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Old 6th May 2011, 23:43   #16
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Nice car my friend, please share the cost (for under the hood mods). I have SPARK and completed 26K+ KM as on date. Please check my garage if you are looking for alloys :-). How about white one?
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Old 6th May 2011, 23:45   #17
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Kudos to you for going ahead with such mods. I agree that the engine feels strained above 120 kmph but one hardly goes above that. I have touched 155 kmph on the odo and yes, the engine was (crying)at its peak. I strongly feel that Sparks' engine is very refined but at the same time a bit delicate to cope up with any mods or hard driving and revving.

BTW, what about the warranty??

You really need the warranty coverage in Spark (ask me). And yes, your's is the first Spark I have heard of that didn't have its rear shocks changed under warranty (you are lucky man).
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Old 10th May 2011, 12:28   #18
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Quote:
Originally Posted by dot View Post
Sleeper car with deadly internal mods. Loved all of it.
Spark is indeed a "dark horse" of hatchbacks. Responsive engine coupled with a light clutch makes it a very easy ride (recently had a chance to TD a new Spark). Your mods seems to have carried forward these essences.
Would it be possible to post a sound clip of the sweet sound.
Thanks dot! And yes indeed, its a dark horse. Will try to post the sound clip when I am next in my wife's native as there is no one here to help with the sound clip.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mayankk View Post
oh, yeh...that too!!
and if possible do a drive by in front of a camera/mic, rather than sticking the mic near the exhaust and revving the car when stationary...
Sure mayank will try and post that

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rudra Sen View Post
Car looks good indeed. Requesting you to share the cost. Not for the audio part but what gone under the hood.
Thank you Rudraji. The cost break up is as below:

Headers & Full exhaust system: 12k
BMC conical air filter: 4k

Quote:
Originally Posted by Skyline GT-R View Post
Think hard & think fast. Please.
Already thought about it and the next immediate upgrade wll be the alloys!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Latheesh View Post
Nice car my friend, please share the cost (for under the hood mods). I have SPARK and completed 26K+ KM as on date. Please check my garage if you are looking for alloys :-). How about white one?
Thanks Latheesh, it was your thread which prompted me to first paint the steel wheel in matte black. But now, i am planning for alloys. Will certainly have a look and visit Satya shortly.

Quick query- Is the PCD of Spark the regular as other cars or is it like fiat. Sorry not able to remember the numbers off the top of my head.

Quote:
Originally Posted by kkg View Post
I strongly feel that Sparks' engine is very refined but at the same time a bit delicate to cope up with any mods or hard driving and revving.
Thanks kkg. And i agree that its very refined and probably delicate. But again when I say revving, i am not taking her to the redline in each gear. No sir, just upto about 3100-3500 rpm in 3, 4 & 5. I think it should be able to cope with this amount of revving.

Quote:
Originally Posted by kkg View Post
BTW, what about the warranty??
You really need the warranty coverage in Spark (ask me). And yes, your's is the first Spark I have heard of that didn't have its rear shocks changed under warranty (you are lucky man).
Warranty for anything related to exhaust system might be void AFAIK. Praying and wishing there are no issues and warranty claims. For the shocks i think they cannot blame the mods, but with the ASC you never know they might blame the mods even for an AC defect!!
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Old 10th May 2011, 12:40   #19
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Quote:
Originally Posted by abhinav.s View Post
Warranty for anything related to exhaust system might be void AFAIK. Praying and wishing there are no issues and warranty claims. For the shocks i think they cannot blame the mods, but with the ASC you never know they might blame the mods even for an AC defect!!
Dont lose sleep because of this, but,
FFE on, engine warranty gone..
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Old 10th May 2011, 13:24   #20
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Quote:
Originally Posted by mayankk View Post
Dont lose sleep because of this, but,
FFE on, engine warranty gone..
I meant to include engine/exhaust system in the previous post but missed the engine bit. But again, just praying that there are no engine troubles. Also if taken care of with proper and timely oil changes, then i think there should not be a problem with the engine.
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Old 11th May 2011, 12:41   #21
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Truly one of a kind spark. Can you please share the following:

1. Pics of the exhaust system. Really want to see how it looks like.

2. Any guarantee / Warranty for the exhaust? I have heard after market exhausts catch rust sooner than OEM ones.

And yeah, you definitely need alloys and tbhp sticker.

