[blueaquan]

Greetings friends

My problems are two in number, I own an Alto Lxi which I bought in Jan 2005, has been single owner used and maintained in mint condition.

1: Off late, I have been noticing a whistling sound coming from the left side or rather left wheel as it appears to me when the Car picks up speed. It is very audible on Highways, the Bimal Auto guys at Yelahanka, Bangalore have failed miserably to identify this issue let alone rectify it. This is the 4th time I have gone back to them, unfortunately the problem still persists. Whoever have come with me on Test drives have heard the noise including one of their Senior Engineers, but the problem is, they fail to think beyond the Brake pads which they always adjust and I still have the problem as always.
What I can understand from their working, is that the curiosity factor or the eagerness to learn something new when a challenge is presented is absolutely Zero among the Engineers. Although I’ve never raised my Temper on this issue, their eagerness is almost always to hush up the issue by putting in some patch work, just as we all Indians do. It is such a sorry affair, the strive towards Quality is SO VERY ABSENT.
If you have some possible solution to this issue, please do let me know, perhaps I could get it rectified by some other authorised service centre.
FYI, on one or two occasions I have noticed this sound even when the Car has come to a Halt but with the Engine running, that makes me think it may be something beyond the wheels, perhaps some belt or so!

2: Secondly, since last week, I have noticed few drops, in fact very few drops of Oil or something like Oil falling on the Driver side of the floor Mat close to where the Clutch pedal is present. I notice it because I use a Newspaper on the Mat and it always shows the stain. It has also started to stain my Mat now, but the Bimal guys could not identify from where it is coming from, they changed ALL OILS on my last Service on Friday 21 Jan 2011, but it still continues to leak. It is disturbing to me because it may be an essential fluid that is leaking and I frequently travel out of town and do not want to end up with a break down or worse. One of my Neighbour who owns an M800 said he had a similar issue and had some part of the Brake fluid reservoir which was changed and that fixed the issue. I would have expected some sort of solution from the Engineers instead. Could also kindly suggest some possible solution to this too so that it can be relayed to them please…?

Thanks in advance

Blueaquan

[Jaggu]

1) Have they checked the fan belt? Also is the wheel bearing ok?

2) Are you sure its oil? Or is it AC water dripping inside due to a chocked drain pipe. Brake fluid am not sure since the reservoir and master cylinder sits inside the engine bay.

[Randhawa]

Check all the mountings in the engine bay including gearbox and engine. Check the alternator bearings.

Brake oil can seep in through the servo and into the footwell. If you remove the servo, if any leak is there, you will see it on the servo from inside.

[blueaquan]

Hi Jaggu
1: The Fan belt is something which they always check, (Check that is all). A point which I dint add in the earlier post to avoid a lot of questions is that on Thursday, 20 Jan 2011, I had to pull over the Car because for the first time in all these years I was shocked to see white smoke along with a burnt smell coming out of the AC vents. Please note that neither the AC nor the blower was on! The problem with Oil dripping had just started about 2-3 days ago before this happened, not sure if they are inter-related.
Although the Car was starting without a problem, I feared some damage and called the Emergency breakdown guys from Bimal who came and saw the problem too and suspected a small belt on the left when you look into the bonnet. The belt which they showed me was slightly damaged and had an appearance as though it was burnt at one location. But after the delivery on 21st I noticed they have done nothing, the same old belt remains, but it is not smoking anymore.
The puzzled look on them when I asked what was wrong said all the rest.

-The wheel bearing is something which I have not heard them mention earlier, perhaps I will ask them that tomorrow when I take it back.
2: Yes, I am sure its Oil, because the Mat which I kept out has not dried in the Sun

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Hi Randhawa
Thanks for your input, I will make sure they check these tomorrow, I am sorry I am a computer Engineer and I have no clue what these are, but I will surely write it down and make sure they attend to it. I was also reading a similar issue with an Indica on Team-BHP, http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...at-indica.html
Since he had his problem resolved, do you suppose something similar could happen on the Alto too, if yes, what do you call that part in Alto...? I will ask them to check that part as well...

[condor]

If it is oil, on driver side, then check for clutch master cylinder.

Check :
1. level of clutch fluid in the tank,
2. Examine the clutch pedal from the bottom to the point where it's components go into the engine bay - see for any oil leaking from the set-up
3. Have you noticed your clutch getting softer ?

Pls get this checked immed - dont want to see you stuck mid-way with an in-operative clutch.

Have you noticed any softness in the clutch operation ?

[Jaggu]

Alto comes with cable operated clutch Condor not hydrolic. Belt might be the water pump or AC one. I think its better you show the car to another workshop, Bimal seems to be uninterested to sort out the issues.

