[vvrchandra]

Hi Leoshashi,

Any info on an equivalent battery from Amaron for the battery that's under the hood in XL6. It comes from factory with Exide Conservo ISS N55 type. Attaching a screenshot from manual.

Mine is 2019 Oct XL6 AT Alpha. It has run 25K kms till now. After running, the battery voltage is coming down to around 12.6V to 12.4V on the 2nd day. Immediately it stays around 13V after trip. Is it time to replace the battery. I mostly use the vehicle for out station trips only.

Should we just get the same one from Exide or any equivalent from Amaron. If so, can you list the model number. Thanks in advance

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by vvrchandra

After running, the battery voltage is coming down to around 12.6V to 12.4V on the 2nd day. Immediately it stays around 13V after trip. Is it time to replace the battery.

Your battery is quite healthy, that's how it is supposed to be(2.1V x 6). If you are in a doubt, get battery health test done at any reputed place(even your MASS will have that tool). Although if you ask me, it's not currently needed unless you are facing any other issue. Keep the terminals clean, electrolyte topped up with distilled water and it should be good to go.

Apart from Exide Conservo, there is another model in Exide range, Mileage ISS N55 which is a direct replacement for our cars.

In Amaron, while I haven't personally verified it, I have heard from mechanics that opting for a battery with slightly higher Ah than Conservo tricks SHVS system into believing that the battery used is of right type.

Regards,
Shashi

PS: Your car is fairly new, there are some older cars on our forum like Ciaz of DBHPian SS-Traveller which are still on stock conservo battery. Unlike other OEM supplied batteries, these seem to have a good life.

[shankhajit.das]

Hello all, took a TD of the existing XL6, loved it, waiting for the facelift one. Not sure if there were problems on the TD car, but wanted your feedback on a few points.
1. Coming from an Alto K10 2015, the steering felt very light and almost lifeless. I understand that a 3 cylinder engine will have a lot more vibration, translating to better feedback on the steering wheel. Does the XL6 steering wheel actually have this less feedback?
2. The suspension seemed to be quite stiff, I was jolted with even the minor ribbed strips on NH. I have read in all the reviews that the suspension is tuned quite well, is this then a problem with the TD car?
3. There was a lot of noise from the traffic inside the cabin. I expected slightly better insulation. Can that be fixed in any way, in addition to the Michelin tyres?

[sumobom4]

Originally Posted by shankhajit.das

Hello all, took a TD of the existing XL6, loved it, waiting for the facelift one. Not sure if there were problems on the TD car, but wanted your feedback on a few points.
1. Coming from an Alto K10 2015, the steering felt very light and almost lifeless. I understand that a 3 cylinder engine will have a lot more vibration, translating to better feedback on the steering wheel. Does the XL6 steering wheel actually have this less feedback?
2. The suspension seemed to be quite stiff, I was jolted with even the minor ribbed strips on NH. I have read in all the reviews that the suspension is tuned quite well, is this then a problem with the TD car?
3. There was a lot of noise from the traffic inside the cabin. I expected slightly better insulation. Can that be fixed in any way, in addition to the Michelin tyres?

Congratulations on taking the first step. This is a very good time to be shopping for an MUV, considering the Carens is out and the XL6 is getting a facelift in the next month. I can try to answer your questions, but they will pertain to the current model. The new model might feel different.

1. I’m not sure if the 2015 Alto had an electric power steering or a hydraulic one. If it’s the latter, then any electric unit is going to feel lifeless in comparison. The engine vibrations don’t necessarily mean more road feedback. That comes from the front wheels and suspension. What I’m saying is that even if you felt more vibrations on the steering due to the 3 cylinder engine, that wasn’t necessarily more feedback from the road. From the test drives I took, I felt the tuning of the XL6 was much better than any Honda or VW unit. Of course, poor maintenance on the test mule might also have something to do with the impression you got.

2. The additional jolts you felt could be because of high air pressure in the test car’s tyres. Dealerships often overfill the tyres as it helps to save fuel. The downside is this makes the tyres super bouncy and hence, the jarring ride.

3. Like all Marutis, the XL6 also suffers from poor insulation, no two ways about it. My fix was to get damping sheets put in on all 4 doors and thick 7D mats for the floor. You already mentioned changing tyres, so that should reduce road noise. After these measures, I feel sufficiently cocooned in silence from the outside.

While you are waiting on the facelift bookings to start, I’d suggest test driving the Kia Carens. It’s an extremely competent vehicle in the same class and you should definitely compare the two before making a decision. One thing I know for sure from my test drive is that the insulation is better on the Carens.

[shankhajit.das]

Thanks a lot for your feedback!

Originally Posted by sumobom4

1. I’m not sure if the 2015 Alto had an electric power steering or a hydraulic one. If it’s the latter, then any electric unit is going to feel lifeless in comparison. The engine vibrations don’t necessarily mean more road feedback. That comes from the front wheels and suspension. What I’m saying is that even if you felt more vibrations on the steering due to the 3 cylinder engine, that wasn’t necessarily more feedback from the road. From the test drives I took, I felt the tuning of the XL6 was much better than any Honda or VW unit. Of course, poor maintenance on the test mule might also have something to do with the impression you got.

