[gurha]

Originally Posted by ajmat

I meant the name of the company supplying the part. The Renault factory looked unburnt when I visited a month ago!

Hmmm.. well I thought it was Renault only, No? Is there a warehouse separately? Because in the news it says warehouse was burnt. Because of which all the spare parts are currently shipped from France, atleast that's the information I have from the SA.

Originally Posted by gurha

Hmmm.. well I thought it was Renault only, No? Is there a warehouse separately? Because in the news it says warehouse was burnt. Because of which all the spare parts are currently shipped from France, atleast that's the information I have from the SA.

Well I found some more news over the internet:
The warehouse, operated by third-party supplier Yusen Logistics Co, stored spare parts and accessories used in the factory.

http://www.businessworld.in/news/bus...35/page-1.html

One more
http://www.cartrade.com/car-bike-new...nt-120588.html

@Mods, sorry missed the edit window by few mins, hence a new reply.

[somitra1981]

Originally Posted by gaurav_diavolo

He was so scared even when he told the story on our way back (me and other friend went to bring them back) that his wife was asked to step out of the car and random people hooted at her and many hands made numerous attempt to grope her. He was then asked questions like 'iss gao mein kya kar raha hai? Akela ladka ladki mauka dekh rahe the kya? Kahan se laya isse? Kahan rehta hai? Shadi ki hai to maang kyu nahin bhari, jhoot bolta hai?'. To his good luck few senior villagers appeared from nowhere and asked others to let go. He gave away 4500 in cash (all he had in wallet) and his gold ring (worth 25k atleast) to the villager who's wall (of mud!!!) was broken. He wasnt even given water until he really requested for it and his wife was made to sit in senior member's house on floor (while his wife sat on cot). She was very decently dressed in top and trousers but still repeated comments were made by women 'aurat aise nahin nikalti ghar se'. It was an area not covered by any tow service and one of them asked for 5k. Me and another friend we left with water bottles, towels, spare wheel (only damage was that both wheels got punctured landing on barbed wires for goats), another SUV and my Civic. Villagers treated us like aliens but we got the job done. While leaving the place my friend and his wife still thanked the couple of good people but just when we left people from crowd started hooting names to my friend's wife. I have learnt that I will never diverge from highway into villages ever in my life. In my native village too in rajasthan I am never casual while driving. Its a fact that villagers look at city people like aliens and with very few rational approach prevails. Whenever I meet them I only feel sad about his wife for going through this cheapness and unexpected behaviour for no fault of hers. Being a man myself my eyes are full of apology for her that someone of my kind caused her mental torturer she will remember for life. I now also keep in mind that I do not start long distance journey with women with me very late at night.

Dude, you scared the shit out of me. It's any persons worst nightmare which came true in your friends case.

Me and my wife are both fond of road trips, outcomes like the one you mentioned always play on my mind during these trips. I always wonder what to do if any such thing happens.

I am also from north india and in our part of the country people need no reason but only a chance to misbehave with women.

Notable thing is that misbehaving(verbally and physically) with women is becoming common across the country.

Another important inference that i can draw from this point is local language knowledge doesnt really help. In your case i think your friend was from northern india only and knew the local language, still he had to suffer.

IMO the things that can bail you out in such worst case scenarios :
1. Hard cash - If it pacifies the affected party, thats what every one is looking for at end of day.

2. Local Connections - if your phone is working.

3. Just escape from the scene and report to a near by police station - if your vehicle is still mobile. You cannot trust the police as well, but atleast this will save you from the harassment/abuse at hands of crowd and bystanders.As obviously we are no Singham's who can handle n number of people at once.

[somitra1981]

Originally Posted by gurha

Hello everyone,

And then all of a sudden, where I couldn't see a single person, I was surrounded by around 10-15 people yelling at me in Kannada(the language which I understand very little) and telling me to go slow. I apologized to them and said yes, I will drive slowly now and wanted to get out of there asap. I tried to move the car but the car didn't moved at all. I got down the car and checked the tyre and found it to be fine with air in the tyre and then got back and tried to move the car again. Even then the car didn't moved an inch, I thought may be the stone is on the way so I asked people to push the car, they tried but that didn't worked at all.

Dude, i understand that you suffered so you are hurt. But IMO you should thank your stars, had you hit a person/property, things would have gone real bad and at an odd hour in a remote place god only could have helped you. And indeed the help you got was god sent.

[gaurav_3000ad]

Thanks for sharing your experiences gurha and gaurav. Some valuable lessons to be gleamed off both of your harrowing incidents.

There was an accident which happened to my parents a year back. They had gone on a pilgrimage trip in and around temples of karnataka in their vista quadrajet. Now both mom and dad come from an older generation and still forget to belt up sometimes. But before this trip i had been quite incessant about them wearing it.

They had just reached udupi after a long day's drive when mom suggested that they visit dharmasthala as well which is just 100 kms away. Dad acquiesced and they pushed off after lunch to dharmasthala. About 50 kms into the journey dad, already tired form the day's exertions, dozed off at the wheel. The car went off the road and hit a tree at about 60 clicks.

