[Apple Master]

Originally Posted by Wanderers

Hi Apple Master, How do you rate the attitude & service quality of Topsel Service Center staff.

During the two visits in Topsel Toyota ASC I have found the service executives who interacted with me to be attentive and well mannered. Most of them listened to the problems. There may have been one or two exceptions like the in-charge of the mechanics who was there during the 1st service, he was rude. Except that guy till now I felt all other employees of ASC to be courteous.

As for the service quality there are two aspects. If you ask me, the end product of the service that they offered was satisfactory. But I am not so happy with how they do it, the things we are not authorized to see. The first time that I went to the car wash area, I found the guys who drove the cars from general checkup area to car wash to be careless. They were revving the car like crazy and driving at alarming speeds within the compound. I was not allowed to stay there for long by the security person, who escorted me back to the waiting area.

It was like some incident waiting to happen. May be that was the reason behind one of my wheel caps getting abrasion. But that's water under the bridge. There were other instances of carefree attitude of the mechanics.

So what I'm trying to say is, inside the building under AC you will find everything fine but outside your car might be in some wrong hands. I was lucky to have a minor abrasion on a wheel cap, but that may not be the case next time. So, I remain alert and checkout the out of bounds area regularly during the tenure of my car service.

[subratasenn]

Originally Posted by Wanderers

I hope Toyota's are different in Kolkata as having driven Maruti, Honda, Hyundai, Mahindra & Toyota, I find Toyota ASC to be the best of the mentioned lot.

I never had a problem with Maruti service, specially with Machino Techno whose service quality was quite decent.

But as compared to Machino, I found Topsel to be top-notch. My experience with 27K kilometres with Toyota made me feel that their service quality was way above Maruti. Not that Maruti is bad, but well, they are always under pressure with so much volume to handle.

It will be really sad if Toyota service deteriorates in Kolkata.

[Wanderers]

Originally Posted by subratasenn

I never had a problem with Maruti service, specially with Machino Techno whose service quality was quite decent.

But as compared to Machino, I found Topsel to be top-notch. My experience with 27K kilometres with Toyota made me feel that their service quality was way above Maruti. Not that Maruti is bad, but well, they are always under pressure with so much volume to handle.

It will be really sad if Toyota service deteriorates in Kolkata.

Hi Subratasenn,

My experience is based on services of Jalan and Deewar's Garage between 1994 to 1998.
It was not the number of cars, which they had to cater but the attitude of service people including the cashiers and others in office.

In those days, number of cars serviced per day was in the range of 30-50 as compared to today's 100+ Car.

I believe, only after Maruti went for privatization, the new dealers & ASC were appointed based on their merit & quality. Earlier it was like Petrol Pump Allotment.

[Apple Master]

After a lot of consideration and discussion I have decide to install rear speakers in Etios. Obviously I haven't got a green signal from Topsel Toyota. A friend of mine who owns a TATA Indigo CS, told me his story of fitting rear speakers. They were also warned by their dealer against fitting aftermarket speakers. However, their SO also said that they had not heard about a single case where service of a car under warranty has been declined due to installation of speakers. The only constraint being no modification of stock wiring. And my friend went ahead with the speakers installation. I also have made up mind to fit the speakers. Regarding warranty and stuff, we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

So coming to the speakers, I'm thinking of 6 x 9" oval rear speakers to be installed at the rear shelf with spacers. My budget is at max 4k. I believe the stock Pioneer HU is powerful enough to power the rear speakers, so no need for amplifiers. Also I've no complaints against the front speakers, hence will keep them as it is.

I'm inclined towards Infinity speakers because of their clarity. So here are my choices:

1. Infinity - Primus 9603i - 6 x 9 inch Coaxial Speakers (300 W) [Pair of Speakers]- Rs.3145
2. Infinity - Reference 9603ix - 6 inch x 9 inch Speaker (300 W) [Pair Of Speakers]- Rs. 3500

These are Snapdeal prices after considering the 10% cashback offer.

I have the following queries:

1. Both the above speakers are having the same specs but why the difference in price?
2. Will Decoworld fit the speakers if I provide them the accessory from Snapdeal, or do I need to buy the speakers from Decoworld. Didn't get their quotation yet.
3. What other speakers can I consider within my budget?