I'm talking about the engine feedback. I could feel on the steering wheel, and listen to the revs from the engine on my Alto, so (safe) downshifts and overtakes were fun on the highway. XL6 seems quite silent, you have to look at the tachometer to understand when to shift. I guess I'll get used to it.

Originally Posted by sumobom4

2. The additional jolts you felt could be because of high air pressure in the test car’s tyres. Dealerships often overfill the tyres as it helps to save fuel. The downside is this makes the tyres super bouncy and hence, the jarring ride.

Aah. That makes sense. Thanks!

Originally Posted by sumobom4

While you are waiting on the facelift bookings to start, I’d suggest test driving the Kia Carens. It’s an extremely competent vehicle in the same class and you should definitely compare the two before making a decision. One thing I know for sure from my test drive is that the insulation is better on the Carens.

It's a matter of the heart, but I just did not like the Carens. Did not even take a TD. At my budget, I can have the Prestige 1.5 NA MT at most, so no goodies, and I already know a 1.5 NA MT engine that's great! The only reason I'm waiting for the XL6 facelift is because of the 16 inch wheels (hopefully) and maybe a better entertainment unit.

[abhinav.s]

Will try and answer the below 2 queries to the best of my knowledge.

Originally Posted by shankhajit.das

2. The suspension seemed to be quite stiff, I was jolted with even the minor ribbed strips on NH. I have read in all the reviews that the suspension is tuned quite well, is this then a problem with the TD car?

Could be an issue with over inflated tyres of the TD car. That will also cause the bumps to be felt inside the cabin very evidently.

Originally Posted by shankhajit.das

3. There was a lot of noise from the traffic inside the cabin. I expected slightly better insulation. Can that be fixed in any way, in addition to the Michelin tyres?

You have this very thread where the sound damping is covered in extensive detail. You can follow that and go with the damping. Sound insulation is average in most MS cars and i guess Shashi has seen a very good difference in sound insulation post completing the damping.

[sumobom4]

Originally Posted by shankhajit.das

I'm talking about the engine feedback. I could feel on the steering wheel, and listen to the revs from the engine on my Alto, so (safe) downshifts and overtakes were fun on the highway. XL6 seems quite silent, you have to look at the tachometer to understand when to shift. I guess I'll get used to it.

Well, the 1.5 NA is obviously a lot more refined than the Alto's engine. It may feel silent at low revs, but it's got a nice raspy note when pushed. I like it!
As you said, with time, you will get used to it and will not even need the tachometer to identify the shift point.

Originally Posted by shankhajit.das

It's a matter of the heart, but I just did not like the Carens. Did not even take a TD. At my budget, I can have the Prestige 1.5 NA MT at most, so no goodies, and I already know a 1.5 NA MT engine that's great! The only reason I'm waiting for the XL6 facelift is because of the 16 inch wheels (hopefully) and maybe a better entertainment unit.

Fair enough. I agree that the affordable variants are not specced impressively for the Carens. As for the XL6 facelift, you might even get the 6 speed TC! THAT would be a huge win.

[BikerKeeda]

How I finalized XL6 as my first car?

Never knew buying a first car with your own money could be this tiring experience

SO, I have been driving 2013 Alto K10 Type 1, (Best looking Alto till date). It is like a go-cart, Small car with 1L engine. Drove it in all kinds of terrains during it's lifetime. Never ever it failed me. 80K kms after it is still my daily driver.
Alto (Noorie, her name) is doing very well, now as parents are getting older, I felt I should get a comfortable car for them.

My preference was clear,

1: Car needs to Petrol
2: Used (Did not want to fit CNG in new car)
3: It should have a boot space even after CNG fitment.

All these criteria filtered the options and I was left with 2 choices

1. Honda City
2. MS Ciaz

Just when the hunt started, my friend went on a trip to Uttarakhand and asked me to use his 2010 Honda city (CNG) for 10 days till he got back. I was never a Sedan person, but Buoy o Buoy this City ruined me in 10 days. I drove it for 950kms in those 10 days and merely spent 2700-2800 on fuel (CNG). It would have costed me 7000-7500 for the same if I had Noorie doing the same distance.
So I decided I am going to get an old Honda city/ MS Ciaz and do CNG fitment.

So the hunt began and found 2 options

Option 1: 2015 Honda city VX model, 43k on odo. Loved the car, service history was clean but the price quoted by Cars24 was 7.70L.
Option 2 : 2017 Maruti Suzuki Ciaz S model, 39K on odo. Clean service history, from Spinny, quote: 7.50L

TD both cars and loved city as the Ciaz had 1373 engine and was lacking the fun part which City had. Plus no Sunroof and Cruise control so dropped the Ciaz plan and finalized on City.

The process took endless search about both the cars, days and nights of surfing through Cars24 and Spinny to find a right cars to consider. Finally decided to share the news with parents that I have finalized Honda city and showed them the pictures.

They liked the car but a Typical Indian parent mentality kicked in
"Itna paisa Used car me dalega? Naya le"

Hundreds of hours of research was wasted just like that.

