Auto show drives Karachiites wild

A variety of old and new cars were showcased at the Pakwheels.com exhibition

KARACHI: It has been said that boys never outgrow their toys. This was made evident by the huge turnout at the Pakwheels.com auto show held at Port Grand on Sunday, where onlookers of both genders gawked at the vast array of cars and took plenty of pictures.



The automobiles were divided into four categories, with a total of 380 cars on display. In the exotic cars category Ferraris, Mercedes G Wagons and Hummer SUTs were on display. In the classic category, a 1949 Pontiac, 1960 Volkswagen Beatle, Dodge Viper and Corvette were on display, garnering the attention of serious car enthusiasts as well as onlookers who simply enjoyed looking at their shiny exteriors. In the 4x4 category, a Ford Raptor, Nissan Petrol and various rally cars had been parked to attract the attention of visitors.



The modified category had the largest numbers of cars, including various models of Mazda RX8s and RX7s, a Mitsubishi Evolution, Nissan Spectrum, Nissan Z350, Nissan Skyline and a Toyota MR2, which attracted people of all ages.

A number of cars were installed with anti-lag or misfiring systems and many youngsters were interested in watching the modified cars misfiring with deafening sounds. There was also a sports bike category, which displayed various models and was crowded with bike lovers.



According to Pakwheels chairperson Suneel Sarfaraz Munjh, this is the sixth show being organised in six different cities of Pakistan in 2015. Prior to this, similar auto shows have been hosted by Pakwheel.com in Faisalabad, Peshawar, Multan, Lahore and Islamabad.

"It's not a revenue-making exercise, it's actually a get together for car enthusiasts," claimed Munjh. He said that car admirers had come to the event to appreciate the cars present at the show.

According to him, even people in Western countries were surprised to see some Pakistani car collections. Munjh said that the show was a healthy event for the people of Karachi, as more than 60,000 people had attended the show.



"It's a decent sized audience and the venue is excellent," said the founder of Pakwheels.com, Muhamad Hanif Bhatti, adding that they also want to organise a similar auto show in Quetta so that people in Balochistan can also show their love for cars. According to Bhatti, by organising such events people develop interest in healthy activities, which is a positive sign.

Muhammad Zeeshan who came to the event with his wife and two children said the event was very crowded and not well organised, as coordination was missing from the show. However, the lack of coordination failed to dampen his children's spirits, as they were excited to take photographs with the cars.



Mir Amer Ali Khan Magsi, who had three cars - 2010 Ferrari F430 F1, 2014 Mercedes B63 Brabus and a 2015 Subaru WRX - on display, said that the visitors were enthusiastic about the cars and appreciated them. "It's a festive [day] for all of us and for the people of Karachi," he said.

The youth should be encouraged with such shows to appreciate the positive things surrounding us, he explained. Magsi said that his elder brother, Mir Nadir Magsi, possessed one of the largest collections of cars in the country but could not attend this event and display his collection as he was out of the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 28^th, 2015.