Cheers mate.
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Old 11th May 2011, 12:49   #22
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

^^, go for the white one asap :-)
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-a...ml#post1518051
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Old 11th May 2011, 21:03   #23
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Guys, need some help.
Does anyone have experience with a Suspension Upgrade on Spark? What kind of Upgrade options exist and how much they cost? I'd like a firmer ride overall, especially on the rear. Also, is there something that I can do to increase the GC, without changing the Rims and Tyres?
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Old 11th May 2011, 22:01   #24
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Try TEIN, sold by RRP
Products | Suspension and brakes | Red Rooster Performance.

I think (not sure) with TEIN you have the option to adjust them. Check though.

Oh! you are up north. Then try // Speed Sport . Automotive Engineering Solutions . New Delhi . India //
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Old 12th May 2011, 16:42   #25
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

SERVICE UPDATES:

As you all know, the Spark comes with 3 years free service including the oil change and any consumables. The car has under gone 2 free services and 1 assurance check up at 1000 kms.
Trident Chevrolet have done a decent job with the service in all 3 instances. I only spent Rs. 908 so far for oil and filter change during the assurance check up since i got it done from my side. Apart from that there has been no other expenses except for petrol.

After 14 months & 12,000 kms, the car still feels tight and new. A quick pressure wash and polish and she is as good as new. Interiors have held up well and there are no rattles except for an irritating sound from the boot lock when going over fly overs or on bad roads. Need to get this checked in the service next month.

HIGHWAY DRIVING:

I am 6'0 tall and have size 10 feet. The foot well is adequate though a bigger foot well would have been welcome. Heel-toeing is not difficult and probably easier due to the foot well space. Long drives have been a great pleasure in this car and it has always been only 2 people (me and wife). Only time when we traveled with rear pax was from Coorg to Blore and the rear pax did not complain since both were short!!! A dead pedal is sorely missed though!!

The only grouse here is the lower back support which is almost nil once the seat belts are on. So i solve this problem by placing a small cushion near the empty space of the small of my lower back. This solves the issue completely and have never bothered about lower back support after this.

Seat belts are really good and don't hinder me while driving probably owing to my height. But my wife always faces trouble since she is short and it passes exactly near her neck which irritates her to no end!! But being a bhp-ian's wife, she endures it but never travels without seat belt.

The longest i have driven the car is from Blore to Maravanthe beach near Kundapura. We did this in 7 hours driving thru Shiradi and taking the Dharmasthala route. Break was 1 hour total including the bio and lunch breaks. It was a breeze to drive this car and both me and wife never felt tired after the journey. We in fact got freshened up and took a long walk on the beach!! This was before the mods went on.

Taking mild corners at 80kmph does not unsettle the car or frighten the driver/passenger. Sharper curves need to be taken slower of course, but still it can pull with 2 people and luggage comfortably in 3rd gear. In comparison the old Santro LE which we had used to get unsettled in mild corners at 75-80kmph.

Tires are quite good for highway driving and though there is some road noise, once the windows are rolled up and AC gets going, you can hardly make it out. After the mods, the engine note and the good sounding audio set up are all that can be heard. Along with the AC blowers of course!!

Steering is spot on and provides excellent feedback at high speeds. You know what the front tires are up to at all times. In city drives it is light enough even for my wife to park and weighs in well at higher speeds.

NITTY GRITTIES:

Stock headlights are not adequate for highway driving. Specially in the Blore-Mysore stretch where you have a new speed breaker overnight and need to spot it from a far away distance to be able to slow down in time!!

Since the glass area is quite a lot and the front windshield is BIG, the car heats up a lot. Even with sun film all round, it does get heated up but the heat is 40% lesser with the sun films on.

