Rivers older than the flow of blood in our veins

These sustainers of life and cradles of civilization are suffering from both climate change and human neglect. They predate the evolution of our species by millions of years and we must awaken to the rights and protection they deserve.

Took my Jimny to Himachal with 4 adults & luggage: 10 observations

BHPian prateekswarup recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I've almost completed 6k in my Jimny MT Alpha White. Hence, I thought it was a good time to write in a mini-review of the same. My previous vehicles have included a Grand Vitara 2.0, Polo GT TSI and currently a Mitsubishi Outlander. Prologue I have followed the Jimny launch with keen interest but did not bite the bullet once the prices were announced. However, with the Thunder Edition and yearly discounts, I finally took the plunge and bought one on 24th Dec'23. Usage Till Now As soon as I bought it, I took it with 4 adults and 1 kid to Mashobra in Himachal for 5 5-day trip. Post that it has been my daily driver for the office commute in Gurgaon (~11kms one way). In the last week of Mar'24, I recently completed a 2,000km road trip to Spiti Valley from Gurgaon. We were 2 adults and a boot full of luggage along with water, petrol jerrycan, the works. Initial Impressions My Jimny is stock - no changes in tyres, no accessories except the rear defogger wire protectors. I wanted to have a pristine driving experience for a bit before I started looking at mods. The one change that I have made is adding a GAN tuning chip to the OBD port that gives better performance & drivability. Putting down a few points after 6k of drivingInitially, I felt that the gears were a little hard, but the gearbox-clutch has smoothened out post 3.5kThe suspension setup is lovely and is a boon in Gurugram's pot-holed roads. In the hills, it has taken the bad roads with aplomb. At high speeds, on speed breakers or cornering you do feel the rear step out a bit and initially it was a bit unnerving but now I've understood it better.Engine braking is really good and the more one drives this in the hills, the more you begin to start using the same.The high-rev nature of the engine puts a smile on your face. I kept the revs above 2k on my hill drives and hardly ever felt the loss of power. There were patches and steep inclines where you needed to shift to 1st to get momentum, but almost all the other cars in our convoy also struggled. This is where I feel a little more torque would make the Jimny outstanding.The stock tyres are adequate. On rough roads around Kaza, I did get sidewall puncture. Other Jimny's in the convoy had 215s Contis and 235 Yokos and they fared better. But for now, even with river and snow off-roading, the stock tyres felt adequate. An upgrade to 215s is on the cards in the near future.Cabin storage for small items is abysmal. I managed to put some soft foam sheets on the front door pockets to help slide in a phone without rattling and damage. Cupholders get used. The front grab handle with the leatherette wrap also helps in holding the passenger phone. Apart from these changes, I do feel the need to add more storage options to the front.The rear seat belt warning is a pain. I do not want to tamper with airbags deployment and keep them buckled in when not in use.Boot storage is adequate and swallows up 2 mid-size suitcases and 2-3 duffle bags with ease.Traction control is quite aggressiveAuto-start-stop in the hills can get intrusive. In city traffic, it's easy to use.I love the size and footprint along with the commanding view of the road. It is small enough to get through most gaps, narrow hill roads and offers a very old-school SUV experience. I learnt my driving on a Gypsy and it has a similar feel.Letting a Few Pictures do the talking: Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

India's fossil fuel capacity grows 2.44 pc in FY24; non fossil-fuel rises 11 pc: Govt data

India's power generation capacity saw growth in both fossil fuel-based and non-fossil fuel-based sources in FY24. Fossil fuel capacity rose to 243.22 GW while non-fossil fuel capacity increased to 190.57 GW, with renewable energy sources like solar and wind contributing significantly to the rise.

Why I got my 5th-gen City bumper repainted instead of replaced

BHPian ndp88 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Hello everyone, update here. Not a happy one. Got delivery today and as we were bringing home a brand new car making the last turn, some underage kid dashed it from behind tearing apart the rear bumper. He was without a licence, driving without headlight in his XUV700. The panel is broken. Taking it to the Honda Service Centre tomorrow. I think Replacement is the only option here. Any idea how much this will cost? Repair update: Since this Car was a gift, we wanted to drive it down over the weekend and present ourselves to father in our hometown. That is why Delivery on Gudi Padwa was critical (which took a different fight altogether with the dealer). And so after the whole ordeal of the accident late into the night, I was convinced that now I needed to get the Panel replaced by checking with ASC tomorrow. We were thoroughly disheartened and kept wondering why this happened to us. But I was confident in my heart that the decision to forgive the kid was correct. In the morning, I took a look at the car in full daylight. Fortunately, only the rear bumper was damaged and broken. No impact on the underbody guard quarter panel or wheel assembly body. My biggest worry was structural integrity and not the cosmetic look. Again by god's grace, there was no serious damage to the structure and only the Fibre Plastic part was damaged. In my assessment, the kid was at speed and tried to control impact at the last moment by breaking, a steep right-turn to the steering wheel. Had it been a full 180-degree impact, maybe the car would've been pushed ahead and damage would have been everywhere from the Boot panel to the entire back body. Maybe airbags might've also been deployed. I felt grateful that no major accident happened both of us were safe, no injury to anybody else either. I called Viva Honda (where I purchased) for Service centre contact before I actually drove down, in case of appointment is required. Perhaps it was too early for them, and nobody called back after promising a call-back. Then I called another Honda ASC, the girl promptly directed the call to the Service site head who took down the details. I sent photographs etc. He reached out immediately after 10-15 minutes, saying the Panel needs to be replaced which costs 15k+ GST including painting, labor, and everything. The only catch is the part is not available, and would take 3 days for stock availability. I called another Centre and they also said part is not available in Mumbai altogether. Strange. So in meanwhile, I had already registered an Insurance claim late last night. Now I was confused mind, what to do. It was important to me the panel be fixed immediately as our travel plans were aligned accordingly. But good repair was also extremely important. Another factor was claiming Insurance, this would've meant letting go of the No Claim Bonus and adding accident history to the Car within the first 24 hrs. While I am not averse to claiming insurance and have done so in past, the above factors were important as well. One may disagree, but avoiding the claim was my personal preference. I decided to bring my local garage guy just to get an opinion on repair. He examined it and showed readiness to fix it. I quizzed him for half an hour as to how the process would go and to what extent he could fix it. He showed me a few example videos of past jobs. He assured me that if the progress is not up to satisfaction, I can withdraw and go for full panel replacement. It seemed like a good idea to try at least. I was worried about the broken patch of the bumper, even though the damage was limited to only a small area. I made up my mind and gave go-ahead. Since the damage was limited to fibre plastic, I thought this could be fixed. What followed was 8 hours of gruelling job, which I personally sat throughout with each technician till the Car was fixed. It became good as new. Nobody could tell (except me) if there was any damage to the bumper. These chaps did amazing work, must appreciate their skills. Such a job typically takes 2-3 days to complete, but guys were willing enough to put aside other tasks and focus on this one car alone. Only polishing work was pending, which I got done a day later since you need to let the surface dry a little more and settle. I was overall satisfied with the repair, there was no sign of damage or shoddy fix. The whole thing cost me 6.5K, I didn't take compensation from anybody. By looking at the result of the repair, I had already forgotten the whole unpleasant experience of last night. I was happy again. I was looking forward to weekend and driving this beautiful baby on the Samruddhi Expressway. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Brought home my Virtus 1.5L GT DSG: Impressions post 2,000 km

BHPian adith97 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Choice of car I was looking to buy my first new car as my old car, which was my father's Duster, had become too old. I wanted to buy a sedan because growing up, we had City & Verna in our family which I absolutely loved driving. Comfort & performance wise, I feel sedans are the best. Plus I just got married & it is a small family, just me & my wife. This is the best time to have a sedan. I can always upgrade to an SUV once my family grows.Unfortunately today there aren't many options in the C segment. We only have Virtus, Slavia, Verna and City. I shortlisted Verna & Virtus after the first round of test driving. I am 6ft 3in height & I was worried sedans won't fit me. But except City, both Virtus & Verna were quite comfortable. I had to keep the seat at its lowest position. Verna feels a lot more spacious inside & has a ton of features like ADAS, lane keep assist, collision warning etc etc, which honestly I don't care for. Virtus, on the other hand, is a lot less spacious. Two people can sit comfortably in the second row, not more than that. Three for short distances only. I selected the 1.5L turbo petrol engine in both the cars. I did two more test drives on both the cars. I requested for a long test drive the third time on a highway & that sealed my decision. Virtus on highways is an absolute beast! Once you hit that sport mode, the car just pulls you like anything. Pair that with the DSG gearbox with almost instantaneous shifts, it makes you want to reach illegal speeds. The car asks you to press more. The handling, cornering, brakes are top class. Verna is almost equally good but Virtus was a level above. My only concern was the DSG DQ200 gearbox which has had a lot of issues in the past but it seems they have refined it to make it more reliable. My driving use was 60% highways, mostly trips to Chennai from Bangalore & 40% city, office commute 2-3 days a week. So it made sense to go for 1.5L TSI engine & DSG automatic because I was fed up of driving a manual in Bangalore traffic. Variant Virtus has two lines- one for the 1L TSI engine called Comfort line & one for the 1.5L TSI engine called Dynamic Line. Within these two lines, they have variants. In Dynamic Line, there are primarily two variants - GT & GT Plus. The only important difference is that GT comes with 2 airbags while GT Plus has 6 airbags. Apart from that, GT Plus also has sunroof (I don't like them), ventilated seats, electric adjustable seats, rain sensing vipers, automatic headlamps, cruise control etc. Virtus has 5 star safety rating with 2 airbags itself. So I went ahead with GT variant itself as I don't care for any of the other features. Dealership Experience I bought the car at KUN Volkswagen dealer, JP Nagar. The experience was decent. They were not very proactive in following up. I always had to call them up & follow up for everything.I bargained a lot with them to get discounts. I told them that I would take insurance outside, after which they reduced it significantly all the way from around 80k to 40k. This included bumper to bumper zero depreciation, Engine protect, Cost of consumables, Return to invoice, NCB etc.I also sold my Duster to KUN motors, for which I bargained too & got a 20K exchange bonus. I thought the price was a little low compared to if I had sold outside in Cars24 or Spinny. But the process was smooth & hassle free, the amount directly went as downpayment. So I just did it.I also got extended warranty & standard accessories free as well.Another thing I checked was the road tax between KA & TN. I thought if it was significantly less, I would get it registered in TN. But turns out, it is pretty close to KA & the difference was a mere 10K. It wasn't worth it, so I did it in KA itself.The car was in stock already & was handed over to me in two weeks. I had told them that I would buy only if the car was in stock & that I would go to another dealer if I had to wait. I didn't like waiting for the car.I requested for a PDI before the car was sent to registration, which they allowed. The sales person rushed me during the PDI as he had other work but I took my sweet little time to do it.The delivery was done smoothly with no issues, with a cake & the car reveal.Driving/Ownership Experience - 2000kms It has been one month since the delivery & I have driven almost 2000Kms. ProsVehicle performance is amazing. It is a joy to push this 1.5L beast of an engine. As mentioned above, it clocks high speeds without breaking a sweat. Handling, cornering is amazing. I keep wanting to take it out for a drive.Gear shifts are instantaneous with DSG gearbox.Amazing brakes. Gives you confidence to go at high speeds.Silent cabin.Good steering control.Amazing ground clearance for a sedan. Never had to worry about the bottom hitting the road.5 star safety rating. You can feel the build quality with the door thud.Decent mileage. Better than expected really. As an experiment, I drove light footed & maintained 100Km/hr through one long drive. I got 17kms/l. Generally I get around 10 in highways, which is mainly due to the speeds I go at.Huge boot space is very practical.Looks gorgeous. I think this is the best looking car in this segmentAC is very effective. Looks like they have fixed the AC issues now. It is effective even in Chennai.Fabric seats are really comfortable.Red themed interior looks classy. Ambient red lighting looks cool as well. Lot of space is nice.Warning sound after 120 is not that intrusive. With music, you won't even hear it.Infotainment system with Android auto is good & useful.Volkswagen app is nice. Tells the location of the car as well as if the engine is switched on or off. Has a theft informing system too.Music system is good.Vehicle has built a reputation as an enthusiast car. Whenever I tell anyone that I have bought Virtus, they are always surprised & say what a good car it is.ConsDSG gearbox in bumper to bumper traffic is a pain. There is the known DSG lag at low speeds plus it gets real confused between 1st & 2nd gear. It is also known to heat up a lot in such traffic. I think people who primarily drive inside cities should think a lot before getting DSG.Transitioning to automatic has been frustrating at times. This is a personal issue. After being a manual driver for the past 10 years, with the DSG issues mentioned above, I feel like I have no control over the car. It is just driving itself. I guess, with time, I will get used to it.Automatic start stop system is absolute rubbish. I always switch if off as soon as I start. It is tuned so aggressively that the engine switches off even for speed breakers.I feel the suspension is a little stiff. Not sure if it is just me.There is a small noise that comes from the brake pedal when I disengage it. I asked the service person at VW & they said that it is expected. But I am pretty sure it wasn't there initially.My wife calls this car he kidnap car. It is because the lock/unlock functionality for all the doors is with the driver. The passengers can't unlock their doors themselves.Boot door doesn't stay put. You have to open it all the way up for it stay put. Have gotten hit a couple of times already.Occasionally android auto gets disconnected. But this has been very very rare.Overall, I am very satisfied with the car so far & I can't wait to keep driving it. Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

CBSE Board declares result dates for Class 10 and 12: Check latest announcement here

CBSE 10th 12th Result Date: CBSE is set to announce the results for the Class 10th and 12th exams conducted in 2024 after 20th May. Approximately 39 lakh students from 26 countries appeared for these exams. The results are expected to be available on various official websites. Stay tuned for updates.

Want Extra Income? 5 Side Hustle Ideas From 'Rich Dad Poor Dad' Author Robert Kiyosaki

Want Extra Income? 5 Side Hustle Ideas From 'Rich Dad Poor Dad' Author Robert Kiyosaki

SPL acquires 4 acre land parcel near Electronic City, Bengaluru

Shriram Properties Limited (SPL) has acquired a 4 acre land parcel in Chandapura, near Electronic City in Bengaluru, to develop residential communities. The project, expected to generate revenue over Rs 259 crore, will cover 4 lakh sq ft and include 350 apartments. SPL plans to launch the project during FY25

Kawasaki KLX 230 S dual-sport bike caught testing in India

Kawasaki seems to be working on the KLX 230 S dual-sport bike for the Indian market. It is expected to be locally manufactured alongside the Versys-X 300. The KLX 230 S is currently sold in several overseas markets. Kawasaki has made a few modifications to the Indian version though. The test bike is equipped with a saree guard and a front number plate, which is required by law. This also means that the bike will be road-legal. The KLX 230 S is based on a steel perimeter frame suspended by a long travel fork at the front and a mono-shock at the rear. The bike rides on 21-inch and 18-inch wire-spoke wheels at the front and rear, respectively. It offers a ground clearance of 210 mm and the seat height is 830 mm. The KLX 230 S is powered by a 233cc single-cylinder air-cooled engine. On the non-road-legal version, this unit puts out 19 BHP @ 8,000 rpm and 20.6 Nm @ 6,000 rpm. Source:@hekpomaht_

350 km Sunday ride on my Interceptor 650: My observations & experience

BHPian parrys recently shared this with other enthusiasts. So, I went for a 350+ km ride on Sunday with the Interceptor 650. Ride Details: Thane - Panvel - Lonavala - Pawana - Tamhini Ghat - Kolad - Mandwa - M2M Ferry - Thane. Total distance covered, 363.2 kms.Here are some observationsStarted to get a hang of the weight. Now I am able to lean into a corner more confidently. Did overshoot a couple of corners, but nothing scary. As the mind always keeps telling me you are on an INT 650 & not 390 ADV anymore.The touring seat kept me happy. Did not have a sore bottom after coming back home.Do miss the gear position indicator. The INT 650 is so smooth higher up in the revs as well, that sometimes I was riding in 5th, and then noticed that I still had another upshift left. So I hope, RE offers this with their updated meters on the newer models.Love looking at the needles. Hard on the throttle, nothing more satisfying than watching the speed & RPM needle climb. And the dials look good to me.Riding posture for me, my height of 5'8''; no problem at all. At times I feel that the tank is LONG, when I look down. It makes me wonder does this make me sit too far? But the posture, I find nothing wrong with it.It does heat up at slow speeds. No denying that fact.End up kicking the left bend pipe often while trying to get the side stand down.Not even once have I used the USB charging yet. I must at least try to see if it is functional.Ceat Tyres - HORRIBLE. Not enough grip for fast cornering. Forget corners, while riding at 80-90 kmph, I once encountered a very very small wet patch. The tyre went sliding for a split second. Experience helped me maintain the line, but a scary moment for sure. Especially when you have no traction control. RE must surely reconsider the rubber. These Ceats, I will plan to change soon.Headlight looks good, when you look at it. The illumination at night, very poor.Mileage, around 27 kmpl. Not bad at all. Including slow crawls, high revving speeds and cruising too. Satisfied.Brakes surprised me. Even with the weight, I now have enough confidence to put the anchors down. Decent bite for my riding style.On Sundays, we bikers spend thousands of rupees. Why? To ride our motorcycle for hours. Food cost is almost 10-20% of fuel cost. But worth it. Every single time. Most of you here on this post, might have seen the Tanners Pride custom leather tank protector. It went flying off at triple-digit speeds. Thank god it did not hit someone else riding behind. Never going the magnetic route ever again. This was my first and last time. And this, while flying off, or when I picked it back and placed it on the tank; HAS SCRATCHED THE TANK. So it has defeated the whole purpose. Tamhini Ghat route is so beautiful. It was raining last weekend around Pune. So we got lovely weather throughout this section. Even after having seen that scratched tank, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. The bike kept flowing smoothly, and the AEW 102s kept playing some sweet music. I can never get tired of this. My dad owned a Yezdi Roadking when I was a kid. I guess I have had a thing for twin pipes since then. Looks iconic. Or maybe, twin pipes look right (symmetry). Also noticed, the number plate mounting is crooked. Need to fix it soon. Mesh gear always. Summer or winter. This is my Rynox set. My other RevIt is also maximum mesh. So, here's the heartbreaking bit from Sunday. Scratches on the tank. 2-3 spots like these. I think I had tears in my helmet when I saw this. The cut was deep. So no amount of detailing could resolve this. So had to go the PPF way. Not my thing. But no choice. Got a black PPF. Surprisingly, it matches the colour 100%. But, one will always notice the PPF cut / edge line. Which again, troubles my OCD. Before I placed the magnetic tank cover, I had also ordered this unit from Sahara Seats. So this is a placeholder, to ensure that I don't spot those PPF cuts easily. The PPF is cut wider than this cover, so the cover does not damage the paint. My friends say I have gone crazy. More to follow, about how I maintain my tank. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Godrej Properties records best-ever quarter, annual performance

The companys net profit for the quarter rose 14% on-year to Rs 471 crore and to Rs 725 crore for the financial year 2023-24. The March quarter was the companys highest-ever quarterly sales for the third consecutive quarter with the sale of 5,331 homes with 8.17 million sq ft area sold.

