Linea 1.3 MJD Emotion Pack Bossa Nova White

The search for a new car started when our 9 year old Maruti 800 started showing signs of aging. The cars were in our mind were i10, i20, Swift, Dzire and SX4.

Went to Maruti Authorized Dealer in Chandigarh to check Swift, Dzire and SX4. They were pushing Ritz which was launched a few days ago to us so also took a TD of Ritz D. Good car but too ugly. Next was the Swift. Test Drive vehicle had gone for Service so no TD was available for Swift DDiS. Next was Swift Dzire. Good car but ugly nice performance. But the waiting period for the ZDi model was above 6 months so dumped it. Next was SX4.My dream car. The moment I saw it I fell in love with but the love disappeared after driving it. The Test Drive vehicle was rattling even more than my 9 year old 800. So also dropped it and since SX4 is petrol and our monthly running is high. So SX4 was also dropped.While going back to our place I saw a Flamingo Red Linea. From a distance it was looking like a Audi asked my family to chec how beautiful a Audi is After sometime it came near to us and my Dad said that it's not a Audi it's a Fiat and I said then it might be imported.

Came home disappointed. Opened Carwale and searched for cars between price range of 6 to 9 lakhs. Saw Fiat Linea, Fiesta, Verna, i20 Crdi,Punto, Fusion etc. After I saw Fiat linea in site I without wasting my time checked Fiat India Website and then Fiat Linea India Website and was admiring all the features that it packs at that price.

Next day asked my Dad to check out linea. First he was against buying a Fiat but after reading some reviews of Linea he agreed to check Linea. So went to Joshi Autozone TATA-FIAT dealer in Chandigarh. The showroom was small but the people over there were very helpful and it doesn't seemed like it was showroom of TATA & FIAT cars. Salesman were very helpful specially Rohit who was attending me was very knowledgable person and known about all the features of the car. Asked him for a TD of MJD. Within 10 mins the TD car was there and Test Drived the car. It was Flamingo Red top model diesel version. It was looking massive and very beautiful. It wasn't looking a car of less than 9 lakhs. Next the whole family got into the car and everyone was happy with the space specially my Mom she loved the backseat even after 3 people sitting the hands of us were not touching with each other. Asked my DAD to switch on the A.C. and the cabin cooled immediately. As I was seating in the middle seat I was happy with the Rear A.C. vent as it was chilling my knees. Everyone in my family liked the car. Left the showroom after TD'ing the car.

Next in the list was Verna. Asked the Dealer KLG Hyundai to give a TD and he simply refused for the TD saying TD vehicle is not available very rudely and I was like do hell with your Car and left the showroom. Also dropped plans for i20 Crdi. Another showroom was there also owned by Joshi Automobiles named Joshi Hyundai but me any my mom didn't like the rear seat of the verna and I20 they were too congested.

Next was the Fiesta. Dealer was good and offered me Test Drive even without asking. The car handling was good but the car lacked the comfort of the linea. So also dropped it.

Again went to Joshi Automobiles and asked them about the finance options. The most difficult option was to choose color dad and mom said Bossa Nova White, brother said flamingo red, sister said minimal grey, I said FTA which was launched just a week back asked Rohit about the FTA and he said it will take 15 days to get delivered and also It wasn't displayed there so dropped the FTA. As the majority wins booked the car and asked them how much time it would take to get it delivered he said it'is in stock and can be delivered any time when the loan get sanctioned and we pay the balance amount. I was happy and I gave them the documents for loan processing the next day. and Now I kept on getting restless as the time progressed.

To be continued

 

After 4 days on 1.9.10 my father got call from SBI that his loan has been sanctioned. It was the happiest day of my life. Arranged for the balance amount and called Joshi Autozone about booking and told that our loan has sanctioned and will come tomorrow to collect our Car.
I couldn't sleep that day the whole night. They said OK sir we will get your car ready by 10 A.M. Next day on 2.9.10 at 9 A.M. I got a call from Rohit asking about the time I will be coming to collect my car and I said after 3 PM after my mom comes home and he agreed.


Me and my Dad went to SBI to collect cheque but it wasn't ready and I could get that only after Monday due to some problem in their system. Immediately called Rohit about it and he said no problem sir just get the loan sanction letter and we will deliver the car. I was again happy and got the loan sanction letter and went to mom's school to pick her up and straight away went to Dealer with our whole family including our Dog. Went into the showroom and asked them to let me check my car before signing any documents and they agreed. The car was in good condition only except some minor problem in Glove Box and Fuse Box cover and I was asked to come tomorrow to get them repaired and they were nothing just allignment issues. I agreed and asked them to go ahead with documents. In the meantime my Dad was making payment asked Rohit to explain all the features of the car. Around 5 PM all the paper work was done and we were ready for the photograph and leave the showroom. It was decided my Dad will drive the car home with my mom, brother and our dog and me and my sister will come home in our old M800.

The car was shining like it have been sprayed with sparkle colors. Went to Mandir and did some Pooja and went home. All the neighbrours were admiring the beauty of the car and was asking how much you paid for the car. After telling them they doesn't believed us and said it can't be less than 15 lakhs. I showed them the payment reciept and they were like Oh my God It's Total VFM.

Till Now we have driven the car for 16223 km's and are happy with our car. It is giving us good comfort and mileage. Even after 11 Months it turns head of people like it did the first day.

