[Dr.AD]

Solo Weekend Drive to JLR Sharavathi Adventure Camp

A couple of weekends ago, I did a solo drive in my 320d to Sharavathi Adventure Camp by Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR). I have been there before and this was certainly not my first time there. I know that area well and have explored this and the nearby locations a few times already. So this time, the agenda was just to drive to this JLR and chill there, enjoying the peace and the solitude, and the scenic views that this place offers. There was no sightseeing and no activity at all other than sitting there and watching the views.

I like this particular JLR a lot because it is much more peaceful (no real activities as such) than many other JLRs. And being a JLR without a proper safari, it draws lesser crowds than other JLRs. The cottages are scenic, overlooking a large water reservoir, and the ambiance is serene and peaceful. All that, with very less crowds, makes this an ideal location to just go and chill and enjoy solitude.

When I went there this time, as expected, less than 50% of the cottages were occupied. That meant plenty of quiet and empty spaces, and I enjoyed walking around in the forest walks and the nature pathways all alone, with the views of the reservoir, and plenty of birds chirping around.

Here is a short photologue of that simple weekend drive.

My 320d parked in the JLR parking lot:



The cottages, nestled amidst thick forest and with balconies offering scenic views of the water, bathing in the evening sun:



Pathways within the resort:



Walking bridge amidst thick trees:



On the water body next to the resort, Jetskies in the sunset light:



Wave pattern caused by the Jetskies, under the sunset light:


I spent the evening watching the spectacular sunset and the post-sunset colors right from my rook balcony.

Sunset time:



Colors in the sky just after sunset, as seen right from my room balcony:



Another view of the colors after sunset:



From the exact same location (balcony view), colors of the morning:


That is all from this simple and casual weekend drive. Thank you for reading!

[red_hot_punto]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Solo Weekend Drive to JLR Sharavathi Adventure Camp

A couple of weekends ago, I did a solo drive in my 320d to Sharavathi Adventure Camp by Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR).

Great place and pics! I had never been to this place but willing to visit once. Do they have activities for kids? Any nature walks or coracle rides? How much do they charge? From one of your pic atleast I can makeout Jet Sking is available.

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by red_hot_punto

Do they have activities for kids? Any nature walks or coracle rides? How much do they charge? From one of your pic atleast I can makeout Jet Sking is available.

They have water sports activities, and also a nature walk in the morning. They also have a Jeep ride to see Jog Falls in the morning. Jet skies are most probably not part of the JLR package (kayaking and general boat ride are part of the package), and could be an optional extra at extra cost.

All the details of stay, itinerary (including activities) and pricing information is available on their website: https://www.junglelodges.com/resort/...dventure-camp/

All your questions are answered on that page. Hope this helps.

[Nilesh5417]

@Dr.AD - need your advice.

Got a pre-owned 2019 F30 320d in December. I guess the stars and planets all miraculously aligned and a pristine luxury line with 12.5km was home!

But the drivers seat even at its tallest setting is too low. Esp for my wife who is 5'3 and used to sitting much higher in our Elantra.

Was wondering if the seat height can be raised some way. Checked out the car cushions but they are all very soft and don't make much difference. I believe they won't last longer than 6mths anyways.

Am 5'10 and the car lacks any kind of under thigh support- sadly won't get the awesome seats that sportline got. :(

Can you please suggest what could I do to fix this without breaking my bank?

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by Nilesh5417

@Dr.AD - need your advice.

Am 5'10 and the car lacks any kind of under thigh support- sadly won't get the awesome seats that sportline got. :(

Can you please suggest what could I do to fix this without breaking my bank?

Sorry, I have no idea what would be the solution and not sure what I can suggest.

I also found the luxury line's seats not to be that great, and in contrast the sports line has fantastic "sports seats" with the extendible thigh support and the electrically adjustable side bolstering. That was one of the reasons I was keen on sports seats when buying a 3-series. And I absolutely love these sports seats in my 320d.

Unfortunately I do not know what you can do. However, please avoid any seat modifications at all because that may hamper the safety. The seats have embedded airbags too. I am not in favor of those seat cushions too (tried those in my other cars) since they have a tendency to slip and can become a serious hazard in case you are doing any emergency maneuvers. The last thing you want is that the support under you slips when you are trying to do fast emergency maneuver.

