[srishiva]

Originally Posted by rajivr1612

Thanks a lot guys for your replies. Sometimes I think why so much of hurdles are created just to travel within our own country.

Because lots of us dont follow the rules ! Except one case where a person's parent's car was asked to pay the tax, I have found not others being asked to pay such tax.
You are un-necessarily worried when you know the truth that you are a tourist (others are worried because they have to be). Enjoy your trip.

[Rubbertramps]

Seems like RTO guys are targeting Manyatha tech park nowadays. My friend got caught with a TN board alto and somehow managed to talk out of it and walk free. There was another gentleman with a TN board and his car was seized. Beware guys ! A heads up !

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by Rubbertramps

Seems like RTO guys are targeting Manyatha tech park nowadays. My friend got caught with a TN board alto and somehow managed to talk out of it and walk free. There was another gentleman with a TN board and his car was seized. Beware guys ! A heads up !

Yes, for the past week i am seeing these guys daily. There is even an RTO vehicle on the spot and usual traffic police personnel.

[tsk1979]

I remember sombody who wrote his Delhi number in Kannada letters. Was never stopped ever. Do the RTO guys not know how to read Kannada?

[OneToughRider]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

I remember sombody who wrote his Delhi number in Kannada letters. Was never stopped ever. Do the RTO guys not know how to read Kannada?

A friend of mine deliberately got his swift's licence plate font changed such that HR looks like KA

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

I remember sombody who wrote his Delhi number in Kannada letters. Was never stopped ever. Do the RTO guys not know how to read Kannada?

Originally Posted by OneToughRider

A friend of mine deliberately got his swift's licence plate font changed such that HR looks like KA

In both the above cases, the officials must have mistook the number plates for a KA registration for they must have seen it from a distance

[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

I remember sombody who wrote his Delhi number in Kannada letters. Was never stopped ever. Do the RTO guys not know how to read Kannada?

But writing in Kannada itself is against rules. Isn't it?

[goandude]

I've seen a garbage truck with out of state plates sporting BBMP logo. Now this auto has MH plates

[OneToughRider]

Originally Posted by goandude

I've seen a garbage truck with out of state plates sporting BBMP logo. Now this auto has MH platesAttachment 1250887

Originally Posted by coolclouds

There are few MH and KL12 autos plying between Begur and Bommanahalli on sharing basis

Witnessed in Mysuru too. Many autos registered in KL plying in KA with the help of some authorized letter meaning dual permit (KA + KL), I assume.
Someone please throw more light on thisa

[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by goandude

I've seen a garbage truck with out of state plates sporting BBMP logo. Now this auto has MH platesAttachment 1250887

There are few MH and KL12 autos plying between Begur and Bommanahalli on sharing basis

[Latheesh]

I have seen few MH, KL registered (white and yellow plates) autos here in Bangalore.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by OneToughRider

Witnessed in Mysuru too. Many autos registered in KL plying in KA with the help of some authorized letter meaning dual permit (KA + KL), I assume.
Someone please throw more light on thisa

I second your thoughts and observation. In mysore, one can see a lot of KL registered autos plying in the city. Why in Bangalore i have seen few MH registered autos plying in the city.
Some of the BBMP trucks have AP and WB registration. I dont think BBMP would have paid road tax for these vehicles.

[OneToughRider]

Originally Posted by suresh_gs

I second your thoughts and observation. In mysore, one can see a lot of KL registered autos plying in the city. Why in Bangalore i have seen few MH registered autos plying in the city.
Some of the BBMP trucks have AP and WB registration. I dont think BBMP would have paid road tax for these vehicles.

Let me bring another epic into picture, (apologies in case if doesn't adds any value to the conversation above, Mods please delete it).
Delhi auto registration starts with DL
Gurgaon - HR 55
Noida - UP 16
Greater Noida - UP 16

A 'DL' Rick comes close to 5 lakhs in Black market (else its not available. Source: My one to one discussion with auto drivers only). But it can go anywhere in Noida or Greater Noida, can pass through DND toll way.

UP- 16/HR 55 autos comes at normal market rates but
a) they can't enter Delhi - NCT limits
b) they can't enter other states
c) they can't enter other RTO zones (A Noida auto can't go to Ghaziabad or Greater Noida, all cities come in UP only)

This entire game is managed by the respective RTOs / zonal offices where rules are so different for each state or area.

[mroptimist]

Originally Posted by OneToughRider

Witnessed in Mysuru too. Many autos registered in KL plying in KA with the help of some authorized letter meaning dual permit (KA + KL), I assume.
Someone please throw more light on thisa

Buying used autos from Kerala perhaps works out cheaper and I think there is some understanding between Keral RTO's and Karnataka RTOs.

Why Auto owners are selling these autos in Kerala?

The answer lies in the fact that Kerala Gvt. (At least the erstwhile LDF Gvt) gave lots of subsidy to Auto owners for buying new autos (I think the subsidy was 50k to 1 Lakh), hence they ended up selling their old autos and buying new ones and in-turn made some profits.

[nowwhat?]

Folks, I just wanted to sound something out.

For a long time I have loved the iconic Mercedes twin-barrel headlight E-Class that came around the year 2000 and have always wanted to own one.

As I currently drive a beaten down Maruti 800, I am not bothered driving something old. Again from my Maruti 800, I have realized that old cars need not be unreliable. I have also learnt that older Mercedes cars without the new electronics are quite trustworthy. Service costs were a major worry, but I decided to cross that bridge when I came to it. My driving is very periodic. For months, I may not drive much at all and then I may have to drive many kilometers in a few days.

What rekindled my old flame were ads similar to this one (2000 Mercedes-Benz E-Class for Sale). A variant, the 250D, sells for 3 to 4 lakhs. I was almost ready to buy one and even contacted a seller in NCR.

All of this was until I came across the Karnataka Road Tax.

Assuming the invoice price of this E-Class 250D in 2000 was say, 40 lakhs, 18% works out to 7.2 lakhs for a new vehicle. If the car is 14 years old, I have to pay 29% of 7.2 lakhs or 2.08 lakhs as Karnataka lifetime tax. Now what I am not entirely sure of is whether this is for 1 year (up to 15 years) or whether it is for more.

If the car is older than 15 years, then I must get it inspected and apparently shell out 1.8 lakhs every five years.

None of this makes any sense to me. I mean, I can probably buy a Nano every five years with the money I have to pay as road-tax on a 15-year old Mercedes.

Have I come to the right conclusion? Looking forward to Team-BHP members views on this.