[Cyrus43]

So What else does your "waking day" consist of? You sould like Kumles!! Nonetheless, Carry on my wayward son!

[mpksuhas]

Aha, after Goa,rain, activa, Kerala, Germany here comes TheCar

[holysmoke]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Good morning Akbar, kaisa hai? Kya bole? Bahut door hai tum, aawaaz nahi aa rahi hai.

You have bought the wrong car. This one is whisper quiet.

Actually, a pic of you in this car will actually prove to people how spacious it really is. Many people asked me when I bought it.. "Why not an accord, it also has a lot of room".

[pulsar56]

Lovely start!

I have already intimated the network team that the F5 key on my keyboard will have to be replaced by EOD!

[dkhatau]

waiting for more Sam. This is going to be another of your brilliant threads. Congrats for the new car.

[pawan_pullarwar]

Seems like you are writing it from the backseat of your Superb. Waiting for the next post.

[Sam Kapasi]

Before you jump in with suggestions, I'd like to point out a couple of facts.

I've already bought my new car. And I had some good help with the process


To be honest, if you had to ask me 6 months ago what car I was dreaming for, I'd say none. I'm simply not that sort of guy who aims for cars.

So I had no research and no plan.

Sometimes I look outside my window and see a car and go hmm... that's a nice car.
I feel that way about the Nissan Teana. With absolutely no idea of what it costs.
Somebody once told me you can buy a Nissan Teana with a Panoramic roof. I love panoramic roofs. Ahhh to be able to put the aircon on and enjoy some good sunshine at the same time. That's just beautiful.

My friends on TBHP have great experience with cars and possess good knowledge about these matters. Not me.

A few discussions and I came to the conclusion that I couldn't afford the other cars I liked. Including the Teana.

Everyone though the best and most logical choice was the Honda Accord.
The Honda Accord is a mean looking car. Like it's got a great expression on its face. Like HA! That car looks like it's saying HA! Damn you. Actually its saying something else that I'm not allowed to say on Team-BHP.

I went to the Honda Showroom. Here's my POV on the Honda Accord.

[sukiwa]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

I've already bought my new car.

Congrats! Good that you clearly mentioned it. I was about to report this thread to moderators & ask them to lock it as now TBHP doesn't allow booking/initial buying experience. LOL

[Sam Kapasi]

What variant of trim would you like?
Huh?
Do you want the Elegance or the something else?

I don't like questions like this. I don't know all this TDi, VDSi, LXGPCi business. Show me a car in the showroom and I'll sit in it quietly and look around me. Breathe the air a bit.

Close my eyes and imagine travelling in it. I'll turn the radio on, out of curiosity, to hear how bad it sounds.

I did just that with the Honda Accord. I sat in the drivers seat first.

Fancy dashboard. Like a helicopter dashboard. LOADS of little chrome buttons. 2 independent displays. Integrated audio system with a little slot for the cd changer.
USB? Yes.
iPod? Yes works through the USB and you can see the display of the song title here. He points to the second display that is higher up in the dashboard.

I look around. The leather is light in colour as in the interior. A slight pale yellow tone all around. Not my favourite.
Indians love wooden trim and light colours in the interiors of the car.

Perhaps a change from the dull drab grey interiors of cheap cars we've bought for years. Wooden trim hai. Light colour leather hai. Imported lagta hai.

The steering wheels feels ok. I look at the paddles for the sports shift. Ooh. Like a formula one car. Nice.

The seat is OK. Not perfect. I reach down and there are motorized adjustments. Back, back, angle angle. Better.

Sir this is the V6. You car will not have the patti on the outside of the body.
OK.
And it won't have these courtesy plates near the footrest.
What?
These. He points to some pattis with Honda written on them.
And no chrome on the accents either.

I see.
Rest the car is the same.
OK.
Oh and you won't have any wooden trim on the dashboard.

OK.

I sit in the passenger seat. Oh, that's not set at all. I reach for the buttons on the left side.
No sir this is normal adjustment. Not electric.
Ah.
I reach for the crooked danda under my seat and pull it up and push back. I know how that works. Even my Maruti Van 20 years ago had that danda.

