September 2009 – Our 2002 model M800 stalled in middle of the road. After towing it to the nearest garage, I found out that the car was running without the engine oil and was told that engine overhaul was required. In the last service, I did not accompany the driver (who left the job 2 months ago). Seems like he skimped on the oil change to make some extra money for himself. M800 was due for an upgrade anyway; we sold the car in the current condition for 85k (Got a great deal, if you ask me!).

October 2009 – Decided that we needed a small car. My dad is limited to a wheelchair, and the main requirement was that the car we buy should accommodate a wheelchair in boot and priced around 4L. Here are the few choices and reasons for rejections.

1. WagonR VXi – Fitted the bill, but I have heard/read that it was due for a major upgrade. I did not wanted to buy an outgoing model, so dropped the idea.
2. Zen Estillo VXi – Had good FE, decent cabin space, boot can hold the wheelchair. Engine was 3 pot, no refinement. Looks did not appeal to me.
3. Ritz LXi – This was a serious contender. The car had everything we required. Had almost finalized on the car. But since this car was to be used by my parents, I took my mom and dad to the showroom. They immediately rejected on basis of appearance.
4. i10 1.2 Magna – Good to drive in city, very nice interiors, looks and quality (best in class). Boot was small.

It seemed that we will have to go a little high on budget. Stretched the budget to 5L.
The first car we looked at was i20 petrol. It is a great car. Everything in the car is class leading. Features, cabin space, boot, appearance. The only thing that I didn’t like was the engine on offer. Anyways, that was not a deal breaker, since the car would be a chauffeur driven to be used by parents.

January 2010 – Punto was always on back of my mind. Had TDed it at the time of launch. It’s the best looking hatch. Flowing lines and Italian mesmerizing looks. It was a dream hatch for me. I drive a DZire VDi (40,000 kms old). I asked my parents if they would want to use the DZire, they were ok with it. So, it was decided, I would buy Punto MJD for myself and give DZire to my parents.
With a budget of 5L, and requirement for diesel, Punto Active MJD @ 5.04L was the only option.
Color was already decided, it had to be Exotica Red. It’s the closest to Ferrari red. Punto Looks awesome in that color.

BUYING EXPERIENCE

24th January 2010 – Went to Joshi Autozone to enquire about the availability. The salesman was very rude. He was much more interested in selling me Indica Vista. Did not offer me any test drive (although, I didn’t want one). I told him to check the availability of red or blue color. He stated his personal dislikes for both the colors (comparing RED with tamatar and BLUE with a dustbin lying around), and insisted on silver or white, which were readily available. When I insisted on Exotica Red, he said that they would need 50k advance (against 10k for other colors), which would not refundable with a signed bond that color change is not allowed and car would take 1.5 – 2 months to arrive. That was it for me, I left the dealership.

25th January 2010 – Visited HIND Motors, Mohali. The salesman (Mr. Negi) there was very courteous. The showroom had good ambience and offered me a better deal than Joshi. They asked for a 10K advance and promised a delivery time of between 15-20 days. Although, they also told me that the color change would not be allowed. I was OK with that.  Had a good experience overall. I decided to book the car there. Told them I would come back on 27th with the booking amount.

27th January 2010 – Reached HIND Motors @ 11AM. Paid them 10k advance and got the other booking formalities completed. They offered me Finance from SBoP. I already knew someone from HDFC who would help me with the loan; I told them that I would get it done myself.
Next day, I called up that guy from HDFC and asked for the formalities, he gave me the list of documents required for the approval of loan. After 2 days, I gave him all that he has asked for and he told me that approval should not take more than 3-4 days. 5 days later, the loan is approved. All this time, this guy from HDFC was thinking that I am buying the car from JOSHI Autozone. I told him that I have booked the car at HIND Motors. He said that their company had a few problems with HIND in the last few dealings and they don’t deal with them anymore. I told him I cannot cancel the booking with HIND. He said there is no way out.

3rd February 2010 – I called up Mr. Negi and told him about the situation. He told me that he would get my case approved from SBoP on fast track. I had a little hope though, Nationalized banks are known for taking their sweet own time. I went ahead anyway, since they had the most competitive rate of interest.
8% for 1st year and 10% and 2nd and 3rd year. Processing fees was Rs. 1000. It was better than what HDFC have offered.

12th February 2010 – Got a call from HIND that my car has arrived. Reached the showroom within an hour with PDI list. A friend of mine (Sharat) dropped me at the showroom. Punto was looking smashing in red color. There were numerous Indicas / Safaris / Puntos / Lineas in their rooftop stockyard, my red Punto really really stood out. ODO read 5kms. The car was in typical stockyard condition. I spent 20 minutes checking the car, everything seemed perfect.  I paid them rest of the money, excluding the loan amount.

I then enquired about my loan status. Mr. Negi told me that the loan was approved, and the draft would be ready by tomorrow. I told him that I would take delivery on Monday (15th Feb), Saturday being not considered a good/auspicious day to buy metal/iron.

13th February 2010 – Visited SBoP with my wife(Loan/Car was in her name) to complete the formalities for the loan. She signed the loan agreement and gave them 12 cheques. They told us to come back on Monday to collect the draft for the loan amount.
Dropped my wife at home and went to HIND motors. Asked them if they had the fog lamps available, and luckily they had one set in stock. Got them fitted (took nearly 2 hours).

15th February 2010 – I reached SBoP at 10 AM. They told me that the draft would take time and asked me to come back at 12PM. I went back at 1 PM and finally got the draft at 1:45.
After collecting the draft, went back home to have lunch drop the car. Cab dropped me at HIND Motors at around 3 PM.

Paper work was completed in around 1.5 hours. I took the delivery of the car at around 5 PM. Told the guys at dealership to remove the ribbon and not to put coconut in the car. They were a bit shocked. They were like “Nayee gaadi hai sir, thodee der toh laga lo”. I do not like ribbons, and Pink ribbon was not going well the red car anyway. I gifted Salesman (Negi) a nice steel bodied parker pen and moved out of the showroom.

