Report - Offroad Training Day at Kelambakkam Quarry

[headers]

ofcourse you could do the descent @ 20 kmph and have the remains of the car as some friends advised..

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by madan80

the palio - its an allrounder- track and terrain! Gooooo Paaliooo!

I am coming for the next OTR meet just to drive your palio up & down the hill, the drinks are on me.

Originally Posted by headers

It may have good low end torque..but you need engine braking to happen while on a steep descent.. Even the gypsies fail here..

I totally agree here, the L.E.T of the diesels cannot be matched by petrols which makes me wonder how well samurai's GV would perform here. waiting for it samurai.

[nitrous]

The GV has differential locks and 4L.
And with its ECU et all, it might understand what the driver is trying to do.
In porsche 4x4s, there's something called descent control which helps in maintaining a low speed.

[rjstyles69]

I know am late here, nevertheless excellent pictures tifosi.Looks like the Tokina 12-24 is being put to full use. Great shots man.

The getaway from Coastal Karunaadu was worth every bit, aint it Samurai, what say ? So when's the GV hitting such terrain?

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

I totally agree here, the L.E.T of the diesels cannot be matched by petrols which makes me wonder how well samurai's GV would perform here. waiting for it samurai.

I did a half KM 25-30 degree descent on a loose gravel in 1st gear 4H (no Lock) couple of times in this weekend. It was slipping gloriously on gravel and golf ball size squarish rocks. But the speed was well contained, never felt lack of control. I could have halved the speed by switching to 4L (lock), but didn't feel the need. I didn't try climbing back on the same trail because I am still on OE plastic skid plates, didn't want to tempt those rocks yet. May be next time, with aluminium skid plates.

Originally Posted by rjstyles69

The getaway from Coastal Karunaadu was worth every bit, aint it Samurai, what say ? So when's the GV hitting such terrain?

I did something little different yesterday. We drove through a coffee estate in a Jeep in very challenging terrain consisting gravel/grass/crazy inclines, and paths not a foot wider than the GV itself, a slip can take you tumbling 100ft+ down among the coffee plants. Later my host Aravind and me started wondering about the ability of GV on such terrain. One long stretch was greater than 30 degree incline, his inclinometer maxes at 30 degree, so it could be 33-35 degree, no idea. Yesterday I agreed to take it provided he agrees to pull me out of there if I get stuck. It was the scariest drive I have done (with my full family too), often I was inches away from the cliff in grassy/gravel path. It was only then it occurred to me that since GV is wider than the Jeep, I have to venture outside of the well formed Jeep tracks. So I stuck closer to the inside rather than the the cliff side. So I often went over hidden tree roots, rocks and what not. When I finally saw the 30+ degree incline, it looked impossible, in fact it starts with a hairpin curve. Team-BHPians Lohithrao and shushrutha have seen this incline. Anyway, I switched to 4L lock and started off. It went up in a buttery smooth fashion, no hesitation or slip at all. Aravind was already thinking of a bigger challenge like what if it was raining, etc. Later he asked me to take another 25 degree gravel incline in 4H without diff lock, this time it would be using the rpm advantage of petrol engine. Again it came off very smooth, I took the whole curve in 2nd gear (4H + LSD), while it did slip couple of times, the momentum pushed it through. Our host Aravind Gowda was a master off-roader himself with 7 lakhs KMs in his Jeep, with 80% of it off the tarmac. I did learn some valuable off-roading tips from him.

Some day I will write a travelogue on this trip, but right now it is too depressing to do so with Robin's death still so fresh in our minds. It reminds me of our mortality despite our trust in our machines and precautions.

[headers]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I did a 25-30 degree descent on a loose gravel in 1st gear 4H (no Lock) couple of times in this weekend. It was slipping gloriously on gravel and golf ball size squarish rocks. But the speed was well contained, never felt lack of control. I could have halved the speed by switching to 4L (lock), but didn't feel the need. I didn't try climbing back on the same trail because I am still on OE plastic skid plates, didn't want to tempt those rocks yet. May be next time, with aluminium skid plates.

Plastic is better than aluminium..!!!


