It seems expensive at first but when you see the list, it was worth it. rather than wasting money behind a new car.
BHPian sidindica recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
Major Update | 11 years | 1,09,450 kms | Now called as systumm
Its been a long 8 years since this thread saw an update.
8 years. The world changed. The universe changed. People have changed. The country has changed. Analytics have changed. Analysts have changed. Summit has changed. Venues have changed. And above all, responsibilities have changed.
Today, September 8 2023. The car is now with me, for a few months (or maybe years?), as the family is in the states for their projects. A LOT has changed since then.
Throughout this 8 year tenure. the car continued to perform flawlessly, as a city runabout and daily drive. There was a gap in me seeing the car, and over the years, though most services were performed at authorized Maruti Suzuki workshops, the quality of service and customer centricity began to deteriorate. Age related issues crop up, but the car never got much of TLC simply because of time constraints or waning interest.
The car came to me on August 4 2023. it just looked OK, had its fair share of battle scars, but mechanically it needed attention, and that meant a hefty bill as well. My cousin agreed to this, since anyways he was out, it gave me enough time and space to begin to mechanically and cosmetically redo the car wherever required. Body was not an issue, but few dents…and many things needed attention.
I began to make a list of the priority problems to be attended to followed by the minor ones at the last stage.
Made my visit to Jhalak cars (the guy who does my Fiats) Noida and the following tasks were performed.
- The vehicle was having excessive vibrations. culprit was traced to the engine mount. Changed with MGP mount.
- Clutch had finished completely, travel was hard and pickup was missing. New clutch installed.
- Car was serviced with mobil 1 5W30 engine oil and MGP oil filter.
- Tailgate struts were conking off. New ones from Munjal showa installed.
- All 4 door window weatherstrips changed.
I went to a MGP store, kasthuri motors in Ghaziabad, and procured the following items which needed replacement or were missing.
- Full wheel caps. All broken, new ones procured.
- Both front fog lamps. Damaged due to age, water ingress and a stupid local LED bulb that was installed.
- Side waistline moulding (got after a lot of struggle from competent Ghazipur)
- Mudflaps (missing)
These were installed back at jhalak.
But many small things needed more attention.
- The AC was not working at times. and gas was leaking out. After much deliberation. I went to Kapoor AC service, located in my colony where I live (Mayur Vihar 2, Delhi), who is known for proper AC diagnostics and thats where the culprit was traced. He checked first the external pipes for leakage, which was not there. The cooling coil was out next, checked for leakage, it was given a go ahead (The coil was replaced 2 years back at Maruti). The compressor was the next to go under the knife, nothing came out. We finally opened the front bumper and it was the poor state of the AC condenser (bent fins, dents, damaged body etc) that leaked out the gas. Maruti’s easy parts availability ensured the new condenser came within 30 minutes (Subros) and was installed. Full AC system was serviced and the problem was gone for good.
- New Suzuki valve stem vaps were installed from MGA.
- New Key ring from MGA was brought (leather)
- The wiper motor linkage was vibrating like hell. Procured the new one from a MGP store in Mayur Vihar phase 1 and installed at a workshop in my colony.
- New wipers installed (frameless).
- Finally, for the first time in 11 years, the day night IRVM was installed (first gen wagon R one procured from MGP store.
- Both side power window switches needed replacement. Replaced.
- New radio antenna. Old one had corroded.
- Speakers serviced and wiring made proper.
- Headlamp bulbs changed to stock ones (60/55w) which were there lying extra from my older Puntos.
- Removed all the extra wiring/non working relay/non functional horns and made the engine compartment neater.
I got the car washed and gave it very basic detailing after this, and finally the car was back on the road, with fresh new set of mechanicals, driving like a new car, good to keep for another many years without any hiccup.
The total damage to all this was close to Rs. 36000. It seems expensive at first but when you see the list, it was worth it. rather than wasting money behind a new car.
I drove the car for 1500 kms, and the car runs fresh, tight, with no rattles (took time to close them) and continues to be a fun daily car for local errands and grocery shopping.
Signing off with few pics clicked today. Eagle eyed readers will note the sports pedals from the Zen carbon, which I had lying with me for years, finally installed on the Alto, which I now call as #systumm. And no, it has nothing to do with Elvish Yadav winning the big boss. Lord Alto remains the original bigg boss.
Keyword: Spent 36,000 rupees on running repairs on my 11 year old Alto K10