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Old 8th February 2010, 11:33   #76
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Had composed a well quoted reply but lost to network problems :-(. So will just type up the bullets

- FE: The figure you got was before the 1st service right? What are you getting after the 1st service? I am half way thru the first full tank after 1st service and the results are pretty good so far. Will update once done
- Low-end torque: Low end performance is a bit poor but IMHO its due to the taller gearing (esp in 2nd, 3rd) rather than low end torque. But I can understand how you feel, took the WagonR out for a spin and it is much easier to run around the city
- Front sunfilm: Was planning to get exactly the same one (3M CR70) but after your experience I've dropped the idea. As others have pointed out the same film cannot be refitted but you should push to get it replaced under 3M warranty, I have done that once. If possible ask them to send the 3M guys home to do this.
- Hydraulic vs EPS: The problem here is not so much EPS systems per se but that in the SX4 it is not sufficiently powerful, leading to some excercise while taking very slow tight turns. EPS in WagonR is a delight to use in similar situations. Haven't faced an off-centric steering problem, but yes it does take more muscle to turn compared to say WagonR/ Santro.
- Thanks for the car seating ergonomics guide, was quite useful! But most of the sub 10 lakh cars don't have those many seat adjustment controls...
- Re the wobbling issue can you tell me how you detected the problem? I mean did you have someone following you while driving? Can check this out at my end...
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Old 8th February 2010, 12:13   #77
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Thank you for the information.

[quote=mrwalker;1721488]Had composed a well quoted reply but lost to network problems :-(. So will just type up the bullets

Quote:
- FE: The figure you got was before the 1st service right? What are you getting after the 1st service? I am half way thru the first full tank after 1st service and the results are pretty good so far. Will update once done
I have not mesured the FE after 1st service yet. But looking to the left over fule i can say it is coming around 10. Will update the exact figure once refuelled. I got 10 and 9 before the 1st service.

Quote:
- Low-end torque: Low end performance is a bit poor but IMHO its due to the taller gearing (esp in 2nd, 3rd) rather than low end torque. But I can understand how you feel, took the WagonR out for a spin and it is much easier to run around the city
But eventually it sucks. Thinking of adding Race Dynamics. Anybody of your knowledge who has used the RD performance increment stuff?

Quote:
- Front sunfilm: Was planning to get exactly the same one (3M CR70) but after your experience I've dropped the idea. As others have pointed out the same film cannot be refitted but you should push to get it replaced under 3M warranty, I have done that once. If possible ask them to send the 3M guys home to do this.
I think you got it wrong. The 3M CR 70 in the front is doing excellent. No bubbles and absolutely no problem in terms of night visibility. The bubbles are with the sides and back - Nanolux installation.

Quote:
- Hydraulic vs EPS: The problem here is not so much EPS systems per se but that in the SX4 it is not sufficiently powerful, leading to some excercise while taking very slow tight turns. EPS in WagonR is a delight to use in similar situations. Haven't faced an off-centric steering problem, but yes it does take more muscle to turn compared to say WagonR/ Santro.
Any idea to make the steering a bit light / free ? Checked with MASS; they say nothing could be done.

Quote:
- Thanks for the car seating ergonomics guide, was quite useful! But most of the sub 10 lakh cars don't have those many seat adjustment controls....
I am using aditional cushions and for me it has worked to certain extent. Of late I feel the problem is not with the steering, rather with the seat. I will ask the MASS to change the seat altogether.

Quote:
- Re the wobbling issue can you tell me how you detected the problem? I mean did you have someone following you while driving? Can check this out at my end...
My car was under tyre change and that time i saw the wobbling in left rear tyre and subsequently i intentionally asked them to put it onjaw to recheck. However, this seems to be a common prob with Maruti (dont know if this is true with other brands as well as i have not checked) as I checked with few other new mauti cars - swift, ritz, alto etc - everywhere slight (but visually noticeable) wobbling is there. MASS says as long as this is within permissible limit no problem.
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Old 8th February 2010, 12:32   #78
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Doing this half clutch thingy at traffic signals may find you surging ahead of the santros and octys and corollas as per this post, but you will also land up with some rather expensive clutch work sooner rather than later because you will certainly reduce clutch life, not to mention waste a heck of a lot of gas!

