[vikasshu]

In last 2-3 years a lot of my regular choices are changing and this includes the car that I bought recently, color preferences for clothes and type of music that I hear, the attention that I give to my new car and getting little more jazzy in my choices. My wife says that all this points that I am going through some mid-life crisis. But whatever it is, I am enjoying it

Like many of you who discovered Team BHP because of your strong interest in automobiles or when you were making a automobile purchase decision, I found this community while doing my research to buy an AC for the house. Once I discovered it, I was glued to that thread for days and got all my questions answered for a right decision. What pulled me towards Team-BHP is the depth and breadth of the knowledge possessed by its members. The logical and objective discussion around issues with an emphasis on disseminating information for the whole community to benefit from it. I kept on visiting here but it was very infrequent in the interim time period.

Around 10-12 months back I started to re-visit the community and this time I came here to find more information about automobiles. I was in a purchase mode for a new car and forum again provided me valuable information. Since then I am glued to this portal and have been discovering newer facets of knowledge from all of you. I think it was a deep desire some where inside me to return back to the community and this prompted me to apply for membership.

With all this prelude, I would like to formally introduce myself. My name is Vikas and I am based out of New Delhi. I was born in small town of Faizabad in eastern U.P. since it is the closest town to my village which is 25-30 KMS from the place. My father was working with Ministry of Home Affairs and because of that we used to travel across India. I started my education in small town of Gangtok (Sikkim) in early 80s. In those days my only ambition in life was to become a bus driver. Even when the bus used to have ample number of seats, I always used to stand behind the driver and really enjoyed the honking and him managing the bends. Life was smooth and moving on but there was trouble brewing up which changed my career choice soon. While coming back from Gangtok to our home town, we used to take train from Siliguri. And it was here I encountered massive steam locomotives of Indian Railway. With this my sole objective in life changed to be a steam engine driver. Life again started to move peacefully with a dream in my eyes to secure a career with railways. All this was going on and my father got his transfer orders to move to Bareilly in U.P. One fine evening I saw a massive plane taking-off from the airport. It was so big and was making so much noise that the earth was trembling. Later on in life I came to know about massive Tumansky R-15 engines of MiG 25. But this whole thing again changed my career dream. I think it is obvious for readers to guess.

I am assuming after this big story all of you might be thinking that either I joined forces or started doing something related to machines and technology. But I am into much more complex and difficult area. I work as a behavioral science expert in a big IT firm's selection department after completing a masters in psychology. For my bread and butter, I try to devise strategies that help organization to pick the best talent from market. I enjoy my work as it gives me numerous opportunities to understand complex behavior of humans in an objective and scientific manner.

