Can a Civic make it to the Himalayas? - Team-BHP

laluks · 2nd November 2008, 13:21

Often realities comes out of Dreams, and dreams from Passion. And with Passion mostly all reasonings comes to a stop!

Can a Civic go all the way upto the Himalayas, beating all the rough terrains? Can we have a Civic at the highest motorable road in India?

Technically what all can be done as a precaution? What can never happen? What can be the work arounds?

Let us have a debate, reasoning, idea, etc.

Hope the discussion would yield quite a lot of inputs for all.

gd1418 · 2nd November 2008, 20:40

That is Leh-Ladakh that you are talking about. There are n number of threads on this detailing every nook & corner. Run a search..

Quote:

Originally Posted by laluks

Often realities comes out of Dreams, and dreams from Passion. And with Passion mostly all reasonings comes to a stop!

Can a Civic go all the way upto the Himalayas, beating all the rough terrains? Can we have a Civic at the highest motorable road in India?

Technically what all can be done as a precaution? What can never happen? What can be the work arounds?

Let us have a debate, reasoning, idea, etc.

Hope the discussion would yield quite a lot of inputs for all.

abhinav.gupta88 · 2nd November 2008, 20:55

I dont think so
i heard the roads somewhere are pretty bad and with the suspension and GC like that of the civic , it seems a tough call.

team suzuki · 2nd November 2008, 20:57

Well with such low ground clearence it seems to be difficult,unless you modify the car or have a group of auto engg's with you..........

Locomotive · 2nd November 2008, 21:10

Really depends on the condition of the roads. I am not sure what the GC of a civic is but it looks quite low. you might end up with some expensive repairs. teh SX4 has 19mm Gc but we got stuck twice at tanflangla and bottomed out quite a few times. Lucily we did not suffer any underbody damage but it was close. Also if you are unlucky enough to get really poor roads (like the one leading to Rohtangla when we were there) then the Civic will probably suffer damage.

I would suggest hiring a self drive car/MUV/SUV and doing this trip? definately expensive but if there are people to share the cost then its worth it.

theMAG · 2nd November 2008, 21:11

The floor board would be missing on the return journey.

Locomotive · 2nd November 2008, 21:12

If you have the swift then probably it is better suited for this journey. we saw at least 3 swifts doing this trip.

Also the long wheelbase of the civic will make things worse.

laluks · 2nd November 2008, 21:21

Hiya, Lots of answers. Unfortunately all tends to say no!!

Any mods would work for the Civic? Lets try have some ideas - some practical, some just feel goods.

Swift is my bet though!!

rjstyles69 · 2nd November 2008, 21:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by laluks

Any mods would work for the Civic? Lets try have some ideas - some practical, some just feel goods.

Get a lift kit for your civic and you are good to go

.

Quote:

Originally Posted by theMAG

The floor board would be missing on the return journey.

When will yaa stop ?

laluks · 2nd November 2008, 22:27

[quote=rjstyles69;1037611]Get a lift kit for your civic and you are good to go

.
quote]

Honda!! Are you listening.
Poor civic, it cant dream to be at the highest motorable road in India.

How about trying out the active suspension setups?
How about some engine guard at the bottom like SUVs?

kaushik_s · 2nd November 2008, 23:38

No, no and a third time no. Manali to Leh is gonna kill your car at it's current condition. But I don't know how is the alternate route via Srinagar and Kargil via Zozila pass. That route may not be that bad or on the other hand may be worse. Also I've seen a Baleno in Leh(don't how it has gone there), so if that can make it probably your Civic also can.
BTW, the efforts for making the Leh Manali road bigger and better is going on and may be after an year or so any car can make it to Leh but by then probably the charm will be gone.
And I guess Skid plates will make your ground clearance lesser only.

