Toyota Innova Service Cost History

Toyota Innova, as every one knows is an excellent Multi Purpose Vehicle (MPV) selling around 4000 units per month in India. I too laid hands on one in 2008 December and has been using it ever since as a self driven vehicle.

There is no special need to review this vehicle as it can be summed up in just one statement.

"A no nonsense vehicle free of niggling issues and high uptime, which can transport 6 people in good comfort without fatigue for very very long distances"

More than 95% owners whom I have come across with are satisfied with their Innovas

Here I am sharing my service and repair history which will give prospective buyers an insight into what to expect. I bought my vehicle and is regularly servicing the vehicle at Nippon Toyota, Kazhakkoottam in Thiruvananthapuram (Capital of Kerala state).

Car Seat Covers - A selection Guide

In the last ten years, I did seat cover shopping 5 times. Based on my experience I will share some lessons learned which might help in you in taking an informed decision. 

I will start with the lessons learned first. Each of the lessons has a story behind it which I have shared below in detail. 

Lessons learned on Car Seat Cover Purchase 

1.  If the original fabric seats without seat covers is looking good, put off seat cover purchase. After 2 - 3 years you can put new ones and give a fresh look and a new smell to the car 
2. The fabric in the seats under the seat cover also get worn out along with the seat cover. So never think of using the bare seat after using the seat with covers for some years. 
3. Buying ready made seat covers from Delhi works out to be a lot cheaper than in other cities. 
4. Try to get quote for similar seat covers from different accessory shops. You are sure to get the best price because of this 
5. Ready made seat covers tend to get loose after some usage. 
6. Leather seat covers are the best, but cost above 15k even for small cars 
7. Fabric seat covers decreases the roominess in the car 
8. Artificial leather (art leather) seat covers are preferred, but just ensure the thickness of the material by comparing the type of the material in different shops. Very thinner ones gets torned off easily, even by finger nails. 
9. Stitched seat covers fits perfectly with the seat and the shape of the seat can be retained.Eventhough it is stitched to the seat, removing the stitch is easy and does not damage the seat.  
10. Most accessory shops outsource the stitching job to small upholstery shops. So if one is willing to look around for an accessory shop an artificial leather seat can be stitched at a very lower price (atleast 50% saving is guaranteed than getting it done through a standard accessory shop) 
11. I can vouch for Car Shoppe in Thiruvananthapuram for seat covers based on my experience (cost wise and quality wise) 

Now a detailed history of the lessons learned!! 

Applying for Indian Passport - Some helpful hints are here !!

My views on applying for a passport based on my experience at Trivandrum passport office. The system at passport office is not big enough to cater the enormous crowd coming to office daily. The officers are doing a stupendous work, but the applicants are guaranteed a horrid time.

The tips given here are aimed at reducing the amount of time one has to spend at the passport office.


ONLINE APPLICATION TIPS 

1. Apply online at http://passport.gov.in/ 

2. Three different services are available -

    - Apply for fresh passport,
    - Renew passport after expiry,
    - Apply for reissue in lieu of lost / damaged passport

3. The rules for filling the application is given in the site itself.

4. After application filling is completed click "Save".
 IMPORTANT NOTE: Don't click "Reprint Application" after filling the online form. This button is present right next to the "Save" button. If clicked this will direct to another page and whatever entered in this page will be lost.

Apollo Acelere - Alloys and Tyres

Product: Apollo Acelere Tyres
Fitted on: Santro Xing Xp 2005 model
Purchased from: Apollo brand shop, Thakarapparambu Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
Purchase Experience: Excellent
Product Satisfaction: Very Good.
Tyre Size: 175/60/R13** (To understand this specification, scroll down to the end of this post)
Pros: Excellent riding comfort, improved cornering capabilities, no impact of small pothholes
Cons: Pickup reduced by a small margin, mud splashes on car (bigger mudflaps needed), ride quality suffers on big potholes.

Product: Apollo Acelere Alloys
Fitted on : Santro Xing XP 2005 model
Purchased from: Apollo brand shop,Near KTC office, Thakarapparambu Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
Purchase Experience: Excellent
Product Satisfaction: Very Good.
Alloy size: 13inch
Alloy type: Deep dish, 8 V spokes (16 spokes in total), with a red lining around the rim.
Pros: Looks, looks and looks, less weight, does not heat up like steel rims
Cons: Difficult to find out quality alloy wheels as Chinese wheels have flood the market, replacing a single damaged unit is difficult since model will get outdated.

Detailed Purchase Experience and Product Review

Alloy wheels is sure a cosmetic add on to any car and no wonder it did the same to my good old Santro Xing. (My review of Santro Xing can be read here)

It was time to replace tyre after 45000km in Santro, and I decided to try Michelins. The response of the Michelin dealer - "New Bharath Tyres" was quite arrogant that I instantly decided not to go to that shop.

Land Purchase in Kerala- Sharing my experience.

Building a home, for sure, is one of the dreams every other person is having. Once he/she gets a job, and is married, the next priority is to build a home. Lot of pain and effort goes into realising this dream and everyone has to settle for lot of compromises at the end coz all our requirement cannot be met.

But before entering into a deal for the land try to check atleast the following things, otherwise which we might land up in trouble. (I will keep updating the check list based on reader's suggestions. Please add your suggestions as comments below).

Categorised the checklist into two. A property worthiness checklist which is aimed at ensuring that the land is good for house construction and is indeed suitable to you and a document checklist which contains list of major documents to be checked before entering into a deal.

Property worthiness checklist

1. Distance from work (ideally it should not be more than 5 to 6 kilometers)
2. Distance from nearest National Highway (A 10 to 20 minute walkable distance is most optimum considering the fact that buses are available 24 x 7 through the National Highway)
3. Height of the land from the adjacent property. (Ideally it should be an elevated land)
4. Water flow condition. (whether all the rain water will end up in this property or not)
5. Check the neighbourhood. (if there are tall walls please look over it and see what is around)
6. Lorry access to the plot (Lack of lorry access will result heavy expense for construction material transportation)
7. Width of the plot should be atleast 90meters (30 feet).
8. Type of soil. If it is filled land, cost of construction will increase.
9. Check whether any big trees in the neighbourhood has a major portion in this land. If yes insist of the current land owner to cut it before the deal.
10. Check whether the wall for the property is available atleast for the side facing the road. If no, insist on the owner to build it before the deal. After the deal if we go and construct this lot of objections may come from the local people who will raise hue and cry about the boundary.

We may have to compromise some of the above conditions based on the constraints of our budget and/or the availability of land. But in such a condition we can bargain hard pointing to the compromises we are making.


Document Checklist (for purchasing land)

1. Current title deed
2. Ask for title deeds of earlier ownership (atleast 2 or 3 can be checked)
3. Get a non encumbrance certificate. Apply for this in the village office under whose jurisdiction this property comesDrawing of the property showing the boundary markings. Use our own person to cross measure the actual dimensions.
4. Original of latest land tax receipt.

Enjoy the search for the suitable land affordable to you and not the ideal one in your minds. 

Keep your eyes and mind wide open and think properly before entering into the deal.

All the best for your land purchase and for constructing your dream !!!

 

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