[max8791]

talkin about rickshaws as personal vehicle.... think about racing in an rickshaw

have a look at these rickshaw rally organiser
Rickshaw Run - Adventures in the India ( What better way to enjoy the Christmas holidays than two weeks of mountains, mud tracks, tropical heat, gin & tonics, cricket and that most noble of vehicular genius, the three wheeled motorised rickshaw.)

The Indian Autorickshaw Challenge - The world's most bizarre motor sport (Welcome to the first annual IndianARC Mumbai Xpress Rally 2007 (The amazing race for the clinically insane became NASTY) . Ever wonder what it's like to experience a challenging adventure in India, pursuing your levels of endurance, experiencing the crazy Indian night life in Goa along the way, and all the while knowing it's all for a worthy cause?... )


hats off to rickshaw lovers

adventurer
max

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Subbu

Why Autorickshaw is not seen as a personal transport like a car.

How may have you seen??? i have seen about three- four... thats all... But nothing rong in using auto as personal transport

Originally Posted by Subbu

1. Psychologically seen as a hire vehicle and not as a personal vehicle or
2. Legally not permitted or
3. Not useful for inter city travel or
4. Quite unsafe or
5. Less comfortable i.e., no A/C etc etc.

1. Status is a big issue... A second hand M800 would be a much better deal than a new auto...
2. Dont think tgere are any legal problems...
3. Inter city travel on highways is ok... One of my relatives have one (Not for personal transport, the regular hire auto), and we once visited a temple quite far off in that... about a two hour drive, one sided...
4. Of course it is unsafe... One accident, and it will be like a pile of bent iron rods...
5. Comfort is seriosulr compromised... ac is not the probelm, but suspension is... Come bumpy roads, and an old auto can shake all your bones lose...

Originally Posted by Subbu

Compelling arguements.
1. Quite cost effective (Price and FE)
2. Quite good for intra city travel.
3. Safe as long as not driven rashly.

1. Not very cost efective... as Someone said... a second hand M800 comes at lower price than a new auto...
2. Intra city tarvel... man! It rocks... (As for other road user.... Watch out cause it is much much more flickable than a bike even... The auto walla here are among the worst drivers on the road... )
3. Not quite... If another guy hits you also, you are in trouble... My friend crashed into an auto, on his CBZ... Bike was broken beyond repair (Chasis broke in two), while the auto was reduced into half of what it should be...

Originally Posted by Subbu

The TATA 1 lakh car is going to be between an autorickshaw. The difference could be only 4 wheels and doors. The doors can be fixed but may not 4 wheels.

Man! i was thinking the same while a saw a piaggio deisel auto the other day... The passenger (a nice good looking you lady.. he he, was having trouble taking money from her bag, with the desiel engine directly beneath the seat... ) Wonder how refined the 1L car deisel is gonna be...

By the way... I have driven it around my home town... Its one helluva vehicle to drive... (Who cares about image factor in the village??? after all, i go there only twice a year, and am still a kid... he he)... Now wonder the auto gives becomes rash drivers...

[rajushank84]

Found this thread after I searched, having similar thoughts in my mind today.

Bike - Dust, too much dust. Wearing helmet gives me bad headache & sometimes neckpain, tried four different helmets now. So problem may be with head, not with helmet. Not wearing helmet is not an option.

Car - Very very cumbersome to commute in. Seven-kilometer commute usually takes 45 minutes!

So how about autorickshaw only for commute? As a replacement for bike, not replacement for car. Safety... guess it is safer than bike anyway, isn't it?

Any idea how much a new autorickshaw costs? (prefer 2-stroke)

Wonder if it can climb the slope in parking lots?

[bblost]

rajushank84

These might help you out.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/commer...-rickshaw.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/commer...-rickshaw.html

From the Bajaj linky

Openly not available freely. Actual cost is Rs. 1,44,000 on-road but in Delhi black marketing with respect to issue of permits means, it is available for nothing less than Rs. 4,20,000.

Why not the Nano?

[Sheel]

I ride and drive.

I find motorcycles very safe. The escape routes on a Motorcycle are very varied and wide.

Glad you aren't venturing around w/o a helmet. Get used to a helmet.

Doesn't the Nano's width rival that of an auto? With AC and as a proper Car.

[rajushank84]

Originally Posted by Sheel

I ride and drive.

I find motorcycles very safe. The escape routes on a Motorcycle are very varied and wide.