BlackPearl · 3rd November 2008, 00:07

I cannot understand the purpose of this thread. If the question is to theoritically know whether civic can make it to those roads, the answer is yes. But in all practicality if one loves his car he should not try these roads in a civic. Maybe nothing major will happen, but why torture a car that is not meant for this.

autopsyche · 3rd November 2008, 00:25

Take your swift. PM a thanks to me after you come back.

aaggoswami · 3rd November 2008, 00:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhinav.gupta88

I dont think so
i heard the roads somewhere are pretty bad and with the suspension and GC like that of the civic , it seems a tough call.

I think that the suspension ( double wishbone at rear! Good handling and body control over twisty road and CAN take somebeating ) can take a beating till some extent, but the Ground Clearence is low and will be real issue before the suspension starts acting up.

Civic has a long wheelbase and a low GC. The worst combination for a car in those conditions.
The final Answer is NO.
Its OK till some scratching or so, but even with underbody protection, if at all some part is damaged or you have a breakdown, getting the car back on the road will be tough. Best Avoided. If you have anyother car with reasonable GC, go with that, but avoid Civic.

abk · 3rd November 2008, 03:37

If you get 3 other (strong) men and all of you are ready to lift up the car using your hands at times, you can make it to the summit without much underbody damage! Well, but you can't feasibly do it for long stretches of bad roads all too frequently in the rarefied oxygen

I did it a few times on different roads (including within the delhi city!) and before steep speed breakers to save my old Honda City from severe underbody damages a few times. On hindsight I think it was wise

2nd November 2008, 13:21	#1 (permalink)
laluks BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 838	Can a Civic make it to the Himalayas? Often realities comes out of Dreams, and dreams from Passion. And with Passion mostly all reasonings comes to a stop! Can a Civic go all the way upto the Himalayas, beating all the rough terrains? Can we have a Civic at the highest motorable road in India? Technically what all can be done as a precaution? What can never happen? What can be the work arounds? Let us have a debate, reasoning, idea, etc. Hope the discussion would yield quite a lot of inputs for all. __________________ Honda Civic 1.8S MT May 2007 (36k) Suzuki Swift ZXi Jan 2007 (22k) Kinetic Honda Dx Sep 1999 (30k) Sold : Esteem, 800, RX100 Last edited by laluks : 2nd November 2008 at 13:23.

2nd November 2008, 20:55	#3 (permalink)
abhinav.gupta88 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Delhi ; Surrey, United Kingdom Posts: 3,810 View My Garage	I dont think so i heard the roads somewhere are pretty bad and with the suspension and GC like that of the civic , it seems a tough call. __________________ *vRs(q)® \| ECLIPSE CD7200 MKII \| Illusion Carbon ND-6 \| Harman/Kardon CA470 \| Harman/Kardon CA1500M \| Stereo Integrity MAG D2 V4*

2nd November 2008, 20:57	#4 (permalink)
team suzuki BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: ***** Posts: 142	Well with such low ground clearence it seems to be difficult,unless you modify the car or have a group of auto engg's with you.......... __________________ TEAM SUZUKI:Way of Life, Last edited by team suzuki : 2nd November 2008 at 21:01.

2nd November 2008, 21:11	#6 (permalink)
theMAG Team-BHP Support Join Date: May 2006 Location: Bengalooru Posts: 4,528 View My Garage	The floor board would be missing on the return journey. __________________ If I hold a hammer, everything looks like a nail.

2nd November 2008, 21:12	#7 (permalink)
Locomotive BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 174 View My Garage	If you have the swift then probably it is better suited for this journey. we saw at least 3 swifts doing this trip. Also the long wheelbase of the civic will make things worse. Last edited by Rehaan : 3rd November 2008 at 03:16. Reason: Posts merged. Please use the EDIT button to add to an existing post within 20 minutes instead of posting another consecutive post.