If this helps, I have this exact same problem in my Thar - that the seats lack any under thigh support. But I just got used to it and now I do not care. I just drive the Thar fully knowing the issue but just got used to it. Sometimes that is the best solution - just get used to the seats and enjoy your drives ignoring some minor discomfort. Not sure if this helps or if this makes sense at all, but that is all I can say. Maybe others can offer more useful suggestions.

[Dr.AD]

CBS: "Can't live with you, Can't live without you!"

I have documented the funny ways of CBS many times before in this thread. CBS has a habit of throwing nasty surprises with sudden service alerts just when you are planning a long drive. CBS strictly follows Murhpy's Law! Some of my CBS experiences in this thread are quoted below:

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Condition Based Servicing (CBS) is BMW's way of doing car maintenance. With my experiences so far, I am not a fan of CBS for sure. But more on that later.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

After the monsoon drive through Chikmagalur (described in earlier posts in this thread), the oil change requirement in CBS dropped to 800km. I had one more drive planned after that, to Thanjavur, and given the nice fast roads in that drive, I wanted to take my 320d there. That was another 800km to 900km drive, and unfortunately it was way too close to remaining oil life of 800km.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

The front and rear brake pads both had more than 15,000km of life left, according to CBS. However, when I reached Ankola and stopped for a coffee break, and then restarted the car, the message popped up that next service due was in 2,100km! Surprised and alarmed by this, I checked the details, and it was the rear brake pads!

However, this time, I had a different kind of CBS problem. The one that I had never faced before.

It had been a long time since there was no CBS alert. It felt too good to be true. CBS was suddenly behaving like a good boy, and that made me worry.

It was almost like I was missing the usual CBS alerts. Stockholm Syndrome!

Something was wrong and I had to get it checked! To be specific, I did oil change about 6 months ago, and since then I drove the BMW only for about 6000km (my Thar did major driving in last six months due to a variety of reasons), and therefore, no oil change is due for another 6 months. So that is fine.

But what about brake pads? CBS loves to show brake pads replacement alerts most often, and when you least expect those. But this time there was no brake pads change alert in a long time too, something which I interpreted as suspicious. Front brake pads were replaced about 10,000km ago and they surely have good life left. However, it had been a while since I replaced rear brake pads.

About 2 months ago, when I checked the service requirement details (I have a habit of going through this checklist in the iDrive from time to time, just for curiosity and fun), the rear brake pads life was down to 5,000km, which was expected. However, what was not expected was that it stayed at 5,000km since then! Typically, my experience is that once the brake pads life goes down to 5,000km, then it rapidly (non-linearly) decreases after that. 5,000 to 2,000 to 1,000 to 500, it all happen rapidly.

However, this time, even after driving 2,000km or maybe 3,000km more, the rear brake pads life was still stuck on exactly 5,000km. In fact, I don't remember exactly when I checked last, but it felt like an eternity that rear brake pads life was at 5,000km.

Rear brake pads life at 5,000km since long:


I checked my service history (another menu in iDrive) and realized that it had been about 27,000km since I changed rear brake pads. Now that is the max brake pads life one can expect in a BMW. In my own experience, I am getting around 18,000km to 20,000km on a set of brake pads on average, and only once in the past I got a life of about 27,000km on rear brake pads.

So this time, I was sure that I am nearing the end of the rear brake pads life but somehow the CBS is not showing it. My instinct was that it was CBS that was messing up with me again.

Therefore, I decided to visit the service center and check it. I did take a quick look at home and it looked like there was still some life left in brake pads, but I wanted to verify at the service center.

I visited my usual place, KUN BMW Service Center (previously Navnit BMW), and as always, I got a great service experience there. My Service Advisor checked the brake pads and told me I can drive about 500km more. That meant almost end of the life. Then, why did CBS did not show it?

Well, they jacked up the car and removed wheels and brake pads to inspect, and turns out the pads were indeed down to about 4mm thickness (3mm is when they must be changed immediately). And the reason we assumed the CBS sensor did not trigger is because it was covered in a lot of mud and dust. The brake pad sensors, just like the wheel speed sensors (aka the ABS sensors) are known to misbehave due to dust, so I took that reason as a fair explanation. Anyways, there was nothing else I could do.

