One more Linea story? ... here you go

vinay.pillai · 2nd July 2009, 10:38

If it is April made vehicle, is it safe to accept it.....I spoke to my sales guy and he is saying it is a new vehicle directly from plant. I am not sure what to do here.....He has asked me to come down to see the vehicle.....
A car made in April registered in July. IS IT A SAFE BET?

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

VahanPujari · 2nd July 2009, 13:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinay.pillai

If it is April made vehicle, is it safe to accept it.....I spoke to my sales guy and he is saying it is a new vehicle directly from plant. I am not sure what to do here.....He has asked me to come down to see the vehicle.....
A car made in April registered in July. IS IT A SAFE BET?

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

I feel that's ok - 2-3 months delay
Check the ODO also.
only thing you shd be concerned about is it shd not have been used as a TD vehicle. do the PDI at stockyard during day time & look for any minor scratches on the body & you'll get an idea

Also check mfg date on tyres

geeash · 2nd July 2009, 15:00

Neotraveller.Just cut the battery out and plug off the respective fuse and re apply it.It will reset the blue and me to start again

pranava999 · 2nd July 2009, 16:36

@ vinay - Now I know your concern! I don't think there's much to worry.

Could even be a chassis they produced and stocked up on.

There will be a few tell tale signs on the body and underbody. Look for scratches, small dents,underbody scratches, etc. But their existence doesn't genuinely translate to being used as a TD car. Some one earlier mentioned that the odo can be set only once, so why not ask them to set it . Maybe its worth trying. Just ensure before you do that the odo has not doe more than 100-150kms. Mine read 60. .If its not possible then it could be a hint that the car's been used and reset.

However I was too lazy to do a PDi and was hoping that the scee I had created earlier would ensure an unused TD car.

Anyways if you are worried do a thorough self PDI. There's a checklist on the forum, might come in handy and allay your concerns.

vinay.pillai · 2nd July 2009, 17:12

Thanks Pranava!
I hope you are correct on chassis number. Anyway I will ask him about re-setting the ODO and let see what the sales guy says. The PDI will be done tomorrow. Keeping my finger crossed

ahshahid · 6th July 2009, 11:43

A week back, I also had a frustrating time with linea.
First , for the media player , forward/previous key stoppe dworking. Also src/ok stopped working. I could not pick calls etc.
Had to take it to BU Bhandari's work shop. Spent 6 hrs to finally get them resolved it. It seems there was some circuit problem though they did not give much details.
Then next day, the front left door's unlock lever gave waway. The lever simply became free & the door would not opne.
Gave it for scheduled service next day & got those fixed. So far thing seem Ok.
But these two incidences shook me regarding the reliability aspect.
Wife just could not beleive all this non sense happening in an *l car. She did say it would have been better if we had gone for honda.

Hope things will not be bad but any ways , it has undermined confidence.

VahanPujari · 6th July 2009, 12:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahshahid

A week back, I also had a frustrating time with linea.
First , for the media player , forward/previous key stoppe dworking. Also src/ok stopped working. I could not pick calls etc.
Had to take it to BU Bhandari's work shop. Spent 6 hrs to finally get them resolved it. It seems there was some circuit problem though they did not give much details.
Then next day, the front left door's unlock lever gave waway. The lever simply became free & the door would not opne.
Gave it for scheduled service next day & got those fixed. So far thing seem Ok.
But these two incidences shook me regarding the reliability aspect.
Wife just could not beleive all this non sense happening in an *l car. She did say it would have been better if we had gone for honda.

Hope things will not be bad but any ways , it has undermined confidence.

Welcome back, ahshahid.
You posted something here long after you pulled out the Fuse box/ ECU box accidentally

. ROTFL ws the term used in that thread/post, right?

Why don't you start your ownership thread & post regular updates?

The B&M/ Media Player issue could have been solved in 5 minutes - by deleting the user data from B&M, deleting pairing profile from your cell, & by pulling out battery negative terminal to reset it. Also, in such cases, remove the USB Pen drive, Delete/ add some songs & re-insert the same drive or another Pen Drive. Both these things would solve 99% of Media Player issues. After all its Microsoft tech - reboot it to solve 99% issues

neotraveller · 7th July 2009, 22:47

1) I am enjoying the admiration, Car looks totally a class above.
I wanted to upgrade to a proper sedan after my zen, and yes Linea does give that big car feel. Sometimes we fit 4 ppl at the back seat too.

2) Very happy to own the best bang for buck car - LINEA.
It has all the premium features that I wanted in a car and more. No upgrades required.

