[johy]

Originally Posted by navin

Great idea,

I assume one will also have to pay for some hardware box that has a SIM card or does the rental cover this cost?

Can it give us a GPS like update on where the vehicle is? This way if my son or mom is in the car I can tell if the chauffer has not driven off with them!

Ideally, it should work almost real time, giving the exact location etc. We tried it on a trial basis for some our our buses,but it did not work. If it worked well, I think it is a good solution. Again, as it was a trial basis, I did not pay anything. As far as I remember, there was an initial cost, followed by rentals.

MapmyIndia seem to have something similar. http://www.mapmyindia.com/tracking

[manikjeet]

We have 4 Drivers at home and All of them are employed by us for past 27-29 Years. And I am 25 Years old.

The way they take care of all the cars is worth seeing. They are very competitive in cleaning the car and compare with each other.

And they very particular about the services and Tyre. They would start reminding us about 1000 kms before the cars service.

And I trust them More with my personal cars than my Wife. I wish she doesn't read this.
Waisa getting In the range of 20-25 K a month is very handsome for a driver at least.

[wilful]

I'm sure many would empathise with your sentiments & plight. I was, like you,very fond of driving at one time (still am if I get a nice enough stretch). But with increasing congestion both in the cities and on highways, the terrible surfaces and the boorish road manners of the general populace, that pleasure has plummeted to zero and at times negative levels.
I do not keep a driver for the reasons you have listed out so succinctly.
Which is precisely the reason why I succumbed to the charms of automatic transmission. While it still cannot completely eliminate that surge in blood pressure that invariably occurs while driving through our streets filled with our amiable fellow motorists, pedestrians and other animals it does take a fair amount of stress away.
My suggestion to all those who want to reduce stress (and wish to drive themselves) is to go the automatic way.

[rahulsharma2008]

Originally Posted by wilful

I'm sure many would empathise with your sentiments & plight. I was, like you,very fond of driving at one time (still am if I get a nice enough stretch). But with increasing congestion both in the cities and on highways, the terrible surfaces and the boorish road manners of the general populace, that pleasure has plummeted to zero and at times negative levels.
I do not keep a driver for the reasons you have listed out so succinctly.
Which is precisely the reason why I succumbed to the charms of automatic transmission. While it still cannot completely eliminate that surge in blood pressure that invariably occurs while driving through our streets filled with our amiable fellow motorists, pedestrians and other animals it does take a fair amount of stress away.
My suggestion to all those who want to reduce stress (and wish to drive themselves) is to go the automatic way.

I also agree to your point that automatic is the way to go. Infact my last car was an Automatic and the comfort that it provided me was beyond belief. I drove that car for 6 years and ever since I sold it I always miss an auto transmission. It doesnt solve all your problems but reduces them to a great extent, the only negative being increase in running costs since most of the affordable automatics are petrol powered and give low mileage as compared to diesels.

[navin]

Originally Posted by johy

Ideally, it should work almost real time, giving the exact location etc. We tried it on a trial basis for some our our buses,but it did not work.
MapmyIndia seem to have something similar. http://www.mapmyindia.com/tracking

Johy, why did it not work? Were the maps of your area not available?

I guess GPS tracking has become quite common I found many companies in India doing the same thing however most of the models seem to be target fleets. At Rs. 10,000 per year plus the cost of hardware I don't know if individual car owners would find enough value.

Some links I managed to google. There were hundreds of companies so I just linked to the ones which had the more comprehensive websites.

http://www.phoenixsecure.in/GPS-tracker.php
http://gps.digilogsystems.com/
http://www.bannariinfotech.com/aboutus.htm
http://www.sstracking.com/Default.aspx
http://www.3rdeyeindia.in/contact_us.php

[johy]

Originally Posted by navin

Johy, why did it not work? Were the maps of your area not available?

I guess GPS tracking has become quite common I found many companies in India doing the same thing however most of the models seem to be target fleets. At Rs. 10,000 per year plus the cost of hardware I don't know if individual car owners would find enough value.

Some links I managed to google. There were hundreds of companies so I just linked to the ones which had the more comprehensive websites.

http://www.phoenixsecure.in/GPS-tracker.php
http://gps.digilogsystems.com/
http://www.bannariinfotech.com/aboutus.htm
http://www.sstracking.com/Default.aspx
http://www.3rdeyeindia.in/contact_us.php

Hi Navin,

Here the Docomo network isn't very good. So sometimes we could not see the bus on the map. Or it would show up late, that kind of thing. So we gave it up.

[ad3952n]

Hi all, This thread is about common people like us who spend lakhs of rupees on buying our favourite car so that we can enjoy the pleasure of driving it but because of the busy professional lives we seldom get a chance to drive our dream car.

Be it a good or a bad chauffeur it always feels bad to handover your precious car to an unknown person for driving even after knowing that his driving acumen and skills cant match to the expectations of the owner. So, With this thread I would request you to share your thoughts as to what you prefer i.e Self Drive or Chauffeur's Drive?

However good a Chauffeur may be but the only thing they have on stake is their monthly salary and apart from that they have nothing to loose even in the worst case like a road accident. But, What does the owner have at stake?

Owner's stake is the hard earned money that went to buy the car in first place. Secondly, Chauffeurs do not invest on the car's maintenance rather the owner's money is spent.

