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Car Leasing Rates – ouch!

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Just got some updates from the bank that I lease my car from i.e. Faysal Bank.

The current rate for leasing cars is a whopping TWENTY SEVEN percent. Yes, 27%! I personally find it unbelievable and when I showed my surprise, the gentleman from Faysal Bank assured me that this is very competitive and this rate includes the insurance.

“Many banks will not tell you about the insurance rate. Our financing is calculated at about 21% if we do not tell you the insurance. But we do tell you the insurance, to remove any misunderstandings in the future”

That is pretty decent of them, no doubt. But 27%, that is just way too expensive to lease out a car. But these are the time when a 1300 CC costs 13 lacs, who am I to blow against the wind. :/

More information on Car leasing in Pakistan at our Car Leasing page (link on the top of the page as well).

P.S. If you, the reader, works at a bank and would like to give me information regarding your bank’s current rates and addresses etc, do so please in the comments section.

Drag Race in Lahore

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As promised, Car Advice has some decent coverage for you folks, regarding the first ever Drag Race in Lahore. In fact, the first ever organized drag racing competition in Pakistan. Period.

The competition was held at Walton Airport.

Just look at the number of people who actually were present at the event, and you will be forced to call this event a success – and credit goes to TDCP for this.

TDCP organized this drag race after successfully carrying out a string of rally races across Pakistan – those rallies were well-received. And like stated earlier, just the sheer turnout of the people, with and without their cars to show off, makes this event another feather in TDCP’s cap.

The Cars

The cars that one got to see were of all types and breeds. From Porsche to Nissan to Mazda to BMW to Chrysler, all hot looking things of beauties were strutting their power and their shine on the open, long track of Walton Airport. Apart from the racing, the ‘non official’ hair pins and burn outs were the real crowd pleasures, with swarm of people shouting ‘Burn out, burn out’ to drivers of cars as varied as a Corolla and a BMW Z3. (videos coming up)

The Drag Race Event

I personally do have some reservations with the management of the event, given that people were crossing the actual track WHILE the cars were racing on it! But as this was a drag race and only one car at a time was being timed, nothing untoward happened ‘so far’. Surely, this kind of loose management is something to correct for future events.  Some families were not happy with the arrangements at all (interview coming up, stay tuned), but agreed that the event was a very good effort and should be improved for next time.

Nothing like the sound of a revving engine and screaming tires.

Videos and pictures, coming up!

If any one of you have any pictures or videos, do let me know so I can display it here. You can either submit the video and/or pictures for CarAdvice, or perhaps provide a link to your media on other websites like YouTube.

TDCP Drag racing in Lahore

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Car racing on the streets of Lahore – especially the Main Boulevard – have been around for some time now. Every Sunday, people from all around the city with their Firebirds, RX8s and what not would gather at the McDonalds on Main Boulevard and then race from the famed ‘fawara waala chowk’.

Well, this type of racing has always been considered dangerous, if not illegal. NO MORE, it seems.

TDCP is arranging a drag racing ‘competition’ this Sunday (Feb 1st, 2009).
This by all means, is an interesting development.

Drag racing is in fact the only format of racing that we can afford here, given the lack of any circuit of any sort.

All the Fast and the Furious type people with their souped up cars with monsters under their car hoods are all expected to show up on this event.

Stay tuned to CarAdvice PK for all the details.

Toyota Land Cruiser Prado

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Got the pictures and the owner has agreed to give a detailed review of Land Cruiser Prado. As the review is on the way, I would like to share a nice little feature that is found in this 4×4: The camera that gives a detailed view of the surroundings at the back of the Prado.

When you put the vehicle in reverse, the display inside the car automatically shows the view:

When you put the car in reverse, the screen switches to the camera at the back of the car.

When you put the car in reverse, the screen switches to the camera at the back of the car.

But the real clever bit is the use of simple and easy to understand lines that show the expected path of the vehicle depending on which way you turn the wheels!

close up of the screen with a neat overlay of lines showing the expected path of the vehicle

close up of the screen with a neat overlay of lines showing the expected path of the vehicle

You turn the wheels a certain way, and the yellow lines will adjust accordingly, showing you the expected path of the vehicle. As you can see, I am right now reversing into the gate.

No more neck twisting, left-arm-behind-passenger-seat type of reversing. This makes your driving experience a tad more pleasurable – and in today’s high end cars, it is the little things that make the biggest difference, no?

Basic Info:

Car Name: Toyota Land Cruiser Prado

Model: 2003

Registered: 2004

Price: PKR 3.5 Million

Color: Silver

P.S. I will be uploading the pictures as soon as I get the review in place, God willing.

Petrol shortage in Lahore

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Hunt for petrol is becomming a norm these days. 

A couple of days back, I was hunting for petrol.

 

  • There was no petrol at Shell Petrol pump (called Battleaxe, located on Shami Road, Cantt). 
  • There was no petrol at PSO Gulberg (in Industrial Area Gulberg, near Pepsi Factory Lahore)
  • There was petrol at Shell, M M Alam Road! Thank God. The line was long, as expected:
After waiting in the line (and right after I took this picture), a fight broke out. And what a violent fight it exploded into! One guy started cursing the petrol pump staff for not getting him to check the petrol meter. The curses soon were replaced with the customer swinging wild, well-aimed punches at the employee’s face.
And that is when all hell broke lose! 
Practically all employees, with their red coats and sticks and punches and kicks, literally beat the pulp out of the customer. They ran out on the street (M M Alam road) after him. Right in front of me, one employee – as red in anger as his coat – tried to snatch the pump-action gun from the petrol pump’s guard! Thankfully, the guard was not as furious and managed to drive away the raging employee! This kind of situation could easily have lead to a person’s death right in front of my eyes. 
Right after the fight, they closed the petrol pump down! Well! What a time to pick a fight! 
I – hoping against odds – went to Total petrol station (on M M Alam). Thankfully, there was petrol there. I got out of my car, and told the event at Shell to the Total pump’s management. They seemed to take heed and immediately started regulating the hodge-podge of rickshaws and motorbikes on one of the station in to a proper line!
Finding petrol was never this eventful, I am told. What do you think? :/

Honda City 2008-2009

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The new Honda City is set to be introduced in the Pakistani Market.

Couple that with the news item that Corolla is now only coming out as a 1.6, this leaves the middle class market totally empty for Honda to eat up! The new design is much better than the horror that roams our streets. If this is what the new Honda City looks like, then all is goood.

Images courtesy of pakwheels.