Thanks in advance

[Apple Master]

Got the speakers installed at the rear shelf of Letty. Let me describe the whole setup for those who are looking to install rear speakers in Etios without replacing any other ICE components namely the stock Pioneer HU and the front speakers.

The specifications of stock Pioneer HU are as follows:

• Max Power Output= 40W x4
• Load Impedance=4 ohm

The HU has 2 Front channels which drive the stock door speakers and twitters on the dashboard. The other two channels are for rear speakers. We need to connect these HU rear channels to rear speakers. Sounds simple enough? Read on.

The round marking on the rear shelf of Etios have 6.2 inch diameter. The grooves present have to be cut to install the speakers. Initially I was interested in 6x9 inch ovals but latter due to the round shape of the markings, I went for round coaxials. My reason for this selection were:

1. No need for spacers, unlike in the case of oval speakers.
2. Ease of installation
3. Respecting the design of Toyota Engineers.

So which speaker did I select?
I chose Infinity - Reference 6502ix - 6.5 inch 2-Way Coaxial Speaker.

The speaker specs that matters are as follows:

• Power handling, continuous average: 60W RMS
• Frequency response: 53Hz – 21kHz
• Sensitivity (2.83V/1m): 93dB
• True four ohms impedance (Coil impedance 3 ohm to compensate for increased impedance caused by thin-gauge speaker wiring.)

Bought the speakers from Snapdeal at a stealing price of 2.5K, which is 50% of what I was getting in local market.

Here are some pics of the unboxing:





The grooves on the rear shelf were cut and the speakers fitted perfectly.



Wires were connected to both the speakers and they ran down the sides of the car.



Each speaker wire consists of two strands (one ‘+’ another ‘-‘). So there are four strands (two for each speaker) that need to be connected to the rear of the HU.



Did this fitting at Deco World, Rajarhat. I would not recommend this shop for ICE installation, there are other better alternatives in the city when it comes to speaker and ICE stuff. Learned this the hard way.

Before going further let’s take a look at the rear end of the HU.



The adapters (also known as wiring harness) which fit into these sockets look more or less like this



Now, Toyota only supplies the front speaker socket adapter for Etios, they do not supply the rear speaker socket adapter. So bought this adapter for 800 bucks from ‘Engineeers’ at Sreebhumi, Lake Town, Kolkata and connected it to the rear speaker socket. The adapter had 4 wires (RR+, RR-, RL+ and RL-). They were spliced to the respective strands of the rear right (RR) and rear left (RL) speakers. That’s it, the entire setup was complete with only one thing left to do and that was to enjoy the music. After the setup was complete, showed it to Toyota ASS and they were satisfied and didn’t object nor did they mention any warranty stuff.

After hearing the sound of Infinity - Reference 6502ix, here is my review:

1. Very crisp in the mid and hi range.
2. Satisfactory bass performance
3. These speakers sound better and bigger than the stock speakers, one needs to fiddle with the fader according to one’s taste.

Would like to thank DerAlte for helping me out during the installation in the following thread (http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/ask-gu...a-etios-2.html) and also Samba and tacho9000 for their support.

[subratasenn]

@AppleMaster: Did you change the rear tray for installation of the speakers? Or did you us them?

[Apple Master]

Originally Posted by subratasenn

@AppleMaster: Did you change the rear tray for installation of the speakers? Or did you us them?

I used the rear tray that was already in Etios. There were grooves marked, cut them and you have a 6.2 inch hole. This was sufficient for fitting 6.5inch speakers.

[vinjosep]

Originally Posted by Apple Master

...

Thank you for putting up here the details along with the pics.

Some additional info on "engineers" and the adapters would be helpful

I just can't seem to be able to source the adapters here in B'lore. TASS, less said better.

Also any pics on how the dashboard was dismantled, especially the HVAC controls?

[tacho9000]

Glad that you learn the lesson even if it is the hard way. The end resultant being that the quality of the job done is good enough and to your satisfaction is what matters. Just for your information this kind of adapter could've been manufactured in 15mins at Mullick Bazaar. Shyama Electricals in Mullick Bazaar is known for it's electrical works and the A/C works whether old car or new car;you could've got the work done there too after consulting with them instead of coming to Sreebhumi. Nevertheless the work has been done at good place with good workmanship and without the headache of the warranty. Glad that the work has been done and you're enjoying music in your car.

Cheers,
Subhra

[Apple Master]

Originally Posted by vinjosep

Thank you for putting up here the details along with the pics.

