[TorqueyTechie]

A quick update on the car. Last week, car's muffler came off in middle of a drive. Though I did enjoy the throaty sound from the car, I wanted to get it fixed to have a smooth ride. Also car had become jerky with gear changes too notchy. I suspected issue with clutch and thought to get all these fixed. I was happy getting my car serviced at Hariprasad all these years but felt this time to try giving it to Venkatesh (Gowri automobiles) as he was highly recommended by many. Called him up and fixed a time on Thursday. Promptly took the car to his service center which is 5 mins from my place. He drove the car and identified all the issues without even me mentioning anything yet.

Issues identified by him :
1. Clutch cylinders gone.
2. A/C issue
3. Engine misfiring
4. Engine having rough noise.
5. Noise from the front calipers.

Issues I mentioned :
1. Muffler to be replaced
2. Left head light to be replaced
3. Left passenger window cannot be closed using the power window switch.

Apart from the above, he suggested to get complete service with engine oil replaced. Also, he mentioned he will reach out to his contacts for the original muffler and the headlight and if not available to wait for some time. I gave the go ahead with the tentative time given as 3 days for all the work to be completed.

By evening, he called me mentioning that he was able to source the headlight and the muffler and tomorrow he will get it. Asked me to visit the service center next day at 11. When I went he showed me both the original parts and then began the work of replacing them. By Saturday evening, he called to visit the service center for a quick drive. Boy was I in for a surprise when I drove it. It was very smooth and was difficult to find that the engine was already running. Went back to his garage and got the lights aligned correctly as well. Only pending thing was to get the car washed and calipers greased which he said will be done next day (Sunday) morning and car will be delivered by 12 pm.

He calls me promptly at 11:30 AM asking me to drop by to collect the car at 12:30. And the car was ready at the said time with me driving it again before delivery to make sure everything is fine. Paid the amount which came upto 25k, a bit pricey yes but I was ok with it as driving the car now makes me very happy. Would definitely continue servicing the car from him.

Car at 49k kms now :

[TorqueyTechie]

As luck would have it, after typing the above post I went out the door to buy some veggies and that is when I noticed that 2 of the tyres had low air. I suspected it to be puncture as I had travelled on bad roads yesterday.

Took the car to Tyre professionals to get it fixed. Noticed that it was actually a sidewall cut and the puncture doesn't hold. I was given options of using tube or a temporary patch work but considering that I mostly drive with my kids I didn't want to risk that. Other option was to change only 2 tires for the front and use the older ones at the rear. But I was again not sure about this. In the end considering that I have few long trips coming up shortly and also I had changed tires early 2016 on which car had run around 30-35k kms , I thought to get all 4 replaced. I had Yokohoma Earth 1 tyres last time but this time got Continental UC6 in the same size (185/64/R14). I got it at Rs 5350 per tyre (realized after coming home that I have paid more) plus got the alignment done. Entire cost came upto ~22500. Overall turned out to be a costly weekend for the car. Work was completed to my satisfaction and also quickly. Was surprised to see that the place being crowded on a Monday afternoon. Car felt soft to drive on new shoes with less noise in the cabin with whatever little I drove. It may be a placebo effect too but I have a drive to Hosur tomorrow and will check during that.

Did not take any pics as I was on call during and also after coming back from there. Will take a few and share it tomorrow.

Edit: Also noticed little oil leakage from the clutch cylinder in the footwall area. Took it to Venkatesh who said it may be due to a defective clutch cylinder. He did tighten the screws around it for now but asked to check until tomorrow and if it again happens to inform him. He will get it replaced under warranty. Hope that there is no more issue though. Otherwise car is now a hoot to drive.

[TorqueyTechie]

Attaching couple of pics of the tyres.




3 of them were from 3rd week of Jan while one is of 2nd week Jan. Back from Hosur today and the ride was plaint. Feels less road noise than Yoko Earth ones. Yet to check grip on wet surface.

Bills attached below for the tyres and alignment.



On the oil leakage from the steering column, today there was no such spill in the footwall area even after the drive. So hoping that it was just an minor issue. Will continue to monitor and see.

