World renowned Mitsubishi Pajeros cast a spell on automobile experts, fans and citizenry of the industrial hub of Gujarat with their display of unparalleled off-roading abilities in the toughest of terrains here today.
This was the outcome of the participation of more than two dozen owners of Pajeros in Hindustan Motors-Mitsubishi’s famed Pajero Heart-in-Mouth (HIM) rally. The adventurous and adrenaline-charged sports utility vehicle (SUV) event came on the heels of similar rallies organized very successfully in Ludhiana and Delhi recently. HIM rallies will be held in Pune, Bengaluru and Coimbatore in the coming months.
The rally was organised to provide owners of the legendary Mitsubishi Pajero a unique opportunity to explore and experience the outstanding off-roading capabilities of the iconic SUV which has the unique distinction of having won the Dakar Rally, world’s toughest car driving competition, as many as 13 times.
A large number of Mitsubishi Pajero owners and SUV fans from in and around Vadodara and Ahmedabad gathered here to expose their mean machines to the challenge of extremely tough driving conditions. As many as 25 Pajeros and five Mitsubishi Monteros formed part of the rally which was flagged off from The Gateway Hotel, Akota, at 12.00 p.m. by Mr. Yoshiaki Wada, HM-Mitsubishi’s Head of Marketing and Channel Development.
Notably, Mitsubishi’s vehicles like Pajero, Montero, Outlander, Lancer etc are manufactured and marketed in India by the multi-billion-dollar C K Birla Group’s Hindustan Motors Ltd., the country’s oldest car company.
The Pajero HIM rally participants experienced 45 kms of intense off-road and highly challenging driving conditions through rugged terrains including dirt roads, mud and slush patches, up-hill and downhill gradients etc. The rally started from Akota and passed through R C Dutt Road, Bird Circle, Gotri Road and Sevasi to reach the ravines of river Mahi in Jaspur. The return route was via Bhayli.
Mr. Rakesh Gandhi, Director, Export Equipments Rentals & Logistics Corporation Pvt. Ltd., who participated in the rally with his August 2008 Pajero, said, “Pajero is my darling, but not a delicate darling. It is a really rough and tough vehicle which is capable of comfortably encountering the most unpredictable landscape and territory. When you are in a Pajero you do not have to bother about uneven and pot-holed roads, rocky or sandy patches, forest trails or water logged spots. I have driven from Vadodara to Leh in Ladakh and back with joy.”
Mr. Siddharth Amin, Founder and Technical Director of Follow Systems, which is an aerial survey company, also participated in the rally in his Pajero bought in April 2010. “Pajero is a proven and very reliable vehicle. My business takes me to remote areas very often. These areas do not have proper roads.
In fact, many of them have no roads at all. It is my off-roading champion Pajero which takes me to such distant places,” he stated. Mr. Amin has driven his Pajero through thick forests of Madhya Pradesh and tough terrains of Rann of Kutch, Rajasthan, Maharashtra etc. “I participated in today’s rally with my friends for its thrilling experience, learning and also for comparing my vehicle’s capability with other Pajeros,” he added.
Though he had to drop the idea to participate in the rally at the last moment because of some unavoidable personal reasons, Mr. Gunendra C Mehta, Head, Clarion India, a government recognized star export house in the pharmaceutical segment, who has purchased his Pajero just three months ago, was all praise for his new acquisition. “I have driven different SUVs in the UK and Dubai for years. But the Pajero’s uniqueness lies in its fantastic balance of vehicle and power train.
Those are complementary and supplementary to each other. Pajero is a beauty with brawn. It is a muscular SUV and gives you the confidence of driving on any kind of turf. With their ever present big and bigger pot holes, Indian roads and highways, in fact, compel you to experience off-roading every day. Pajero thus proves to be the friend in need, all the time,” Mr. Mehta commented.
Speak Mr. Yoshiaki Wada said, “Pajero has attained a cult status across the world with its owners forming Pajero clubs and groups in large numbers. The whole idea behind organizing the Pajero Heart-in-Mouth rally is to bring together the lovers of this incredible vehicle on a common platform where they may bond and share their Pajero experiences. Gujarat is an important market for us and we have a strong customer base for Pajero here. Expectedly, the turn-out was highly encouraging.”
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