Old brake pads, worn out and the sensor covered in dust:


Thankfully, the parts were in stock and I changed the brake pads and the sensor (the "repair kit" as they call it includes brake pads and the new sensor and a few other small components) immediately there.

As always, fantastic service at KUN BMW. They attended to my car promptly, checked everything in front of me, replaced the brake pads quickly, washed the car too, and handed over the washed car to me, with new brake pads installed, in a reasonably quick time. They were polite, friendly and supportive the whole time. I would rate my BMW service experience as 10/10 once again!

The total bill for brake pads change (parts plus labor) came to about ₹22,000, which is par for the course and par with my past experiences.

With the new brake pads, now everything is fine and the car is ready for another couple of long drives.

All fine and ready for next long drive:


In summary, CBS did throw a googly at me this time, but I am glad that I proactively checked for the brake pads wear and got the brake pads replaced at the right time, without waiting for CBS alerts. Sometimes the human intuitions can be more accurate than the sensor readings, and this was one of those cases.

Anyways, so that is the story this time. Thank you for reading!

[Dr.AD]

Munnar and Other Drives

Since the last update above, I did about 5,000km of total driving in the 320d. This included one road trip across Maharashtra, a couple of weekend road trips within Karnataka, a drive to Bekal, Kerala, and then most recently, a road trip to Munnar, Kerala.

In this report, I will primarily share photos from Munnar and Bekal road trips, with a quick mention of the other trips first.

Maharashtra Drive: I wrote a separate travelogue (2200-km Drive to Maharashtra | Weekend in the Konkan Coast) on this trip, and sharing only a few pictures below for the sake of completeness of this thread. Please refer to that travelogue for more details.

Solo weekend at a rustic bungalow on a beach-side cliff near Vengurla:



Driving around on dry grasslands searching for sunset views:



Sunset photoshoot:



In Anuskura Ghat, on way from Vengurla to Pune:



Sunrise from a weekend at Panchgani, Maharashtra:



Weekend Trips to Coorg: Did a couple of quick weekend trips to Coorg in-between the longer trips.

Somewhere in Coorg, in one of the quick weekend drives:

Drive with Friends to Bekal, Kerala:

In March, I and my wife did a drive to the new "Gateway, Bekal, in our Thar, covered in this post in the Thar ownership thread. Just a week after that Thar trip with my wife, I repeated the same drive with my TeamBHP driving buddies, and this time, in the BMW 320d.

This driving group included my friends @RSUDARSANAN and @praveenbalan driving with me from Bangalore, and @graaja, who joined us at Bekal by directly driving there from Coimbatore. The resort we stayed at was the same Gateway Bekal that I had stayed in my Thar drive just a week before this drive. I loved the resort so much that I did not mind two back to back trips, albeit in two different cars and with different companies.

Our convoy of three BMWs, at a scenic bridge in Kerala, on way to Bekal:



The three 3-ers, in different colors, against the green backdrops of Kerala:



Parked at the brand new resort, Gateway Bekal (a fantastic resort!):



Fortuner of @graaja who joined us from Coimbatore:



One of the fun activities we did there was a houseboat cruise at sunset time:



Sunset from the windows of the houseboat:



Cruising in the calm backwaters, enjoying the sunset views:



The convoy of three 3ers, in the return drive through the forests on the border of Kerala and Karnataka:

Drive to Munnar, Kerala:

The most recent drive was a drive to Munnar, Kerala, with my wife. In Munnar, we stayed at "Chandys Windy Woods" resort, and had a great time there. Thanks to my friend @RakishRam for recommending this place. This is one of the best places to stay in Munnar. Located about 10km away from the crowded town, on the secluded hills full of tea plantations, this resort offers scenic views from every room and from all corners of the resort. The location, the rooms, the restaurant with a view, the food - everything was awesome! The resort also has an artificial forest complete with artificial waterfall, and a small 10 minute trek through this artificial forest, which was an added fun for some entertainment at tea-time!

Lovely roads through the woods, around Munnar:



Waters of Mattupetty Dam:



Landscapes from Eravikulam National Park:



The rolling hills of the national park:



Nilgiri Tahr, the animal that is characteristic of the wildlife of that area:



The canonical tea plantation views:



Driving around in the tea plantations:



Sunset behind tea plantation:



Against the backdrop of the ubiquitous tea plantations:



On the famous "Gap Road" in Munnar:



Tea plantation views from the sides of the Gap Road:



More roadside views:



Waters of Anayirankal Dam, from the sides of Gap Road:



Finally, a parting shot on the famous Gap Road:


That is all from the drives over last couple of months. Now waiting for the monsoon to start, and then it will be time for the annual "monsoon drives" again.