[TorqueyTechie]

Back updating the thread after a while! Car was doing duties without any issues and had nothing to report. Had been to couple of long drives in between and it is a hoot to drive on highways! Hate to drive in city roads though.

Yesterday I was planning to go out and when I stepped out to the car noticed front left tire fully flat and the right one with reduced air. Thought might be puncture and drove to my regular place, tyre professionals. It was noticed that the front left had a sidewall cut while the front right had a puncture. Since it was a sidewall cut, I had no other choice but to replace it. Was suggested to replace both front tires which I agreed to. Stepney was not used and the tire was the one which had come along with the car. Since it would have become hard, replaced it with the front right tire. Car is now shod with two new front tires of the same make. Both were from 45th week of this year. Total damage to the wallet including balancing was 12.5K.

Couldn't help but notice that in March of this year the same tire was costing around 4150 per piece while now it costed me 5900 which is around 30% increase in a span of 9 months!

[KK_HakunaMatata]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Back updating the thread after a while! !

Hey TorqueyTechie, sent you a pm, please check whenever time permits.

Thanks.
KK

[TorqueyTechie]

Timing belt update and regular service - 58k kms
In mid Feb I noticed strange noise coming through from my car but thought that it may be nothing of major concern and will handle it when I give it for service which was due anyways. But within the next two days the noise had become unbearable and one morning I heard a very high grinding sort of noise. That is when I thought to park it and get it checked with Venkatesh. He came quickly, inspected and said that it is due to timing belt (or the bearing) which is causing the issue and not to drive the car until it is replaced. I immediately placed the order for a new timing belt kit on 99rpm.

It took almost 2 months for the kit to arrive (timing belt came in mid March while the bearing was backordered and it came on 10th April). Costed me ~11.5k for the entire kit. I immediately called up Venkatesh and he came to home and set about in fixing the timing belt first. I was not aware that it is a time consuming affair. It took him almost 2.5 hours to finish replacing it. Took it for a drive around the home to check if its good and then decided to drop the car off the next morning at his workshop for overall service.

Gave it to him today morning for service and got a call back by 5 that it is ready. Took it for a spin and car drives smoothly now. Got all the oils replaced, air, fuel & oil filters replaced, spark plugs & coolant changed as well. Service cost was 11k inclusive of labor.

Car is now at ~57000 kms, has new timing belt and < 1 year tires all around (front two replaced in Dec 2022). Next on my list is :
1. Car's FC has to be renewed by this month. I am planning to get it done next week. Contact of a good agent who can help with this would be great.
2. Replace rear wiper (was not available on 99rpm). Will have to order and get it fixed asap.
3. Car got swiped against a pillar when I moved extreme left while avoiding a startled running cow. Have to get the dent removed and get the door and the quarter panel painted. Not very urgent and I can live it for some more months though its an eyesore to look at what is otherwise a beautiful car.

Attaching few pics. I forgot to take the pics after the service as I had to rush for a meeting. Will post tomorrow.

[TorqueyTechie]

Engine had a slight jerk (misfiring) during idle/driving at low speeds which Venkatesh had mentioned will go away after driving for few kms as there was water around the spark plugs (during wash). But the issue persisted even after driving ~30 kms. Asked him to take a look today morning. He cleaned up all spark plugs and then drove the car revving it hard for few kms post which car drives perfectly without issue.

Adding some pics of the car.




Dent/Scratch which I had mentioned in my previous post.






Car at ~57k kms.

[R34ul]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Engine had a slight jerk (misfiring) during idle/driving at low speeds which Venkatesh had mentioned will go away after driving for few kms as there was water around the spark plugs (during wash). But the issue persisted even after driving ~30 kms. Asked him to take a look today morning. He cleaned up all spark plugs and then drove the car revving it hard for few kms post which car drives perfectly without issue.

Adding some pics of the car.
Attachment 2439868

Attachment 2439869

Dent/Scratch which I had mentioned in my previous post.
Attachment 2439870

Attachment 2439871

Attachment 2439872

Car at ~57k kms.
Attachment 2439873

I absolutely love how clean you've kept your car, it seems to be in mint condition especially the engine bay do keep up the good work on maintenance I'd love to see your palio rolling around on Bangalore streets sometime

[TorqueyTechie]

It seems the car is adamant on troubling me this time around. Saturday while returning home from a drive in the noon noticed that the temp gauge was almost at 80-85% and the a/c effect was very reduced. I thought it may be because of the weather (temp was around 35 and it was noon). I drove back home by toggling a/c all along the way. I checked the fan and it was running fine too. I called up Venkatesh who confirmed that it is not normal and to get the car on Sunday so that he can check.

