Mysore :
Vintage cars, bikes, scooters and vehicles of the new generation stole the show at Automotive Technology Fair (ATF) – 2014, with the theme ‘Green Automotive Technology,’ organised by NIE-Eicher Centre for Automobile Technology (NECAT), Collegiate Club of NIE and the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Golden Jubilee Sports Complex of the National Institute of Engineering (NIE) on Manandavadi Road here yesterday.
Automobile enthusiasts irrespective of age and gender thronged the venue to look at the vehicles of the past and present.
Dr. T.N. Shridhar, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Director, NIE-Eicher Centre for Automobile Technology and Co-ordinator of ATF- 2014, speaking to Star of Mysore, said that ATF has been one of the biggest Auto Expos in the State with the previous editions having seen a footfall of about 15, 000 visitors.
He said that it all started when the first Bike Expo was organised in the year 2006 and added that the city needed an Auto Expo of its own to cater the hunger of automobile enthusiasts of the city.
He said that in the year 2007, a Car and Bike Expo was held and the same was repeated in the year 2009. Garnering high success from these events, Automotive Technology Fair took birth which was the first of its kind in the year 2010, he said and added that the vision finally materialised and was carried forward with ATF- 2011.
Dr. Shridhar said that this is the third expo of the ATF in the last four years at NIE.
Speaking about the expo, he said that this year’s expo was being held with the theme ‘Green Automotive Technology’ and as part of ATF, more than 150 Super Bikes and Vintage Bikes along with 35 vintage cars, sports cars and classic cars from in and around the city was showcased at the expo.
Dr. Shridhar said that apart from showcasing the vehicles both old and new at the expo, a Knowledge Pavilion has also been set up where students will give presentations on various trending green technologies.
The expo also housed ‘Do it Yourself’ stalls where the visitors were educated on how to keep their vehicles in good condition and service it themselves.
Gavin Jude Wilson, a Jawa bike enthusiast who has displayed three bikes CZ Jawa, Jawa 250 and Yezdi 350 Twin, said that it is good to have such a kind of expo in city as nothing pertaining to automobiles happens here.
He said that the organising was good and the expo created awareness on what is available in automobile industry. The students of the college explained about the technical aspects of the vehicles and how they work, he said and added that the expo showed us what we were then and what we are now in terms of automobile technology.
Some of the bikes that were displayed were Rajdoot 350, Jawa, Yezdi, BSA 120, a Second World War bike, Enfield 200, Vespa, Lambretta, Super Bikes such as Suzuki Boulevard which was previously owned by actor Salman Khan, Aprilia RSV4, Hyosung GT250R, Kawasaki ZZR, Harley Davidson, customized bike from Vardenchi and BMW 1000RR among others.
City lad Santosh too had displayed his miniature vehicle ‘Mooshik’ and his concept electric two wheeler. He later gave a lecture on ‘Electric Bike Technology’ during the technical session.
Some of the cars that were displayed at the Auto Fair were Porsche, Honda, Volvo, Range Rover, 1973 model US manufactured Jeep Kaiser CJS, 1984 model Premier Padmini, 1961 model Fiat, owned by R. Venkata Raman, an alumni of NIE, 1978 2300 CC Mercedes Benz, owned by Praveen, 1993 model Mercedes Benz 300D, owned by Muthanna among others.
Apart from the vehicles which were displayed, technical sessions on ‘Recent Developments in Radial Tyre Technology’ by T.N. Ramesh, Chief Manager- Technical, JK Tyre, Mysore, ‘Technological Trends in India for Upcoming Emission Norms’ by Ashish Milas Moholkar, Design and Development Engineer, Eicher Motors Ltd. Madhya Pradesh, ‘Innovating in the field of sustainable transportation of goods and people’ by Srinivas Bidare, CEO, Intent Design Pvt. Ltd., Mysore and other topics were held.
The ATF- 2014 which was inaugurated yesterday by U.K. Shenoy, Vice-President (Works), JK Tyre and Industries Ltd., Mysore, will conclude today at 8 pm.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / April 13th, 2014