to point out a major mistake that you made:

Originally Posted by 100BHP

Day 1 (1st May’17) : I was coming back to my home in Greater Noida after dropping my kids at school in the morning . Just before reaching home, the car suddenly dropped power & it shut down. The malfunction light came on . I cranked it again & it started normally & I reached my parking without any issue or power loss. But the malfunction light remained on. I was wondering as what could have happened as last service at MASS Rana Motors, Okhla , New Delhi was done a month ago.

The owner's manual clearly indicates that one should not drive with the malfunction indicator on. If the malfunction indicator did not disappear on restarting, you should have shut down the engine immediately and inspected the engine bay right away instead of driving the car. If there was an component failure/ oil leak when the engine shut down the first time, you restarting the engine and driving even for a short distance might have made it worse, including a possibility of damage to the pistons and other components.

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by 100BHP

Lastly, I hope someone at Maruti with experience and passion takes on the responsibility and brings in sanity in resolving the issue.

Shocked after going through your ordeal. To me, it is definitely not related to fuel adulteration. It is most probably because of some error in the last service. I have seen NCR's MASSes, and they are the least competent of all MASSes in India.

Have you contacted Mr. C.V.Raman?? He is the Executive Director of Engineering and R&D at MSIL, and he will surely help you out. Kindly take him in the loop.

His email id: https://twitter.com/CVRAMAN61/status/812755038648971264

Originally Posted by bhpfaninblr

agree - shocking behavior. Good that you have Ciaz as a loaner. This episode highlights one of the problems of having an imported engine. Cost of replacing engine is 4L?? The 1.3 Multijets on this forum have been rebuilt at 63K or so....Too expensive
Plus, if one did not go for extended warranty, the engine is a writeoff

Dear Sir,
Here they are talking about replacing the entire engine assembly. JFYI, the complete engine assembly(without the transmission) costs Rs. 2,57,588 for the Swift Diesel. So 4L estimate for the S Cross 1.6 engine is very much possible.

Also AFAIK, half engine assembly for the 1.6 S Cross hasn't yet been released(as per the parts manual).




Regards,
Shashi

[auto_enthusiast]

Sorry to hear about your ordeal.

But one thing that baffles me is even if the fuel was adulterated, how come there was oil spillage in the engine bay??? Is the oil spillage also due to adulterated fuel? The abrasions in one of the cylinder was due to absence of oil and not because of adulterated fuel.

Question them about all these points and write a stern mail warning them that you will take the matter on all social media platforms and if need arises, you are ready to take the matter in consumer court too.

[dailydriver]

What can one say when dear old Maruti does a Skoda on its customer! To say that I, like most Bhpians reading this thread, am shocked would be an understatement. Two issues trouble me.

1. Premature failure of the much appreciated 1.6 engine.
2. The way MASS/NASS is handling the situation.

Few points to ponder on:

• Adulterated fuel leading to oil spray in the engine seems like a dumb explanation. It would be interesting to know what exactly broke /leaked/ burst in the engine bay and why. Was there any external impact before the engine shut down.
• Did the OP notice any changes in the car's behavior after the last service till the day of the breakdown?
• The Service centre should be sued for treating the engine and the car with such disrespect. Placing the components on the back seat, my God!
• No meaning in getting the engine repaired. Complete replacement through insurance (hope engine protect clause is included in the policy) /goodwill/discounted rate is the only solution.
• OP's patience in waiting for 19 days before even reporting the matter on the forum speaks volumes of his faith in the manufacturer. Maruti would do well to reaffirm it by providing a speedy redressal.

A complete root cause analysis should be done and a detailed report handed over to the OP by Maruti/NEXA. May I say that the whole forum stands in support of OP in his hour of need.

Hope the matter is dealt with satisfactorily at the earliest.

[drpullockaran]

Without a doubt this was caused by either one of these causes.

1)Over filling of engine oil. This resulted in Turbo failure and failure of other parts that are lubricated and pressurized by engine oil.

2)One of the hoses came off resulting in the oil spill but that does not explain oil in the air filter chamber. Regurgitation of oil through the breather pipe can only occur if there is over filling of oil.

3)Adulterated fuel cannot cause this issue. Maruti is lying; period.

Take them to court and for GOD sake do not compromise with them after the case is filed. I made the blunder of compromising with TATA and have a 16 year old consumer court case which is ongoing. If you do not compromise the result from the courts will be out in about 2 years.

[Dr.Naren]

Originally Posted by drpullockaran

Take them to court and for GOD sake do not compromise with them after the case is filed. I made the blunder of compromising with TATA and have a 16 year old consumer court case which is ongoing. If you do not compromise the result from the courts will be out in about 2 years.

Yes, the OP would win the case.. But what about the present status? Maruti is not honouring warranty and insurance guys are also not accepting the claim (he has engine protect cover too). He has to spend around 4 lakhs from his pocket .

I hope Maruti Suzuki wakes up after looking at this thread and honour engine warranty.

[bhpfaninblr]

I would suggest 100bhp to post minimal details in writing especially if he is taking Nexa to court. The key in legal language is not to share too much details especially those details that can go against you. Now Nexa can use this driving post malfunction indicator on as an issue. Please think before sharing details and especially do not share the details that Nexa can hold against you

Originally Posted by govindremesh

However, I would like to point out a major mistake that you made:
The owner's manual clearly indicates that one should not drive with the malfunction indicator on. If there was an component failure/ oil leak when the engine shut down the first time, you restarting the engine and driving even for a short distance might have made it worse, including a possibility of damage to the pistons and other components.

All these seem like letters written by the author to Nexa. Best to have all these communications on phone and have only the major 2-3 sentences written to Nexa over email. Some of the things here might highlight owner mistake and Nexa can use them against the owner

Brevity is the key in legal issues including official when one sends email. One should have a written record but only that much that suffices from legal purposes

Originally Posted by 100BHP

Attaching the communications with Maruti below

[100BHP]

Thanks all for your kind words, few explanations :
1. The malfunction indicator which came on is emission control warning - no warranty is voided
2. Maruti tech refused to accept that there is any error code - this is shocking
3. Court case or not - my purpose to bring this case is to unfold the misery of the most premium customer of one of the costliest cars from No.1 player in the country.
4. If Maruti cant resolve this case with 100% customer satisfaction, then they should wrap up NEXA & any new ventures in technologies they dont understand - they should stick to Alto & wagon r forever & not put other customers at risk - customer always thinking when is something going to fail ?

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

Have you contacted Mr. C.V.Raman?? He is the Executive Director of Engineering and R&D at MSIL, and he will surely help you out. Kindly take him in the loop.

Please refer my 1st post - i have contacted CV Raman & Head of Service from Day 1.