Furteela reached Leh and did all the circuits around very comfortably.
About 4,000 kms into the trip and at remote location near Pangong Lake, the driver side front suspension broke without any warning.
Broken shock absorber
We somehow managed to bring it back to Leh only to realise that the sole Toyota dealership there hadn't opened shop for the past two days.
We asked around and found out that there were only a handful Fortuners in the city and that the suspension part was unlikely to be available with the dealer. All Innova taxi drivers suggested that we head to Srinagar to get the truck fixed. I called up Ansari Toyota, Srinagar and they confirmed that they had the part in stock. So I headed to Srinagar next day and reached late at night crossing the mighty Zoji La at 9PM with a broken suspension!
Zoji La Pass at 9PM with a broken suspension! What an adventure!
I was the first person at the dealership next morning and my truck was promptly attended to. I was disappointed to learn from the warranty manager that the part would not be covered under warranty. I agreed to pay for the repairs from my pocket and decided to take up the matter with Toyota once I was back in Mumbai.
Ansari Toyota, Srinagar
The truck was repaired in about 6 hours with two men working on it. I was at the service bay the entire duration of the repair. I asked them to also change the front brake pads as it had worn out almost completely.
It was more complicated than I thought Worn our brake pads Highlights of the Service:
Date: 3 July 2017, 9:30AM
Service Center Visit No: 16
Type of service: Repair
ODO: 57,976 km
Dealership: Ansari Toyota, Srinagar
Delivery Date: 3 July 2017, 4 PM
Total Amount Paid: Rs. 21,172/- including brake pads worth Rs. 5,423/- and a very expensive car wash of Rs. 717/-
Parts Replaced: Front right shock absorber and support, Front brake pads
My Rating: 10/10
Car washed Polished An expensive repair bill Next Destinations!
Sach Pass was not the part of original plan. To be honest, there was no plan and no fixed destination. Sach Pass as the next destination was decided an evening before. We took Srinagar - Sinthan Top - Kishtwar - Killar - Sach Pass - Chamba - Amritsar - Chandigarh - Gurugram route. This brought the ODO to 59,330 km.
60,000 km Service:
With Gurugram - Mumbai run coming up and since I had couple of days time, decided to get the 60,000 km service done at MGF Toyota, Gurugram.
Highlights of the Service:
Date: 11 July 2017, 11:00AM
Service Center Visit No: 17
Type of service: Regular, Oil Change
ODO: 59,330 km
Dealership: MGF Toyota, Gurugram
Delivery Date: 11 July 2017, 3 PM
Total Amount Paid: Rs. 10,458/-
Parts Replaced: Oil, Oil Filter, Air Filter, AC Filter, Tyre Rotation, Alignment, Balancing, Detailed Report provided
My Rating: 9/10
In queue for Service Washed Wheel Aligned and Balanced Propeller Shaft Greased Interesting read while I was waiting at customer lounge Ready for delivery Alignment Report Vehicle Health & Safety Report Final Bill Go anywhere, anytime!
Thanks for reading guy. Cheers!