Your Wheels Thread

[Milspec]

The thread is to discuss Automobiles related topics. Primarily your own experiences with Motorcycles, Cars, Heavy Vehicles, tools ,repairs, mods etc.

To Kick off the thread.

Motorcycles:

I learned how to ride a two-wheeled vehicle with my dad's : API Lamby. I inherited that scooter at FYJC . Retro wasn't cool back then and it was just an old scooter. In retrospect, I look back fondly at it now. After I left for the US my dad gave it away without telling me. I would have absolutely restored if I had it now.

Next came my new motorcycle when I was in 2nd yr Engg. I wanted a Pulsar 150, that was all the rage back then, My dad wanted to buy me a Bajaj Boxer, after a lot of bitching about the price, my dad settled on the Kawasaki bajaj Caliber 115. So for the next 5 years, that was my bike. Was a simple commuter bike, was extremely excited when I got it, but in retrospect there was nothing exciting about the bike. This one went to my cousin when I left.

First motorcycle in the US was 08 Yamaha Vstar 650 Classic. Love this bike, still have it although my wife has taken the bike now. On a nice day I still ride this to work, it's not the fastest or has the most torque, but it is load of fun .

My current Ride is a 11 Yamaha Fz6R, its a fully fared standard ergo sport. Love riding this bike through the mountains. Its a very basic inline 4, from the previous generation R6, has no rider aids (ABS, Traction control, rider modes) so can be quite unforgiving at times. regardless of lack of aids, for my level of riding skills, it suits me quite well.

Cars:
India:
Not much to write about here. Pretty Plain Jane history:
Growing Up first car dad bought was a
>Used 90 Maruti Omni in 96 (White)
>New Maruti Omni in 98 (Red)
>Hyundai Santro in 2002 (Maroon)

>Mahindra 2013 XUV W8 (White) Current
>Hyundai I10 2019 (Red) Current


US:
My First Car in the US 2010 Nissan Xterra (Black)
Wife drives BMW 325CI (Black)

Almost in Phase to change both cars in the next couple of years.

@nair @suryakiran @_Anonymous_ @Falcon @Parthu @Nilgiri @Ashwin

 

[nair]

Automobile has been part of my life from July 17th 1994.......... The first task i took was to hone a oil pump of bullet 350 standard..... It has been a long jorney ever since then....... Though the role has been non technical, but i loved spending numerous hours on scooters and bikes........My first bike was a Bajaj Cub- m dad broke its second gear ...... Then i bought a Kinetic Boss........ Had a Victor GLX, Victor GX, Apache RTR and a Jupiter (current).....

When it comes to car

Family first car was a white Tata sumo - Second hand- had fond memories of that car....... Then i bought a Alto 800 used for 1.5 years, then switched to Santro - used for 4 years, now i drive an I 20 elite for past 4 years...... @suryakiran @Ashwin and i had a drive in that car 4 days prior to Balakot

 

[suryakiran]

Never had a car in my life. Don't think will ever be buying one.

Dad used to own a Lamby and a Yezdi. But that's a long time back. Post marriage, we have a TVS Scooty ES. It was earlier used by father in Pune. Love it. Simple little thing. But finding parts is becoming increasingly difficult. During lock down, its not been used. I think, maintaining it is going to be increasingly difficult. We had taken it for a ride to Ramangagara. Riding at 30kms/hour felt like we were flying at 120 kms/hr, because of the noise it made. And I weighed 75 kgs.

We now, also, have a Honda Activa 125. Again simple thing. Due to being lazy by nature, I don't think I will ever get a manual geared bike. Too much of a hassle. Just so much simpler to do vroom vrrom and ride, instead of changing gears.

On the car front, we normally hire a car with a driver. This is more to do with the fact, that wife thinks I am a hopeless driver and I think I am a brilliant driver. But when she is not joining in for the trip, zoomcar is the answer. Automatic if available. I know purists will hate it, but the sheer joy of not having any pain in the legs and arms after long drives is appreciable.

 

[Milspec]

Automobile has been part of my life from July 17th 1994.......... The first task i took was to hone a oil pump of bullet 350 standard..... It has been a long jorney ever since then....... Though the role has been non technical, but i loved spending numerous hours on scooters and bikes........My first bike was a Bajaj Cub- m dad broke its second gear ...... Then i bought a Kinetic Boss........ Had a Victor GLX, Victor GX, Apache RTR and a Jupiter (current).....

