[supremeBaleno]

My only concern is that I am yet to get the bill emailed to me. The day I serviced the car, the bill could not be printed due to powercut and he said he would email it across. Still waiting for it though I even sent an SMS reminder. :-(

[supremeBaleno]

^^^
Got the bill. Sent an email reminder yesterday evening after posting here and the bill was in my Inbox in 5mins flat. That was quick.

[sunil8089]

In team-bhp everybody is praising Ignite,but my personal experience with Ignite is not so great. I been there a couple of times.The main problem is they are always busy or seems to be busy.

A couple of critical situations, which I need some genuine help (paid only) I requested Mr. Raghav and he refused to help me. I feel like I was loosing my respect and seems like he don't want small customers like me. There I lost all the impressions for this fellow and I stopped going there.

In my opinion the best place to get your car serviced is at company service centers (whoever be your manufacturer) because of the following reasons:
- They use standard process
- They always use recommended tools and gauges
- They always use genuine spare parts
- They do the company recommended / most optimum calibrations
- It never be people oriented - but process oriented

[madbullram]

Sunil, can you post on the critical situation in which you were let down? Its not good to hear this, I will have a chat with Raghav on this.

[YaeJay]

@sunil8089 : What do you drive? Please mention the make and model that you took there for service. Thanks! * Smile*

[PJSPEED]

Raghav has one of the best 2 mechanics .

Regards,
PJ

[para_7k]

Originally Posted by sunil8089

In team-bhp everybody is praising Ignite,but my personal experience with Ignite is not so great. I been there a couple of times.The main problem is they are always busy or seems to be busy.

A couple of critical situations, which I need some genuine help (paid only) I requested Mr. Raghav and he refused to help me. I feel like I was loosing my respect and seems like he don't want small customers like me. There I lost all the impressions for this fellow and I stopped going there.

Sunil, going by your profile, I see that you drive a Matiz.

As others mentioned, post your detailed experience.


Some of my experiences:

• I have taken my M800 couple of times, never been discriminated in front of skodas or mercs.
• I have taken my i10 3-4 times just for oil and filter change. Got it done on time.
• My friend (not in tbhp) has taken his WagonR just for some diaganosis. Raghav promptly did some road tests.

In all of the above visits, we have got consistent treatment.

Even if there is something he cannot do, he explains it in a way that you understand.

Yes, he is a little busy these days, so call up before you go there.

Also, be polite but firm in making him understand your problem. (This applies anywhere though)

[sunil8089]

Para_7k,

Thanks for going through my profile and giving a feedback. My Matiz I sold some time back, though I didn't update the teambhp profile.

I am not here for a debate ...I just told my experience and my opinion about Ignite. This opinion didn't happen in a single visit . I felt Mr.Raghav was ignoring me, when I really need some help, especially with my old Matiz. At that time I can't trust any other local workshop-walas as well as no service or support available from the company. Belive me man, I was carrying that 900kg junk and knocking at each and every door of workshop walas. That was a critical situation where I really craved for some descent help. Since Raghav also didn't help me I had to trust some locals and he screwed up my car. Finally I had to sell my car at a throwaway price.

Friend, I agree that if you own a M800 or a Wagan R or a Santro or a Swift you will get a good service at any workshops in this country. But if you are a unlucky chap or a less privileged or a fool (like me) to own a Matiz or a Corsa or a Palio or a Ceilo, you may understand what I am trying to say.

If you are happy with Ignite, please continue , I don't have any offense....

[madbullram]

Sunil: Its not about debate. Even I have had few improvement areas for Ignite and told them that. The forum helps us as a community and I am sure this feedback will help ignite also.

From what you have written, my understanding is, you took you car for service to Ignite and he refused to service it?

Is that it? Did he give any valid reason for that?

[vijaycool]

I would like to pass an incident happened to other person. I have not been there or met people from ignite. This gentlemen owns stile 1.6 sports and he had some issues. Early diagnosis from other mechanic leads to replacement of new plug wires, new injector set (13k), clutch kit, pressure test passed, Timing kit change with tensioner and idler bearing change. Still the car has issues. When we diagnosed it shown us high voltage output from O2 sensor. Disconnecting the O2 sensor makes engine run good. voltage value is in the range of 1.5V ~ 3V very absurd and engine shakes like a tractor. Replaced the O2 sensor. Later he went to the ignite garrage and thus came a shocker. Your engine is consuming oil needs complete overhaul or new engine replacement. He was right down dejected and cursing as usual Fiat . I called to my home. when i started the car it was dying when i leave the throttle. It is not like 100 horses which fiat used to deliver. That moment I even said it could be a failed engine. Engine smokes like hell, full of petrol smell inside the cabin and engine is dying when i leave the throttle. When I opened the throttle body I can see too much oil inside the TB. When I checked the oil, it was 1 liter high. When i asked the same to the owner he told me mech from ignite told the oil level was low so they added 1 liter more oil. I replace the fuel relay and my GTX ignition coil viola the car runs on 4 cylinder. Next day we went to another service station to check up and they told me there is no trouble with the engine. Today I went to take my ignition coil from that car, the car tuns very silent. When I asked them what was faulty they told me they changed new set of plugs and they gave the engine a clean chit. I asked them to verify again with the old Ign coil came with that car. I can not blame Ignite because none of the work was done by them. But a faulty analysis like a complete engine failure and asked him to replace the engine will not be accepted given his high standards. I really feel pity for that gentlemen as the compounded issue is mainly by the ignition coil and the O2 sensor and he has spent close to 40k still the issue was not resolved.

