[spadix]

Originally Posted by mkc15

Hey spadix, catching up with your thread. CONGRATS on your BQ. Mine also came to around Rs.150 for first service (straight 2 weeks from delivery) ~120 for nitrogen and ~40 for wiper liquid, IIRC.

Hey, many thanks mkc15!

1000 kms in 2 weeks is really impressive stuff, but that's what Bengaluru with all its weekend getaways in stone's throw distances can do I guess . I'll search for your initial ownership thread and go through it. The one thing which is heartening is that almost all of the Civic ownership threads I've come across look very consistent. That's always a good sign.

The service guy mentioned INR 45 for the wiper liquid (I complained about squeaking blades) and said INR 150 or thereabouts depending on what other fluids are needed.

Originally Posted by mkc15

Regarding underbody coating, I also initially thought its not required as it comes pre-done. While taking delivery after 3rd service, I noticed that Honda is cost-cutting by coating only the joints. So decided to get it done. I'll be getting it done in the next service. I was told its around 4K (3M job), don't remember the exact figure though.

The price you were quoted seems right. Just ensure beforehand whether you'll be getting some sort of receipt or not. Also in my case it's supposed to be a 5-year dealer-provided warranty (some tie-up between Honda, dealer and service provider which in this case is 3M).

I just called and asked to cancel it but I was too late. Apparently they just got done with it and are currently washing the car (the job card said a delivery time of 1500 hrs today and even the lady on phone on Friday said 1st free service usually takes 4-5 hours only). I'm insisting on a dedicated bill and he said he'll see what he can do.

Regards,
spadix

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by spadix

I just called and asked to cancel it but I was too late. Apparently they just got done with it and are currently washing the car (the job card said a delivery time of 1500 hrs today and even the lady on phone on Friday said 1st free service usually takes 4-5 hours only). I'm insisting on a dedicated bill and he said he'll see what he can do.

This is very very strange.

How can they do the underbody coating without your firm confirmation? If i were in your shoes, i would have used this situation to a very favorable twist ( for self, ofcourse)

[hiren.mistry]

Hey Spadix,
Congrats on the BQ. Black indeed looks good on the Civic. I've got a 2006 galaxy grey S-MT.

Regarding underbody 3M coating, I was quoted around 6K for it. I'm surprised you've been charged half of it. Shouldn't the same charges be applicable all across. I've anyways decided to get it done from an independent 3M outlet.

And what's this viper fluid? My new wipers also squeal at time.

All the best and have fun.

[spadix]

Originally Posted by mobike008

This is very very strange.

How can they do the underbody coating without your firm confirmation? If i were in your shoes, i would have used this situation to a very favorable twist ( for self, ofcourse)

Hahaha! Avi, once you get to know me more you'll realize this is very typical of me. I confirmed in the morning when I was there. Then I started having doubts (and posted here) and by the time I decided to go back on my earlier line of thought, the damage is already done.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Hey Spadix,
Congrats on the BQ. Black indeed looks good on the Civic. I've got a 2006 galaxy grey S-MT.

Hey Hiren! Thanks man! Yeah I saw your pre-worshipped acquisition report (if we could call a 3-day thing that! ). I hope the car's serving you well.

By the way are you the same Hiren Mistry of BN? I'm there too, but been dormant for more than a year now. Not much out-of-town riding on the Pulsar these days.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Regarding underbody 3M coating, I was quoted around 6K for it. I'm surprised you've been charged half of it. Shouldn't the same charges be applicable all across. I've anyways decided to get it done from an independent 3M outlet.

I've seen different folks here quote different prices for the same 3M treatment (there was someone who was quoted 10+k INR!). I think a lot depends on warranty and dealer-3M tie-ups. How much did the independent outlet charge you? The dealer would've added his own mark-up.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

And what's this viper fluid? My new wipers also squeal at time.

What I specifically asked for was a shampoo wash of the wiper blades to increase their softness.

However, wiper fluid is some sort of an additive to the regular water that's used in the windshield washer reservoir. These new cars come with some coatings to the windshield to prevent scratches and to keep water away as much as possible and I guess these additives help to preserve those hydrophilic properties.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

All the best and have fun.

Thanks once again, Hiren! I wish you the same too!

Regards,
spadix

[hiren.mistry]

Originally Posted by spadix

Hey Hiren! Thanks man! Yeah I saw your pre-worshipped acquisition report (if we could call a 3-day thing that! ). I hope the car's serving you well.

By the way are you the same Hiren Mistry of BN? I'm there too, but been dormant for more than a year now. Not much out-of-town riding on the Pulsar these days.

I've seen different folks here quote different prices for the same 3M treatment (there was someone who was quoted 10+k INR!). I think a lot depends on warranty and dealer-3M tie-ups. How much did the independent outlet charge you? The dealer would've added his own mark-up.