Overall, I had a good experience with the dealership. I would recommend them.

CAR DELIVERED

I have always found the ride back home in the new car the scariest. All cars/bikes/rickshaws/cyclists seems to be heading your way. Picked up wifey from her office on my way back and headed home.
On my way back I was at a signal and started to move when it was my turn. There was a lot of traffic ahead of me. By the time I was in the middle of intersection the signal turned yellow. I had to cross and unluckily I was the last car to cross (There were 2-3 cars behind me, but they overtook from right/left). I was stopped by policemen. I did argue a lot. I told them that when I crossed, the signal still had 5 seconds left. But they did not listen, and issued a challan anyway. Not a good start, anyhow:

This is the deal I have got:
Ex. Showroom Price: Rs. 5,04,896
Insurance + Extended Warranty + Road side assistance Package: + Rs. 6000
Corporate Discount: – Rs. 9000 (Wife works in HSBC Bank)
Freebies: Mud Flaps + Footmats + Teflon Coating (3M)
Total On-Road Cost (Excluding road tax) – Rs. 5,01,896
Road Tax – Rs. 7000 (approx. – Car is yet to be registered)
Total – Rs. 5,08,896 (approx.)

Went for the customary Pooja next day at Mata Mansa Devi Temple.

DRIVING EXPERIENCE:

I drive a DZire VDi, Verna CRDi, Scorpio mHawk and Innova. I will be comparing the driving experience to Swift DZire VDi as they share the same heart and are in the same price bracket.

The initial pickup is not as good as swift. It seems slow as compared to swift, there is no doubt!! But once you have crossed 2000 RPM, things start to improve. Loads of torque in mid range. Car feels planted on high speeds (upwards of 120). NVH levels are better. No vibrations. Turbo lag is bit less than Swift’s (feels less atleast). Car pulls a little better than Swift below 2000 RPM in higher gears.
After the turbo kicks in, it’s almost similar to swift. Car seems eager to move forward. Gear shift is precise, although I feel swift is better in this department.

Handling is a lot better. Suspension is much better than Swift. There seems to be less body roll. Car seems very stable on high speeds and a lot more planted, inspires confidence. Although, I am still in run-in period, I have taken it to 120 kmph a couple of times. Punto seems better for driving fast on turning roads and jumping into tight corners and inspires confidence.

Ride quality is far ahead than its competition. Punto behaves a lot better on bad roads than Swift. I have same section tires on swift. Punto’s suspension seems to be build to take on 195/60-R15. Same sized tires on swift gives harsh ride when compared.

Braking is better than swift (Both cars I have are non-ABS).

Turning radius is more than Swift. Clutch seems a little longer on Punto (You have to press deeper than Swift).

Trip Computer is nice; shows distance to empty, current consumption, overall consumption, average speed, total time for which car is driven in a tank etc. Although, I wish there were 2 trips available. I think Emotion variant has 2 trips.

I knew how the car was to drive, before buying, so there are no complaints. I have planned to install Petes, so things should improve.

Build quality is top-notch. This car will have a lot less rattles than swift.

The car has been driven for 956 kms so far.  Got a FE of 17.1 on the first tank, according to the car’s trip computer, 100% city driving without a/c.

Interiors: Rear leg room is better, boot is larger and seats are more comfy in Punto. Footwell is a bit cramped when compared to Swift. Interiors overall seems better (Plastic quality and overall appearance/design) than Swift. Twin glove box and a few chubby holes give a lot of space to throw your stuff around. Plastic quality, although is acceptable but attracts a lot of dust due to the pattern. Steering wheel is awesome to hold, provides good grip and is very responsive. Its much better than electric ones specially on high speeds.
Dials are nice, is there any way I can fit the dials of Emotion variant? Or maybe just the chrome ring circling the dials?
The knobs provided to adjust the ORVMs are of pretty bad quality, they don’t seem like built to last. Quality of rubber, the positioning, the design and adjustment angels it provides are all bad.

FIAT should have left the wiper controls at the normal position instead of reversing it. I keep switching between cars and its really tough getting used to.

Had a few niggles with the car:
The glove box lock was a little loose. Going over a bump would automatically open the glove box (lower one). The boot could not be opened from inside sometimes, the latch used to open the boot became non-responsive at times.
Went over to the dealership, the boot opening lever was fixed in 5 mins. There was something loose that connected lever with the boot lock. The glove box lock was also fixed within a couple of mins. The mechanic asked me to try the glovebox lock. I found it a bit tight to open. He told me to try harder, and I did. The lever came in my hand. It was broken. Luckily, they had one in stock and replaced it within 15 mins with no charges form my end.

I have got the ORVMs, front grills and fog lamp enclosure painted from outside. I also planned on painting the door handles body colored. Now, opening the handles is a pretty tedious job. The mechanic spent good 20-25 mins on one handle and it was still not dismantled. He told me that this is the first time he is working on Punto. I told him to put things the way they were and I will get them painted from the dealership. He did put it back, but now the car would not lock from outside with a key. Luckily it was the passenger side door.

After a couple of days I took the car to the dealership and told them that there was something wrong with the lock. They looked at it and told me that a spring in the lock was faulty and the whole assembly would be replaced and it would be done under warranty.  They did not have one in stock. I was told to come back in a week or 10 days as it will come from Pune. Still have to get it fixed somewhere next week.

On my visit to the dealership, I have got the mudflaps removed. They were little too big for my taste. I will look out for some small ones, which are functional but at the same time do not cover the entire tyre. Anyone using any other mudflaps? Mudflaps I had seemed original, “For use in Punto” was written on it.

MODIFICATIONS:

After the Pooja, headed straight to tyre shop.