2nd November 2008, 21:10	#5 (permalink)
Locomotive BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 174 View My Garage	Really depends on the condition of the roads. I am not sure what the GC of a civic is but it looks quite low. you might end up with some expensive repairs. teh SX4 has 19mm Gc but we got stuck twice at tanflangla and bottomed out quite a few times. Lucily we did not suffer any underbody damage but it was close. Also if you are unlucky enough to get really poor roads (like the one leading to Rohtangla when we were there) then the Civic will probably suffer damage. I would suggest hiring a self drive car/MUV/SUV and doing this trip? definately expensive but if there are people to share the cost then its worth it.

2nd November 2008, 21:21	#8 (permalink)
laluks BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 838	Hiya, Lots of answers. Unfortunately all tends to say no!! Any mods would work for the Civic? Lets try have some ideas - some practical, some just feel goods. Swift is my bet though!! __________________ Honda Civic 1.8S MT May 2007 (36k) Suzuki Swift ZXi Jan 2007 (22k) Kinetic Honda Dx Sep 1999 (30k) Sold : Esteem, 800, RX100

2nd November 2008, 22:27	#10 (permalink)
laluks BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 838	[quote=rjstyles69;1037611]Get a lift kit for your civic and you are good to go . quote] Honda!! Are you listening. Poor civic, it cant dream to be at the highest motorable road in India. How about trying out the active suspension setups? How about some engine guard at the bottom like SUVs? __________________ Honda Civic 1.8S MT May 2007 (36k) Suzuki Swift ZXi Jan 2007 (22k) Kinetic Honda Dx Sep 1999 (30k) Sold : Esteem, 800, RX100

2nd November 2008, 23:38	#11 (permalink)
kaushik_s BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 593	No, no and a third time no. Manali to Leh is gonna kill your car at it's current condition. But I don't know how is the alternate route via Srinagar and Kargil via Zozila pass. That route may not be that bad or on the other hand may be worse. Also I've seen a Baleno in Leh(don't how it has gone there), so if that can make it probably your Civic also can. BTW, the efforts for making the Leh Manali road bigger and better is going on and may be after an year or so any car can make it to Leh but by then probably the charm will be gone. And I guess Skid plates will make your ground clearance lesser only. __________________ If there is a Wheel, there is a way.. If there is a way then it's the Highway..

3rd November 2008, 00:07	#12 (permalink)
BlackPearl BHPian Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Hightstown(NJ, USA), Calcutta (India) Posts: 955 View My Garage	I cannot understand the purpose of this thread. If the question is to theoritically know whether civic can make it to those roads, the answer is yes. But in all practicality if one loves his car he should not try these roads in a civic. Maybe nothing major will happen, but why torture a car that is not meant for this. __________________ Don't take life too seriously, no matter what you do you won't come out of it alive

3rd November 2008, 00:25	#13 (permalink)
autopsyche Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: New Delhi, India Posts: 1,502 View My Garage	Take your swift. PM a thanks to me after you come back. __________________ 1996 Mitsubishi 3000GT \| 2007 Corolla \| 2005 Gypsy King \| 2004 Octavia \| 1998 Esteem \| 1995 Cielo \| 1987 Gypsy \| 1984 M800

3rd November 2008, 03:37	#15 (permalink)
abk BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: NOIDA / Gurgaon Posts: 204	If you get 3 other (strong) men and all of you are ready to lift up the car using your hands at times, you can make it to the summit without much underbody damage! Well, but you can't feasibly do it for long stretches of bad roads all too frequently in the rarefied oxygen I did it a few times on different roads (including within the delhi city!) and before steep speed breakers to save my old Honda City from severe underbody damages a few times. On hindsight I think it was wise

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Need sugguestions for a week in HIMALAYAS.	Archish	Route / Travel Queries	10	19th July 2009 14:59
Motoring in the Himalayas	DirtyDan	SUVs, MUVs & 4x4s	11	28th October 2007 11:45
Himalayas once again, the snow ride!	BunnyPunia	Travelogues	11	4th January 2007 17:42
Return to the Himalayas, Sarahan	yogesh sarkar	Travelogues	6	20th May 2006 03:00