[Pannag]

Hello BHPians,

As a newbie I thought of starting my journey here with my very first article on story of restoration of my 17 year old Alto. The article encapsulates the project done in collaboration with Brotomotiv, as we all know now it's popular for detailing and aesthetics.

Motive behind restoration:

I have an Alto purchased by my late father in 2007, his first ever car. It was my dream car, I treated him (yes the car) like a family member, he became my DIY engineering projects companion. Since he started ageing (like a wine) it was time to give him a fresh treatment in aesthetics. As Brotomotiv’s service has been speaking great, I being a Dharwadian (Karnataka) thought it would be worth travelling to the beautiful city of Pune as I wanted to ensure I will gift him the best looks he deserved. So I filled enquiry form from their website and Divyas from Brotomotiv reached out to me over phone explaining the services and recommended me the best. I got an appointment on September 25th 2023. I started at 7 AM in the morning had a lot of fun driving alone, finally I reached Pune and bam!, there was terrific traffic. I somehow navigated through the Pune streets finally reaching Brotomotiv at around 6:30 PM.

Handing over the car:

As I reached that day after thrill filled (this is first time I ever drove that long) and tiresome drive, Raghav was already there, I met him and we greeted each other, Further Divyas attended me and the team showed great hospitality. While sipping a cup of coffee, I as excited kid started giving them my requirements, services, and issues like panel gaps. Alam bhai accompanied Divyas and they both assured me that all the issues I pointed out will be sorted. I would say I had such a solace for I roamed around many MAS or AAS but they were to no benefit.

I gave them the keys and headed to my hotel located just behind Brotomotiv (and it was best decision to have hotel near workshop). I took govt. busses from Kharadi pass the next day changing three buses, finally reaching home. By the time I reached I was Thanks to Cab driver Akash for helping me out on Pune streets.

Discussion and particulars:

At first I was skeptical to change the shade of color, but I was assured that within same color, I can still choose different shades, which is why I went with Lamborghini Blue. But I had to change my mind which I will explain later. Other than that I was offered options on leather cushions and seat covers.

I had also asked them if they could fit rear wiper, I had purchased motor, mounting parts beforehand but stupid me that I forgot them at home, Divyas then suggested me to send them through courier, so that they can verify if it can be done (trust me they did more than I had asked them and you will read that soon why).

I also asked (and sort of challenged them) if they can permanently cover the antenna hole ( I have no idea why manufacturers put that on one side of A pillar, it looks odd and I never liked it), Brotomotiv ate this challenge for breakfast. I will share pictures on how it looks now.



Door pillar wraps in matt-black.

Commencement of the work:

And here comes the much awaited moment, the vehicle was finally lined up for denting work, A social group was created where I would then get all updates, and also used for all other communications and agreements. The bonnet panel had to be changed because the paint was so thick that stripping it off would cost nearly same as new panel. Other than that the front windshield frame was rotten completely (poor boy) and the team told me they had to do patch work.



After the patch work was completed, the vehicle was then sent for priming.



Meanwhile Raghav had contacted me telling me they wanted to shoot video on this project and I was very happy to share him the story of vehicle and reason behind its restoration. By this time I also shipped the wiper parts and they received it on third day (thanks to Delhivery for doorstep pickup).

Change of Mind:

Brotomotiv had just uploaded a video of an Ecosport painted in BMW's Snapper rocks blue (kudos to owner as well for selection), and there we go, I started procrastinating. I was confused as hell, and major question was will the team agree for my request for change of color. I called Divyas and asked him, Voila, he said we can do it and that cost would remain same as for Lambo Blue, so I had nothing to pay extra. I also had projector lamps on my mind, which Brotomotiv tried but unfortunately the projectors were too large to fit inside and was dropped, but there is twist and you will see that later in the article.

The Paint:

While my restlessness and excitement was growing, I got first glimpse of him in his new look. When I showed it to my mother, she said she did not find much difference, then I literally put his old picture and new one, compared the colors, this color was really looking beautiful (no offence to the old one though). As days passed, all panels were painted, at last as I had asked them to fit rear wiper, they drilled holes in the tail gate panel finally painting it. Trust me the work is simply a perfection and top notch. There is no evidence that drills were done explicitly, it was precise cutting. Sigh that experts had their hands!

Other changes and accessories:

I was betting big on projector lamps with running DRL lamps. But as there were challenges to set them up in housing, I had once seen Twobrothers, from Delhi who happen to be customising lamps for almost every car. I checked and contacted Anil Kumar, I asked him for one specific product but also asked him for customisations like going with dotted DRL with running amber lights, and LED projectors, he was very kind and since I had requested him to expedite their work, they shipped it the second day. I informed Brotomotiv that I had ordered lamps and that they would receive them soon. When they got them delivered, Brotomotiv team liked the lamps. My selection and customisations paid off, Thanks to Twobrothers for understanding and their fantastic art on headlamps.



