[bhavukjain]

Superb Write up. Fortuner does beat everyone in reliability and it didnt bother you even once during the entire trip. Great preparation leads to best trips. Kudos to your parents. Cheers !

[McLaren Rulez]

Originally Posted by dean5545

Tyre pressure reduced, snow chains put on and we are ready to roll!
Attachment 2274266

Great pictures and just the machine for such a trip.

Just a quick tip for future snowy drives - try to get the snow off the roof as well before setting off. It could fly off behind you and hit other vehicles at speed or fall forward onto your own windshield when you brake and blind you briefly.

[gobarboss]

Beautiful story. Great write up. Brilliant machine. Waiting for for my 4x4 fortuner. Hopefully soon.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by Shreyans_Jain

Lovely travelogue. Very nice pics.

A query. Did you face any cop trouble because of the off road bumper? Such a modification is usually a invitation to get challaned left right and center in Delhi as well as in Chandigarh.

Thank you for your appreciation, glad you liked it. And no I did not face any cop trouble any where throughout the trip in all the states.

Originally Posted by naveen.raju

Brilliant travelogue. Driving up to the Himalayas is top of my list.

Thanks Naveen! Hope you may be able to full fill your dream very soon.

You drove to New York City while I took a boat ride to America

Hahaha! Hope you didn't get sea sick

Originally Posted by Ace F355

Nicely done and well written Denzil. Kudos to your parents too for accompanying you in these long hauls, and I am sure the experience at Narkanda would have been sweet to say the least. Your quest for snow was long due and I am glad I could of some help fulfilling it.

Thanks Rohit for your kind words! And yes, your tips very crucial for the success of this trip.

Thank you for putting the write-up for fellow travellers - I would love to do for my travelogues too, but I am squeezed on time now a days despite the fact that my car's odometer has been constantly climbing. Cheers, beautiful pictures too.

Dude, you should surely pen down your experiences. I am sure it would be helpful to many of us in order to plan our future trips.

Originally Posted by PrideRed

Lovely travelogue. Driving up Himalayas is always a dream , especially for people from South. Nice to Fortuner doing its duties flawlessly. Superb pictures and videos .

Thanks Ravi for your kind words! Hope your Himalayan dream materialises soon!

Originally Posted by karan561

Great Travelogue Denzil, has a good balance of write up, pictures & videos. Also thanks for not sharing any zoomed in food / meal pictures as I personally find it really distasteful on an Automotive forum. Glad to know & see the implementation of all the tips shared come handy in the entirety of your journey.

Thanks Alot Karan for your appreciation! Means a lot coming from an expert like you! Really glad you liked the travelogue.

Your Fortuner is looking really handsome in the pictures with the Lift Kit & those new 65 profile KO2 SWL Tyres.

Thanks again! Yes, all the mods done on the Fortuner have solved the intended purpose. The Lift kit along with the 65 profile tyres have transformed my car's ride quality.

Originally Posted by naveendagar

Well written travelogue dear denzil, thats the reason a beast like fortuner is actually made for. It was amazing meeting you and your parents, had a lovely time. Wish I could have also accompanied you on this trip but Corona played a spoilsport. Nonetheless, we WILL head north together one day for sure. I also went to the exact place a week before you, uploading a pic from the same.

Thank you Colonel Sahab for your kind words!
We will definitely plan a trip together with all the other Fortuner owners, What a blast it would be!

Originally Posted by starwarsfanatic

Spectacular travelogue mate, The Fortuner looks beastly and the quest for snow is finally completed.
Thanks for sharing

Thank you so much!

Originally Posted by fluidicjoy

What a beautiful travelogue with lot of inspiring pictures. The Fortuner is such a beast and I'm sure it feels right at home at terrains just like these. It was nice learning about the technicalities of driving in the snow from your experiences. Kudos to you for uploading such crisp videos of most segments of your trip. It was inspiring to see the healthy 5 digit Odometer on your car, and looking forward to many such drives exploring our incredible India.

Thank you fluidicjoy for your appreciation! Yes, the Fortuner was feeling right at home even in the sub zero temperatures. I did not even change my car's oil before the trip. And did I mention the car is running on stock discs till now!
These cars are mean't to be driven and will surely outlast it's owner.

Regarding the videos, even I was suprised at the video quality as the dash cam was a very recent addition. When I went through the footage I decided to upload it for everyones viewing pleasure.

Originally Posted by bhavukjain

Superb Write up. Fortuner does beat everyone in reliability and it didnt bother you even once during the entire trip. Great preparation leads to best trips. Kudos to your parents. Cheers !

Thank you Bhavuk!

