Lockers -- Tested in Off-Road conditions Ok Guys,
I had been itching to test the lockers in an OTR and luckily we planned an sudden OTR yesterday (Sunday). Saturday night, we the Bangalore jeepers, were in a teleconference and couple of jeepers decided to hit out the 'Soligere' trail on Sunday morning and try to do it 'the difficult way'.
We had a MM540, a MG410W and my MG413W and a total of 5 people in this OTR. (This was JUST perfect -- nearly optimum vehicle's and number of people for a wonderful OTR)
Must say that it was one of nicer OTR's, made more so by the performance of the Diff Locks. Guys, I didn't have any camera with me so no pictures here. Karthik (aquamaverick) , who took some pictures and he can post a detailed travelogue on this (this was his first OTR), and how we literally cooked 'Rajma' using engine heat, elephant scare and the 'Usian bolt's' record breaking run for life by everyone, a bloody nose, MG410's T-case failure etc etc..
The Soligere trail, from Muthathi side, is a upwards trail with cricket ball size loose rocks/gravels all the way up, steep climbs of fast deteriorating surface bushy paths and muddy/rocky ruts with very very sharp turns. Such kind of a terrain is quite challenging while climbing up and is relatively easy (compared to climbing) while coming down. We decided to do it the hard way as we just had 3 4x4's so time was not an issue.
So here is the first OTR report on the lockers: - In this trail, I had decided NOT to use 4wd until absolutely necessary to just test out the lockers. Many places the Gypsy did cover in 2wd itself where I would have normally used 4wd and the MG410 did use 4wd
- At few places where the MG410 stopped in front of me and I had to stop on the rocky/gravel climb/incline, my Gypsy did not move in 2wd from there itself. Had to come back and gain momentum in 2wd and then it was easy climbing with momentum. (If you have momentum going, the lockers help a lot to get you further.)
- In the above situation when not moving with 2wd, with 4wd the gypsy just took off from there itself. No need to come back and gain momentum.
- Literally ZERO tyre slipping in 4wd. It just goes on and on -- over everything effortlessly. Just loved this part. I know how my rear tyres used to slip earlier even while taking on the terrain successfully.
- In 2wd mode on climbs over rocky/gravel surface it was the front wheels that did not have any power that led to both rear tyres spinning before the vehicle could not move any further in 2wd. However, the moment you put 4wd, it just takes off.
- One noticeable difference I feel in OTR now is that I can now make my Gypsy crawl a lot better than before (in relative terms to the MM's). This by itself is such a huge advantage that Gypsy OTR drivers can imagine. This helps as we don't have to rev the Gypsy to bring it into it's power band.
Few comments from the fellow jeepers who drove it for a little while:
'it feels like a diesel -- low end torque is too good'
'the diff-locks works brilliantly and make a big difference'
PS: To the 3 4x4's and the folks who were in this OTR. This was great guys. Had a blast. Let's do it again sometime soon with an overnight camping thrown in
Cheers,
Last edited by khan_sultan : 25th August 2008 at 12:25.
|