New car launches in India in May 2024

4th-generation Maruti Suzuki SwiftEarlier this week, Maruti Suzuki opened bookings for the fourth-generation Swift in India. Dealer dispatches have now commenced as the carmaker gears up for the launch in the coming days. The 2024 Swift will be offered with a 1.2-litre 3-cylinder mild-hybrid petrol engine that produces 80 BHP @ 5,700 rpm and 112 Nm @ 4,300 rpm. The engine is expected to be paired with a 5-speed manual gearbox and an AMT. Related ThreadTata Altroz RacerThe Tata Altroz Racer, a sporty version of the Altroz hatchback, was unveiled at the 2023 Auto Expo. Latest reports suggest that the car might be launched soon. The Altroz Racer is expected to use a 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder turbo-petrol engine from the Nexon. It produces 118 BHP and 170 Nm and is likely to be paired with a 6-speed manual gearbox. Related ThreadMercedes-Benz C200 PetrolMercedes-Benz will be introducing the C 300 petrol in the Indian market later this year. The new petrol variant will replace the C 300d in Q2 of 2024. The C 300 will be powered by a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo-petrol engine paired with a mild-hybrid system and a 9-speed automatic gearbox. This engine produces 254 BHP with an additional 23 BHP provided by the mild-hybrid system. Peak torque is rated at 400 Nm, which is 150 Nm less than the C 300d. Like the C 300d, the upcoming C 300 petrol might also be offered in a single, full-loaded AMG line variant. Related Thread3rd-gen Porsche PanameraPorsche revealed the prices of the third-generation Panamera back in November 2023. However, the carmaker is expected to commence bookings and deliveries this month. Related ThreadMahindra XUV700 Blaze EditionMahindra is likely to introduce a new limited-edition version of the XUV700 called the 'Blaze Edition'. The Mahindra XUV700 Blaze Edition comes in a unique exterior colour called 'Matte Blaze Red'. The SUV gets a Napoli Black roof, along with black ORVMs and black alloy wheels. You also get the impression of a floating roofline thanks to the blacked-out B, C and D pillars. Related ThreadForce Gurkha 5-DoorForce Motors has announced the prices for the updated Gurkha. The off-roader is available in 3-door and 5-door body styles priced at Rs 16.75 lakh and Rs 18 lakh (ex-showroom), respectively. The Force Gurkha receives several updates for the 2024 model year. The Force Gurkha is powered by a 2.6-litre 4-cylinder diesel engine that produces 138 BHP and 320 Nm. The engine is mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox and a 4x4 system. The company claims that the improved power and torque enable it to cruise on expressways at triple-digit speeds. Related Thread2024 Isuzu V-Cross pick-upIsuzu has launched the 2024 V-Cross pick-up truck in India. The updated model is priced from Rs 21,19,900 (ex-showroom). Isuzu has made several changes to the V-Cross for the 2024 model year. The new V-Cross is powered by a 1.9-litre, 4-cylinder diesel engine that makes 163 BHP and 360 Nm. The engine is paired with either a 6-speed manual or a torque converter automatic. The pick-up truck is also available with a 4-wheel drive system. Related Thread2024 BMW M4 Competition M xDriveBMW has launched the 2024 M4 Competition M xDrive in India. The updated sports coupe will be imported via the CBU route and is priced at Rs 1.53 crore (ex-showroom). At the heart of the M4 Is the S58 turbocharged 3.0-litre 6-cylinder engine that produces 523 BHP @ 6,250 rpm and 650 Nm @ 2,750-5,370 rpm. The engine is mated to an 8-speed automatic and BMW's xDrive four-wheel drive system. BMW claims the M4 can sprint from 0-100 km/h in 3.5 seconds. Related Thread

Raymond re-appoints Gautam Hari Singhania as MD

On Friday, Raymond re-appointed Gautam Hari Singhania as the managing director of the company for a term of five years starting from July 1, 2024, as mentioned in an exchange filing.

Generative AI: Five ways companies in India can fully exploit its potential

CEOs are racing to leverage technology for gaining a competitive edge, but they need to broaden application of generative AI to more strategic goals in order to build resilience and open new pathways of growth.

Ferrari 12Cilindri globally unveiled

Ferrari has taken the wraps off its latest front-engined V12 supercar, named '12Cilindri'. The new Ferrari 12Cilindri (Italian for 12 Cylinders) is a direct replacement of the 812 Superfast. The newest supercar from the Italian brand will be offered in Coupe & Spider versions, both of which were unveiled at an exclusive event held in Miami Beach. The Ferrari 12Cilindri is powered by the brand's 6.5-litre naturally-aspirated V12 engine producing 819 BHP and 678 Nm. The engine has been updated, allowing it to rev up to 9,500 rpm, and comes paired with an 8-speed dual-clutch transmission. Ferrari claims the 12Cilindri Coupe is capable of sprinting from 0-100 km/h in 2.9 seconds, while 200 km/h comes up in 7.9 seconds and can achieve a top speed of 340 km/h. The spider is slightly slower, with 0-100 km/h taking 2.95 seconds and 200 km/h coming up in 8.2 seconds. The 12Cilindri Coupe weighs in at 1,560 kg, while the spider is slightly heavier at 1,620 kg - both dry weights. In terms of design, the Ferrari 12Cilindri features a sharp front end with sleek headlights & DRLs. The overall design feels more sophisticated than its predecessor, featuring clean lines and muscular proportions. Ferrari has also integrated plenty of active aero elements all around the car. Inside, the Ferrari 12Cilindri features three screens, a massive 15.6-inch digital instrument cluster, a 10.25-inch central infotainment display and an 8.8-inch display in front of the passenger. The car carries forward the capacitive buttons on the steering wheel like in other Ferrari models. The Ferrari 12Cilindri comes with a starting price of 395,000 euros for the Coupe and 435,000 euros for the Spider version.

Driving an NA petrol car after 16 yrs: Our new Hyundai i20 Asta (O) iVT

BHPian biplab3110 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I brought home an i20 Asta (O) iVT on the 20th of April. Here is some background to the purchase and my experience with the car so far.BackgroundI had a Kia Seltos GTX DCT bought in September 2019 (prebooked, from the first lot). This was followed by two years of complete inaction due to Covid. Once Covid was in the past, routines have changed. I now travel to the office not more than two days a week. In the meantime, I also bought an Audi Q3, in October last year. So, the Seltos was reduced to a car for doing daily rounds of the market, and other chores around an 8km radius of Thane City. It was also not feasible to take the Q3 around for these trips, so a second car was needed. Hence, I was looking for something smaller. The idea was to sell the Seltos (4.5 years, 23,000km on the ODO), buy a small car and save some money. But things turned out a little differently. The question was what to replace the Seltos with? Criteria - it has to be less than 4m, and it has to be an automatic. There is no way I am driving an AMT. A DCT would be expensive (the discontinued i20 DCT, the Venue, or the Sonet). Plus, the car is primarily for driving within Thane City where the internal roads have a speed breaker at every 100m. Hence my preference was for a CVT which will be easy to drive around. There were four choices - Nissan Magnite, Renault Kiger, Honda Amaze and Hyundai i20. The first two were not even considered due to their poor fit and finish and doubtful future. The Amaze was in consideration, but the current generation Amaze seems like a decade old. Waiting for the next generation seemed waiting for uncertainty. Hence the choice was limited to just the i20 iVT. Did a test drive and it seemed to tick the necessary boxes for my requirements. I was waiting for a deal on my Seltos to book an i20 Sportz iVT. However, it is the selling experience of the Seltos that made me change my mind and book the Asta (O) iVT. I value five features of the Asta (O) over the Sportz (Keyless entry, Push button start, wireless charger, rear washer and wiper, alloy wheels), which does not add up to the price difference, but still I booked the Asta (O) iVT for the sunroof (which I personally don't value). Must say, the BOSE speakers are a bonus!Booking & DeliveryBooking experience was mostly uneventful. Took a quote from two dealers. Both dealers were keen to push the SPORTZ variant in Starry Nights colour, for which they had stocks. However, I was not willing to compromise on my choice of colour - Titan Gray. Both quotes came with hefty insurance. However, one was willing to remove it and let me buy my own insurance, the other was willing to match the price and features of any quote that I share. The bigger and more renowned dealer said the car will be delivered in 3 months and offered a lower discount. The other dealer assured me of a delivery in one month and offered a higher discount. So, the decision was made easy. As promised, the car was available for PDI in a month, and delivered in two days after PDI. This is a car manufactured in April 2024. This car is going to be with me for some time. Hence bought it with 7 years Extended Warranty and 5 years Shield of Trust which covers parts not covered by warranty. A horror story about CVT Failure on Team-BHP also triggered this decision. I gave some specific instructions for delivery:No polishing the car, internal or external, since the car would immediately go for ceramic coating.No dealership stickers on the car.Car to be delivered with a full tank. I would pay Rs 3500 for fuel at the time of delivery (else the car would be delivered with less than 5L of fuel and I would have to run to a pump immediately after delivery).33PSI pressure to be maintained.First three were followed. There was no way to verify the fourth at the time of delivery. The moment I took delivery and went out on the road I could sense something was wrong. The ride felt very stiff, I could feel every undulation on the road as if I was driving on solid tires. I checked the TPMS and all tyres were showing a pressure of 48PSI!! I immediately took the car to my regular garage where I fill Nitrogen, deflated the tyres completely and filled them with Nitrogen at 33PSI (later on I reduced it to 32 and the ride feels much better now).DriveI am driving a car with an NA Petrol engine after 16 years. Last one was an Alto 800 which I sold in 2008. Since then, I have driven the Ford Fusion (Turbo Diesel), Skoda Rapid (Turbo Diesel) and Kia Seltos (Turbo Petrol) and hence used to driving with both power and torque being available at lower revs. I don't remember revving the engines beyond 2500RPM during regular drives. However, this car would rev to 3000+ RPM with the gentlest tap on the accelerator, with no delivery of power or proportional increase in speed. For the first few days, I was almost regretting the purchase and felt I should have gone for a used Turbo Petrol with DCT. However, after a few days, I got the balance. Exactly how much pressure on the accelerator will deliver what kind of results - mental calibration started to form. I must say, it is still a work in progress. However, I am being able to get to 50kmph (which is the max I may be able to drive at in my city drives) at 1500 rpm. I am also getting realistic with my ambitions - this is not my Q3 in which I can do sudden overtakes. Moreover, where is the space to overtake in city drives? I have heard and read a lot of observations about the low bonnet and it not being visible to the driver. However, since I am used to driving cars with much longer bonnets, it is not an issue for me. There is one aspect of the drive that I did not anticipate at all. I don't know if this is the normal nature of any CVT - the concept of engine braking seems to be missing!! I observe this every day. As I go down the ramp from the parking in my building the car just picks up speed even when not accelerated at all!! Every time I have to apply brakes to slow it down. How does someone drive this downhill? The brakes would wear off in one trip to the Ghats!Likes & DislikesThese are a few things I like about the car:Looks! This is the best-looking hatchback in the market, beyond any doubt.Fit and finish.Back Seat space - almost at par with sedans.Seating position - not too low.The BOSE Speakers - simply awesome in a car of this size.The audible reminder to turn on headlightsThese are a few things I dislike:No auto-dimming IRVM. This is expected in a car at this price.The armrest is too low and hence almost useless.Only driver's window button is backlit.The AC is always at very high fan speed in Auto mode.Here are a few photographs of the carAt the time of PDI Soon after delivery After detailing Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Mahindra XUV700 Blaze Edition details leaked!

Mahindra is likely to introduce a new limited-edition version of the XUV700 called the 'Blaze Edition'. The Mahindra XUV700 Blaze Edition comes in a unique exterior colour called 'Matte Blaze Red'. The SUV gets a Napoli Black roof, along with black ORVMs and black alloy wheels. You also get the impression of a floating roofline thanks to the blacked-out B, C and D pillars. The Blaze Edition gets an all-black interior with red highlights. These include red stitching on the seat upholstery, red trims around the centre console and AC vents. The XUV700 is available with two engine options. These include a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine that produces 197 BHP @ 5,000 rpm and 380 Nm @ 1,750-3,000 rpm. The second option is a 2.2-litre diesel that puts out 153 BHP / 182 BHP and 360 - 450 Nm depending on the transmission. Both engines are offered with either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic gearbox. Thanks to BHPian RavenAvi for sharing these images with other enthusiasts!

Clearing a few PDI queries before taking delivery of my new Kodiaq

BHPian dkaile recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I did the final PDI of the Kodiaq yesterday for final delivery on Monday. I have a few queries regarding the same, if buddies here can comment: They did the following PDI jobs on the vehicle The Battery was checked. Battery Test Report. Seems OK? The Engine Oil was checked and was up to his thumb level in the photo Now this is the L&K kit you get FREE with the car which includes Textile Floor Carpet Mats, 2 Rear Lounge Steps, 1 Blanket, Boot Nets, First Aid Kit, and Warning Triangle; Is is OK? And this is the 23k Accessory Pack items - All Weather Floor Mats+Mat over Tunnel, 4 Mudflaps (installed), Document Holder, USB charger and cable, car care kit, Wet tissue wipe, Microfiber cloth, Tissue Box, Car Perfume, Sling Bag, Body Cover (was a surprise as it was not mentioned initially) and 2 Pillows. Is this all OK? They then attached the car to the laptop and some OBD wireless connectors and scanned for any updates. They said there were none. The technician removed the Transport Mode to get all normal functions going. And scanned the car, removed all previous errors due to transport mode, and scanned again, with no errors. Is that all? The mud flaps were properly fitted. The front mud flaps instructions said to drill a hole to insert a plastic lock, which I avoided and just made a small hole with a screwdriver and drove one of the small OE nuts (that were replaced by longer ones in the kit) removed for support. Seems sturdy to me on checking. Also changed AUTO AC profile to HIGH. It was on Medium from the factory. I think all of us should do that immediately for Indian summers. Sorry, forgot to click a picture, will post soon. The AC was chilling just like my Superb on Auto High after that. 1 important point - Now I asked the technician to switch on the Passenger Airbag. He said that it is switched on by default. But when I later checked, the Passenger Airbag OFF light was ON below the AC control knobs on the centre console, when we switched on the car. I checked the passenger door and the slider key was in the OFF position from the factory (Sorry, forgot to take a picture). I along with the Showroom Manager removed the metal key from our remote and changed it to ON position. Now on restarting the car, the Passenger Airbag light on the console switched to ON. Did we do it right? Is that OK and Normal behaviour? Does that light stay ON or go away while driving? Anything else that needs to be done or checked during PDI? Urgent replies will be most appreciated as we have to pick up the car on Monday. Thanks in advance. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