-10 points for Honda, I decide mentally. If I'm paying over 20lacs for a car, I don't want the same danda.

I get into the back seat and ask the salesman to leave me alone in the car.


Holy crap. What a seat. What a back seat. Sofa-on-wheels this thing.

The back seat has a great angle. The length of the lower part is perfect, going almost up to my knees.
I reach forward and pull the danda of the front seat and push it all the way to the front.
KHRRRRRRRRR.

I bend the seat over too, by pulling the danda on the side. I'm used to doing that in my Verna.
I can buy 3 Vernas for the price of this car and I'm still pulling dandas.

-20 points. Stupid people.

So.

I look around. Lovely back seat. I could sleep here. I push my head back. Nice headrest in the back.
I pull the armrest down. Nice.

There are buttons in the armrest. One for volume and another to change the track.
+10 points.

I stare the the dashboard. You know what, it looks old-fashioned to me. Like it was designed too long ago. I don't like it at all.

I look around. Down I see the AC vents for the rear. Yeah nice.

I step out and go home.
Drive?

Why?

I won't drive the car. My driver will. If Honda makes a 22lac car that doesn't drive properly, they would be crazy.

And I want an automatic car. Akbar puts the car in any gear he likes at any time. If he hears some rattling (which he doesn't often) he goes one gear higher.
I get annoyed. I don't want to get annoyed.

I don't want gears and I don't want a clutch. Buss.

Yes sir the Accord AT is excellent blah blah blah...

I drift off. Looks like I'll be buying a Honda Accord, if I follow everyone's advice. Good company, reliable car and all that jazz.
I call a few friends who work in the Automotive industry.

Why don't you buy a second hand E class?
Na na. I want a new car buss.
Have you tried the Skoda Superb boss? It is freaking incredible. It's mad. I love that car.
No, Skoda as very bad after-sales service. I don't want it.
OK...So what do you want?
How is the Honda Accord?
Oh it's HUGE!
Yeah, I know I say grinning. I like that.
Well the rear seat is very very comfortable. It's a moving sofa boss.
Yeah I know! The grin gets bigger.

Well, you can't go wrong with a Honda. Reliable, good resale and most importantly you're happy.
What would you have bought?
A second hand e class.
No what new car would you have bought?
Skoda Superb. Eyes closed.
Yeah. Thanks.

Click. Am I happy? No I am not. I'm not in love with the Honda Accord.

I go home and speak to Jenny.
22 Lacs for a Japanese car!! A Honda!! Are you NUTS?

Trust ze Germans to say that.

No I'm not sure about this car anymore.
NC already is unhappy about me wanting to buy the accord. Now Jenny too. And I'm not convinced.

OK, I wait. I'll use Meru cab for a few days and think about it.

[Jimmy_u]

Dear Sam !!

i am always intrigued about how you manage to go through an experience and then are able to recollect every small detail and write it as a first person account ,something thats happening now as we read it !!!

Please let us on your secret .

Regards,
Jim

[sarmarishi]

Great going so far.. as always! Waiting to read the rest

[djjebs]

Aaamazzing! I like the way you write. Sam, you need to write more often.

[Sam Kapasi]

My driver Akbar loves cars. I couldn't stop him at the Honda Showroom. He inspected the car inside out.

He's grinning. He loves the Honda Accord.

Kya dikhti hai MUSTT!!

Sir, apan double silencer wali lenge ke ek?

Huh? I realise he likes the V6. I realise that you can't really say "Over my dead body" in Hindi.
Dekhte hai, I say.

Double silencer wala leneka. Must bhagti hai.

I start staring at all the Honda Accords on the road. And then it hits me. I don't want to buy this car.

[anilkalvani]

Ctrl-R. Ctrl-R. Ctrl-R. Repeat every 2 min in Mozilla Firefox. Sam we're waiting!

[Ardy]

Nice & Congratulations

It been pleasure reading the story unfold so far. Sam, keep it coming and along with some pictures too (Of course at the end of the story)

Cheers,