Originally Posted by McLaren Rulez

Great pictures and just the machine for such a trip.

Thank you and glad you enjoyed reading the travelogue!

Just a quick tip for future snowy drives - try to get the snow off the roof as well before setting off. It could fly off behind you and hit other vehicles at speed or fall forward onto your own windshield when you brake and blind you briefly.

Thank you for the tip! Didn't think about it this way actually. I didn't clean the roof because the car was looking so good with it!

Originally Posted by gobarboss

Beautiful story. Great write up. Brilliant machine. Waiting for for my 4x4 fortuner. Hopefully soon.

Thank you! Hope you get your Fortuner very soon!

[handsofsteel]

I intend to ride down from Chandigarh to chitkul on my bike in the first week of March. Would you have any local contacts who could tell us whether the roads are in a state fit for that (meaning no snow and black ice)? Our plans are open and we wouldn’t mind changing them in case there’s fresh snowfall etc. any inputs from other members also would be welcome. thank you all in advance.

[gadadhar]

Loved reading your Fortuner's date with the snow. I moved to 4X4 Fortuner AT from 4X2 AT recently, hoping I will also the snow sometime. Was wondering how the AT will behave in snow without much of engine breaking support.

[vikas2211]

Wow what a TL!

Hats-off to you and parents for this trip. It is very informative and motivating.

Great clicks and videos.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by handsofsteel

I intend to ride down from Chandigarh to chitkul on my bike in the first week of March. Would you have any local contacts who could tell us whether the roads are in a state fit for that (meaning no snow and black ice)? Our plans are open and we wouldn’t mind changing them in case there’s fresh snowfall etc. any inputs from other members also would be welcome. thank you all in advance.

Hi, what you can do is contact Zostel Chitkul on Instagram. They reply promptly.

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Loved reading your Fortuner's date with the snow. I moved to 4X4 Fortuner AT from 4X2 AT recently, hoping I will also the snow sometime. Was wondering how the AT will behave in snow without much of engine breaking support.

Glad you liked reading the travelogue and hope I have tempted you to have your own date with the snow as well

Good decision regarding switching from 4x2 to 4x4. Regarding controlling the car, you can use paddle shifters to downshift the gears.

Originally Posted by vikas2211

Wow what a TL!

Hats-off to you and parents for this trip. It is very informative and motivating.

Great clicks and videos.

Thank you so much !

[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by dean5545

Regarding controlling the car, you can use paddle shifters to downshift the gears.

My 2013 model didn't have paddle shifters, has used it only few time in the new one and never tried it for engine breaking. Thanks for the tip

[yatesh.92]

A very well written Travelogue Denzil. Absolutely loved reading it from start to end. I must say, the off road bumper, lift kit and KO2 tyres further enhance the muscular look of the Fortuner.

[Randhawa]

What make and from where did you got the snow chains? After reading your travelogue, I am tempted to got to Kaza next month.

[megazoid]

Nice read. Beefy looking car too. May I know how you managed the lift and by how much is it raised?

[haisaikat]

Nice snow drive adventure. I had missed this in February, worth reading every bit of it and the pictures complement the writeup really well. Himachal is beautiful all year round, we visited Shimla in this October only and took the same Himalayan Expressway which was in excellent shape. But during winter the snow creates another magical Himalayas and that is evident from your travelogue. You have a great car and most of all a very supporting family who shares such passionate adventurous minds which helps in executing such trips with great enthusiasm. Also admired your snow drive capabilities and the way you have narrated the challenges and how you overcame. Keep travelling and sharing, rating 5 stars.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by Randhawa

What make and from where did you got the snow chains? After reading your travelogue, I am tempted to got to Kaza next month.

Hi, I got my snow chains from Jagan Hardware, Chandigarh-9914130130. Even I am tempted to do Himachal again in February.

Originally Posted by megazoid

Nice read. Beefy looking car too. May I know how you managed the lift and by how much is it raised?

Thank you ! The lift kit is from Old Man Emu, it has raised the car by 2'' approximately.

Originally Posted by haisaikat

Nice snow drive adventure. I had missed this in February, worth reading every bit of it and the pictures complement the writeup really well. Himachal is beautiful all year round, we visited Shimla in this October only and took the same Himalayan Expressway which was in excellent shape. But during winter the snow creates another magical Himalayas and that is evident from your travelogue. You have a great car and most of all a very supporting family who shares such passionate adventurous minds which helps in executing such trips with great enthusiasm. Also admired your snow drive capabilities and the way you have narrated the challenges and how you overcame. Keep travelling and sharing, rating 5 stars.

Thank you for your kind words!