3) My mileage has settled to around 9.5 kmpl
My daily drive is through peak traffic. And any small empty stretch I see, I really rip it in 2nd/3rd gears till 4000rpm (I am starting to love the engine roar now). So my drive is not really a mileage-friendly one. (avg speed 18kmph)

4) Car is adequately powered.
The engine is Very responsive. And you can even feel being pushed back into the seat when you press the accelerator. I am not kidding.
Even though its a petrol engine with less torque, it pulls really well. On quite a few occasions it easily pulled 6 people at almost stand-still speeds (AC full blast).
I salute this gutsy engine.

5) Driving is a little difficult in traffic. Can't "see" all the corners of the car. Lot of areas won't be visible at all like front left and thw whole rear, but I guess thats expected of a sedan. And I am an experienced driver, so have reasonably stayed out of trouble.

6) Any bruises? Yes.
1 scratch ... rear-right wheel arch (bumper) while reversing into my house caused by my over-confidence. Small but can be seen easily.
Another scratch ... caused on front-left wheel arch (again bumper) caused by a scooter. Can't be seen easily unless you bend and closely examine.
Another one ... some bozo seemed to have drawn a line across the bonnet when my beauty was parked outside a restaurant. Thankfully it wasn't a thick one ... faintly visible.

I will be going for 1st service next week. Have to take care of following things.
- seat-height lever adjustment
- Driver-side door speaker sounds distorted. Needs to be replaced (waiting for speaker availability at Blaupunkt dealer)
- Car seems to be little rough and wobble even on small undulations on roads (maybe alignment problem)
- Fix some rattles that crept into the doors when I installed sunfilm.
- I hear some humming sound (very faint) when turning the steering end to end at slow speeds.
- Blue and me display is not coming. (I had used a pen drive which had less songs and more of junk in it ... so maybe that screwed it up)

coolboy007 · 8th July 2009, 22:26

Neo,

I think that you are going to get your Linea serviced yourself. Why dont you ask them where the POLLEN filter or cabin filter of linea is?
Air filter is under engine cover, where is the pollen filter?

neotraveller · 14th July 2009, 23:08

Went for 1st service as I finished 3 months (2200km done) at Autofin, Bowenpally

Service center experience
- Went to service station at 9:30AM
Was offered water. Was one of first few. So I asked to call Linea service advisor. Same guy who I saw on previous visits came. Seems like there is one SA dedicated for Linea.
- Surprisingly SA didn't come with me for trial. He sent a mechanic with me to identify/reproduce problems. Once it was done, I had to accompany this mechanic to explain blue&me and brakes problem to yet another mechanic.
- Left for home at 10:30AM.
- Went to pickup car at 5:30PM.
- Took for test drive again to see rattles were fixed
- Then spent 1 hr with the fuel-lid problem.
- Did final cleaning again as car became dirty by now. Cleaning and all were good (9/10 for the qualiy)
- Finally left for home at 6:30PM.

Bill came to Rs. 441 with taxes
300rs for alignment
100rs for some dinitrol engine waxing. (they dint even ask me if i wanted it. but seems worth it)

All in all it was an above-average experience I would say.

Issue Resolution
- Rattles in all doors, thanks to sunfilm installation
(They fixed them, however rear parcel tray makes noise sometimes. They said its a design defect and all lineas have it)
- Jarring sound when releasing brakes.
(Its normal only)
- When steering is kept at full turn a slight humming sound is heard
(Its normal only, its some power-steering oil cutting off or something)
- Blue and me Display not coming
(They fixed by Resetting the battery)
- Brakes lock-up in stop-Go traffic sometimes.
I wasn't able to reproduce in front of them
(they checked brake system but couldn't find any issues, have to lookout)
- Ride is not very butter smooth. I am able to feel minute road undulations. maybe I am expecting too much?
(They did wheel-alignment and claim that its good now)
-Rear seat-belt clip not working
(They placed order for this part)
-Fuel tank Lid seems a little raised than car body
Now this is a classic showcase of the skills of our TATA mechanics.
They tried to improve it, but end-result was that the fuel door was not opening now

I scolded them and asked them to restore it back to whatever state it was in when I gave the car. Some 2-3 guys tried for 1 hour and couldn't come out with a solution. Finally they attached some small rubber thing to the lever (increasing its length) that now is able to push the fuel-lid out. Even now its only opening the lid slightly out, whereas all these days it used to open pretty wide.

