[Fordmanchau]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Update: Third tankfull. The average is now a little above 11.

11 for a 1.6mill is great honeybee.
With a 1.3 mill on my Ikon, I sometime struggle to get anything above 10kmpl. But my city drives mostly comprise home-office-home trips which are in bumper to bumper traffic.
but anyways, great that you are getting a decent FE.
Keep updating as you go about doing all the repairs.
And good that you are doing fine without the horns, but my advise would be to get it repair and keep it in working condition , you don't know when you get to use it.
All the best.

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by dhanushs

Pay ~700 bucks, and get and aftermarket USB player installed in the cassette player. Much more convenient and economical than the good 'ol cassette player.

Planned work

Steering ball joint replacement: Already identified as a problem that requires replacement.

Brakes: They do stop the car, but in a few sudden braking incidents I haven't been very confident about the same. Sometimes the brakes remind me of the Fiat's all drum braking experience. So a complete overhaul of the braking system is on cards. Brake pads and shoes, along with the discs will be checked and cleaned, and replaced if needed.

Cooling system: No heating issues yet, so a visual inspection would do.

Belts: Visual inspection and replacement if necessary.

Fluids: Engine oil and oil filter replacement. I shall be using a semi-synthetic oil as I have no idea which oil currently is inside. Fully synthetic may be a bit costly for now. Along with the engine oil, the brake oil (which is also the transmission oil) will also be replaced.

Air filter: to be replaced

Fuel filter: will be inspected and replaced if necessary

Spark Plugs: to be replaced

Ignition Coil: Inspection and replacement if necessary

Air Conditioning: Needs major attention as yesterday at 10:30am in the morning, the AC simply failed to make a difference. However if it's something major except the gas, it will have to wait.

Windows: rear door windows need a check and lubrication.

Once these items are taken care of, the accessorization part will be planned.

Lighting upgrades include getting foglamps and clear lens headlamps or simply upgrading the bulbs. The accessory shop guy informs me that the Ikon already comes with silicon holders and the stock wires are good to go for 90/100 and so only the bulbs need to be upgraded and a relay added. This way I would avoid cutting into the headlight cover for the additional wiring. If that indeed is the case, this mod should be under 1k. If it's doable, I shall give it a go and after analysing it will decide if clear lens headlights and/or foglights will be required. Now that the rains are getting over, foglights may not be a priority.

Then comes the audio system, and if getting an OE / replacement doesn't work, I shall have to make some temporary arrangements.

The last item on the sheet would be the tyres. I want to hold back onto this item as it's a major item and also the car would not really see the highways for another two months. So this will be done after everything else has been done.

My target is to inch up the FE to above 12, and if possible, 13 for my daily runs. For highways I would aim for more than 14. In the beginning I was really revving the machine high and enjoying the thrust, but over the last two weeks I have settled down to a more gradual acceleration. That too, I think, has played some role in improving the FE.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by Fordmanchau

11 for a 1.6mill is great honeybee.
With a 1.3 mill on my Ikon, I sometime struggle to get anything above 10kmpl. But my city drives mostly comprise home-office-home trips which are in bumper to bumper traffic.

If I am not wrong, your one-way trip to office is around 3 kms only. This being so, the engine hardly gets warmed up, and hence the poor FE.

[Fordmanchau]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

If I am not wrong, your one-way trip to office is around 3 kms only. This being so, the engine hardly gets warmed up, and hence the poor FE.

Nah Venu sir, my daily running has increased to around 14.3Kms daily.
7.1 km up and 7.2 km down after my wife's office moved to rd no 3. And from next month I will be moving to the Durgam Cheurvu office. Mostly our office will move completely this month end. so the running is going to increase, alongwith the petrol cost :(

Originally Posted by honeybee

Lighting upgrades include getting foglamps and clear lens headlamps or simply upgrading the bulbs. The accessory shop guy informs me that the Ikon already comes with silicon holders and the stock wires are good to go for 90/100 and so only the bulbs need to be upgraded and a relay added. This way I would avoid cutting into the headlight cover for the additional wiring.