Changed the Tyres:
I had already purchased a set of brand new Punto OE alloys @ Rs. 9000. I was confused about which tyre to go for. Size was decided (195/60R15). I have Yokohama A-Drive on DZire (same size). They are good tires. But, this time I wanted to try something different.
The tires in consideration were Yokohama V550 (db Series), Yokohama A-Drive, Pirelli (Forgot the model), Michelin Primacy LC and Continental CPC2.
In the confusion, called a TBHP member Abhishek. He was close by and soon arrived with another TBHP member Shresht. They both swore by CPC2. Michelin was out of contention cause of the price. Did not like the pattern on Pirelli. I was not interested in getting another Yokohama (already have a C-Drive on Innova, GEOLANDAR on Scorpio and A-Drive on DZire).

I was inclining more towards CPC2, Abhishek PMed a tyre guru from TBHP (Nikhil) and he confirmed that Continental ContiPremiumContact2 was a better tyre than Yoko V550 or A- Drive.  He said CPC2 was almost comparable to mighty Michelin.

The manufacturing date on the tyre was bit old, but I was getting warranty from the date of purchase (5 years). Again confirmed with Nikhil, he said most of the Conti tyres have old manufacturing dates. I went to another tyre shop, just to check. The CPC2 there also had date of manufacturing in close range to one I have already seen. To convince me even more, the owner of the shop (Bansal Tyre Zone) got on phone with Continental’s RM and asked me to talk to him. He told me that this is the latest date you will find in any shop and you will get 5 year warranty from the date of purchase and even gave his personal contact number, just in case there is any problem.

Got Continental ContiPremiumContact2 (CPC2) 195/60-R15 fitted on the OE Punto Rims that I already had with me. Got it at a price of Rs. 4100 per tyre. Free alignment and balancing was done at the shop.The stock tyres were evaluated at Rs. 1700 per tyre and RIMS (Without wheelcaps) @ Rs. 800.
The CPC2 seems a lot better than A-Drives. Less noise and better grip.

These are some of the mods I have done to make my FIAT Grande Punto MJD (Active) to take it close to Emotion Pack:

1. Punto OE Alloys with 195/60/R15 section rubber CPC2.
2. Fitted Fog Lamps (Rs. 2350 incl. Labor charges, bought from FIAT Dealership).
3. Painted ORVMs body colored.
4. Painted front 2 grills and fog lamp enclosure silver (Costed Rs. 1500 incl. ORVMs)
5. Kenwood KDC-BT7043U (Bluetooth Enabled, PARROT Bluetooth Kit).
6. Infinity Front Components.
7. Blaupunkt 4-Channel Amplifier.
8. Rear speakers Infinity Reference 9633i.
9. Roof Antenna (costed Rs. 150, FIAT Dealership quoted a whopping Rs. 1945).
10. Sun Film.
11. FIAT 500 Original Keyfob (bought form eBay UK)

For those interested, Kenwood KDC-BT7043U Bluetooth works like a charm. The HU comes with a built-in Parrot Bluetooth kit.  (Excerpt from Wikipedia: Parrot’s Bluetooth hands free technology can also be found in first mount in vehicles, thanks to OEM deals with car manufacturers: Nissan, BMW, Renault, Peugeot, Fiat… )

It can pair upto 5 phones. Can sync address book. There is no extra MIC required; it’s built in the HU. You can also increase the mic gain. You can dial a phone number from the HU remote control unit as well.

EDIT:

I have changed the head unit to KENWOOD eXcelon X994. I have got the pillars painted black.

Thinking of buying a few more accessories soon.

MODS Planned for Future:

1. Rear Power windows.
2. Remote operated Central Locking.
3. A Sub.
4. Petes (at somewhere between 10-15k kms).
5. K&N Filter.
6. Retrofitting projectors with HID and angel eyes.(Similar to aZa’s Getz)
7. Powder coating the OE wheels matt black with a red or mirror lip.

A few questions for fellow Punto owners:

1. The engine oil that comes with the car, is it synthetic or mineral?
2. If its mineral, is it advisable to change it to synthetic at first service (3000 km)?
3. Has anyone tried petes on Punto? Is it the same box used in Palio? And, how is the performance after installing Petes. Worth it?
4. The bump in the BHP after installing petes, does it affect engine in any bad way?
5. Has anyone installed after market remote operated central locking? If yes, which brand? I have heard there are no specific (made for Punto) central locking available.
6. Has anyone installed rear power windows on Active model? If yes, which brand?

Update:

Last week I went ahead and got my door handles painted.
Dismantling and installing the handles back is not an easy job.

I didn’t want to get them painted from the dealership, as I don’t like their workmanship when it comes to painting.
I am very satisfied with the work of a local painter/workshop that I frequent (Baboo Painter, Indl. Area, Chd).

So I got phone number of a mechanic who works at dealership.

He told me that he will remove the door handles for me on Sunday, I can get them painted at my convenience and he would fit them back in any weekday after he is free from his job.

I got them removed on Sunday, they were painted on Monday and fitted that very evening. Removing the handles were pretty easy. All 4 were removed in 45 minutes.
Fitting them back was a task. Took good 2.5 hrs.
Had to fit them back with flash light on of my blackberry.

I also de-badged the rear of my Punto.
The FIAT mechanic was paid Rs. 250 and paint was done for Rs. 900. Total damages – Rs. 1150

I have uploaded some WIP pictures.

UPDATE: September 06, 2010

Today I bought the recently launched Central Locking for the ACTIVE model by FIAT India.
Did not have time to get it installed, so I bought the central locking with me. I will go there in couple of days to get it installed. They were saying it would take around 4-5 hours to install it.

I have uploaded the pictures as well.

• June 16, 2008 -- Maruti Swift DZire VDi (Diesel) Silky Silver – Complete Review with Pictures (391)
• March 31, 2008 -- Maruti Swift Dzire Launched, Reviewed and Purchased (13)

My last post was about my home computer.
I had listed all the specs with a few pictures of my rig.

