[Reinhard]

Originally Posted by powertrain

Beige interior coloring means they color the interior in beige color !!
Yes, it is done at the dealership. My Dealer quoted Rs.35,000/- for it. The finishing seems to be good,but I have no idea if the paint will peel off under our harsh sun. My dealer is giving me a 1 year warranty for it. I'm uploading some snaps for your reference. I hope automachine does not mind me hijacking his thread !!!!
Hope this helps
Varun Nair

powertrain, is that a paint job really? Or are they changing the panels with beige coloured ones? The finish looks quite good if its a paint over the original gray. However, I'd opt for the original gray instead of a painted beige personally, as the risk of it getting damaged later on is too high in our weather / handling conditions.

[revintup]

Originally Posted by powertrain

Beige interior coloring means they color the interior in beige color !!

Oh that really clears up the matter !

Thanks for the pics. Had no idea such a thing was possible. However 35,000 seems to be on the higher side especially if there is a risk of it coming off. Will show the pics to my uncle so he can decide.

[motomaverick]

Congrats automachine on the Q-Class car Happy Motoring for the future. So what all accessories have you added?

[anoop.mathew]

Congratulations, automachine!

Please do update us with your car's fuel efficiency and city/highway driving experiences. The ETIOS diesel is one of the cars in my shortlist and I would like to get as much information as possible from actual owners.

[parsh]

Originally Posted by Reinhard

powertrain, is that a paint job really? Or are they changing the panels with beige coloured ones? The finish looks quite good if its a paint over the original gray. However, I'd opt for the original gray instead of a painted beige personally, as the risk of it getting damaged later on is too high in our weather / handling conditions.

Originally Posted by revintup

Oh that really clears up the matter !

Thanks for the pics. Had no idea such a thing was possible. However 35,000 seems to be on the higher side especially if there is a risk of it coming off. Will show the pics to my uncle so he can decide.

Its a vinyl dipping coat over the existing panels. The panels are removed, dipped in the vinyl coat and heat treated for forming solid layer and re-fitted back. If you have seen the Faux Wood Panels in cars, it is the similar way this is done. Only the faux wood panels are made glossy and this is a matt finish. Longetivity or peeling off may not be an issue with it as the vinyl coat is treated well and is not just a paint job.

However, before considering this, better re-think. The existing grey panels though feel letdown are good quality only little dampening for feel. And it may be better to invest in other things to better your car, like for music system, tyre noise (cabin noise) reduction, carpet lamination, thick underbody anti-rust coat, high quality sun-films etc, than invest in this. This is just a feel good thing.

[vigsom]

@powertrain and @revintup

Those pics are impressive , but I would not advise anyone to get this mod done

Reason:the panels would need to be removed,and first treated with plastic primer before applying the dull ivory finish ; and the primer applicication can show the difference between a great finish and something that would peel off.

I have seen scores of cars where the interior looks crap after 2 years of such treatment.

In my opinion,the dark stock shade looks best and is easy to maintain too ; beige panels look real shabby when dirty

Remember , the Mitsu Cedia sports comes in dark grey ; I think beige is now getting to be obsolete.

[automachine]

@powertrain : The beige interiors do look great. However I think it is best to stick to the original finish.

By the way guys, I just completed 1500+ kms and the Etios is due for first service. Should I change the oil at first service?
I did about 700 kms of highway run and the car handled well on Ahmedabad - Valsad highway trip. The light steering does not become lifeless at any point and that aids in the handling. I drove mostly around 100 kmph and hit 140 kmph at one point. Engine noise does increase slightly at 120 and then at 140. The car does handle well with enough power to cruise @ 100-120 range. I did check the tyre pressure before hitting the highways and had it set to 32 psi. However I think the petrol pump air pressure meter might be faulty as I did feel the bounciness when going over rough patch.

[automachine]

Its been exactly one month with my Etios VD and I thought of writing an update after hectic festival season. My Etios has covered over 2100 kms so far with mix of city and highway drives and the first service done at 1600 kms. I did a tank full method to calculate FE for a distance of 630 Kms and having a mix of 60% highway driving and 40% city driving with AC ON almost all the time. I got FE of about 17.11 km per litre of diesel. Also to be noted that I am a bit light footed while driving so the FE figures are fine. Now a little bit on the way the car behaves. Well as I have mentioned earlier, the steering is a delight and the car feels easy on hands with precision. Also the brakes the braking is confidence inspiring. I have had 3M underbody rubber coating done and that has improved the road noise to some extent.

The car is able to cruise comfortably @ 100 kmph with rpm @2000. The engine noise increases a bit @120 kmph and the noise increases to slightly uncomfortable level @140 kmph. Note that run to 140 was for a brief period to just test the engine noise level. With four adults it becomes important to keep the rpm above 1500 to extract the right amount of power. Same is the case when overtaking quickly even with two adults seated. But of course this was expected given the 67bhp power of the Etios D. The one grouse I have regarding the drive is that over a slightly rough patch the car tends to bounce with vibration, sometimes so much so that the vibrations and impact are felt on the ear as if someone just shook you violently. I did check the tyre pressure twice and it was at the recommended 32 psi level.

