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Old 14th April 2021, 13:05   #1
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Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

Ashay shares his predicament with us via this Team-BHP page!

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Hello Team-BHP,

I own a Tata Altroz XT variant in Hyderabad. My car has an unusual and ambiguous problem which Tata has so far failed to fix. Through this forum, I would like to share and publish my problem/concerns which will enforce Tata to take serious steps to fix those problems and provide a concrete solution. I understand this is the right forum to share my experience in detail.

I bought my Tata Altroz XT variant in August 2020 from an authorized dealer in Hyderabad. While everything worked well for a while, I started facing a weird issue in my car, which so far has had four major breakdowns on the road. Below is the summary of the problem with my car:

My car, all-of-a-sudden failed to ignite/start with battery, oil and engine indicator on the dashboard. This happened 4 times since I purchased my car (8 months or 10,000 KM driven). Every time, the car automatically started after an hour or two with no indicators on the dashboard. SC guys failed to provide any concrete reasons as whenever they got my car for inspection, it was working as normal and all scans were healthy.

Below are the details:

1. Nov 2020 – Car failed to start even after multiple attempts

a. Problem – My car, after driving for 100 KM on the day, was parked for 4-5 hours. When attempted to start again, it started normally and was driven for 2 KM to another parking area. When attempted to start again after 2 minutes, it failed to start with battery, oil and engine indicator on the dashboard.

b. I reached Tata RSA and they managed to send a mechanic who decided that vehicle must be towed to the Service Center. By the time the towing vehicle came (2 hours after the problem surfaced), the car automatically started as normal with no indicators on the dashboard.

c. Solution - Service Center got the car in the same condition. They analyzed and said that there was a loose earthing connection in the battery which resulted in a faulty signal and the engine was locked.

d. Odo reading – 4500 KM approx.

2. Feb 2021 – Car failed to start even after multiple attempts (same as the previous problem)

a. Problem – The car, after being driven for 120 KM, was parked for a while (a minute). When attempted to start, the car failed to start again with Battery, Oil and Engine signal on the dashboard.

b. I reached out to Tata RSA and the mechanic observed oil leakage in the car. The car was towed to the Service Center and since it was Saturday, it was attended to on Monday. Surprisingly again, SC was able to start the car as normal and wondered what was wrong with the car.

c. Solution – SC observed a loose oil dipstick which resulted in the Oil leakage and the vehicle failed to start.

d. Odo Reading – 6500 KM approx.

3. April 3, 2021 – Minimal Oil leakage in the car due to broken O-ring. Suddenly the car failed to start like in previous incidents

a. Problem – I observed oil leakage in the early stages and took my car to the nearest SC. They found a broken O-ring which was fixed. Tata personnel mentioned that the car has enough oil and does not need a refill. While attempting to start, the car failed to start with battery, oil and engine sign on the dashboard.

b. As usual, after 15 minutes of attempt, the car started again as normal. Since the Service Center I reached was a smaller one, they suggested me to take it to a bigger SC. I drove the car for another 450 KMs the same day without facing any issue. I was further able to use my car as normal for next few days driving another 200 KM.

c. Odo reading – 9000 KM approx..

4. April 9, 2021 – Car failed to start after multiple attempts (Same as previous incidents)

a. Problem – The car, after being driven for 100 KMs in a day, was parked for 3 hours. When attempted to start, the car failed to start with same oil, battery and engine indicator.

b. I reached Tata RSA and they managed to arrange for a towing vehicle again. By the time this happened, my car, after several attempts, started as normal after an hour.

c. I was not able to submit it to SC due to personal hurries on the same day. The car is yet to be inspected by SC and is scheduled for tomorrow.

d. Odo Reading – 9400 KM approx.

Attached is the video of the problem faced each time.

Thanks

Last edited by GTO : 14th April 2021 at 17:27.
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Old 14th April 2021, 13:18   #2
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

Check for vapour lock in the fuel lines caused due to an overheating / malfunctioning fuel pump. And the ongoing summer heat seems to be exacerbating the issue.
From the video, your car's starter motor engagement, battery condition etc are all fine. It seems like a fuel supply, low pressure fuel pump issue. No harm in getting the fuel pump checked up once by TML service people and replacing it , if need be, under warranty.

Last edited by arjab : 14th April 2021 at 13:19.
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Old 14th April 2021, 14:22   #3
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

From the video Its not very clear as to what is happening in the instrument cluster , but is the immobilizer light blinking? it appears so. If its blinking you need to try the spare key to start the car or its the ignition switch at fault.
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Old 14th April 2021, 15:16   #4
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kosfactor View Post
From the video Its not very clear as to what is happening in the instrument cluster , but is the immobilizer light blinking? it appears so. If its blinking you need to try the spare key to start the car or its the ignition switch at fault.
This is what I suspected too. Seems the RFID piece in the key module isn't responding properly some-times. I had this issue in my Vista's key some years ago. Just a couple of slaps to it - would fix it usually back then. Never even visited ASC for it.

Alternatively - if not immobilizer - it might have root cause in a poorly done electrical grounding(either OEM or aftermarket accessories installations).

Last edited by Reinhard : 14th April 2021 at 15:23.
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Old 14th April 2021, 15:31   #5
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

Looks like immobilizer not deactivating. This used to be a problem in earlier Tata cars. Seems after locking and unlocking , the immobilizer is not deactivating.