I recently made a few changes.
I upgraded my power supply to Corsair 750 Watts.
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V

Here are the specifications from the official site:

Brand     CORSAIR
Model     CMPSU-750TX
Spec
Type     ATX12V / EPS12V
Maximum Power     750W
Fans     Thermally controlled 140mm fan
PFC     Active
Main Connector     20+4Pin
+12V Rails     Single
PCI-E Connectors     4 x 6+2Pin
SLI     Ready
CrossFire     Ready
Efficiency     > 80%
Energy-Efficient     80 PLUS Certified
Input Voltage     100 – 240 V
Input Frequency Range     50/60 Hz
Input Current     10A
Output     +3.3V@30A,+5V@28A,+12V@60A,
-12V@0.8A,+5VSB@3.0A
MTBF     >100,000 Hours
Approvals     UL, CE, CB, TUV, FCC, CCC
Features
Connectors     1 x Main connector (20+4Pin)
1 x 12V(4/8Pin)
8 x peripheral
8 x SATA
2 x Floppy
4 x PCI-E
Features     Ultra-quiet 140mm double ball-bearing fan delivers excellent airflow
80%+ energy efficiency at 20%, 50% and 100% load condition for less heat generation and lower energy bill
99% Active Power Factor Correction provides clean and reliable power to your system
Universal AC input 90~264V automatically scans and detects the correct voltage
Dedicated single +12V rail offers maximum compatibility with latest components

Compatible with Core i7

Also added 2 Cathode CCFL tubes on top of the case.
These cathodes comes with a sound detector and on/off switch (which comes really handy when you leave the system on at night, specially since mine is in my bedroom).

Here are the pictures:

• May 26, 2009 -- My Rig (10)

The changes I made recently are PSU, Graphics card, DVD Writer, Case/Chassis, Fans, Keyboard and Mouse.

I had to change the chassis, as the old one was getting very cramped after installing the  new PSU and GTX 260. It was also getting overly heated. My whole computer table was burning hot from the heat generated. I started exploring my options. I had narrowed it down to 2 brands, Thermaltake and Coolermaster. I eventually chose coolermaster for two reasons. First, thermaltake was not available in my city (had to wait for atleast a month). Second, when I saw coolermaster, thermaltake went out of equation. Its much(solid) better built than thermaltake, looked really hot and coolermaster is better brand name.

I was choosing between Thermaltake Strike MX Series VI6001BNS and Cooler Master RC-690-KWN1-GP RC-690 with Transparent Side Panel. Both are similarly priced.

Here’s the breakdown of the components I am having:

Case / Chassis
Cooler Master RC-690-KWN1-GP RC-690 with Transparent Side Panel Mid Tower Computer Case
Comes with:
Front :120 mm Blue LED fan x 1, 1200 rpm, 21 dBA
Rear : 120 mm standard fan, 1200 rpm, 21 dBA
Top : 120 mm Blue LED fan x 1 (Purchased separately)
Bottom : 120 mm fan x 1 (This is the one that was replaced from left side panel),
Left: 120 mm Blue LED fan x 1, 1200 rpm, 21 dBA (Purchased separately)
A total of 5 (2 normal + 3 LED) independent fans + 1 fan in PSU + 1 fan on processor + 1 fan on GPU = 8 fans.

This case comes with a very neatly integrated cable manager. The front and top of the case are all aluminium mesh. Looks really neat. Power and rest buttons are located on the left side and 2XUSB 2.0, 1Xheadphone, 1XMic, 1XeSata, 1Xfirewire are on top.
The case has a tool-free design. PCI cards, 5.25″, 3.5″ drives can be easily installed and are supported by latches.
PSU is located at the bottom of the case.
The case came with 3 fans, I installed 2 more LED 120mm fans. Its properly ventilated now. I ran the system for 10 straight hours yesterday without any heat problems.
I read reviews before buying this case. Mostly people have written that the left panel is hard to remove. Mine was pretty easy to remove. I got the transparent side panel, maybe that’s the reason.
I got this as standard: Transparent Acrylic Side Window Panel (RA-690-KWN1-GP)
On Coolermaster website, this is listed as an accessory.
Here are the case details on official website: Coolermaster CM690

PSU (Power Supply Unit)
Corsair CMPSU-450VX 450W Power Supply – ATX 12V v.2.2 450 Watt
1 x Main connector (20+4Pin),1 x 12V(4+4Pin),6 x peripheral,6 x SATA2 x Floppy,1 x PCI-E
I know, that I need atleast 550Watt supply. Will do it later.
More Details

Processor
Model: BX80569Q9550
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield
2.83GHz  Quad-Core Processor
12MB L2 Cache
45nm
1333Mhz
LGA 775
95W
Official Link

Mainboard
Intel® Desktop Board DP35DP
Official Link

GPU (Graphic Processing Unit)
Nvidia GeForce XFX GTX 260 Core (216 Processor Cores)
Core Clock 576MHz
Memory Clock 2000MHz
896MB 448-bit GDDR3
PCI Express 2.0 x16
HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
Official Site

Memory (RAM)
4GB (Dual Channel) Transcend 2X2GB
240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM
PC2 6400 800 Mhz.
Model JM800QLU-2G
More details

HDD (Hard Disk Drives)

1 X 500GB Hitachi:
HITACHI Deskstar P7K500 HDP725050GLA360 (0A35415)
500GB
7200 RPM SATA
3.0Gb/s 3.5″
More Details

1 X 500GB Seagate
Barracuda ES.2 ST3500320NS
500GB 7200 RPM
SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5″
More Details

1 X 320GB Seagate
Barracuda 7200.11 ST3320613AS
320GB 7200 RPM
SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5″
More Details

Optical Drives
Sony Internal DVD Writer DVD±RW
20X SATA
Lightscribe
More Details

Display
Dell S2409W Full HD 1080p Monitor (TN – Twisted Nematic Panel)
Native resolution: 1920X1080 (Full HD)
16:9 Dynamic Aspect ratio
HDMI high quality digital connection
DVI-D, HDCP, VGA
300 cd/m2 (typical)
1000:1 (typical) Contrast Ratio
5ms response time
Official Link

Keyboard
Apple Aluminum Thin Keyboard with Numeric Keypad
Ultrathin anodized aluminum enclosure
2 USB 2.0 Ports
Official Link

Mouse
Apple Mighty Mouse (Wired)
Touch Sensitive Buttons
Scroll Ball
Customizable: Choose from either 4 button or 1 button
Official Link

Besides all this I am using following peripherals:

1. 500va UPS
2. Linksys WRT-54G a/b/g Wireless Router
3. Beetel 220BX ADSL Modem
4. Western Digital 120GB Passport 2.5″ Black external USB hard drive
5. Kingston 16GB Pen Drive
6. Logitech Gamepad
7. Creative 2.1 Channel Speakers
8. All-in-one card reader (supporting SDHC)
9. Bluetooth 2.1EDR Adapter
10. Sony noise canceling headphones (MDR-NC6)

PS. A sepcial thanks to Mr. Navneet Sharma, Mr. Amit Sharma and Mr. Aman Chagotra from Tricad Computers for helping is sourcing the components and helping in the install.