Now let me talk about automobiles in my life. Even after attaining legal age to drive, I bought my first bike after working for 3 years in corporate world. It was a Hero Honda Splendor that I bought in the year 2003. And believe me I was forced to buy a bike by my lovable Dad. I think my friends were more excited than me as I was getting my own mode of travel and that too a nice bike. Then in 2005 I bought my first car which was a silver grey Wagon R LXi. An amazing car that never ever troubled me on roads and was extensively used for in-city commutes. Years passed by and family kept on growing. By 2015 the Wagon R was getting old and it used to get difficult for all of us to travel together specially when my brother and sister in-law used to visit us. Also, my growing son was getting more demanding with his need for space and a better AC in the car which Wagon R was repeatedly unable to fulfill. Besides this I also wanted to undertake road journeys and explore India through roads. The cars that were in my consideration ranged from Honda City & Jazz, i20 , Etios, Dezire. Basically I was looking for a comfortable, reliable, no-fuss family mover. Though I always admired SUVs and specially Safari but never ever thought of buying one. I think I was intimidated by their size and a big concern was how to drive them. Somehow fate again played a role and a cousin brother forced me to go for a test ride of new generation Mahindra Scorpio. This car I liked so much, I can’t tell all of you. And this lead me to my next sojourn to this community and ultimately I bought a molten red 2WD S10 model. During this period, I used to do extensive research on this car and read official review of new gen Scorpio by S2 and GTO and ownership threads of Sheel and Joybhowmik with great interest. I think their threads gave me lot of information and confidence to go for this purchase. Here I would like to add another interesting story. I booked the car and was eagerly waiting for the delivery. One fine morning while going to office, I saw a molten red new generation Scorpio. It was the same color that I had booked as well. The car was looking so beautiful that I started to follow it. I was amazed when it entered the same complex where I have my office. It was a pleasant surprise so I thought I’ll come down to basement during lunch and will admire the beauty. To my shock the Scorpio stopped and took turn towards our allocated parking space. I was quite bemused to find that this car belongs to someone from my office? By the time I could recover and park my car, owner disappeared. With heavy heart I reached our floor and saw one more gentleman there. As it was early morning with very few people on the floor, I thought of taking a risk at the cost of looking fool and ask the other gentleman whether he owns the red Scorpio which is standing below in the parking. To my utmost surprise, the gentleman confirmed that he owns the car. Two of us met many a times in the office while picking up printouts from workroom or while getting a cup of tea/coffee but never knew each other’s name. We used to pass smiles and that used to be end of our interactions previously. But today I was in no mood to leave this gentleman. During our interactions he told me that he is a member of Team-BHP and his handle is Joybhowmik. I immediately shared with Joy (of course with lot of joy) that his posts and his thread really influenced my decision and gave me lot of confidence in my purchase decision. I am loving my decision so far and enjoy taking good care of this new possession. In my tryst to take good care of my car, I have gone through more than 657 pages of Car detailing under Technical stuff section. I think I may have spent thousands in buying best sealants, waxes, shampoos, micro-fibers, car-covers etc. And dear friends this is where my wife starts doubting me that my mid-life crisis is getting severe



Let’s move on and talk about my interests. I love reading and specially non-fiction from various subjects and areas. My other strong interest is in the area of photography. I still have strong interest in locomotives of Indian railways and love all the WDG, WAP, WAGs of railways. Apart from locomotives, I have retained my interest in aircrafts of Indian air force and love to read about all the MiGs, Sukhois, Kamovs and Ilyushins.

And finally I would like to thank admins for accepting my membership. I hope in coming days and months I’ll share my inputs in various forms with this esteemed community.

[Rajeevraj]

Welcome to the forum Vikas. Lovely introductory post. Congrats on the Scorpio and looking forward to a detailed ownership report.

We do have a railway thread also. Assume you may have seen it. If not, I think it would definitely interest you.

Very interesting job profile. Hope you will be able to share some interesting stuff you encounter on a regular basis.

All the best.

[ampere]

Welcome Vikas. That was an interesting introductory post.


Your choice of career from your childhood is I think what most also think about! Mine stopped with the railways though (after the bus), as I encountered a plane much later in life.


Gangtok to Bareilly is an interesting move! But thats the beauty of seeing places when young. You learn to adapt on the go. Prepares you much better for life. I do hope you must have enjoyed the Momos and Thupka equally as you must have that Dinananth's Lassi ! Even I have some memories of Bareilly; especially shopping for furniture. But thats a different era altogether.

And of course there is a thrill in meeting someone whom you dont know; especially someone who has helped you make a wise choice. Hope you and Joy take the Scorp some good long drives.

And last; there is very active railway thread. Though not as detailed as IRFCA, but still quite an engaging one. (Quite some railway fanatics here as well)

Do check it out:
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/comme...y-pics-35.html (Railway Pics)

[blackwasp]

Welcome to teambhp Vikas! I think we share similar interests from being a bus driver to a loco pilot to an aeroplane pilot! That was a lovely first post. And trains too. Even today I'm fascinated by the lifeline of India.

Do post about your ownership of Scorpio. We'd like to read about it. Also you have an interesting job. Do share your experiences.

[vikasshu]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Welcome to the forum Vikas. Lovely introductory post. Congrats on the Scorpio and looking forward to a detailed ownership report.

