[davids4x4mm550]

you guys should pick up better tow ropes for these big boys.
BTW Nice pics

[yaji]

Wonderful write up Guderian & Monaro ! Loved reading the whole act and enjoyed the scenery too (armchair off roading )

I would love to go on a drive like this if someone is doing this stuff in or around Bangalore....good you guys have the vindhyas around ...its another thing that rains have done the vanishing act this monsoon in and around Bangalore !

[Manuuj]

Great pics and narration too. Looks like all had had a jolly good time. General Saar how lovely of you to rescue said damsel. An Officer and a Gentleman you are.. (Was the incident reported to the Home Ministry during debriefing later that day?..)

Look forward to more pics soon.. especially of the stranded damsel..i mean Safari.

On a serious note.. did you notice how the Fortuner changes character in LL mode. Feels right invincible then doesn't it?!

[abhayshanu]

Here is my report. I did not click many pictures as others were, I had just come to drive my Fortuner(After a very long time). I did click a few.

The day started at 5:30, super sleepyly as had gone to sleep at 3:30-4 am. I got ready, took the stuff. Left home by 6:15 went to the ATM got some money and left. By 6:30 was in MIDC. I then caught up with HG and Kedar a little before the Toll Naka. I then stopped to fill up and they headed ahead. I then reached Kumar a little later than them. We all just sat there discussed our plan which was not enough. We all were I guess more excited in softroading and didnt sit and discuss all the things we wanted to.

We then left for Rajmachi. As we drove on I could see just some batterted road. After sometime we all stopped and I for a second though was this the softroading Satyen was talking about. He then said guys lets just stop here for a while before we continue forward. I was relieved. Anyways we clicked some pics and left. Our Formation was, Satyen leading, me in second, HG behind me and Kedar last. I would have prefered HG being last as I believe and have been taught that the most experienced should be leading and tailing. Anyways, we did not have any problems.
Now the trail has been discussed very well by both HG and Satyen. So I will just state my experience. I did NOT use LL much. Only on 3 occasions. 2 in which I got stuck out of which I did not need to use it in 1 and 1 while coming down the slope the Safari got stuck and made the path smooth. Even on the HillLock I got up on the HL and I saw Satyen crawled. I have Kedar's video. The cars did fine but I think MT Tyres are in order. I did not scrap the car anywhere, not even on the rocks I took Kedar and Satyen when we went Off the Road while we were Off the Road

I guess thats it. Just attaching the pics for now.






Clicked by Kedar.

[Monaro CV8]

The customary hillock climb was an easy breeze compared to the slushy, slippery, steep twisties.

I've got a few snaps of the hillock climb.

A point to note here is - it wasn't slushy; mostly gravel and grass.
The only difficulty/ obstacle was the gradient. If I'm not mistaken it is a 25 degree gradient. I remember during the March session, the terrain was dry and loose gravel surface. Traction was a major issue then.

This year around, I was apprehensive of the approach and the climb.
Slotted in HL, a bit of momentum, and crawled; all the way up. Did not experience any wheel spin or slippage.

Was it the 4WD, or the torque on that vehicle, or better traction ?
Maybe a bit of everything...

Abhay, on his run up the hill



Guderian on the descent approach. The same slope where the Safari was stuck.



I've got videos for both; for better understanding the situations.
Will post soon.

Cheers for now.

[siddheshb]

Originally Posted by Guderian

And here is the first of the videos.
The one and only one from me. Taken by me with my sweaty fingers just before the first water (and only) water crossing. A minor affair though - but required the HL range.

The Endy has 2H, 4H and 4L. I have only once needed the 4L setting, when I was carrying a full load of passengers, and we got stuck in foot deep muck. I am assuming HL is similar to the Endy's 4H? The reason I am asking is I am thinking of doing a Rajmachi run by myself something this month, and want to make sure I am not taking on more than my Endy can chew

[Manuuj]

Originally Posted by siddheshb

The Endy has 2H, 4H and 4L. I have only once needed the 4L setting, when I was carrying a full load of passengers, and we got stuck in foot deep muck. I am assuming HL is similar to the Endy's 4H? The reason I am asking is I am thinking of doing a Rajmachi run by myself something this month, and want to make sure I am not taking on more than my Endy can chew

The Fortuner has permanent 4 wheel Drive and so is normally in 4H at all times and is represented by a H which is the 4H in your Endy.