When it comes to car

Family first car was a white Tata sumo - Second hand- had fond memories of that car....... Then i bought a Alto 800 used for 1.5 years, then switched to Santro - used for 4 years, now i drive an I 20 elite for past 4 years...... @suryakiran @Ashwin and i had a drive in that car 4 days prior to Balakot

Growing up always was in awe of the RE 350. Want a RE even now, test drove the RE 650 Continental GT last year and was a bit confused. I drove it quite hard, and it seemed to run out of torque, but it looked great and was very nimble. But to buy a new one, you are kinda better off picking up a Slightly used Street Twin for the price.

I think collecting Motorcycles is going to be a thing for me going forward. On my list right now is a Triumph Speed Twin 2017+ and/or a CB1100 2016+. A Yamaha Bolt for my Wife, and maybe Older classic or what I feel like a classic. BSA A65, Honda CB550, Yamaha RD400 2 Stroke, and then the RE Classic 500, I have always liked the idea of owning a RE Classic 500, but I hate that engine, With RE discontinuing the 500, I am really hoping they stick that 650 in the classic frame, with rubber mounts and build a slightly agile frame. I will be first in line for that Classic 650.

Also FYI RE will be launching a 650 Thunderbird cruiser btw, just learnt about it yesterday. Bajaj-Triumph is doing something, the rumor mill is running wild with Triumph venturing into 400-800cc segment with both classics and moderns built by Bajaj. Most likely Both KTM and Hsqy engines will feature in this lineup. This pandemic nonsense messed everything up or else the motorcycle world was going to be quite exciting.

 

[Milspec]

Never had a car in my life. Don't think will ever be buying one.

Dad used to own a Lamby and a Yezdi. But that's a long time back. Post marriage, we have a TVS Scooty ES. It was earlier used by father in Pune. Love it. Simple little thing. But finding parts is becoming increasingly difficult. During lock down, its not been used. I think, maintaining it is going to be increasingly difficult. We had taken it for a ride to Ramangagara. Riding at 30kms/hour felt like we were flying at 120 kms/hr, because of the noise it made. And I weighed 75 kgs.

We now, also, have a Honda Activa 125. Again simple thing. Due to being lazy by nature, I don't think I will ever get a manual geared bike. Too much of a hassle. Just so much simpler to do vroom vrrom and ride, instead of changing gears.

On the car front, we normally hire a car with a driver. This is more to do with the fact, that wife thinks I am a hopeless driver and I think I am a brilliant driver. But when she is not joining in for the trip, zoomcar is the answer. Automatic if available. I know purists will hate it, but the sheer joy of not having any pain in the legs and arms after long drives is appreciable.

I would love to have a Yezdi Jawa, not the new one but the classic Jawa. If anyone finds a decent one- restorable condition let me know.

We spoke about this before, and you dont like gears. There is nothing wrong with not wanting a geared bike, riding is fun when one is comfortable. My dad and uncle both ride a similar scooter to what you have. It's not an activa, it's something built by hero. I rode it last time I was in India and it indeed was fun.
I will say this again, Honda DCT might be for you.

 

[Parthu]

I don't own any vehicle of my own so the wheels I'm gonna be talking about will be my family's that I've traveled in over the nearly two-and-half decades that are my life.

First car I've sat in was Grandfather's HM Ambassador which he had purchased second-hand from an LIC agent sometime in the early to mid-2000s (still had LIC stickers on windshield when he bought it). I don't recall exactly but I believe it was an Ambassador Nova variant - with those square parking lights and turn indicators moved below the bumper. Looked very much like this, same colour -

There were many peculiarities about that particular car which even other Amby-owners found weird. For one, it was a Petrol - every single fuel pump guy would automatically divert us into the Diesel lane and grandpa had to clarify this was a petrol car. Going further it had a column-mounted gear rod which meant it was a comfortable 6-seater with a full bench in front. Grandpa later modified it with an aftermarket LPG kit from MINDA IMPCO - I still remember that company and the carton box in which the parts came. So it became a Petrol/LPG vehicle at the flip of a switch. Was in use in one way or other for almost 10 years before it was sold off to someone in his village.

I learnt the fundamentals of driving in that old beast.

The first car of my parents was a diesel Maruti Alto in deep red/maroon.

The Alto was in use for maybe ~2-3 years, Mom learnt driving on it as well. Was resold quite early as at the time Maruti offered good deals for reselling cars before the loan period was over and buying a new Maruti in its place. And so they bought a Ritz, again in diesel and again in maroon -

It was an awesome little car, no idea why Maruti discontinued it. Again it wasn't used for very long, maybe another 3 years or so. The next car they bought was the first proper sedan I traveled in, a red VW Vento in petrol...a real smooth goer. Superb quality and reliability. This was the car that really did some time (5-6 years) and was only resold (this time online) only about 2 years ago.

