Auto Rickshaw as personal transport

Subbu · 21st December 2006, 19:34

May be this is already posted. If so, Moderators, please turn it down.

Why Autorickshaw is not seen as a personal transport like a car.

1. Psychologically seen as a hire vehicle and not as a personal vehicle or
2. Legally not permitted or
3. Not useful for inter city travel or
4. Quite unsafe or
5. Less comfortable i.e., no A/C etc etc.

Compelling arguements.

1. Quite cost effective (Price and FE)
2. Quite good for intra city travel.
3. Safe as long as not driven rashly.

The TATA 1 lakh car is going to be between an autorickshaw and M800. The difference could be only 4 wheels and doors. The doors can be fixed but may not 4 wheels.

In my apartment complex, I know of one family which uses this mode but with a driver.

Any comments ?.

Mpower · 21st December 2006, 20:40

Well, this was about 10 years ago in Chennai, one of my distant relatives fell from his scooter and broke some bones real bad. He was not able to ride 2 wheelers (or maybe he feared) and he could'nt afford a car.

so he got himself a rick with a driver. It was an RE and it was painted full blue. I thought it was awesome and the plus point was he would slice through traffic.

I think status wise its a no-no to drive one, but to be driven in one is perfectly normal.

But frankly, I think autos are overpriced. What is it now like 1.5 lakhs for a 4 stroke auto and it has air cooled single cylinder engine with do doors and cloth roof and about 20 kpl mileage.

FOr 2.25 lakhs or thereabouts, you can get a finely engineered car like Maruti 800 which gives 18kpl. Second had deals are even better....so its no point in buying even if you dont care about status. THe economics dont work in its favour.

nickatnite · 21st December 2006, 23:54

Bajaj Autorickshaw in Los Angeles!....

source: Pakwheels.com

abhibh · 21st December 2006, 23:55

man auto rikshaw in india specially in chandigarh are scary when they turn on corners at speed of 20 - 30 it feels like they gonna roll over...

ajmat · 22nd December 2006, 08:24

A friend of mine, recently departed, used to run a big workshop and....played golf. He wanted something compact that could be used by staff to fetch cylinders and car parts and also to carry his golf clubs so he bought a Lambretta rickshaw. I have driven it, quite challenging as it has a minde of its own

esteem_lover · 22nd December 2006, 08:33

yeah, the lamby autos are very very unstable compared to bajaj. and bajaj moves quick too. subbu, autos do not provide anything extra other than being driven around. i would rather take my bike, sir.

GTO · 22nd December 2006, 10:23

I dont think there is really any legal restriction on using auto-rickshaws as personal transpost. I think I have seen quite a lot of private vehicles in the rural or semi-urban areas.

Quote:

Bajaj Autorickshaw in Los Angeles!....

Master-piece!!

irdevanand · 22nd December 2006, 12:18

esteem_lover · 22nd December 2006, 13:30

looks better than the 1 lakh car. must be 2 lakhs, right ?

iraghava · 22nd December 2006, 15:18

Well for starters the safety would be seriously compromised. Even a basic car like the 800 gives you much better safety in crashes & even in city traffic if an errant bus/truck rams into you then in an auto you could be seriously injured due to lack of an upper bodyshell & feeble strength of the lower frame.

Another issue would be the NVH of the auto. AFAIK or atleast in the ones that I have sat in the Vibration is quite prominent & so is the road noise, pollution etc. This in the long-term will cause a lot of irritation for the driver & passengers. I personally would not like to use the auto as a daily transport for these two reasons.

rajshenoy · 22nd December 2006, 15:20

Nothing wrong in having auto as a personal transport...

I have noticed that in my native place..

these personal autos are usually not seen in typical yellow and black color that we typically see in karnataka

usually they are used to deliver milk/paper and also to serve as personal transport..

directinjection · 22nd December 2006, 16:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhibh

man auto rikshaw in india specially in chandigarh are scary when they turn on corners at speed of 20 - 30 it feels like they gonna roll over...

Chandigarh autos are of the primitive Lambretta/Lamby variety. As it is, very few people use autos in Chandigarh - distances are short, so people without vehicles use either rickshaws or local buses.

In contrast, the Delhi and Bombay autos are quite good. Most of them are Bajaj 4-stroke model (that doesn't emit any visible smoke) with independent rear suspension. Engine fitment at the rear means that passengers aren't exposed to smoke. Also the engine runs on CNG.

Independent rear suspension in three wheeler was a major innovation from Bajaj Auto that improved the rear seat comfort almost to the level of a small car.

In contrast, the old front-engined Bajaj auto without independent rear suspension was a horror. The passengers kept bouncing all the time. I even heard of an incident in which the auto went over a pothole and the passenger bounced so much, his head hit the steel rod in the roof and he died as a result.

Revvhead · 22nd December 2006, 19:13

if i'm not mistaken, Bharat Dhabolkar has one, with chropme exhausts and and quite spiffy looking!!

22nd December 2006, 23:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by theMAG

While we're at it, the horse-drawn tonga is an even better personal transport due to no pollution and enhanced seating accomodation. Plus its a hybrid too - 2 wheels in back and 4 mobile dynamic supports in front.

