[ike]

Originally Posted by gischethans

Thankfully, it retains the "Auto" behaviour with that. If I adjust something like the fan speed using buttons, the AC goes to manual mode.

That is the expected behavior isn't it? You choose the temperature and the ACC determines the fan speed. This is how I believe climate control works in all cars. If you intervene with fan speed it goes into manual.

[gischethans]

Originally Posted by ike

That is the expected behavior isn't it? You choose the temperature and the ACC determines the fan speed. This is how I believe climate control works in all cars. If you intervene with fan speed it goes into manual.

Yes, that felt expected. I am new to this automatic climate control thing and was trying to find a way around the temperature being set to 23 degrees everytime.

[nsbhagwat]

Hi Gischethans,

That is the way auto ac works. You set the temperature then the system manipulates the blower rpm alongwith the hot air / cold air mixing door opening closing. This happens for all modes except the front window defrost mode.

Even if the ac button is set to off but auto mode is engaged, then also the blower rpm goes up and down. Hope that helps.

Regards
Nikhil

[ike]

Completed yet another Thrissur - Chennai - Thrissur drive. Started early morning from Thrissur and it was raining very heavily for the initial 100 KMS. I stuck to 80KMPH on the cruise control and switched to wet mode. Seems that wet mode dampens down on the brakes.

Was able to beat traffic at both ends due to an early start and got good fuel economy too as a bonus.



Got the car washed and waxed by OCD. Had not been to OCD (maybe ~ 2 years) ever since the pandemic. The upside of going there is that you get to see some really fancy cars. The other thing I like about them is that they take you in for just a wash or a wash+wax even during weekends. Places like 3M are reluctant to do simple wash jobs on weekends and they do not do only wash, it's always wash + wax only.



Return was on Thursday early morning since I wanted to beat the long weekend rush on Friday. Started early, got home by 1300Hrs and was able to clock 9 hours of work. Relatively poorer economy as I was faster and there was heavy traffic on the Salem - Chengapally stretch where I had to keep speeding up and slowing down.



Cars are getting smarter



Got the second free service done a little earlier at 7050 KMS instead of 7500 as I'm a little held up over this month post the 15th. I had an appointment however being second saturday the ASS was crowded. They only thing they had to do was grease the sunroof and put in some DEF. They have soiled my roofliner while greasing the sunroof but I'd rather take it to a competent detailer than go back to TASS who I'm sure will make it worse. The total bill came to INR803.

They have remarked in the service history that the next service is due in another 6 months in Feb'24 or 15k KMS rather than Apr'24 (I got my car in Apr'23) wich is when the car turns one. The iRA app on the other hand shows next service is due in October'23 or 15k KMS.

[ike]

As mentioned the second service was done ahead of schedule. While people at TASS have been cordial and friendly, they still lack finesse and attention to detail. I haven't experienced the luxury car service centers and know that the other OEMs too are not that great when it comes to attention to detail, however Tata needs to catch up with the others here. A good way to start would be to have more service centers. Where I live, there's just one(Hyson motors, Thrissur) and they have a heavy workload despite being a big set up.

Sunroof railings greased, roof liner greased too



They use stickers to record the time & KMS when the car arrives for service. Leaves a bad mark on the windscreen. A less crude way to do it would be to use tags.



Both the grease and sticker residue look ugly. I have sent the pics of the soiled roof to my detailer. He says he can try to clean it up but did not sound very hopeful.

On to better things, drove to Mararikulam in Alleppey for Onam. Stayed in Thumpoly beach at Marari beach village for 2 nights.
Thrissur - Alleppey was slow with heavy traffic and road construction slowing us down. The return drive was far better as we started early at 6:30 AM which meant skipping the complimentary breakfast on the day of checkout.



The view from the room



Thumpoly beach

















On the second day we managed to get a cruise on a houseboat for 3 hours in the afternoon. I felt this is a better option compared to staying a night on the boat or spending a full day since it is difficult to keep young kids engaged for long.