Admiration is Gauranteed. Everybody who looks the car for first turns to get a second view of the car.

First Service went Smooth and was happy with the work done on my car. I dropped the car at 2 PM and it was ready at 5 PM. The area which holds the boot release lever and emergency light and demister was replaced under warranty as it had got damaged by our car cleaner while cleaning the car. The total bill was Rs. 0 and we were happy that even parts damaged due to improper handling are replaced in warranty.

Pro's Of the Car

1. Excellent Handling

2. Excellent Comfort all around from back seats to front seats.

3. Rear A.C. Vent. My dog just loves it. Whenever the back seat is empty he jumps into it and sleeps there with her face facing the A.C.Vent.

4. Blue and Me.

5. Mileage of the car

6. Suspension of the car

Con's of the car

1. OEM Speakers not upto the mark. I would term them as useless.

2. Radio Antenna is not foldable. Have to remove it every time I have to put the body cover on.

3. Quality of Plastic in some Areas like bonnet release lever and height adjustment lever.

4. No Bottle Holder available only cup holder are there.

 

Niggling Issues faced till now
1. Rear AC Vent came out of it's place. Fixed it myself by putting it back in it' place.
2. Rust in some bolts and some other areas. It was only minor and was fixed at Dealership by using rubbing compound on it and touching up the affected areas. Was also offered to replace the door but I didn't agreed to it as the color would not match the factory finish.
3. Bonnet Bulges (Ignored it) Again solution was to replace the bonnet.
4. Rattle from rear area. They were due to seat belt buckles which were put behind the seats.
5. Seat Height Adjustment was faulty and it used to come down on it's own. The seat heigt adjuster part was changed in Second Service at 15k Kms for this.
6. Very large gap in the cover which covers Fuse box and glove box. They were fixed next day after getting delivery.
7. Seatbelt buckle of driver side made strange noise when going over potholes. It was replaced under Warranty.
8. Rear quarter glass chrome strip came into my hand while washing the car. Again it was replaced under warranty with new strip.
9. Noise from dashboard. It was due to metal cover of Pen Drive touching the dashboard. Sorted out by using small pen drive without the cover.
10. Below par AC performance. It was fixed by cleaning Pollen Filter. Now I clean it myself every 2k kms. It gets very dirty and also hair of my dog gets cloggen in that.
11. Gear shift becoming hard. It went away after a good wash at Service Station.( Most probably it was due to mud blocking the gear lever rod movement.
12. Rear left side indicator stopped working. Fixed it myself by fixing a new bulb. Mid was very helpful in this it displayed the exact bulb that was fused.

 

Make a small hole in the cover, I did it.

Post pictures of your White beauty.

 

evn my dog likes to get into the rear seat whenever she gets a chance. She is also comfortable on long drives in the car (she just goes to sleep peacefully). Though my version is without rear ac vents, the front ones are more thn sufficient.

 

I and two more people have done Chennai-Mumbai in 18 hours flat in Fiat Linea MJD Emotion Pk!! (which includes two hours of stopping for food.)

 

that's great paliofan.
Mumbai to Chennai is around 1400 km. That's great buddy. Linea loves highways. One can't feel linea capabilties until one take it onto highways. I am sure you loved the trip and enjoyed linea to the fullest.

@ NAREN64
will upload the pictures by tomorrow. Will be cleaning it today. Rains have made it quite dirty with lots of mud and spots.

 

Here are some pics

 

Completed 18000 kms yesterday.
Got few straches on rear left fender and rear left door.
Steering is a masterpiece and feedback that it gives is just great even my 2000 model NOn PS Maruti 800 don't give the feedback as good as Linea's HPS.
Mileage for last 1500 km's was 17.8 km/lt. That was approximately 50% Highway 40% City and 10% Traffic Jam. Mileage have gone up by 1km/l after second service at 15000 kms. Earlier on highway I used to get above 20 and now I get above 21 km/l. The car has become a lot more peppy. The torque and power in 2500 -3500 rpm is very addicting.
Car performs brilliantly in hills. With the AC On i was able to climb in 3rd gear most of the time and shifting to 2nd was very less that too when car was fully loaded. First gear was used only when starting from standstill. I am impressed with this. Short gearing and VGT is great for hills. Good work FIAT. FE in hills was 17.3 km/l
My uncle i20 which also has 90 PS diesel mill had to climb steep hills in 2nd gear and had to shift to 1st quite a few times and that too with only 3 people and luggage in it. I also tried driving it in hills and it was a pain to shift gears too often. My uncle was all praises for linea's VGT mill.
Cleaned the Pollen Filter again and it was again very dirty in less than 2000 km's. Ac is on re-circulation mode all the time and still it gets dirty. I guess it even picks dust and dog hairs that are inside the cabin foot area. Two small leaves were also there in filter.
I am thinking of ordering FIAT touch up paint Pen available in UK as Genuine Accessory for touching up stone chips and few un-avoidable stracthes. Can anyone with Bossa Nova White Color tell me the color code of B.N. White. My car didn't have Color Code Sticker pasted. According to UK Websie it is 268/A. Can anybody confirm if it is 268.
I am also thinking of upgrading speakers. I sent mail to Fiat regarding warranty issues if spekaers are changed.
Got this reply from FIAT

Now I am in two minds whether to upgrade speakers or not. A 8 Lac car deserves better speaker than the current ones.