Pending Issues
- Seat-Height adjuster (still waiting for parts dealer from Fiat. This will be a temporary solution where he will adjust the angle of the lever. The Corporate quality guys called me to inform that Fiat-Italy has asked them to redesign this lever. So they are looking at 1-2 designs and will finalize things in couple of months. People who have this problem can get a free replacement at that time)
- Driver-door speaker is distorted (still waiting for speaker to arrive!)

VahanPujari · 14th July 2009, 23:57

Neo,

So, finally you did the 1st service breaching the 3 month timeline without even crossing 3000 kms !! What is this, dude? Come on, start enjoying the beauty !

Quote:

He sent a mechanic with me to identify/reproduce problems. Once it was done, I had to accompany this mechanic to explain blue&me and brakes problem to yet another mechanic.

This is a standard procedure at TASS.

Quote:

300rs for alignment

seems every TASS has his own way of working. Wheel alignment is part of 1st free service. I was not charged, some others were not charged whereas some others are charged. Why did you pay it Neo?

Quote:

100rs for some dinitrol engine waxing. (they dint even ask me if i wanted it. but seems worth it)

I was not told about it. else am game for 100/- bucks.

Quote:

- When steering is kept at full turn a slight humming sound is heard
(Its normal only, its some power-steering oil cutting off or something)

Am not facing it or did I never notice it or paid attention to? better it stays that way.

Quote:

- Blue and me Display not coming
(They fixed by Resetting the battery)

This you can do yourself. Unfix the battery -ve terminal. Its like typical Microsoft way - reboot & fix it.

Quote:

Fuel tank Lid seems a little raised than car body
Now this is a classic showcase of the skills of our TATA mechanics.
They tried to improve it, but end-result was that the fuel door was not opening now

I scolded them and asked them to restore it back to whatever state it was in when I gave the car. Some 2-3 guys tried for 1 hour and couldn't come out with a solution. Finally they attached some small rubber thing to the lever (increasing its length) that now is able to push the fuel-lid out. Even now its only opening the lid slightly out, whereas all these days it used to open pretty wide.

Remember One rule - if the problem is not impending & 70-80% alright, do not ask TASS to fix it. The problem might die its natural death & regular condition will be restored. If you HAVE to refer it to TASS, I've a better way. Stand there & when he starts the work, tell him to be careful even in touching the car. Ask him what might go wrong if he is not careful & ask him that if he is not confident, do not try it else you'll ask him to restore it to earlier condition.

Quote:

- Seat-Height adjuster (still waiting for parts dealer from Fiat. This will be a temporary solution where he will adjust the angle of the lever.

What is it exactly that you want to get done?

Quote:

The Corporate quality guys called me to inform that Fiat-Italy has asked them to redesign this lever.

PM me the name of this Corp Quality guy. The Corp Quality person I'm interacting is extremely helpful & I found him extremely receptive compared to TASS. Seems even more receptive than Fiat Customer service team @ Pune.

neotraveller · 15th July 2009, 11:53

See my answers inline. Overall i am satisfied with my experience at TATA service. I was expecting it to be worse!
Actually it turned out to be better than what i experience when I go to Maruti for my zen.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VahanPujari

Neo,

So, finally you did the 1st service breaching the 3 month timeline without even crossing 3000 kms !! What is this, dude? Come on, start enjoying the beauty !

This is all city drives. Unfortunately I can't go on long drives, wifey will kill me. She can't travel now for medical reasons.

This is a standard procedure at TASS.

seems every TASS has his own way of working. Wheel alignment is part of 1st free service. I was not charged, some others were not charged whereas some others are charged. Why did you pay it Neo?

I already knew about it being charged for some people. So didn't put up a fight. Strange are the ways of TATA. Also they have different pricings too. My mudflaps costed 525rs.

I was not told about it. else am game for 100/- bucks.
This is good. Engine bay looks brand new. See attached pic.

Am not facing it or did I never notice it or paid attention to? better it stays that way.
You can easily notice this steering hum at standstill. Just start the car and turn the wheels fully, you can hear a hum. Infact even before demonstrating it, the SA showed himself it to me. So it appeared like all cars with PS shd have this hum?

Remember One rule - if the problem is not impending & 70-80% alright, do not ask TASS to fix it. The problem might die its natural death & regular condition will be restored.
I remember a saying "If it ain't broken, don't try to fix it"

What is it exactly that you want to get done?
So since my thigh is touching during ingress/egress from the car, they will adjust the angle of the lever (push it down) for now.
Permanent fix is to replace this lever wit ha newly designed one.

VahanPujari · 15th July 2009, 12:23

Neo

In the pic you attached above, why are there 2 diff colors/ shades of Red?

