Road Trip Query: Mumbai to Shillong in a used Maruti WagonR AMT

I purchased the car with 10,000 km on the odo back in Nov 2021.

BHPian priyankarb recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Background: I am based out of Mumbai, MH and employed as a consulting and technology major for over a decade now. We are a nuclear family of 3 here in Mumbai with our roots in Shillong. My current role allows me to work out of home all year and this will not change in the next 5-7 years, so here’s where we decided that there is no point in us putting up in Mumbai any further and we decided to go back to Shillong to be with our parents.

Coming to the point: I recently purchased a used 2016 WagonR AMT with less than 10K Kms on the ODO in November 2021. This car is in prime condition with around 11200 Kms on the ODO as I write this and I do not want to sell it as of now, so here’s the dilemma – how do I take her along! I approached a few packers and movers and while we are still negotiating on the cost, my better half and son are on board with the plan that we can drive all the way! I tried searching the available threads on our forum, but I am not able to connect the dots, so opened this thread.

I need some guidance on the shortest and safest route that I should take. Considering that I will be driving with my family, we would avoid night runs altogether, so if you could also suggest some good hotels on the way and advise on how I break this trip into easy doable parts.

Here's what BHPian Sushil Pingua had to say on the matter:

Considering that your car is a 2016 model and the approx distance from Mumbai to Shillong via Nagpur - Raipur - Kolkata - Siliguri is over 3000 km, I would suggest first of all replacing all the tyres if not done yet because it's been 6 years since 2016 and the stock tyres must have lost their softness and grip.

• The AMT gearbox would have to replace its fluid.
• The battery needs proper checkup and replacement if required before beginning the cross-country drive.
• The coolant needs replacement.
• The suspension, electricals and the A/C system needs a thorough checkup.

Now coming to the journey itself. If you have done drives of around/over 1000 kms prior to this plan then it should not be an issue in replacing/mending punctures by yourself if required or in handling minor breakdowns related to the cooling system of the car's engine.

I don't know why but I have a gut feeling going by your queries that this trip is not meant to be given a go-ahead for you. I regret if I'm being negative but I never mean to discourage you.

Regarding hotels, I would suggest you drive around 400 km each day between breakfast and sunset and then plan using google-maps where you wish to take the halt and rest - all of such planning would have to be done and bookings for hotels made before beginning the drive. Google-maps provides good reviews of hotels which can help you in deciding places to stay. I plan my places of stay after going through the reviews available on google-maps.

Further, I would request you to plan your drive of approx 400kms each day, decide your place of stay at the end of each 400 odd km, review the hotels at such places of stay and post up queries here that come to your mind and I'll try to give solutions wherever possible.

Here's what BHPian VT-RNS had to say on the matter:

Hello,

I'll suggest you read this travelogue by BHPian RedTerrano.

His trip starts from Pune and covers the Northeast, and I believe you will find very useful information for your journey as this TL details it out till Shillong (and beyond). While the journey & travelogue itself is old (3 years back I believe), the TL itself is epic & worth a read

Also, to the best of my knowledge, the route chosen is quite good and I would prefer it over the route that takes you via North/Central India via MP/UP/Bihar. Furthermore, you can always look for specific sections of this route in the forum. For example, the Kolkata-Siliguri section has the latest info available here.

From my own experience, you can easily do Mumbai-Hyderabad (700 km) in one day given some great roads between Mumbai-Pune and then Pune-Hyd & an early start to avoid Pune city traffic. Especially as it's your first day of the long trip. Happy to share tips with you in the attached PDF that I had prepared for a friend, and are based on my own experiences.

Thereafter, I agree with Sushil that it's best you do 400 km per day at max; if you aren't well versed with that area or new to long-distance drives. Also, why go through the hassle if you can enjoy yourself with this one-of-a-kind experience. I would definitely make a stop-go trip out of it (time permitting). I have driven a bit on WB NH in 2019 Dec, and I think this route should work out well.

Do go through the checks on the car as Sushil has mentioned, and also read up on the various good threads on long-distance/night/highway driving in the "Road Safety" forum and how to prepare for it.
I just wrapped up a 7000 km road trip over 50 days (not all days were travelling!) with staycation mixed in, and my MS Baleno CVT was a charm. If your car service is due anyway, then get it done at least 1 week before the trip and drive 15-20 km to make sure all is well. I can go on with various tips, but one that I highly recommend is "prepare yourself & your family mentally" for the 3000 km drive. That really helps (I had to work on it myself, as well as for my wife.... in the end, it was brilliant!)

Enjoy and have fun! Let me know if you have any Qs.

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