[quote=Fornax;1721045]It's insufficient to put it more aptly, but havent' you tried half-clutch? On green, I've never found myself lagging behind a Santo or a Corolla or even an Octy..
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Old 8th February 2010, 12:34   #79
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[quote=varunroy;1718514]
Quote:

Could be a very small problem. On the sidewall of the tyres you will find a 4mm beading running all around just where the tyre touches the Rim. There shoud be a uniform gap between the Rim and this beading. However just to be sure you could do the following. 1) Deflate the tyre by releasing the air in it. 2) refill air to almost 30-40% more than the required pressure. 3. Reduce the pressure to the desired level. You can do this with either the tyre fitted on to the car or by removing it. If this does set the problem right then..... Jack up the car, loosen all nuts of the defective wheel, remove the Disc, change position and re-tighten the nuts.

This is the most important process of removing and refitting a wheel and most technicians and mechanics are either ignorant of carelees about it. If possible screw on the nuts with your hands as far as possible. If you feel this is not possible, use your wheel spanner and tighten nuts till you feel the slightest resistance.Once you have finished doing this with all the nuts, tighten Nuts in the following order. Nut No. 1-3-2-4 for a four nut wheel and Nut No. 1-3-5-2-4 for a five nut wheel. You can give an imaginary No. to the nuts in clockwise or anti-clockwise direction. Now remove the Jack and Tighten all the nuts in the same manner shown above. By doing you will avoid that small possibility of an imperfect fit that leads to a wobble at high speeds.
Weight Balancing of all the wheels is the most important part of the maintenance schedule and one should give it the same priority as an Engine Oil change, if not more.
Very nice piece of information. I will follow this next time.

Quote:
Unless you are conversant in using one its no point in having one. With tube less tyres you can drive for over 50 Kms. and I sure you will fin a repairer in that period. It does not cost much. A good one will cost about 350 Rs. I have one since 2004 and I haven't used it even once.
I agree with you. But just to have a peace of mind, when you are off the city limit. Could you please refer any good brand and the shop.

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Car Vacumn cleaners are a joke, unless you want to clean the ashtrays, which anyway are removal ones these days. Instead invest in a good one or your home. They not only give exceptional results in car cleaning but are cheaper in the long run.
Problem is with power outlet at the basement car parking. Willtry to figure out.

Quote:
Not a bad idea if you need that extra Zip at the cost of a considerable lower FE. That is if you Zoom. But about a KM less with normal driving.
Will wait till the 3rd free service is done. Let's see how the car bhaves by that time.
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Old 8th February 2010, 15:11   #80
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Quote:
Originally Posted by shankar.balan View Post
Doing this half clutch thingy at traffic signals may find you surging ahead of the santros and octys and corollas as per this post, but you will also land up with some rather expensive clutch work sooner rather than later because you will certainly reduce clutch life, not to mention waste a heck of a lot of gas!
I guess my post does sounds a little crude but I'm really not professing a full pedal with clutch-half way, that way I could beat most bikes, forget 4-wheelers (did it once 40 in 1st).

What I really meant was the clutch is realeased from half-press position steadily, at rougly the same rate as the gas pedal goes down. That way you can pull smoothly without experiencing the lack of low-end torque.

For what its' worth, the gear and clutch in my old Indica invariably got complimented for smoothness and ease, but do appreciate your warning as done wrongly it can lead to side-effects pretty easily.
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Old 2nd March 2010, 17:04   #81
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Brief Running Update - Few issues and Solutions

The MAN is doing its job quite adequately. However, I have come across few issues for which I went to Pratham motors today. Sharing for others benefits:

1. There was a typical "jhumka type" sound coming somewhere from the front. Initially i was thinking it was coming from inside the dashboard. Finally the culprit was at the locking place of the globe box. It has been taken care.

2. Of late, for almost a wee, i was getting a mild 'kate-kate' sound from the back as well as the front (externally). For example, imagine if the back suspension coil is old and kind of rusted then if it is pressed hard it will give you some sound - something similar. The sound was audible when the car is running very slow - at 5 kmph and you have very less external noise. Also when the car starts rolling from a static position. Wheels, suspension and related components were opened, cleaned and greased. Problem is solved apparently. Wonder why at all this should be there for a new car.

3. FE - Dealer guy told me that auto-cut off tank full to tank full is not the right method. We need to manually see that the fuel is filled till the bottom level of the protruding part of fuel pipe. Auto-cut off may not give exact figure as the sensor works when there is slightest pressure inside the tank, which is dependent on many factors. Will try to follow the same and will see how much FE i am getting.

