[holysmoke]

Hi fellow BHPians,
I'm planning to drive down to Ankaleshwar this weekend, and I'm planning on going by car

This will be my first long drive after moving to Mumbai last year. The longest I've driven till now has been the 35 km stretch to go from my house in south mumbai to DY patil stadium. Now I'm thinking of driving 400 kms

Google maps says get onto the western express highway and stay there..

I'm sure my dear BHPians will have so many comments, suggestions, etc for a newbie like me. I would love to know what condition the roads are, because I've heard they're great and thats why I'm planning to drive down.
What stretches are bad? I will try to leave as early as possible, but I dont think I will be able to leave before 9 (I'm not the only one going). What time do you think I will reach there?

Any comments, suggestions, tips, etc are more than welcome.

[LongDrive lover]

Originally Posted by holysmoke

Hi fellow BHPians,
I'm planning to drive down to Ankaleshwar this weekend, and I'm planning on going by carGoogle maps says get onto the western express highway and stay there..
What stretches are bad? Any comments, suggestions, tips, etc are more than welcome.

Hi holysmoke,

Though I have very little knowledge of that stretch, and once you receive a master response to your query from the HighVayKiing (hvkumar), you would not need a second advise on that route. Till then, here is my 2 cents (even these 2 cents belong to Him!):

If your house is in south Mumbai, I think instead of taking western express highway, it would be better to take the eastern express highway and go by Thane -take a left from (he'll tell exact location) Thane to- Ghodbunder- and you are out of Mumbai on to NH 8 to Ankleswar. This is what he advised to me during our trip to Mumbai during last Dec.-Jan and we found it extremely useful, then jostling for space on western express highway.

There aren't any bad sections on that route. Only high truck traffic density between Ghodbunder to Surat, and long ques on Virar toll gate. And, not to forget, slow traffic/ jam like situation on bridge over Narmada at Ankeleswar itself, where four wheelers routinely take to the wrong side (when going from Mumbai side) of the bridge, that saves time.

Anyway, my advise, as an outsider who have been to that route only once, remains stayed till seconded by others.

[holysmoke]

Thank you very much mate. I will look at going from Eastern express.

Another thing I wanted to ask is which petrol pumps are reliable ? Will you get 93 octane petrol on the way? Is it safer to put in Speed, etc or is it safer to put regular petrol (from the adulteration point of view).

Is there any petrol pump on the route that is known to be genuine, where I can be assured of getting good quality petrol?

[MX6]

If you take the EEH, then once you enter thane, be very careful of the flyover that goes over Majiwada. Don't get on to that. You'd end up in Nasik road and it takes even 2 hours to get back with all the rotten truck traffic, if your luck is bad.
Keep on the flyover on cadbury junction. Look out on your left for Korum mall. Once you spot korum mall, you know that's the last flyover on that road you need to take. Keep left and go below the majiwada flyover and turn left to ghodbunder road.
Once at ghodbunder, the directions are easy to follow.