Regards,
Vijay

[ph03n!x]

It's been a long while since I Team BHPied, let me start back with my service experience.

My SA from Hyundai A.S.S switched jobs, and I wasn't sure about the attention and responses I got from who was there- I went in to change a broken ORVM, and wasn't happy with the time they took or the work.

While I have been to Ignite a few times in the past, it was for tinkering/ painting or oil change. I decided to give my car in for a full service now- being my 50k service.

The cost for the periodic maintenance came to less than 3k, with me providing the Mobil Delvac 1 engine oil. The fuel filter and oil filter were replaced, and I cleaned my K&N myself.

While a periodic maintenance service of a 50k run Getz CRDi seems a no-brainer, I did have my share of heart burns while with A.S.S- with Ignite, I was comfortable with the quality of work and attention to details. The mechanics and electricians in Ignite are knowledged, and know their job. Even if I go shooting my mouth about something, they politely correct me and demonstrate what is wrong/ needs to be done.

The car has now crossed 56k KM, off which the only 'event' was a blown tire- when I went over a piece of stone while climbing Ooty!

The only con, of I were to nit-pick would be the distance (though I live in Besant nagar!). Raghav has agreed to pick-up and drop my vat next time, but I think I'll drive down myself- it's good to meet the folks there while seeing the work being done!

Finally I find some complaints posted here to be weird- am sure Ignite will not accept work that they can't complete to their and my (car owner's) satisfaction- no point in taking something up, and make it painful for us. And am sure the folks at Ignite are better knowledge than overfill one liter of engine oil! It would be great if we post first hand information rather than quote someone else.

[vijaycool]

I have nothing to blame and I do not have first hand knowledge about the garrage. Afterall its a automotive forum where people share their knowledge, experiences and need not to have first hand experience. I am just passing what he told to me. Agreed no work has been done to the car but certainly it doesnt live upto the hype. I have a brilliant mechanic who does the work for me got a very small garrage. I do recommend him for some of my friends where the issue was not resolved by so called Multi brand service center.
The owner is ready to spend for the overhaul work or worst possibility new engine(read big dent on the wallet) and mental agony. I am quoting from palio group and mods can delete it if I am against the forum rules. He is sharing his experience in general and not flaming on other garrages.
Yahoo! Groups

Regards,
Vijay

[Kaumad]

Finally I get to post on this thread - been wanting to do so for a long time now.

I first read about Ignite way back in 2009 and I immediately wanted to try them out, especially since I was not too happy with the MASS I used to go to. Not that they did a bad job but just that after seeing certain things [usage of the wrong tools and usage of sheer physical might to set right a few things on the car] I did not want my car to go through it.

Since the past 3 odd years, I go to Raghav regularly not only for all regular maintenance of my 2 cars but also for some specialised jobs such as painting and windshield replacement. Never has he given me a chance to complain. I am very happy with his capabilities and as someone else pointed out rightly earlier in this thread, he does have one of the best mechanics around.

I have recommended his garage multiple times to many of my colleagues and friends and none of them have had any reason to complain. Being an engineer, he is able to identify problem areas correctly and suggest remedial measures. Never has he pushed for any unnecessary changes / improvements for the vehicles. I sincerely appreciate him for that.

Over the past 2 years he has gradually improved the workshop capabilities, which I am very happy about.
Back in 2009, he just had open space for servicing vehicles apart from the lounge.
In 2011, he added a 2 post lift and a compressor which I can see, has helped a lot.
Very recently in 2012, he has also started a small paintshop in his workshop. Of course, it is not a full-fledged controlled booth but if you are looking to get non-critical parts [like bumpers] re-painted, he can definitely do it for you. Paint matching is pretty good too!

So, all-in-all, I am very happy with his service so far and I would definitely recommend his workshop to anyone who is looking to get problems sorted professionally.

