Ignored all niggles on my Ertiga but one issue really bothered me

I am not keen on switching to a new car as I feel that I still haven't had enough of my more than 6-year-old Maruti Ertiga.

BHPian yikes6633 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

The Ertiga has been a true VFM purchase. It's been 6 years 8 months and it's still munching miles.

There are a few common niggles like:

• Weird noise from the rear AC vents/blower
• The unoccupied seats rattle on rough roads
• Strange noise from the rear drum brakes
• Another strange noise heard clearly in the cabin when the car is rocked (maybe the link rods)

The strange noise when the car is rocked began after I drove over a big speed breaker at a speed of 45kms/hr as I did not see it.

I suspect that it may be the tie rod or link rod and its bushes. Will get this fixed once the noise increases or once I am sure what is causing it.

To better enjoy this car I have tried to ignore all the little niggles, however, there is one issue that has bothered me over the past one week with sleepless nights over the past 3 days, it's the headlights. I have managed with the stock headlights for all my night drives within the city and outstation together with the fog halogen lights which come as standard fitment.

As new-age cars crowd the roads with ultra-bright white LEDs and the upcoming infrastructure work in most cities leading to dark streets and poorly lit roads, it has become extremely difficult for me to drive at night. Given the fading of the headlight housing, scratches on the headlight lens as well as the fog lamps, poor windshield visibility with not so very clean views and rapid ageing of my car as it's parked outside, exposed to rain and sun, has made driving at night a troublesome experience for me.

I am not keen on switching to a new car given the budget constraints and my present priorities. Besides, I feel that I still haven't had enough of the Ertiga.

Troubled, I started going through different threads on upgrading headlights with HID/Halogens/LEDs etc and after much thought and contemplation, I finalized yesterday that I will upgrade to 90/100w with a headlight relay kit.

Based on the input from multiple threads on Team-BHP, I went ahead with this option, as it was the simplest, most cost-effective and practical DIY.

The upgrade costed me INR 850/- for the Philips relay kit and INR 480/- for Philips Rally. Miscellaneous ties and insulation tape INR 50/- I purchased all these from Veer Automobiles on JC Road in Bangalore.

Fitting it took about 65 minutes and it surely is much better than the OEM-fitted headlight bulbs. I am happy that I have upgraded the headlights with this option on my Ertiga. Sincere thanks to all of you for the same.

After completing this upgrade I still continue to be troubled with the headlight housing that has faded and has a lot of scratches thereby contributing to scattering the bright light from the upgrade and also making it appear like it's dim. I know that I may need to replace the headlight housing too. Will do this once I have some budget. For now, I am satisfied with the 90/100w upgrade.

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