While the Vento was still in use, Mom bought a 2nd car mainly to accommodate work-related commutes for clients (real estate) and to keep it apart from personal transport. This was when we took a real Swadeshi turn by buying a red Tata Zest diesel - a pretty zippy compact sedan, it also served me for my college commute whenever available.

The Zest is still in use for work-related transport but after the Vento was sold we decided to stick to the Swadeshi bandwagon (thanks in no small part to me) and went for a diesel Tata Hexa XT in Tungsten Silver - first time since the Ambassador that a non-red/maroon car was used in the family. The Hexa is the current family car - has been a superb experience for 3+ years and gotta say Tata lived up to the trust placed in them. Hexa's a truly capable and decent looking car both inside and out.

Don't know when I'll buy my own car but if I had to right now - it'd be a top-end Tata Altroz.

 

[CountryFirst]

What is the need for this thread?? We got team-bhp.com for that!

On topic:
Mahindra Bolero, My first car and current vechile. Bought it to go touring and a few other things. But I love it and I still use it. And I don't plan to sell it. It is a 2015 BSIV version (included pic is not mine).

I did some small modification it, put in extending fenders, 16inch tyres with alloy, and the side mirror has chrome. Will change the sidesteps and front bumper sometime. I will buy my next car when Mahindra releases the extended Armada style new Thar, I think it will be out around 2023.

My family was against me buying it.

The only thing I don't like about it is, the dash is made of plastic. And the thumb finger goes in between the gearstick and handbreak stick when the handbreak is pulled up and you put the gearstick in reverse gear.

 

[suryakiran]

... @suryakiran @Ashwin and i had a drive in that car 4 days prior to Balakot

Maybe we should do the same again and wait for 4 days.

 

[nair]

Maybe we should do the same again and wait for 4 days.

This time Rafale

 

[Ginvincible]

My first car was an old Mercury Milan I got from my uncle on my 16th birthday. I loved that thing, drove it all over the country and put hundreds of thousands of miles on it... but it was time for an upgrade. Earlier this year I traded it in for my first big boy purchase, the 2020 Hyundai Sonata. Hyundai really outdid itself this year. Great commuter car, with tons of features and at a great price point. Its absolutely gorgeous too.

 

[AbRaj]

First Bike Black Hero Hunk. Loved its balance and ride posture and above all its effortless slow ravving 150 cc Honda engine.
First car White Santro Xing bought from my first job salary. its a nice little car which is super reliable and requires least maintenance.
will upgrade to a compact SUV in near future

 

[CountryFirst]

My first car was an old Mercury Milan I got from my uncle on my 16th birthday. I loved that thing, drove it all over the country and put hundreds of thousands of miles on it... but it was time for an upgrade. Earlier this year I traded it in for my first big boy purchase, the 2020 Hyundai Sonata. Hyundai really outdid itself this year. Great commuter car, with tons of features and at a great price point. Its absolutely gorgeous too.

Yes Hyundai really did great.
I love the Genesis version too.
I hope they bring out an electric version of it.

 

[Bali78]

I learnt riding with Dad's Bajaj 150, a scooter most people probably never heard of . After couple of months my 10th result was out and I got a rank a in the state. As promised, Dad bought me a brand new Hero Honda SS ( I was a pampered kid ). Me and my friends used it for a month and then I moved to hostel for 10+2. After a month Dad sold it because nobody was using it.

After 10+2, I needed a bike to go to coaching classes and Dad got me another Hero Honda SS, same bike and same color. After a year I joined engineering and could't take the bike with me during ragging period (typically lasts till mid 2nd sem). Dad sold my bike again . Anyway, after ragging period bought a Hero Honda Splender (Red). I used it thought my BE and ME and sold it when I started my first job in Bangalore. Next bike was a purple Bajaj Pulasr 180. I actually wanted a Karizma, but 100k price tag was way beyond my budget.

I pushed it to maximum speed limit (125kmph) inside city limits. On my way back from office, I used to hit 120kmph under Mekri circle fly over. I never used helmet and feel incredibly lucky to be still alive in spite of such rash riding . I rarely used it after I bought my car.

Dad sold it after I moved to US. Basically Dad enjoyed selling my bikes while he held on to his Bajaj 150 for 24 years !!