Some additional info on "engineers" and the adapters would be helpful

I just can't seem to be able to source the adapters here in B'lore. TASS, less said better.

Also any pics on how the dashboard was dismantled, especially the HVAC controls?

"Engineers" is a audio shop at Sreebhumi, Lake Town. A technician at my Toyota ASS recommended me this place. The people there know their stuff.

This link might help: http://here.com/india/barrackpur-ii/...a87d0c115e31da

No idea about the adapter specs, they said that they have compatible adapters and I was like ok fit them.

Dashboard Dismantling Process

Pull off the AC dials, they will come off pretty easily There are screws beneath these dials, unscrew them.



Then pull off the top fascia and take it off by unplugging the fog light and AC connectors. It will look like this (sorry I have only one picture of the dismounting process)



There are four screws attached at the four corners of the HU. Unscrew them with a screwdriver with magnetic tip. Then you can just pull the whole HU box out and unplug the connections at the back or just attach your rear speaker socket adapter.

Cheers!!!

[vinjosep]

Originally Posted by Apple Master

Pull off the AC dials, they will come off pretty easily There are screws beneath these dials, unscrew them....

Do you recall how the screws were reached?

[Apple Master]

Originally Posted by vinjosep

Do you recall how the screws were reached?

The screws beneath the dials are pretty easy to access. Any normal screwdriver can unscrew them. The screws of HU are the tricky ones for which you need magnetic screws, else there is a probability one may accidentally fall off.

[amalji]

First of all, thanks for taking the time to share your experience. After reading through your ownership thread, it seems Toyota has another addition to its list of happy customers.

Originally Posted by drmohitg

What made you drop the Amaze from the list? Honda's petrol engine would have better and more fun to drive I feel.

The Etios Petrol is the fastest car in that price range - both in terms of low end torque ( city drivability ) as well as 0-100 kmph timing. Amaze engine doesn't deserve a comparison here with the Etios. It's refined, yes and uses the latest technology. But, it's an engine from one class below ( 1.2 l as opposed to 1.5l of the Etios ). That 132 Nm of torque at 3000 odd rpms makes it such a fun to drive car. In fact, it's comparable to the likes of Lancer Petrol and Baleno.

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Does this variant come with the safety features? Not criticizing but it leaves me a tad bit disappointed when even BHPians continue to opt for models/variants which come without the basic safety features including atleast ABS and 2 Airbags.

Yeah, ABS and airbags would have been a nice addition.

Originally Posted by Apple Master

The air cooled glove box keeps my Diet Coke cold in hot afternoon.
Cheers!!!

I use it for keeping fruits as well. Place 2-3 oranges in there before you start on a long journey and you will be able to have it with a nice coolness to it.

Originally Posted by Apple Master

I used the rear tray that was already in Etios. There were grooves marked, cut them and you have a 6.2 inch hole. This was sufficient for fitting 6.5inch speakers.

I would still recommend a tray. I fitted one, and there was a noticeable difference in quality especially for BASS sounds.

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by amalji

I would still recommend a tray. I fitted one, and there was a noticeable difference in quality especially for BASS sounds.

Which speakers have you gone for? Please elaborate, how a new tray helped improving the bass sound. Is the new tray a tighter fit & is it available as an accessory with Toyota? What is the cost of the tray?

How is the highway experience of Petrol Etios ( new improved model) with regard to high speed manners, noise insulation, FE etc ?

[Apple Master]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

Which speakers have you gone for? Please elaborate, how a new tray helped improving the bass sound. Is the new tray a tighter fit & is it available as an accessory with Toyota? What is the cost of the tray?

How is the highway experience of Petrol Etios ( new improved model) with regard to high speed manners, noise insulation, FE etc ?

Sorry for the late reply Chitta Pradhan.

The speakers that I went for are Infinity - Reference 6502ix - 6.5 inch 2-Way Coaxial Speaker, bought them from snapdeal at a good price. For details please have a look at post #50: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post3453636.

The tray is already there in the Etios with grooves marked, and the speakers after fitment are completely secured with no rattling sound.

Highway experience is very good, my back is happy .

NVH is low, but one thing is that above 100kmph the steering gets light and a little more feedback would have been better. Having said that the drivability is top notch and at at high speeds you realize how good the brakes are, they are very reliable.