2024 Maruti Suzuki Swift reaches dealership ahead of launch

Earlier this week, Maruti Suzuki opened bookings for the fourth-generation Swift in India. Dealer dispatches have now commenced as the carmaker gears up for the launch. The new-gen Swift was recently spotted at a Maruti Suzuki showroom, allowing us to take a closer look at the new hatchback. The new Swift features a redesigned exterior with a low-slung grille, a clamshell bonnet and a floating roofline. It has large projector headlamps with L-shaped DRLs and LED fog lamps. The new Swift looks quite familiar from the rear. It has wide haunches with clear lens LED taillights and a wraparound rear windshield. This car is equipped with dual-tone alloy wheels. Moving to the interior, the new-gen Swift gets a more driver-focused cabin with a 3-spoke steering wheel, a twin-dial instrument cluster and an upright touchscreen infotainment system in the centre. The 2024 Swift will be offered with a 1.2-litre 3-cylinder mild-hybrid petrol engine that produces 80 BHP @ 5,700 rpm and 112 Nm @ 4,300 rpm. The engine is expected to be paired with a 5-speed manual gearbox and an AMT. Source: @iammharshvlogs

1 year with M'lore's last delivered Octavia: Pros & cons of ownership

BHPian abaliga recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Having completed 1 year since we welcomed our 2023 Octavia L&K 2.0 TSI, I would like to share my ownership experience of this very special car with the esteemed forum members and viewersHighlights:This was the last Octavia delivered in Mangalore! We purchased this car only because it was being discontinued and were not in a rush as our Ecosport was running trouble-free with only 25k on the odometer, Skoda was selling this without any discounts despite the rumours about the discontinuation! I was hardly able to bargain as I was not ready to walk away from buying the car (I knew it was unlikely to be launched again, even if relaunched getting it as a CKD with 2.0 TSI is a fat chance).Car has run only 6K in its first year! too less for my liking, but I have enjoyed every kilometre I have driven it.Extremely well built and worth every rupee we paid for (despite being priced slightly higher than desired, it is hard to find a car that is as good for a budget of 35-40 lakh on-road today).Though looks are subjective, Octavia has a timeless design with a nice 3 box silhouette, something that cannot be beaten by any of the SUVs/Crossovers.Absolutely no issues to report, has proven to be a reliable companion to date(knock on wood), and hopefully, it remains that way throughout my ownership (I do not plan on selling the car for the next 10-12 years)!Extremely high safety standards, has received 5 Stars from Euro NCAP, L&K has 2 additional airbags for rear seat occupants in addition to the standard safety suite.Service Experience:The 1st-year service was uneventful, I was charged around 12k included Oil change (did not get the car washed and declined the wheel alignment), and I did not let the car out of my sight for the entire 3 hours it was at the workshop and was standing outside the workshop door to respect their rules, I had informed the SA to not go on a test drive without me being present, Tafe Access Mangalore honoured my requests without any hesitation.Likes:Minimalistic dashboard design with high-quality bits that should age well (Notwithstanding the piano black inserts that are impossible to keep scratch-free).Sweet powertrain with 190PS and 320 NM of torque that can keep most enthusiasts happy. The only fly in the ointment is the wheel spin and torque steer raising its ugly head when one floors the gas pedal. RS tune for the engine with an AWD would have given a 330i/li a run for its money.Cushy ride quality at higher speeds, Low-speed ride is a bit stiff though, maybe the stock Goodyears are to be blamed.Decent space for folks with an average build, taller folks will find it a bit cramped in the rear seat that is if a person above 5'10 is seated in the front.Retractable sun blinds for rear windows and rear windshield (missing on 3 series).Well-designed digital instrument console with round dials (I hate the new age angled designs!).Powered trunk lid and an accommodating 600-litre boot.Compact turning radius that is shorter than our previous ride (Ecosport), very manoeuvrable for a 4.7m car.Did I mention good fit and finish inside out already? it's hard to find this level of quality for the price I pay these days.DSG performs very well in most situations (97%), at times one can feel the jerks at speeds below 30 km/h as the box is hunting for the right gear to be in, this can be noticed only by keen observers.Neutral handling characteristics (nowhere as fun as our Ecosport was, but that had a harsh ride), the ride and handling balance on the Octavia is appreciated more than the fun we could have on the Ecosport.Very refined overall, NVH levels are very well controlled even at 3-digit speeds, Motor sounds sweet when revved! This is one reason we had to drop the VAG 1.5 TSI cars from contention, I hate the boomy nature of 1.5 TSIs at revs higher than 3.5k rpm and wish VAG sorted this out (their 1.2 TSIs sounded much better at higher rpm too).Ground clearance at 137mm is more than adequate, as long as one is not rushing through speed breakers/potholes, this is easily manageable and the suspension tune does not let the car scrape its belly easily.Full LED headlights and tail lights that look nice when lit up.Ambient lighting for the dashboard gives the cabin a premium vibe.The well-thought-out dash cam port behind the IRVM is a blessing, no warranty issues stemming out of aftermarket installation!Wireless car play and Android Auto are standard.Wireless phone charger is standard as well.Dislikes:Ingress/Egress is a little tricky for seniors, and not as comfortable/easy as some of the monocoque crossovers.Stitching on the seats and the steering is not consistent, and hard to notice, but keen observers can find minor anomalies (I am nitpicking here).Single-digit fuel economy for the most part, the bumper-to-bumper drive will yield only 7-7.5 km/l, one can get a decent 10-12 km/l if the average speed is above 30 within city limits, Highway economy is decent at 15-16 km/l if one is a saint, although we (myself and my dad) have not been able to fetch more than 10-11 km/l on a highway run where one is driving fast (within speed limits), the car gulps fuel if one is slowing down frequently and picking up speed quickly! Turbo petrols are not meant for high-mileage users.The driving range with a relatively thirsty motor and 50 litres tank is limited to about 500 kms (Tank capacity should have been at least 60 litres).205/55 R17 size tyres are skinny, I find the profile and the diameter to be adequate for our roads, but the width should have been 225mm at the minimum! Will need better rubber next time around.The absence of physical HVAC controls is a trend I hate, however, there is an option to add a widget on the home screen of the infotainment for HVAC controls including the blower speed which makes it easier than navigating across menus.Wheelspin on aggressive launches, a typical trait of a front-wheel drive, I feel this dilutes the premium car experience at times.Low beam on the headlights was awful, and this is despite the upgraded headlights for L&K, I got the beams raised a bit during the first service, but have not been able to test whether there is any improvement as yet.Unacceptable cost-cutting measures like not providing ambient light, and soft feel plastics on the rear door pads (although the general quality of door pad plastics is superior all around).I do not mind the absence of a sunroof, but not providing ventilated seats on a car that costs almost 38 big ones is unacceptable.Requirement of minimum 95 Octane fuel, finding this was tricky on our 2200 kms trip from Mangalore to Shirdi, ended up fueling regular 91 Octane fuel 2-3 times, luckily the motor performed well regardless of the octane rating! Availability of good quality high-octane fuel is always on the back of my mind during road trips as some owners have faced issues with this motor being sensitive to fuel quality. Also, the fuel cap says the car is only E10 compliant, God help us if there is no availability of E10 fuel in the country a few years down the line.It was cheap of Skoda to delete the extremely desirable Canton music system and the child lock controls from the driver door! As if these deletions were not enough, Skoda increased the prices subsequently adding insult to injury, I am an audiophile and greatly appreciate quality music, deletion of the Canton system is something I still can't get my head around after owning the car for a year, the stock music system is alright but not great, I guess I will bite the bullet eventually and upgrade the speakers and install a sub.All in all, I am very happy with the purchase, 4th generation Octavia is an excellent offering that can give the luxury German Marques a run for their money! Brand Octavia has been the default choice for enthusiasts who are on a budget, unfortunately for many of them, the car is discontinued as of today, I am hoping this will be re-introduced soon (has to be in the CKD form as it does not make any sense as a CBU!) as this was the car that had established Skoda in India. I would also like to urge Skoda India to manage the lead time required for procuring parts of their CKD options better, Have heard too many stories of delays over 3 months, this is simply unacceptable in a globalized world with a super fast supply chain. And finally, Here are some pictures I have clicked over the past year, please do not mind the quality as all of them were clicked on my phone, Thank you all. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Indian wheat was poised to feed the world. It now grapples to replenish reserves

India's wheat policy requires a comprehensive review to ensure the production and procurement balance is maintained.

Bidens take on Indias economy is both bizarre and bothersome

On the campaign trail, the US President said xenophobia was responsible for stalling economic growth in India, China and Japan. His comment is puzzling, especially in India, which has the worlds fastest-growing major economy and prides itself on inclusivity.

The Go First case: India's insolvency court needs an understanding of aviation

The prolonged delay in Go Firsts insolvency case hasnt helped Indias campaign of ease of doing business in the country

The Godrej split: Brand sharing holds the key

The familys asset division plan has done well to minimize scope for a wrangle over a brand prized for elasticity across markets. Like a Mbius strip, the brand can be splitbut not apart.

Biden is off the mark on xenophobia

US President Joe Biden clubbed India with China, Russia and Japan as countries he claimed were too xenophobic for their own good. Such statements lose him credibility, especially when Americas own vaunted openness seems in such bad shape.

AT&T announces $7 monthly add-on fee for Turbo 5G speeds

AT&T Turbo puts you in a faster lane but requires unlimited data and extra fee.

Best Laptop Deals: Get Big Savings on Lenovo, MacBooks, Acer and More - CNET

It doesn't matter what kind of laptop you're after, you can find some huge savings on them today.

India's mineral production rises 8 pc in Feb

India's mineral output surged 8% in February. The mining index reached 139.6, up by 8%. April-February growth stood at 8.2%. Key highlights include gold production, copper conc growth, and negative growth in iron ore, lead conc.

Bajaj Pulsar NS400 official images leaked ahead of launch

Bajaj is all set to launch the most powerful Pulsar yet on May 3. But official images of the bike have already leaked online. The images reveal a familiar design, adopted from other models in the brand's NS range. The bike has a sporty headlight with lightning bolt-shaped LED DRLs, a muscular fuel tank with extensions on either side with the 'NS' decal and a 2-piece stepped seat. It also has a tiny chin fairing with a '400' decal. The Pulsar NS400 rides on an upside-down fork with a gold finish and a mono-shock at the rear. The bike is fitted with stylish alloy wheels that have a multi-spoke design and a rear tyre hugger. It has disc brakes at both ends. The Pulsar NS400 is expected to use the same 373.3cc single-cylinder engine that powers the Dominar 400, making it the biggest Pulsar ever. It will be paired with a 6-speed gearbox via a slip-and-assist clutch. The NS400 will come with a digital instrument console offering smartphone connectivity and dual-channel ABS, among other features. Thanks to BHPian payeng for sharing these images with other enthusiasts!

India's coal production rises 7.4 pc in Apr to 78.69 MT

India's coal production in April 2024 reached 78.69 MT, with Coal India Ltd contributing 61.78 MT. Captive/others production also increased, leading to a rise in total coal dispatch to 85.10 MT.

Save $50 on Our Top Mini Boom Box Speaker From Anker - CNET

The Soundcore Motion X600 is loud for its size and returns to its best-ever price with this deal.

'Panchayat' season 3 will bring new characters and crazy events, reveals actor Chandan Roy: Details

Actor Chandan Roy, known for his role in Panchayat, shares insights about the upcoming third season, promising it to be filled with crazy events and double the fun compared to previous seasons. The show, directed by Deepak Kumar Mishra and written by Chandan Kumar, features familiar faces like Jitendra Kumar and Neena Gupta.

Future Mercedes-Benz models to ditch next-gen Apple CarPlay

In a recent interview, Ola Kallenius, CEO of Mercedes-Benz, confirmed that the carmaker will not offer the next-generation CarPlay in its future models. Instead, the brand has decided to focus on its own Operating System. Apple, which will introduce its next-generation CarPlay later this year, had initially named Mercedes-Benz as one of the carmakers to receive the software. However, the company CEO has confirmed that they have chosen not to adopt the upcoming CarPlay update in its models. Kallenius described Mercedes' proprietary OS as the central nervous system of the vehicle's software architecture. Mercedes aims to offer a holistic approach, integrating all of the vehicle's functionalities seamlessly, to offer a superior experience, which, as per Kallenius, can only be achieved by the manufacturer itself. Having said that, Mercedes-Benz has confirmed that it will continue supporting the current generation of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on its vehicles. Customers will get the option to choose the platform which best suits their preference. Apple has confirmed that the first carmakers to get the new-generation CarPlay software later this year are Porsche & Aston Martin. Source: TheVerge

2024 Isuzu V-Cross pick-up launched at Rs 21.20 lakh

Isuzu has launched the 2024 V-Cross pick-up truck in India. The updated model is priced from Rs 21,19,900 (ex-showroom). Isuzu has made several changes to the V-Cross for the 2024 model year. The pick-up truck gets a new front bumper guard, engine hood garnish, rear combo lamp garnish, fender lips, and black alloy wheels. Significant improvements have been made when it comes to occupant safety. The V-Cross now features traction control, electronic stability control, hill descent control and hill start assist. It also gets rear seat occupant detection sensors with 3-point seat belts for all three rear seat occupants and a seat belt warning indicator. Speaking of passengers in the rear, the V-Cross is fitted with new rear seats that offer a higher degree of inclination. The new V-Cross is powered by a 1.9-litre, 4-cylinder diesel engine that makes 163 BHP and 360 Nm. The engine is paired with either a 6-speed manual or a torque converter automatic. The pick-up truck is also available with a 4-wheel drive system.2024 Isuzu V-Cross ex-showroom prices:Hi-Lander - Rs 21.20 lakhZ AT 2WD - Rs 25.80 lakhZ MT 4WD - Rs 25.52 lakhZ Prestige MT 4WD - Rs 26.92 lakhZ Prestige AT 4WD - Rs 30.96 lakh

Attended a Radio-Controlled Model Tugboat Gathering

BHPian Jeroen recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I thought some of our members might be interested in this: I visited an RC model event. A couple of times a year they organise a tugboat event. Anybody with an RC tugboat can come and sail it at the club's beautiful little lake! Modelbuilding is a huge industry, with many different models, topics, scales and what have you. There are quite a few people who build model boats. Statis and or floating models. From the very small to the very large. Within that group, the tugboat model boat folks take a very prominent position. Tugboats have always been popular in the Netherlands. In the 30-50s ocean-going tugboat skippers were famous.People would follow their adventures. All long before the internet. This was through talks on the radio and articles in newspapers, magazines, and so on. The Dutch have always been BIG on ocean towage and salvage. For decades there was immense competition between two companies, Smit and Wijsmuller. There was never a job too big, too dangerous, too complex, or Dutch salvage teams managed to succeed. There is even an excellent book, considered proper literature, about this fierce competition and how an independent tug boat captain tried to break into the market. The book is called Hollands Glorie. Dutch Glory. Even today Hollands Glorie still stands for whatever outstanding achievement the Dutch have and or do. So many people are interested and there are several model-built boat kits out there. Many builders will not build a kit, but get hold of the original ship's drawings and build everything from scratch!Whatever, pardon the pun, floats your boat. Here you see part of the club's pond. Pretty big. A huge model of a NedLLoyd container vessel. Not sure if this one is made to sail under its own power, or whether it is there to be towed. This is the Smit Rotterdam. One of the last ocean-going tugs Smit was built in 1974. About 75 meters long it packed 22000 HP. Which made it the most powerful oceangoing towing tug in the world. She had a sister ship, Smit NewYork Seen from above: It is a model kit, provided by the famous brand Billing Boats, www.billingboats.com/index.p...smit-rotterdam Billing boats are always wooden boats. The hull is made up of many ribs and bulkheads and you place small wooden planks horizontally across them. People build them as just a nice static model to be displayed. Or like here, put an RC kit into it. These days that means two individually controlled main engines, a rudder, bow thruster. working radar, towing winch, anchor winch, lights, and engine sounds!! Here something quite different. A proper steam tug, with a real steam engine, all Radio Controlled!! There were a few other types of boats on display as well. Next to towing, dredging is the other thing the Dutch are famous for. So there are people who build model dredgers, that fully functioning.To the best of my knowledge, there are no model kits, so this is all completely hand-built, from drawings, or perhaps even just old photographs. The club puts out these market stalls where everybody can display their pride and joy, when not sailing! This is one of the most popular kits around, the SmitLLoyd 109. I have sailed on her twice. The so-called original 100-Series of SmitLLoyd were very famous in their days. They are so-called suppliers/Anchor Handling Tugs. Extremely robust, and capable of handling ice conditions, with about 14000 HP they were far more versatile than the dedicated oceangoing tugs such as the Smit Rotterdam. Notice the big anchor on the deck. This is an anchor used by an oil rig. The oil rig would be anchored to the sea floor with 10-16 of these anchors. It was the job of vessels such as the 109 to run out those anchors and retrieve them if and when the rig had to be moved. Very tough and very dangerous work! I loved it. As one of the engineers, I would work the winches or help out on deck.Working with the massive anchor chains also involved welding and a lot of cutting with acetylene torches and later plasma cutters. Enter little ol me! On a rolling and pitching deck As I mentioned, a very popular model. Many people have built it, in various forms. Some have used a different model, e.g. 112, or 117. Because they sailed on it, or because they liked it better. All these 100 boats had some small differences from one another. SmitLLoyd and Smit were separate companies for a long time. At some point in time, they merged and the typical SmitLLoyd pink chimneys were painted in the Smit colours. Real SmitLLoyd crews hated it. But it got worse as they ultimately merged with Wijsmuller as well, and the company and ships became known as SmitWijs. Here you see the 109 in original Smit-LLoyd colours and the later and short-lived Smit colours. I liked this cute little tugboat. I chatted to the owner. It is a complete fantasy boat. He built it from all kinds of scratch materials. He has three more like this. But the finish and attention to detail is fantastic!! Also a lot of harbour tugs. Very often Smit harbour tugs. There are a few more harbour tug operators, but Smit has always been the biggest and most famous one. These are the sort of tugs that assist the largest container vessels and tankers in Rotterdam harbour. Look at the detailing, under the waterline as well. I did not see any today, but I know there are RC model tugboats that have proper model Voith Schneider propellers. Here is another oceangoing tug I sailed on, very briefly. It was called Happy Hunter at the time. Again, taken over by Smit. Next to the Smitlloyd 109, the Happy Hunter is probably the second most build model kit. Both are plastic or rather polyester kits. The hull comes in one piece. Even so, building a boat like this is very labour-intensive and it will take hundreds and hundreds of hours. A rough estimate says less than half of the model kits bought are ever finished. You can buy many of these kits, half or less finished at online marketplaces! This particular club, the host of this event, has fantastic facilities, you can see the pond, the jetties and so on. But they also have a roomy clubhouse, workshops, and so on! One of the few Wijsmuller boats out there today. Very nice model. The Wijsmuller boats are often very very pretty This size RC model boat can weigh up to 20-25 kilograms. They all take a lot of weights, just to sit low and correctly in the water. The RC equipment and batteries are not heavy enough by themselves. All these boats have a lot of lead on board! For every 10 minutes of sailing your RC model, it takes 20 minutes of fiddling with the electronics and so on. I love these steam-powered tugs! There is entertainment for the kiddies too. They always have some boats that can be sailed by kids! Lots of very proud owners. Most of them have built their own boats. Some buy them ready-made from others. I have been here before and I usually run into old colleagues. Not today though. There were also fewer boats than usual, not quite sure why. Leaving you with another very nice model!! This is a video from last year, all in Dutch I'm afraid but nice images! Video And another video where you can see some huge models of more modern/current AHTs Video Jeroen Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Why are there no company-owned & company-operated service networks?