I also added ceramic coating, floor lamination, underbody coating, caliper paint (red), drum paint (gloss black), Sun film on front windshield, Brotomotiv themselves added rear wiper washer pump to the cart.
They got WagonR's rear wiper fitted as well, which looks stunning.

And we had an issue with Security module, so had to change it.



I selected Bentley white with Blue leather for seat covers (I know some of you might be thinking if I own interior cleaning service ), and wrapped steering wheel with black leather stitched in blue thread.

Delivery of the car:

Here's my Boy:




I received the date for delivery, I asked my friend Akshay if he can join me, which he did happily, so we left to Pune on 13th as the delivery was scheduled on 14th Thursday. There in Pune, we were accompanied by our another friend Shubadeep. We were asked to reach the workshop by 2:30 PM, so in mean time we roamed around the city's Magarpatta streets trying some foods, checking out the stuff. We three then reached Brotomotiv, and God, I was astounded to see my boy looking so beautiful posing for some video shots. Divyas, Ganesh and team welcomed us, took us to the office for billing and completing other formalities, meanwhile I saw Anil uncle, but I couldn't interact with him. We went down to check the car and observe better, my friend Akshay, a great video shooter took some crazy video shots for Insta, Shubadeep was checking around the car, while I was working with Brotomotiv's video team Harshal and Prateek for giving them my feedback for their video. I met Raghav fortunately as he just arrived, we discussed and had good conversations about their competency, we even shared a humour about how other set of brothers (Twobrothers) were also involved in this project, making it a true #BroGang.

We also presented the Brotomotiv team our authentic Dharwad sweets called Dharwad Pedhe and it was distributed.

Anxiety after I took the car out:

Pune's traffic is no joke, none of us being localities or even used to it's traffic, I was scared to take the car out in city traffic all the way till Magarpatta where we were staying. But as my two cool friends were there, we somehow managed to reach our stay safely.

Drive from Pune to Dharwad:

We had planned that we would leave next day after delivery (15th Dec) early in the morning, as traffic will be low, so we got up at around 5 AM, freshened up and started close to 6 AM (Lol no discipline). I was bit nervous but my friend Akshay was there to help me with navigations, we finally reached the Kharadi ghat and made way out starting in ghats, and the drive then was filled with thrill and speeds, While we stopped in few locations, people expressed their interest and asked about the work.

My friend Akshay's shot:



The car just handled most maneuvers with ease. We reached home by 2 PM, and there were neighbors already waiting for taking their glimpse off of my boy.
Everyone loved it.

My Testimony:

If you care about your car and have received no concerns from service stations over bodywork, It might be worth driving to Pune because the first thing I observed was the team listens to your issues, queries and addresses them with great care. I as owner had lot of issues with panel misalignment after a certain accident which made left fender look worse. Apart from it, I had lot of other accessories too which were not easy to work with, and especially the closure of that antenna hole on right side. Divyas guided and recommended me any modification with right proportions of costs and time during process. Procurement of certain parts like washer tank with two holes was required for rear wiper.

The drill on tailgate panel was done so nicely:


Motor fitted inside the panel (mounting bracket required no modification inside as screw/bolt holes are already available):


Brotomotiv just doesn't do the work, but they usually go extra mile for each task, like take the underbody coating, they covered whole vehicle taking extra care.

Here's the glimpse:


The projectors (which were dropped due to misfit) at first I was talking about had another story to it. The Item we had ordered was different from what Brotomotiv received from vendor and it was way more expensive. Yet the team was super kind because the lamps I had selected were not available and they received expensive lamps, but they still said they will charge me no extra amount.

Thanks to Brotomotiv, Twobrothers, Boodmo and all other teams for their help in this beautiful project.

Video:

https://youtu.be/YxrOz_YSR3I

What's next:

As there was challenge in getting Alto VXI's rear wiper switch assy, Brotomotiv did a temporary wiring and provided minimal switch, but I did a research of my own and noted that Zen Estilo's combination switch has same bracket as Alto, infact it is shared by probably few other cars, so I ordered and kudos to Boodmo for delivering it soon despite it's stock issues.



I will need a helping hand in getting this fixed as we have to remove steering wheel, I will then wire up everything, and if possible I will get fog lamps, lucky that in this combination switch we have fog lamp switch in the stick.

I am planning to add a on-top dash infotainment system that I am designing on my own using raspberry pi 3B+ (Probably will run OpenAuto pro or Automotive Grade Linux with some kernel development) and Waveshare 7 inch QLED screen, mounted in a custom housing that I 3D printed at home (designs and STL files will be available soon in another blog).

Printer in action:


End product:


With Screen:



I attached back the Honda City's auto-dimming IRVM that I bought from Boodmo. I did my own wiring and anyone interested can let me know, I can send them details or can write a blog. To mount it on windscreen, I used Permatex IRVM glue. The only part that would be ugly is bracket may be noticeable from outside of windshield as we ain't got no frit.

here's the image of the IRVM:

IRVM assy and mounting bracket




I am designing rear AC vent housing and hopefully 3D print it for seating Dzire's rear AC vent I bought from Boodmo.