What I specifically asked for was a shampoo wash of the wiper blades to increase their softness.

However, wiper fluid is some sort of an additive to the regular water that's used in the windshield washer reservoir. These new cars come with some coatings to the windshield to prevent scratches and to keep water away as much as possible and I guess these additives help to preserve those hydrophilic properties.



Thanks once again, Hiren! I wish you the same too!

Regards,
spadix

Yeah my hunt lasted a full 3 days, a record of sorts I believe.

Well that would also be me who got a 10K quote but then it was my fault, that 10k included underbody, exterior and interior treatment.

Thanks for the explanation regarding the wiper fluid, will enquire about it next time I visit Solitaire.

And yes again, I was on BN many moons ago but nowadays my touring is limited to the home-office-home grind on beloved 180 classic. Managed to rake up 90k kms on it.

[spadix]

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Well that would also be me who got a 10K quote but then it was my fault, that 10k included underbody, exterior and interior treatment.

Ah, that makes sense.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

And yes again, I was on BN many moons ago but nowadays my touring is limited to the home-office-home grind on beloved 180 classic. Managed to rake up 90k kms on it.

90k kms! Wow! Most people don't even believe BAL bikes can last that long. My classic 180 turns 7 day after tomorrow and it's done only 17950 kms (+/-) in all this time :(.

In general I've been a light user of my vehicles. The 800 did just short of 20k kms in 3 years and 10.5 months under my care (effectively only 3 years because I was a hostel-based student in the April 2009 - April 2010 period so didn't have any commute to speak of).

I hope to reverse these trends with BQ .

Regards,
spadix

[ku69rd]

Spadix,
Neat review on your Honda Civic, keep em coming. Would you have any visual of the place where the car's pipe got blown off? Also post Service how is she behaving?

[spadix]

Originally Posted by ku69rd

Spadix,
Neat review on your Honda Civic, keep em coming. Would you have any visual of the place where the car's pipe got blown off? Also post Service how is she behaving?

Thanks, ku69rd!

I was too distraught to take a picture of the 'breaker that contributed to my loss, but it wasn't a pretty sight seeing lines of freshly exposed tar (caused by the under-body and tow hook) on the dust-caked hump.

In general, I've been very lax in taking pictures of BQ as well. It's mostly my laziness. I keep looking for an opportunity to take pictures in "good" environs (and the parking area at home isn't one, with all of the construction material etc. lying around) and by the time I get to work the car's caked in dust.

I'm going to pick BQ up tomorrow morning from the service center. Got tied up at work today and I don't want to let their drivers deliver the car to me for the following reasons -

1. Who knows how they drive the car?
2. The service isn't free.
3. I'm at sea if I have any complaint to make about the quality of service.
4. Can't pay by credit card.

Quick update on the under-body coating thing.

The idiot who took my car in for service called me up and said the bill came to INR 3900. I was happy to hear that (3800 + tax for the coating itself meant the first service was essentially free). He then calls me up after some time and apologizes and says the actual amount is INR 5339!

When I asked him why, he apologized once again and said he mistook the car for a City. I gave him a piece of my mind over the phone. After all, he physically inspected the car before taking it in, and actually *wrote* "Civic" on the job card. Besides, he's been on this job for quite some time at least. So unless he's a total monkey, he's trying to pull a fast one on me.

To add to this, he still didn't give me the quote for the exhaust tips that I'd requested (twice).

I asked to be connected to the Service Manager and was told he's in a meeting. I cut the phone. I'll go and pick up the car tomorrow and I'm going to have a nice, long fight. It's been ages since I did that and I'll blow all my frustration (built out of work/life/car service/traffic/everything) out at them tomorrow.

I don't know if they'll issue me the gate pass unless I pay the amount in full. I'm wondering what my options are here.

This is one of the reasons why I held off on reviewing my dealership experience. Sales is one aspect (not that it was a 10/10 experience either) but I wanted to give a holistic picture that included service experience as well. What started off as a 10/10 in May has quickly reached a 5/10 in my book now, and is in danger of going further south tomorrow morning.

Watch this space.

Regards,
spadix

[alto99]

Originally Posted by spadix

Thanks, ku69rd!


The idiot who took my car in for service called me up and said the bill came to INR 3900. I was happy to hear that (3800 + tax for the coating itself meant the first service was essentially free). He then calls me up after some time and apologizes and says the actual amount is INR 5339!

That was the amout I was quoted in Pune for Civic. I was actually surprised how it could be cheaper in Bangalore .

[spadix]

Originally Posted by alto99

That was the amout I was quoted in Pune for Civic. I was actually surprised how it could be cheaper in Bangalore .

Hyderabad in this case, but your surprise is completely valid. Bengalurians always suffered from the "Bengaluru premium" and Honda has this premium irrespective of where you're from!

