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22/09/06

sTiLL iN LoVe...

A li'il more then two years ago, I moved out of Mantas to join IBM, and realized that I had to now buy a new car!!!

In Haridwar... the first drive with Aro and Martina...

Read a lot about the cars which fit my budget and I liked... Did not test drive any one though as most of the cars I already knew about... then one Saturday, I asked a dealer of FIAT to send a Palio D to my place for a test drive... I liked the space and the car, but it felt sluggish and I was not too keen on buying it...

Parked on the Mall Road- nainital...

Congrats on the 20000 km mark :)

The same evening, I was going to check out the Indica and a wrong turn brought me in front of the FIAT Showroom in NOIDA... I was like what the heck, let’s go inside and check out the rest of the FIAT cars too... I did and when I entered the showroom, I saw a bright red car on the left side smiling at me... it immediately caught my attention, and I asked the salesperson for the keys... sat inside the car and loved the entire feel of it... it was RICH !!! It did not take me more then a few minutes to decide that this was the car I was going to buy...

between Chamba and Dhanaulti... the first rear view mirror shot I took...

But the person I am, I usually give my investments and purchase a second thought... which meant that I had to go back home and study more !!! I did... and fortunately the AutoCar issue of that month had the top 100 cars in India listed and rated on various parameters like User Satisfaction, Build Quality, Cost of Ownership, After Sales Service etc etc etc... I was more then happy to read that Fiat Palio was next to the then Honda City in all the parameters and beat the shit out of the other available hatchbacks in all the parameters except the After Sales Service... and that was something that most of the people used to complain about as well...

The first ever fotograph of the car... Neha took this snap... love you Neha for this...

My logic there was, that if the car is built well, it is in any case not going to need a lot of visits to the service station... just the regular services would do and because the workshop was kinda close by, I would be fine with the once in a while visits...

on the DND...

just out of Dehradoon, on my way to Delhi... with Aro...

So basically, I was in love with the looks, the style, the feel and aura of the car... and the magazine helped me build my confidence in the technicalities as well :)

I asked Papa to check out the car on Sunday, and we both went around 1800 hours to check the car out... this is when I took a test drive in a while Palio ELX... Dad liked the car... and was happy with the color choice I had made... I wanted to search around for better discounts... Papa said that if I was really keen on buying the car, why the hell I wanted to waste anymore time... and we talked to the dealer about the down-payment and all... I got a good discount and a better rate of interest as compared to the market rate of that time... and made the down-payment the same evening !!! The car was bought.. And it was to be delivered on the 22nd'Sept :)

Two years ago, on the 22nd day of september, I went to the FIAT showroom in NOIDA to take the delivery of my car... and no words can ever describe, how much I loved that feeling... my first car with all the money that I had managed to save in a few years of working...


the passions together... cam and the car :) purrfect combo :)

and today... about 2 years and 29500 kms later, I am still in love with my car... the Passion has not faded away, the care is still there... my car in these two years has seen me grow as a person, as a professional, as a driver, as a caretaker...

lightie light shining bright...

somewhere in uttaranchal... drove for atleast 12 kms everyday without even getting introduced to fatigue...

She has been with me whenever I needed her... she has been with me whenever I needed a break and wanted to get away from everything... all I needed to do was roll up the windows and nothing could be heard inside that li'il world of mine... Baby I love you !!!

The latest trip to Agra... in front of Sikandra...

Thanks for being there!!!

In Almora... on my way to Kausani...

on my way to Dhanaulti...

in my driveway....

9 comments:

  1. It is ME FIRST on the birthday post!!!! :D

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  2. your car is a super hot chic.
    the first time i saw it, it was noticeable from a distance of about a good 500 metres. (i know that's one of the reasons you love her so much) :)

    i've had quite a few rides with Radha and your love for her is totally visible.

    and she treats your friends well too. :D

    God bless you and your Radha. :)

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  3. HAPPY BIRTHDAY RADHA :)
    >:D< to Radha :)

    wishing her more n more trips :)

    and u r truely in love with Radha :D


    and the last pic is just amazing ..love that :)

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  4. u know...the initial part where u describe the decision process is almost same as it was the ur post abt ur decision 2 yrs back on the blog.....that itself shows how much u love it :)

    Happy birthday Radha......she is just awesome.....but credit goes to u for maintaining her like that :)

    Never had such a comfort in any other car ever, spl while sleeping at the back seat on the way to haridwar from lansdowne....and ofcourse on other trips.........looking forward to more of them ....spl the rajasthan one..........

    happy birthday once again.....cheers to 2 yrs and many more yrs to come.......

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  5. i feel that the text in this post has been quoted

    warming one nonetheless :)

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  6. Yeah, your car is hot. Kudos to you to have maintained it well, so it is still rocking. People passionate about their cars get a superb performance from them. Like my Dad. You. And so many others I know. I am excited to see how I'll keep my car, err, whenever I can afford one.

    Radha ke driver ko mubarak ho :D

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  7. nice to come acros someone who is so passionate and in love with something which is just a 'status' or 'posession' for many....

    lemme say tht 'If you have love, use it in every which way possible. Don’t hoard it. Don’t dole it out like a miser. Spend it lavishly like a millionaire intent on going broke..

    Keep lovin', keep livin'

    cheers,

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