I have plans to get alloys (13' probably from HRS Taiwan) for him as many people suggested this will enhance look, and I anyways decided to get callipers and drum painted for same reason.

And on a side note, I changed all door pads and dashboard to a little lighter tone found in Alto K10 first gen. Even pillar trims are borrowed from Alto K10. I did this mostly one year ago by ordering parts from Boodmo. Steering is 3 spoke coming from new Alto (without Airbag).

I have done many other modifications like custom wiring harness for power windows, security, added door ajar warning with lamp on instrument cluster. I am happy to share on how I did it!

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[self_driven]

Welcome to the forum Pannag! Great colour choice and great workmanship by the team at Brotomotiv. I already watched your car's video on their channel before this thread went live. Your trip to Pune for this restoration paid off well, as the car looks chic. The steelies probably need a fresh coat of paint, in silver or black.

I have done many other modifications like custom wiring harness for power windows, security, added door ajar warning with lamp on instrument cluster. I am happy to share on how I did it!

The small mods that you've done on the car look interesting. I'd love to know more about the door ajar warning lamp in particular.

[Jeroen]

Absolutely great thread!

I love the way you restored this car, very well done. It's great to see so much time and effort being poured into it. The results are terrific. Love the colour!


I would like to hear more about the other modifications too, especially the electrical ones.

Did you do anything to the engine, brakes, suspension too?

Jeroen

[jono213]

Looks absolutely stunning, kudos to you and Brotomotiv for the work done, the headlamps and other quality of life improvements are also well done, have fun with your ride

[youknowitbetter]

Hey Pannag, congratulations, the car looks fabulous. I am guessing it 1.1 litre engine. Are you planning any performance/mechanical changes or for now the focus is on cosmetic changes? Also, what's your usage like, will this be your primary car or a special occasion car?

[CLS_06]

Hello pannag
The Alto looks really nice in this color and your love for car seems true.
Just one question are doing anything about the wheels. Just got me thinking why no paint or alloys were added during this proper restoration.

[Joe367]

I am a subscriber to Brotomotiv channel and I really enjoyed the video on the Alto restoration. The new colour looks great on the car. I wish you kept the headlight unit stock though, the new led unit looks bit odd to me. Maybe it looks better whe it's ON.

[unoczar]

Hello. Welcome to the team.
My Dzire is also due for a makeover and your work is an inspiration. Good job.

[hothatchaway]

Absolutely stunning! I had stumbled upon this video a few days back on YT and was impressed by the attention to detail. The Alto looks like a million bucks and will grab attention on the streets.

Do you mind sharing how much you paid for the LED Projectors and if they are plug and play?

Wish you many more happy memories with the car.

[Himanshu809]

Great car! Great workmanship and that blue is just wow. Good to see you breathing new life in your dad’s car, just warms my heart. And yes your car is not just a restoration it’s a restomod as you increased features inside the car and gave it a modern spin. Hats off to your commitment and brotomotiv for their work. Wish you many more safe and happy miles on your car.

[svsantosh]

Originally Posted by Pannag

...The article encapsulates the project done in collaboration with Brotomotiv, as we all know now it's popular for detailing and aesthetics.

Dear Pannag,

Congratulations on restoring something so close to your heart. Dad lives through the Alto amongst your family, nothing can replace that feeling. I wish I can find my 1st Alto inside TN and relive my mums gup-shup from her co-drivers seat.

PS - Since you must be close to Brotomotiv please give them a feedback. Looking at your lack of pictorial records I was afraid this thread would be a dead end until I scrolled down to the you-tu-be video link. That was a life saver and commendable capture and editing and presenting on a global platform like u -tube.

Could you pass on the message that while the uniform is a nice touch, enforcing a covered shoe on the workshop floor adds not only safety but also goes a long way in showcasing India on the global AFM scene. I also saw a few employees without a standard uniform. Will be a very nice touch if small things are taken care in brand building.

But the end result is very commendable and I am a B.M fan for few years nonetheless.

[greenhorn]

Nice end result - my only comment is that the door pads look a bit spartan in an otherwise nice car. you should be able to get some fabric inserts installed to add some colour to the car in those areas where fabric insert provision is there in the door pad

[vaibhavyagnik]

The car looks absolutely stunning in the colour plus the much required mod of projector headlights. May I know the cost of modifying the headlights and Cost of repainting the car? I am asking because I took a quote from Brotomotiv for my Skoda Octavia and it was not cheap. You can also DM me if you are not comfortable disclosing the price here.

[Pannag]

Hey BHPians,

Thank you so much for warm welcome and your wishes on the success of this project.

Also for those who have asked questions, I will be replaying everyone in few mins (even I have certain questions) as I am still on work.