Vambanad lake, the largest lake in Kerala.







Snacks served on the boat



After the trip, she threw a tantrum and I saw my first ever check engine light after about 1.1 lac KMS of driving across three cars. Hope I never get to see it again however the Harrier owners whatsapp group says seasoned Tata owners don't take warning lights seriously. It disappeared on it's on though, could be the battery since the cranking voltage was 9V when I had it checked. Or maybe she was upset about not being washed post the trip. Or maybe it is the thing that they get once in a month!



Finally got her washed. It's been a satisfying 8k KMS and 3 months with the car, looking forward to many more KMS.

[ike]

Originally Posted by ike

Sunroof railings greased, roof liner greased too

TASS called me about this and fixed it. They were apologetic about it as well. It's good to learn that Tata personnel are monitoring the forum and taking feedback seriously.



Disaster struck soon after I got this done. Saturday evening I was rear ended by an idiot driving a TUV300. I had stopped before a zebra crossing to let people cross the road. I understand that stuff happens when on the road but this guy was not even apologetic about crashing into me. The car is currently at TASS awaiting insurance clearance. Fingers crossed my experience with the TASS folks has been good so far, hopefully they do a good job with the repairs, do it quickly and without ruining my white leather interiors. Not sure how tall an ask that would be.

[ike]

The work is still in progress, they have most of the parts but still awaiting a few. No final date as yet when it'd be completed. Fingers crossed, hopefully they do a good job and deliver the car soon. Unfortunately they do not provide loaner cars.

[subie_socal]

Damn, that's terrible, ike. Hope your steed returns to duty soon without any fuss.

Did you not have a rear dashcam?

[ike]

Originally Posted by subie_socal

Damn, that's terrible, ike. Hope your steed returns to duty soon without any fuss.

Did you not have a rear dashcam?

No, I did not have a rear camera. What is very frustrating is that it's been two weeks(I gave the car on the 30th of Sept) and they still do not have an ETA as to when they will be done with repairs. And no loaner either.

[subie_socal]

Originally Posted by ike

And no loaner either.

I've had this same experience with Maruti, when my Ritz was recently involved in a minor accident. On top of that it was the Onam weekend, so got my vehicle after 1 and a half weeks.

[ike]

The car is back on the road. She spent 20 days at the SC. Overall happy with the work however it seems the parking sensors haven't been calibrated and the parking guidelines are unavailable. Initially they said a software update would fix it and I took the car in to get it done but an update didn't fix it and they now have to dismantle the bumper and take a look at what is going on behind the scenes. Since it is nothing major I have decided to get it done along with the next scheduled service. I was frustrated initially about the time being taken but once I texted the service GM about it they provided me with regular and timely updates. I also visited the TASS regularly as I had my brother's car at my disposal since he was travelling.

[ike]

Originally Posted by ike

the climate control does not start at last set temperature & gets reset to 23 degrees when you switch the car on.

I think I have been doing this wrong. I usually press the auto AC button to switch it on and it starts at 23 degrees. If I turn the temperature knob once to switch it on instead of the "auto" button, it starts at the last set temperature.

[ike]

Another month and another couple of thousand KMS. The car is performing OK and is at 12600 KMS in about six months. Yet another roundtrip to Chennai from Thrissur in Nov. I enjoy driving the car, and the convenience of an automatic is just awesome, especially in the city.

Onwards stats. I travelled on Sunday, the 19th of Nov. I patted myself on the back while starting really early in the morning from home to reach Chennai in time to watch the world cup finals. A lot of other people too had same plans and I encountered significant traffic till Salem. Turns out everyone's too clever by half these days.



A tata without niggles is like masala dosa without the masala. I observed that sometimes one of the headlamps was turning off when in auto mode, mostly the one on the left. First time I encountered it I switched the headlights off and then back to auto again and the issue cleared. This time that didn't work. I also tried switching the headlights to "ON" from "AUTO" and still only one headlamp was working. Restarting the car(switching the engine off and then back on) fixed it. I took pictures of it, hopefully this can be addressed during the first service that will be due soon. The other interesting aspect is that both instances of the left headlamp turning on happened in similar conditions, once at dawn and then at dusk.