If you deliberately want to add the relay, then you will have cut through the sealed plastic cap. Adding the relay is not required if the holders are capable of taking 90/100 bulbs. I myself added the relay for about 900 bucks, though I was told it was not required for Ikon for 90/100 bulbs.
So avoid adding the relay, if you are just going to upgrade to 90/100.
90/100 would improve the lights substantially. Initially I was too happy with the light, upgraded in March 2010, but now i am feeling the light has dimmed a little, though might be i'll have to re-align and check.
Also, if budget permits, do add the fog lights, it's very useful in rains and low lights and helps a lot.

Originally Posted by honeybee

The last item on the sheet would be the tyres. I want to hold back onto this item as it's a major item and also the car would not really see the highways for another two months. So this will be done after everything else has been done.

i would say, put this before the accessories after you are done with the mechanicals. Good tyre with correct air pressure would greatly help your target to achieve good FE.

Originally Posted by honeybee

My target is to inch up the FE to above 12, and if possible, 13 for my daily runs. For highways I would aim for more than 14.

Coming from a santro, i can understand you excitement to revv the Ikon .
Now that you have sobered down, I know you will get better FE, but I feel 13 for the city would be very hard. 12 would be ideal. For Highways you can target around 15-16.
My 1.3 has gone till 17.6kmpl on highway with my constant above 100kmph speeds and a/c on.

[honeybee]

Here are a few images of the interior and most importantly the engine bay.

Look at the 006_Edited and 015_Edited carefully. The 006_Edited shows a cavity right under the wipers section and 015_Edited shows the object I found today in that cavity. Ain't that amazing!

I am a little worried about this gap. Is this a normal feature? The wiper linkages are pretty much exposed to the elements and a lot of garbage will eventually find its way in (dirt, dust, leaves. It's big enough for a rat to start breeding a whole family!). So I want to also know if there's a way to cover it.

There are a couple of shots of the interior. Please note, after acquiring the car I haven't yet washed the engine bay or even the interiors!

Also I suspect the car already has a relay, you can see it on the LHS of the bay, on the firewall, a typical PMP type relay (I had a similar one in my M800!).

One interesting question is I haven't found the headlamp adjustment screws. At least if they are there, I don't think they are meant to be used by the vehicle owners. Can someone help?

[Fordmanchau]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Look at the 006_Edited and 015_Edited carefully. The 006_Edited shows a cavity right under the wipers section and 015_Edited shows the object I found today in that cavity. Ain't that amazing!

That's shocking!! you found a plier stuck there beneath.
So you got a great deal on your car, a plier free
But i wonder how it managed to survive there for so long? when did you discovered it ?

Originally Posted by honeybee

I am a little worried about this gap. Is this a normal feature? The wiper linkages are pretty much exposed to the elements and a lot of garbage will eventually find its way in (dirt, dust, leaves. It's big enough for a rat to start breeding a whole family!). So I want to also know if there's a way to cover it.

Don't worry about the gap. My Ikon has it too and till now no rat, cat or anything found it a good place to inhabit.
My car is mostly parked under the tree during office hours, and all leaves, twigs, etc accumulate over the time.
During last service I asked the SA to get it vaccumed, but they air blowed it as vaccum hose was big for that space and they were surprised to see how much dead leafs I collected.
So that gap is not an issue.

Can't help with the headlight adjustment screw, Dhanush would be the right person to ask.
Can't make out clearly, if there's a relay there. I have my doubts. I'll post a pic of the relay from my car tomorrow.

[pankaj_sachdeva]

Originally Posted by honeybee

One interesting question is I haven't found the headlamp adjustment screws. At least if they are there, I don't think they are meant to be used by the vehicle owners. Can someone help?

and here you go. Please check the following post

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ml#post2482210

I adjusted the headlight beams few days ago in my ikon with Bhpian dhanushs's help.

[honeybee]

Thanks Pankaj for the link! I remember going through the DIY thread, but somehow I forgot about it. I shall check the screws again when I get a chance (and a screwdriver).

I tried to attach the relay pic, but the uploading is failing consistently. Will try again later.

[honeybee]

An update on some of the works carried out:

Switched to higher wattage bulbs. The relay is already there, and the bulbs were 55/60w. The light spread is now much better. Also got a single wheelcap (original Ford) fitted, as the car only had three. Whole thing cost me Rs. 400/-

The casette player has been taken out and sent for repairs. I am planning to keep it if it can work.