Quote:

So since my thigh is touching during ingress/egress from the car, they will adjust the angle of the lever (push it down) for now.
Permanent fix is to replace this lever wit ha newly designed one.

I'm getting entire seat height assembly changed. Am out of town else would have changed by now

coolboy007 · 15th July 2009, 14:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by VahanPujari

Neo
In the pic you attached above, why are there 2 diff colors/ shades of Red?

oh Yes. That color mismatch is too evident. 1 light shade and other dark shade.
Whats this? Is that the bumper part which is is showing shade mismatch (darker one)?

neotraveller · 15th July 2009, 14:40

Yes. That color's been like that from beginning only. Since its inside i din't care.
No, the bumper comes lower than this level. Its metal only.

Would be interesting to see other people's red Linea engine bay pics?

2nd July 2009, 10:38	#121
vinay.pillai BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Little Rock, US Posts: 229 Thanked: 15 Times View My Garage	If it is April made vehicle, is it safe to accept it.....I spoke to my sales guy and he is saying it is a new vehicle directly from plant. I am not sure what to do here.....He has asked me to come down to see the vehicle..... A car made in April registered in July. IS IT A SAFE BET? Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks. Last edited by Technocrat : 2nd July 2009 at 12:12. Reason: Please read the note in post, thanks.
	() Thanks

2nd July 2009, 15:00	#123
geeash Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,513 Thanked: 146 Times	Neotraveller.Just cut the battery out and plug off the respective fuse and re apply it.It will reset the blue and me to start again
	() Thanks

2nd July 2009, 16:36	#124
pranava999 BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: BANGALORE Posts: 845 Thanked: 23 Times View My Garage	@ vinay - Now I know your concern! I don't think there's much to worry. Could even be a chassis they produced and stocked up on. There will be a few tell tale signs on the body and underbody. Look for scratches, small dents,underbody scratches, etc. But their existence doesn't genuinely translate to being used as a TD car. Some one earlier mentioned that the odo can be set only once, so why not ask them to set it . Maybe its worth trying. Just ensure before you do that the odo has not doe more than 100-150kms. Mine read 60. .If its not possible then it could be a hint that the car's been used and reset.However I was too lazy to do a PDi and was hoping that the scee I had created earlier would ensure an unused TD car. Anyways if you are worried do a thorough self PDI. There's a checklist on the forum, might come in handy and allay your concerns.
	() Thanks

2nd July 2009, 17:12	#125
vinay.pillai BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Little Rock, US Posts: 229 Thanked: 15 Times View My Garage	Thanks Pranava! I hope you are correct on chassis number. Anyway I will ask him about re-setting the ODO and let see what the sales guy says. The PDI will be done tomorrow. Keeping my finger crossed
	() Thanks

6th July 2009, 11:43	#126
ahshahid Newbie Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Pune Posts: 16 Thanked: 0 Times	A week back, I also had a frustrating time with linea. First , for the media player , forward/previous key stoppe dworking. Also src/ok stopped working. I could not pick calls etc. Had to take it to BU Bhandari's work shop. Spent 6 hrs to finally get them resolved it. It seems there was some circuit problem though they did not give much details. Then next day, the front left door's unlock lever gave waway. The lever simply became free & the door would not opne. Gave it for scheduled service next day & got those fixed. So far thing seem Ok. But these two incidences shook me regarding the reliability aspect. Wife just could not beleive all this non sense happening in an *l car. She did say it would have been better if we had gone for honda. Hope things will not be bad but any ways , it has undermined confidence.
	() Thanks

