How I managed to drive my BMW 630d on bad & narrow roads during a trip

The resort owner told me that an E-Class had made it through the bad road. Then I thought, alright if an E-Class can make it, so can I in my 6 GT.

BHPian Rachet recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello BHPians,

Road trips have become an essential part of my life after buying the 6 GT. Been doing it frequently now, there was one trip which really tested the capability of the 6 GT to handle bad and narrow patches of roads.

A 3 days trip, I had booked a resort in Gudalur. I started from Palakkad in Kerala.

I had two route options with me:

Palakkad -> Nilambur -> Gudalur: Approx 150 kms and time of arrival as 4 hours.

Palakkad -> Coimbatore -> Ooty-> Gudalur: Approx 190 kms and time of arrival as 5+ hours.

I decided to go with the first route itself and decided climb down on the third day back home via the suggested second route so that I won't miss any route and I would have covered all the places which I wanted to.

Since I started early in the morning, there was no traffic at all. And driving in the unpredictable Kerala roads was fun. There were many stretches of roads which were reworked and made better. Yes, the roads are a bit narrow like most of the roads in Kerala but when you are used to driving in them then it does not matter.

I was so happy to see new and wonderful road when I started to climb up the hill. The car was just gliding through them. What I experience when I drive the 630d through roads like that is beyond any words can express:

Just when I crossed the Kerala border and entered the Tamilnadu. All my happiness was ruined and the trip started becoming a nightmare. The Kerala Govt. had completed their rework on the road after the rain but the Tamilnadu Govt. had just started with their work because of which there were either big pits or pits filled with loose rocks. I had no option but to drive above them hoping for the best.Checked with a tea shop wala on the road condition and he said that I am lucky that now at least I'm able to drive though them and that was not the condition some days back. After hearing that I thought alright so luck has favoured me indeed and went ahead on that slightly positive note.After covering few more miles, the roads started getting okay and I reached the entrance of the Mudumalai Tiger reserve. The map said I had to take left to reach the destination in 400 meters.

Meanwhile when I had almost an hour of journey left to reach the destination , I got a call from the resort owner to confirm whether I will be coming or not. He did ask me in which vehicle am I coming? I did not quite understand the reason why he was asking that question to me. I asked him, does that really matter? And that's when he said that the last 400m to the resort from the main road is a bad stretch. He just told me its bad did not say how bad. I asked him whether it is not drivable at all? He said no, even yesterday and E class was there. Then I thought, alright if an E class can make it then I too can.

And when I reached that place where I had to take the left, I got scared from the looks of the narrow road. I checked with the locals there to confirm if they know about the resort which I was searching for and they had no clue. I rang up the resort owner and he confirmed it is indeed the left which I need to take. The road was so narrow that there was exactly the right amount of space for my car to go. If someone comes opposite then it will be a mess. After 50-100 meters even what looked like a road vanished and there was nothing at all but a narrow path way.

I moved the car ahead with all the courage I had and finally reached the resort at the end of the road.

I have made a video of my drive through that narrow and bad patch of road so that you all can see what I am talking about. I have tried to make the video a bit light and funny masking the tension which I was going through inside. What the video highlights is the exact feelings that went through me.

My plan was to take the car in the early morning and evening time for sight seeing but because of this road condition knew that it is not going to be possible. I spoke to the resort owner and he agreed to provide me with a parking space in another property which belonged to his family. He had arranged for pick up and drop till there as well whenever I needed. The road to that place was also not that great, so I knew it will not be possible to access the car frequently. Hence I happened to stay in the resort most of the time, resting, having good food and enjoying the calmness of nature.

The next day I took the car early in the morning, covered places like Mudumalai, Masinagudi, Bandipur and reached back at the resort post noon after clocking around 150 kms:

So sightseeing did not go the way I planned because of the road conditions.But I have to admit that I had a very nice stay along with great food in the resort. Watching the flock of deer grazing in front of the resort in the morning and evening was a spectacular sight:

And a rainbow in the sky made the picture complete:

And on the third day, I checked out of the resort as planned after two days of wonderful stay at the resort. And its on that day, the car met with it's first accident followed by some interesting series of events which I had captured in this post.

My take aways: When going on a road trip and that too in a car like the 6 GT, do not assume the roads are going to be fine from the source till the destination. If possible try to gather all the information on the road and plan properly.

I should have reached out to the resort owner and confirmed everything, may be asked for pics of the road and then decided for myself to avoid any surprises.Because we all know that a car like a 6 GT is made to be a highway cruiser.

Everything on the car, right from the run flat tyres, the absence of the all wheel drive system makes it really vulnerable on bad road conditions like this.

Above all, the sheer dimensions of the car makes it really difficult to maneuver the car in tight spaces. Yes, the 360 degree camera and sensors all around can help you a bit, but when there is no space at all, then there is hardly anything even the tech inside the car can also do.So it's better to think and then act.

I have learnt my lesson and will make sure I tick all the items in the checklist before my next trip.

So an amazing trip altogether. Enjoyed every bit of it whether it was good or bad situation. I mean, where is the fun if not for the unpredictable events? For me, that is what makes a trip memorable.

On a special note - The resort is really awesome. If you are planning to go in a small car, then I would totally recommend the place.

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