Participated & won in the Swift Dzire Mileage Rally: Our Story

The total ride was about 63 km. Once we finished, they filled the petrol and noted the readings.

BHPian Sohanr2 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello everyone, I am Sohan, and I completed my Automobile Engineering in 2020. I have been working with an electric vehicle company for the past 3 years and I have taken a break now to continue my further studies. I have been an avid reader of the TBHP forum since my engineering days and always wanted to contribute to the forum but kept postponing it. I wondered about what my 1st post should be on this forum since it’s something special for all of us. One day it flashed me about a particular incident from which point I decided that I would be an automobile engineer and told myself this should definitely be my 1st Post. Luckily the thread was present in TBHP and here it goes.

We upgraded from a decade-old Omni to a Maruti Swift Dzire 1.2L vxi (Petrol) in Feb 2013. I was in 9th Std during that time and had a bit of knowledge of cars and bikes and the workings of it. In March 2013, a Maruti executive called us that a Mileage rally would be conducted in Bangalore and we could be a part of It. The main motive for Maruti was to counter the ad of Honda Amaze which had recently launched with a mileage of 25kmpl for their diesel variant. The details provided were that we needed to be present at The Grand Ashoka Hotel at 7 am for Breakfast and would have to drive to Wonderla for the Drive with other participants. All the expenses would be covered by Maruti. We instantly decided we would take part since it was on a Sunday. We were present at the right time and they provided the intro about this rally. They explained that they would fill our cars till the Brim and had to drive to Wonderla in the route provided by them and would have to stop at checkpoints. They gave some basic tips for getting the best mileage but didn’t mention anything about the results or prizes. I knew that there would be some reward if we got decent results.

Once the drive started, I instructed my father to shift at exactly 1.5-2K rpm and had the windows closed 90% with AC off. During the drive, many contenders were zooming past us and my Dad had already lost the patience in driving in this manner because he is a heavy-footed driver but I calmed my parents to just follow my instructions and wait for the result. The route was fairly simple exiting the city towards Nelamangala, taking the road of Big Banyan Tree which connects to Mysore Road. The Endpoint was a petrol bunk just before Wonderla. The total ride was about 63 km. Once we finished, they filled the petrol and noted the readings. I quickly took my dad’s mobile and calculated and found the mileage to be 33.28. When I told this to my dad, he started laughing saying that I am still a kid and I would not know all these calculations. Also, he stated that the ARAI rate was 18.1 and how can the car give almost double the mileage? We entered the water park and started with the rides. The results were scheduled at 4 pm and we were in the water rides since 12 pm drenched fully but just wanted to see how the function would be, so without changing we just went and sat there in the last row with our shady water-drenched clothes.

The ceremony started with the results for the petrol category and the 3rd runner-up was announced for 28 km/l and was offered some prize which I don’t remember. Then the 2nd runner-up was announced at 31kmpl and was given an AC. After that, they announced that the 1st runner-up had an astounding mileage of 33 km/l and announced my mom's name since the car was registered in her name. We were all shocked and were hesitant to go on the stage due to our clothes. But still, we went ahead and took the prize, a 32-inch LED TV. The anchor gave the mike to my Dad to say a few lines on how we achieved this. My Father said he was not interested but I took the mike from the anchor and started talking about how we achieved this feat.

After the ceremony, it took us some time to believe what had just happened. Later on the way back home, my parents talked to me about how I knew all this since automobile is a subject which is not taught at home or in school. I told them about my interest and how in my free time I used to read about automobiles. That was the D-Day when I had decided a, no matter what, I would study automobile engineering and nothing else. I am grateful to my parents for supporting me in this decision. I had a good time in my engineering days working on Various Projects (Formula Student, Efficycle, Nitro RC Car & a Go Kart) and would ace every semester with good marks because I never felt the pressure of studies and enjoyed all the subjects with great interest.

Hope you had a good 5 min read!!

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