They were both belted up and escaped with their lives and a couple of broken bones. The locals were exceedingly helpful and got them both to the nearest PHC from where they got an ambulance to bangalore. The car was totalled.

Lessons learnt
1) Always belt up. Always
2) If you are tired, give it a rest. Your destination isn't going anywhere.

Lessons for auto manufacturers
1) Now belting up may be second nature to most of us but still i would like to have this feature compulsary where the car beeps continuously if you are not belted up. its present on quite a few cars but should be mandatory across the spectrum

[r_devakumar]

Originally Posted by gurha

Well I found some more news over the internet:
The warehouse, operated by third-party supplier Yusen Logistics Co, stored spare parts and accessories used in the factory.

http://www.businessworld.in/news/bus...35/page-1.html

One more
http://www.cartrade.com/car-bike-new...nt-120588.html

@Mods, sorry missed the edit window by few mins, hence a new reply.

It is true that a fire accident happened in Nissan Factory /Warehouse two or three months back. My niece was doing his summer internship that time in Nissan oragadam factory.

Waiting for parts for months is really scary situation. When Duster sale expected to be going south, chances for Reanault survival in Indian market going to be difficult.

[abishek2222]

Originally Posted by gurha

I missed the turn which my trusted MMI failed to guide me properly

I think it's maybe something to do with the shortest route option. Plenty of times i have gone wrong with my MMI now I just use for a general sense of direction. Hundred and one times it keeps take the turn before the larger actual turn comes up into some small narrow road including once where it guided me straight into a lake no jokes.

[gurha]

Originally Posted by gaurav_3000ad

Lessons learnt
1) Always belt up. Always
2) If you are tired, give it a rest. Your destination isn't going anywhere.

Gaurav, I totally agree with you, that's the only reason when I drive on a highway I ask the people sitting in the back seat to also wear their seat belts.
And yes, if you are tired there is no point stretching yourself rather taking a short stop.

Originally Posted by abishek2222

I think it's maybe something to do with the shortest route option.

Well it does take some shortcuts but in this case It wasn't actually a shortcut, later when I realized that when I was joining the bangalore-mangalore highway coming from Mysore, MMI instructed me to continue straight, thinking that since I am joining the highway, I should continue on the same highway, but the point which that missed was from the road from where I was coming was also going straight to Arsikere, and that's where I continued straight instead of taking the left.

[himadrimondal]

Gurha, with god's grace you could locate your family members safely in the middle of the night. Harsha must have been a true gentleman.

Gaurav, I feel sad for your friend and hope they come over the trauma caused as quickly as possible. Ask them to go for another trip to not let the fear set in.

Driving on NH and driving on remote village roads are totally different.
One should be extra careful on village roads.
You can get into big trouble if you bang on to poultry, goats, cows or children.
The only way to get out of this is with hard cash.

If one is extensively travelling on village roads, its better to stop at a tea shop, have some tea, wear a good smile, drop all your inhibitions.
Asking for water just to wash your hands or face can do miracles in building up relationships, have learnt this while doing some photography back in 2002 in the now dreaded Bastar district.
While leaving, ask for the route directions even if you know, conditions of the road and bid them bye in a humble manner.

Recalling an incident when three of us,friends, were travelling from Varanasi to Bandavgarh NP.
Having left Varanasi at 4am in the morning, at day break we stopped at a tea stall in the remote village road(so called NH7 in 2005).
Sitting there we had a good conversation with two senior villagers who had also arrived for tea too. While leaving I suggested we pay for their tea too since we enjoyed conversing with them. We did the needful and left.
After travelling for a couple of kms, one of my friends asked to stop as he had to answer natures call no2. With open fields and no one visible, he headed down on to the fields with a bottle of water some 200 meters from us behind a bush.

We were resting in the car, blankly gaping in silence which was suddenly broken by some shouting. Looking in that direction, I saw some 4 people converging on the bush behind which was my friend.

Belonging to the softer side of mankind, he must have immediately packed up, saw him coming hurriedly towards us followed by those 4 people.
Before we could realize what has happend, my friend was inside the car, with a small crowd gathering around it.
The fault: How can he answer nature's call in a Muslim graveyard?
My friend from inside the car: How do I know what it is? There is no sign board. Further he claims he did nothing and shows the unused and filled to the cap, water bottle.
There was no listening, I with what ever smile I had couldn't pacify the villagers. They were asking for a village trial with compensation.

Things have gone serious now. I was clueless, my mind wanted to get over with this incident, my heart wanted to burst with laughter.
Solution: They asked us to head back a couple of kilometres where they would arrange the trial.
With a couple of villagers inside my car and a few bikes following us, we were asked to stop at the same tea stall we had tea previously.

Getting down from the car, the villagers started narrating the entire story to one of the elderly villagers we had tea with.
The elderly villager came to us and asked us what had happened, our side of the story was narrated.
Was it the narration or the rapport we had earlier, the villager asked us to leave and be careful the next time. Phew!

Lesson learnt: Not only one has to drive safe, we need to behave safely too. Village politics is entirely different.

