You live only once!

There is this awesome company in India, its called the JayPee group. It is responsible for happiness in the lives of many Youngsters. I am one of them, and the reason is simple. I am a sucker for speed, and Formula 1 is the sport I follow like a Religion, and JayPee brought it to India. They built what I would call a dream track, The Buddh International Circuit (BIC). Located in the place known as Greater Noida, BIC is a fantastic track, with Speed and Handling tested to the limit. I went there last year to see the F1 race, and I fell for it!

The Main Grand Stand at BIC

Now JayPee do another good thing, they arrange something they call "Time Trial", but it actually is a Track Day! It means you can take your car, to the track, and if its safe and legal, you can drive it around. Mind you, this track is of international standards, no potholes, no bumps, just pure Driving Nirvana!

The Buddh International Circuit

The date was 17th Feb 2013. I had just gone through a sleepless night because of the excitement I had as I was going to drive on it, and a little bit of tension because god decided to make it rain! Still, I was all prepared, I had a helmet, my car fluids were good, tires were all new, fuel tank was filled and I had done more than 100 laps of the track in my mind and on the F1 2012 game! All I had to do was pick up my friends, and drive to the track. I was allotted the 3rd session, which was a relief as I knew that the previous sessions would have aided in making the track dry and more grippy! I had my friends with me, and we drove to the Circuit. The ride to the Circuit is awesome too, as you can hit any speed you want on one of the few good roads in the NCR region. I chose to hit as much as I could, and my Swift DZire hit 160 kmph (Read 100, due to legal reasons). We had fun, loud music and shouting! Then the BIC complex stood in front of us. All we heard was the car roars due to the on going session. It was simply breathtaking. I had butterflies in my stomach, as I was just a few meters away from my dream. I parked my car, and did all the formalities. Then I stood in front of the gate, and across it was the Pit-lane. The experience, I cant tell you. We all had to wait for the session to be over.

The entry sticker for my car, I'm never gonna take it off!

Me waiting for the gates to open, and Checking the helmet too!

Sebastian Vettel's Pit, garage no. 6

I took the opportunity to check out the cars in my Session. BMW's, Jags, Mercs, Even an Audi A7. I was pretty confident i could overtake them. I stood outside, checking out the cars, admiring the view and enjoying with my friends. Then were in awe for the beauty of everything around. The gate opened, I rushed into my car, wore my RedBull Racing cap, and drove into the Pit-lane. As I crossed the SLS AMG safety, which was right in front of the Sebastian Vettel Pit, I got shivers. I parked my car, and ran around like a mad person, or rather like a child who has got his favorite toy. There was a collection of some pretty awesome cars and bikes.

The track, all dry and beautiful!

Me, after I was scared to death!

The cars, going on the track for the third time in one session

I was briefly ahead of the Porsche Cayman after I overtook it, although it overtook me back, here!

After the Drivers briefing, the Bike-Session (I wonder why, bikes look the best when they are just parked) and the Car-check, I entered my car, wore my helmet and started my car. Some hooters sounded, and we were off. It was just like the game, and I was shivering. Although the Mad car-freak in my mind was pushing the Accelerator hard down, with gear changes taking place like i was a robot. When the 1.2 km straight approached, it was on, 80-90-100-110-130-150 like a blur, and then the brakes for the corner. All was well, but some people were over-taking on the corners, which scared me more! Then at the Multi-Apex-C-Turn, it happened. A white Polo tried to overtake me from the left. I was more bothered about getting my tires heated up, and keeping the racing-line. As soon as i saw the left side overtake, I over-corrected, and spun-off straight into the gravel. The screens were showing the red flags, but people were still racing. I was scared to death, shaking that maybe I have killed someone (I hadn't, but the feeling was equally scary). The cars stopped, and a white Scorpio came to rescue me. I was taken to the backside of the track, where this Well-Spoken Track Martial helped remove all the Gravel that had entered the car. I recieved a call from my very concerned girlfriend, and the first thing I told her was that i am alive.