As they say, A picture is worth 1058 words.Here are a few pictures of my rig with the new Coolermaster Case (I know, its not one of the cleanest installs, but its good by my standards):

Here are a few pictures of my old CPU is old desi/chinese case. Just see how cramped it is. This is why I changed the case:

• June 12, 2009 -- Rig Reloaded: More Bling | More Power (0)

I hope you are all enjoying the IPL season 2. Thsi season was very interesting. First look at the itineary and I thought that the teams had too many matches in preliminary round.
But, as the tournament progressed, it got really interesting. No one knew till the very last stage about the semi-finalists.

Anyways, if you are following IPL you cannot miss the ZooZoo’s. They are over-weight, white(racist?), stupid, slow moving and very popular character from the Vodafone (Happy to Help) ad campaign.

The ZooZoo ad campaign was specially made for IPL. It features a total of 25 commercials. Each commercial is specifically made to convey a Value Added Service (VAS).

Whats up with so many commercials?
Six months ago, Vodafone briefed its agency, Ogilvy India, to create uncommon characters – a common thread to link the ads in the campaign together. Rajiv Rao, executive creative director, South Asia, Ogilvy India, tells afaqs! that the only starting point for the team was that the character had to be simple to a stupefying level. And thus, the Zoozoo was born.

You Egghead!!
The idea is to tell the VAS stories in a world akin to, yet different, from humans. The creatures were then given a characterisation: they are to lead simple lives, speak a language of their own (something that sounds like gibberish), move in a certain way, and even emote like human beings, with big frowns or big grins to do the trick. The execution is almost like emoticons. “We even limited the number of emotions to be used, to keep things easy,” says Rao from Ogilvy.

A completely Indian concept, Rao lent these characters a name: the Zoozoos. There’s no science to it, he explains – the name just had to be something fun, memorable and catchy, and not a clever one that’s difficult to pronounce.

Ironically, nowhere in the communication does the Zoozoo name pop up, but Rao doesn’t feel that’s much of a problem: it wasn’t a task to popularise the name in the first place.

Some people thought they were aliens and others thought they were animated cartoon characters and some didnt even knwo what to make out of it. I was in a pleasant shock when I read that the the egg shaped white characters (ZooZoo) are not animated. They are actual human beings clad in a costume and fixed with plastic similes for different expression.
If you notice the ad carefully, when they are about to change their face expression, the whole frame changes.

Here is a picture set which will show you how these zoozoo commercials are made:

These guys have a huge fan following. I am a fan as well.
There is a facebook community for zoozoo’s. It has over 40k members and growing.

Youtube is full of zoozoo videos. Here is the playlist URL where you can see all zoozoo commericals aired till date:
ZooZoo Videos

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Here are the specs:

Layout: Mid-Engine, AWD
Transmission: 7 Speed DSG
Differential: Front Axle Differential With Haldex Clutch; Rear Axle With Transverse , Fully Locking
Engine
Displacement: 8.0 Liters
Engine Type: Quad-Turbocharged 16 Cylinder
Compression Ratio: 9.00:1
Horsepower: 1001 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque: 922 lb-ft. @ 2200 rpm
Exterior
Curb Weight: 4339 lbs.
Length: 175.7 in.
Height: 47.4 in.
Wheelbase: 106.7 in.
Width: 78.7 in.
Performance
Top Speed: 252.9 mph With Roof in Place, 223.7 mph With Roof Open. 80.7 mph With Bad Weather Canvass Umbrella-Style Top
0-100 km/h (0-62 mph): Less Than 2.7 sec
1/4 mile: Approx. 10.5 sec
Coefficient of Drag: 0.39

A few pictures:

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It was sort of a rally . The cars drove from Kalaghoda to Siddivinayak and back. This was organized by Raymonds In association with Autocar India.

Here is the list of participating cars from autocar website:

• Ferrari 430 Spyder
• Rolls Royce Phantom
• Masseratti Quattroporte
• Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder
• Porsche 911 Turbo
• Nissan GTR
• Ferrari 348
• Lotus Elise
• Lamborghini Gallardo
• Ariel Atom 3
• Porsche Cayman
• Rolls-Royce Phantom
• Rolls-Royce Phantom
• Bentley Flying Spur
• Lamborghini Gallardo
• Mercedes-Benz SLK 350
• Audi R8
• Bentley Continental GT
• BMW M5
• BMW X6
• Rolls-Royce Phantom
• BMW M3
• BMW 750 Li
• BMW M3
• BMW 650 Coupe
• BMW M Z4
• Porsche Targa 911 4S
• Mercedes-Benz S 65 AMG
• Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG
• Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG
• Porsche Turbo Super Charger 911
• Porsche Boxter
• Porsche 911
• Cayenne Turbo
• Rolls-Royce Phantom
• Ferrari 430
• Audi R8
• Porsche 911 Carrera 4S
• Porsche 911 Carrera S
• Porsche Boxter S 2007
• Ferrari F430
• BMW M5
• Porsche Targa 4 (997)

This proves that there are a lot of super cars in Mumbai. I am guessing, around 20% of the supercar owners showed up here.
Most of the cars look HOT. Except Mobile Store RR Phantom. What were they thinking?
Narain Karthikeyan was there in Ariel Atom 3 with his father (I guess).