In my case it's just that I would've flatly refused if I knew the cost was 5400. 3000 was my expectation and 3800 + tax, albeit high, was OK I thought.

Besides, I can't understand how it's 3800 + tax for a City and 5400 for a Civic. Is the Civic's underbody really almost 50% bigger in area? I don't think so!

As I said, interesting few hours coming up. I'm going to leave for the service centre in a couple of hours.

Regards,
spadix

[alto99]

Originally Posted by spadix

Hyderabad in this case, but your surprise is completely valid. Bengalurians always suffered from the "Bengaluru premium" and Honda has this premium irrespective of where you're from!

Sorry I mistook it as Bangalore.

Originally Posted by spadix

Besides, I can't understand how it's 3800 + tax for a City and 5400 for a Civic. Is the Civic's underbody really almost 50% bigger in area? I don't think so!

This is true for some other items as well. Sunfilm, seat cover are the others where there are significant price increases according to cars cost. They probably price it based on cars cost.

[shuvc]

Both 1st and 2nd services were free in my case. Rs. 0.00 and all issues noted and taken care of satisfactorily.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by spadix

In my case it's just that I would've flatly refused if I knew the cost was 5400. 3000 was my expectation and 3800 + tax, albeit high, was OK I thought.

All this underbody coating thing got me excited and i called Kishore from KUN to check for my Cruze.

He said, Cruze comes with a underbody coat and if required it can be done again. Cost of which is Rs.3800 all inclusive.

However, he suggested if its driven in city like Hyderabad, not to be done. According to him, they recommend it as mandatory for cars that run in humid conditions, small towns and dusty areas.

In his experience, 8 out of 10 people do not get it done.

Prashant, i am sorry to know the rating of your ownership with Honda is going southwards. It is disheartening that you pay such a premium to buy this product and least that is expected is to be treated properly, if they cannot price their after sales service reasonably.

[sgiitk]

Agree with shuvc. First two services cost me Zero. I paid Rs,20 at teh second for a fuse I had managed to blow when lugging in the car fridge (cause unknown till date). In the first service they tried the usual tricks - undesealing, Teflon, Nitrogen all of which I declined. I may add that while the first service was from the vendor - Pushp Honda, Kanpur the second was from Heritage Honda, Gwalior. Consumption on an AT - 9.4km to 1200km, it is virtually 11 on the next tankful.

Have pushed it to 135kph and is stable as a rock. This is one of the first BS4 spec Civics to be delivered (on 1 June 2010, manufactured May 2010). The reversing sensors are standard but only with beeper! So the cost increase of Rs.10,000 is more than nullified by the drop of 20,000 due to the sensors.

[spadix]

Originally Posted by shuvc

Both 1st and 2nd services were free in my case. Rs. 0.00 and all issues noted and taken care of satisfactorily.

I just got to work after taking delivery and boy, some experience it was! It'll need some 10 posts to vent out all of my frustrations, but I'll start with the good news.

The car is fantastic! All the issues I mentioned seemed to have been ironed out or at least I couldn't find any evidence of them in the 15.6 km drive from service centre to office. I thank my lucky stars for that, and I hope that BQ doesn't suffer, even if I (and my wallet) do at the hands of these unscrupulous dealers. As of now, the feelings I have outlined in this post still hold, and that's all I want.

I'll post my service experiences bit by bit here in subsequent posts, and then tie it back in to the dealership experience thread which I'll start on some weekend that I'm free from office work .

For the record, the "service" itself cost me INR 45 (washer fluid). I'll count the underbody treatment as an accessory. That cost roughly 4800 finally (more details in the promised subsequent posts).

I thought I'll post some pictures for the benefit of the readers of this thread. I've been doing a great disservice to everyone on this front. The car has been cleaned decently (not perfectly) and so today was a golden opportunity. I should really have brought the DSLR out, but I'll let the phone pictures do the honours for now. Not that it matters. While the phone pictures may not be good technically, the DSLR pictures won't be good artistically, so it's garbage any which way .

Originally Posted by mobike008

However, he suggested if its driven in city like Hyderabad, not to be done. According to him, they recommend it as mandatory for cars that run in humid conditions, small towns and dusty areas.

In his experience, 8 out of 10 people do not get it done.

Prashant, i am sorry to know the rating of your ownership with Honda is going southwards. It is disheartening that you pay such a premium to buy this product and least that is expected is to be treated properly, if they cannot price their after sales service reasonably.

Avi I'm happy for you that you're getting an honest dealership experience. May that continue for long!

I'm OK with getting the underbody treatment done because of the water situation near my place. Of course it would've helped if I'd gotten it done earlier. Now the people in the colony seem to have taken some measures to aid in faster drainage of the puddles, so the coating probably won't be required to do its job until next year.

Regards,
spadix