Anyway, I was taken into the Pit-lane, where my friends looked as if I had returned from the dead. My girlfriend asking me immediately what had happened. Ashamed and humiliated, thinking I had let myself and all of them down, I said I spun-off. I couldn't say anything else. The track Martial signaled me that I was good to go, and with a thumbs up, off I went! Scared and Anxious, I drove slowly. 2 laps later, a BMW Z4 had spun-off, with just inches away from the wall. We stopped, and went to the Pit-lane. The Session started again, and I went for it. I cared about speed, braking points and my Racing-Line. A few laps later, I wasnt scared of that point where I had Spun, and I was in the zone. I went for it, and overtook a Porsche. Then on the straight, although for a brief moment, i overtook a BMW 530d. It was fantastic. Being the youngest (The other person elder to me was 27) and in the slowest car, this was big. I was having the drive of my life. Improving on the time, After an hour of all the Orgasmic fun, The checkered flag was shown. As soon as I exited the Track, I hugged my Girlfriend, who was cheering me all along and standing there, and all my friends. The Emotional and Physical Test was over, and I was exhausted like all the energy was taken out of me, but given to my face for that smile of satisfaction.

It was the moment I am going to remember for the rest of my life, and not even memory loss can take it away from me. I felt happy and satisfied. All thanks to the people I love the most on this Planet, My Parents. I could not have done it without you. Next time, you are coming along with me! Cheers!

Honda is back, First card is the new CR-V

The car is a looker, AGAIN

 Ok so Honda has finally started their "We wont give up on India" campaign. They launched the much awaited, beautiful looking and awesome New CR-V. This is the same car that made people feel Tingles in their bodies due to the sheer look of it. Although the car wasn't that god to drive, it managed to find buyers in people who just wanted a good looking big car. But Ford and Toyota played their cards, and Honda was sent packing. But now, they are back, and its time for Ford and Toyota to pee in their pants.

The rear is a little Volvo-ish

The headlamps, according to me are the best feature about this car

First things first, its even better to look at than the old one. Its a complete new design, With nothing being shared from its predecessor. The front is breathtaking, with that stair-inspired grille now replaced with a normal one, and the headlamps get projectors in them, with Day Time Running LED's. The foglmaps have no funny business going, and are simple and round. A bit disappointing thing about this car is its rear. I think the Honda designer got tired and just copied a Volvo, or he had a Volvo-fetish. In simple words, it resembles the Volvo, particularly the XC60.

Simplcity and Awesomeness, Honda nails it everytime!

Once you open the door, you expect a cabin that will tell you that you are here to be pampered, since the CR-V has a Honda badge on it. All expectations are fulfilled. The interior in typical Honda, i.e. its awesome. It get a center-mounted Gear shift, which has always been my favorite since i first saw it in the Hindustan Contessa. The Dash looks simple, yet there is something which tells you it is great. Its a looker, and the buttons are easy. The Info-cluster is superbly set up, with a circular blue screen in the middle for various information.

The engine, Honda has gone with a 2.4 litre 4-cylinder which delivers a decent 187 horses when you rev it to 7000 rpm, and at 4400 rpm you are given 226 Nm torques. The engine is mated with a 5 speed auto 'box, which can be shifted with paddles too! Also on the top-end variants, you get 4 wheel drive (I know, in an SUV? Why? :P ) The engine is a 2 litre 154 bhp @ 6500 rpm unit, with 190 Nm torques at 4400 rpm. It is mainly Front wheel drive, but It gives power to the poor chaps at the rear when something called slip is detected. I feel this CR-V too will be sold because of its Looks, until the Diesel is launched.

Overall, i love this car for its looks, and also for that Honda badge, which carries a strange reliable feel with it. I hope to see this car on the road, and i hope when i drive it, it surprises me!

