Ladakh Reloaded: 4 friends, a Figo Aspire & an Amaze

lovecars21 · 6th May 2018, 21:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by vikram31

Wow amazing travelogue and some serene photography. Definitely created new travel goals for myself. Quick question. I plan to do this in a figo aspire too but mine's a petrol. Do you think the relatively weak petrol engine will give me any trouble on this terrain?

There won't be any issues Vikram for sure if you drive safely and carry adequate fuel back up as Diesel is more readily available than Petrol in Turtuk region.

vikram31 · 7th May 2018, 11:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by lovecars21

There won't be any issues Vikram for sure if you drive safely and carry adequate fuel back up as Diesel is more readily available than Petrol in Turtuk region.

Thanks for this. finalising my plans now!

auto_enthusiast · 30th January 2020, 20:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by lovecars21

Aspire as a car from Ford family has a perfect engine for such terrain. 100ps power with good GC is perfect ingredient for Ladakh offbeat routes.
As mentioned in my TL I was first worried about the body roll.
Previously driving it even on the highway was tiresome and stressful. After fitting RogerAB it solved the problem and now feels better than Figo.

Hi Arun

Awesome travelogue!!!

Great that you managed to do the trip twice, both the times in unconventional vehicles for such a difficult terrain.

I too owned the previous gen Figo Diesel and now own a Aug 2016 Aspire Diesel done 85k kms. I'm planning for Ladakh trip in my Aspire during the coming season. Mechanically the car is perfectly fine. All 4 tyres, clutch set, mountings for engine and gearbox, front shock abs were replaced around 75k kms and there is no squeaks or rattles anywhere from the car. Need your suggestions to plan my trip.

- What was the cost of RogerAB and did it help in improving handling of the car and did it increase the GC. If yes, by how many cms approx.

- Did you get any underbody protection for the car like a sump guard or some made-to-order fabricated protection.

- What is the best time for the trip. From what I've learnt is that mid sept is the best for sedans but by that time you don't get to witness any snow. Is it advisable to do it in June end to mid of July considering that it will be rainy season and also there will be lots of snow melting, resulting in lots of water crossings. Will that be problematic or shall we plan the way you did, from end May to mid June. (Lots of questions)

- To be on a safer side, we can carry jerry cans but did you feel the need to use them. Apart from it, what other preperation did you do with respect to the vehicle. (Unable to download your attachment at the start of the travelogue)

Any other valuable inputs will be of great help.

lovecars21 · 14th February 2020, 21:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by auto_enthusiast

- What was the cost of RogerAB and did it help in improving handling of the car and did it increase the GC. If yes, by how many cms approx.

- Did you get any underbody protection for the car like a sump guard or some made-to-order fabricated protection.

- What is the best time for the trip. From what I've learnt is that mid sept is the best for sedans but by that time you don't get to witness any snow. Is it advisable to do it in June end to mid of July considering that it will be rainy season and also there will be lots of snow melting, resulting in lots of water crossings. Will that be problematic or shall we plan the way you did, from end May to mid June.

- To be on a safer side, we can carry jerry cans but did you feel the need to use them. Apart from it, what other preperation did you do with respect to the vehicle. (Unable to download your attachment at the start of the travelogue)

Any other valuable inputs will be of great help.

Thank you for liking my Travelogue. The trip was really awesome and I still love to cherish those memories.

I purchased the RogerAB from their website. Sharing the link for you ready reference.
https://www.rogermotors.com/productdetail/rogerab-duo

It costs around 7.5k. Its really worth the money considering the body roll of Aspire. It definitely increased the GC by 5 to 8 mm but what it really does is makes the Suspension hard, thus saving the underbody from getting hit.

I did not fit any underbody protection, it is actually not needed if you fit RogerAB.

If you wish to enjoy snow and be on the safer side then Mid May is best and incase you wish to experience more slush than snow then best time to go after Mid July.

No need to carry seperate jerrycans for fuel. Just tank up your car as per my travelogue. You will face no issues.

Please carry extra Air Filter as Aspire seems to get out of breath if the Air Filter is slightly choked, the RPM gets locked at 2k.

auto_enthusiast · 15th February 2020, 20:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by lovecars21

If you wish to enjoy snow and be on the safer side then Mid May is best and incase you wish to experience more slush than snow then best time to go after Mid July.

Thanks Arun for the valuable tips. Will keep your suggestions in mind when I plan for the trip.

I definitely wish to enjoy more snow than slush but what I'm more worried about is the car. I want to plan the trip such that I'm able to do most of the places with the least amount of damage or difficulty with the car. I think that the roads will open a bit late this season because of the excessive snow fall this year. Keeping all this in mind, what according to you will be the best period to do the trip? BTW, when you went for the trip in mid May, were all the roads open by then? Sorry for the long list of questions.

lovecars21 · 13th March 2020, 21:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by auto_enthusiast

Thanks Arun for the valuable tips. Will keep your suggestions in mind when I plan for the trip.

I definitely wish to enjoy more snow than slush but what I'm more worried about is the car. I want to plan the trip such that I'm able to do most of the places with the least amount of damage or difficulty with the car. I think that the roads will open a bit late this season because of the excessive snow fall this year. Keeping all this in mind, what according to you will be the best period to do the trip? BTW, when you went for the trip in mid May, were all the roads open by then? Sorry for the long list of questions.

I would still suggest you keep your travel plans for 3rd Week of May.
When I travelled all the roads around Ladakh region were open.