Learning to drive

[infinitesadness]

Hi all,
I can't help envying you all knowing so much about cars and I'm hoping I'm going to learn quite a bit from you all.
I'm a 31-year old single guy, not living in Mumbai, and I just bought my first car - a medium grey Fiat Grande Punto. Now, the funny thing is, I can't drive, yet. I'm learning, yes, but my car's already home. I saw the Punto and I fell in love. So now I'm the laughing stock of my friends - have car but can't drive.
If all goes well, you should see me driving my grey Punto either in Dadar or Andheri East in a couple of weeks -that's how long I figure it'll take me to get the hang of it.
A bit about myself - self-confessed progressive/death metal fanatic, wildlife enthusiast (I try to visit at least one wildlife park every year), amateur photographer, and avid reader.

I'm hoping to add car-fanatic to this list soon.
-Vinod

[amip]

Hello Vinod,

Welcome to Teambhp! Thats how i learnt to drive as well - the car came first! Its strange how naturally one learns - the car becomes a part of you - so you dont even notice it after a few days.

Looking forward to more about the wildlife park visits in the travelogue section - in your Punto of course!

PS - It looks great!

[Roameo]

Hello Vinod,

A warm welcome.Your car looks awesome. Do not be so sad. Before long you will be driving all over Mumbai, Lonavala and Khandala saddled in your black beauty.

If it is any consolation, take a look at my learning experience in my intro. I was a 13 years older than you when I started.

Congratulations and Happy Motoring.

[gomzi]

Hi Vinod,

Your car does look awesome in this pic, like it's prowling around.

It's actually nice to learn driving on a car you already have, as long as you don't end up dinging it too much :-)
The Punto is a great first-car. Keep her pretty and all the best in the learning


Its nice to have another metal-head on the forum. I've started liking death metal a lot over the last year and even got to see Arch Enemy and many, many others at the Roskilde Festival earlier this year.

Have you been to Corbett yet?

[McLaren Rulez]

Hey man.. Welcome to the forum. Make sure you get the hang of driving properly before you start using the Punto. We don't want to see you in the Accidents thread, do we?

[archat68]

Yes, get comfortable with your driving with another car before you take your baby out for a spin. It will be really painful if the brand new car gets a scratch or something.

Don't worry, try with a used car - after a few days - tell your instructor not touch the brakes or clutch (most of the training cars have double clutch and brake) except in case of emergency. You will learn driving shortly - but mastering it is another thing.

[venkman]

Looks like a Dream Car. You really are good at photography and the angle from which the picture has been taken is great. And as for the driving there is always a first time (learning).

Cheers

[hellstar]

welcome to the forum . and thats a nice picture there !

Its pretty rare to find a guy who likes progressive/death metal music as well as the forests and nature ...

[MutantX]

Hey Vinod, Welcome to Team-BHP. Well, I learned how to drive in a driving school and even before I could complete my classes, I had bought a car. Ofcourse I didnt have the courage to venture out on a new car especially when I was learning. I got a sparingly used i10 (with a price difference of close to 70k Vs new). Now with this car, I am learning every day and since its my own car, I am being extra careful.

Congrats on the new car, take good care of her Keep us posted.

[infinitesadness]

Originally Posted by amip

Hello Vinod,

Welcome to Teambhp! Thats how i learnt to drive as well - the car came first! Its strange how naturally one learns - the car becomes a part of you - so you dont even notice it after a few days.

Looking forward to more about the wildlife park visits in the travelogue section - in your Punto of course!

PS - It looks great!

Thank you for the warm welcome. I'll be sure to write about by travels and travails.

Originally Posted by gomzi

Hi Vinod,

Your car does look awesome in this pic, like it's prowling around.

It's actually nice to learn driving on a car you already have, as long as you don't end up dinging it too much :-)
The Punto is a great first-car. Keep her pretty and all the best in the learning


Its nice to have another metal-head on the forum. I've started liking death metal a lot over the last year and even got to see Arch Enemy and many, many others at the Roskilde Festival earlier this year.

Have you been to Corbett yet?

@Gomzi: It's a great car, not that I have driven around many others. The ICE is a letdown though, and especially unfit for metal. I'll have to do something about it soon (finances permitting).
Haven't been abroad yet, but saw Opeth in Chennai last year, and hope to see Porcupine Tree in Mumbai this year. Was at Corbett in March this year.

@Roameo: Thank you. I hope to be driving around pretty soon.

@archat68: Unfortunately, I already have a teeny scratch on the rear bumper already (not conspicious, but I KNOW it's there). But now that's done and over with, I feel much more confident getting the car out.

@venkman: I didn't see many pictures of medium gray GP MJDs here, or anywhere oneline; I think I'll put up some photos of my car. Hopefully, it'll help others evaluate how this car looks in gray and make up their minds.

@Hellstar: Both are independent and equally important to me. I just don't let them overlap - silence is just better in some places.

[GTO]

Welcome aboard! Great looking car + picture. Some threads that you might want to stop by:

Time taken to become a perfect driver (How much time it takes to learn perfect driving?)

Teaching my brother to drive (Teaching my brother how to drive?)

Car driving lessons - Step by step (Car driving lessons step by step)

My car driving lesson experience (My Car Driving Lesson Experiences)

[travelwriter]

Even I bought a car without much knowledge of driving. I learnt driving just about 15 days before buying the car. Even the TD I took was 'as a learner' with the sales guy giving me tips on what to do on turns!!

The day I 'took delivery' I requested the sales guy to drive me home as I was not confident of handling the Delhi traffic in the rush hour.

But I managed to get comfortable within 30 odd kms. Believe me, that is all it takes to get a sense of driving. All the awe I had for car drivers vanished. You will also master it soon. It is no rocket science, not even auto science, if you ask me. Just don't try to be a Schumacher from day one and everything will be ok.

Enjoy the drive. Because if you love cars, there is no place like the driver's seat of a car in motion. Trust me.

[harishnayak]

No Doubt that you're a photographer. Also a very nice choice as the first car.

Try taking some driving lessons through a motor learning school before letting loose on the Punto.

All the best. Enjoy your stay here.

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by infinitesadness

I can't help envying you all knowing so much about cars
and I just bought my first car - a medium grey Fiat Grande Punto.

Hi, Vinod!

Pot calling kettle black!! The likes of me envy you - Punto for a first car!!

And nice handle - "infinitesadness" - sad that you can't drive your beauty??

Liked the picture - do post more (of the interiors too) and also your driving experiences.

Cheers!

[Unknownsatan]

Congrats for the baby.Dont worry man,even i learnt just 10 months back and i am 28 and of all the cars i bought OHC when evryone asked me to buy a small car.After first few days it will become a part of your life. And i even had the guts[moronic act,to be frank] to touch even 180 in tht around 4 months back. Its not that i became a good driver in 6 months but the starting "Khujli". Its my stupidity to try something like that,So just drive safe and keep her scratchless.