The yellow Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder was driven and ripped (when given a chance) by two girls.
Hottest car on the circuit was Ferrari F430 Spider with CF spoiler.
The SL65 was amongst the best sounding cars apart from the Poonawaala’s 430.

Some members of a famous car lovers community of India (Team-BHP) attended this rally. I am a regular reader and member of their forum.
Team-BHP members were there with their entries BMW M5 and the Porsche 997 Targa.
Images in this post and clicked by the members of the forum who attended this rally.

Here are some videos of the rally:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Feast on these amazing 288 photographs:

• June 16, 2008 -- Maruti Swift DZire VDi (Diesel) Silky Silver – Complete Review with Pictures (391)
• March 31, 2008 -- Maruti Swift Dzire Launched, Reviewed and Purchased (13)

This post is about my woes with Apple Service Provider.
The service provider in question is:
Sequre Enterprise Pvt Ltd (iPod, Portable and Desktop ASP)
SCF 180, Sector 7
Chandigarh 160019
Tel: 0172-2792239
Fax: 0172-2792293
Email: sssodhi@sequre.com

I purchased a MacBook Pro from US in August, 2007 from Macmall.com
I have been using it for almost an year now.

Incident #1
Around, 4-5 months ago there was some problem with my charger of MacBook Pro. The indication light for the charger would go off (which is red when charging and turns green when fully charged on the socket of charger) while charging.
So, i went to the Apple Service Center and told them my problem. They asked me to leave the charger and told me that it would be replaced within 7 working days.
After around 7 days I received a call from them telling me that my charger is here and I can pick it up.
They gave me the charger, but there was no plug on that charger (which is removable).

(This is what they gave me)
I told them that I had given the charger with that plug, but they just wouldn’t listen.  I told them that the charger is useless without the plug, and why in the world would i need another one if I had it already. I insisted upon checking with them again, and what do you know!!! They had it with them and told them it was a mistake and gave me that plug.
CHAPTER CLOSED.

Incident #2
My laptop’s DVD drive was having some problem. It just wouldn’t read some CD’s and DVD’s. I inserted the CD and it would show it as a blank CD. I searched the internet and found that there was problem in the multi drive of some MacBook Pros.
So, I again head to the service center, tell them the problem. They check the warranty, and tell me that only 20 days are left for warranty to expire. They told me that they would replace the DVD drive. It would take 3-4 days. So, I left the laptop with them.
I start calling them after 3 days, but they tell me that there is some strike and it would take some time. The DVD drive finally arrived some 10 days after I gave them the laptop. They call me and tell me that I can pickup the laptop. I went there and noticed there were some scratches and cuts/small dents on the inner side of dvd drive, which were not there when i gave it to them.

(Some of the scratches ASP guys did)
Sorry for the poor quality, picture clicked with N75 phone camera.
I showed it to the guy on ASP, he told me that they were already there when they took the laptop, which I am pretty sure that weren’t there. I told them, if they were there, they should have showed it to me and mentioned it on the receipt of the laptop. Anyways, we had quite a heated argument, but they just wouldn’t listen.
I told them, I would talk to Apple Customer Care first and then I would take the delivery of the laptop.
So, I call the Apple Care on Friday and tell them about the incident, they registered my case and told me that I would receive a call from Customer Care Dept. (which is in Australia) on Monday.
I talked to a guy from Apple Customer Care in Australia and explained whole incident to him. He was a nice guy. He asked me if the laptop was working fine? I said yes. He told me that he had not witnessed the case and cannot decide who is right or wrong and since the laptop is working fine and is almost an year old, he cannot do anything and offered me a wireless keyboard as compensation.
Since I had no other option and laptop was working fine, I took the wireless keyboard.
CHAPTER CLOSED.

Incident #3
So, after talking to Apple Care, I went ahead and took my laptop from ASP that very evening.
I came to office today morning and noticed that the laptop was running a little slow. I checked the RAM and to my SHOCK, it only had 1GB RAM. The laptop originally came with 2GB RAM.
I again go back to ASP, tell them about the RAM, and this Sodhi guy (owner) starts throwing profanities at me. He tells me that my intentions are not right, I am making everything up……
I tell him, I purchased a laptop worth $2000 + taxes. 1GB RAM, today costs around $10 (Rs. 450). I don’t really care about it that much. But the thing is that you stole from me which is wrong.
But, this guy wouldn’t listen.
Since, I took the delivery and checked it back at my place; I had no proof that they stole the RAM. So, i just left.

This is the only Apple Service Provider in my town. Now, I have decided not to purchase any apple products till a new ASP is in the town. I am already using MacBook, Macbook Pro, iPhone and iPod. I just hope that I don’t get any new problems with them.

If anyone from Apple is reading this, I will request them to please take action against these guys.
I would suggest you to avoid SEQURE ENTERPRISES for your repairs or if you do not have any other option, be extra careful with them. Mr. Sodhi from SEQURE ENTERPRISES is a very unprofessional, unethical and a rude guy.

• February 18, 2008 -- Easiest Way to Unlock iPhone all ver. including 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3 (2)
• February 18, 2008 -- Download 900+ High Resolution 320×480 Free iPhone Wallpapers in one ZIP file (4)
• February 15, 2008 -- Download Over 200 Summerboard Themes in One File for iPhone 1.0.1, 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3 (5)
• February 14, 2008 -- Download Free 225 iPhone Custom Ringtones worth $225 (17)

As i have posted earlier about my experience in booking the car.
Here is the preview:

MUL Launched its entry level sedan replacing its old workhorse Maruti Esteem around 3 months ago. For past three months I have been doing surveys for a small car to buy. I had shortlisted Maruti Swift (Diesel Version) out of all the options. I was ready to buy the Swift VDi version which was costing me around Rs. 5.04 Lac (ex showroom, Chandigarh price). Then I was told that there was a waiting for 3-5 months for that car and to top it all they were not even taking in and new bookings for the car. The car was demanding a premium of around Rs. 20,000 if you want next day delivery. I was not at all ready to spend extra 20,000. While I was talking to the GM of a local maruti dealership, he told me that MUL is launching Swift DZire next month. I told him that I am aware about the car and I have seen the pictures. Quite frankly, I did not like what i saw in pre-launch pictures of the Swift Dzire. But that guy said he has seen the car in person and told me that it looked pretty great, infact he went on to say that the back of Dzire looks like Mercedes S-Class (which definitely isn’t the case). But, he insisted on me to wait for Dzire before buying Swift. I did not have any choice as the Swift VDi was not available and I was not ready to pay any premium.

