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-   -   Safari accident : Toppled (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/road-safety/49562-safari-accident-toppled-9.html)

We slowed down for the Wagon R, it was madness to whip it on those roads, the Santro behaved much much better than expectations.

This was day time. We and our circle, DON'T do long drive at night, try to stop @ sundown, so testing on wet roads at night is not in our dictionary :)

@ condor: The gentle curving turns you can do 80 + on good roads, it's the sharp twists that makes the bigger cars take a tumble. What you need to keep you eyes skinned for is some animal / drunk / crank jumping in front, some maniac overtaking you on a turn and when you twist the wheel to avoid them; you'd tumble for sure. Daytime would give you a little more time to see more and give that m.sec which can keep us alive.

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The rural folks are so and so and that and this is a little long in the tooth. I ignored those comments. Look for the Bolero thread in the Indian Section for more on what the city slickers think about the rural folks. They do buy a lot of Safari's and Scorpio's(mostly the latter). Its only the taxi wallahs who buy the Bolero XL for carrying people. They dont buy the SLX to ferry 30 people. Also the Bolero has a wide range of products for different purposes clubbing all together and going "BOLERO" isnt right.

I moved from a OHC VTEC(Dad's) to a Bolero(Mine) and never tried driftig the Bolero on public roads. But then its just me.

Yes, A crash guard, Pair of Hellas and better bulbs are the first on my list. I had been thinking about it for while, but these will be on my car before my next trip.

On a side note, I'll be completing my Pondichery trip as soon as I get my car. I dont like keeping things unfinished. lol:

@Holyghost - first of all really good to see you and your friends have escaped the accident with only damage to the car,a miracle if we consider the road conditions-drizzling and mud and then your high speed of 100-110.
I will just say do wear seat belts all the time and IMO be a bit more careful as 110 is not an idle speed in rainy conditions that too in night no matter if you are driving a Safari or a Ferrari. Safety should always come first.

I just thank God for saving my life, and more grateful to him as he helped me to buy a car which actually saved my life. Any other cramped car would have been fatal. In Safari we had enough space to bounce around without getting hurt :D.

After putting it upright, We didn't require any towing. Just drove off.

Thanks.
Its almost a month and I have been hearing all these advise/abuses from everyone. But when I think from their side, It is quite human. Even I would have done the same if it was my relative or a friend who had met with this situation and will definitely keep reminding him everytime to drive safe.

But I have made my point already. I kept building up confidence with time. As everything keeps on going well, we tend to become overconfident and that is what happened in my case. I was overconfident with the vehicle and finally that extra bit of confidence was killed.


So now I'm more responsible, cautious and composed. This one was my first major accident (had many minor ones before, but they were never due to my mistake) and have learned my lessons.
Everyone keep giving advices, but it is experience that really counts. And I have it now and I dont want this to happen to any one else. cheers:

Thats why you have it on this forum, even after knowing the consequences that I could face :D

Exactly. It's you. And some more people who understand the limitations of these trucks.

And that's why I would not put most of the other "Bolero" drivers along with you.

Rural Folk. As in drivers of rural vehicles. Vehicles used in rural areas for mass transportation. Invite you to sit in these, like those diesel autos used for moving goods. Even the trucks used for transportation. These are the guys who will drive like no other vehicle existed on the road. Stopping for passengers every few meters. Reaching the highest gears at the lowest speeds, just to stretch that liter. He is just not concerned if there is an ambulance behind him, or if he is causing a mile long stretch of vehicles trying to pass him.

Their driving is totally different from the people driving similar vehicles (read trucks vs buses). This is the other set . The set that is driving like his life depeneded on it - like he better get away & never brake if he wants to stay alive.

Anyway, enough of OT.

And put in others !

They buy a lot of Safari's & Scorps. But they dont drive like maniacs. The reasons they buy it are varied. Varied reasons I have been seeing over time, but then again, it also includes a few people who do drive them without understanding them. And there's always the exceptions who will try the drifts ...



Ramky, of course. That's why one is called a 'curve', and the other a 'turn' !

for the second time i am reading such thoughts on the forum.
guys its just a safari not one of the safest automobile on earth.

you can also take it this way(if you were in a car prefrebally a sedan it wouldnt have toppled)lol:

its not just the safari. its every car. do not turn the steering wheel while braking hard. unless its a sportscar, and even then, be ready for some drastic oversteer.

I hope you were being sarcastic.
try overtaking in a typical hatchback with 4-5 people in it on a 2 lane road. you will want every bhp of power you can get. you might even switch off the AC for the extra 2-3 bhp that it gives you. it might make all the difference between being a hood ornament of the oncoming state transport bus or reaching home safely.

like akshay said in the post above mine. you were lucky. very lucky.

I am serious. The majority portion of Indian roads are not properly engineered. The banking, surface conditions etc are not good for fast driving. There are many countries which are quite backward compared to India have quite good roads on average. Our entire road system (and that includes toll collection system) is very poorly prepared and managed.

Just the check the symbols placed on the road to guide traffic. Bends are suppose to have black/yellow stripes reflecting the light. The distance between them indicating the sharpness of bend. But they are never there.

Exactly. Your experience has taught me a lesson and hopefuly will make me a better/safer driver. It was an eye-opener on the different dynamics of a Sedan vs SUV. Helps me in particular, cause when at my home-town, I drive a Scorpio.

Thanks for sharing.

Very shocking HolyGhost. Luckily you all had a narrow escape. Also the SUV is'nt that badly damaged though it was at the TASS for a month. Even the windscreen is intact here. But this should never happen to anybody.

I agree, But doing overnight driving is a different thing all together. I still prefer night drives than battling with day time traffic. If you can be cautious, I still think its okay. But definitely not with family.

Again this is not over-confidence, but just from an angle of convenience.

I Agree HG, Driving at Night is much better than driving at day!

Atleast, we dont have the jaywalkers as well as animals crossing the road, idiotic cyclists and morons crossing the road at 2AM.

But general advice that i've got for night driving is one should avoid the 3AM to 5AM stretch as one tends to fall asleep.

I have also done Chennai to Coimbatore, Chennai -> Bangalore -> Chennai etc in the nights much before the GQ arrived.

:eek: wasnt there any oil lose etc???

Better lights next time. And as you said, if your are comfortable at night why not.