Today got the following work done:

Engine oil and oil filter changed (Quartz 7000 10w40, 4 ltrs consumed, half litre kept as backup)
AC blower and cooling coil removed, serviced/cleaned and fitted back
Both horns adjusted
Air filter checked
Spark plugs changed (I got original Ford marked spark plugs, Rs. 89/- apiece)

Air filter was found to be clean enough not to warrant replacement. Spark plugs are still good, but I still went ahead and replaced them. Have retained the earlier ones as backup.

Ball joint replacement was not done as the material hadn't arrived and the mechanic was busy with other commitments. He said it would take around two full days to get it done.

Material cost less than Rs. 2000/-
Labour cost around 600/-

Effect of bulb upgrade is immediately visible as the light now spreads better and is brighter.
Horn fixing will surely help, but I am still in two minds if I should resort to honking now. It's so much better to not honk.
Engine oil replacement hasn't shown any noticeable change yet. I did notice that after switching on the engine, it briefly scales up to around 2000 rpms before moving back to around 800 rpm (which is its normal idling rpm).
Blower and cooling coil cleanup was immediately noticeable in the increased speed of air flowing through the vents as the blower speed increases. No significant difference felt in the cooling yet. The mechanics tell me the cooling will be more effective as time passes, so will check that out.

[pankaj_sachdeva]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Switched to higher wattage bulbs. The relay is already there, and the bulbs were 55/60w. The light spread is now much better. Also got a single wheelcap (original Ford) fitted, as the car only had three. Whole thing cost me Rs. 400/-

Was the relay installed by the previous owner? Asking this because I have to install the relay while upgrading the bulbs to 90/100 in my car

Engine oil and oil filter changed (Quartz 7000 10w40, 4 ltrs consumed, half litre kept as backup)

Can you please share the cost for the oil. I am planning to use Quartz during next service instead of Castrol Magnatec.

Spark plugs changed (I got original Ford marked spark plugs, Rs. 89/- apiece)

Did you sourced the spark plugs from Ford A.S.S or are they available in open market?

& finally good to see you pampering the 1.6 beast.

[honeybee]

The relay was already there, so I am assuming the previous owner had installed it. However the bulbs were 55/60w, which doesn't make much sense. The relay, too, is the PMP brand shiny yellow metal box with three wires on one side and two on the other. The kind I had installed in my M800 a few years back. For now I am leaving it as it is. Once it gives up, I shall upgrade to a Hella or a similar one.

Everyone I have consulted so far has told me the Ikon doesn't actually need a relay as the stock wiring can easily accomodate 90/100, but one never knows.

Here's the breakup as per the cash memo:

Oil filter: Rs. 142/-
Oil (4ltr): Rs. 1022
Oil (1/2 ltr): Rs. 151
Spark Plugs (4): Rs. 356

Total: Rs. 1671
Vat: Rs. 209
Net: Rs. 1880


All material sourced from a local parts dealer, and not from ASC. I don't know if the Ford branded spark plugs are available in the open market, or if this seller had some old ones lying around. Heck, I don't even know if they are original Ford and not some duplicate, but I know the seller to be a genuine one so I would trust him not to push duplicate products under the OE name.

The real pampering would come later when I go choose the tyres. The quote I have received for Michelins is over 4k for a single tyre. That's a tough choice.

Have attached the stock NGK plug and the Ford plug (box) pics FYI.

[pankaj_sachdeva]

Originally Posted by honeybee

The relay was already there, so I am assuming the previous owner had installed it. However the bulbs were 55/60w, which doesn't make much sense. The relay, too, is the PMP brand shiny yellow metal box with three wires on one side and two on the other. The kind I had installed in my M800 a few years back. For now I am leaving it as it is. Once it gives up, I shall upgrade to a Hella or a similar one.

Everyone I have consulted so far has told me the Ikon doesn't actually need a relay as the stock wiring can easily accomodate 90/100, but one never knows.

Here's the breakup as per the cash memo:

Oil filter: Rs. 142/-
Oil (4ltr): Rs. 1022
Oil (1/2 ltr): Rs. 151
Spark Plugs (4): Rs. 356

Total: Rs. 1671
Vat: Rs. 209
Net: Rs. 1880

The real pampering would come later when I go choose the tyres. The quote I have received for Michelins is over 4k for a single tyre. That's a tough choice.