Thank you very much for reading!

[suhaas307]

Fantastic photographs, Dr.AD! Doing complete justice to your lovely Melbourne Red F30!

What drives do you have planned for the coming months?

Always a treat reading your posts and salivating over the photographs. Please keep ‘em coming!

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Fantastic photographs, Dr.AD! Doing complete justice to your lovely Melbourne Red F30!

Thank you very much Suhaas!

What drives do you have planned for the coming months?

Nothing planned as such. I rarely plan my drives in advance. Most of the drives are last minute plans whenever I get some time off, and depending on the mood at that time.

Monsoon is the season when I love driving a lot. So for sure I know I will be doing plenty of drives in the monsoon. There is surely going to be a drive to coastal Maharashtra as well as one to coastal Karnataka in the monsoon. Then possibly to the East Coast too, this year. But other than these general ideas, nothing is planned as such. I typically plan my drives on Thursday or Fridays and drive away at 5AM on Saturdays.

Always a treat reading your posts and salivating over the photographs. Please keep ‘em coming!

Thanks again for your kind words!

I read your 328i thread too. Great going with that car. I know you missed joining us for the Dhanushkodi drive. But hope to see you in one of the bimmer group drives soon. All the best with your 328i modifications and the Porsche plans.

[speedster786]

What a peaceful and refreshing solo getaway! Sharavathi Adventure Camp sounds like the perfect place to unwind, especially with those serene reservoir views and quiet forest walks. The photos must’ve captured the calm vibes beautifully—especially those sunsets and early morning colors. Glad you had such a relaxing break with your 320d!

[Josteam]

Dr.AD always loved reading your travelogues and the pics of your red Bavarian beauty.. Considering you take to the road so often how do you manage to keep your car in such pristine shape ( body line so clean, no dents, no scratches). Pls. share some tips on the upkeep of your car despite being on the road so often.

[Sarang W]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Munnar and Other Drives

Since the last update above, I did about 5,000km of total driving in the 320d. This included one road trip across Maharashtra, a couple of weekend road trips within Karnataka, a drive to Bekal, Kerala, and then most recently, a road trip to Munnar, Kerala.

In this report, I will primarily share photos from Munnar and Bekal road trips, with a quick mention of the other trips first.

Wow! Amazing Pictures and beautifully written!

[red_hot_punto]

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Munnar and Other Drives

Beautiful and refreshing shots! Loved them! Do you use a DSLR or captured them from phone cam?

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by speedster786

What a peaceful and refreshing solo getaway! Glad you had such a relaxing break with your 320d!

Thank you!

Originally Posted by Josteam

Dr.AD always loved reading your travelogues and the pics of your red Bavarian beauty.. Considering you take to the road so often how do you manage to keep your car in such pristine shape ( body line so clean, no dents, no scratches). Pls. share some tips on the upkeep of your car despite being on the road so often.

Thank you! I do not do anything specific for the exterior. I have PPF on the car which saves it from minor scratches. A couple of times I did get minor scratches but those were easily fixed by some buffing on the PPF. However, the PPF itself has got very dull now, over the years, and looks horrible in person. The photos do not show how bad the PPF has become, but in person it looks really bad. Therefore, my next task is to get the PPF removed and polish the car after that. Will do that soon.

But to answer your question, no I do not have any special tricks to take care of the car exterior. Just drive carefully, drive safe, and drive a lot :-) That is all I do.

Originally Posted by Sarang W

Wow! Amazing Pictures and beautifully written!

Thank you.

Originally Posted by red_hot_punto

Beautiful and refreshing shots! Loved them! Do you use a DSLR or captured them from phone cam?

Thank you. The pictures are a mix of some from phone and some from a camera (not necessarily DSLR technically, as now we have mirrorless full-frame cameras which are better than DSLR).

Most of the landscape photos are taken with my mirrorless camera, whereas most of the photos on the road are taken by mobile phone (I am too lazy to pull out a camera when parked on the roadside for a quick photo - mobiles are best for that use car).