Prices-

Honda CR-V 2.0 2WD MT: Rs. 19.95 lakh
Honda CR-V 2.0 2WD AT: Rs. 20.85 lakh
Honda CR-V 2.4 AWD AT: Rs. 22.40 lakh
Honda CR-V 2.4 AWD AT (AVN): Rs. 23.85 lakh

A special thanks to Motorbeam, Team BHP and Cartoq for info and pics!

Bigger is the new, well, BIG!

You know a company called Ssangyong? If no, you are a lucky person. If you do, well, then you really are scaling new depths in the world of Automotive News. I have to know the name, because people ask me- "Which company did Mahindra take over?" A personal note to Mr. Chairman of Mahindra, since you have so much money lying around, I would love to have a few crores too. I still haven't found any logic what-so-ever behind taking over a car company that is a synonym for UGLY. Ok, Mahindra makes two ugly cars, its called the Xylo, and its Midget brother, Quanto. But as a compensation, Quanto is also cute, an Ugly Duckling if you may, but contrary to the Fairy tale, the Ugly duckling, when it grows up, becomes uglier. What on the name of all that is holy was the need for you to take over that company? What did it have? A superb Design Department? Or a Technological Department that can change the face of the Indian Market? Yeah, NONE OF THEM. And Mahindra bowed out from the bid to buy the company which does that, its called Aston Martin. Sigh.

Its not Very Ugly, but Ugly is Ugly!

Cars are supposed to have something called style, am I not right?

Anyhow, Had this post been about me talking about ugly cars, I would have gotten even more sick. Luckily, I am covering up the plans of Ssangyong Mahindra, or Mahindra Ssangyong, or whatever, which are going to launch a new MPV. WOW? No. Mahindra has an MPV, a few SUV's, A mini-MPV and a very ugly ( Ok i just realised, Mahindra now is officially the car-maker in India to make the most number of ugly cars ) Sedan-ish car. But now it thinks that Ssangyong should launch some car called Korando Turismo. It thinks that 7 seats in a car are less. Its not up to the mark with the growing population on India. It has 11 seats, and all face in the front. So Indian Cricket Team, we have found you a car!

2+3+3+3=11, wow, so Dhoni and Kohli up front, and then then Ishant wont be able to enter without getting his legs cut off

About the car, it is 70 mm longer than the Ford Endevour, at 5130 mm, and is 1915 mm wide, and 1815 mm in height. Its wheelbase is 3000 mm, which is alot. It will have ABS, Sat-Nav, Sunroof and all that, but really, in a country which is as cramped as India, where in the city will you drive it? And are we living in the 1990's, where joint families existed? Anyway, Mr. Chairman, Anand Mahindra is "Excited by its potential in India" Ok sir, lets see how much more Ugly cars you can bring out!

Sir has time to tweet, but not to think again about buying Aston Martin, its a bad world

A special thanks to Cartoq.com, and expert Mr. Roshun, for the pics and info!

PS- If the photos killed you, I am not responsible! :P

Steering, it has types you know!

I am talking about various types of Steer-Defects we have when it comes to cars! Over-Steer, Under-Steer and Torque-Steer. The following post is to discuss the three, so you can know everything about them.

Over-Steer

Green line is the Expected path, Red line is the path due to Over-Steer

When you turn the steering wheel, you know the path that the Car should follow, because that is why you turned the wheel. But sometimes, the car steers more than the expected turn. This condition is called Over-Steer, or in terms we know it better, Corner-Drifting. If you have seen Fast and Furious Tokyo Drift, this  is the main reason for those cool Skids performed. Now this condition is usually found in Rear-Wheel Drive cars, but Front-Wheel Drive cars are not unaware of this. If you think your car cant Over-Steer, spend about 40000-50000 on your car to get Lower Ride Height, Lower Profile Tires, some spoiler on the rear (Particular for Rear-Wheel Drive cars, to grip the Rear wheels more) and a Roll-Cage, if you will, for Safety.