Sunday, we did check the car by driving it around, toggling a/c and heater. While in heater mode (without a/c) the temp gauge drops down to around mid point but in normal mode (with and without a/c) it creeps high. We couldn't find the root cause even after spending few hours. So he said to drop the car off to his workshop on Monday so that he can get it checked and also verify the electricals.

I have dropped the car today morning and hopefully should have everything sorted. I plan to get the FC done this week and keep it ready as I have a long drive coming up soon. Hope to have the car up and running without issues. Will update here once I get to hear something.

Originally Posted by R34ul

I absolutely love how clean you've kept your car, it seems to be in mint condition especially the engine bay do keep up the good work on maintenance I'd love to see your palio rolling around on Bangalore streets sometime

Thank you for your kind words. There are few scratches on the car (esp on the bonnet, perks of being in Bangalore) but the biggest eyesore is the dent on the left passenger door. Should get it fixed soon.

[TorqueyTechie]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

I have dropped the car today morning and hopefully should have everything sorted.

Quoting myself here. An update that I got was that the car didn't have the thermostat valve itself . I was surprised (and still am) as to how the car was working all these days without issues. I could comprehend if it was damaged but there was no damage when the thermostat was opened and indeed the valve was not present.

Anyways it was replaced and Venkatesh called me to pick it up in evening. He had already tested by driving around a fair bit and when I went to pick up, I too drove it for around 10 kms. The temperature was not going high (was max at 30-40%) until the end of the drive. I plan to drive around for few more days until I confirm the issue is resolved.

I also plan to go for the FC renewal on Friday. Hopefully should get it done without issues or time wasting.

[TorqueyTechie]

An update on the temp gauge issue mentioned in my previous post. So after the valve replacement last month, I have driven over 500-600kms and the issue has not come up again. The needle stays well below the half way mark, marginally going up during noon drives (if parked it under the open sun) which is understandable. So happy with all things on the car. Only two things pending are to replace the rear viper (part not available yet) and get the car repainted. I can stand the scratches but not he ding which is an eyesore. Hopefully it will happen in the next few months (after the vitamin M is replenished).

FC is also approved but awaiting the physical card to be sent before I take the car for a long drive. Currently I have got a new garage mate for the car, a SM 650 (read here (Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650cc, now unveiled)) so my usage of the car might reduce a bit.

[TorqueyTechie]

Back updating the thread after a while. The car was sparingly used over the past few months partly due to buying a new bike and car. Also, there were a couple of issues with the car which meant it was parked more than driven.

As it was becoming difficult to manage space as well as find time to maintain the car, I decided to put it up for sale. Hopefully, it goes to someone who will appreciate and maintain it.

Car listing (would show up once the ad is active): https://classifieds.team-bhp.com/buy...at/Palio.html/

[TorqueyTechie]

As mentioned in the previous post, I had put up the car for sale. Even though I had mentioned all the issues of the car in the ad, I was not comfortable selling the car with the heating issue. So called up Venkatesh and asked him to check everything and confirm the parts needed. He asked to order below parts :
1. Thermostat - This is to replace the used thermostat that he had put in last time.
2. Fan motor - Even though he asked to get it, later he confirmed he had a new one and used it.
3. Head gasket and tappet cover gasket.

The rest of the consumables he procured. So after ordering the parts at 99rpm, they were delivered within a week and the work started. Took him 3 days to fix everything post which we drove around the car a fair bit. Suffice to say the heating issue is gone and the fan too works as expected.

Attaching few pics of the parts and work in progress.

Removing the head




New thermostat installed


Timing belt reattached


Fan motor



Update on the sale: There were quite a few inquiries regarding the car and while many were passed as the offers were ridiculous, there were a few genuine ones to whom I reached out once the car was sorted out. One of the people who saw the ad called up and came to check the car today. He liked the car and we agreed on a fair price for the car. He transferred some token advance and since he is from a different state, we have started work on the NOC. Once it is completed or at least the NOC is submitted, I will hand over the car.