[cooldude1988765]

Originally Posted by gurha

About Duster: Yes, the car is good, there is no doubt about that, but in case you are stuck with some spare parts for your car, its currently a nightmare.

Completely agree with this my duster was in the service station for over a month waiting for a rear axle. The employees of the ASC are also completely unsympathetic. They told me the same story of fire in the factory. I told them that is not my problem, asked them to stop selling new cars and fix my axle. 3 weeks into the ordeal, I had asked them to pay me Rs 65,000 a month towards my travelling and EMI expenses and keep the car for as long as needed. After this threat all the parts magically became available and my car was fixed in a week.

[saket77]

Quite a few scary stories on this thread guys. Though, it is quite evident that India, presently is not a country where one can easily travel with woman, be it trains, buses or even your own car. In fact, I do a very detailed assessment of my routes before I embark on a road journey with my wife in my car.

I just follow a simple policy: When in doubt, stay out!
To clear my doubts, I ask about the route, all places that I will be crossing to my colleagues, friends and whoever has been to the place. Always look for alternate routes when one tends to be unsafe.
This way, we can minimise the chances of such incidents.

[gaurav_diavolo]

I was all the more scared that how he stood silent with people groping his wife because I would have taken rash action in heat of the moment and this could have had severe consequences. One thing I have learnt is, most of the women I have taken on drives (female friends / cousins etc. that is) are innocent, they get merry with some thrill of driving fast, going on long drives and unexplored places....I am sure this must be the case with female friends and wives of you all too. That is because they feel secure with you. But here our sensibilities must prevail too that we do not take them to extreme places, drive rash at super high speeds with them on board. I have learnt it from my friend's experience.

Although I had a mark of a political party on my Civic, that really helped in the village when we went in looking for them. Plus my other friend accompanying me has this look on his face all the time that he means serious business. He jumped off his Prado, didn't say namaste etc. to anyone and shouted 'Wo sheher wale log kahan hai'... Then I faked a phone call (without actually making it) 'hum gao aa gaye hain tum log pohocho'.....half of them peed in their pants. That was the ultimate revenge I could take for my friend. We had decided that we will act tough no matter what. A person walked close and said 'aap bhi Jaipur se ho'.....I said 'apna kaam kar bhai, tu tyre badlega kya'...

[himadrimondal]

Originally Posted by gaurav_diavolo

Plus my other friend accompanying me has this look on his face all the time that he means serious business.

Great work done.
When we are travelling with family(wife) this is one of the most important points.
At every stop, one should scan the vehicles stopping around you, what kind of people are on board.
Rather than a casual stare, make a strong stare, scan.

Switch off the headlights at night while stopping behind a car as it reflects light from the
car in front to the inside of your car making people inside clearly visible, specially the front seaters.
Keep distance from the car in front which makes passengers difficult to see.

At last, never over speed. Slow is steady, steady is smooth, smooth is fast.

[trave11er]

Originally Posted by himadrimondal

Rather than a casual stare, make a strong stare, scan.

I agree with most of the parts from this post, except the stare. I would avoid eye contact with other drivers without a reason. Unnecessarily staring at someone my give wrong signals and might lead to road rage as well. Why invite trouble unnecessarily.

[lejhoom]

Originally Posted by MaxTorque

By the way Royal Sundaram is also offering road side assistance program as an additional facility with their motor vehicle insurance. They have tie up with My TVS. I think they have better coverage in towns.

I have first-hand experience with My TVS on Bangalore-Hyderabad highway, that too at 7 pm. Leave alone a towing truck, the mechanic from a nearby place appeared at 9.30 am next day! There is nothing to write home about their service.

To put it in a nutshell, unless you are close to a large city where these providers have some tie-up with local towing serice/mechanics, you are left to your own devices.

[harit]

Originally Posted by gurha

Hello everyone,............. ........
As I always travel with my seat belts on and I make sure everybody sitting in my car is wearing a seat belt, none of us were hurt. ............After another 30 min when I tried calling their toll free number, which is by the way the only number, was not reachable. I tried continuously for 1 hour and it kept saying 'The route is busy, please call after some time'. I don't know if that is possible or not, but it looked like to me that they have intentionally disconnected the line somehow. Otherwise it can't be possible that for more than 1 hour the route is busy.....................

All of us who have vehicles will have stories, some good, some bad about service centers. If it was very bad then there are threads with 100's of pages. It depends on how much you are involved. Some lucky dudes just call a driver/servant to take car and shift the car and go on with their journey.
The most important part in your post, IMHO, is a message about seat belts. Why people cannot get this into their thick skulls beats me. Just yesterday the cabby in Mumbai told me that there is no need to belt up, I was sitting in the front!

The part about busy routes for telphonic conversations is true. When you hear this recording, it means that there is every possibility that your call is not getting through. If they were to switch-off the phone, the recording will say so for a mobile, and you get an engaged tone for a land line. Normally this is so.
Never the less, you were helped by a good guy, and Renault may take some feedback from this, and perhaps also not.
All adventures come to an end, hopefully you will get your car back on the road soon.

Cheers harit