BHPian Quicksilver85 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I am curious to understand, why are there no company-owned or company-operated service network in India? I see service quality as one of the aspects which could be a hit or miss with many car ownership experiences shared in this forum. Time and again, I see the same repeated even in Official reviews that sub-par service experience or ASS Horror stories with some OEMs. Also, there are so many threads about dealership frauds/mistreatment/poor service quality etc reported on this forum. Similar to how public sector oil companies like Indian Oil, and Bharat Petroleum claim to operate the so-called COCO (Company Owned & Company Operated) fuel stations which presumably deliver better quality and quantity of fuel to motorists. Why cannot there be say a COCO TATA motors service center or Skoda or Hyundai? Or maybe even premium players with low volume such as Audi and BMW? Are there some regulations that prevent OEMs from operating service networks? Or is the quantum of investment & manpower required to operate such a network that OEMs shy away from? Can someone please some light on this if you are from the automobile sector or have knowledge in this domain? Here's what GTO had to say on the matter:It's a dirty businessOEMs would rather hide behind a dealershipA dealership can do things to maintain profitability (overbilling, upselling, scamming) that an OEM never would / could.Push the liability onto the dealership.Of course, one of the biggest reasons is that OEM CEOs, COOs, heads of marketing etc. are used to talking numbers in the hundreds of crores (if not thousands), sales of thousands of cars etc. They have no interest in dealing with 50 cars a month or revenue of 10 crores/month. It's too small for their ambitions.Here's what BHPian SmartCat had to say on the matter:Probably because all car manufacturers know that if they want to generate decent returns from the automobile service business, they have to take the customers for a ride (Eg: brake pad cleaning, door panel anti-rust coating etc) It is best to let somebody else handle the dirty business.Here's what BHPian Shreyans_Jain had to say on the matter:Tata pioneered this model with its Concorde range of service stations. Hyundai too had tried this, they had a full-fledged company-owned dealership in Delhi. Unfortunately, the model didn't work out. Wasn't profitable in either case.Here's what BHPian IshaanIan had to say on the matter:The problem in India at least, is that in order to offer superior service they would have to reward their staff with better pay so as to ensure professionalism and quality. This would mean much higher labor costs in comparison and that would lead to fewer customers bringing in their cars for service as well as dealer partners being miffed about the company trying to steal customers away from them considering service is where all the money is made.Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Visited the new Payana Vintage Car Museum on the outskirts of Mysuru

BHPian vsrivatsa recently shared this with other enthusiasts.Payana - The Vintage Car MuseumA new Vintage Car Museum opened on the outskirts of Mysuru last week and I had the opportunity to visit this museum along with the family on the way to Mysuru today. This museum has been established by Dharmasthala Dharmadhikari D. Veerendra Heggade and is now open to the public. The structure itself resembles the silhouette of a tyre! Payana - The Vintage Car Museum A zoomed-out view of the Car Museum Intro Flag The museum hosts a huge set of vintage cars on display from brands such as Fiat, Morris, Austin, Mercedes Benz, Willys, Toyota, Citroen and Hindustan Motors. The timings for the museum are from morning 9-00 AM until 8-00 PM in the evening and there is an entry charge of 50 per head for adults and it's free for children up to the age of 12 years. Guidelines The Ticket Counter The Ticket Right at the entrance is placed a car which was used by Dr Veerendra Hegde himself - the Standard Herald: Standard Herald used by Dr Veerendra Hegde during his College Days At the entrance - Evolution of Wheels The most Rudimentary Wheels Spacious Hall Spacious Hall - Additional View Spacious Hall - Additional View Walk away towards the Lower Level Mysuru Maharaja's car - Daimler DE 36 C V Raman's Car - Studebaker ChampionLocation:Payana is located in Brahmaputra which is about 6.5 kms from Srirangapatna Town. If you are coming from Mysuru, then it's about 14 kms from the Mysuru Palace. Continue reading about vsrivatsa's visit to the museum for BHPian comments, insights and more information.

AI-designed 'Turtle' soup unveiled by NotCo to highlight endangered species awareness

Chilean plant-based food company NotCo has developed a urtle soup using artificial intelligence, mimicking the taste of traditional turtle soup without using any turtle meat. This innovative creation aims to raise awareness about the endangered status of turtles. NotCo's AI analyzed numerous plant proteins to replicate the texture and flavor of turtle meat.

USA: All new cars to get automatic emergency braking from 2029

According to media reports, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has made Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) a mandatory safety feature on all new vehicles, starting in 2029. As per the new regulation, all new passenger vehicles sold in the USA & weighing under 10,000 lbs (4,500 kg) should come fitted with the safety tech. The US government implied that the inclusion of AEB in new cars will potentially help save up to 400 lives per year while preventing thousands of injuries. The legislation also states that the automatic braking system should enable a car to stop and avoid collision with the vehicle in front when travelling at speeds of up to 100 km/h; both in day and night conditions. The system should also apply brakes automatically, even at speeds of up to 145 km/h, if it detects that the car is about to collide with a vehicle in front. Also, the AEB system should spot and avoid hitting pedestrians at car speeds of up to 72 km/h. NHTSA states that the new tech will add $84 to the price of a new car. However, the agency will leave the choice of sensors used up to the carmakers. Automakers have till September 1, 2029, to meet the new regulations. Also, low-volume automakers will get an additional year as a grace period. Source: NYTimes

Pre-facelift Tata Nexon Diesel update: 4th service done at 22,400 km

BHPian rnaduthota recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I completed the 4th service for my Cron last Saturday when the ODO was around 22,400. I called my SA, Vijayakumar, a few days before to ensure he was available on that day. I entered the service station around 9:30 in the morning, and within a minute, Vijayakumar attended to me. Since I had no complaints, they performed a general checkup and washing, and I was billed within 90 minutes.By 11 AM, I was out of the service station. Given the horror stories I've heard about Tata's service, I was worried about getting scratched during the service. However, Classic Motors did a wonderful job, and they returned the car spotlessly clean. The service cost around 2K. Overall, I am very happy with my SA and the service station, and I definitely recommend it to others. Some recent pics of Cron.. :-) Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Is hiring just to meet diversity quotas an unfair approach?

Quick-fix recruitment at the base level doesnt always help overcome biases. Nor does it solve a problem of diversity attrition higher up the hierarchy. DEI needs to be a strategic mission.

Dabur explains why rural demand for its brands is growing at a faster clip than urban

FMCG giant Dabur has revealed that it has been investing in expanding its rural footprint which has driven the demand for its brands better by nearly 400 bps than in urban areas, the company said in a media release on Thursday.

EU announces $1 bn in aid for Lebanon to shore up economy, border security

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen announced $1 billion in aid for Lebanon during a visit, aiming to boost the country's socio-economic stability amid a severe economic crisis. The aid will support basic services like education and health. Von der Leyen also urged Lebanon to tackle illegal migration, emphasizing the EU's commitment to legal pathways to Europe while seeking Lebanon's cooperation in preventing illegal migration and combating smuggling. Lebanon hosts around two million Syrian refugees, facing challenges exacerbated by its economic collapse and political turmoil.

One-time Narendra Modi fan, comedian Shyam Rangeela to contest against PM from Varanasi

Originally named Shyam Sunder, he embraced the moniker Rangeela (which means colorful) early in his career. He gained prominence for his impersonations of various personalities, including PM Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi, on the comedy competition show 'The Great Indian Laughter Challenge' in 2017. His exceptional performance earned him a standing ovation from superstar Akshay Kumar, who was a guest on the show.

Self-driving Teslas cant sneak around the US-China silicon curtain

Elon Musks visit to China got Tesla a deal with Baidu, but will it help? The EV race in Asia this year will be won by the cheapest hardware, not the most cutting-edge software.

Indus Towers facing a Rs 60 cr shortfall in collections from Vodafone Idea in Q4

Indus Towers received an additional Rs 360 crore from Vodafone Idea (Vi) for old dues, but analysts note a Rs 60 crore shortfall in collections. Despite this, Indus' trade receivables increased by Rs 430 crore sequentially in Q4FY24, reflecting the delayed collection of Vi's past outstandings, ultimately settled in April.

2024 BMW M4 Competition launched at Rs 1.53 crore

BMW has launched the 2024 M4 Competition M xDrive in India. The updated sports coupe will be imported via the CBU route and is priced at Rs 1.53 crore (ex-showroom). The 2024 BMW M4 Competition gets updated Adaptive LED headlights and new LED taillights inspired by the M4 CSL. The massive kidney grille has been carried over and features a horizontal double slat design with a gloss black finish. An M graphic for the front and rear is available as an option. The M4 is fitted with a carbon fibre roof that helps reduce the centre of gravity. The car rides on M forged double-spoke-style wheels with brake calipers painted in gloss Blue. The M Carbon exterior package includes inserts for the front air intakes, a rear diffuser and a carbon rear spoiler. Inside, the M4 Competition features an M leather steering wheel, M sports seats with Active Seat Ventilation and the BMW Curved Display with OS 8.5. At the heart of the M4 Is the S58 turbocharged 3.0-litre 6-cylinder engine that produces 523 BHP @ 6,250 rpm and 650 Nm @ 2,750-5,370 rpm. The engine is mated to an 8-speed automatic and BMW's xDrive four-wheel drive system. BMW claims the M4 can sprint from 0-100 km/h in 3.5 seconds.

3,000 km with my Virtus 1.0L MT: How it continues to impress me

BHPian neoakshay recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I couldn't stretch for the 1.5 so settled for the 1.0 and it's been fantastic. I recently did Bangalore - Mangalore and on one good stretch the car effortlessly did 160 kmph without feeling strained or nervous. Very stable, planted and comfortable. I'm truly satisfied and now feel the 1.5 would have been dangerous in my hands This car has made me a very smooth and sedate driver and I only let loose on this recent trip just to feel the performance of the car. It really cocoons you with the quiet and comfortable interior and the frankly surprisingly good audio system (without subwoofer). I found that I'm usually driving with very little throttle and a harder input gives a good shove in the right gear. No comparison to the GT's aggressive acceleration, but adequately fun and safer for our unpredictable roads. The only thing I don't like is the slightly metallic rattly sound of this 1.0 engine at lower rpms and the engine honestly doesn't have a soulful sound at all, coming from a NA. I guess it doesn't matter when you're so comfortable and can play your favourite tunes on a long drive. I will hold on to this car for a long time, my previous car Santro lasted 19 years with me and was sold off to a new buyer who was very much happy to receive a car that was cared for in detail and still easily hits 120 kmph without a wobble. Wishing you many happy miles ahead with your GT! My wife finds it funny how excited I still get when I spot a GT and even she now knows how to tell the difference between the 1.0 and 1.5 I'm glad I chose this car and the fact that it's made in India solves the one problem of VW (or most German cars for that matter) - spares availability and cost. This one should be very easy to love and maintain for a decade or more. Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

SM REIT Rules may create around Rs 70,000 crore opportunity for small offices

The capital market regulator Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has announced that it will regulate fractional ownership platforms (FOPs) offering real estate assets through SM REIT.

Trying to predict what the Indian voter will choose: A weathervane job?

Indias anti-defection law made elections about picking political parties more than individual candidates, which in turn has meant which way the electoral hawa or wind blows can make a significant difference to outcomes.

Volvo shows how safe its smallest car is when hit by its largest

According to a media report, Swedish automaker Volvo recently crash-tested its smallest electric vehicle offering, the EX30, by running its largest car, the EX90, into the side of it. The test was conducted at Volvo's in-house crash-test lab to prove a point about the EX30's safety. Volvo stated that the standard of safety in the EX90 is higher than any other model before it. The same was done for the EX30 as well. Talking about the EX30's safety, Volvo stated that the EV protects all its occupants hrough state-of-the-art restraint technology, as well as top-notch structural design that fulfils our ambitious in-house safety requirements - designed to prepare our cars for various real-world scenarios. As per reports, the Volvo EX30 has been designed to disperse all the forces around the structure of the car during an accident. Also, the lower structure on both the EX30 and EX90 are specifically designed to absorb most of the energy in a crash. This results in less damage than you might have expected from the larger car onto the smaller car. Volvo didn't release the interior view of the EX30 either before or after the crash test. However, Lotta Jakobsson, Volvo Cars Safety Centre, mentioned that wo small-sized females sitting on the struck side were well protected in the crash, suffering only minimal injuries. Source: Autoblog

Effect on MG ZS EV's range after 36,000 km and 3.5 years

BHPian doctorjee recently shared this with other enthusiasts. 3 and a half years driving an EV, and at what one might consider the half-life of a typical car in India It started as a gamble, yes, actually a gamble where one gives up the peace of mind of staying with the masses for the peace of mind that comes with driving comfort and saving a few pennies while at it...The biggest question: how will the battery hold up over the years?This is the 2020 Gen 1 model of the MG ZS EV, having a 44.5 kWh battery. At the time of purchase, the car promised 332 km on a full charge. I never really checked if it was true, but a number of online reviewers confirmed that it was very close to the actual numbers (and much better than the Hyundai Kona, which overpromised by a big margin). Also, the mode and style of driving heavily impact the mileage. We typically measure this as km/unit or km/kWh, and I would get anywhere between 5 and 9 depending on how I drive. That equated to a range between 222.5 km and 400.5 km. Some reviewers were even able to extract over 600 km on this model. Lighter EVs can extract much more from the battery, but this vehicle weighs >1600 kgs (for context, an Innova weighs 1730 kgs, a Creta weighs ~1400 kgs). So today I did a practical range test. Home-to-office drive in Mumbai traffic, a mix of city and highway driving. At full charge, the car now promises 324 km (an 8 km or 2% drop since Nov 2020). I started at 8:26 AM (a bit later than usual). It took me ~45 mins to drive from Andheri East to Airoli (21.5 km). Average speed 28 km/h. I drove at ~70 kmph on the entire EEH stretch (that's the speed limit). Efficiency was 8 km/unit. I reached the office with 305 km of range remaining. So, simple math - I was promised 324 km and I will be getting 326.5 km as projected. At an average of 7 Rs per unit of electricity in Mumbai, I have spent