So, when the Maruti Dzire was launched, after looking at their website, I liked the car. But, most the times cars look better in pictures shot by professionals than actual. So, the very next day I went to a local dealership to look at the car. Dzire looked even better in person than on their website. I took the test Drive and liked it. The rear of the car is very attractive. It has a chrome strip running in the center. Bootspace is around 460 liters. Price of the car was pretty decent. The Diesel Version costs between 5.39 lac to 6.70 lac. The petrol version costs between 4.52 lac to 5.92 lac. Features offered in the top end model and great like ABS and EBD, Airbags, automatic Climate control, steering mounted audio controls, tilt steering, height adjustable seats. None of the cars in this price range offers features like these and even some the cars above this price range do not offer features like these.

I was interested in buying the diesel version of the car. I finally decided on the Vdi model which was (before the price hike of 21K) priced at around 5.94 lac. Vdi has a double din integrated MP3 player, a display on the dashboard which gives you time and the temperature, superior upholstery, body colored door handles and RVMs, black A & B pillars, keyless entry, central locking with keyless entry (keyless entry is discontinued now), front and rear power windows when compared to Ldi version. For me this justified for the extra 50,000 in price.

The top model of the car ZDi offers features like ABS, twin air bags, steering mounted audio controls, automatic climate control, alloy wheels, 185X70X14 tires. All these features are very useful and worth paying for, but I didn’t wanted to get into a price bracket of around 7 lac. When you go into that segment, you start looking at other options which might not have the similar set of features but have better brand names like Honda City etc.

Overall, Dzire offers you a very good value for your money. And since its a Maruti, you don’t have to worry about things like spare parts, service centers and resale value.

So, I booked Silky Silver Swift DZire VDi. From the initial survey i found out that if I book the car now I will get a delivery in around 1-2 months. But I found out a newly opened dealership which promised me to deliver the car within a week. But it took more than a month for the car to arrive. I made repeated trips to the dealership and visited their yard. They sold 4 silver VDi’s before mine, however mine was the first one to be booked at that dealership. They kept giving me crap about previous customers changing their colors and they had to give priority to them. I am sure they have sold them at premium.
Anyhow, I now feel lucky that I got it in a month. The waiting period now is 8 months and premium is anywhere between 30k-45k. My car was delivered on 3rd May, 2008. Booking was done on 27th march, 2008.

Okay, lets get down to the car now.

Engine
Dzire comes in 1300cc Multijet diesel. Diesel engine is same that was in Swift. It’s an award winning engine which uses technology from FIAT. No complaints about the engine. Pickup is good, after around 2200 RPM. Noise level inside the cabin is very less for a diesel car. I have been keeping the RPM below 2000 RPM (and plan to do it for first 5k Kms), except a few occasions and speed below 60 for first 1000 Kms. All in all, I am very much satisfied with the engine of the car. EPS is good and turning radius is amazing.

Looks & Styling
The sedan is a replica of the hatchback with a boot attached along. The chunky C-pillar is moved towards the back and rear quarter glass has grown in size. Maruti has extended the rear doors and hence the seats are pushed to the back to give more legroom for the rear passengers. Front seats are comfy and very supportive.

Interiors
Interiors have been refreshed. Integrated single din stereo which plays MP3, WMA, audio CDs and radio is a welcome change. The Speedometer and tachometer looks good with chrome surrounds and are white-lit which looks cool at night.

Fuel Economy
Before the first service at 1k kms, it gave an average of around 15. After the first service, on the full tank I got around 17 kmpl, 2nd tank gave 18.8 kmpl and last time I checked average was 19.3 kmpl with around 3000 KMs on ODO. 70% driving has been on highways with 30% in city, a/c always on.

Issues
A few people told me about the issue with the brakes. People told me that you have push really hard for braking. My car’s brakes were pretty good, never had any problem with it.
I do have the issue with the reverse gear. It gets struck at times. I asked on my first service about the issue and they told me it will be set after around 5k. I really don’t buy that. Is that really the case? What really is the issue? Is it gear oil?
Car rattles on bad roads with potholes. On a smooth road you won’t notice anything and its really very quite. Build quality of the car is not upto the mark. It makes a very cheap thud sound when you close the doors with windows rolled down. Interiors look good, but quality of plastic is very cheap. It seems like, if you punch the dashboard (not that hard) you can drill a hole in it.
The car didn’t really felt planted on speeds above 100. The issue were the tires (JK 165X70X14). I upgraded to Michelin XM1 (185X70X14).
After the tire change car feels planted and well in control on high speeds and while jumping into the turns on speeds above than normal.

After Market Parts:

• 4 X Yokohama A-Drive (195X60-R15) – Rs. 3900 per tyre
• 15 inch alloy wheels – Rs. 15000
  
• Autoform DriFit seat covers PU/Art Leather with proper bucket type fittings – Rs. 5500 with labor.
• Leather wrap steering cover (Stanley) – Rs. 1250
• 2 sets of Xenos reverse parking sensors (with alarm) – Rs. 2400. Before everyone starts telling me that “why do you need it in a small car like Dzire”, my dad drives this car sometimes. He is not really comfortable with the height of the car and has drive Zen most of his life.
• Pioneer speakers – Rs. 5400
• Relay for glasses (Brand: Scorpio) – Rs. 1000 (which will auto roll up all the window glasses when you lock the car. I have it in my Mahindra Scorpio and really am used to it).
• Sun control film (Lumar) – Rs. 1500
• Generic rubber footmats – Rs. 500
• Metal number plate (embossed type) – Rs. 600
• SONAR Angel Eyes Projector setup – Rs. 11000
  

See a plethora of the pictures below:
PS: It was raining when I clicked the pictures and sony cameras are crap. Pictures are not the best quality. Spots on the car/seat covers are actually on the lens and not in actual.
PPS: Its been raining for past 3 days, so car is not the cleanest.