I learnt driving around the same time as riding scooter, though it took almost 2 years before I could comfortably drive on highways. Those days Dad had a Premier Padmini Deluxe BU. It was different from PP Deluxe BE and had bucket seats and floor gear. The fit and finish by PAL was pathetic and QC was a joke. Dad was seriously frustrated with the paint job and got rid of the car within a year and bought a Maruti 800. I loved the car and pushed it to 85-90kmph, probably the max it could do. It was smooth, reliable and fuel efficient. The only issue with this car was lack of any practical boot space.

Dad bought a Maruti Zen in 1998 and kept it till 2005. I used to drive it around during my vacations. It was much smoother and comfortable compared to Maruti 800 and it had a AC . Folks born after 1990 might find it difficult to believe, but AC in a car was considered as a luxury just 25 years back.

My first car was a 2005 Honda City ZX EXi (Alabaster silver) and did some really long drives all over India. I still have this car parked at my house and drive whenever I visit India. In spite of rarely being used for last 8+ years and not getting regular maintenance, the engine is silky smooth and car itself doesn't look 15 years old !!

In US, my first car was Honda CR-V which I used for couple of years. Currently I own a Audi Q5 and wife has a Honda Civic. The Q5 is more than 6 years old and will be due for change in next 2-3 years. If Tesla can increase the range of Model X to 400+ miles, it will be a strong contender. I go for very long drives with minimum stops and would hate to stop multiple times to recharge.

 

[Parthu]

I don't own any vehicle of my own so the wheels I'm gonna be talking about will be my family's that I've traveled in over the nearly two-and-half decades that are my life.

First car I've sat in was Grandfather's HM Ambassador which he had purchased second-hand from an LIC agent sometime in the early to mid-2000s (still had LIC stickers on windshield when he bought it). I don't recall exactly but I believe it was an Ambassador Nova variant - with those square parking lights and turn indicators moved below the bumper. Looked very much like this, same colour -

View attachment 17601

There were many peculiarities about that particular car which even other Amby-owners found weird. For one, it was a Petrol - every single fuel pump guy would automatically divert us into the Diesel lane and grandpa had to clarify this was a petrol car. Going further it had a column-mounted gear rod which meant it was a comfortable 6-seater with a full bench in front. Grandpa later modified it with an aftermarket LPG kit from MINDA IMPCO - I still remember that company and the carton box in which the parts came. So it became a Petrol/LPG vehicle at the flip of a switch. Was in use in one way or other for almost 10 years before it was sold off to someone in his village.

I learnt the fundamentals of driving in that old beast.

The first car of my parents was a diesel Maruti Alto in deep red/maroon.

The Alto was in use for maybe ~2-3 years, Mom learnt driving on it as well. Was resold quite early as at the time Maruti offered good deals for reselling cars before the loan period was over and buying a new Maruti in its place. And so they bought a Ritz, again in diesel and again in maroon -

It was an awesome little car, no idea why Maruti discontinued it. Again it wasn't used for very long, maybe another 3 years or so. The next car they bought was the first proper sedan I traveled in, a red VW Vento in petrol...a real smooth goer. Superb quality and reliability. This was the car that really did some time (5-6 years) and was only resold (this time online) only about 2 years ago.

While the Vento was still in use, Mom bought a 2nd car mainly to accommodate work-related commutes for clients (real estate) and to keep it apart from personal transport. This was when we took a real Swadeshi turn by buying a red Tata Zest diesel - a pretty zippy compact sedan, it also served me for my college commute whenever available.

The Zest is still in use for work-related transport but after the Vento was sold we decided to stick to the Swadeshi bandwagon (thanks in no small part to me) and went for a diesel Tata Hexa XT in Tungsten Silver - first time since the Ambassador that a non-red/maroon car was used in the family. The Hexa is the current family car - has been a superb experience for 3+ years and gotta say Tata lived up to the trust placed in them. Hexa's a truly capable and decent looking car both inside and out.

View attachment 17602

Don't know when I'll buy my own car but if I had to right now - it'd be a top-end Tata Altroz.

Oh and I forgot, while grandpa still had the Ambassador, Dad bought a white Bajaj Chetak for his work and used to drop me to school on it as well.

 

[Milspec]

I don't own any vehicle of my own so the wheels I'm gonna be talking about will be my family's that I've traveled in over the nearly two-and-half decades that are my life.