Indian car scene: Dearth of all-new mainstream launches in 2024

GTO recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I'd posted this on the Trivia thread in Jan '24:Here's some trivia = I think Q4 2023 (October to December) was the only quarter that didn't see a single all-new car model launch. We only saw facelifts & the like. On the other hand, the motorcycle world has been on fire Unfortunately, Q1 2024 was no different. Other than Facelifts, Variants & EV versions, the all-new nameplates we reviewed last were the Honda Elevate & C3 Aircross back in August 2023!Since then, we've mainly been reviewing variants, facelifts, ATs, EV versions & a bunch of premium cars (BMW X1, BYD Seal)...the last of which carry very low relevance in terms of market reach or sales volumes due to their 50-60 lakh price.Am surprised we've seen no all-new nameplate in the mainstream segments for almost a year!Take a look at our Official Reviews, sorted by date:Gurkha 5-DoorWrangler Rubicon FaceliftBYD Seal (premium, low relevance)Creta N-LineTigor CNGGLA FaceliftC3 Aircross ATPunch EVCreta FaceliftSonet FaceliftBMW X1 (premium, low relevance, not an all-new nameplate)Safari & Harrier FaceliftsMagnite AMTEQE SUV (1.5 crore car)Compass 4x2 ATNexon EV / FaceliftC40 RechargeGloster BlackstormGLCC3 AircrossElevateHere's what BHPian Carpainter had to say on the matter:I think one of the main reasons being manufacturers are busy making EVs these days and are not looking at new models or even new generation for sometime now. Like how the Amaze has been so long in the market but no new facelift or new generation is on the horizon. Same for Compass, Ciaz etc. to name a few. Toyota has stopped making new cars except the Hycross and all their cars are mostly rebadged Suzukis. Same for Honda with only 3 models up for sale and two of which are already looking old now. Some cars that I can think of that will get facelift or new generation are Swift, Dzire and Fortuner. I think our market has stagnated a little here. Even some of the facelifts are carrying polarizing looks like those from Tata, Mahindra, Hyundai etc. I have a sparingly used 9 years old City and I don't see any car today even below 25 lakh bracket that can replace it for another 10 years. I really miss those D segment sedans. I just don't know why atleast Asian companies like Honda and Toyota don't launch their whole south East Asian range of models here. They launch so many variants in countries like Thailand, China, Malaysia etc but only a couple of models here in India with much bigger volume. I don't know how selling say 100 units of 2 models is more profitable than say selling 10 units of 10 different models each. They already share their platform and equipment but multiple models keep the customers happy and help retain a customer longer. I just don't understand their mathematics here.Here's what BHPian CentreofGravity had to say on the matter:You're right. And with upcoming launches like the Toyota Taisor, Mahindra XUV3XO (launched recently), Altroz Racer, Nexon CNG, Thar Armada and Magnite facelift, we're gonna see more variants and facelifts. However, the future isn't entirely bleak. We'll have all new models like the Maruti Swift, Dzire, Citron Basalt and Tata Curvv in the near future and cars like the Maruti EVX, Mahindra BE range, Kia Clavis and EV9, Renault Duster and its Nissan counterpart later on. The period so far may have been boring, but the future seems excitingHere's what BHPian Samba had to say on the matter:My hunch is, manufacturers are not clear about the future of cars. Whether the Indian govt will emphasize higher ethanol petroleum, EV or Hybrid or Hydrogen fuel, or even a diesel engine with some new emission norm! Till they get clarity, they are playing safe and updating the current models and engines rather than investing in a whole new model or engine. The positive part is, that some of the facelifts are worth it, the changes are substantial, not just mere cosmetic changes. Till the manufacturers get clarity about the future these facelifts are welcome.Here's what BHPian smartcat had to say on the matter:Most cars sold by manufacturers have a lifecycle of 6 to 8 years, before being replaced by a new model. Perhaps coincidentally, last year was such that no new model was due for replacement. Or perhaps introduction of new models have been delayed by X months due to internal issues (rather than market outlook). After all, development of a new model has a longish gestation period.Here's what BHPian Axe77 had to say on the matter:Perhaps we should also see this as cyclical? We're a market where we have really have only 5 major / volume manufacturers (Maruti, Tata, Mahindra and Korean siblings) with even Toyota and Honda operating on the fringes and the many others brands sitting below even those two. So first and foremost its a consequence of the market having a relative lack of depth and range to start with in the volumes segment. Seeing the high number of launches in June 2022 - 2023, perhaps its not unusual that there were relatively less number in the following 12 months and its only by 2025 / 26 might see an uptick? I'm referring to mainstream models here of course - the sub 30 - 40 lakh segment - cars need to run their ordinary course life cycle out and maybe we're seeing a bunching up where such updates are not immediately due. My back of the envelope sense is the next wave of launches will come around 2025 - 26, which will see a mix of EVs and strong hybrids being offered respectively. Of course regular end of life cycle updates will continue in ICE too but the former is where perhaps the action will pivot to. The shift in dynamics between EVs and strong hybrids is also relatively recent so I do expect a slight lull before manufacturers figure out how they want to focus their strategy and energy. We're already seeing mainstay players like Hyundai, who had previously declared ambitious EV plans, now also speaking of a parallel strong hybrid strategy too. These kind of strategy shifts will also impact roll out timelines to account for the necessary lead in time.Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

2024 Harley-Davidson range launched starting at Rs 13.39 lakh

Hero MotoCorp has launched the 2024 Harley-Davidson range in India. A total of 10 bikes will be available in India priced between Rs 13.39 lakh and Rs 41.79 lakh (ex-showroom). On the lower end of the price spectrum are models like the Nightster, Nightster Special and Sportster S. These are priced at Rs 13.39 lakh, Rs 14.09 lakh and Rs 16.49 lakh, respectively. Harley-Davidson offers four models in the Rs 20-30 lakh price bracket. These include the Fat Bob 114, Pan America Special, Fat Boy 114 and Heritage 114. Besides these, the recently updated Street Glide and Road Glide models have been introduced priced at Rs 38.79 lakh and Rs 41.79 lakh, respectively. Both models get the updated version of the Milwaukee-Eight 117 V-twin engine with a new cooling system, revised intake and exhaust ports and tweaked suspension. The Breakout 117 has been reintroduced in the Indian market at a price of Rs 30.99 lakh (ex-showroom).

Mahindra XUV 3XO : Our observations after a day of driving

Driving the Mahindra XUV 3XO 1.2L Turbo-Petrol GDi 6-speed AT1.2-litre turbo-petrol engine with gasoline direct injection (GDi) produces 129 BHP @ 5,000 rpm and 230 Nm @ 1,500-3,750 rpm. It is mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission: Mahindra introduced the 1.2-litre turbo-petrol GDi engine back in 2022 with the XUV300 TurboSport Series. The engine was available only with a 6-speed MT and was pitted as a performance variant which, in a way, it was. It was the fastest turbo-petrol car in its segment, but it didn't have a proper automatic gearbox. With the XUV 3XO, Mahindra has rectified that by offering the 3rd-generation 6-speed Aisin-sourced automatic transmission for its turbo-petrol engines. The 3-cylinder turbo-petrol engine is an all-aluminium unit which has the exhaust manifold integrated into the cylinder head. The GDI system has an injection pressure of up to 250 bar and the engine also has an over-boost function that gives it a momentary peak torque of 250 Nm. Driving the XUV 3XO petrol AT is a smooth experience. This 1.2-litre turbo-petrol GDi engine is a very likeable motor and packs a serious punch. Direct comparisons will be drawn to the 109 BHP turbo-petrol MPFI engine and the GDi unit is more linear with its power delivery and also packs more punch. The petrol engine with the 6-speed AT is smooth and city-friendly. Off the line, the throttle response is linear and at low speeds, the turbo lag is masked well by the automatic transmission. The driveability at low speeds is good and you'll appreciate it even more while driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic. With a light foot on the accelerator, you can navigate through city traffic effortlessly without any unnecessary spikes in power delivery. We'd recommend being in the Zip (Eco) mode for a smoother driving experience. As mentioned earlier, the turbo-petrol packs a punch and has a strong mid-range. Power comes in strong at just above 1,500 rpm and you can make those quick overtakes in the city. Out on the open road is where you can flex your right leg for the XUV 3XO to stretch its legs. With 129 BHP on tap, you will reach the 100 or 120 km/h mark without even realising it. There's enough power available for overtaking with ease and covering good ground quickly. The engine's marked redline is 5,500 rpm which is low, but something that's not uncommon with turbo-petrols. This is not a high-revving engine and in kickdown mode, you will see the shifts happening at ~5,000 rpm. The engine is also relaxed when cruising at highway speeds and you will see it spin at 1,900 rpm at 100 km/h and 2,200 rpm at 120 km/h in the 6th gear. As we have seen in the past with Aisin gearboxes, the 6-speed torque converter unit in the XUV 3XO is also butter-smooth in its operation. The shifts are barely noticeable while driving in the city with a light foot. You'll have to pay attention to the change in engine noise to pinpoint when the shifts happen. This isn't a fast-shifting gearbox, but it's not slow either. Response times are acceptable for day-to-day driving and even when driving spiritedly, the gearbox manages to keep up well. In certain situations, when driving hard, you might feel that the gearbox is getting confused, but those instances are few. The gearbox does a satisfactory job for the most part. In the city, the gearbox feels eager to drop down gears when off the throttle to make sure that the rpm doesn't drop too low and the engine stays in the power band. There's a manual mode, but it's not very intuitive and most owners would prefer letting the electronics do the shifting for them. Unfortunately, there are no paddle shifters which some enthusiasts would love to have. Like some of the other Mahindra cars, you have 3 driving modes called as Zip, Zap and Zoom (hilarious name selection)- Zip Mode: This is essentially the Eco driving mode in which throttle response is dulled. You can use this mode while driving in the city as it makes the experience smoother. On the highway, you can use this mode for cruising and some overtakes as well. But if you want to overtake quickly, you'll be better off switching to other modes. Zap Mode: This is the Normal mode. It strikes a perfect balance between the other two modes and you can use it for your daily driving in the city as well as on the highways. Zoom Mode: When you're in the mood for some spirited driving, you should switch to this Zoom mode. Throttle response is the sharpest in this mode and the car feels very eager to your inputs. The steering weighs up in this mode, but not as much as enthusiasts would prefer. Using this mode in the city isn't advisable as the driving experience is too jerky.Noise, Vibration & Harshness (NVH)Mahindra has added panel damping to improve the NVH. They claim that with the improvements in the NVH package, the XUV 3XO's cabin will be as quiet as the XUV700's cabin. The engine is quiet at idle and you don't feel any vibrations in the cabin. On the move, the wind noise is well controlled. Road noise starts to creep into the cabin at 100 km/h. The audio system comes with a feature called as VNC++ that automatically adjusts the loudness to maintain tonal balance against the road noise.Mileage & Fuel EconomyThe Mahindra XUV 3XO comes equipped with Zip driving mode (Eco) and also an idling start / stop system that helps improve fuel efficiency. The claimed fuel economy of the 1.2-litre turbo-petrol GDi engine with the 6-speed MT and 6-speed AT is 20.1 km/l and 18.2 km/l, respectively. The other turbo-petrol engine with 109 BHP (MPFI) has a claimed fuel economy of 18.89 km/l with MT and 17.96 with AT. The 1.5-litre diesel engine has a fuel economy of 20.6 km/l with the MT and 21.2 km/l with the AMT.SuspensionRide ComfortThe XUV 3XO uses an independent MacPherson strut suspension at the front and a semi-independent twist beam suspension at the rear. There are some changes compared to the XUV300. You get a rebound stopper in the top strut mount to reduce the impact forces. At the rear, the span between the springs is the highest in the segment (1,108 mm) which improves the roll stability. Importantly, the dampers now get Mahindra's MTV-CL technology which stands for Multi-Tune Valve with Concentric Land. Essentially, it fine tunes the damping force by controlling the fluid through piston valves. At low speeds, the ride quality is compliant and mature. There is an underlying stiffness to the ride, but it's not uncomfortable by any means. The 17-inch rims add to this. Small bumps are absorbed well and the suspension does its work quietly. Larger potholes do register themselves in the cabin sharply. Like most Mahindra cars, the setup also feels rugged and abuse-friendly. You can manage to get away with carrying some extra speed over a rough patch or a speed breaker. Overall the ride is compliant and most owners will be happy with the XUV 3XO's suspension setup.Handling & DynamicsA unique aspect of the XUV 3XO is its footprint. It has a long wheelbase and the front & rear tracks are wide too. This gives the XUV 3XO a very stable stance and that is very much evident in the handling of the car. At highway speeds, the ride improves and the car is stable with very little vertical movement. Expansion joints and minor undulations do not make it unstable and passengers are comfortable even in the rear seat. Get into the twisty bits and you will appreciate the handling characteristics of this chassis. The car remains composed in slow and fast corners. Even changing directions from one corner to another is a smooth affair and you won't have any scary surprises. The handling is very predictable and you can carry a good amount of speed into corners without feeling nervous. The 215/55 Goodyear Assurance tyres on our test car provided a good grip.SteeringThe Mahindra XUV 3XO's steering is one of the biggest drawbacks in an otherwise capable dynamics package. It was a weak link with the pre-facelift car and it remains the same on this one. The steering is too vague for any kind of feedback and feels dead in the centre. It almost feels like an arcade steering. It weighs up as you gain speed and in Zoom mode, but it still isn't enough. When pushing the car on twisty roads, you will want more feedback when turning into a corner. On the flip side, the steering is very light and easy to use in the city and while parking.BrakingAll variants of the XUV300 come with all-wheel disc brakes, ABS + EBD. Mahindra has also added the same ESP tech (ESP 9.3) from the XUV700 in the XUV 3XO. Emergency braking manoeuvres are handled well by the car and it comes to a stop without any drama. They perform well in day-to-day driving conditions. That being said, the bite is quite sharp. We would've liked the pedal to be a little more progressive. Continue reading the discussion on the Mahindra XUV 3XO on our forum.

Honda Elevate fuel efficiency on a 1500 km road trip

BHPian akhilshenay recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I recently completed a road trip from Trivandrum to Chennai and back in the Elevate. ODO is now ~6500.Route: Trivandrum - Nagercoil - Tirunelveli - Madurai - Vilupuram - ChennaiThe route has 4/6 lane highway except for a 40km stretch between Parassala & NagercoilDistance: 765km One wayTolls: ~1200 one wayTravel duration: ~13 hrsMileage: 15.6 kmplCan easily get 20 kmpl if driven at 80kmph. I was cruising mainly at 110 kmph. The range of 110-120 kmph felt comfortable, and I occasionally reached up to 130 kmph. However, I became less confident beyond that speed, especially considering I was travelling with a toddler. Attaching some of the pictures from the trip. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

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How To Reduce Heart-Attack Risk During Gym Workout

4th-gen Maruti Swift engine & fuel efficiency details out!

Maruti Suzuki is all set to launch the fourth generation Swift in India later this month. The carmaker has opened its order books but has yet to release details of the India-spec Swift. While we do know that the new Swift will be offered with Maruti Suzuki's new Z Series engine, a leaked document sheds more light on the technical details of the new engine. The 2024 Swift will be powered by a 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder petrol engine paired with a mild-hybrid system. It produces 80 BHP @ 5,700 rpm and 112 Nm @ 4,300 rpm. The engine is expected to be paired with a 5-speed manual gearbox and an AMT. In comparison, the outgoing version is slightly more powerful. It uses a 1.2-litre, 4-cylinder engine that develops 89 BHP @ 6,000 rpm and 113 Nm @ 4,400 rpm.2024 Maruti Suzuki Swift fuel efficiency:According to the leaked document, the claimed fuel efficiency of the manual version is 25.72 km/l, which is 3.34 km/l higher than the outgoing version. Source: V3Cars