7th July 2009, 22:47	#128
neotraveller BHPian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 739 Thanked: 0 Times	2000km Update 1) I am enjoying the admiration, Car looks totally a class above. I wanted to upgrade to a proper sedan after my zen, and yes Linea does give that big car feel. Sometimes we fit 4 ppl at the back seat too. 2) Very happy to own the best bang for buck car - LINEA. It has all the premium features that I wanted in a car and more. No upgrades required. 3) My mileage has settled to around 9.5 kmpl My daily drive is through peak traffic. And any small empty stretch I see, I really rip it in 2nd/3rd gears till 4000rpm (I am starting to love the engine roar now). So my drive is not really a mileage-friendly one. (avg speed 18kmph) 4) Car is adequately powered. The engine is Very responsive. And you can even feel being pushed back into the seat when you press the accelerator. I am not kidding. Even though its a petrol engine with less torque, it pulls really well. On quite a few occasions it easily pulled 6 people at almost stand-still speeds (AC full blast). I salute this gutsy engine. 5) Driving is a little difficult in traffic. Can't "see" all the corners of the car. Lot of areas won't be visible at all like front left and thw whole rear, but I guess thats expected of a sedan. And I am an experienced driver, so have reasonably stayed out of trouble. 6) Any bruises? Yes. 1 scratch ... rear-right wheel arch (bumper) while reversing into my house caused by my over-confidence. Small but can be seen easily. Another scratch ... caused on front-left wheel arch (again bumper) caused by a scooter. Can't be seen easily unless you bend and closely examine. Another one ... some bozo seemed to have drawn a line across the bonnet when my beauty was parked outside a restaurant. Thankfully it wasn't a thick one ... faintly visible. I will be going for 1st service next week. Have to take care of following things. - seat-height lever adjustment - Driver-side door speaker sounds distorted. Needs to be replaced (waiting for speaker availability at Blaupunkt dealer) - Car seems to be little rough and wobble even on small undulations on roads (maybe alignment problem) - Fix some rattles that crept into the doors when I installed sunfilm. - I hear some humming sound (very faint) when turning the steering end to end at slow speeds. - Blue and me display is not coming. (I had used a pen drive which had less songs and more of junk in it ... so maybe that screwed it up)
	() Thanks

8th July 2009, 22:26	#129
coolboy007 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Delhi Posts: 1,852 Thanked: 2,137 Times	Neo, I think that you are going to get your Linea serviced yourself. Why dont you ask them where the POLLEN filter or cabin filter of linea is? Air filter is under engine cover, where is the pollen filter?
	() Thanks

14th July 2009, 23:08	#130
neotraveller BHPian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 739 Thanked: 0 Times	1st service @ 2200 km Went for 1st service as I finished 3 months (2200km done) at Autofin, Bowenpally Service center experience - Went to service station at 9:30AM Was offered water. Was one of first few. So I asked to call Linea service advisor. Same guy who I saw on previous visits came. Seems like there is one SA dedicated for Linea. - Surprisingly SA didn't come with me for trial. He sent a mechanic with me to identify/reproduce problems. Once it was done, I had to accompany this mechanic to explain blue&me and brakes problem to yet another mechanic. - Left for home at 10:30AM. - Went to pickup car at 5:30PM. - Took for test drive again to see rattles were fixed - Then spent 1 hr with the fuel-lid problem. - Did final cleaning again as car became dirty by now. Cleaning and all were good (9/10 for the qualiy) - Finally left for home at 6:30PM. Bill came to Rs. 441 with taxes 300rs for alignment 100rs for some dinitrol engine waxing. (they dint even ask me if i wanted it. but seems worth it) All in all it was an above-average experience I would say. Issue Resolution - Rattles in all doors, thanks to sunfilm installation (They fixed them, however rear parcel tray makes noise sometimes. They said its a design defect and all lineas have it) - Jarring sound when releasing brakes. (Its normal only) - When steering is kept at full turn a slight humming sound is heard (Its normal only, its some power-steering oil cutting off or something) - Blue and me Display not coming (They fixed by Resetting the battery) - Brakes lock-up in stop-Go traffic sometimes. I wasn't able to reproduce in front of them (they checked brake system but couldn't find any issues, have to lookout) - Ride is not very butter smooth. I am able to feel minute road undulations. maybe I am expecting too much? (They did wheel-alignment and claim that its good now) -Rear seat-belt clip not working (They placed order for this part) -Fuel tank Lid seems a little raised than car body Now this is a classic showcase of the skills of our TATA mechanics. They tried to improve it, but end-result was that the fuel door was not opening now I scolded them and asked them to restore it back to whatever state it was in when I gave the car. Some 2-3 guys tried for 1 hour and couldn't come out with a solution. Finally they attached some small rubber thing to the lever (increasing its length) that now is able to push the fuel-lid out. Even now its only opening the lid slightly out, whereas all these days it used to open pretty wide. Pending Issues - Seat-Height adjuster (still waiting for parts dealer from Fiat. This will be a temporary solution where he will adjust the angle of the lever. The Corporate quality guys called me to inform that Fiat-Italy has asked them to redesign this lever. So they are looking at 1-2 designs and will finalize things in couple of months. People who have this problem can get a free replacement at that time) - Driver-door speaker is distorted (still waiting for speaker to arrive!) Last edited by neotraveller : 14th July 2009 at 23:16.
	() Thanks

15th July 2009, 14:40	#135
neotraveller BHPian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 739 Thanked: 0 Times	Yes. That color's been like that from beginning only. Since its inside i din't care. No, the bumper comes lower than this level. Its metal only. Would be interesting to see other people's red Linea engine bay pics?
	() Thanks