[bala80]

Hopefully I should get everything sorted out soon. There is a reason why people prefer to keep their car as stock as possible. I suggest you to do the same. You can take an informed decision based on our experience.

Originally Posted by nileshch

Bala, sad to hear about all the problems you are facing with the tyre upgrade and squeaking sounds. Looking at all these issues faced by you and Sourav, I am not planning to change my tires soon. My steering has weighed down over the last few thousand kms and I am pretty comfortable now.

About the squeaks, I am surprised so many of you are facing problems and not me . I listen very carefully every day for any sounds but none so far. My Blue has happily crossed 12k kms now and getting more and more joyful to drive!

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by bala80

There is a reason why people prefer to keep their car as stock as possible.

Very valid point Bala. This is something I am looking at for my next car purchase – to keep it stock with minimum or no updates.

I have a question – just out of curiosity. What makes the car behave differently when the tyres are changed?
Change in grip, ride quality, road noise etc. are understandable, but what brings in the change in steering feel/behavior? Especially if you not messed with the tyre size.

Thanks!

[souravc]

Originally Posted by nileshch

Looking at all these issues faced by you and Sourav, I am not planning to change my tires soon.

Nilesh , I am very happy with my C Drives - 2 factors need to be kept in mind however (1) Any of these tyres have softer side walls be it Michelins, Yokos, Contis, etc - its a trade off ! Have completed nearly 5k on my Yokos on the usual bad Mumbai roads ( my daily office commute) without any punctures , etc . The slicing through was my bad luck at its worst, I would treat it as one off
(2) Light steering has never seen as an issue for me ( being fed a steady diet of Maruti steering over the years) as long as the steering is inch perfect - in my car the steering remained perfect and the weighing up remained the same

If the noise is not an issue then why spend 20 grand extra - at least let the Apollos run its life

Originally Posted by bala80

Hopefully I should get everything sorted out soon. There is a reason why people prefer to keep their car as stock as possible. I suggest you to do the same. You can take an informed decision based on our experience.

Fully agree - thats why I always buy the highest variant of the car I like. Apollos noise on Mumbai roads was extra special so my hand was forced.

[bala80]

The following link was suggested to me when I asked the same question on this thread before, Please go through and let me know if it helps (Disclaimer - I havent gone through it yet completely )

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2614307

Originally Posted by vb-san

Very valid point Bala. This is something I am looking at for my next car purchase – to keep it stock with minimum or no updates.

I have a question – just out of curiosity. What makes the car behave differently when the tyres are changed?
Change in grip, ride quality, road noise etc. are understandable, but what brings in the change in steering feel/behavior? Especially if you not messed with the tyre size.

With every new experience you learn new things, isnt it? While the decision to change the tyres was still the right one, one disadvantage was the lack of choices in 205/55/15 spec, which had the lowest deviation from the original spec. This would have been a perfect upgrade compared to 195/60 which is more oriented towards ride quality.

If I had an choice to turn back the hands of time, I would have replaced the torn apollo aceleres with a new one and moved on. For a stock tyre, they were not too bad and can take quite a bit of abuse. As far as noise is concerned, i would consider that as an incentive to upgrade my ICE . Buying the vento was more a decision from the heart and not the head and hence I expect such similar experience to continue.

P.S - JVC HU has arrived, installation scheduled for next tuesday - 10th Jan.

Originally Posted by souravc

Fully agree - thats why I always buy the highest variant of the car I like. Apollos noise on Mumbai roads was extra special so my hand was forced.

[bala80]

Hectic Day - But finally the much awaited ICE install has been completed and I'm very glad with the initial impressions.

My priority was sound quality and combination of the equipments that have gone in, seem to just acheive it right. The bass is tight unlike the boomy one's which is what I wanted and music clarity is fantastic. Very quickly auditioned a few songs and the results were quite satisfactory. I couldn't spend much time playing around with the controls today, since I have an official trip scheduled tonight and hence will be back only by next week.

Overall damage to the wallet - Around 50k, but I beleive its worth the money spent. Special mention to the morel maximo components, they do a fantastic job upfront. I have all the bills, details with me, will post more and some pictures by next week.

From what I have seen and heard so far, I'm pretty happy with this upgrade.

[bottle]

^Congrats Bala, hope to get an audition someday and see how much difference there is over the stock system. Have to say I'm hardly listening to music with stock ICE

[bala80]

Thanks bottle. I thought of giving you a buzz during the schedule, but official developments spoiled everything. I left my car with saravana yesterday and picked it up again this afternoon. I was in a hurry to get my tickets ready for an overseas travel tonight, that I even forgot to pick up the stock HU and speakers from the shop. I would definitely come back again sometime next week to pick them up. Will plan to meet you at leisure.