Brought home a 2024 Nexon DCA : 4 pros & 4 cons post 1,000 km

BHPian RPRIME95 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Been a while since I wrote my first ownership thread - Lola is home - My TVS Apache RR310 BS6 ownership review That particular purchase was made in August 2020 and brought home in September 2020. Since then, I have completed my P.G.D.M and moved to Pune for a new job opportunity. Within a year, Pune's renowned traffic made one thing very clear. The RR310 was not a bike that should be used daily in stop-go traffic. Add in the dry weather and well, I never would have thought I would miss 'sweating' as much as I did. And so began the itch for something with a roof, that is large enough to house my healthy frame comfortably and be spacious yet compact. Stage 1 - The Deliberation For a quick backstory, my family already owns a car. It is a Tata Tiago XTA (2017). And I love that car. It's peppy when required, the AMT is great and the handling is the crown jewel. Honorable mention to the splendid Tata suspension. The only problem for me, it's small size which makes it uncomfortable for long drives. So I knew I had to go up. The search area was quite clear. Start from Punch/Altroz/i20 and go up to Creta/Seltos if needed. But what I did not anticipate was the seating position and comfort in some of these cars. Let us look at them one by one. Disclaimer: I was looking for an automatic only. No Manual. Any type of Automatic was ok for me. 1. Tata Punch This was a no-brainer at first. Has a newer ALFA platform than the Tiago, is taller, comes loaded with features, and the top automatic variant is priced under 12 lakhs OTR. Looks like the perfect buy on paper, but the reality is quite different. Test drove the top variant with a sunroof and it was not a problem. I had more than sufficient headroom and a good view out of the windscreen. The driving felt pretty similar to the Tiago, just taller. However, it lacked that cohesive feel from the interior. The infotainment looks too small, the center console looks like Tata forgot to add it until very late in the process and the door trim abruptly ending midway looked like an afterthought. Hence the Punch lost its lustre in my mind and I took it off the board. 2. Hyundai i20 N Line Why not the standard i20, you may ask? For the price, it has less overall features than the Altroz and does not look any better. This is where the N Line shines. Smashing paint scheme (especially in Thunder Grey), loaded with features and a fantastic engine-gearbox combination. Only 2 issues here. The price is the same as mid-spec variants of C-SUVs and the center console interferes with the left knee. Deal breaker right there. 3. Tata Altroz Originally, this was my first choice before the Punch. The only reason it is down at number 3 is the absence of an automatic in the iTurbo variants. Test drove a dealer vehicle as well as a colleague's car, recently purchased. Both were 1.2 NA Automatic. Two words, butter smooth. The only issue was the infotainment. But there was hope. Tata had shown the Altroz racer at the Auto Expo with the large infotainment screen. The only reason I need to wait it out. But days turned into months without any indication of a launch date or even spy shots of a test mule. Still held hope until it's bigger brother broke cover. 4. Hyundai Venue N-Line Great car, fantastic engine-gearbox, cool points for ADAS Level 1 and fabulous paint scheme. The downsides? Too much chrome on the exterior, severely lacks features and very cramped interiors. 5. Tata Nexon Facelift Tata just pulled out the rug from under its rivals at the launch. I was following it on Carwale website when a particular detail caught my eye. 10.25inch customizable instrument cluster with Navigation display? Brain immediately went 'Audi'. I know Mahindra already had a version of it on their XUV7OO, but this felt something else. Then the variant list came out. And the top two almost immediately eliminated all consideration of any other car. Only the Sonet facelift was pending. Did not have much expectation from it. Boy, was I wrong. Nevertheless, the Nexon was decided and pre-booked. Adrenaline was high until prices were out. The facelift was almost 2 lakhs pricier than the outgoing Red Dark edition. Yes the DCA was carrying a hefty penalty but this was quite a large sum. Only then I realised, I had to save up. Everything this size was similarly priced, even though less equipped. The plan was shelved. 6. Kia Sonet The launch of the facelift brought me back. By this time, I had saved up more and received a good yearly bonus. Test drove the GT Line and was blown away. This car felt like a segment above. Interiors were amazing, the engine-gearbox was fantastic as before and the overall quality of fit and finish was great. Price was also in the same league as the Nexon with similar features. Space was a bit cramped but something I could live with. Not a deal breaker. This time, the company/dealer policy turned me away. For reference, the actual car costs less than the top spec Nexon. But you have to get about Rs. 25000 accessories as minimum with the actual amount quoted of Rs.40000. I dislike too much chrome and unnecessarily expensive mats, visors and so on. That 40k would have been grudgingly paid and I did not want that. 7. Hyundai Creta/Kia Seltos Great cars with their own minor niggles. I felt the dashboard was too low in the facelifted Seltos and lowering my seat did not help. As for the Creta, my cousin owns one and I have driven it on multiple occasions. Never gelled with the car and the test drive confirmed the same. Add in the fact that the only Automatic variants available were either CVT or iMT, the size and features did not justify the extra investment. Stage 2 - The Decision At this point, it was clear that the 2 best options were the Kia Seltos and the Tata Nexon. Both had the right feature set, were priced within 10-15k of one another and the overall reviews for the service and sales were on par with others. An important thing to remember at this point is that I was not looking to buy the top variant of either car. I was comfortable with an AMT so my initial enquiry was for the Creative+ AMT variant of the Nexon and the HTX DCT of the Sonet. Here the Nexon had better features but the Sonet had the edge on the interior. Test drove both and both were similar. Neither blew me away or let me down. But one thing became clear, it did not feel special. So I started to look at the top variants and their pricing. Here the Sonet was at a disadvantage since the Sunroof was not optional plus the fact that Kia was unwilling to quote me a price without accessories. One point in Kia's favor though, their insurance includes some great add-ons, even if the quoted price is on the higher side. Anyone buying a Kia should try and negotiate there for a better deal. Anyway, the Nexon could be specced without a Sunroof at the top end, so I was leaning towards it although it was sad that I would miss out on the JBL speaker system with the Subwoofer. The only question that remained was finances. A loan was necessary as I am also planning to purchase a home soon. So out came the calculator app. Thankfully the difference in EMI from my original amount for the Creative+ and the new amount for Fearless+ was only around 1.8k since the downpayment was staying the same. That sounded good to me and a quick calculation confirmed it to be within the monthly budget. It was decided. A Tata Nexon Fearless+ would be joining the garage. The only decision remaining, perhaps the most important one, was the choice of color. There are 4 shades on offer - White, Grey, Red and Purple. White was stunning but too common so it was out. The Grey was a bit too dark than what I would have liked plus I had seen a few on the road and it was honestly not that appealing. So it came down between Red and Purple. My RR310 is also Red, so that was a disadvantage from the start and Purple was the halo color, which meant a lot of people would be buying that. Fearless Purple Colour Other colours available for Fearless variants This tumbling went on for a few days until one random moment caught me. My first bike was a Brilliant Blue Bajaj Discover 100T. The second one was a Racing Red RR310. How great it would be to get my car in a color that was an almost perfect mix of the two. Fearless Purple (yes that is what they call it) was set in the heart and soon on the booking sheet. A Fearless Purple Tata Nexon Fearless+ (one too many 'fearless' in there) was coming home. Stage 3 - The Purchase With all decisions done, popped down to the 'good' Tata dealer and made my booking. They offered a test drive once again, which I promptly accepted. They, however, did not have Fearless+ (without a sunroof) with them and upon asking why, all I got was the fact that it is not as popular as Fearless+ S or just Fearless S. Hence Tata refused to send out a TD vehicle. While it would have been good to drive the exact variant, I understand that Tata has to prioritize and not send every variant as a TD vehicle. This however planted a seed of doubt about the manufacturing of the car and what exact car would I be allotted. As soon as the booking was done, the loan guy came up, shared his number, and sent the list of all required documents. The interest rate was between 8.8% and 9.1% depending on the bank and my CIBIL score. I started to research and having informed my parents, they suggested taking the loan with our bank, which we had a banking relationship with for over 30 years now. They were also offering an interest rate of 8.5%, which sounds good on paper but is practically useless as I found out later. But at the time I got swayed and started the loan process. By this time I had already collected and scanned all required documents, so I sent them over. I was hoping that our existing banking relationship would result in a smooth loan process and approval, but boy was I wrong. An important detail here is that I stay in Pune, but the branch local to my family is in Palghar. Logistics became a hassle. Sometimes the bank would accept virtual documents, other times they demanded a physical copy. Not to mention all the stamp papers and forms I needed to sign. This meant an unplanned trip home. I also had to pay the down payment before, since the bank refused to sanction the loan until they saw a payment receipt for the same. It was about this time I regretted not taking the loan from the dealership. Probably would have gotten the car a week early. Signed everything, got it all approved, and came back. Surprisingly, the car had also arrived. And what a huge sigh of relief after analyzing the chassis number. Manufactured in March 2024. Could not ask for anything more. Scheduled a PDI for the next day. As expected, the car was not clean but I could still see all the panels (with a torch of course). The car had no fuel so driving it was out of the question. Carried the TeamBHP PDI checklist with me and everything was in order. I also managed to get a good deal on the insurance. Opted for HDFC Ergo General Insurance with the following add-ons: Zero Depreciation, Engine and Gearbox Protection, Return to Invoice, Consumables Protection, and Roadside assistance. Was originally quoted Rs.74,000 for the same without any add-ons. They gave an Rs.20,000 discount to sweeten the deal. But I managed to get a quote from the HDFC Ergo website and they matched it. The final quote was Rs.46,279 with the add-ons. One new thing I learned was that the instrument cluster cannot be navigated if fuel is below reserve level. Weird quirk but something to keep in mind. I signed off on the car and asked the bank to disburse the loan amount. The dealer started the registration process almost immediately after they received the funds and a tentative delivery was set for 27th March 2024. I also confirmed some accessories. The regular stuff like mats, mud flaps, air freshener, and so on. I also opted for a body coating, engine coat, and 3M underbody coating. All totaled around Rs.18,500 after the discount. The total breakdown is as follows :Ex-showroom price - Rs.14,29,990RTO - Rs.1,78,081TCS at 1% - Rs.14,299Insurance - Rs.46,278Fastag - Rs.600Extended Warranty - Rs.22,000Accessories - Rs.18,500Total OTR Price - Rs.17,09,749Final Stage - Taking DeliveryOriginally I planned to take delivery on 9th April, when we celebrate Gudi Padwa (Marathi New Year) as it is one of the most auspicious days for us. This was based on a timeline of 30 days to delivery from booking. However, the car came to the stockyard in a week which caused a lot of hurry in getting everything cleared. And I did not want to keep the car with the dealer any longer than necessary. So the date was changed to 28th March, which also happened to be an auspicious day for us. But since I had work and could not take a day off, I asked for the earliest possible delivery i.e. 11 am. However, my luck being the great opportunist it is, I was running approximately 30 minutes late. Which delayed everything as other deliveries were also planned in the showroom and since they had only 3 bays, I had to wait. This particular dealer has a unique delivery experience. Their location does not allow them to host grand reveals and rollouts so they do all the fanfare at the showroom along with document handover. Then they take you to the stockyard where they have 3 delivery bays and everything else needed to hand over the car. While this would not be an issue as such, the entry-exit road to the stockyard is smaller than a 1BHK in Mumbai. How they deliver a Safari is a question I have been pondering ever since the PDI. Plus the delivery area, while airy has no lighting to speak of. So inspecting the car was a task and a half. But all looked good except for the missing neck pillows I ordered. They were out of stock so I was told they would be given later. Not a problem as it was an optional item for me anyway. Garland and all was fixed, number plates attached, and pooja done. All within about 30 minutes. Fantastic!! I checked the tire pressures, corrected them, started the car, checked all the displays and functions, took the customary photo with the key (small and large), and off I went. I feel very fortunate to say that both my acquisitions have been painless deliveries and I was in and out within an hour and a half. Dropped off the SA back at the showroom since I had to go there anyway and headed straight for a fuel pump. After a nice helping of Power95 from HP, drove out, pulled over shortly, threw some air punches , and went back home after. Had to return to office so did not have much time to admire the new ride. That duty rested with the next couple of days, a long pleasant weekend. Photos from delivery Photo of the car just after arriving for delivery First delivery photo The 'actual' delivery photo One for the memories The Accessories Game I had a wishlist created on Amazon after I booked the car. Had added some important and some want-to-have items. The ones I would need immediately were a good washer fluid concentrate, screen guards for the displays, and a protective layer for the door handle cavity. I wanted to get a separate tire inflator but since I could not use the bike and car simultaneously, I decided to stick with the same one I already owned. Also grabbed a key skin since I dislike key covers extensively and a custom keychain. I thought of getting a boost pack and jumper cables but with a new car, I could hold off on those for at least a year or two. All of the above was applied to the car early next morning (couldn't sleep). Then my OCD kicked in and I removed all the plastic seat covers and celebratory ribbons. Then folded them up nicely and stowed them away in the boot. If anyone has a link to a good OBD2 scanner tool that they have personally used, do send a private message. I would like to have one for contingencies. Now some of you might be thinking, did he miss buying a dashcam? Well yes and no. I had pre-ordered a dashcam from a company called Woodman. Renowned for their infotainment units. It was dual-channel, FHD front and 720p rear at just Rs. 6500 and they claimed it was made in India. Well, I was bound to make one mistake and this was it. Immediately after it was delivered, I noticed that it was Made in China (not an issue but would like to have known beforehand) and the rear camera was a heavy, metal-bodied external unit designed to be mounted as the sole backup camera. The mount was very flimsy and I was sure it would get dislodged within a few weeks since it used screw hinges on either side for sturdiness. And the worst part, the company claimed that a hard-wire kit was free but failed to mention that it was the only power apparatus you would get. There was neither a 12V car charger nor a spare USB power cable. At this point, I am fuming. Thankfully one of my colleagues wanted this camera and didn't mind the hardwire-only solution. So I sold it to him and ordered a 70mai A500 Pro Plus, which I should've done in the first place. Also got an emergency seatbelt cutter-window hammer combo from AmazonBasics. Preliminary driving impressions (500 km) I had a chance to go up to Wai near Mahabaleshwar for a long drive and the below impressions are based on that LikesBuild Quality - Doors shut with a nice thud and the cabin is cozy enough to make you feel safe yet not claustrophobic.Interiors - Almost every control you need is an arm's length away. The touch points are mostly soft-touch materials and everything else is hard plastic. The seats are very comfy for me (I am over 6 feet tall) and everything is visible clearly. I can also sit behind myself comfortablyFeatures - The infotainment screen is nice and slick, as is the instrument cluster. Speakers are just fantastic and no other car comes close in audio quality. 360 camera is amazing.Powertrain - Smooth, Torquey and Quick. Vibrations are controlled nicely and there is very little noise during normal driving. Road noise is also insulated properly and only concrete roads come through slightly.DislikesTouch Controls - They are incorrectly executed and the lack of a separate display for the AC only exacerbates the issuePowertrain - Turbo lag is evident since you are pulling about 150-200 kg more than the Altroz with the same power. Also the engine revs to just 5,500rpm at redline. Could have been higher. The gearbox complicates matters. It feels like a 5-speed DCT with overdrive gears on both ends. 1st is too short and 7th is lethargically long.Drive Modes - I found Eco mode to be the best for city usage. City mode is great for making a quick getaway from a signal and on mild inclines. Sport mode is too twitchy (probably due to the first gear) and should be reserved only for overtaking.Fit and Finish - It feels as if the QA/QC tested 95% of the car and signed off. While the remaining 5% does not affect the car's ability, it hampers the perception of the car and the brand. When the market evolves to a higher standard, this will become a huge issue.An important detail to note here is that the cluster is actually 9.6 inches across and not 10.25 inches. This might be the reason most reviewers have complained about the font size. Having driven both the new Sonet and Nexon back to back, the font is the same size but the screen is not. It feels okay to me and is as crisp as the infotainment unit. Overall a great place to spend long distances in. Is the performance more than adequate? Yes. Is it smooth? Yes. Will it feel like the Hyundai or Volkswagen twins? No. But at this price point and feature set, it doesn't have to. Now comes the great question, Kitna deti hai?. My SA and everyone else told me not to expect any magic until after the first service. They were somewhat true. Overall my first 500 km gave me a total of 12.1kmpl (City + Highway). Not great not bad. Let's see what the next 500 km has in store. Overall, a solid 9/10 for the car. Deducting one point for the famous Tata niggles and service experience. Why only one point, you may ask? While it is not perfect, I have personally seen worse clown shows in brands regarded highly for service experience and fit-finish. Hence I will reserve final judgment until after the first paid service. For a more detailed review, I would direct you all toward the official Team-BHP review of the Nexon facelift here. Are these problems or just niggles? Let's discuss a few niggles I have observedGlovebox - It takes a royal 53 seconds for the glovebox to fully open on its own. I timed it since it was starting to piss me off. Will have it checked during the first service.Auto Headlamps - Quick to turn on, lazy to turn off. The 'ON' trigger is very low and sometimes the lights come on if you pass under a sufficiently large tree. On the other hand, the 'OFF' trigger is ridiculously high. you could be in direct sunlight but you are facing away from the sun, it takes a while for the lights to turn off. The problem? All the interior lights dim and you cannot see much at a glance since the dim light makes the white lettering illegible under moderate sunlight.Monostable shifter - Needs the safety switch pressed to engage any drive mode. You can return to Neutral without it. But best advised to use the switch at all times. The issue is with the design. While it looks fantastic, one cannot grip it as confidently as a traditional gear stick. Which makes you lose pressure on the safety switch and the car then refuses to shift. Needs some time getting used to.Steering switches - The toggles on the steering are a hassle for anyone who's driven anything else with steering controls. They have square edges, a smooth metallic finish, and a weak center spring. Which translates to accidentally pressing the button more often than toggling it. It is quite frustrating for someone with large hands like myself. Might get used to it, might not.Auto up-down driver window - No idea who wrote this piece of code, but that person was probably angry at Tata. There is no definite pattern as to how it works. If I figure it out, Ill let you guys know.Front passenger wiper - You cannot, and I mean you cannot lift the passenger side wiper without damaging the hood. Firstly, it is blocked by the hood when closed. If you somehow manage to pull it up, it rests on the edge with considerable pressure. I already have some scratches on there. Not sure if this is just with my car or a wider problem but it is outstandingly stupid. Will get it checked in the first service.Aside from point 6, nothing on the list screams bad engineering. Can I live with all of these? Yes. However, the question most people ask is, do I have to? This I feel is a personal choice and most petrolheads choose to look away. But everyone else is fine and the sales numbers show it. The Verdict For me, the Nexon ticked most boxes right. I have established that it is not perfect at all and I presume that I will experience even more niggles over the next 4-5 years of ownership. Does that mean I regret my purchase? Absolutely not. I would still recommend anyone who is shopping within 18 lakhs OTR to have a look at this car. Maybe they like it, maybe they do not. But will it tick enough boxes for them to pull the trigger? Yes it will. Which is exactly what the Nexon is made for. Jack of all trades, master of very few. Tata knows it has a long long road ahead of it to be anywhere near the likes of Hyundai, Volkswagen, and Suzuki. But they also know what Indians value at their core. Hence it should be no surprise when the Nexon sells as much as it does. The modern-day more car per car. For anyone who has decided on the Nexon but is unsure whether to go ahead or not, just do it. I am looking forward to many thousands of kilometers with Ellie and the journeys that will take me through them. If nothing else, it will definitely be invigorating Photo Gallery First wash! Continue reading BHPian RPRIME95's review for more insights and information.

Economic redistribution: Whos afraid of progressive taxes?

