Businessman gifts his Rs 40 lakh Toyota Fortuner to Municipality for garbage collection
When Hemraj Chaudhary of Nigdi, Pune bought a Toyota Fortuner, little did he know that in the days ahead it would be used to transport garbage.
Hemjar, who has a transport business purchased new Toyota Fortuner for a sum of Rs 39 lakhs from a dealer in Bhosari. The car got its number MH14GC5, a special number plate for which he had spend additional Rs 2 lakhs.
In a few days after his purchase, the car started running into trouble. Hemraj paid repeated visits to the company’s service center in Bhosari but each time the car came back with some problems or the other.
Angry at the treatment metted out to him and in protest at the service center not being able to maintain the car in proper condition, Hemraj filled the car with garbage and sent it to the service center. The MIDC police were informed about this. As suggested by the owner, the car has now been donated to the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation. They will collect garbage in the Toyota Fortuner.
Hemraj has also spoken to local newspaper, complaining about this deficiency in service and his way of protesting hoping that Toyota would take note of the situation and solve his problem once and for all.
The current status of the vehicle is not known. Also, the exact problem that forced the owner to take such a drastic step is not mentioned in the Loksatta news story. However, there is a video that shows dirt and garbage inside the Toyota Fortuner.
Toyota and Fortuner are established brand names in the Indian market. The Toyota Fortuner is the best-selling car in its segment and the luxury SUV sells 2,000 units on an average every month. It sells over double than that of its closest competitor, the Ford Endeavour, in India.
Toyota Fortuner is powered by both petrol and diesel engine options in the Indian market. There is a 2.8-litre, turbocharged diesel engine that generates a maximum of 175 Bhp and 420 Nm of peak torque, with manual transmission. The automatic variants get a 450 Nm torque output.
Toyota also offers a 2.7-litre petrol engine in the Indian market with a power output of 164 Bhp and peak torque output of 245 Nm. Both engines get automatic and manual transmissions. The SUV is extremely popular and is known for its reliability, fuss-free nature. longevity and affordable maintenance.