4. I had some rattling sound coming from the front (either dashboard or from under the hood) for which they used some 2 sided adhesive tape as packing. I blasted them saying i do not want any foreign object as solution for a brand new car. Finally they opened each and every part of the wiper area and inserted some missing plastic locks and now I dont have the sound. Point is they were hard pressing to me saying that these packings are accepted methods of repair. I insisted on talking to maruti engineer and then only they reopened everything.

5. I have a feeling the wheels kind of throw the car side-wise when the car rolls over a hard hump or similar. For a moment i feel there is absolutely no connect between the steering and the wheels. Anybody has felt any such thing ?
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Old 13th March 2010, 20:00   #82
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HI DD !

Any updates on the rattling sounds and the cracked windshield ?

Hope you got your MAN back in the courtyard ?
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Old 22nd March 2010, 17:34   #83
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DigitalDragon View Post

Sun-Film Performance:
After reading lot of posts on the windshield sun-film thread, I thought I will update my experience too - the 3M CR 70 in the front DID adequate job of shileding heat. There is a definite improvement in terms of % of heat getting inside. Of course not in the tune of 50 % as claimed by the company, in reality its difficult to gauge a no. but may be somewhere around 30 % heat rejected. Also the side & rear nanolux were quite effective. The VLT is 40 % but in reality this is much transparent and hence increases the visibility.
Hey DD , could you upload the images of your ride now
that you have the films installed? would appreciate if you could post images from both inside and out side s it would help understand how much light filters in thru the films

thanks

Last edited by MihirC : 22nd March 2010 at 17:52.
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Old 22nd March 2010, 18:33   #84
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nirmaljusdoit View Post
HI DD !

Any updates on the rattling sounds and the cracked windshield ?

Hope you got your MAN back in the courtyard ?
Hey Man...sorry for the late reply. Well rattling is proprietary to Maruti. Dealer has replaced the cracked windshield under warranty. For the rattlings and mileage thinking of talking to Maruti directly.
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Old 24th March 2010, 17:07   #85
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Sx4 Vvt Fe

OK - Finally official report - I got the FE tested by Maurti, computerized testing on real B2B traffic in Bangalore over an 8 km stretch :

FE: 10.49 kmpl. This is also attributed to my wider tyre (215/60/16). So I can safely think SX4 VVT practically delivers around 11 kmpl on typical B2B city condition with 100 % AC. Fuel - IBP normal petrol.

Attached is a scanned copy of the report.
Attached Thumbnails
SX4 ZXi VVT - Ownership Experience-fuel.jpg  

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Old 24th March 2010, 18:39   #86
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How did you get the FE tested by Maruti ? Did you get it done from the dealer or thro' any contacts at MUL ? I'd like to get my car's FE tested too.
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Old 25th March 2010, 11:19   #87
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Hi gt_bhp,

I got it done through Maruti dealer. You can go to any dealer for the FE testing, subject to availability of the testing machine with them. Hope this helps.
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Old 25th March 2010, 11:57   #88
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DigitalDragon View Post
5. I have a feeling the wheels kind of throw the car side-wise when the car rolls over a hard hump or similar. For a moment i feel there is absolutely no connect between the steering and the wheels. Anybody has felt any such thing ?
Your feeling is right and felt by me as well. Bit irritating, but felt more when on 33 psi and not loaded.

So I keep tire pressure 30 PSI when its just me, and 33 PSI when loaded
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Old 25th March 2010, 16:47   #89
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Thanks Bharat for sharing similar concern. I maintain 30 psi as the same is the reccommended pressure now by Maruti. May be I will have to try 28 for normal single occupancy driving.
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Old 25th March 2010, 17:04   #90
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My 2007 SX4 VXi regularly returns 11+ kpl with AC on, crossing 12 also many a times, on Delhi roads (in winters she's crossed 13 often). And on the highways, where I drive long-distances often, I regularly get 15.5+ with AC on (have even touched 17 with AC more than once) with a few prolonged speed runs at 140-150. But usually I maintain around 100kmph on the highways with an average journey speed of 70kmph, due to generous stopovers. In the city I seldom (can) cross 80kmph, and am hardly ever given to srceeching starts when the traffic light turns green, yet am usually with the pack, if not ahead of most. I have achieved the above with maximum 3 passengers in the car, but am mostly either alone or with one passenger. Luggage has never filled the cavernous boot more than half.
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