[swami.n]

All,
With a very heavy heart, sold my 4.5yr old Figo Diesel. But very happy at the same time as I got a pretty good offer for a very new 11month old City iVtec SV run just 5500kms.

As my office commute has now come down to 30kms from 80kms to & fro, and as it falls right in the highest traffic area, I have been using bike for daily commute and the figo was used only for weekends and out of town trips. In the last couple of years, the figo barely clocked 10-12k kms. And with us getting a Nano AMT for wifey last Nov, the figo usage came down even more. No car can beat the convenience of Nano AMT in traffic.
But the Figo was still serving us fantastically well with very low maintenance costs. Never thought of replacing it for a few years.

But had to learn a life lesson recently when the whole family of one my colleague died in a road accident in a Swift Dzire(previous gen) and the variant did not have ABS or airbags. So the thought of replacing my figo which dint have the safety features was at the back of my mind. And the figo is now used only for our out station trips.
At the same time a close friend offered a good price for my Figo(his usage is primarily within city) and an offer from one of my friend's colleagues for a relatively new City.
So all things coming together, gave the Figo and got the City iVtec SV in Urban Titanium during end of May. The car completed its 1st year this month.

My beloved Figo


The City, isn't she georgeous?


Immediately after taking delivery, went and got a new set of alloys and upgraded the 175/65 R15 Bridgestones to 185/65 R15 Michelins. Wrapped the front Chrome grill with matte black. Now only the H sits in chrome.
Happy to be part of the City group and looking forward to advise from you guys as this is my first petrol (Nano is Wifey's so doesn't count). Had a Bolero, then the old Palio 1.9D and then the Figo Tdci.

[for_cars1]

Originally Posted by swami.n

All,
.... went and got a new set of alloys and upgraded the 175/65 R15 Bridgestones to 185/65 R15 Michelins. ...

195/60/R15 would have been a better matched upgrade to the stock tyres @ 175/65/R15 (3.25mm higher ride height)

With 185/65/15, the sidewall/ride height is now higher by 6.5 mm which is out of the recommended limits and would introduce more speedo/odometer error.

[swami.n]

Originally Posted by for_cars1

195/60/R15 would have been a better matched upgrade to the stock tyres @ 175/65/R15 (3.25mm higher ride height)

With 185/65/15, the sidewall/ride height is now higher by 6.5 mm which is out of the recommended limits and would introduce more speedo/odometer error.

Thanks for the inputs for_cars1. Yes the Tyre store offered me the 195/60 option, but when fit in the car, the tyre is much out of the body and would lead to a lot of mud splashing(Very tough as I already had 195s on my Figo). The current 185 itself is a very tight fit and is out of the body a little.
Also one of my friend works in Honda Showroom Pondy, and he specifically asked me to go for 185/65 for improved road clearance. in our 800kms round trip a couple of weeks ago, I never faced underbody scrapping in any of the mountains in the toll booths with fully loaded car.
The speedo error correction seems to be more towards the correct side. The Speedo and the GPS show exactly same speeds now.

[for_cars1]

Originally Posted by swami.n

...Tyre store offered me the 195/60 option, but when fit in the car, the tyre is much out of the body and would lead to a lot of mud splashing....
...he specifically asked me to go for 185/65 for improved road clearance.

The speedo error correction seems to be more towards the correct side. The Speedo and the GPS show exactly same speeds now.

If you have found the 185/65 to be good and happy with the same, its all that matters
You would get improved clearance for sure, although even the stock 175/65 is perfectly adequate in terms of clearance. Thats the beauty of the new G4 model, they have sorted out the ground clearance issue found in the past City models.
With the 185/65s cornering stability performance/handling at higher speeds would probably take a slight hit due to the wider sidewall.
Regarding the speedo calibration, I presume (and expect) that Honda would have accurately calibrated the speedo/odo to the stock 175/65/R15 circumference.

During the last ~20K KM on 195/60s, haven't faced any mud splashing issues even during heavy rains.

[swami.n]

Originally Posted by for_cars1

If you have found the 185/65 to be good and happy with the same, its all that matters

I just went with my friend's recommendation and nothing to complain so far.

Originally Posted by for_cars1

You would get improved clearance for sure, although even the stock 175/65 is perfectly adequate in terms of clearance. Thats the beauty of the new G4 model, they have sorted out the ground clearance issue found in the past City models.

Very true. The ground clearance has improved a lot in this model compared to the older gen.

Originally Posted by for_cars1

With the 185/65s cornering stability performance at higher speeds would probably take a slight hit.

To an extent when you might compare it with the 195s. But i would say its still better than the 175/65s as the Michelins are softer than the OE tyres & provide superior grip.
But the City cannot hold a candle to my old Figo with 195s in cornering. I am carrying much lower speeds in the corners now. Don't know if it is the ability of City that is less than Figo or me being a little more careful having upgraded to a bigger car. But surely the steering feedback on the Figo was much much better than the one on the City.

Originally Posted by for_cars1

Regarding the speedo calibration, I presume (and expect) that Honda would have accurately calibrated the speedo/odo to 175/65s circumference.

All brands do have some speedo error ranging from 3-5% compared to the GPS speeds. 100 on GPS would be 103-105 on the Speedo. Now I see both GPS & Speedo showing same numbers.

Originally Posted by for_cars1

During the last ~20K KM on 195/60s, haven't faced any mud splashing issues even during heavy rains.