The horse does produce considerable CO2 emissions. To say nothing of other organic solid/liquid/gaseous "emissions" coming out from the back.

nickatnite · 22nd December 2006, 23:50

I think autorickshaws in Chennai are the best looking and maintained of all the autos in India.Autos in Mumbai are ok too, but the canopy design makes them look wierd!.Autos in Delhi have a 'run-down' look about them.Most of the autos in Punjab , UP and Haryana are contraptions, the likes of which i have never seen anywhere else in the world, even in Indonesia or Thailand , where the autos look straight outta 'Star Wars, the movie'.

Pic of an auto on 'Mount Road' one of the boulevards in Chennai.

21st December 2006, 19:34	#1
Subbu BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Chennai Posts: 87 Thanked: 267 Times	Auto Rickshaw as personal transport May be this is already posted. If so, Moderators, please turn it down. Why Autorickshaw is not seen as a personal transport like a car. 1. Psychologically seen as a hire vehicle and not as a personal vehicle or 2. Legally not permitted or 3. Not useful for inter city travel or 4. Quite unsafe or 5. Less comfortable i.e., no A/C etc etc. Compelling arguements. 1. Quite cost effective (Price and FE) 2. Quite good for intra city travel. 3. Safe as long as not driven rashly. The TATA 1 lakh car is going to be between an autorickshaw and M800. The difference could be only 4 wheels and doors. The doors can be fixed but may not 4 wheels. In my apartment complex, I know of one family which uses this mode but with a driver. Any comments ?.
	() Thanks

21st December 2006, 20:40	#2
Mpower Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 10,399 Thanked: 1,735 Times View My Garage	Well, this was about 10 years ago in Chennai, one of my distant relatives fell from his scooter and broke some bones real bad. He was not able to ride 2 wheelers (or maybe he feared) and he could'nt afford a car. so he got himself a rick with a driver. It was an RE and it was painted full blue. I thought it was awesome and the plus point was he would slice through traffic. I think status wise its a no-no to drive one, but to be driven in one is perfectly normal. But frankly, I think autos are overpriced. What is it now like 1.5 lakhs for a 4 stroke auto and it has air cooled single cylinder engine with do doors and cloth roof and about 20 kpl mileage. FOr 2.25 lakhs or thereabouts, you can get a finely engineered car like Maruti 800 which gives 18kpl. Second had deals are even better....so its no point in buying even if you dont care about status. THe economics dont work in its favour. Last edited by Mpower : 21st December 2006 at 20:43.
	() Thanks

21st December 2006, 23:54	#3
nickatnite Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NYC/MAA Posts: 1,430 Thanked: 604 Times	Bajaj Autorickshaw in Los Angeles!.... source: Pakwheels.com
	(2) Thanks

21st December 2006, 23:55	#4
abhibh Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Back in the HOOD near you! Posts: 2,768 Thanked: 39 Times	man auto rikshaw in india specially in chandigarh are scary when they turn on corners at speed of 20 - 30 it feels like they gonna roll over...
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 08:24	#5
ajmat Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 15,171 Thanked: 31,062 Times View My Garage	A friend of mine, recently departed, used to run a big workshop and....played golf. He wanted something compact that could be used by staff to fetch cylinders and car parts and also to carry his golf clubs so he bought a Lambretta rickshaw. I have driven it, quite challenging as it has a minde of its own
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 08:33	#6
esteem_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Madras/Py Posts: 7,556 Thanked: 513 Times View My Garage	yeah, the lamby autos are very very unstable compared to bajaj. and bajaj moves quick too. subbu, autos do not provide anything extra other than being driven around. i would rather take my bike, sir.
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 12:18	#8
irdevanand BHPian Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: chennai Posts: 359 Thanked: 954 Times
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 13:30	#9
esteem_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Madras/Py Posts: 7,556 Thanked: 513 Times View My Garage	looks better than the 1 lakh car. must be 2 lakhs, right ?
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 15:18	#10
iraghava Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Bhaiyyaland Posts: 7,997 Thanked: 281 Times View My Garage	Well for starters the safety would be seriously compromised. Even a basic car like the 800 gives you much better safety in crashes & even in city traffic if an errant bus/truck rams into you then in an auto you could be seriously injured due to lack of an upper bodyshell & feeble strength of the lower frame. Another issue would be the NVH of the auto. AFAIK or atleast in the ones that I have sat in the Vibration is quite prominent & so is the road noise, pollution etc. This in the long-term will cause a lot of irritation for the driver & passengers. I personally would not like to use the auto as a daily transport for these two reasons.
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 15:20	#11
rajshenoy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: bangalore Posts: 2,926 Thanked: 2,295 Times View My Garage	Nothing wrong in having auto as a personal transport... I have noticed that in my native place.. these personal autos are usually not seen in typical yellow and black color that we typically see in karnataka usually they are used to deliver milk/paper and also to serve as personal transport..
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 19:13	#13
Revvhead BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Bombay Posts: 447 Thanked: 21 Times View My Garage	if i'm not mistaken, Bharat Dhabolkar has one, with chropme exhausts and and quite spiffy looking!!
	() Thanks

22nd December 2006, 23:50	#15
nickatnite Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NYC/MAA Posts: 1,430 Thanked: 604 Times	I think autorickshaws in Chennai are the best looking and maintained of all the autos in India.Autos in Mumbai are ok too, but the canopy design makes them look wierd!.Autos in Delhi have a 'run-down' look about them.Most of the autos in Punjab , UP and Haryana are contraptions, the likes of which i have never seen anywhere else in the world, even in Indonesia or Thailand , where the autos look straight outta 'Star Wars, the movie'. Pic of an auto on 'Mount Road' one of the boulevards in Chennai.
	() Thanks