Theyre needed to fund essential public services and foster a society with equal opportunity for all. Inheritance and wealth taxes may be inefficient, but lets properly ensure other direct levies raise more revenue from the rich than others.

After MDH and Everest controversy, Centre orders all state governments to test spices to ensure their quality

Controversy over Indian spice quality led to state testing. MDH, Everest banned in Hong Kong, Singapore. Spices Board and FSSAI initiated sampling. Quality checks urgently needed.

Will profit pool lie with PSU banks rather than private banks going ahead? Mahantesh Sabarad answers

Mahantesh Sabarad discusses the strong outlook for corporate banks, the impact of high crude oil prices on OMCs, challenges faced by private banks with asset quality, and the favorable position of public sector banks in the corporate lending theme.

AI frontier: Can India leap ahead?

Microsoft will invest $1.7 billion in Indonesia as part of its grand AI plan. Indian IT service firms must keep pace with the AI trajectory. Lets combine local talent with openness to other models.

Congress lets broadband funding run out, ending $30 low-income discounts

ACP gave out last $30 discounts in April; only partial discounts available in May.

Allu Arjun Net Worth Revealed: A Look At 'Pushpa 2' Star's Income, Lifestyle

Allu Arjun Net Worth Revealed: A Look At 'Pushpa 2' Star's Income, Lifestyle

Facing issues obtaining an NOC from Bangalore RTO: Solutions?

BHPian sizz28 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I have a somewhat complicated situation at hand and am looking for guidance or connect to a reliable RTO agent who can help me. The situation is that I have a car that was registered in Gurugram (HR26) and I had taken NOC from there when I moved to Bangalore. However, I didn't apply for registration in KA. Now I want to sell/transfer the car back to Gurugram and need the NOC to be cancelled. For this the Haryana RTO office said that they need a NOC/No dues certificate from Bangalore RTO. I got some connections to get things done in HR RTO and even after that they said that No Dues is needed or at least something that says that the vehicle was not registered in KA and that there is no outstanding dues here. Has anyone faced similar situation? Or atleast any good agent/contact in RTO who can help me? Here's what BHPian anjanc_2007 had to say on the matter:Once issued, NOC remains valid for a maximum of 6 months. Thus, if you have obtained the NOC, make sure to re-register the vehicle to your new jurisdictional RTO within this span after moving your vehicle from one state to another. If not complied with, the certificate's validity expires and one has to start the process from the beginning to obtain NOC for a vehicle. NOC can be cancelled within a reasonable period though by the issuing RTO. For Maharashtra the rules are:- Cancellation of No Objection Certificate Even though No Objection Certificate (N.O.C.) has been issued to remove the Motor Vehicle to another state, the No Objection Certificate can be cancelled within a certain period if approved by the Registering Authority. Procedure No Objection Certificate slip which has been issued. No Objection Certificate cancellation fee of Rs.20/- is to be duly paid. Hence you can use your contacts at HR RTO to get the NOC cancelled.Here's what BHPian hothatchaway had to say on the matter:We had taken NOC for my wife's Vizag (AP) registered Activa more than a decade back, paid lifetime tax in Bangalore and rode it there before moving out. Never re registered it in Bangalore (Indiranagar RTO) Last year, while at the Indiranagar RTO (now at Kasturinagar) for my car, got a Non Migration Certificate for the Activa which says that the vehicle was never migrated to KA and also mentions the LTT tax paid challan number. I requested it since the scooter was on the verge of completing 15 years. This service is not mentioned anywhere, at least I did not see it but spoke to the assistant RTO who asked me to make a plain paper application along with copies of the NOC issued by AP RTO. Got this certificate which is actually a printed template with the details of the vehicle filled in after 2 months. I do not know if they would have obliged if I had not paid the KA tax.BHPian sizz28 had the following update to share: Thank you all. I got a 'Non Migration Certificate' issued form the KA RTO office. Took help from a RTO agent (Pravin) who got it done in 3-4 working days and delivered it to me via courier as well. Although he charged quite high (3k) but was very professional and I didn't need to follow up with him. Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Bought myself a Husqvarna Svartpilen: 7 pros & 6 cons post 500 km

BHPian desi_motorhead recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Brought home the new 2024 Husqvarna Svartpilen 401 after checking out other options. I've been riding motorcycles for over a decade now, both my previously owned ones being Royal Enfields', I wanted to get something different for a change especially since there are so many new launches happening this year. Little background leading up to the decision to go for the 401, My first motorcycle was a Bullet 350 UCE(clocked 40k Kms) which I had for six years and later got the RE Continental GT 535(clocked over 1.8 lakh kms) in 2017 The Bullet was my first motorcycle, got it second hand and it thought me a lot in terms of riding a heavier bike in traffic, on the highway and also to deal with the issues that came with it in terms of quality, and repairs. Then came the GT when RE launched the 535, I felt it a bit odd to bring back a retro concept and add modern equipment on it, but when I rode it for the first time I fell in Love with they way it handled itself and it was a huge difference from how the Bullet felt. Which for me was a very fun motorcycle to ride and the fun part of riding was the most important aspect I was looking for while test riding the choices on offer. Since I owned two RE's already, I checked out both the Continental GT 650 and the New Himalayan 450 The GT 650 has a great engine but the suspension felt disconnected and with RE now adding USD forks on the new models it would be worth the wait for the next variant of the GT650 The Himalayan is a huge step up from the previous generation with the showa suspension and a new engine, it was the closest contender and almost bought it but cancelled in the end when the Husky was launched. Then came the 2024 KTM Duke 390, the biggest differentiating factor was how light it was in comparison to the RE's and has a lot of power on offer, test rode it four times over varying distances and it felt great but the design of the Duke is not something I can live with, its just too polarising for my taste. Triumph speed 400, the bike looks great and finish qualities are top notch and its compact for all that it offers, test rode it two times but I felt it lacked the power at the top-end, I somehow felt my 535 was more powerful on highways. HD 440X - This was another surprise for me, the motorcycle looks modern but has a retro feel while riding, it feels laid back and can do daily commutes really well and also light cruising which would fell very similar to touring on a Bullet or Classic but not what I was looking for. Aprilia RS 457 - This is probably the most anticipated motorcycle and the only other twin cylinder engine apart from RE manufactured in India at a reasonable price. Test ride was not available only the display bike at Marathahalli showroom, on paper and per reviews it's a great bike but I'm not a fan of the faired motorcycle, but would definitely take a chance on something like the RS457, the biggest question was how would Aprilia handle the after sales service which is yet to be seen so did not want to get one now. The Husky had launched in January but there was no news about the bike at the dealers till end of March, they kept saying RTO approval was pending, not sure what that was about but in the end of March I contacted the dealer just to check as I was going to pay for the Hmalayan 450 in April. KTM Indiranagar dealer said that the bikes will be available from first week of April, so I decided to wait for another week. Once I saw the bikes in the flesh, I felt this was what i would be getting, the design just grew on me - I like simple designs and prefer more functional elements. Next thing I knew, cancelled the Himalayan and paid for the Svartpilen 401, there was no test ride bike but I had ridden the Duke so I had a good idea of how it felt - it was fun to ride and somehow knew this would be no different. Delivery took another week after payment as I wanted to take the motorcycle with the number plates fixed at the showroom. On-Road Cost (Bengaluru):Ex-Showroom Price: 291737RTO-LTT & Registration: 59351Comprehensive Insurance: 32708RSA: 1340Total: 385139Initial observations:The bike is just as light as the Duke 390 and just as fun , major difference being the raised handle bars and how the ride feels due to the different tires. The power is great but the one thing that stands out is how light it feels, I've done about 250kms of riding, the engine feels smooth and does run hot - its new and peak summer - it should get better after the first service.The quickshifter works as intended but its my first time using one so will need to get used to it, I did have trouble finding neutral couple of times though.The motorcycle came with Apollo Tires, Dealer said they did not get approval for the Pirelli's, for me its not a huge thing, I would have changed them out once they wear out anyways - not planning on adding super expensive tyres.But Husqvarna India/Bajaj should have made some announcements on this especially for prospective customers.The Spoke Wheels - Yes fixing flats would be a pain but the dealer said I can change to alloys at the service center, I'm not in a hurry to do that as yet, I've dealt with punctures on a heavier motorcycles multiple times so not really worried about it.One con I noticed from the start was how low the horn sounds, I was told its as per pollution regulations but on the highway its useless especially with all the wind and with large trucks.Will share an update once the first service is done Have done close to 500kms on the motorcycle, Likes:The lightweight feeling with all the power is really addictiveQuickshifter works well and really smooth once past 70KMPHCompactness of the whole package, amazing to see how a small engine puts out ~46bhpThe chassis and engine is great combination in the corners, very responsiveSimple and useful dashboard layout it is easy to switch between switching off traction control and ABS(rear only)The headlight has good throw both for low beam and high beam, I don't feel the need to add an auxiliary lights.Comfortable seat, its long and has good cushioning- not too soft or too hard.Dislikes:There is lack of torque low down in the rev range, but since I've been used to motorcycles which have been the opposite, I'm still getting the hang of it.The horn is too low, would need to change before I take it on highway runsSpoke wheels - yes it can be changed but I feel Bajaj/Husqvarna could have given a choice to upgrade through a MYI type option from the showroom itself, anyways will change them in futureNo Bluetooth connectivity, contacted the dealer to understand how to get this as an add-on as nothing was mentioned during delivery.There is strangely only one mode - Street - not sure why they did not just remove and keep the Traction control and ABS options.Engine heat and vibes are not a con for me, its a single cylinder motorcycle and will have both which become part of riding or more manageable over time. Attaching a few images, Cheers! The first time I got to see the Motorcycle was at Delivery: The engine has BAJAJ engraved on it, not sure if the KTM's have this as well.. The DRL is circular and unique in this class and looks really good The Dash is nice and clean, displays all the required information and has option to choose different display modes(All info, info with favourites and reduced info) Seat is long and comfortable, did not have any discomfort over 2-3 hrs of continuous riding and nice logo detailing on it. Not sure why they have mentioned tire pressures with decimals, i'll just be using 29-32 (maybe these pressures were for the Pirelli's ?..) Can't comment on the Apollo Tramplr XR yet- hope they are good Rear wheel has two weights added and none on the front wheel Continue reading BHPian desi_motorhead's review for more insights and information.

Why do some innovative ideas never see the light of day? Status quo bias.

Many of us hold onto outdated and ineffective ideas because of this behavioural trait. The human brain does not like to change. But innovation can be nurtured only by being open to ideas.

Indian banks are slipping on a banana peel of tech adoption

Rapid progress in digital banking has exposed the system to risks. Drastic supervisory steps may be necessary, but they will not be enough. RBI must update its understanding of cybersecurity.

What will the rising mercury this summer do to Indian inflation?

Its not a bright picture for prices. Indias balance of food-supply likelihoods has raised the question of whether fiscal 2024-25 will see monetary easing at all.

4th-gen Maruti Suzuki Swift bookings open in India

Maruti Suzuki has announced the commencement of pre-bookings for the all-new Swift in India. Customers can place their orders by paying a token amount of Rs 11,000. Maruti Suzuki has also shared a teaser of the new Swift. It partially reveals the front fascia, which now features a redesigned grille flanked by a pair of LED headlamps. It now has new L-shaped LED DRLs as well. The 2024 Maruti Suzuki Swift will feature the new Z-series 1.2-litre 3-cylinder mild-hybrid petrol engine. Its output is expected to be similar to the outgoing K12 engine and willbe pairedwitheithera 5-speed manual or an AMT gearbox. The Swiftis expectedto come equipped with6airbags, ABS with EBD and ESP. Features like a 360-degree camera and ADAS might notbe offeredin the Indian market.

Old Tata Estate runs & drives for first time in 9 yrs: Car restoration

BHPian Sanidhya mukund recently shared this with other enthusiasts.First drive in 9 years!A major milestone in the project: The car runs and drives! This is the first time in 9 years that the car has moved on its own power. The mechanic managed to get the car going without the power steering pump. We have located a cannibalised Tata Sumo at a scrap yard and will be sourcing the pump from there, which will probably take a week. Meanwhile, the car was driven onto the elevated washing pit and the entire underbody and the rims were painted black. After the painting was done, the mechanic took the car for a short spin around the garage: Next order of business is to send it to the panel beaters to cure the body line of any dings and blemishes. Post that, paint, electrical and interior will be done. On the mechanical front, we are left with Radiator replacement, sourcing the Power steering Pump and AC Compressor, fitting the fuel tank and fuel lines, and giving the entire car a good service (differential oil, engine oil replacement etc.). The car will hopefully be fully done by mid 2024. A video of the car in action. Sorry about the poor quality; The video was sent by my mechanic as I was not present at that point in time. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

We are in a frantic race for post-industrial dominance

Industrial policy has reached epidemic levels globally. It is playing a role thats subject to the risk of resources being misallocated by policymakers.

Chengalath Jayaram's term as Kotak Mahindra Bank's non-executive director ends

Kotak Mahindra Bank on Wednesday said the tenure of Chengalath Jayaram as non-executive director on the board of the bank has ended on April 30. In a regulatory filing, the bank said Jayaram's term ended on April 30, 2024 on completion of eight continuous years (as a Non-Executive Director) on the bank's board, in line with the provisions of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.

Elon Musk shows why India cant take China-plus-one narrative for granted

The worlds discomfort with China, Washington-Beijing geopolitical tensions, and trade and tech wars had begun to lull India into thinking that all is at last in place for our manufacturing sector to take off

Rs 7,000 cr of exports a year: How the small town of Bhadohi in UP became a global carpet powerhouse

Artisans in Bhadohi's Uttar Pradesh district have passed on their craft to the younger generations and helped create a robust ecosystem of carpet-making and exports.

Why I chose the Mercedes W212 E400 as my perfect forever car

BHPian utkarshmohan86 recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Forever is perhaps optimistic, given you have to pay a small fortune to renew car permissions every 10 years. But let's not lose the forest for the weeds. The genesis of this thread is my decision to retire from the corporate world at 37 so I can do my own thing. YetI am a crazy petrolhead with a thing for German supersaloonsI live in Singapore, the most expensive country in the world for carsThe kicker, we need two cars since my wife is a Realtor who needs one for her job.How does this compute? Is it even possible? What is this two-car portfolio? The good news is that I did manage to figure out the solution. The low-mileage 2014 W212 E400 in a beautiful Indigo Blue is one part of this portfolio. The other, I will cover later. The video goes into more detail where I outline the reasons, but in summary:The W212 generation is probably the most reliable of the modern Es (post the W124). Its angular almost old-fashioned facade with quirks like foot-operated parking brakes isn't everyone's thing but I love how it throws back to what I thought Mercedes was in my childhood.The E400 is an unknown and unloved model since it doesn't have any AMG badging. The 535 for example is much more sought after here and Mercedes owners usually want the comfortable, low-road tax E200 here in SingaporeLastly I detest screens and gadgets. The smartphone-ization of new cars over the last five years or so has really turned me off honestly. The W212 is the perfect blend for me with a very analogue vibe yet with necessary modern features (mainly Bluetooth, a good automatic gearbox, paddle shifters and a proper modern twin-turbo engine)Some pictures here. This first post is mainly on how the needle of early retirement in Singapore as a petrolhead was threaded. I will provide more updates on the car (which we have had since last year August) shortly. It has, fingers crossed, been bulletproof so far. We got it at about 60K km and have done about 9K on it. It has been the wife's car doing duties as she peddles property across Singapore and has been just perfect for those duties. In case you have noticed, the car has been lowered by the previous owner. My plan is to decide on whether to return it to stock, once we have secured the permission for the next 10 years. This permission (COE) price in Singapore has been varying wildly so if it goes too high, there is an off chance it won't make financial sense to renew it. We'll see. Fingers crossed. More to come. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

1000 km with my used 2017 Duke 390: 4 quick highway ride observations

BHPian 100kmphormore recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Completed another 1000 km and 3 months of ownership. Salaga is at 2300 km with a 160 km no holds barred STRR weekend blast (home - Devanahalli - doddaballapura- dobbaspete- home) and a quick 250 km day ride to meet a friend in denkanikottai. Tried the Rocky Ridge cafe, too expensive for what it has to offer. Please try the STRR once - Bengaluru liter class bike riders have made it their unofficial Le Mans circuit on weekdays. The roads are simply beautiful with long winding corners, though a couple of stretches are a little unsafe, especially the expansion joints that can be unsettling. The bikes acceleration is manic, proving why well maintained BS3/4 390s are still in demand. The 3rd and 4th gear pulls from 30 kmph to 110 kmph is bound to leave you giggling, like how 2nd will in the city during an overtake. 5th and 6th maintains cruising easily above the NHAI speed limits, provided you can tolerate the enormous buffeting. City use has been a lot of fun in contrast to my experience with the Himalayan. Things I observed since last time 1. Suspension is indeed stiff in the city at stock setting. Loved it for the great handling on highways but have to get it adjusted, sadly the previous owner lost the toolkit and has never adjusted the suspension in his 26870 km of ownership. So bad that the darned adjuster has rusted and isn't even turning with the spanner (ended up smashing my fingers on the frame) 2. Got the front brake pads changed to organic ones after I started hearing squeaking noises at 1850 km or so - the difference between sintered and organic is really very noticeable. They took 300 km to bed in, not as great as the previous sintered ones after some time of riding (I felt the ABS trigger more often under hard braking). Felt like the RS457 test ride units brakes that I rode - now I understand the reviewers at the RS457 event chatting about the brakes, especially if they fade. Anyways it will be majorly city ridden atleast until this year end so not a big problem. 3. Wind blast is too much post 100 kmph, have to find something like the Carbon Racing ones on the Dominar and H450. 4. I wish this had the excellent quickshifter/autoblipper of the present gen. Gearshifts feel a little clunky, especially 1 and 2. Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Loan recovery: Credit penetration must not turn into a nightmare

Wider loan supply is a vital economic pursuit in India, but app-driven lending is exposing people to coercive recovery tactics. The depravity these have sunk to gives credit a bad name.

