Twenty Onwards Media

Which car do you drive?

So which car do you drive ? Well ! The new ad campaign of Toyota Prius shows all the difference it makes.

Check it Out Here

The Last Few...

Ever since my parents came over for Graduation last June and i had to drive them around in Seattle, i got a bit crazy with driving cars here in U.S. And especially since i moved to Boston, i went wild, however, thanks to some networking and a cookie basket, the local Enterprise Location people took off the under-25 surcharge along with some other dumb surcharges. My cost for this, let say adventure, went down drastically and i would change cars within a few days getting them on the same contract. Plus the quote for each car would always be discounted as i become a corporate account user, without an actual corporation. So, below is the list of cars i have to got to drive so far and i hope that by the end of this month i can atleast reach mid-30's.

(They are not in any order, All are 2006, 2007 models)

1. Hyundai Elantra
2. Ford Taurus
3. Chevy Impala
4. Honda Civic Hybrid
5. Dodge Neon
6. Ford Fusion (V4, V6)
7. Chevy Malibu
8. Chevy HHR
9. Chevy Cobalt
10. Chrysler P.T Crusier
11. Ford Mustang (V8)
12. Dodge Charger
13. Dodge Magnum
14. Dodge Caliber
15. GMC Envoy
16. Buick Lucerne
17. Pontiac G6 GT
18. Hummer H3
19. Toyota Camry (2007)
20. Toyota 4Runner V8
21. VW Jetta 2.0, 2.5T (2007)
22. VW Passat 2.0 T (2007)
23. Nissan Altima
24. Mercury Mountaineer
25. Mazda 3
26. Kia Rio (The new cute one)
27. Kia Optima
28. Hyundai Sonata V6 (Called Embera in India for some reason)
29. Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo
30. Jeep Liberty

There are a few more on my list that i might be forgetting and a few more lined up in these last few weeks, though nothing can be guranteed. 2006 will become the year that i drove the most and drove more different cars then i'll ever drive for the rest of my life. Another thing that helped me reach this number was the fact that i got free insurance from my credit cards. One curse ( if i may call it that) is the fact that i  have started analyzing everything about a car i might be sitting in or driving. After this i could become a auto mag writer if all else fails.

Please give me a job so that i can lease this

Indian Road Boom

The NY Times continues its series on the Indian road boom with another article in today's edition. The article takes account of the change being brought in with the building of the new highway system, similar to the one that took place in United States in the 1950's. Its an interesting article, do have a look at the interactive feature.

You can travel from L.A to New York basically without a single traffic light in between, the highway system in India is going to take another decade to be completed. Even then traveling without a single hitch on the highway might not be possible, anyone who's traveled in India by road would agree. But, it would be really cool if you could travel from Delhi to Bombay without a single light or any other hitch in between.

F1 Quiz

I came across this quiz thanks to Maverick, and this was my result:

Take the quiz and learn about your racing personality

Lamborghini + Hummer = New Batmobile

The new Bat-mobile is actually the love child of a Lamborghini Countach and a Hummer. It was fitted with the 'cockpit' from a P-38 Lightening fighter and with a 340-hp V8 GM engine. Despite its bulk it could go from 0-60 in 5.3 seconds. Even though the new Bat-mobile wasn't exactly a 'good-looking' car. It looked more realistic out of all the previous ones. If the Italians were to make a tank, i bet that's what it would look like. I wonder how many miles to the gallon it gives?

Rant: How we get Swindled

Another night's sleep messed up by the great Times of India (note sarcasm). I was just about to head of to sleep after surfing for a little bit, but i came across this ridiculous Article. I am not sure whether it was my nationalistic feeling as a Indian consumer or the nonsense that got me riled up. In anycase, i just had to rant.

The article aptly named "Hot Wheels to zoom Indian Roads", starts of on how this year might just be a turning point in the Indian car market and turn around the fortunes of many companies, with the introduction 20 new cars in to the market. Mentions how the new Suzuki Swift, the introduction of Audi and even Hummer is going to revolutionize the market.
An analyst from a "Synovate Motor Research" is quoted explaining how consumers are shifting from buying sedans as show off symbol to buying more basic but expensive compact cars. Mentions how even though Indians base their decision on fuel efficiency and price, their decision making is changing. They go on to quote Jagdish Khattar (Suzuki India MD) telling them how many Honda City owners have come up to him and expressed their desire to exchange their "cities" for the new Suzuki Swift.
They also quote a dealer for Bentley in India, saying with Indians getting to know about newer technology abroad, they are not settling for anything less.