UPDATE:

Got new rubber and alloy wheels.
Earlier i was running on 185X70X14 Michelin XM1+.
I wanted to shift to 15 inch alloys.
Got really good deal for my 15k Kms old Michelin (Rs. 10000 for set of 4 tyres).
I got myself 195X60X15 Yokohama A-Drive.
I badly wanted 205X55X15 S-Drive, but ride was not that comfortable and I had to pay an extra of Rs. 3600 on set of 4 tyres.
Alloys costed Rs. 15,500.

Also, have upgraded my ICE in DZire.

HU: Stock (as of now!!! Planning on EXAD series, but in a couple of months)
Front: JBL Power series P660C 6-1/2″ 2-Way Component System in doors – Rs. 10500/-
Rear: Pioneer 400 watts Oval 4 way speakers (in tray) – Rs. 2850/-
Sub: Kenwood 12″ sub (was already with me, costed Rs. 3200/- 5 years ago)
Amp: 4 Channel Blaupunkt (Forgot the model no.) – Rs. 5500/-
Sub BOX: Made of MDF board with black matching carpet all around. – Rs. 500
Wiring: JBL Original wiring – Rs. 2600/-
One speaker level input attached to the HU – Rs. 250

I am satisfied with the performance. I today attached one old pioneer MP3 HU, and the difference in performance was quite noticeable. I will upgrade the HU in a couple of months.

Attached are a few pictures. Waiting for comments. (please note that, I changed the alloys twice, a couple of pictures of old alloy wheels is there as well. I changed the alloys after 1 week, as i found the current ones on my car better than old ones).

Update 20000Kms

Car has done around 20000 Kms so far.
No issues with suspension.
FE is around 18.5-19 in city and 21-22 on highways.
A friend of mine even managed 25+ on highways on his DZire.
About the rattles, yes it does and a lot.
Theres a noise coming from the dashboard, like a screw is stuck somewhere and vibrating.
Some noise coming from the rear left, probably from rear bumper.
BTW, Swift/DZire has pretty bad bumper locks. The moment you open up the bumper atleast 2-3 locks would be broken.
Have talked to different guys at MASS, but it has not been sorted out yet.
The front seat recliner is not working.
It wont pull the seat back up.
Visited MASS, they say it wont be covered under warranty and they dont even have it in stock.
Will talk to maruti directly about this.
Car was involved twice in minor accidents. Paint quality is pretty bad, paint is coming off around edges. Done at MASS.

Not really a satisfactory experience at MASS.

I have upgraded to Yokohama 195/60-R15 A-Drives and alloy wheels. Car feels much more planted and in control now.
Build quality of the car is pretty poor, especially the boot. Plastics on dashboard are of very poor quality.
ICE is very basic. I plan to upgrade it soon. Would like to keep the integrated HU, attach an amp and comps.

Overall experience has been satisfactory. I knew about the build quality of car before buying, so……
No problems in car otherwise. Engine, gearbox all good.
Turbo rush is to die for.
You get used to the turbo after driving it for a while. I don’t feel any turbo lag now.

I dont like the overall look of the car.
Many people think that its back is pretty bad, which i find good (saving grace of the car). What i dont like is the side profile of the car. Its not proportionate.
I would been better off with swift, but needed boot.

The car has covered 45000 kms so far. Will soon update the blog post.

• March 31, 2008 -- Maruti Swift Dzire Launched, Reviewed and Purchased (13)
• March 8, 2010 -- FIAT Grande Punto MultiJet Diesel (Exotica Red) Active – Ownership Experience & Comprehensive Review (238)
• April 9, 2009 -- Mumbai Rally – The SuperCar Overdose (8)

A lot of people are waiting for this car all across Asia. Honda will launch its all new city around the world in 2008.

Thailand and Malaysia will be the first ones to get the car and it would subsequently launched (in a couple of months in India).

Honda City is facing stiff competition from Maruti’s SX4 and they might launch the car in India a little sooner.

The new car looks a little broader and longer than the current version. Back of the car is more simple and resembles Lancer with no lights/reflectors on boot lid. Front grill looks like that of new accord. Interiors seems to be more or less same as the outgoing version.

Read the discussion about the car on TEAMP-BHP.

Here are the few spy / leaked / paparazzi pics of the car:

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You can either download the ISO file directly from Microsoft and burn it on CD or install it via Windows Update.

ISO file is 544 MB.
Direct Download Link
Download page on Microsoft.com

I have installed it on my laptop and desktop. I don’t see any significant changes so far. I keep on downloading updates from Windows Update, so I had most of the fixes installed.

SP3 includes IE7, latest version of Windows Media player 11, Windows Live Messenger and some other 100s of security fixes.

Instruction for installation of SP3 for people using MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac and Mac Pro running Windows XP via Bootcamp or any other software:
You will get following error:
There is not enough disk space on C:WINDOWS$NtServicePackUninstall$ to install Service Pack 3 Setup requires an additional 4 megabytes of free space or if you also want to archive the files for uninstallation,Setup requires 4 additional megabytes of free space. Free additional space on your hard disk and then try again.

Here is how you can fix it:
1. Click Start – Run – Type “regedit” and press enter.
2. Navigate to
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionSetup]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Software
Microsoft
Windows
CurrentVersion
Setup
3. In the right pane, Right-click and select New – String value
4. Name it as “BootDir” and set its value to “C:”

This should help. Try installing SP3 and should work fine.

The reason why there is an error because iMac or any other MAC Computer uses EFI file format which Windows XP does not support.

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