Now as cool as it may look, but Over-Steer is not legal, and very Dangerous if performed on a car which is not modified properly or not capable of performing it, which is the case of Cars with greater heights, and tires with good amount of grip.

Front-Wheel Drive cars, which are very common in India, can also perform Over-Steer, but that is very difficult. The easiest way is by getting to a good speed, turning the steering wheel slightly, and then pushing the Handbrake with its release button pressed. The Handbrake should be released after about 2-3 seconds, or the car may flip.

Under-Steer

Green line is the Expected path, Red line is the path due to Under-Steer

When the expected turning path is more than the path we actually achieve, then the car is said to Under-Steer. This is very common in Front-Wheel Drive cars because the front wheels have the work of driving the car as well as steering it. This is also common during a rainy day, as the car cannot grip well on the wet surface. This is very dangerous, and is the major contributing factor in majority of accidents where the car is speeding and is about to turn.

Under-Steer is considered a very bad thing in a car, because its very dangerous, and a lot of power of the car is wasted during this event.

Torque-Steer

*the above video demonstrates Torque-Steer in a MazdaSpeed3

This is a phenomenon seen in a variety of cars in India. This is the event of pulling of the car to one side during acceleration of the car. This effect can be very easily spotted. All you have to do is take your car on a straight road, leave the steering wheel and accelerate from Zero. You will notice the car tends to go to one direction, and not in the straight path. This is also spotted if you suddenly accelerate a car which is already in motion. This is very common in Front-Wheel Drive cars. Another reason for your car going into one particular direction could be because the alignment of the car is not correct, which can be easily undone by a local mechanic.

Main bad-effects of Torque-Steer is that one wheel in the front wears out quickly. This can be avoided by rotating the wheels at every 5000 Kms.

One major cause of Torque-Steer is unequal lengths of the Front Axels. This means that the Power which is delivered to either wheel is unequal, but by a very small amount. Use of Limited-Slip Differential is the solution to this, or the use of an intermediate shaft to make the lengths equal (A technique employed in almost all modern cars)

I hope this post helped increase your knowledge. 

thanks to wikipedia for the pics, and youtube for the video!

Think before you go with the crowd!

There are two cars in question here, a choice which isn't very difficult for people when they go and buy a car in this segment. The segment is the Premium Hatchbacks, and the cars in question, Hyundai i20 and the Maruti Suzuki Swift. I am going to make a simple comparison, and it will be so simple that anyone who has an IQ, and i mean any IQ, will be able to understand!

THE DIESELS!

I am not selecting the top-end model of the i20 for this simple comparison, because it will not be just either ways. The variants in question, Swift ZDi and i20 Sportz CRDi.

The Maruti Suzuki Swift ZDi

First we take a look at the Swift. With a ex-showroom Delhi price of 687768.12, it is supposed to be a good Value For Money, or VFM. What you get for this money is decent. A Music System with Aux and USB connectivity, and its controls on the Steering. ABS, EBD, Airbags for Driver as well as Passenger, Automatic Climate Control, Electric ORVM's, Tilt Steering, Alloy Wheels and an engine which gives you 74 BHP @ 4000 rpm and 190 Nm of torque @2000 rpm. Sounds decent, but enter the competitor, and now you will see how much more you will get, for not that very much!

Hyundai i20 Sportz CRDi

The i20 Sportz comes at the ex-showroom Delhi price of 711319. Now that is about 24000 more than the Swift. Bad thing? Well apart from the already existing features of the Swift, you get Bluetooth controls with controls on the steering, Reverse Parking Camera with Sensors, Daytime Running LED's, Electric Folding ORVM's, Telescopic and Tilt Steering, Automatic Wipers and a Cooled Glove-box. A necessary Safety feature of Rear Disc Brakes is also part of the car. Apart from these features, you get a bigger car in terms of Length and Width, which means more space for the passengers and a bigger boot. The power output, well, 90 BHP @ 4000 rpm and 220 Nm of torque @ 1500-2750 rpm. Not to mention an extra 6th gear for a pleasurable drive when on Highways!