Professionalism - 5/5
Technical capabilities - 5/5
Customer experience - 5/5
Miscellaneous - 4.5/5 [I wish he had a dedicated pressure wash area to wash and clean cars ]

[Perakath]

We bought a used Merc C220 CDI recently and needed to get a service and checkup/overhaul done. TransCar (the A-S-S) quoted "not less than one lakh rupees sir" on the phone, without even having seen the car! They were very confident that all the brake pads would have to be changed, etc, etc.

Dad nearly fell off his chair when he heard the 1 lakh quote, so Mercedes' impressive telephonic diagnostic capabilities notwithstanding, I managed to convince him to let me give it to Raghav. (Like everyone else I've been waiting for an excuse to go there for a while.)

Called up and checked whether he can service Mercs; he said no problem. Got a service and oil change done along with various other jobs; total cost came to Rs 48,843 including 2% card payment surcharge.

Parts changed:
Oil filter - 985
7.8 litres of Mobil 1 synthetic engine oil - 8970
Coolant - 480
Air filter - 2576
Brake oil DOT4 - 802
Power steering oil - 309
Diesel filter - 3716
Power window switch master assembly - 10,878 (OEM)
Wiper blade set - 4351
Suspension bush kit - 7156
Remote battery - 115

Labour:
General service and tuneup - 1200
Waterwash - 400
Consumables (grease, aerosols, lubes) - 500
Power window switch replacement - 800
Brake overhaul - 1500
Wheel alignment - 450
Wheel balancing - 700
AC gas charging - 2000

The wheel alignment, rotation, balancing etc was done outside and I got a computerized report. Two of the rims have bends in them, apparently. The water wash was also done elsewhere. Presumably, the AC gas charging as well.

I was happy with the service provided and the quality of work done. It was also much cheaper than the A-S-S.

Pros:
- Ability to communicate my problems and expectations properly in English (my Tamil isn't the best)
- Confidence-inspiring workshop
- Computerized bill with breakup of charges
- Fast work (3 days for all of the above)
- Trust factor that unnecessary work will not be done (eg Raghav initially felt the brakes were weak and the pads would have to be changed, but after inspection he called up and told me that they had been changed recently and didn't need to be changed again. I guess the brakes are just generally weak then.)

In fact I must say it was the repeated recommendations on this thread to the effect that he would not do unnecessary work which most inspired me to go to Raghav.

Cons:
- Distance from the city (it's just before the ECR toll, quite a way to drive out and get back)
- Was not able to sort out an issue with the CD changer and the parking brake release-- these are Mercedes-specific problems which I was able to later sort out using another independent Merc specialist mechanic called Jayakumar.

[sourav9385]

It's been close to a year since I've been giving my 8 year old Optra at Ignite.
I must say, the experience has been very rewarding.

Not being a local of Chennai, a common communication channel is probably my biggest shortcoming.
And, no matter how hard I try, I can never get my head wrapped around Tamil.
And, from that perspective, Ignite is a brilliant place.
Never ever have I had to worry about my issues not being addressed or understood because of a language barrier.

Getting the Optra up and running since the day I bought it was a herculean task that involved a lot of Vitamin M.
Taking it to Sundaram A.S.S was the biggest mistake of my life.
Every single one of their employees wanted to take me for a ride, quoting unbelievable numbers and unbelievable reasons for the issues that had cropped up.
Once, the AC had stopped working. It simply wouldn't cool.
Took it to Sundaram, only to have the guy tell me, point blank, that the compressor has gone, along with the cooling coils.
He said it would cost about 80k to replace the whole setup.
No one even bothered to look at other aspects, test the system to see if the compressor was really at fault.

Got fed up and took it to Ignite.
Raghav happily arranged for an AC expert to take a look into that issue.
Turns out, that the compressor and the cooling coils were absolutely fine.
It was the thermostat that was the culprit.
Replaced the thermostat for 1k, and the AC was up and running like new.
Vowed to never ever return to Sundaram motors. Never again.

Being an 8 year old car, that we got for peanuts, I guess the poor car had seen better days.
Despite every fiber in my body suggesting not to go in for an engine overhaul, Raghav suggested it would make sense.
Since we had decided to keep the car for atleast another 3-4 years, we gave in.
Ignite did a bang up job with the overhaul, and took care of every thing else that was wrong as well.
Now the car rides like new. The engine is butter smooth, the suspension glides over all kinds of roads, gears are smooth, clutch is light.

Another thing that I've really liked about Ignite, is the attitude to re-condition stuff.
Every time I've been to Ignite due to some part issue, they've never once said that it will need to be replaced.
They always prefer to recondition stuff, before suggesting a replacement.
Always a good idea, IMO, when parts can be expensive.

Overall, I'd rate team Ignite a solid 10/10.
Great people, well mannered, clean and efficient work environment, outstanding customer service, very friendly and courteous staff, and a team of experienced mechanics.
Everything one needs in order to take care of their car . Keep up the good job fellas!