We do have a railway thread also. Assume you may have seen it. If not, I think it would definitely interest you.

Very interesting job profile. Hope you will be able to share some interesting stuff you encounter on a regular basis.

All the best.

Thank you so much Rajeev for warm welcome. I hope to start an ownership report soon. Behavioral science is an interesting field and I remember a very old study from 1971 conducted in US to predict driver's accident proneness. The researchers developed an equation consisting of personality dimensions plus a driver's marital status . Do you know this criteria was also used by US air force to select pilots for their fastest jet, Black Bird.

Hopefully I'll try to bring my knowledge of human behavior into discussion whenever it is possible.

Originally Posted by ampere

Welcome Vikas. That was an interesting introductory post.


Your choice of career from your childhood is I think what most also think about! Mine stopped with the railways though (after the bus), as I encountered a plane much later in life.


Gangtok to Bareilly is an interesting move! But thats the beauty of seeing places when young. You learn to adapt on the go. Prepares you much better for life. I do hope you must have enjoyed the Momos and Thupka equally as you must have that Dinananth's Lassi ! Even I have some memories of Bareilly; especially shopping for furniture. But thats a different era altogether.

And of course there is a thrill in meeting someone whom you dont know; especially someone who has helped you make a wise choice. Hope you and Joy take the Scorp some good long drives.

And last; there is very active railway thread. Though not as detailed as IRFCA, but still quite an engaging one. (Quite some railway fanatics here as well)

Do check it out:
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/comme...y-pics-35.html (Railway Pics)

Thank you so much Ampere for the nice words. It seems like minded people flock together. Or if I quote a psychological theory then possibly our interests match. And amazing to know that you have a Bareilly connection. Furniture of Bareilly was quite famous and believe me we still have many pieces that we bought 30 years back. Every thing is in very good condition. I'll surely visit the railway thread.

Originally Posted by blackwasp

Welcome to teambhp Vikas! I think we share similar interests from being a bus driver to a loco pilot to an aeroplane pilot! That was a lovely first post. And trains too. Even today I'm fascinated by the lifeline of India.

Do post about your ownership of Scorpio. We'd like to read about it. Also you have an interesting job. Do share your experiences.

Thanks a lot Blackwasp for your kind words. Like what I mentioned above, it seems many of us share same interests in life. I agree to you that trains are lifeline of India. And the real fun is in traveling by sleeper class to get the unhindered view of the locale and try local food. Though with family it becomes very challenging

[Nav-i-gator]

Welcome Vikas.

I am not much into psychology, but indeed Tbhp is a place where we can find people eerily similar in tastes and preferences/hobbies/interests to us. I guess love for machines is the common glue. Probably a study assignment for you - why automobile lovers almost invariably have common interests, esp airplanes?

BTW, I have also spent my entire childhood in Bareilly. My parents still live there.

[vikasshu]

Originally Posted by Nav-i-gator

Welcome Vikas.

I am not much into psychology, but indeed Tbhp is a place where we can find people eerily similar in tastes and preferences/hobbies/interests to us. I guess love for machines is the common glue. Probably a study assignment for you - why automobile lovers almost invariably have common interests, esp airplanes?

BTW, I have also spent my entire childhood in Bareilly. My parents still live there.

Thanks a lot Nav-i-gator for your welcome and kind words. Psychologists have been studying interests related issues for quite long time. In many western countries this information is heavily used for career counseling as well. Many corporate as well are using this approach now to tackle issues around job hopping and attrition. I think a large number of us are motivated by the interest called as 'Application of Technology' - People who are interested in how things work and want to find ways of making them work more effectively.

There is another link that I shared yesterday in another post which talks about another model of 'Interests'.

This Bareilly connection as well seems to be pretty common on Team-BHP. Since I left Bareilly, I never went back. Want to travel there once and visit my old school.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by vikasshu

Later on in life I came to know about massive Tumansky R-15 engines of MiG 25.

I have retained my interest in aircrafts of Indian air force and love to read about all the MiGs, Sukhois, Kamovs and Ilyushins.

