Tata Nano is here

Wow! Thats the word. Wow! Nothing else can capture the essence of this engineering feat. The Tata One lakh car had been subjected to a lot of ridicule and speculation about its birth and design. And here it is ladies and gentle man the ONE LAKH CAR. Called the Nano (they might have some problems from apple but dont think apple has it blocked even for cars) this does look good. Yes it does a resemble the Smart for two car a bit. But the price of the Smart for Two would be definitely more than 5 times its price and the best part is as the name says would seat only two. Think about in that terms you make something better(that is taking Tata's quality versus Mercedes's lets make no bones about who the winner is here) and cheaper. As far as the engine and power transmission is concerned I have only a few words "Its a One lakh car" please do remember the price of the car before commenting on anything. Given an option i would definitely buy one forget about the engine handling and everything. Drive it off from the showrooms have a spin and return home and park it on a pedestal where it should stand for ages to come. Yes it is definitely that monumental.
Well to give it a bit more perspective and appreciation, there is a company called Dacia. They also planned to build a very cheap car and as usual subjected to much ridicule, finally they did come out with a car which was appreciated worldwide for its cheap cost and the usability. We know this car in India as the Mahindra Renault Logan. Just think about the price difference before you comment on anything.
So there you have it people the one lakh car. And yes i'm serious about the pedestal thing, I would.


P.S : For the more techy ones yes i wish Tata had put on bigger wheels. This might be detrimental to the handling.

A tribute to Colin McRae

One of the world's best drivers passed away on 15 th September 2007. The helicopter he was flying crashed near his house in Scotland. The world was shocked and rightly so. For those who have followed the WRC for even a short time would kno that Colin Mcrae was right at the top. For those who have played his games, Wow ! What a game. The perfect game to carry his name.
When he was on any rally circuit he would definitely show that he had balls. If people want to see some examples of Colin Mcraeism , go to Youtube and type in Colin Mcrae + X games 2006. Watch. I just dont want to give out any spoilers on the video if you have not seen it. Its jus awesome example of Colin Mcrae on the track.
I had the chance to watch a show by Jeremy Clarkson called the "Thrill of Speed" in that one of the episodes features Colin McRae. In that a psychiatrist explains to Jeremy that while Jeremy's brain is processing probably one or two information at a time Colin McRae's mind is so trained that he is processing so much of information at time. Jeremy then tries taking McRae's car out only to bang it into a hedge in about a couple of minutes. After this Jeremy just walks away with a great respect for McRae. I always had a great respect for Jeremy. So when his respect grew mine had to naturally grow for the great rally driver.
One could not keep him off any car. When he retired from the world of rally racing in 2004 when he didnt have a drive. He went into the world of Paris Dakar racing for sometime then after some talks with Bentley he was part of their team in Le Mann's 24 Hours race. He also attended the race of champions with very great enthusiasm. Not to mention the X-games. We could say that he almost tried driving the wheels of in almost all the classes of motor racing.
Its also said that he was working to find himself a drive in the rally world. That would have definitely been something. But things have changed and the world wil definitely not forget Colin McRae.
So this is sort of a late tribute to Colin McRae, a great driver, a great motoring name. A Minute's silence then..

HOO HOO!!

I finally after much searching I have finally laid my hands on a very great book. The Book actually. This is the autobiography of Alex Zanardi. Hoo Hoo !! I'm not able to put it down. So i hope to put a post up on de book.
To the Road runner then.

Well here is something to start with

If you are one of the few who kno me and read this blog you would kno tat i'm in the US doin some crap. And for those who dont, Yes I'm in de US tryin to do a MS in Motorsprt Engg (After comin here i figured that this is just a fancy name for an Automobile Engg, but thats another story).
There are a few things I would like to get out of my system, firstly I'm not a great fan of this place. Its mainly because I had had almost infinite freedom back home and that I had my own mode of transportation. It may not be a great matter for those of you who are reading it but for a guy who jus loves to drive and would be glad to run an errand jus beacause he is getting a chance to drive its a matter of great importance, couple it to the fact that the person isnt always early. Boy ! It can make a difference!
For those who still think the america is the place to be, I would like to point a few things,

The public transportation system is pathetic! There are jus not enough number and you have to be very disciplined to get on them. For a guy straight out of a college in India I believe thats a tall order.
A friend of mine recommended a great movie by Micheal Moore called "Sicko". No it wouldnt nauseate u visually but there is quite a chance that you will be disgusted with the American System. If u are in the mood I would recommend "Faranheit9/11" by the same director. Time for some enlightenment I guess.
If u think this place is clean and not nauseating. I suggest u to go to some big city like Chicago, New York or Detroit. There is quite a chance that u will start to believe India is a cleaner place!
There are so many trivial things lik most of the restaurants close by 10! There are almost no great choices if u are in the mood for a midnight snack.
The worst thing abt this place is that i had to eat the stuff i cooked. For a guy who is very choosy about food its probably the worst punishment.
If u have seen "Run" I was like Vivek thinkin "Appan vitta sabam weaponattam vanthu thakkoothe da" (For those who dont understand Tamil, it means my father's curse is attacking me lik a weapon)
These guys have subsidized the wrong stuff they have booze which is subsidized. I agree some booze is good once in a while. But thinkin that u can get drunk on some great booze cheaper than wat it costs u too fill ur stomach wid some food is not very heart warmin or should i say "Stomach" warming.

Yes there are definitely some great things about this place,
People are very polite, friendly, genial and what not in the smaller cities like the one i'm currently in.
There is absolutely no dignity of labor. There are only two stories, one u are employed and that u are unemployed. Thats it. They dont mind doing any job and i mean "Any".
You have infinite freedom to do anything. Look at me I'm doing some whacky course. Also u can start afresh very easily. I could have easily transfered from Motorsport Engg to somethin very far frm me, in terms of understanding, like Bio Technology. That is very good if u feel right now that u are doin the wrong thing. Here u can do anythin thats definitely a great boon.

So thats about it for now. I'm hoping to do something in the next post about the roads and cars here. (Arent u surprised ?? I bet u are :D) So see you till then.