It's about a week since the beast commenced operations and the odo reads 2700kms as of now.

On the auspicious Saturday morning, we reached the temple with all our luggage loaded in the car, the first destination after the pooja was 850kms later in Pune.
Since this was pretty much a running in drive, I made sure that I was following the general guidelines of not pushing the engine too much and varying speeds regularly. The engine RPMs were maintained around the 2000 mark while the beast cruised easily at 100-110kph. The drive was pretty uneventful and we were in Pune in about 12 hours - slower than what I'd usually take, but this trip wasn't about the timing.
The trip which was originally assumed to be a easy, turned out to be quite hectic with a few Mumbai-Pune trips. But all of it helped to understand the beast better and connect with it.
First Service Experience:
The beast completed the first 1000kms on my way to Mumbai on the expressway, but it was about 1250kms on the ODO when I got myself booked for the first service. The service was booked at DSK Toyota on the Pune-Bangalore highway near Bavdhan, I guess DSK has a big monopoly in and around Pune. I had forgotten the service booklet at home, but the dealership was accommodating and didn't make a big fuss for it. I did offer to courier the service coupon to them once I was back home and they were okay with it.
I dropped the car at about 10.15AM and was surprised to see the crowd at the service center. It was nothing less than a bus stop, I've never seen anything like this before. The customer lounge was full with about 40+ people waiting - mostly with Innovas and Liva/Etios cabs. My car was assigned to a SA and he listened patiently to my side of the story before committing to a 1PM deadline for the delivery.
Given that I had 2 hours at hand and no place to sit I exercised my "phone a friend" option who turned up in 15 mins and we made best use of the free time over hot tea and vada pav. I also got a peek at the new hybrid Camry, but skipped the test drive since I was going out with my friend instead. The service was done pretty much on time and the vehicle was handed over after a wash and check, I don't think there was anything else that gets done in the 1st service.
Overall, a pretty decent experience and except for the bus stop type of crowd, everything else was very satisfactory.
Impressions from the drive so far: - Driving seat - is good but it did give me some lower back pain. It's good as long as I am able to sit straight but that's not always practical with a 12 hour drive.
- The engine - pulls like a train. Downshifting is significantly lesser than the Safari and even the 5th gear can be used for overtaking even at 80-100kph speeds
- The suspension - is still a bit unsettled but its not as bad on regular roads. Broken roads have to be done slower than the Safari, will need a bit of getting used to.
- The tires - are quiet even at 140kph. The dunlops have proved their worth on roads for sure, what remains to be tested is how well they'd do off the road.
- The lights - are just about okay. The HID projectors have a tight spread whereas the high beams have a decent range. But on unmarked roads and in rains, they're rendered pretty much useless. The Safari lights were no better even with the bulb upgrades so I'm not complaining here.
- The boot space - is big but would have been better if it were flat. The folding last row of seats take a lot of space and the Safari was a bit easier to load in comparison.
- The windshield - is tough and took a flyinog stone impact very nicely. The angle is good as it pushes all the water droplets upwards and I could drive in rain even without wipers.
- The a/c - is a chiller and cools in no time. For the size of the car, its very effective and a definite upgrade from the Safari.
- The brakes - are good, but the Storme has better brakes at half price. Wonder when Toyota will realize that they need to keep up with the times and offer discs on all fours.
- High-speed stability - is very good for the size of the car. This aint no race car and you need to be cognizant of the fact that it's a 2 tonne tall SUV, but it handles quite nicely when compared to the Safari at 120-140kph speeds. The stiffer suspension helps here I guess.
- True 7 seater in the city. I could ferry a lot of people easily and they never complained of any discomfort.
The First Hit
It was almost a standstill evening traffic jam at the intersection between the Hinjewadi-Wakad road and the Wakad-Pune road. A MM540 squeezed itself on the kaccha road adjacent to the tar road, nobody else wanted to take that risk, not even the bikers. Looking at that guy go, I followed and what followed was a series of big ditches filled with water. The car kept moving ahead in 1st gear while all the others stuck in the traffic watched the car go up and down in the mud. Then at one of the ditches, I heard a significantly loud noise on the left side and I immediately knew that the car had taken a hit. After crossing the bad traffic patch, I stopped the car to inspect what had happened.
Apparently the ditch was not very friendly and the left side running board had taken a blow. Nothing too serious, but it does appear a bit bent upwards and the rubber coating has come off a little bit. Now, this wasn't a new thing for me since I've done similar roads (or lack thereof) with the Safari quite a few times, but have never gotten hit ever. It could be that it was just my bad day but it could also be that I have to be more careful with the Fortuner than what I would have been with the Safari. Given the 220mm GC which is slightly better than the Safari, I don't think my assessment of the situation would have been any different if I were driving the Safari.
I forgot to get pictures when I was down today morning, but will put them up as and when possible so you know what I'm talking about. I was thinking of getting it hammered in shape when I give the car for the second service. Any pointers on how much would it cost if I were to get it done at the ASC would be highly appreciated.
Thats about it for now, the beast is now officially handed over to my wife for her daily office runs until its time to head out of Bangalore again.
