Schoolboy assembles Rs 25,000 mini car
19 Jan, 2008, 2018 hrs IST, PTI
VARANASI: Move over Nano. Here comes "Fame" for just Rs 25,000 assembled together by a 16-year-old.
The car, equipped with a 150 cc four-stroke scooter engine and weighing around 160 kg, was among several products on display today during the 'Young Innovators' exhibition at Swatantra Bhavan of Banaras Hindu University.
Its inventor class XII student Chandan Kumar drove all the way here from Azamgarh, about 150 km away, in the green coloured open air, two-seater mini car.
He calls it "Fame" and claims "it is small, reliable and the biggest advantage is its price - Rs 25,000".
Chandan said it has four gears and claims it gives an average of 45-50 km per litre and top speed of 80 km per hour.
He said he had been working in his father's garage in Azamgarh for the past three years and assembled the car one piece at a time.
"My father is a mechanic and I was always interested in cars, so decided to make one. The car is especially for the narrow alleys of Varanasi. I have not kept track of how much it really cost me as I used old spare parts," he said.
The boy, who has no formal training in the field, said he did not get any outside funding for making the vehicle but is hoping that BHU finances a project to upgrade the model.
When his invention was compared to the Rs 1 lakh car unveiled by Tata Motors, he said, "I actually finished my car two years ago but took time to improve the body and comfort levels. I wish to make it even better than the Nano".