[SDP]

Let me try to address your second problem first.

The car heating is because the radiator has no coolant left. Most likely the liquid leaking INSIDE the cabin is coolant. I had a similar problem with my Alto recently. Please check my thread for the same.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...nside-car.html

The first problem about a whistling noise, might be because of a wheel-bearing gone bad. Again something that has happened to my Alto around 4-5 months back. In the SA's words "It sounds like a plane taking off when you increase the speed of the car about 60-70 km/hr". In my opinion, the sound is more like a high pitched whizzing sound. While driving in that condition, I remember checking over my shoulders a couple of times to see if there is a auto-rickshaw driving very close to my car. Hope you get the drift.

[rajeev k]

Your second problem could be the leakage of brake fluid. Immediately check your brake master cylinder level and for leakages. This may need an overhaul and replacement of seal kits. But these days no MASS undertakes overhauling and simply replace the master cylinder assembly instead.
Also check if the service guy has lubricated the clutch cable (it is surely non-lubricated type) or the connections

The first prroblem could be wheel bearings or from the drive shaft. Take it to a nonMASS capable mechanic. Since the sound is audible in standstill also check water pump or timing belt zones.

The problem with authorised SS are attrition level of mechanics due to more brands and opening of additional dealerships of established brands. Knowledge levels and quality is taking a beating now.

[Sprucegoose]

Does your car have power steering?
a friends Esteem sprouted a leak in the Power Steering System.
The fluid would leak onto the driver side floor mat near the clutch.

It was quite a bad leak, had a small pool there by the end of a Pune - Mumbai Trip.
The steering became hard and noisy after a while.

as for the noise from the rear tyre, apart from the wheel bearing, check the brake liners. that also might be the cause.

[JustCause]

It is most probably the Brake Booster. Though these don't go bad so easily, but when they do, the area you have described seems perfect for Brake fluid leak. As brake fluid is Hygroscopic in nature, it combines with whatever moisture there is in the cabin & coupled with dirt, gives an oily stain to the paper.

Conversely, it could also be what SDP mentioned, but, in that case the leak would be more towards the center, just ahead of the cup holder floor console.

[vaseem]

Hello Blueaquan,

For the whistling sound it is mostly the wheel bearing as many others have pointed out.

The liquid on the mats may be coolant

a) do you park your car overnight / long periods during the day on a slope? ( Front being at a higher level than the rear of the car )

b) have you been using the heater in your car off late?

best regards

Vaseem

[rajeev k]

Originally Posted by vaseem

Hello Blueaquan,
The liquid on the mats may be coolant
Vaseem

The coolant can't get into the cabin even if it is leaking. Any coolant could be easily detected if you open the bonnet. Moreover in the Alto the tank, radiator etc are on the LHS.

[Randhawa]

@Rajeev- Coolant can leak into cabin because the heater core is inside and coolant runs through it.

@Blueaquan-You could simply top up the coolant bottle and check for the level after some driving. If the liquid is green in colour then that the culprit if not then I still suspect the brake master cylinder leaking its oil into the servo and dripping through it inside. Lifting up the carpet and careful observation will reveal any problems. Also check the brake fluid level.

[blueaquan]

Dear Friends
Answering Sprucegoose, yes the car has a Power steering, but the leak is extremely small, unlike the case you mentioned, I drove the car for more than an hour today morning and found only one drop on the paper.

Answering Vaseem,
a: No, the car is parked on level ground overnight
b: Yes, I made that dread mistake something ago, but that must be sometime during the peak winter months of Nov-Dec. Do not remember using in since Jan...

On why I dint take it today to Bimal, I had made a simple complaint to Maruth Suzuki on their Email mentioning my problem and I was surprised to learn they have forward it to Bimal and I had a Sr Manager from Bimal calling on me today requesting me for another inspection of the Car tomorrow.
I've agreed to take the Car around 9:30 tomorrow morning, will keep you all guys posed on his replies and action accordingly. Will also make a list of these things you've mentioned above and see if he has them in his checklist...

Thanks
Blue

[DRIV3R]

Originally Posted by Sprucegoose

Does your car have power steering?
a friends Esteem sprouted a leak in the Power Steering System.
The fluid would leak onto the driver side floor mat near the clutch.

It was quite a bad leak, had a small pool there by the end of a Pune - Mumbai Trip.
The steering became hard and noisy after a while.

as for the noise from the rear tyre, apart from the wheel bearing, check the brake liners. that also might be the cause.

Alto comes with an EPS. If it's a power assisted steering equipped one. (LXi) So, no chance of power steering fluid leak.