One more annoying thing is the turbo whistle which is noticeable between speedo level 60 to 90 kmph. Anyways these two are the only downside I have found so far though not sure if it is normal for this car or anything that I can get rectified. I have not upgraded the stock ICE and my plan is to just add the rear speaker. I have shortlisted JBL GTO 948 for the rear. I think it would be good to have some sound damping for the front doors. Also plan is to have the 3M sun film, however still deciding whether to go for SP 35 or CS 35. I am looking for some DIY solution for getting the door rubber beading (not the rubber gasket which is already present to prevent water seepage) or the windshield rubber trim done to prevent dust and particles from settling in those areas.

Anyone has any ideas?

[automachine]

Few interior pics

Flaxxon dual horns


Engine bay


Front dash and seats


Rear seats


Notice the damping and insulation materials below pedals. Are these good enough?

[RadiantKarma]

Originally Posted by automachine

The one grouse I have regarding the drive is that over a slightly rough patch the car tends to bounce with vibration, sometimes so much so that the vibrations and impact are felt on the ear as if someone just shook you violently.

Is the vibration and sound from the front wheels or from the rear? Or both? Also does the sound/vibrations also come while moving over speed breaker at speed?

[automachine]

Originally Posted by RadiantKarma

Is the vibration and sound from the front wheels or from the rear? Or both? Also does the sound/vibrations also come while moving over speed breaker at speed?

I have been trying various speeds over the same patch of road which is between my office and home to understand this bounciness. Let me provide some more details. First the car handles minor potholes well. However when it encounters a patched road which has minor bump or rough surface then at speeds around 40 kmph and above there is a bounciness observed with few resonant vibration of the car front body when the car goes over such surface. Also over some of those patched road the car just jumps up in air and sometime you can feel as if the car hit a rock below and the sharp shock is felt at the steering wheel too. This is more likely to occur at 40 kmph and above speeds. It think this is due to the light weight of the car and suspension setup. Note that overall the suspension is well tuned and this is just a particular problem I have noticed.

[swiftnfurious]

Your interiors look better than the top trim with the red color. This is sedate & refreshing to the mind than the hard hitting red.

Originally Posted by automachine

Should I change the oil at first service?

Did you change the oil during the first service?

Originally Posted by automachine

I did a tank full method to calculate FE for a distance of 630 Kms and having a mix of 60% highway driving and 40% city driving with AC ON almost all the time. I got FE of about 17.11 km per litre of diesel. Also to be noted that I am a bit light footed while driving so the FE figures are fine.

Sorry, but for a light footed driver, with 60% NH drive, the FE looks to be on the lower side. Your normal 100% city drive should yield you 17 kmpl. Now with 60% ride on NH at around 100 kmph should get you an average of about 20 kmpl is what I feel; going by an ARAI FE of 23 kml.

[automachine]

@swiftnfurious: I did not change the oil at first service. I asked the SA to do it but he said it was not needed. Even a private workshop guy whom I know mentioned that it is not required.
The FE was calculated while the first service was done almost midway of the total calculated kms. It does seem to be low compared to ARAI but I was told by the service advisors that it would improve after 4-5K kms.

[RadiantKarma]

Originally Posted by automachine

I have been trying various speeds over the same patch of road which is between my office and home to understand this bounciness. Let me provide some more details. First the car handles minor potholes well. However when it encounters a patched road which has minor bump or rough surface then at speeds around 40 kmph and above there is a bounciness observed with few resonant vibration of the car front body when the car goes over such surface. Also over some of those patched road the car just jumps up in air and sometime you can feel as if the car hit a rock below and the sharp shock is felt at the steering wheel too. This is more likely to occur at 40 kmph and above speeds. It think this is due to the light weight of the car and suspension setup. Note that overall the suspension is well tuned and this is just a particular problem I have noticed.

By any chance, do you find any similarity with the suspension behaviour of my Etios as mentioned in the following post of my thread here?
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2584321

[automachine]

Originally Posted by RadiantKarma

By any chance, do you find any similarity with the suspension behaviour of my Etios as mentioned in the following post of my thread here?
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2584321

I think the judder when the car hits a bump seems similar to what I am observing. I am not sure about the shriek noise that you have mentioned. The only sound I could remember at that time was the 'thud' or 'thuk' sound which could be the front springs or suspension part getting fully compressed or decompressed when hitting something quickly. Other than the noise the noticeable fact is the impact force felt to the driver holding the steering wheel. This was felt at even low speeds of 25+ kmph when going over certain type of rough, bumpy road.