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Old 17th August 2007, 11:36   #1
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Suzuki WagonR to replace Padmini Taxi - HT

Its time to say bye bye to the good old Premier Padminis used as Taxis on the road in Mumbai very soon its place is going to be taken up by the maruti wagon-r.

Quote:
“We are in talks with Maruti to replace the existing black-and-yellow cabs with the WagonR. We are working out an affordable deal,” said Anthony L Quadros, head of the Mumbai Taximen’s Union. The aim is to make the new WagonR taxis financially viable not only to the taximen and to Maruti, but also to the average Mumbaiite.
“It will be quite possible to run an air-conditioned cab at the existing fare of Rs 13 and WagonR is the selected model. We are trying to work out a deal, though it would be premature to comment on it,” said Maruti dealer Sandeep Bafna.
Source:
WagonR could be the new Mumbai taxi- Hindustan Times
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Old 17th August 2007, 11:38   #2
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Its already used widely as a Taxi and call centre cab in NCR.
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Old 17th August 2007, 11:39   #3
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Interesting. Should work out well, but will they follow the same color coding as the current Padminis' ?
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Old 17th August 2007, 11:42   #4
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But I read in todays Times of India that they are getting esteems toi replace the Padminis
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Old 17th August 2007, 11:51   #5
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Why not Indicas? Diesel diet will be more cost effective, isn't it?
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Old 17th August 2007, 11:59   #6
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ooops! bad news for Padmini owners - i guess that sourcing spares will be a very big problem now. :( but why wagonR? is it because of the LPG/CNG option?
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:09   #7
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WagonR LPG makes a lot of sense than any other petrol car. Good move, benefits all.
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:24   #8
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I am just wondering how and why they thought WagonR suits the requirement of a taxi. I would have thought the Omni LPG is the best option. It has the space to accomodate 4 passengers besides the driver and has a good loading bay as well. And the cost is also one of the lowest amongst all possible cars.

In diesel segment the Indicas were there for them but then the boot space probably falls short there to meet the regular street taxi requirements.
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:30   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zappo View Post
I am just wondering how and why they thought WagonR suits the requirement of a taxi. I would have thought the Omni LPG is the best option. It has the space to accomodate 4 passengers besides the driver and has a good loading bay as well. And the cost is also one of the lowest amongst all possible cars.

In diesel segment the Indicas were there for them but then the boot space probably falls short there to meet the regular street taxi requirements.
One problem with Omni: It has little or no thigh support. Except this its perfect for taxi.
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:30   #10
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How is the LPG availability in Mumbai?
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:40   #11
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So possibly in future when we will get down at Ariport or Dadar, we need to hire 2 cabs, 1 for passenger and the other for luggage....so that will make it profitable for Maruti and Taxi Union..

What do u say..
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:54   #12
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an ode to the humble Premier Padmini taxicab

Quote:
Originally Posted by rahul_intlad View Post
Its time to say bye bye to the good old Premier Padminis used as Taxis on the road in Mumbai very soon its place is going to be taken up by the maruti wagon-r.

Quote:
“We are in talks with Maruti to replace the existing black-and-yellow cabs with the WagonR. We are working out an affordable deal,” said Anthony L Quadros, head of the Mumbai Taximen’s Union. The aim is to make the new WagonR taxis financially viable not only to the taximen and to Maruti, but also to the average Mumbaiite.
“It will be quite possible to run an air-conditioned cab at the existing fare of Rs 13 and WagonR is the selected model. We are trying to work out a deal, though it would be premature to comment on it,” said Maruti dealer Sandeep Bafna.
Source:
WagonR could be the new Mumbai taxi- Hindustan Times

Six years ago, one rainy Friday night, 13 Jul 2001, I keyed in some thoughts -- an ode to the humble Premier Padmini taxicab.
Quote:
The ubiquitous Fiat 1100 Delight(aka Premier President; aka Premier Padmini) graced the Bombay taxi world from 1960 thru 1999. She is not produced anymore. Her diesel engine has been outlawed. The surviving black and yellow Padmini taxis we see in the City today, retrofitted to injest compressed natural gas, are all between two and fifteen years old.

The Fiat Delight was a single model that survived over four decades. During her four-decade life span, she bore and sustained a small-ticket cottage industry from pavement garages: Koliwada and Saki-Naka to parts fabricators from Patiala to Coimbatore.

Her frugal costs of acquisition, running and maintenance afforded taxi travel to a middle-class Bombay.

Never again will we see such longevity in a model and more importantly such frugality.

Buyers of new taxicabs are experimenting with the dimunitive Daewoo Matiz, Maruti Alto and Fiat Uno. (Update:2007, Maruti Wagon R, Maruti Alto and Tata Indica)

Does a London, NewYork, Tokyo or Singapore have ugly one-box squarebackers as taxicabs dotting the landscape?

And all of these three happen to be priced higher than the Padmini ever was. The availability of spares is sparse and the prices hefty in comparison with the humble Padmini. Not to mention the Padmini’s rugged longevity.

She was so much more car than these micro-hatchbacks will ever be.

She joins the Trams, Czech trolley buses, Victorias, Daimler double-deckers that once graced Bombay — an icon is passing!!

Ram
Friends, the original post is at [nukkad] Fiat 1100 Delight - the passing of an icon
That email id is obsolete. My current email-id is ramraosaheb@gmail.com
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:55   #13
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Rather than the Indica its the Indigo diesel which would make good sense. Big interiors, comfy at the back, diesel and a huge boot. Cheap to live with for the taxi driver or owner as well.
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Old 17th August 2007, 12:59   #14
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I believe CNG is cheaper than diesel, hence it makes more sense to run the CNG equipped WagonR's. However, I do hope that they also work out a deal for a few Indigo's and Indigo Marina's as there are times when the additional bootspace is needed.

For most purposes, the Wagon R would be ideal for an inner city cab. But we would need to have an option for those airport runs etc.
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Old 17th August 2007, 13:17   #15
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Maruti must have done something very endearing to have got this order;the last I'd heard, Tata were in advanced stages of selling their Indicabs to replace the Premier Padmini fleet.
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