Xt variant must have remote central locking. Hope you are using the original remote button key and not the spare one. If using the remote key, get it reprogrammed ( only select main Tata dealers in city do Tata keys now as it has to be programmed and coded to the specific car)
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Old 16th April 2021, 10:03   #6
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

As others said, it could be the immobilizer. If not, then I would suspect either the Crank Position Sensor or the Cam Position Sensor. One could also check for fuel delivery related issues, but i don't really think it is the fuel which is causing this problem as the car has be driven for so many kilometers after the problem first surfaced.
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Old 16th April 2021, 10:22   #7
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

As @Abhi9044 mentioned, it could be immobilizer, crank or cam position sensors. But, why is the cranking stopped after few seconds? AFAIK, with button start, the cranking occurs for about 30 seconds continuously if the car fails to start, provided the clutch pedal is pressed. Is there any error codes logged in the system?
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Old 16th April 2021, 11:20   #8
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

We had this same problem in our Tiago when the battery had gone. I doubt that your battery is dead within such a short time, but please get it checked.
Check the terminals for any corrosion as well.

At first, everyone thought it was the starter motor or something as it would crank til around 500 rpms before shutting off (like the video) but replacing the battery fixed the issue.
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Old 16th April 2021, 14:22   #9
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

I don't know how much of help it will be, but in my relative's Skoda Rapid similar problem persisted, but the car never thrown error.

The issue was - car used to start normal during cold starts, but after being driven for some time, switch off the car and it would not start, but leave it for some time and it will start again normally. From battery change to cam shaft sensor fault etc. etc. many predictions.

But the problem was with the starter coil, it had a loose connection at the overhang section of coil. Replaced the starter coil with new and the car runs fine now.
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Old 16th April 2021, 23:50   #10
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

We had a similar issue in our 800 some years back. I started the engine with people helping to push and took it straight to garage.

There, they tried many methods and finally as per my advice, tried to directly use battery on starter motor and it started without any issues. This made them pinpoint the fault with lock set. After this replacement, the problem never reoccured.

The key issue was very difficult to pinpoint, as the cranking used to happen as usual and battery also was very strong.

During such instances again, my suggestion is to try starting the vehicle ingear, by pushing. This may lead to some conclusion.
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Old 17th April 2021, 08:56   #11
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

As everyone said, do check out the immobilizer and battery.
Keep an eye on any exposed wiring harness that tends to absorb more engine heat. Since the problem always comes on when the car is hot, that could be a reason as well. I'm not a qualified technician to advise this, but zeroing out on every possible cause can fix this for sure!
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Old 17th April 2021, 13:31   #12
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

Quote:
Originally Posted by ChiragM View Post
Ashay shares his predicament with us via this Team-BHP page!
https://www.Youtube.com/watch?v=pSgCsAK4v_s
It's so heart breaking to see such erratic concerns being faced so often with your vehicle. Firstly, IMO the method of approaching to the diagnostics is not proper due to multiple break downs. It needs a careful investigation with all the engine performance, ECM & BCM parameters for deviations and then proceed for identifying the root cause. Even some stored fault codes can even be a culprit behind this. Thus, a detailed analysis of both present concern and previous faults along with repairs performed must be compared to establish the right approach before putting spanners and hammers on the vehicle.

I humbly insist you to put pressure on the OEM as well as the dealership for providing a factory engineer/technician to inspect your vehicle thoroughly. No matter whether the concern is resolved in a day or two, please escalate in all the social media websites as well as post one on LINKEDIN too, so that the company is alerted by your grievance.

I wish I could assist you in person and work my hands on to resolve the concern. All I can share is be patient and do not pick up the vehicle no matter how difficult it is to commute without this vehicle and do not let go off the dealer or TATA MOTORS just like that until they provide a team to inspect and repair and assure you that in future such issues doesn't arise.
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Old 19th April 2021, 14:18   #13
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

I had a similar issue with my Tata Indica Xeta 1.4 Petrol in 2006.

The car refused to start on day 2, and after about 20 cranks, I decided not to press further as I did not want to drain the battery.

As it was a new car I requested Prerana motors to send someone over and when the service guy came home, the car started in first crank.

The same issue repeated the next day and I left the car at the dealership and told them I will not take the car back unless the issue is sorted, and if not sorted within a week, I will need a new replacement car.

The fault was traced to
1) Primary fuel pump not generating enough pressure
2) Emergency fuel cut of switch (located under driver seat) getting triggered in non emergency situations.

Both were replaced and the car never had any problems after this.

It is important that the dealer / manufacturer deputes someone who is genuinely interested in solving the problem. Half hearted measures will not yield results.
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Old 19th April 2021, 23:55   #14
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

This problem seems extremely similar to the problem that cropped up in my Vista about two or three years back, when it would just refuse to start and then after waiting a bit and trying again would start without a hitch. This inconvenienced me a couple of times (the worst was when me and the missus were stuck in the basement parking of a mall at 1 am in the morning after watching a movie) but fortunately the car would start eventually and I never got stranded. However, unlike in this case, in my case the water in fuel indicator would come on whenever the car refused to start. Got the fuel lines cleaned as well as the fuel tank, and yet the problem persisted. Finally it was diagnosed as a problem with the ignition. Changing the ignition lock set has solved the problem (touch wood) hence this is one aspect you should definitely look at. My lock set manufacturer was Minda, if that helps. It could be that Tata primarily uses this component manufacturer for the ignition set in their cars and this is an issue with the manufacturer, since other Vista owners have also reported the same issue.
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Old 24th December 2021, 08:14   #15
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Re: Tata Altroz problems : 4 breakdowns in 8 months

Hi: reviving this old thread as my 4 day old is car has been showing somewhat of a similar problem- in terms of PEPS key and immobilizer icon blinking. Yesterday night, after an about 15km drive, came home and exited the car with PEPS key in pocket. The car started honking immediately (and incessantly, in the middle of the night) to indicate that the key is still inside. Puzzled, tried with spare key and even manual key. The honking goes away after opening and closing the driver side door, but the immobilizer icon continues to blink.

Last edited by Nikhil Beke : 24th December 2021 at 08:17.
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