1st trip to the mountains with my Jimny: 10 key observations made

The locals in Himachal have really taken to the Jimny, the place is swarming with them.

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The Jimny made its first trip to the mountains in Himachal. It saw all sorts of terrain, right from lovely, smooth tarmac, broken roads, roads with black ice, and rutted tracks. The gearbox got a proper workout this time, and I used the L and 2 option a fair bit in tricky areas. I'll summarize all my observations below.

1. The great 'Power' debate: The best way to describe it is 'adequate'. I had to overtake plenty of slower traffic on the climbs and it was absolutely stress-free. Once you figure out the gearbox, it is really no issue getting the power out. Of course, this is with just me and my gear and luggage in the car. Even on the highways in the plains, I find the car to be a competent cruiser, and that is because of my driving style. Depending on road conditions, I stick it in cruise somewhere between 80-95 and drive using mainly the toggle buttons on the steering wheel. I also don't find this 'being bullied off the road' thing to be true (and I live in Delhi, which is not exactly populated with Tibetan monks!). I think these issues occur if you try to take on vehicles that are moving really fast, say well above the 100 kmph mark. In that band, the Jimny will be completely out of its comfort zone, and it is like expecting a mountain bike to win the Tour de France! I also let Prime Ministers/Potential Prime Ministers/Avengers and other superheroes overtake me regardless of what their current vehicle of choice is. The moment I see 'enthusiasm/urgency/lunacy' in the rearview mirror, I will go above and beyond to ensure they pass me and head on towards their objective, whether it be world domination or suicide
2. Fuel consumption: Start to finish, I averaged 14.1 km/l. I was very pleasantly surprised because a lot of the local driving in Himachal was on unsurfaced or broken paths. In addition, I got stuck a few times in Manali's traffic jams. Around 14 km/l is what I get in the city as well!
3. Turning radius: Not an issue once you get the hang of it. I made a lot of hairpin bend-type turns on the mud/stone tracks connecting villages to the main roads. I needed to reverse maybe 3-4 times, and that was mainly because I was making doubly sure I didn't take the 'shortcut' all the way down.
4. Nostalgia taken a little too far: There is plenty of old-school charm to the Jimny and I absolutely love the car. One thing that is outrageously bad, and unforgivable is the music system! If you love your music, you will be astounded at how bad the sound system is. For those of you who go back to the times when driving dad's Padmini or Ambassador to college made you the hero of the day, remember the tape deck first music system you fitted in the car for 3000 Rs all in (at the recommendation of the local car accessory car no less - 'made in Japan only saar')? Yeah, it is that bad!
5. The Start-Stop is not that bad: It is only when you are offroading that you need to have it off. Even then, if you forget to turn it off, it's just a push of a button. The other situation you might want it off is in really bad traffic. My car is an auto, so maybe on the manuals, it could be a bit more frustrating.
6. Ride quality: Absolutely fantastic. It is only when you misjudge how bad the road is that you get a bit of a rude reminder to slow down. Especially those innocuous-looking series of ruts running across mud roads - man, you will sway about like a drunken sailor on shore leave. If you are travelling with a co-passenger, you are absolutely sure to have a 'headbanging' session.
7. Fuel tank capacity: It is small, but with the predictable mileage, it is not that much of a big deal for regular touring. However, personally, I carried a 20-litre jerry can because I did not want to plan my routes based on the availability of fuel bunks. It was more of an insurance policy though (just like my shovel!), I used up the jerry can only on the way back home.
8. Skinny tyres: The stock tyres have proven themselves to be very competent. They've performed adequately in gravel, rocks, mud, fine desert sand and ice. I have not tried them in deep snow, but with my snow chains, I don't think it will really be an issue. The only place I think these tyres might struggle is in very deep, sticky mud, the really hardcore stuff. I am sure a knobbly A/T tyre will make a big difference in that scenario. Putting that aside, the only real reason to upgrade would be for the stance and looks, which I don't care about.
9. Vote of confidence: The locals have really taken to the Jimny, the place is swarming with them. One of the few places you get to see a bunch of Gypsies too, many of them with beautiful, functional mods. The only reason I got a few stares was because of my number plate - the broad consensus seems to have been that I was either lost, stupid or both.
10. Fancy Motorcycles always need to have their hazards on: There is a rule in Himachal Pradesh that if you are riding a fancy touring bike, you MUST ride with your indicators flashing. You are free to choose the pattern of blinking etc, but on no account must you use the indicators for their originally intended purpose. The good thing is that I saw 95 per cent of the people diligently following this rule

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