The next setting is HL where the vehicle is in Normal High Range as per the previous setting but with Center Diff Locked. This corresponds to the Highest 4L setting in the Endy.

This is followed by N for Neutral where transmission is completely disengaged (for towing) and last is LL which is your Low Range setting with Center Diff Locked

What you see in this pic is the Fortuner in LL mode.. Low Range with Center Diff Locked.


The Pajero has 2H, 4H, 4HL, N, LLC.

2H is 2 wheel drive for surface roads normal High Range, 4H for surface roads and dirt tracks or Mild Off Road in High Range with power going to all 4 wheels, 4HL for High Range with Diff Locked for sandy/slushy conditions, N for neutral and LLC for Low Range with Locked Diff for maximum torque.

The Endy has no Low Range. Therefore 4L represents 4 wheel drive High Range with Diff Locked. It corresponds to the HL in the Fortuner and the 4HL in the Pajero.

I think the Endy should manage in 4L mode though i confess only people who have seen the actual terrain should answer this question for you. Hope this helps

[abhayshanu]

Originally Posted by Monaro CV8

Kedar, on his run up the hill
Attachment 954509
Attachment 954510

Cheers for now.

Thats me. And I though you came up in LL? Maybe I was mistaken.

[siddheshb]

Yes, 4L is the low range, and to get there, you need to first shift into N. 2H to 4H can be done on the fly, while the Endy is in motion.

[Manuuj]

Originally Posted by siddheshb

Yes, 4L is the low range, and to get there, you need to first shift into N. 2H to 4H can be done on the fly, while the Endy is in motion.

Ahh okay..my mistake then. If 4L is the low Range setting then there should be no problem. I guess there are no locking Diffs then?

[siddheshb]

@Manuuj, this is getting too technical for me now What I know is what I told you, the rest is Greek. I remember we had a similar discussion on my Endy ownership thread http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...-3-0l-4x4.html, when I had talked to my Endy dealer to get the answers to some of these questions. Your analysis may be right, I may be wrong.

[GTO]

My post from the Fortuner Review Thread:

Originally Posted by GTO

The Fortuner comes equipped with Full time 4x4, Torsen (torque sensing) limited slip differential and a dual ratio (high / low) transfer case. The diff is lockable too.

4x4 Drive Options:

Broadly, there are four options on the transfer box (smaller gear lever).

H : Default mode. Running in all time 4x4 with the center diff unlocked. This is what you will use 99% of the time. For tarmac use.

HL : 4x4 with center diff locked. 50:50 torque between the front & rear axles. Do NOT use this mode on tarmac (you will ruin the drivetrain). Best in slush, sand etc.

LL : 4x4, center diff locked, low ratio. Use in extreme offroad applications. Only crawling speeds possible.

N : Neutral. No drive provided to the front or rear wheels. Purpose is to serve as a bridge between High & Low ratio shifts.

[nilanjanray]

The Endy set-up should be similar to the Pajero's. I had driven the 4X4 long time back, so don't remember the details of what I did when I TD'd it offroad.

Btw, the pick-up version of the Endeavour is the second highest selling 4X4 in South Africa. Hilux is #1. Fortuner is the highest selling SUV in S. Africa.

[kedarwalke]

Firstly,big thanks to HG and Monaro for organizing such an awesome event.It was a pleasure to meet HG ,Monaro and Abhay.Everything went as per the plan and I was privileged to meet the big wigs and perfectionists of team-bhp like HG and Monaro CV8.

The terrain was nasty,full of slush,mud ,but with the help of experts i.e. HG and Monaro our fortuners triumphed effortlessly.The tires as reported needs to be better,I am thinking of upsizing alloys and going for the MT tires.Gurus please advise on upsizing the alloys.

It was a very good experience and in no way a two wheel drive could had made it.

After all the beating when we hit the expressway,the Fortuner did an easy 160-170 km/hr and boy,I was surprised of its off road and on road capabilities.

I was last in the convoy and again last to put up the report and pictures,
sorry for that.

I have few videos of HG,Monaro and abhay's fortuners but will upload in a couple of days.

Let the pictures do the talking now,

[kedarwalke]

Still under the hangover of Sunday adventures,

More pictures continued...