First car I've sat in was Grandfather's HM Ambassador which he had purchased second-hand from an LIC agent sometime in the early to mid-2000s (still had LIC stickers on windshield when he bought it). I don't recall exactly but I believe it was an Ambassador Nova variant - with those square parking lights and turn indicators moved below the bumper. Looked very much like this, same colour -

View attachment 17601

There were many peculiarities about that particular car which even other Amby-owners found weird. For one, it was a Petrol - every single fuel pump guy would automatically divert us into the Diesel lane and grandpa had to clarify this was a petrol car. Going further it had a column-mounted gear rod which meant it was a comfortable 6-seater with a full bench in front. Grandpa later modified it with an aftermarket LPG kit from MINDA IMPCO - I still remember that company and the carton box in which the parts came. So it became a Petrol/LPG vehicle at the flip of a switch. Was in use in one way or other for almost 10 years before it was sold off to someone in his village.

I learnt the fundamentals of driving in that old beast.

The first car of my parents was a diesel Maruti Alto in deep red/maroon.

The Alto was in use for maybe ~2-3 years, Mom learnt driving on it as well. Was resold quite early as at the time Maruti offered good deals for reselling cars before the loan period was over and buying a new Maruti in its place. And so they bought a Ritz, again in diesel and again in maroon -

It was an awesome little car, no idea why Maruti discontinued it. Again it wasn't used for very long, maybe another 3 years or so. The next car they bought was the first proper sedan I traveled in, a red VW Vento in petrol...a real smooth goer. Superb quality and reliability. This was the car that really did some time (5-6 years) and was only resold (this time online) only about 2 years ago.

While the Vento was still in use, Mom bought a 2nd car mainly to accommodate work-related commutes for clients (real estate) and to keep it apart from personal transport. This was when we took a real Swadeshi turn by buying a red Tata Zest diesel - a pretty zippy compact sedan, it also served me for my college commute whenever available.

The Zest is still in use for work-related transport but after the Vento was sold we decided to stick to the Swadeshi bandwagon (thanks in no small part to me) and went for a diesel Tata Hexa XT in Tungsten Silver - first time since the Ambassador that a non-red/maroon car was used in the family. The Hexa is the current family car - has been a superb experience for 3+ years and gotta say Tata lived up to the trust placed in them. Hexa's a truly capable and decent looking car both inside and out.

View attachment 17602

Don't know when I'll buy my own car but if I had to right now - it'd be a top-end Tata Altroz.

25yr old kid, no Motorcycles?

 

[Parthu]

25yr old kid, no Motorcycles?

Nope. Asked for one when college started (had my eye on Pulsar NS200) but parents wouldn't allow as they thought it too unsafe.

Hence the college commutes in the Zest (with a chauffeur no less ).

But I'd definitely want a RE...will buy one after I start earning good money myself (and hopefully after I move out). The new Meteor 350 seems to be a nice bike.

 

[Bali78]

Nope. Asked for one when college started (had my eye on Pulsar NS200) but parents wouldn't allow as they thought it too unsafe.

Hence the college commutes in the Zest (with a chauffeur no less ).

But I'd definitely want a RE...will buy one after I start earning good money myself (and hopefully after I move out). The new Meteor 350 seems to be a nice bike.

Parents are not exactly wrong about bike . But going to college in chauffeur driven car is boring .
This is age to get a bike and push it to the limits, of course with proper biking gear and ⛑.

 

[hembo]

First ride: Luna Moped. Class VIII till Class X. Ownership shared with elder brother & a cousin.

Second ride: LML Vespa. Class X-Engineering final year. Ownership shared with elder brother.

Third ride: Used TVS Suzuki. Self bought with sole ownership after my first job in 1997.

First Car: Used Maruti Suzuki Zen: Self bought. 1998 till 2002.

Second Car: Brand new Fiat Palio. 2002 (Just after my marriage) till 2008.

Intermediate Ride: Used Ford Escort. 2007 till 2009 (Bought when my Palio was out for eight months due to bad accident. Later drove by my wife)

Coming out of India: First purchase. Mitsubishi outlander 2009 till 2012

Next: used Chevrolet Trailblazer: 2012 till 2016

Chevrolet Tahoe: 2016 to 2019

Present: Nissan X-trail (Since 2019 because decided not to drive gas guzzlers like Tahoe (5.3 litre Petrol) & Trailblazer (4.6 litre Petrol) anymore

 

[Milspec]

Parents are not exactly wrong about bike . But going to college in chauffeur driven car is boring .
This is age to get a bike and push it to the limits, of course with proper biking gear and ⛑.

I remember stupid shit I did on motorcycles just out of college, when I look back in retrospect, quite lucky to have escaped unharmed.

 

[Milspec]

New addition:

Continental GT 650

All three