Deepfake distortion: Has Indian politics fallen prey to it?

While deepfake worries predate Indian elections, fresh concerns have been sparked by recent video clips of politicians. Can we expect people to be duly sceptical of what they see and hear online?

Binances billionaire founder gets 4 months for violating money laundering law

US prosecutors sought 3-year sentence for Binance founder Changpeng Zhao.

Overhaul Your Deck or Patio With Big Savings on Select Outdoor TV Models at Best Buy - CNET

Today Only: Get ready summer with outdoor TV deals that can transform movie nights, game day hangouts and more. But act soon because these offers end tonight.

Amazon Prime Day 2024: Everything You Need to Know - CNET

Prime Day is coming up again this July. Here's what to expect from the summer sale.

Coca-Cola earns $290 mn from India by divesting its bottling operations in Jan-Mar

In the March quarter, the Coca-Cola Company earned USD 290 million from India by refranchising its bottling operations in three key markets. Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages divested its company-owned bottling operations in Rajasthan, Bihar, Northeast, and parts of West Bengal to existing bottlers, resulting in net gains of USD 293 million. Despite a 2 percent decline in unit case volume in the Asia Pacific market zone, the company saw growth in the India market.

Rumour: Hyundai to launch hybrid models in India by 2027

According to a media report, Hyundai plans to enter the hybrid vehicle segment in India by 2027. The South Korean carmaker is looking to add hybrid powertrains to its product portfolio to cater to the rising demand for these vehicles globally. The report claims that Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chairman Euisun Chung addressed a town hall earlier this month, during which he told employees in India that hybrids would be a critical part of the company's portfolio in the country. While the exact details of Hyundai's future plans for India are still unknown, the report states that the carmaker could offer hybrid powertrain options for the Verna, Creta, Alzacar, and Tucson in the coming decade. If true, this would mean a complete change in strategy, as Hyundai had initially prioritized pure electric vehicles for the Indian market. On the other hand, Kia has already committed to bringing hybrids to India. Source:Autocar India

Pros & cons of owning a Harley-Davidson X440: 500 km in 4 days

BHPian Thmh recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I would like to thank Team-BHP for creating a platform for moto-enthusiasts and most of my moto-gyan comes from this site. Hence, took the plunge to share my experience to help other riders like me! (The below narration will keep switching between me and my wife's point of view)A quick background:I got my first bike in 2010 which won the Motorcycle of the Year - Apache RTR 180. It was mostly used for my office commute for the first two years and then the usage reduced drastically after I got my car (Punto). The bike was ridden for about 10,000 km before I gave it to my uncle 10 years later. In 2019, my wife told me that she always wanted to own a Royal Enfield and I wasn't sure if I ever wanted to ride a bike again as I was comfortable travelling in a car. After watching YouTuber Noraly's videos (Itchy Boots) we wanted to test ride the Himalayan and a few days later it (BS4) was home. We did a lot of rides in Karnataka and a few places in Kerala. Meanwhile, my wife wanted to learn to ride. So on our way back from the gym, I used to sit behind as a pillion on RTR and my wife used to ride till back home. And Covid happened, in 2022 wife rented an Avenger for a month and we did small rides on two separate bikes. After this she wanted to buy her own bike, although I wasn't too convinced as at that moment I thought she wasn't going to be a serious rider and I would end up having two bikes to wash now! She took a test ride of CB300 and H'ness and booked her H'ness! While we were just trying to get used to having two bikes in our parking lot, back of my mind I had this urge to upgrade my Himalayan. Coincidentally one of my friends shared an ad of a used Suzuki V-Strom 650 up for sale. We went for the test ride and we now had three bikes in our parking lot which was hard for me not to be worried about. Luckily managed to find another biking enthusiast to whom I could hand over my Himalayan for a decent price which by then had done 15,000 km. We had a great time on the V-Strom. I managed to add 17,000 km in 1.5 years where I did a Bangalore-Spiti-Bangalore ride (wife as pillion) covering 6,150 km in 15 days! We used to frequent Goa as well. My wife was getting comfortable with her H'ness and she started doing the longer rides (250+ km/per day) with me. And a few months later she was on her own doing solo rides to Mangalore, Coorg and finally Goa! Her longest was a South India ride covering 1,500 km in 6 days. Riding V-Strom was super fun and it was super comfortable on long rides. However, was finding it overkill for rides when me and wife were riding on two separate bikes. Had to always slow myself down to match my wife's pace. And also developed an interest towards trekking which reduced my bike usage and didn't want to spend much on maintenance knowing my circumstances have changed. Hence, off it goes to another set of safe hands for a decent deal! Although the plan was to take a short break from riding, after a week of not having my V-Strom 650 any more, I was doing test rides!Test Ride experienceCriteria:A single-cylinder bike with enough grunt to cruise at 90-110 km/h and has to be comfortable for highway touring.Should be comfortable for my wife too as the plan was to swap the bikes as and when needed.RE Himalayan 450: I Felt at home sitting on this bike and the ride brought memories of my previous Himalayan 411. It also reminded me that nothing much has changed when it comes to vibration and I was spoilt by Suzuki's smoothness and the vibrations felt more prominent on the new Himalayan. Although I never had a puncture in my previous Himalayan, the fear was always there and I didn't want to have the same now. Hence, had to skip this. Triumph Scrambler 400 X: Skipped Speed 400 due to its size. Scram felt intimidating when I sat on it. Although I am 5'11, found the bike too tall and difficult to manoeuvre in traffic. Just couldn't connect well with this bike. Skipped the KTM 390 Adventure as it was nearing a replacement. Harley-Davidson X440: The bike's ergonomics were relaxed and the bike had a great pick-up just like my old Himalayan. The engine was smooth and the sound was sweet. Overall, the Hero Premia showroom experience was great. The wife was comfortable riding the bike as well. All in all, it felt like a nice companion to the H'ness. The bike was ready for delivery on the same day of the booking/full amount. I received it in just two days. The dealership is RT Krishna which is a Hero Premia showroom. The SA Gaurav was super helpful throughout the process. The bike has done 500 km so far (4 days after the delivery) and was ridden keeping the run-in in mind. The bike was ridden on highways, unpaved roads and city traffic conditions. PositivesAmazing torque and riding in the city is a breezeVery easy to manoeuvre and the weight doesn't pose a problemSmooth engine with very negligible vibrationEngine doesn't radiate much heat despite riding under harsh sunny conditions and even in city trafficCan cruise comfortably although I was keeping it under 4,000 rpmThe headlight is great with very good visibility at nightMID indicates 35 km/l which is nice but will check thoroughly after the first service when the bike can be ridden at 100 km/h speed constantly.Gear shifts are smooth and the clutch is light.Braking feels adequateNegativesFront suspension could have been better. It sends a jolt when you hit a pothole or speedbreaker at high speed. But we need to remember that this isn't an adventure bike to have a longer suspension!The seat's contour isn't very comfortable for longer rides and so are the mirrors as they cover less area. Both can be fixed with touring-specific accessoriesFuel gauge isn't very accurateNeutralThe Console could have been better and the app requires bug fixesLimited availability of accessoriesButtons could have been slightly better but I like the soft feel of the indicator reset buttonAccessories installedCrash Guard, Bash Plate from Harley (Rs. 1,400 I think)I skipped the centre stand to avoid ground clearance being reducedSaddle Stay from Royal Customs (Rs. 3,600)Top box rack with Backrest from Royal Customs (~ Rs. 4,000) - If you are installing the top box then the backrest becomes useless. Hence, save yourself some money and opt for a top box rack onlySidestand shoe from royal customs (Rs. 600)JB racing 45L top box (Rs. 10,500). I got this from Htrz mods and felt stupid when I found out the same was sold in other stores for Rs. 7,500. So try JB Racing Automotive for any accessories near JC Road.Pending accessories due to unavailability - full-size Windshield and angular handlebar risers. Please let me know if this is available anywhere in Bangalore. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Niggles on my 1st batch Himalayan 450: Other ownership updates

BHPian trailsndirt recently shared this with other enthusiasts. I guess mine was one of the 1st batch models which I took ownership of in late Dec 23'. Brave but I sort of knew what I was getting into with RE and the niggles that often are found on 1st gen models or 1st batch models. This bike has its fair share of niggles but few things right off the bat that I've not encountered which may have:No issues with the head stem boltThe bike does not pull to the right when I let go of the barsThe issues if any have been with the final touches when I picked the bike from the dealer in the South Bengaluru area and these were:Loose bolts on the left control/mirror housing. If pushed a little, I can change the angle of the mirrors and clutch controls forward or pull them back toward me. Should have been tightened betterI guess the ergos are not something the dealership does well on this or other RE bikes as the right side controls were very badly pulled back where my wrists had to hold the front brakes with a lot of bends.Mostly RE stuff here but connecting the mobile to the display needed the 0 and O thingy which they should have helped to get done vs. shrugs and having us figure it out.They spray some polishing stuff after the service. If you are there before that's applied, stop them from doing it. It makes the bike shiny but gunky very quickly and attracts dust/dirt. Later, after the 1st service the service warning would still come up when I turned the ignition on, for the first time of the day. Some options seen to put the bike in 6th, on the main stand, and holding the toggle to the left were attempted but the real solution was by these steps:Display was on digital modeHave the service interval show up when toggling down through the optionsRide in 6th gear (the bike needed to be in motion), hold the navigation toggle to the left, and then, the service warning is finally reset.Again, shrugs from the dealership when discussed, stating that they will talk to RE for a solution. Not sure what but it is what it is. Since the 1st service, I've added some bits and bobs, from RE and other solutions. 1st up was a radiator guard as I did have a small stone lodge between the vents on the O.E plastic shroud. It would have been bad if that had gotten through to the radiator. Next up was a tubeless conversion as on the 2nd ride, I picked a screw on the rear tyre very early in the morning. The tyre was not able to hold any pressure and got it very slowly to a fuel station on the highway and had to call in the RE RSA which took time, given it was very early in the morning. No scope to move the bike to any nearby shops as it was not ridable. The RSA team was efficient and quick, once on site. Post that, got the tubeless setup installed with the help of a local shop. Just a sealant vs. way2speed. This ought to be sufficient till RE gets the cross-spoked tubeless rims later in the year or in 2025. The other add-ons are a set of crash protection and a better bash plate from Mototorque. RE options were preferred but the local dealer was only getting one or two units a month and those were going away fast. For the long rides on the highway, I do see the need for a taller windscreen and would be looking at 3rd party options. With the stock screen, I get the wind blast on my upper chest to neck, and with RE's screen, would hit the helmet more. Maybe the taller/wider option from CarbonRacing. Another mod/addon has been a display from Ottocast C5 Lite equivalent from OrionMotors. I had a quadlock setup from my previous bike but did have an instance where someone attempted to take the phone when I was at a traffic stop. For that, a GPS mount was added to mimic the nav tower looks, seen on the BMW GS bikes. Some tweaks needed still to have it stay without some wobbling but better than the phone being subjected to the conditions and someone trying to snatch it. My feel thus far - mechanical bits:The Showa suspension is the best bit of this bike, hands down.The box is slick but at times, going from 1st to 2nd, will get into neutral since the 1st service oddly)The engine is held back a lot (while I only ride it in the top power mode), mostly by way of the emission norms. It seems to have 3 stages of fueling though - up to 3K RPMs, is sedate, wakes up till the speed gets to around 110 Kmph at around 5.5 to 6K RPMs, and feels like that's the most you'll get in the torque range but then, wakes up again to get the bike towards the 140 kmph.The front brake was mushy in the initial rides. I had very low confidence but since the pads and disc have bedded in, they are ok. I'd have preferred a twin-disc setup for the weight but it's fine. The rear is stronger compared to most other bikes I've owned. Glad to have the ABS on the rear.Heat is there which is not bad at all. The fans do kick in quite frequently in the city rides which is expected given the summer conditions.Vibes are fine by me. Aside from a bit of numbness on the right hand after 2 hours of holding the throttle at high speeds, no real issues with the buzz from the pegs or the bars. I have now installed a riser to be able to stand and grip the bars better and no issues since.At this stage, I find this bike to be very adequate for the short commutes to the office and back, those highway rides to get to the ADV, and fun places to explore where my previous bike lacked the ability. Now, I am the limiting factor, and it's good to be able to learn more and be better as a rider in more varied conditions. Some snaps of where the bike has been thus far: What's next? Maybe Fuel X Pro+ but surely a taller windscreen and I have been keeping an eye on this touring headlight option, over installing aux lights: Currently, they seem to be out of stock on the button to toggle the light but if anyone has used this, would love to hear the experience. Till then, stay safe, ride safe. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Piaggio launches battery subscription plans for 3-wheelers

Piaggio has announced battery subscription plans for its Ape Elektrik 3-wheeler range. Under the new Battery Subscription Model, customers can purchase an Ape Elektrik for Rs 2.59 lakh (ex-showroom) and subscribe to a Piaggio-approved battery pack for a monthly fee leased through the dealership. According to the company, the vehicle chassis and powertrain are registered in the customer's name, while the battery is provided at the dealership for a monthly rent. This also means that customers don't have to worry about battery maintenance, lifespan or replacement costs. The battery lease term is 1,20,000 km or 8 years for cargo vehicles and 1,50,000 km or 8 years for passenger vehicles. After reaching the designated mileage, the monthly rent is reduced to Rs 0. The subscription includes battery replacements at the same rental amount after the initial lease term. Customers can unsubscribe or sell the vehicle whenever they want. Piaggio's Battery Subscription model is available across 30 cities.

Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 update: Reinstalled AEW megaphone baffles

BHPian parrys recently shared this with other enthusiasts. 23 days with the RE INT 650. Still in love. I don't know how many times I would just go on the RE MIY site, and customise this motorcycle, the way I have it. Sometimes I wonder, what if I picked the chrome one? But then, one can always buy a tank in a year or two. Had removed the baffles from the AEW 102 megaphone. But it was too loud and grabbed too much attention. With the baffle, it is pleasantly loud, and only when hungry on the gas. So put these back in. Took less than 5 minutes. Going to stick to V Power, as long as it is available wherever I am, throughout the ownership. Everything looks and feels romantic when you are on a new motorcycle. I would never stop at this location before. But today, I thought why not. And noticed that the place had received a major makeover. (Gaimukh, Thane) Pointless. But why not? Looks good. Ask a child to draw a motorcycle, and he will draw a similar silhouette. I am happy to own a motorcycling canvas. Too much praise, for a motorcycle which is not perfect, but they say love is blind. Cleaned, fuel tank full, parked in the right direction on a Saturday night; so we blast past early on a Sunday morning. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

8L km with my Mahindra Marshal; A testament to its enduring reliability

BHPian vivekdewanta recently shared this with other enthusiasts. Presenting my enduring automotive companion, the venerable Mahindra Marshal of vintage 1998, a relic hailing from an era post the advent of the Mahindra Commander. This stalwart vehicle, a witness to the passage of time, continues to exude youthful vitality despite the years. Throughout its storied existence, spanning remote terrains and less-travelled highways, the Mahindra Marshal has traversed over 800,000 kilometres with unwavering resolve. Resolute and steadfast, it has remained under singular ownership, a testament to its enduring reliability. While recent years have presented their challenges, my steadfast commitment to its upkeep has ensured its continued operational excellence. A particularly daunting ordeal arose when the vehicle's antiquated wiring succumbed to an unforeseen electrical conundrum, resulting in complete system failure. Undeterred, I undertook the arduous task of rewiring the entire vehicle unaided, a labour-intensive endeavour that culminated in a restoration akin to its maiden days. Additionally, recognizing the importance of modern security measures, I implemented a state-of-the-art central locking system to safeguard this cherished automotive relic. Further tribulations arose with the failure of the original brake booster, necessitating a creative solution. With the identical replacement elusive, I ingeniously adapted a booster from the Mahindra Bolero, breathing new life into the vehicle's braking mechanism. Procuring suitable replacements for the brake drums proved equally challenging, owing to their unique 139 PCD specification. In a display of resourcefulness, I successfully integrated drums intended for the Bolero model, customizing their fitment through meticulous fabrication, ensuring seamless functionality. Beyond its mechanical prowess, the Mahindra Marshal serves as a repository of cherished memories and invaluable experiences. Having honed my driving skills within its steadfast confines in the year 2003, it stands as a symbol of untamed power and unwavering capability. Engage its gears, and witness its indomitable spirit effortlessly surmount any obstacle, a true testament to its enduring legacy. Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.