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Old 26th October 2009, 11:20   #46
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Originally Posted by Caramelo View Post
to be precise. i would like to add.

the indian goverment has started using a blend of bioethenol (made from sugarcane or corn ) and petrol. 90 % is petrol and 10 % is bioethanol. whats the point of all this exercise. to save 10% on the national fuel bills.
Wrong. Indian government/petrol cos do not sell E10 fuels.

Cars do need to be modified to be able to use E10 fuels and if they are selling E10 fuel from unmarked pumps, there will a lot of people with corroded fuel pumps, damaged fuel hoses and faulty injection systems.

Please don't propagate such patently false information.
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Old 26th October 2009, 14:47   #47
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OTR was about 13.5 (paid full price - no discount or insurance savings for me) with the VMT about 1 more I believe... I'm thinking they might offer discounts near year-end seeing how Altis sales are thrashing the Civics' - and you should save on insurance like mentioned in earlier posts and on other threads...
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Old 1st November 2009, 09:52   #48
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Finally got some courage to go a little faster (but still not rash for sure) during this early Sunday morning's drive about the city streets. Today being my bday felt like enjoying the present a little haha Was able to go fast-ish (40 to 60 kmph thanks to almost nil traffic) on different turns/bends like V shaped, U shaped, L shaped left/rights and even long stretches which bend/curve to a more or less degree. My conclusion is the car has understeer (at least when slowing mid turn) and the suspension impresses even more - soaks up bumps/vibrations well yet keeps body roll well under control at various speeds.

Can folks confirm or refute that the Civic has understeer as I've felt whilst slowing a little mid turn? Wasn't able to check change in handling (whether it moves to oversteer) by speeding up mid turn though...

Last edited by vishalrao : 1st November 2009 at 09:54.
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Old 1st November 2009, 16:56   #49
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Actually I haven't noticed understeer at low speeds. At higher speeds, I too have noticed a bit of underteer during TD(ofcourse haven't yet driven too fast around the corners in mine), like most FWD cars would have. Infact, high caster angle (on front wheels), wider front track and independent rear suspension (especially double wish-bone) work together to minimize understeer in civic. Other civic veterans can provide more inputs. However, I think you are probably experiencing turning radius being longer, more than understeer.
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Old 1st November 2009, 17:33   #50
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Originally Posted by mkc15 View Post
I think you are probably experiencing turning radius being longer, more than understeer.
Ah good point, yes that may be so... that and different steering lock (i mean amount of rotation for wheels to get fully turned to one side) compared to a Palio...
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Old 17th January 2010, 07:08   #51
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Been a long time, got shipped out to London for work since early Nov (parked the car with battery disconnected) then after returning got mired in work the last couple of weeks. That means I have STILL NOT crossed the 1k odo mark! At just over 900 right now and I got this car in mid-Oct. Yet to go for the SECOND service haha.

But to concur with mkc15, yes the GC is a little bit of an issue. At least a couple of areas where I know I have to take precautions in Pune:

1. Carrying 4 passengers out from underground parking when the slope straightens out, it touches at the angled portion.

2. On uneven roads at speeds approaching 80 kmph it bottoms out and you hear thuds and this I suspect this is only when I have passengers because I dont recall this happening when I drove alone on similar roads/speeds.

I've been driving in "fun mode" so far and now I can't wait to cross the 1000 km mark so I can start driving in REALLY fun mode meaning moving from about 3000/3500 rpm top revs to say maybe 4000/4500. Don't want to go near redline until crossing maybe over 2000 km on the odo.

I'd filled the tank a few weeks ago and have been driving mostly in the city, will post better fuel mileage estimate today/tomorrow. Display shows 11.4 so I expect it will be around 12 kmpl.

Last edited by vishalrao : 17th January 2010 at 07:15.
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Old 17th January 2010, 11:19   #52
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vishalrao View Post
2. On uneven roads at speeds approaching 80 kmph it bottoms out and you hear thuds and this I suspect this is only when I have passengers because I dont recall this happening when I drove alone on similar roads/speeds.
Does this mean there is a possibility, it'll bottom out when going over those highway culverts at 100-120kmph? With say 2 / 3 on board?

It's never been a problem with my Baleno (even at slightly higher speeds too) - just wondering if one needs to be more careful with the Civic.
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Old 22nd January 2010, 08:12   #53
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Probably not over a "culvert" if I understood the word correctly, but for sure over a highway drive I would drive pretty slow (within 80 kmph) the first time around to find out the road conditions before attempting to go faster.

The bottoming-out suspension thudding happened many times with 4 passengers over those uneven Pune flyovers at University/Range hills area if I approached 80 there but was fine at 60.

So yea, I would always be careful with the Civic especially on new unfamiliar routes.
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Old 22nd January 2010, 11:48   #54
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AFAIK, the civic happens to have a short travel suspension, so yes, the suspension thuds would indicate bottoming out. It is a pretty strong suspension though - I would not worry too much. It has a very harsh low speed ride and superb ride / handling at speeds above 50 kmph, with almost no body roll. The driver feels this most - other passengers feel comfortable.
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Old 22nd January 2010, 20:09   #55
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vishalrao View Post
But to concur with mkc15, yes the GC is a little bit of an issue. At least a couple of areas where I know I have to take precautions in Pune:

1. Carrying 4 passengers out from underground parking when the slope straightens out, it touches at the angled portion.

2. On uneven roads at speeds approaching 80 kmph it bottoms out and you hear thuds and this I suspect this is only when I have passengers because I dont recall this happening when I drove alone on similar roads/speeds.
mmm. '1' is due to its longer wheelbase; cant expect much. Like I said in my thread, during my drive from B'lore to Kanyakumari and back with 4.5 people + full luggage, it didn't bottom-out at all (ofcourse the entire stretch of road is just awesome). Once I went over an unfinished piece of road with a huge undulation at around 80-100 and it didn't give any thud though I felt the rear was in brief flight. I also ran over a bump at around 60-70 and it didn't scrape as well.

But yes, double wishbones have short travel and is more prone to bottom-out than other kinds. This is also the reason why it handles well; rear wheels are well under control and collaborates with the fronts.

Last edited by mkc15 : 22nd January 2010 at 20:14.
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Old 22nd January 2010, 22:57   #56
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@mkc/vishal: Are you running your Civics on upsized tyres or still retaining the OE ones?
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Old 23rd January 2010, 00:17   #57
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No. Mine is totally stock (Goodyear NCT 5)
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Old 13th February 2010, 12:25   #58
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Mine also stock Michelin MXv8 whatever is the model number...
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