[TorqueyTechie]

With a heavy heart, I bid adieu to the car yesterday. Bear with me as this is going to be a long last post.

In my earlier post, I mentioned that the car was fixed with all mechanical issues post which I was driving around the city. All was good and I was still contemplating selling the car. I had taken down the ad in Olx but took it online in TBHP. Meanwhile, I had reached out to all who had shown interest in the car mentioning that the issues are sorted and they are free to visit and test drive the car. Last Saturday, when I had stepped out with my family I got a call from a gentleman who was interested in the car and wanted to confirm if he could visit and test drive. I had some work on Sunday so fixed up a meeting on Monday morning.

On that day, the buyer, Mr.V (will be calling him that henceforth), and I met up. He had come prepared with a detailed checklist (I was impressed) and started checking out the car. During it, I got to know that he was from Andaman (woah) and had come to the mainland specifically to buy a car. Earlier to checking my car, he had visited a couple of cars in Kerala and came away unimpressed. He had seen my ad on TBHP from Kerala and called me up to check the car.

At the end of his inspection, he was happy with the car but he wanted to check the underbelly and also a word with my mechanic. So off we went for a car wash where the car was lifted and he checked. Meanwhile, I was getting offers even at the car wash . After that, we went to my mechanic and they both spoke. Again I got an earful from Venkatesh for selling the car and he was not happy.

Post that, we went back to have some coffee and finalize the price. Post a quick discussion over coffee, we agreed on a price. Then off we went to check on NOC and found an agent who said could help us. Paid up the advance, and he started the paperwork. After that off we went our separate ways. Mr.V called up later that day to mention he wanted to get the dent fixed and asked about any body shops. I suggested checking with Trend Automobiles.

I got a call later the next day from him mentioning he spoke with them and that they will take it up and finish the work if I handed over the car ASAP. On Wed morning I drove it to Trend and they started the work after finalizing all the work needed and the price. Meanwhile, I was following up on the NOC for which the agent promised to get it done by Saturday.

On Saturday morning, we got confirmation that the car was fixed and we both met up at Trend. Mr.V was satisfied with the work, and he paid up the money. Meanwhile, I had a few stickers on the car which I asked them to remove. Mr.V suggested keeping the TBHP stickers on.

Post that, we signed all the documents (forms 29, and 30, vehicle sale agreement, and delivery note) over a cup of tea and Mr.V transferred the rest of the amount. After that, he wanted to get the stereo head changed. So off we went to Car Decor, Jayanagar where he found a good one from Pioneer brand and got it installed. Since I had promised to take my kids out, this is where I bid adieu to him, wishing him a very happy drive and time with the car.

He messaged me later to mention that he visited Madhus for tire alignment as well. He will be driving the car down to Chennai and then shipping it to A&N Islands. Also, late in the evening yesterday, I was told by the agent that the NOC was also received. So I think that's that with the car.

Car when I bought it had run ~6k kms and at the time of handover it was a little over 60k kms. Ever since I bought it in 2015, it has given me a lot of happy memories. I just wish Mr.V gets to enjoy the car as much as I do and he has a trouble-free experience. But I am happy that the car went to someone who cares and has a penchant to look after the car in good shape.


Sharing some pics of the car:

After the dent fix & paint at Trend. They have done a good job with the paint match.








At car decor, with Mr.V & I (in red t-shirt).


Final odometer reading




Car at Madhus for wheel alingment


Mods, please update the title as sold and mark the thread as closed.

[chandrda]

I can understand how it feels to let go of a car like Palio. But looks Like Mr.V will take care of the car enthusiastically.

I have been thinking of selling my 2003 Fiat Palio 1.6 GTX for 2 years now, but just can't bite the bullet.

I love this car, but its a 20 year old car and the maintenance is increasing every year. Though I take good care of the car and try to fix all the issues, unavailability of parts (even used) is an issue. Venkatesh and 99rpm is what keeping my palio running for now.

Couple of picture of my car in its current condition