Welcome Aboard! Couldn't help liking your post after I read the above lines

[vikasshu]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

Welcome Aboard! Couldn't help liking your post after I read the above lines

And here comes the Foxbat . Thanks again for the welcome Foxbat. I've moved on to a Fullback now from a Frogfoot. And by any chance any linkage with Trisonics/Bareilly?

For those of you who are thinking what these words like Foxbat, Fullback or Frogfoot mean then please visit this link.

And Trisonics was the name of the squadron that used to fly Foxbats of Indian Air Force based out of Bareilly. MiG 25s top speed was 3 times of 'speed of sound' and therefore the name Trisonics.

[Zappo]

Beautiful!!! Rarely ever has an introductory thread caught my attention the way this one did. Welcome onboard Vikas. I am sure you will enjoy every moment of being a part of this vibrant community.

[for_cars1]

Originally Posted by vikasshu

.... I found this community while doing my research to buy an AC for the house...

Welcome to the forum.
Indeed, the 'Shifting-gears' section is a treasure trove of information covering diverse areas that comes in so handy.

So what AC brand did you end up buying after your research? I'm on the verge of finalizing one.

[alpha1]

I think this fascination with machines, engines, mechanisms is something genetic. Some people have it by birth ... just like some people have the knack for music.

Originally Posted by vikasshu

Like many of you who discovered Team BHP because of your strong interest in automobiles or when you were making a automobile purchase decision, I found this community while doing my research to buy an AC for the house.

I hope you did not get suckered into "Saaar 1 ton per 100 or 200 sqft (whichever works convenient for the sales) funda given by most shopkeepers."

But I am into much more complex and difficult area. I work as a behavioral science expert in a big IT firm's selection department after completing a masters in psychology.

Are you also acquainted with Behavioral Economics by any chance?

[vikasshu]

Originally Posted by Zappo

Beautiful!!! Rarely ever has an introductory thread caught my attention the way this one did. Welcome onboard Vikas. I am sure you will enjoy every moment of being a part of this vibrant community.

Thank you so much Zappo for your words of appreciation. I am really feeling humbled and enjoying every moment that I spend here.

Originally Posted by for_cars1

Welcome to the forum.
Indeed, the 'Shifting-gears' section is a treasure trove of information covering diverse areas that comes in so handy.

So what AC brand did you end up buying after your research? I'm on the verge of finalizing one.

Thank you so much for_cars1. I bought Hitachi 1.1 ton Quadricool model no. RAV012EQD. I think they've discontinued this one. This one has twin motors and product wise is an amazing product. We've spent 6 years with this machine and enjoyed its efficiency in peak Delhi summers. I've noticed that the Dry mode in this model is very good for humid season specially June end on-wards. So far only once I had to send this AC to a workshop as service team claimed that the gas is leaking. It was 3 years back. When I asked them why this is happening so early in a brand like this then they answered that there is a big drain quite close by and the gases from it reacts with copper pipes and therefore this problem. Though I am not fully convinced with this reason and need to find about it in more detail. One area of weakness is with their service. The company has outsourced the service to multiple private players in a city. These vendors try to push for extra work at time or ask you to get things changed even when there is no requirement. Hope my response helps you take a better decision.

Originally Posted by alpha1

I think this fascination with machines, engines, mechanisms is something genetic. Some people have it by birth ... just like some people have the knack for music.


I hope you did not get suckered into "Saaar 1 ton per 100 or 200 sqft (whichever works convenient for the sales) funda given by most shopkeepers."


Are you also acquainted with Behavioral Economics by any chance?

Thanks alpha1. Nature-nurture is a long debate in psychology but I feel both play their role . The team-bhp thread had given me all the information so I was clear what tonnage I need. I love behaviroal economics but it is limited to reading of books. Herbert Simon, Daniel Kahneman, Amos Tversky and Dan Ariely are my favorite authors. I am sure you know that Kahneman is the only psychologist ever to win a Nobel prize in Economics.