WARNING: Long post
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Originally Posted by antorquetik It took some time for me to go through the thread but a very informative one i must say.I need help here.Some issues with my palio mjd sdx. |
Thank you. I'm trying to keep it as detailed as possible for other Fiat owners like me. Or possibly even for other 1.3 multijet drivers (swifts, lineas, manzas etc.)
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Originally Posted by antorquetik 1) Very irritating rattle from tail door area. it sounds like number plate rattle but on checking for the same it turned out not to be the one. |
See if your seatbelt clip is in contact with the inner vehicle body. This happened with me once and all I had to do was stuff the rear belts nicely into the gap between the seat and the sides.
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Originally Posted by antorquetik 2) Head unit rattle while pulling the car from low RPM in higher gears.I want a permanent fix for this. |
I tried and tried and tried and still haven't found a fix for it yet. You could try making a thin layer of blue tack between the HU frame and the HU itself. This helped for some time. I know how frustrating this can be. It gives a cheap feel to anyone sitting in the car and the driver too.
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Originally Posted by antorquetik 4) This is the most important one.Car is returning FE of 20kmpl on highway run without AC at constant speeds of 80-90. After touching the 100kmph mark engine begins to struggle and with great difficulty it manages to touch the 130 mark completely running out of breath.With the AC on , engine is just able to touch 120 mark and is returning 15.5 kmpl on pushing it to speeds beyond 100 kmph. |
Get the throttle body cleaned. And depending on how much your car has run, you might want to get your fuel filter changed too. Another idea that comes to mind is to check the intake manifold and the air filter. When was the last time you got it changed?
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Originally Posted by antorquetik 5) The wheels do not lock even if i stand on the brake pedal |
Leakage/wearing out of hydraulic fluid from your master/slave brake cylinder. Get that checked. If not, then your break shoes/pads have worn out. At 42k kms it's possible. Did you get your brakes checked at all?
Back to the ol' girl.
***UPDATE*** ***TANK FILL***
Fuel volume - 41.66 L
Trip distance - 808 kms
Odo reading - 29,194 kms
F.E. -
19.39 kmpl (gotta love winter!)
***UPDATE*** ***TANK FILL***
Fuel volume - 43.54 L
Trip distance - 841 kms
Odo reading - 30,035 kms (crossed 30k!)
F.E. -
19.31 kmpl (nice constant FE means nice constant driving style!)
***SERVICING DONE AT 30,035 kms***
***LOCATION - HIM MOTORS, PATPARGANJ INDUSTRIAL AREA, DELHI***
I will try and sum this up as well as possible. This contains important information for any Fiat owner thinking of going to HIM motors for their servicing. I acknowledge and understand that everyone's experience differs, and this is purely my own experience.
I reached early Saturday morning. There weren't too many cars there, but no service adviser turned up for a nice long time. The first thing the service adviser told me was that all the Fiat team had left and there was no one to service the car. When I told him it was a simple paid service, he said the TATA guys would do it. I also mentioned that my clutch felt funny and that the car wasn't feeling even one thirds as torquey as she usually did, i.e. the car struggled to move without complimenting the clutch release with the gas pedal. The car was shuddering in first gear on simply leaving the clutch slowly. He promptly passed this off as a simple air filter problem and that it would go away. Halfway into the day, while I sat in a dilapidated customer's 'lounge' watching an obviously fixed review between the XUV 500 and the new safari storme, I was told that my front break pads were broken and need replacement. Obviously they didn't have any in stock and needed to get it from some other warehouse, which was obviously located in another universe, which obviously meant I had to leave the car their overnight. I took an auto and pushed off. It cost me almost 200 Rupees to get home.
The next day, when I went to collect my car, it was absolutely FILTHY. HIM motors has pathetic cleaning quality, and due to the lack of nearby service centers for me, I am somewhat compelled to go to these people. It's service centers like these that gain a bad name for an entire brand. The lad who 'cleans' the cars was quickly ordered to slap a 'kapda' around the car and it was delivered to me.
FYI everyone, the service came to almost 7,500 Rs for fresh engine oil, new brake pads, oil filter, fuel filter, and air filter, not to forget labor costs. Brake pads are quite expensive just so that everyone knows, it's around 2300 for a pair for this car.
My clutch problem was also not fixed and as fed up as I was, I quietly drove away. Through the kind folks I know in the Fiat automotive community, I quickly organized another trip to the brand new Kashyap Fiat, located far far away in Noida Phase II. They were supposed to be pretty good. Now moving on to the next tank fill.
***UPDATE*** ***TANK FILL***
Fuel volume - 40.75 L
Trip distance - 809 kms
Odo reading - 30,844 kms
F.E. -
19.85 kmpl (almost 20 kmpl!!! Also note that my mysterious clutch problem hasn't dented the FE in any way)
***REPAIR AND CHECKUP FOR CLUTCH PROBLEM***
***LOCATION - KASHYAP FIAT, C 18, NOIDA PHASE II***
The place is almost 35 kms from where I live, plus with my super hectic office schedule, I had to apply for half a day's leave to get there. The service center is spic and span, brand new actually. It was heart warming to see Mr. Sharma there, along with the old Fiat crew from Samyak/Elegant motors ---> HIM Motors. Mr. Sharma test drove my car with me, told me the clutch would have to be opened up. Probable causes for the shudder, hard to slot gears, etc. might be a clutch plate issue along with a faulty slave cylinder.
It was a worn out clutch pressure plate at the end, 2 days later I might add. Fiat global coolly denied my extended warranty claim for the clutch assembly. I don't know whether to fight it out and go through the fine print of my extended warranty booklet. Again, spare time is extremely hard to come by for me. I'm going to pick up my car tomorrow morning. I hope she's ok. I really miss that torquey spirited acceleration in all gears.
The entire clutch kit has been replaced, as well as the bearings. I've also asked for small miscellaneous problems to be fixed, such as the stubborn to open rear doors, and creaky front left suspension (audible on bumps). Wheels have been aligned, and paid washing top to bottom. I'm wondering if this new Kashyap Fiat is all worth it.
I'll probably celebrate with Kiss's newest album on the drive back to office if all goes well!