For what its worth I was offered 2k for the stock system. Speakers will go to garbage bin. I have decided to retain the stock setup with me.

Originally Posted by bottle

^Congrats Bala, hope to get an audition someday and see how much difference there is over the stock system. Have to say I'm hardly listening to music with stock ICE

[bala80]

Some pics of the ICE install

[xtremeshock]

Congrats on a very nice install, hope you are enjoying it.

Where did you get the install done? what would be your feedback of the place?

[bala80]

Thank you xtremeshock, I got my install done through

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...h-chennai.html

This place was recommended to me by fellow bhpians and the quality of work done is top notch. The feedback from our forum members speak for themselves. All the equipments are with B&W. Speakers and Amplifier carry a one year warranty whereas the HU carries a 2 year manufacturer warranty (Got it through e-bay).

Originally Posted by xtremeshock

Congrats on a very nice install, hope you are enjoying it.

Where did you get the install done? what would be your feedback of the place?

[MutantX]

Originally Posted by bala80

Thank you xtremeshock, I got my install done through

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...h-chennai.html

This place was recommended to me by fellow bhpians and the quality of work done is top notch. The feedback from our forum members speak for themselves. All the equipments are with B&W. Speakers and Amplifier carry a one year warranty whereas the HU carries a 2 year manufacturer warranty (Got it through e-bay).

Hello bala, the installation looks neat. Mind posting the split of cost of the components. Also a mini review of the setup with complete details of each components will be great.

[testing2000]

Hi Bala,

Finally I got my black Vento last week (HL Diesel), guess yours too HL.

I am planning for the HU upgrage, what do you do with the old system and speakers?

And most importantly, what happen to those reverse sensors?

Originally Posted by bala80

Thank you xtremeshock, I got my install done through

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...h-chennai.html

[bala80]

Following is the split up of the cost -

JVC AVX 646 - 16500 (DVD player without bluetooth)
Auditor 4 Channel Amp (4X150W RMS) - 7500
Morel Maximo 6.5" Components 90 RMS - 5750
Morel 6.5" Co-axials 90 RMS - 3650
12" JL Audio Subwoofer 300 RMS - 5200
Enclosure for Sub woofer - 1500
8 Gauge Wiring W Fuse, 2XRCA's,14 Gauge OFC Spkr Wiring, Group Cable&Loom - 2850
Spacer rings (4 Nos) - 500
VW OE Harness - 400
VW Antenna Harness - 650
Double Din Facia - 2200
Installation Charge - 1800

Total - 48500/-

I will post the review after using it for a while. I have just used it for a couple of days and from what I have heard so far, it sounds very good indeed.

Originally Posted by MutantX

Hello bala, the installation looks neat. Mind posting the split of cost of the components. Also a mini review of the setup with complete details of each components will be great.

Congratulations, enjoy your car. For the moment I have the HU and speakers, they offered 2k for only the HU (nothing for the speakers) and I preferred to keep it myself. You can list it in tbhp classifieds if you'd want to sell it off. Since you have the post refresh HU, you may be able to get a better price for it.

I'm not too sure about the rear parking sensor integeration and I suggest you to speak to some knowledgable installers to get an idea about it. Mine was a pre-refresh HL and hence didnt have the parking sensors.

Originally Posted by testing2000

Hi Bala,

Finally I got my black Vento last week (HL Diesel), guess yours too HL.

I am planning for the HU upgrage, what do you do with the old system and speakers?

And most importantly, what happen to those reverse sensors?

[MutantX]

Bala, I learned from one of your posts that you know someone who can source OE alloys at cheap rates. Can you please provide me with the contact. I am also looking for OE SWIFT alloys. Thanks in advance.

Regards,
Arun

[bala80]

Oh no! That was for the VW alloys which costs 20k when bought from VW. For swift it shouldnt be more than 5k to 6k per alloy and I dont think you can source it any cheap outside, unless it is a used piece. I will still send you the shop details and you can enquire there, but when I went there I saw the 16" multispoke design that the international models are shod with, trust me they looked super hot!

Why not go for that instead? Swift Will look drop dead gorgeous.

Originally Posted by MutantX

Bala, I learned from one of your posts that you know someone who can source OE alloys at cheap rates. Can you please provide me with the contact. I am also looking for OE SWIFT alloys. Thanks in advance.

Regards,
Arun