Think Punjab and images of six-foot plus iron-pumping jat tilling his field would invariably come to mind. Or a truck driver quaffing steaming chai in addition to whatever substances that keep him and his heavy duty wheels rolling through the long night... No matter how way out one’s image of a stereotypical Punjabi is, a techie or for that matter an academic geek from Punjab will not be on you radar. The truth is that despite love for all the good things in life, the average citizen of Punjab is known to be the hardest working and steadfast among inhabitants of Hindustan.
The story of the Rhino is one that is a fruit of both these sterling qualities. A product of International Cars and Motors Limited (ICML) which itself is a part of the Sonalika group (a tractor manufacturer), the Rhino saga is remarkable considering that a road-worthy Rhino rolled out within ten years of the first Sonalika tractor coming to the market. Compared with the time frame of Mahindra’s and Tata’s transition from bare-bones Jeeps in the case of the former and trucks in the latter, to passengers car manufacture, ICML’s progress must be called whirlwind, no mean achievement in retrospect. Surely passion is key ingredient in a project that pits virtual unknown against established national and international players. And ICML‘s ambitions are not restricted to MUVs - they’ve signed a deal with Pininfarina no less who will develop a world car for both India as well as the world by end of the decade. Clearly automobiles is what drives the guys at ICML. Back to the present though and three years into production the Rhino sees its 1.8-litre Isuzu engine replaced by a 2-litre turbo charged direct injection diesel engine (the common-rail Rover-sourced power plant will come in later). It is with this powerplant in its vehicle that the company aims to launch the Rhino nationwide.