The return stats. Drove out of Chennai as there was heavy rains predicted for the first week of Dec. Was bogged down by heavy rain for the first hundred KMS and took it real easy after capping my speed at 90KMPH. The result was my best ever FE so far. The other noticeable thing is that the MID seems to have learned how to do it's job and the indicated FE is not that far off from the actual tankful to tankful method these days.



The real reason for the rains.



One of the reasons why I love driving around

[ike]

I got the 15k service done today though the car is at 14100KMS.
Had booked an appointment via the TMSC app and showed up on time. Since this was a service rather than an inspection involving changing of lubes and filters, I expected it to take a good part of the day if not the whole day. I'm now familiar with the people at Hyson motors in Thrissur and comfortable getting my car serviced from them. The people right from the GM to the mechanics are friendly and approachable. I'm now a little less paranoid about service than I used to be when I bought the car.

A job card was opened in quick time, I listed my issues which were:

• Low beam on the left headlamp switching off intermittently.
• Reversing gridlines not working and the reversing camera displays and error message along with continuous beeping.

Oil was drained and new oil filled. The filter also was replaced. I thought Tata uses Castrol but was pleased to see Mobil1 coming out of a unopened sealed bottle rather than a 240L barrel.



A cardboard placed to ensure filter is replaced without making a mess. The wheel has to come off for a filter change.



The brake pads were inspected and reinstalled. The rotors were smooth to touch and the pads seemed to have maybe another 12-15k KMS of life left.

Originally Posted by ike

I observed that sometimes one of the headlamps was turning off when in auto mode, mostly the one on the left.

My biggest worry was whether I'd be able to replicate this issue at the ASC since cars sometimes tend to be well behaved when mechanics are around but the issue did occur at the workshop after some coaxing. The problem was investigated and the bulb was found problematic. A new OEM Xenon HID costs a tear inducing 10k at TASS, it is of the exotic variety made in Germany by Philips. I requested for warranty and they were kind enough to change it free of cost and log a warranty claim with Tata. They mentioned this is the first time they are coming across a dead Xenon bulb. They had just one bulb in stock. I'm not sure about this but it seems that for a bulb replacement the headlamp assembly needs to be out entirely.





While on the topic of headlights, I upgraded the high beams to LEDs. It seems that this is very bright and will dazzle oncoming traffic. I shall further update this after a few more night drives.



They tried to resolve the reverse camera issue and spent quite some time troubleshooting but could not set it right. They have ruled out trouble with the sensors, the wiring harness remains to be checked. Since I couldn't leave the car with them today, this will have to be looked at again at a more convenient time. Overall I'm satisfied with the service, hope it stays that way.

Overall very happy with the car. Compared to my previous car, the Harrier is a lot more stable and dismissive of bad roads. Some of the undulations that would have thrown the S cross off are handled with nonchalance.

There is definitely room for improvement, some of which are

• The infotainment system. I'm fine with this not being up to scratch since I'm fine without music. It looks like I also have the radio reception issue that is being discussed in the new Safari/Harrier facelift thread but I'm not really bothered. I didn't even mention this during service.
  
• Absence of front parking sensors/360 camera. This car is quite hefty, sensors up front or a camera might have helped immensely while maneuvering.
  
• No dual zone climate control. In a car as big, especially when you travel solo like I very often do, There's no need for any AC at the rear. I like my AC really cold much to the chagrin of my family. Both the issues could have been avoided had there been dual zones.

[ike]

Originally Posted by ike

They tried to resolve the reverse camera issue and spent quite some time troubleshooting but could not set it right.

I had driven to TASS today morning since my pass light was not working. The high beams were working when the headlamps were ON but pass was not working. This was diagnosed as a loose contact in a fuse. They had also liaised with TATA about the reverse camera and that was fixed too. All in all a good couple of hours and all issues resolved.