First Car

With help from family and a first paycheck, a first car was bought: a 2000 Fiat Uno Diesel.

During undergrad, a friend owned an older model Fiat Uno. It went out for anything and everything—to the point where it became a community car.

After graduation, work started at IBS, a software solutions firm. The head office was in the hometown of Trivandrum. There was an initial training period in Kochi, about six hours away—so a house was rented with a couple of colleagues and the move happened.

Once the first paycheck arrived, the next step was getting a car. The friend who used to have the Fiat Uno helped find a similar car for a good deal, since his dad owned and operated a used-car business.

The day after getting the car started early: walking up to it and standing there in admiration. There was nothing unusual—no powerful engine or fancy interior—just a plain commuter vehicle. Still, it was an exciting feeling. The drive back to Kochi included picking up friends along the way, and from then on the car went everywhere. It was a perfect beginner car, and the running costs were reasonable too—thanks to the diesel engine.

Occasional hiccups

One day on the way back from a movie, the car hit potholes with eight people inside. The diesel return line ruptured, spraying diesel onto the road. Somehow it made it home, and a mechanic fixed it the next day.

A few months later, the battery started getting weak, and the car refused to start from time to time. That occasionally created long traffic blocks while it was coaxed back to life. It was embarrassing in the moment, but it became funny in hindsight. During the training period, it really did become the community car, with plenty of trips and late-night outings around Kochi.

After the training period, it was time to move back to the head office in Trivandrum. Commuting happened mostly by motorcycle, so the car was neglected for the most part. On weekends, curiosity won: parts came off to learn how things worked, and tinkering became the hobby.

First Mods

Stereo

The factory stereo was modest at best. The first upgrade came in the form of speakers and a Bluetooth head unit. eBay had cheap Chinese head units with Bluetooth functionality, so one was picked up to try.

Brightening up the interior

Removed the interior trim, including the dash, to clean and paint them black. They used to be a sad grey before.

Passenger seat

The passenger seat had the backrest support broken on one side, giving it a diagonal orientation. It was very uncomfortable to sit in for long. The correct fix would have been to weld the support beam back on. Without access to a welding kit, the cover/cushion was removed and a hole was drilled near the support bracket to add a screw and keep it straight.

Push-button start

Simple push button sourced from eBay. The power-on and starter-motor wires were spliced to the button so it worked like turning the key when pressed. Turning it off still required the key. Useless if you think about it—novelty nonetheless. While tidying up the wires, they were accidentally shorted and the starter fuse blew. The car wouldn’t start, and a mechanic connected the starter directly to the battery and drove it to his workshop. It was a humbling reminder of how quickly a pro can get things moving.

The look that was the goal

While at the workshop, a few panels were straightened and the car got a full respray. Once it was back, a couple of trips celebrated the legend’s return.

With bed rest and an upcoming relocation to another country, it didn’t look like there would be much time left for the car. A brother and mom learned to drive it, and hopefully it ended up being useful to them.