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-   -   Toyota Fortuner for our Desi OTRs- how good or bad? (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-vehicles/63212-toyota-fortuner-our-desi-otrs-how-good-bad.html)

Have been waiting for the Fortuner from last 3 years and now when its near to its launch I find myself literate to the true world of offroad.

My questions are
1) Is there a point one should go and buy a Fortuner for the OTRs we do?
2) If no then what type of offroading we can do in such SUVs?

Obviously due to the cost and expense the OTR offroading seems to be unreasonable, then why should one buy it?

For the same reason most of the SUVs are bought all over the world, driving to the mall :)

its good for OTRs in middle east, where its mostly sand and as hondadude correctly said, going to the mall!

for OTRs in india, one should have extra $$ to keep with the demands of the OTRs for using a fortuner!

have money will buy fortuner and go for OTR!

This SUV will mostly will do City OTR rather than real OTR :) I believe rough and tough SUV/Jeeps are only the best option for OTR. Once I saw few FORD endy and Scorpio doing OTR, End up with lots of scratch and damage ;)

Mechanically the Fortuner is capable of some serious off-roading. I think the biggest flaw will be it's longer wheel base. This LWB issue is there with most 4 Door 4x4s with stock suspension.

The question is, how many people will buy a 20+ lakhs SUV and follow a CJ3B in a trail. The damages maybe mostly cosmetic, but I don't think many owners will want to do even that.

Earlier I was thinking that I will sell my Altis and CL340 and buy a Fortuner. But why? There is no point doing that. I can't take Fortuner to the places I take my CL340 and if I am not taking it to those places then the rest of the places I can even go in Altis.

But that is a personal point.

I feel someone buying a Fortuner for Offroad use can take it in the sand, take it to river crossings or soft road trails. The main point is to avoid damages. In other words it would be for Explorers and not for Adventurers like us.

Yes fortuner can be taken for OTR provided the terrain is paved with tar

If you have 20Lakhs to burn and the heart to thrash it on OTRs, sure, why not !! If something happens, there are Jeeps waiting to help :)

Yogesh,..there is a distinctive difference between an Off-roader and a Sports Utility Vechicle !! The sports ute is to caary your surf boards to the beach,..your mountain bycycle to the top of the trail and haul your caravan or boat !!! If you wanna off-road go get jeep (like you have) there is no less way !!

Its a ground reality that most of the SUV in India are bought for presence on the road. Nothing else. Most SUV end up trying to bully around others on the road, which in infact a negative use of SUV.

The only utility of Fortuner will be to ferry around more than 5 passengers. Just like other SUV, this SUV will be the one to end up on city roads, and as others have mentioned, driving to malls.
The key factors for 4 X 4 cars like fortuner not being taken off road are :
1) Fear of high maintenance.
2) Lack of knowledge about the car itself.

Forget about owner discussing LWB, most drivers rarely are aware of what type of suspensions are there in the cars they drive.

If Fortuner was to be my primary car, I would think before taking it offroad on treacherous terrains. While I don't think twice taking my Jeep on such outings.

There's a cheaper alternative now in the form of Scorpio 4x4, comes at almost half the price & maybe would give half the reasons to think!

Thats an eye-opener. I found a good use. Someone can tow his jeep to the long distance offroad destination with Fortuner. :D Is it coming with the big ball tow hook?

But seriously where do the other 4x4 SUV guys in India go to use the 4wd (Safaries, GV, Pajeros, Endy etc..)?

As rightly said above most of them don't even leave the tar road. But if one really want to have fun without much damage then these could be the options: Soft roads, snow, jungle trails, desert, dry river bed but certainly not our desi OTRs.

There are many on this forum who do not have a 4x4 suv and worse still have never driven one offroad and yet feel free to comment on its capabilitities. While this is an open forum and we are all free to share our views, maybe we ought to restrain ourselves from just shooting from the mouth.

Its always a good idea to have a seperate vehicle for offroad, but then what do you do when you go on a holiday and see an offroad trail and want to hit that trail but are prevented from doing so because you are in a car. A 4x4 suv bridges that gap.

The question is not whether the Fortuner can perform offroad: The question is, do you have the heart to take it there.
Honestly, as said above, most people buy an suv for pose value and drive it to malls. That does not make an suv a non performer off road. A 4x4 suv(Fortuner) can perform satisfactorily like an offroader and can tackle most, if not all obstacles. Yes wheelbase is a concern, but then, you look at your suv's limitations and decide to tackle it accordingly. Not all offroaders and all suv's can clear all obstacles. Why should that stop you from having fun. Note: I am not talking about extreme offroading, because that is a sport in itself and requires a dedicated offroader with a skilled driver.

A Toyota is very reliable and the Fortuner is a proven horse.
Point again is: Do you have the heart to ride that horse and push it...off-the-road?

Regarding the damages on your wallet due to offroading:
In a Fortuner driven judiciously and sensibly offroad, your damages should be nil. Paint scratches etc depend upon the terrain and that is unavoidable even in an offroader.

Lastly, imy opinion is that if you can afford to buy and own a Fortuner then go ahead without batting an eyelid. You will be more than surprised with its capailities and performance, on and off the road.


Take a look at the Mumbai offroading season 09 in the offroad 4x4 excursions thread. That is one helluva trail to Rajmachi in the monsoon. I did it in my Safari followed by an old Prado and a new Landcruiser.

Like I said, youve got to have the heart to take it there first...

Cheers,
J

YouTube - Toyota Fortuner impressions I really enjoyed reading jaysmokeleave's post on this. Check out the review on youtube. if you dont mind the scratches and other cosmetic damage, lots of possibilities with this SUV. But, pls dont start comparing with a SWB and run it down. For the guys who can afford this SUV, taking it to SWB terrain may not be a priority, and incase it is, they sure can afford one SWB exclusively for offroading. Compare it with others in its class, and I am sure this SUV will be better than others currently in the market. Its a toyota after all, proven reliability. all other comparisons will be more like, "whats the point buying a SBK in India, since I cannot carry LPG cylinder from the gas dealer."

SWB, MWB, LWB !?

Off-roading is off-roading,.. a vehicle which can handle all types of terrain with ease is the one which will get the crown of the ultimate off-roader.

You cannot seggregate terrain and say my SUV can handle this terrain (sand) with ease,..but sucks when it comes to extereme 4x4 terrain or vice versa.

To be called an off-roader the vehicle must be able to do all of the following,..and be able to handle punishment it is put thru.

• Hill climbs (horse power and appropriate tyres)
• Water fording (Engine integrity and sound engineering)
• Rocky terrain (Ground clearance and suitable gearing)
• Slush (torque, and traction)
• extereme obstacles (axle artculation, and suitable track width)

In summary what I am trying to get at is that a Sports Ute cannot be considered an off-roader just because it is reliable, built like a tank and can take some beating.

In the form they are sold, at best they are good for someone taking their family to their jungle lodge in relative safety and comfort nothing more.