No change from the previous car, except for the Blue lights

The Interiors are better than the predecessor.

To my eye, the i20 looks way better than the Swift both on the Interior as well as the Exterior. Even the build quality and Plastics in the i20 are better!

Many people say that the drive of the i20 is not sporty at all. Well compared to the Swift, it is a bit less sporty, but it just takes some time to get used to. The turbo-lag issue is also very much on the minds of the people, but for that, you simply need to drive the car to know for yourself. According to me, and i have driven both the cars, there isnt any turbo-lag in either cars.

Boring to look at, but the one on the right is a beast!

The Sales and Services of both the cars are good, and the Spare part costs is somewhat the same. The clutch, Headlamps and Suspension cost of the i20 are more than the Swift, but Swift has a more expensive Diesel Filter and Axles, which are the regular wear-and-tear parts.

So really, the choice is yours. With all that extra stuff for only 24000, the true VFM is the i20. Next time someone tries to favor the Swift as a better VFM, you can make an informed Argument with facts, and Win it!

*thanks for the pics downloaded from Zigwheels and carblogindia, autounleashed and motorbeam!

What a way to spend crores!

Automobili Lamborghini India today launched its very own Bull in this even more Sexy Topless Avatar, Aventador Roadster! 

Lambo people, the ultimate teasers!

Now when you look at the Aventador, and then set your eyes on the way Lambo people have covered it, maybe that dormant side of you wants to jump on the stage and rip off those covers to reveal the Sexy beast inside. Well according to reports, no such event was reported at the Mumbai Showroom of Automobili Lamborghini. When the covers were removed, the "car" was revealed, being as awesome as it can be!

Not to the shock of anyone, but the car is as sexy as it can be!

Now this beauty comes at a price, and for that you must have either a very wealthy dad, or else for sure you must be over 40 just to afford this. Its a Whopping 4.77 crores, which doesn't include the ridiculous taxes we have to pay to the good-for-nothing government. You can pay more, if you spec it in your own special way!

The car carries the same doors we find on the hard-top

The car is exactly the same as the hard-top, except for the fact that you the ability to drive this car topless, a deed you have to do yourself, that is, take the 6-kg Carbon-fiber roof away and toss it into the boot, which in at the front. Now if you think the car is lighter than the hard-top, you are wrong. It weighs 50-kg more. Andrea Baldi, Head of Operations, South East Asia and Pacific emphasized that the car will hit 100 kmph in 3 seconds and go on to 350 kmph, with the roof up or down. Cool, we just hope the old people can hang on to that, or those born with a silver platter find the balls and a road in India that can achieve that!

The interiors are also the same, and that Start Button, wooo!

Looking forward to catch a glimpse of the car on-road, and the pics of the same will be uploaded as soon as i can spot one (not that by any chance i will miss it) and will be able to stop oogling them!


*thanks to rushlane.com for the pics!

A new start, A new Concept!

In the past I have written many blogs, had my website called TechnoRamp, which gave me a huge exposure and brief popularity among people from many countries. All these projects came up, then died after a brief run. But this time I have decided to not only continue this blog for a long time, and also bring in this new concept, called a VLOG. This will consist of-

• Car reviews

• Various news

• An overlook of cars, explaining the features listed in the Brochure

• Maybe something funny which might have occurred

The BLOG part will consist of various other things like-

• My take on cars

• Some of the stupid myths people have in India related to cars

• Which is the new car which you may or may not spot on the road soon

• Technical stuff like Over-steer, Torque-steer, hybrid tech!

• My take on various rules and regulations brought up in India

So I hope you all will have Fun reading this Blog, watching the Vlog so that the knowledge can be shared with you all! Do comment freely, as any positive or negative feedback will always help me make this Blog and the Vlog better! Kepp Driving, and Be Safe!