Have attached the stock NGK plug and the Ford plug (box) pics FYI.

Thanks for the break-up and pics. My FNG suggested to add the relay while bulb upgrade just to be on the safer side. The relay came with ceramic holders and complete wiring kit.

I am looking to change the tyres on my car too. Have you checked bridgestone pricing too. I am inclining towards Bridgestone AR10s.

Does your car came shod with 13 inchers ?

[honeybee]

Yes, I replied on your Ford Ikon ownership thread that my Ikon 1.6 too comes with 13" as stock. I don't intend to upsize or go for alloys at this stage (too much moolah required and plus it will play foul with the odo and FE figures)

I haven't checked the Bridgestones yet. Nobody here seems to be pushing them. I find dealers pushing Michelins (no wonder there), one of them is also pushing Maxxis, while the other suggested Goodyear.

Last evening as I was checking with the tyre shop owner, he gave me a piece of his mind as to the state of the business. It seems no tyre company is interested to honour warranty claims, whether genuine or not. The only company offering all kinds of warranty, in his opinion, is CEAT which has a chronic service problem and doesn't have tubeless (??). Since all tyres are off warranty, I am further inclined to save my moolah. The dealer quoted a 4k+ price for Michelins for my Ikon, which is an outrageously high 20k for all five tyres. At this cost I would prefer to keep the eight year old MRFs on.

I have been shamelessly asking my mechanic and even this tyre guy about MRFs, knowing well they wouldn't recommend it. But if the MRFs on my Ikon served for eight years and still going strong, I want to check them out for sure, tyre noise be damned.

Since I also have a Santro which too needs a new set of shoes, I am also thinking of using the Santro to test a tyre so that I can then decide for the Ikon. Since a Rs. 100/- per tyre comes to Rs. 500/- which will buy me about three days' of petrol, I don't simply want to spend big bucks after big brands.

[razorBlades]

congrats honeybee on your purchase. I too got myself a 1.6 SXI lately and thanks for sharing your experiences. Will keep an eye on this thread

[honeybee]

Update: Finally got the mechanic to look into the mechanicals. Surprise surprise! After removing the front right wheel, he inspected the ball joint and claimed it to be perfectly alright!

Now the question why the thud thud sound. He mounted the wheel back and then holding it at the top and bottom, and then right and left, tried to move it. To our amazement the top of the strut moved with every movement of the wheel! The strut was removed and the kit was found to have gone bad. (the kit is the rubber gasket/seal around the top of the strut where the strut emerges into the engine bay) The spring was removed and the damper checked. I could press the rod down all the way by my hand, and the mechanic said it's gone bad.

So the damage is now front shock absorbers. I asked him to open the rear shocks as well, but he was to take a lunch break and I would have to wait a while to know the status.

Late afternoon the rear shock was opened and it too had packed up. This particular one didn't rebound after compressing, so there was no question about its health. Four shock absorbers ordered along with the necessary assembly such as kits. Damage expected is around 15k. They will arrive tomorrow and will go onto the car Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile I got the boot door key lock serviced (it was opened, sprayed with a WD-40 like material and fitted back. So the boot can now be opened with the key. The rear left door motor mechanism was opened and serviced today (while I was absent so I couldn't take any pics), and has been set right. So most niggles have now been resolved.

I am facing a weird issue where the accelerator pedal doesn't seem eager to move, and so I cannot revv it up easily. Have asked the mech to look into it. He will likely use the WD-40 on the accelerator pedal connecting to the cable and hopefully it should resolve the problem.


An update on the tyre front: Visited the local MRF dealer and enquired about the tyres. The Ikon tyres are priced at Rs. 3900/- each, which places it above the lowest Michelin quote I have received (which incidentally is at the next door shop). So it looks like finally I shall have to go for Michelins.

The injectors were removed today and I have carried them home. Will be taking them to a servicing station in the vicinity of my office for cleaning. They should go back onto the car by Tuesday too.

The end can (dholaki as called by the mech) has rusted and will fall apart in a few months, after which the exhaust note will turn 'sporty' so to speak. Saturday I shall try and address it.

I have attached a few pics of the injectors here: Amazing how small the holes are! Can't believe sprayes of fuel from such microscopic holes power the whole 1600cc beast!