Then got the news of TATA launching Tigor CNG. Took my parents along to take a TD. After test drive Dad's reaction was "Isase to apne Alto me jyada space hai"--- Tigor dropped.

Then came Desire CNG, but the boot space was for namesake so dropped that as well.

Then again the hunt for the best suitable car started.
Even thought of buying a new Ciaz and compromising the warranty by installing CNG after 3-4 months as I never had to use warranty for my Alto in past 9 year.

This process took 2 months and mom was all excited that she is going to get a new car. Meanwhile due to cancelled honda city, Tigor CNG she got frustrated and the ultimate weapon came:

"Bas ho gaya tum baap bete ka search, I want XL6"



And that's how my friends, I finalized on XL6



Just kidding, I too liked XL6 when we took a TD an year ago, but never thought of buying it. But after Mom's farmaan had to go and TD again, and loved the car, took 3 TDs, checked every aspect, almost booked a car when got to know my friend works at NEXA that XL6 is coming up with facelift in April 22. So decided to wait for a month.

My check points are checked

1: Car needs to Petrol : Checked
2: Used (Did not want to fit CNG in new car) : Will be compromising warranty, I know many will think - what a foolish decision, but Paise ka Chakkar babu bhaiya Paise ka chakkar
3: It should have a boot space even after CNG fitment. : Checked


I know using XL6 as daily driver will be a task, but City/Ciaz could have had a same problem.

Now I am eagerly waiting for any news regarding the facelift.
Read all the articles about the facelift news, saw all YouTube videos, even saw all the review videos of current XL6. The wait is getting longer and longer now.

[sumobom4]

Originally Posted by BikerKeeda

Now I am eagerly waiting for any news regarding the facelift.
Read all the articles about the facelift news, saw all YouTube videos, even saw all the review videos of current XL6. The wait is getting longer and longer now.

It's great that you made your decision around this time. The facelift should be announced in the next couple of weeks. A little bit of patience! If you have made friends with the NEXA showroom people, I'd suggest going there and staring at the car. That's my move when I am waiting!

One of the biggest possible advantages could be the introduction of a 6 speed TC which was one of the XL6's weak links. All the best!

[rich_heart]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

Still this is the MID readout I captured yesterday:

Attachment 2280064

The update has surely helped in increasing the pep and efficiency.

Regards,
Shashi

Wow! FE is showing 19.4!! I struggle to get my Ertiga Auto Zxi give 9.5kmpl, how ever careful I drive and even after the firmware upgrade. Is there something seriously wrong with my car?

What is the typical FE Automatic Ertiga/XL6 gives?

[dgr8ctzn]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

Increasing the Visibility: Part 3-Fog Lamps

Hello Shashi,

Your fog light info shared was super helpful! Ofcourse, the whole thread by you and other BHPians is awesome!

I changed my fogs to valeo + Osram H8/H11/H16

It looks neat. I bought Alpha AT(Grey) in July 2020 as my requirements and budget was clear -no test drive, no showroom visit! Nexa Mandovi in Bangalore helped with all the process on phone and home delivery! Hardly run the vehicle for large part of my ownership and has clocked 10.5k just this month!

Now, having started driving one highways in 2 500kms+ trips in March, light made me very insecure in the nights. Hence the fog swaps.

On the sidelines, I also changed the horns to Hella Chrome trumpet, like some of you have done.

I am hoping to find a better driving experience on highways with this now :-)


General Ownership Exerience to share(my previous cars were Alto LXi - 11y and Xylo E8ABS - 11y):

- excellent driving comfort - feels like driving a sedan
- little cramped compared to my earlier xylo, but nothing to complain about
- Observed pure highway drive gives mileage of 18-19kmpl. Pure city drive is very poor at the moment - 9ish with light foot. Need to check with fellow bhpians using AT in bangalore conditions
- AC/Storage everything seems good
- noise insulation is good(well, i come from Xylo experience, so you could imagine!)
- Stock tyres/alloy - I am ok with the looks/comfort vs budget :-)

Regards,
Deepak

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by rich_heart

Wow! FE is showing 19.4!! I struggle to get my Ertiga Auto Zxi give 9.5kmpl, how ever careful I drive and even after the firmware upgrade. Is there something seriously wrong with my car?

What is the typical FE Automatic Ertiga/XL6 gives?

Recently two XL6s Automatics came in my family/friend circle. Both are seeing similar usage, they are around 6k on the odo in 3 months, and are seeing 17-19kmpl on highways and 12-14kmpl in city.

[sumobom4]

Originally Posted by Leoshashi

Recently two XL6s Automatics came in my family/friend circle. Both are seeing similar usage, they are around 6k on the odo in 3 months, and are seeing 17-19kmpl on highways and 12-14kmpl in city.

Your friends must have some seriously light feet! The most I can get from my XL6 in Mumbai traffic is 10-11 kmpl!

[Zen_forever]

18 was the best I got from my Ertiga manual. Avg is around 16.

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by sumobom4

Your friends must have some seriously light feet! The most I can get from my XL6 in Mumbai traffic is 10-11 kmpl!

Add to that, traffic in my city isn't as bad as Mumbai.