Today we’re back with the owner’s review of Huzaifa Saleemi’s renowned Nardo Grey Grande. Huzaifa Saleemi is a renowned YouTuber and car enthusiast from Lahore. The core reason for his fame proves to be his car. In this review, he shares his experience with this Grande and the modifications he has done to make it so appealing to people across the country. This particular car is a 2016 Corolla Grande, and it comes with a 1.8 liter 4 cylinder engine producing around 138hp and 173Nm of torque paired with a 7-speed CVT transmission. Its modifications outweigh the general specs and features of this car in particular.
Purchase Decision
The owner bought this car in 2020; at that time, he had a budget of Rs. 25 lacs and was looking for a daily driven vehicle. The owner is a big-time Toyota fan and also preferred it due to his rural travel. The two cars he considered were the Mark X and Corolla Grande. He didn’t go for the Mark X due to its presumed low fuel average and also because it was almost 15 years old. Moreover, he wanted the top-of-the-line variant with a sunroof which was out of his budget then.
Facelift
The owner’s first major modification to the Grande was to facelift it to the 2021 model. He really liked the new look and decided to install the new bumpers and lights. As per the owner, there were many qualities of this facelift available in the market ranging from Rs. 1.5 lacs to Rs. 4 lacs. As Chinese lights were low in quality, he decided to install genuine front and rear lights as there was a prominent difference in throw and reliability. On the other hand, he saved some bucks and installed Chinese bumpers, grille and garnishes as they had no major difference compared to the genuine ones.
Nardo Grey Wrap
The highlight of the modifications is the nardo grey wrap. The owner was inspired by many cars in this wrap internationally; there was no car in Pakistan with this wrap then. He decided to wrap his Grande in this colour and blacked out all the chrome points making the car look very beautiful. This nardo grey wrap became the identity of this Grande, soon after which the owner named his vehicle “Nardo.”
Air Suspension
Initially, Huzaifa installed coil overs to drop the car, but he recently installed air suspension. He imported this air suspension kit from Saudi Arabia from a company called “Lowrider.” Through this suspension, the car can be raised and lowered electronically through a remote.
The car can be raised some inches over stock height, and dead dropped, making it way more practical compared to coil overs. The air suspension is very smooth, unlike coilovers which make the ride bumpy to a great extent. He imported the entry-level air suspension kit, which cost him around Rs. 3 lacs with duty. After installing air suspension, the owner also installed 17-inch alloy rims.
Fuel Average
Despite a drastic change in the car’s look, the engine has not been modified, so the fuel average is the same as a stock Grande. The owner gets around 11 to12 km/l within the city with a light foot which is not bad at all. The average not dropping may be because the 17-inch rim size is compatible with this car, and the air suspension does not affect the fuel average.
Comfort and Stability
As per the owner, the air suspension is pretty smooth on paved roads, but the car becomes very uncomfortable on potholes and uneven terrains as opposed to a stock Corolla’s soft suspension. On the other hand, stability and road grip on highways has enhanced if the car is lowered.