To be fair the article does make a point regarding the fact that the per-capita GDP in India is only $650, and yet brands such as Porsche, Ferrari, MayBach and Bentley are finding buyers for their cars, launching local operations. Goes on to argue that since the younger population is getting more expendable income, there is a influx of luxury brands. The article then ends giving information on the new cars being launched and their prices, the Porsche 911 for Rs. 75lacs ($170,000 aprx) or the Hummer for Rs. 65lacs ($130,000), the Hyundai Tiburon (never heard of it, or its price), the Audi A4 for Rs. 24lacs ($51,000 aprx) etc.

Its understandable that there is excitment regarding the launch of new models in India, but what really gets me riled up is that no one realizes that we Indians end up with the short end of the stick. Sure, there are import restrictions and what not and many technical reasons for cars being expensive in India but still nothing justifies selling the most affordable cars world over as high luxury cars here in India. Unless, the car companies take us as fools, who don't realise that we shouldn't be paying extra for basic amenities such as A/C, power-steering and air-bags. Or that we are so blind that we don't realise that we pay $32,000 (14lacs approx) for a Hyundai Sonata which is actually sold for $13,000 (6.16lacs aprx) nearly everywhere else in the world. And for that same price we could buy a high end Acura TSX (Honda's luxury brand).

Getting to the article, i have never heard of that particular research group before, might be a good one. But, i beg to differ from their opinion, that more Indians are willing to buy expensive compact cars. If this is really true, we seriously are the most gullible car-buyers in the world. Suzuki Swift may be a really good car, but the thought of trading in a Honda for a Suzuki really puzzles me. Why would anyone want to do that, unless they have suffered financial setbacks, but hey this just my opinion.
Quoting a Bentley dealer is not really a good source of information seeing that Bentley is supposed to sell less than 20 cars in India this year. And if we Indians are seriously noticing the technology available abroad, we need to the see the price at which its available also. Since, we still have to shell out extra for even the most basic things. It is puzzling to see that having the A/C , power windows,steering is seen as a luxury, especially the A/C after all this is India.

As i said before, to be fair the article does raise the point of not many Indians being able to buy all these cars, but it goes on to negate itself. As it argues that since the younger population has more expendable sources of income, therefore we are seeing a rush of expensive brands in India. That is the largest load of crap i have ever heard. In India, we have a thing called Income Disparity, where the rich are really rich and the poor are really poor. And the only 'younger population' that can afford cars such as Ferraris and Porsches are people who's names end with 'Roshan' or 'Tendulkar'(the article mentions them). There might be millions of car enthusiasts in India, but they will only get to look not drive.

Having small cars in India makes sense, due to the cheap price, fuel efficiency, but its about time that we get more wise to how badly we are being played. Sure, there are loads of technicalities due to which we pay more for everything, but for how long? Its not just the price, its also about being fair and responsible. Basic amenities such as air-bags are not given, especially at a time when more and more people are buying cars and we record the most road accidents in the world. We really need to get more vocal and a get a fair deal. I could go on arguing but i am sure it falls on deaf ears.

(Its really early in the morning so forgive the bad grammer and spellings, will fix them later)

Suzuki's Swift (Kick)

(Maruti) Suzuki India launched the Swift, a 1.3litre hatchback yesterday, in response to increasing competition in the Indian Car market and especially to compete against the recently launched Hyundai Getz. It starts at 3.87lacs or around $9000, supposed to be a 5-seater. Whether this car will find a market in India that remains to be seen.

Honestly, this is the first up-to-date model that Suzuki has ever launched in India, since nearly all of their other models, including the best-seller 800, are completely out of date. The car market in India is very different and still really coming out of infancy especially in the past couple of years. The fact that road infrastructure is still far from adequate adds to the slowness in the growth. I am referring to the car companies and the range of cars available in India, not car ownership, which has been steadily rising. I am glad the increased competition has forced Suzuki to pull up its socks as it realizes it cannot take the Indian consumer for granted anymore. But it sure has a long way to go.

The Indian car scene is a mixed bag, since there is so much focus on the small car segment. Cars such as the Camry, Accord, Corolla, which generally come in the most affordable segment world-over are sold as high-end luxury cars in India. For example. Hyundai Sonata is one of the cheapest cars in the United States but it is one of the most expensive cars in India, even though its a Korean car not even a Japanese.
Sure, the manufacturers have to import most of the stuff into India so the high sticker price isn't entirely their fault. The government still has a 120% duty on car imports, their argument being that this would force more companies to set up local operations. Also, the high gas prices make it harder to sell bigger cars in India, especially when you can get more than 60 miles/gallon (if my math is correct) from the small cars.

But, its high time that Indians get a better selection of cars at affordable prices. Instead of coming up with more cheap small cars, companies should try come up with family cars at those same low prices. That would be a better deal for so many Indian families.