Boot space is sufficient for a nuclear family of husband, wife and a kid. You can fit in 2 medium sized bags and one small bag for that long trip.

Windshield wipers do a good job and don't splash the water onto the driver's lap when cleaning the windshield. This was a major issue with the Indica V2. It used to dump the dirty water onto the driver's lap and the window channels etc.

Visibility in the curves is hampered due to the thick A pillar. You have to keep the windows rolled down to crane your neck out and see if there is on coming traffic.

The circular AC vents are a boon!!! You can place it in the exact direction you want and it does not blow cold air onto your hands. And you can completely shut them off when not required.

The green back lit console is not to my liking and would have probably preferred an orange or white back lit console. But it gives good visibility during the day and night alike.

More as and when i remember!!


Quote:
Originally Posted by quadra View Post
Truly one of a kind spark. Can you please share the following:

1. Pics of the exhaust system. Really want to see how it looks like.

Will do so soon. Have not had a chance to get it up on the ramp yet for some good shots!!

2. Any guarantee / Warranty for the exhaust? I have heard after market exhausts catch rust sooner than OEM ones.

The exhaust is coated with an anti-rust coat. So i guess its good. And the guys were good enough to offer a check once every 5k-7k kms.

And yeah, you definitely need alloys and tbhp sticker.

Cheers mate.
Thanks for your wishes quadra. Alloys on the list

Quote:
Originally Posted by Latheesh View Post
Some nice looking alloys there. Will probably go for white or matte black. Contemplating between the 2.

Last edited by abhinav.s : 12th May 2011 at 16:44.
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Old 26th May 2011, 17:17   #26
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Hi. Did you do any timing runs to check the performance after the upgrades? And more importantly, what was the opinion of the A.S.S on seeing the mods?

I live in Delhi. Is there any place here where I can explore something similar?
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Old 26th May 2011, 18:03   #27
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Good thread man, I myself have a sparky and I guess this is the first ever performance mod thread on a spark that I am looking at

I am still trying to wait for the warranty period (its been 1 year and 5 months only) to get over and then do the mods.

awaiting for under-the-hood pictures
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Old 26th May 2011, 18:33   #28
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

@Abhinav, nice review there. Now all you need is some alloys & importantly the TBHP stickers

Where did you take the pics ?
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Old 26th May 2011, 21:15   #29
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Quote:
Originally Posted by lordavenger View Post
Hi. Did you do any timing runs to check the performance after the upgrades? And more importantly, what was the opinion of the A.S.S on seeing the mods?

I live in Delhi. Is there any place here where I can explore something similar?
I have not done timing runs or dyno'd the car. And to top it all the A.S.S is yet to see the mods!!! Service due in 2 months time. I will get to know then.

I am not sure of the options in Delhi. Sorry.

Quote:
Originally Posted by kenpachigamer View Post
Good thread man, I myself have a sparky and I guess this is the first ever performance mod thread on a spark that I am looking at

I am still trying to wait for the warranty period (its been 1 year and 5 months only) to get over and then do the mods.

awaiting for under-the-hood pictures
Thanks for the comments buddy!! And yes i have taken some under the hood pics as well as the pic of the exhaust system when the car was hoisted up for a thorough wash. But they are mobile pics and the damn cable to transfer the pics is not working. Will post them soon!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by condor View Post
@Abhinav, nice review there. Now all you need is some alloys & importantly the TBHP stickers

Where did you take the pics ?
Thanks Condor! The pics were en-route to Mallalli falls near Somwarpet. One of the many trips which the Sparky took us on. The trip was before the mods.

Need to get the alloys and the TBHP stickers ASAP.
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Old 27th May 2011, 09:29   #30
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Re: One of a kind!! Chevy Spark PS with mild performance mods! :D

Quote:
Originally Posted by abhinav.s View Post
I have not done timing runs or dyno'd the car. And to top it all the A.S.S is yet to see the mods!!! Service due in 2 months time. I will get to know then.

I am not sure of the options in Delhi. Sorry.
Oh well, here's hoping that the A.S.S does not freak out on seeing those. Do let us know what their reactions were.
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