Have you ever noticed the rampant Petrol/Diesel syphoning from your car? This issue is very old but is rampant even now. We can be alert at a petrol pump while filling fuel in our cars but have you all ever noticed any unprecedented fall in the fuel gauge and needle? Have you ever asked your Chauffeur or did a surprise check?

Out of 10 times people like us can catch hold of these types of culprits just once or maybe twice. Their standard answer is "Gaadi ka petrol khatam hogya Sir" and we keep wondering about it.

Honestly, When a owner drives his/her car then chances of rash and negligent driving are far less until one is driving under influence which I believe is a rear case. But, Have anyone of us ever checked upon our Chauffeurs?

In my personal opinion I assume that owners are far more attached and concerned of their vehicles than any other third person.

With this thread I look forward for lot of views regarding the best way of driving one's car.

Thanks

AD

[Visaster]

This looks like a dead topic, and has not had much role in this forum as everyone is better off driving their own car, especially if you are here!
I times of Covid19 and the future, I am mentally forced to take this route of having a driver for the family than trying to live off online taxi platforms with unreliable multiuser public cabins.
I am sure it is going to cost me a dent in the monthly expense and a budget to buy yet another car, but I have to take the call.
So the question not be asked in this forum is asked again, which car to be bought which can take the beating of multiple drivers, who don’t own the car.
Mainly to drop/pickup kid from all activities and mostly will be driven in narrow lanes or crowded areas.

I have decided on Maruti swift or some hatch in that range, costing under 5-7L, even secondhand cars done less than 20k on the odo is considered at this point. The car should have some character though.

What’s the average salary one pays theses days for a driver? (Chennai)
Is it better to appoint them full time? Or part time?
Driving license will be held and police verification can be done, does anyone get any contract signed?
If so details in that, is much appreciated.
Washing and cleaning the car also falls in their role of the job?

What is the policy if they dent the car or misuse it, how does one make them responsible? Financially or is there any other means?
What about feeding their desire to cheat few bucks here and there, and act unaware, so they are content.
What about live tracking options?

[gkveda]

Originally Posted by Visaster

which car to be bought

I don't have experience in hiring a driver. But I think most problems arrive when someone else drives the car is due to mishandling of the components.(ex: gears, clutch, shocks, switches etc)

Example: The way you operate gears, clutch and the way a driver handles them. The way you hop a road hump and driver hops the car.

So my suggestion is, since gear and clutch are critical parts, don't allow the driver to mishandle them. If you go for automatic, car decides the gear and clutch for the speed and hence, to that extent mishandling can be reduced.

How can you avoid impact on shocks? Go for a middle aged or old aged driver who is in the verge of retirement. He would have seen several road humps in life and hence would have matured to cross the humps smoothly.

How can you avoid rough handling of switches and other driver controls?

Some senior family member can sit in the passenger seat and he can operate all possible controls. This minimizes the mishandling only to steering contolled switches. If passenger seat is occupied by family member, probably, driver may be pressurized psychologically to operate sensitively.

How to choose drivers:
I would choose a driver who has driven a bigger car than my car. Reason being, he would always wait for the space required for a bigger car while driving. If a m800 driver is asked to drive a SUV, chances of he rubbing the sides are more as compared to a lorry driver driving SUV(just an example)

There are many assumptions here and chances are, in spite of all the precautions, car may be mishandled by "Born tough" drivers. The risk is always there.

[Ragavsr]

Originally Posted by Visaster

What’s the average salary one pays theses days for a driver? (Chennai)
Is it better to appoint them full time? Or part time?
Driving license will be held and police verification can be done, does anyone get any contract signed?
If so details in that, is much appreciated.

What is the policy if they dent the car or misuse it, how does one make them responsible?

Holding the original driver's license is an illegal and exploitative practice. A copy of the licence is enough if you want a verification. Plus, no drivers are desperate enough to pawn their original licence for a job.

As far as dents, get comprehensive insurance for the car and claim insurance just like if you get a dent while you are driving.

The real question is do the owners compensate when drivers crash into other vehicles or screw the orher person with the help of an incompetent third party insurance system?

[Visaster]

Originally Posted by Ragavsr

illegal and exploitative practice. Plus, no drivers are desperate enough to pawn their original licence for a job.

screw the orher person with the help of an incompetent third party insurance system?

I get your drift!, as an employee, even I want to work with no onus on me.

Your real question is kind of unreal, with omnipresent insurance system in place.

[nvldvr]

For people in Delhi NCR.

Can anyone suggest/ recommend a known/ reliable driver?

Looking to employ on a permanent basis. Duties will primarily be dropping/ picking up my son from school/ other classes.

Regards

[Sahil]

Bombay peeps, if any known drivers looking for a steady job please DM me details. Thanks!

[ninjatalli]

Chennai folks, if you are looking for a reliable driver, please DM me.

A few details of Balu (the person)
- Chennai city based, with an auto. My late grandfather leveraged him for a personal on-call auto service for several years
- He would take him around within the city in his auto with no set conditions on duration/distance. Monthly payment was a constant amount irrespective of how much travel was done (usually quite less)
- He is open to having a similar setup or taking up the role of a personal driver on a permanent/long term basis
- Comes highly recommended, trustworthy and safe driver

[veyron_head]

How much should i expect to pay a driver in bangalore monthly? My car is a manual ecosport. I could never get myself to imagine being chaffeur driven, considering my middle class upbringing! But seeing the state of the city and my knees, it looks inevitable now!