Glad you aren't venturing around w/o a helmet. Get used to a helmet.

Doesn't the Nano's width rival that of an auto? With AC and as a proper Car.

Actually the Nano isn't that small. It is wider than Maruti 800 and Maruti Omni. Its dimensions are closer to those of WagonR than those of an autorickshaw.

Am not new to riding, this is like my seventh year and fourth bike (always with a helmet). Have tried bikes, helmets and riding postures of different sorts. So, not sure if I am going to "get used to" it any more than I have.

By the way my colleague is having similar thoughts and he is seriously considering changing his Alto for a Reva. Somehow I don't want to venture down that line.

But I get what you mean - if a bus or lorry comes real close, in a bike we can do all sorts of things to get out of the way, which is just not possible in an auto.

Hmmm... thinking, thinking - struggling to find the ideal means of commute . Guess I'll stick with the bike till I find a better option.

Actually on second thought, the commute may be equally slow in an autorickshaw as it is in a car.

[moose56]

i know a rich businessman in hyd and they have there own auto and driver !! when i asked him why , he was like its much easier to use an auto in the city and its time saving too !!

[Recompose]

Autos are quicker than 3 wheelers because of the way they are driven, cutting lanes and jumping signals, coming on main road out of nowhere and ... You know what I mean. If a Team-BHPian is 'behind the wheel' on one of those, it'll take ages to reach the destination.

[Captain Slow]

Come to think of it why is the Auto so expensive ? 2 Lakhs for an Auto ? Bajaj and TVS must be getting huge profits by selling these at 1.5-2 Lakhs.

[Rach]

Autos are expensive to buy, but easy to maintain when you compare them with 800 and Nano. People still buy it for public transport (taxi) for below 4:

1. They have bench seats and no doors. So easy to overload, both with people and goods.
2. Engine has evolved from scooter, so spare parts are cheap. And only serviceable component is engine. Can be managed without other components like, lights, indicators, wipers, etc
3. Because, there are only three wheels and small turning radius, can be chuked easily into tight spaces.
4. Scratch resistant with literally no metal on sides. Scratches and dents will be born by overhanging passenger's or their luggage. Sometimes they act as protection bars for my vechicle.

Except for 3, none of them makes much sense as a personal transport, unless you want to give some of the crazy auto drivers their own medicine.

[rajushank84]

By the way, how easy/fun is it to drive one? Anyone with experience?

[simplyself]

And one can drive with abandon as there wouldnt be a worry about dents and scratches. And contribute our mite to the already chaotic traffic.

Seriously, maintenance-wise, it is a lot cheaper. And now we have diesel options too.

The only problem is "status". Which is insurmountable.

And for those who did not have a chance to travel in a bullock-cart, it is a boon as one would experience almost same ride quality at many times the speed.

Dont forget, one ought to wear a helmet in an auto. Banging one's head on to the bent rods which form the side and top framework for the soft top is common.

All brands ( diesel-engined ones) give 30 + mileage with 5-fold overloading.

[simplyself]

Originally Posted by rajushank84

By the way, how easy/fun is it to drive one? Anyone with experience?

Tried.

Almost wet my pants as it wouldnt stop on braking ( at 25 kmph).

Once pleaded with a driver to allow me to drive. I think he was not sure whether I was sane or know how to drive or both. He refused to entertain my request ( by the way, I do not have a license, and this could be another thread in itself on the pros and cons of trying to drive, atleast for a few minutes, without a license.)

I banged my head repeatedly against the overhead rods as the road was crater-full. After a particularly harsh bang, I even thought I was on moon.

[vivekiny2k]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Man! i was thinking the same while a saw a piaggio deisel auto the other day... The passenger (a nice good looking you lady.. he he, was having trouble taking money from her bag, with the desiel engine directly beneath the seat... ) Wonder how refined the 1L car deisel is gonna be...

So this coul be the ideal vehicle for hanky panky as well, as asked in another thread. just keep the engine running

Originally Posted by rajushank84

Actually on second thought, the commute may be equally slow in an autorickshaw as it is in a car.

Easy, import a driver from chennai.

EDIT: whoops, you are in chennai. Just hire one!

[simplyself]

Originally Posted by Subbu

May be this is already posted. If so, Moderators, please turn it down.

Why Autorickshaw is not seen as a personal transport like a car.


Legally not permitted or ....


Any comments ?.

As far as I know, autos can be registered as private vehicles, atleast in Hyderabad/AP.