Just wanted to say- a big Hi to all the Team-BHPians out there ! This was 2nd try after a futile attempt in 2014.
This is Jacob Varughese presently residing in the city of Trivandrum since Dec 2009. Prior to this, I was in the United Kingdom where I read for my Master's at Bangor University and worked there for circa 3.5 years. I did my undergraduate education(Bachelor of Commerce) from Sindhi College, Bangalore and lived there for 6 years. I spent my childhood in the Kingdom of Bahrain till the age of 17
Professionally, I work in the capacity of an Assistant Director with EY(one of the Big 4 professional services firms) in Trivandrum. My work has taken me around the world which has further stoked my interest in the automotive realm.
Getting down to my hobbies, my 1st interest lies in cars- mostly that offer the most 'bang for the buck' with looks being a major consideration. Others include workouts(I used to be a gym rat), and travelling. I do believe in St.Augustine's adage till date that 'Those who do not travel read only a page'.
Car experiences thus far:
I began driving my dad's brand new Ambassador 1500 Diesel in the year 2000 as soon as I grabbed my driver's license, particularly during my holidays. This initial experience of driving an Indian powerhorse had it's fair share of lessons- the steering was 'hard' and pulling handbrakes sometimes did not seem to work. As a result, I went through the grind and learnt the half-clutch method of driving on slopes.
When my family made a decision to move to Bangalore for my sister's studies in 2002, I impressed upon them to sell-off the Amby (much to my dad's chagrin) - my business case was that the Amby doesn't offer the hype that the then contemporary cars offered. My dad finally relented and we swapped the Amby for a Maruti Esteem 2002 model which had already munched circa 25,000 kms.
Upon moving to Bangalore, the Maruti Esteem was the vehicle that enabled me to hone my driving skills to the fullest and enjoy motoring. When I had to fly to the United Kingdom to do my Master's, I did not purchase a car for the 4.5 years I was there, albeit my instincts told me otherwise. However, I built 'better calf muscles' as a result of walking around on the highstreets or going to University.
Upon my return to India in 2009, I purchased my 1st car which was the Hyundai Verna- this was the climax of almost 6 months of scouting(no one told me of Team BHP back then). The vehicle was the lowest end model, however had most features barring ABS and Airbags which sufficed me. I also installed the reverse camera thanks to a few instances where I bumped the vehicle's rear.
My next car- the BMW 320d Corporate Edition. My family and I was invited to attend a wedding, and we arrived at the venue an hour before the slated appointment. There was a Mahindra First Choice adjacent to the venue, and as a result of the extra time in hand thought of looking at 2 Beemers on display there. One was a 530d and the other one was the 320d. I requested them for a test drive which they immediately obliged and my experience was mesmerizing. I agreed with them that I would get back should I decide to go further.
I did my checks using the registration number and found the car had previous 2 owners and haggled with the First Choice representative for a fruitful 'swap', as appropriate. My wife was vehemently against purchasing a used luxury car owing to some harrowing stories she head to which I did not pay much heed. I finally paid them a Rs.5000 as token advance toward the booking of the Beemer and decided to go further with the BMW.
The ownership experience with the BMW was sub-optimal where I had to change the tyres in my 2 months of ownership, notwithstanding the service I got for the car at BMW Platino Classic in Kochi. After spending around 10 months, I felt the car was giving me monetary difficulties and other issues(unbeknownst to me like hydrostatic locks) decided to sell it off. This is what led to my next car in my garage- the Mahindra XUV 500 W10 FWD based on a comprehensive review on Team BHP. I shall post my ownership experiences in threads later on.
Thanks much to the moderators for giving me the opportunity to participate and engage in this stupendous forum. I'm certain the membership would prove to be hugely beneficial and could refine my motoring experience for ages to come.
Early pictures of the cheetah beast snapped