Good to hear that. May be this alloy design is also culprit as the current 185s are really a tight fit.

[Ruchir031]

So a trucker broke my left side ORVM today. Can someone tell me how much a new body colored ORVM will cost from Honda?

[themonster]

Originally Posted by Ruchir031

So a trucker broke my left side ORVM today. Can someone tell me how much a new body colored ORVM will cost from Honda?

Hello Ruchir031,

It depends on what exactly was damaged and your variant.

For a V/VX variant with electronic folding mirrors:
(All prices are approximates only)
Cost of mirror assembly - Rs. 5600/-
Cost of mirror shell - Rs. 1500/-
Cost of painting - Rs. 1000/-

I have had the unfortunate incident of a truck hitting the mirror assembly and damaging the mirror assembly (the electronic folding motor kept rotating continuously, irrespective of open/close position and the mirror always stayed open). The Honda showroom replaced the mirror assembly without replacing the shell.
After getting the above fixed, the next day a bus hit the same mirror and broke the outer shell. The Honda workshop replaced the shell, without the assembly, as the mirror was intact.

For a SV/S/E models, I have read online that the price is Rs.2000/- (painting charges extra)

[Ruchir031]

Originally Posted by themonster

Hello Ruchir031,

It depends on what exactly was damaged and your variant.

Hi, thanks for all the information!

I have the V variant and I am not exactly sure if the whole assembly is damaged. The shell (colored part) was ripped off and broken, in the inner module I could see bits and pieces of broken plastic and screws.
The mirror, however, is intact. All it's controls works (up,down, left & right) haven't tried folding the ORVM electronically yet as I had just taped it so it stays put and not fall off with a jerk. I guess I'll have to only replace the shell if the ORVM properly fold/unfolds?

Really sad you had to get it fixed twice within 2 days! I hate these idiot bus/truck drivers.

[harry10]

Yesterday, while going to office suddenly Fm stopped working and steering became completely lifeless, a yellow light blinked as well. Happened for a second only and then everything back to normal. Happened 3-4 times within a minute. Fearing the worse I parked my car and checked service book which stated the yellow light was for Steering (EPS).
Luckily, my regular service center Classic Honda was only a couple of kms away. So, I drove it in 2nd gear there. SA diagnosed this to a battery issue.

Now my query. Car had just completed 3 years. Odo is at 72k. SA said battery for diesel City usually only last for max 2 years and it's amazing mine has gone for so long. Is this true?

Also, I paid 5400 for battery. Fair price?

[sansvk]

Originally Posted by harry10

Now my query. Car had just completed 3 years. Odo is at 72k. SA said battery for diesel City usually only last for max 2 years and it's amazing mine has gone for so long. Is this true?

Also, I paid 5400 for battery. Fair price?

Not true what the SA has mentioned. His statement should have been that OEM quality battery is expected to have a life of just 2 years and should have not been specific about diesels. You can read a thread in the technical section on the topic of batteries and life.

[harry10]

Originally Posted by sansvk

Not true what the SA has mentioned. His statement should have been that OEM quality battery is expected to have a life of just 2 years. You can read a thread in the technical section on the topic of batteries and life.

Ok. But, OEM battery was also the same Amaron one. Anyways, will give this a read. Thanks.

[aerohit]

Originally Posted by harry10

Also, I paid 5400 for battery. Fair price?

You can extend the life by adding some distilled water every year (no overflow)

You can check the model and compare the price if you paid more or not click HERE

[harry10]

Originally Posted by aerohit

You can extend the life by adding some distilled water every year (no overflow)

You can check the model and compare the price if you paid more or not click HERE

It's mentioned the price is -
With old battery exchange - 6199
Without old battery exchange - 6799

Service center price was -
With old battery exchange - 5400
Without old battery exchange - 5800

So, it looks like anyone looking for a new battery should contact the service center or local dealer rather than getting online.

[aerohit]

Originally Posted by harry10

It's mentioned the price is -
With old battery exchange - 6199
Without old battery exchange - 6799

Service center price was -
With old battery exchange - 5400
Without old battery exchange - 5800

So, it looks like anyone looking for a new battery should contact the service center or local dealer rather than getting online.

Thats odd. Service centres are usually more expensive.
Are you sure its the same model? Did they install PRO model in your car? Can you publish the model number .
Btw those prices on the website are MRP prices.

[for_cars1]

Originally Posted by harry10

...SA diagnosed this to a battery issue.

..Car had just completed 3 years. Odo is at 72k. SA said battery for diesel City usually only last for max 2 years and it's amazing mine has gone for so long. Is this true?

Originally Posted by aerohit

You can extend the life by adding some distilled water every year

While giving for the 3rd year service (Diesel), I had specifically asked them to check the battery and they confirmed that all the cells are in good condition, they also mentioned that they do check and top up the distilled water if required during the regular service every 6 months.

A three year life is pretty good for an OEM battery.

Did the service Center replace the OEM Amaron with the following Amaron battery ?
Amaron AAM-PR-0055B24LS (45 Ah)
Warranty: 60 Months(30 Months Free Of Cost + 30 Months Pro Rata)
It is priced at around Rs 5900 with exchange at Batterybhai.com

Battery life would depend on the charge-discharge cycles, deep-discharges can cut short its life by a lot. Have you installed any after market music system / sub-woofers or an AMP or other accessories that are power hungry?