I did something little different yesterday. We drove through a coffee estate in a Jeep in very challenging terrain consisting gravel/grass/crazy inclines, and paths not a foot wider than the GV itself, a slip can take you tumbling 100ft+ down among the coffee plants. Later my host Aravind and me started wondering about the ability of GV on such terrain. One long stretch was greater than 30 degree incline, his inclinometer maxes at 30 degree, so it could be 33-35 degree, no idea. Yesterday I agreed to take it provided he agrees to pull me out of there if I get stuck. It was the scariest drive I have done (with my full family too), often I was inches away from the cliff in grassy/gravel path. It was only then it occurred to me that since GV is wider than the Jeep, I have to venture outside of the well formed Jeep tracks. So I stuck closer to the inside rather than the the cliff side. So I often went over hidden tree roots, rocks and what not. When I finally saw the 30+ degree incline, it looked impossible, in fact it starts with a hairpin curve. Team-BHPians Lohithrao and shushrutha have seen this incline. Anyway, I switched to 4L lock and started off. It went up in a buttery smooth fashion, no hesitation or slip at all. Aravind was already thinking of a bigger challenge like what if it was raining, etc. Later he asked me to take another 25 degree gravel incline in 4H without diff lock, this time it would be using the rpm advantage of petrol engine. Again it came off very smooth, I took the whole curve in 2nd gear (4H + LSD), while it did slip couple of times, the momentum pushed it through. Our host Aravind Gowda was a master off-roader himself with 7 lakhs KMs in his Jeep, with 80% of it off the tarmac. I did learn some valuable off-roading tips from him.

Why not share it with us Samurai!! Maybe you could plan a trip down south..with your GV

Cheers

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by headers

Plastic is better than aluminium..!!!

How is that? According to other GV owners (abroad), most of them who took it offroad have torn their OE skid plates over rocks and had to replace them.

Originally Posted by headers

Why not share it with us Samurai!! Maybe you could plan a trip down south..with your GV

They are very contextual, not something to be spelled out explicitly, just small details. BTW, I am very much in the same geographic latitude as you, on the west coast.

[sushrutha]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I. Our host Aravind Gowda was a master off-roader himself with 7 lakhs KMs in his Jeep, with 80% of it off the tarmac. I did learn some valuable off-roading tips from him.

Yeah, Indeed he's a very good off road driver.
I hope some of your off roading wishes were fulfilled in this Chickmagalur trip.

[fiery enzyme]

Looks like i missed a good one!

[headers]

Originally Posted by Samurai

How is that? According to other GV owners (abroad), most of them who took it offroad have torn their OE skid plates over rocks and had to replace them.

Hi Samurai,

The OE Plastic skid plates are lighter than the Aluminum ones..and serves the purpose for which it is installed..so one need not replace with aluminum, which is easier to break in case of an impact.

Note that plastic is softer and more elastic than aluminium!!

[Samurai]

I feel 6mm aluminium will withstand damage better than plastic. I doubt 6mm sheet can break on a rock impact, the plastic one would.

[headers]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I feel 6mm aluminium will withstand damage better than plastic. I doubt 6mm sheet can break on a rock impact, the plastic one would.

Try it Samurai and maybe you'll agree with me then
cheers:

[nitrous]

Taking an indica off-road, recommending plastic skid plates over aluminium ,....
We can't survive without someone like Headers' in the group. :

[tsk1979]

Wouldn't paper skid plates or if waterproof is needed, polythene bag skid plates be better since its more flexible than plastic

[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I feel 6mm aluminium will withstand damage better than plastic. I doubt 6mm sheet can break on a rock impact, the plastic one would.

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Wouldn't paper skid plates or if waterproof is needed, polythene bag skid plates be better since its more flexible than plastic

I have to say that common perception would lead most people to believe that "Naturally aluminum/metal is stronger than plastic", but we are dealing with three variables here :
1. What alloy of aluminum are we talking about ? Theres such a wide range of alloys with noticably different properties.
2. What plastic are we talking about ? I dont know much about plastics, but i can surely say that there must be more types of "plastics" than alloys of aluminum. Some of which can be incredibly durable.
3. The third variable is strength. "Strong" is a very vague word. There are many different attributes that could make up the word strength, and for every person and every application its a different selection of those attributes. In simple terms, a few of them could be - how much a material flexes without getting permanently damaged, how much a material can flex before it breaks, how much force a material can withstand without deforming, tensile strength, malleability, shear strength, compressive strength etc etc


So my point is, unless we go into the specifics of the materials (im guessing a 6061T alloy for the aluminum -- samurai, any idea?) and compare with the plastic (what kind is the stock GV protection and what kind of aftermarket versions are available?), its really no point arguing about it.

Also, keep in mind strength provided by structure (4th variable actually). For example - If you are comparing a 6mm flat sheet of XYZ to a 3mm ribbed / corrugated sheet of XYZ, the thinner sheet just might take more of a beating.

cya
R

ps - i also remember Mpower saying something about engineered plastics... maybe he can contribute.