Driving Experience:
It was a mixed experience driving my Tiago for the past 6 months. There were some days I regretted buying this car and some days with a big grin on my face. Some of my initial concerns were:
- Sporadic rattling from dashboard and driver side AC vent.
- Gear lever vibrations.
- Body and seat vibrations at idle RPM, especially with AC.
- Not so good power delivery.
However, the rattles were all gone after ~3K on the ODO. Gear vibrations were considerably arrested by TASC and it is within my tolerance level. I have learned to live with idle RPM vibrations on body/seats, it may be asking for too much from the humble 3 pot. Besides, I don't drive a lot in B2B traffic. Average fuel efficiency hovers around 15 kmpl, calculated by tank-full method. The overstates FE, often up to 15% giving a false sense of FE satisfaction to owners.
As for the power delivery issue goes, it could be due to my novice manual transmission skills (unfortunately my first car was an AT). I am getting better at learning the engine's manners. Nowadays, I either stay in 2-3K RPM band (for power) or use very light throttle below 1800 RPM (for mileage). This helps avoid vibes as well as extract better FE. I have also suppressed my urge to up-shift and learned to coast in the current gear (typically 3 and 4) to avoid frequent up/down shifts in city limits.
My only grief is the drop in power/FE when AC is powered up. It just sucks up a lot of juice from the engine and makes me crave for power, given that 90% of my driving happens with family on board (3 to 4 of us). I wish there is a way to reduce the compressor's power so that the drop is not obviously noticeable.
Mileage Stats (Tank Full Method):
View attachment 216762
Mileage on MID since first service:
View attachment 216769
Service Experience:
I drove up to TASC for the scheduled second service at 9am. This being a
minor service,
I planned to stay there while they do their work. To my surprise, my SA and another senior technician (who attended my complaint for rattles & vibes) remembered me very well. After the initial hand shakes, we quickly finished the paperwork with my requests and complaints noted down.
I was then taken to their new customer lounge which was named
Mini Theater ![[lol]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Laugh.gif "Laugh [lol]")
. It was an air conditioned dark room with a wall projector and Denon home theater audio system. However, the content didn't justify the hardware, it was just the usual satellite TV channels. There were a couple of other people before me (cabbies, I suppose) and we were given chai and a few water bottles.
After spending a few boring hours, my car was ready by 1:30 pm. We reviewed the work done (on paper), finished payments and I got out of the place right away. Below are the work items that were requested and done (or not done?).
Please, No Car Wash:
Requested not to wash/clean the car except engine bay clean up. I already have enough swirl marks and interior stains from them. They happily returned the car in as-is condition even without cleaning the engine bay.
Cabin Air Filter:
I experienced foul smell for a few seconds when using blower so asked to clean out the AC air filter. Appears to be good for now.
ECU Firmware Update:
SA reviewed his computer and did not find any update for my VIN.
Harman ICE Software Update:
He acknowledged there is an update but I do not see the version number up-ticked after delivery. Did not bother going back for this as I don't have any critical issues with current version (except for pause/play issue with reverse gear).
Harman Music System Remote Control:
A couple of weeks back, I had requested my SA to procure the IR remote for audio system (got the part number from another owner, many thanks to him). After few phone call follow ups, I lost hope and interest in getting it. To my surprise, my SA stopped by the lounge with the remote control in his hand. It was priced reasonably at ₹539 so I instantly approved the purchase. Wife will be happy to use it from rear seats
![[:D]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Big%20Smile.gif "Big Smile [:D]")
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View attachment 216770
Additional Power Socket:
I use a dashcam which occupies the 12v power socket all the time. The USB port doesn't supply enough juice to charge phones at a reasonable pace. So I requested to install another power socket, which they initially agreed to. However, half way through they refused doing it due to no existing wiring for the second dummy socket. I knew there is no wiring but can't they just tap the fuse box and route the damn wire? Besides, they were afraid of voiding warranty by adding additional wires. This will have to be a DIY for me down the line.
Tire Rotation & Wheel Alignment:
I insisted to rotate the tires but SA refused quoting they are done only at 15K service. I will get it done elsewhere shortly.
Wiper Blades:
Replaced on their own. Both wiper blades were found to be nearing their end of life so they were replaced free of cost (under AMC as per invoice).
Wiper Washer Liquid:
They had filled Wuerth wiper washer additive and charged me for that.
Remove Front Seat Covers:
Honestly, I wish I had not bought those stupid seat covers in the first place. I started having back ache at the exact line of contact with the horizontal seat cover stitching (pictured below). I asked them to remove just the front row covers as my daughter would spoil rear seat fabric if left uncovered. After removal, I feel like I am on a completely different seat. It is so comfy and comfortable that I won't trade in for any covers in future. Will give it a few more weeks to confirm if this was the root cause for back ache.
View attachment 216784
Wrong ODO Reading:
Either they are blind or there is something fishy in noting the ODO reading on the job card. I noticed it during first service as well but the difference wasn't large enough to be picky. The actual ODO on my car was 4726 but they entered it as 7121 in the service record. This is now screwing up my service history, the prior entry from last week's fuel neck replacement is 7252 which is higher than latest entry. Do you guys think I should get this corrected or is not a big deal to crib about?
View attachment 216732
Invoice Copy:
View attachment 216763
Promise To Protect:
My SA tried his level best to sell the new P2P plan on offer by Tata which covers parts & labor for wear & tear components. I argued that's what Gold AMC is for and what is the need for this P2P. He defended saying this one covers more than Gold AMC's coverage and for a longer tenure (up to 4 years / 60K km). The parts covered are:
- Clutch
- Brake Pad
- Brake Linings
- Brake Disc
- Wiper
- Wheel Cylinder
- Suspension Bushes
- Engine Mountings
- Hoses
- Ball Joints
- Auxiliary Belt (Alternator & AC)
- Window Winder
I politely denied the offer as I wanted to know my fellow TAIgers' opinions before shelling out another ₹5500 over and above the ₹9000 I paid for Gold AMC. I have attached pictures of the leaflet below, please let me know your views on this plan.
View attachment 216765
View attachment 216766
View attachment 216767
View attachment 216768
That's all for now. Happy motoring!
![[frustration]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Frustration.gif "Frustration [frustration]")
:
![[:)]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Smile.gif "Smile [:)]")
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