Arun Ghosh has accumulated more than one million kilometres on 2014 Honda Accord and by gosh he hopes to quintuple that to beat the Guinness World Record for mileage by one individual and a car.
Irv Gordon, an American who passed away in 2020 at age 77, totalled 3.2 million miles (5.14 kilometres) in his 1966 Volvo P1800. The distance was the equivalent of seven roundtrips to the moon and took 57 years to do it.
Ghosh said he racks up about 135,000 kms a year through a combination of delivering food and driving friends who don’t have cars, so it’s going to take him another 30 years, give or take, to beat the record.
While Ghosh’s objective to beat Gordon’s mark may seem ambitious, there’s no denying his spirit.
“I’m trying for that, by God’s grace, and hoping nothing happens to my car,” Ghosh told me.
The 38-year-old India national is married. He said his wife, Praseetha, with whom they have a one-year-old child, Aryan, really supports his driving passion, never asking why.
In 2017, the Niagara Falls resident purchased the six-cylinder, which had 90,000 kilometres on it. Coincidentally, Honda stopped manufacturing the six-cylinder Accord in 2017, as it followed the industry shift to four-cylinder cars.
“I’m just enjoying my passion and helping them,” he said. “I feel like I’m floating in the road. I really enjoy my driving. Honestly, I don’t feel like a celebrity. I’m living my wish.”
He came to Canada to study nursing at Niagara College but said that was more of his mother’s wish than his. It just didn’t excite him, certainly not like driving.
“When I came to Canada, I got the opportunity to pursue my passion,” Ghosh said. “A lot of factors supported me. The country, the platform up here, the services, my friends, all this came together and really motivated me. People have their own passion. Some people have a passion for painting. Some people have a passion for their work. Cars are a passion to me. Once I bought a car, it’s like I don’t have the mindset to change it”
Depending on the price of gas, it costs him $80-$90 to fill up the tank.
To celebrate the one million mark, a neighbour’s son had a T-shirt with the words HONDA 1,000,000 KM + with a photo of the car.
Once Ghosh hit 500,000 kms, a friend suggested he aim for 1,000,000. When Ghosh hit the mark, the Mayor of Niagara Falls, Jim Diodati, invited him to City Hall to commemorate it. Ghosh’s car has currently racked up 1,070,000 kilometres, though the odometer stopped at 999,999 and didn’t have the technology to continue past one million. He documents the new mileage using the trip counter that turns to zero after every 9,999.9 kilometres. He videotapes it all on Instagram.
Ghosh went to Henley Honda, where he had bought some parts for his vehicle, in St. Catharines to ask for help to extend the odometer and was willing to pay for it. Shamil Becharbhai, Regional Director of Fixed Operations for Willowdale Auto Group that owns Henley Honda, happened to be there that day.
“He was really proud and showcased the car for the entire sales and service teams,” Becharbhai said. “It’s a pretty remarkable milestone.”
Ghosh told Mayor Diodati of his request to get a new odometer and it was posted on social media. That’s when the story went viral. Honda reached out to Ghosh indicating it would assign a team to look into the request to extend the odometer. A couple months later, Honda sent him a gift box with some swag and a letter indicating that for technical reasons pertaining to government laws it couldn’t fulfill his request. So he decided to set his sights on reaching the five-million plus kms record.
Jabir Babu, a license mechanic who is also an India national and met Ghosh while studying automotive at Niagara College, is a big part of this amazing story. He has been helping him with maintenance costs, charging him only $15,000 in total. Without his friend, Ghosh said servicing the car would be more than three times that amount from someone else.
“Because of this guy, I can (try for the record). He knows my passion,” Ghosh said. “I am not that rich. There’s lots of friends and good people around me that help.”
Babu recently opened a licensed mechanic shop because Arun had been pushing him to do it. He named the business Million Arm Automotive – the arm being a symbol of brotherhood – to pay tribute to his friend. He plans to open several shops with the name.
“I am honoured and glad to be a part of it,” Babu said. “Each and every single time he brings the car, we have something to say.”
Ghosh, who lives 15 minutes away from Babu’s shop, said the only time he’s had a serious issue with the car was because of the alternator. He has so much trust in the car, he never wears a jacket.
“Other than that one time I had a problem with the alternator, it has never caused me such a situation on the road,” he said. “That’s how much I believe in my car.”
“I want to see his car running because I want him to have comfort when he’s in his car,” Babu said.
Ghosh is philosophical about his relationship with his car. He believes if he takes care of it, it will take care of him.
“When we are hungry we eat food, and when we are in a mood for going on vacation we do it,” Ghosh said. “How much do we give priority for our enjoyment and for our care? Just give some of that to something like a car. Wherever you go, you are taking your car. The car is the thing that helps you for your transportation. It doesn’t matter if you pay for the car and you pay for the gas and you just drive and go. No. It’s really for driving home and it takes care of you. How much love you give it, the car will give you back. That vehicle is the only friend which carries you everywhere.”
Perry Lefko is the Content Manager of The Car Magazine. He can be reached at [email protected]. Feel free to forward any story suggestions or comments.
