1 week ago
5
1200 KM of highways, ghats and torrential rainfall successful my Mercedes C 220D
(A snapshot of the Merc erstwhile we stopped for a tea)
I consciousness a existent car feline knows erstwhile his conveyance needs a agelong thrust to truly agelong its legs. My Mercedes C 220d (W205) had not been connected a agelong thrust successful 2024, it was chiefly being driven successful highest Bengaluru Traffic, inching guardant astatine a snail?s pace, a acold outcry from the mile munching the Germans had engineered this car for.
(The dense fog successful the ghats made for my astir favourite pictures of this car)
When the accidental arose past week to thrust to Kanjirappally (a municipality successful the hills of Kerala celebrated for its rubber plantations) I knew it would beryllium the cleanable thrust for this car arsenic determination would beryllium the accelerated streches of NH-44 successful Tamil Nadu, the uphill thrust successful the ghat conception and switchback state roads which Kerala is notoriously celebrated for. My begetter and I were rather keen connected this thrust and spent immoderate clip researching the optimal way to instrumentality prioritising a driving acquisition implicit clip to destination.
(View of the beverage plantations)
What a drive! The unsmooth way we took was from Bengaluru, Salem, Karur, Dindigul, Vatalkundu, Theni Cumbum, Mundakayam and Kanjirapally. From accelerated highways to heavy fog done the bedewed ghat roads, the car performed perfectly flawlessly. This is the benignant of thrust I volition retrieve for a agelong time.
This blog volition absorption much connected however the car performed connected the thrust alternatively than the way itself.
(Cruising astatine bully velocity arsenic little traffic, car was stone solid)
The velocity segment:
Left location aboriginal astatine 5 am, it was Diwali Saturday, we were expecting a batch of postulation but the roads were empty, rather empty. Left location successful Indiranagar and reached Hosur successful not much than 40 minutes, and erstwhile I reached Tamil Nadu, the operation of Tamil Nadu being velocity tolerant (Much much truthful than KL oregon KA) and bare roads meant I could transportation highly accelerated speeds. The car had its tyres changed past year, and since determination was not overmuch moving since then, the car was planted connected the highway, similar a rock. It has been rather a portion since I was capable thrust astatine velocity confidently, without overmuch postulation and the car conscionable ate up the miles. The miles sped past and earlier I knew it, already reached Salem. During this agelong we would often deed the disconnected pothole of rumble strip, and you realise however overmuch ?heft? these German cars have. I was cruising astatine a comfy 120-130 KMPH and everything felt refined and quiescent connected the inside. It would beryllium hard to archer I was really travelling that fast, lone the speedometer gives it away. A immense miss I americium starting to truly admit successful my Seltos GT is each the ADAS Tech. The lane support assist, steering assistance and unsighted spot informing arsenic good arsenic the ORVM cameras truly bash marque driving connected the road a batch easier. The Merc is coagulated for erstwhile you truly privation to prosecute with the drive, but for a thrust wherever you conscionable privation to spell from A to B, the tech similar what is contiguous connected the caller Seltos does help.
(absolutely heavy fog and rainfall portion driving done the ghats)
The Ghat Section-
Usually successful the ghat section, it?s a crippled of accidental hoping you?re not surrounded by brainsick and immature drivers trying to overtake connected precarious hairpin bends, but present isolated from the isolated and rogue Scorpio oregon State Bus, the different cars were keeping a harmless region and driving astatine a decent speed. I enactment the car successful Sport Plus Mode. Overtakes were instant and seamless. Even the Diesel motor opened up and sounded a tiny spot sporty erstwhile I was performing speedy overtakes. Out of nowhere, the beauteous and sunny ghat roadworthy became engulfed with torrential rainfall and heavy fog. The visibility was truthful poor, it was not much than 10 feet astatine immoderate instances. In these situations, I truly privation sedans had rear wipers, you conscionable request a rear wiper successful these situations and the omission of the aforesaid successful my Merc was a spot challenging. I was precise disquieted astir aqua plaining connected this agelong due to the fact that adjacent if determination is rainfall oregon fog, you inactive person to overtake the slow-moving tractor successful beforehand you oregon it would instrumentality everlastingly to scope the destination (the merc is rear instrumentality drive). Thankfully the traction power worked good and I was gentler connected the throttle.
(Driving done an aggravated downpour successful Kerala)
The nighttime segments-
Driving successful the heartland of Kerala is simply a indispensable for immoderate operator I feel, you larn a batch astir dealing with galore things but 1 doesn?t expect the sheer acheronian portion driving connected these stretches. The acheronian and the car windows fogging up (a immense occupation for maine successful KL) are a situation but what I americium impressed by is the headlight show connected the Merc, it?s coagulated with a bully reach. The lone diagnostic is miss from my Seltos is the car high-beam assist. The roads mightiness beryllium acheronian but there?s inactive a batch of postulation successful the different absorption truthful having to perpetually crook the precocious beams disconnected was somewhat annoying.
The Really Rainy Segment-
I americium reminded of that country successful Jurassic parkland erstwhile the powerfulness goes retired successful the dense rain, possibly my metropolis dweller roots are conscionable not utilized to driving done this overmuch rainfall but what struck maine the astir was this car has a truly bully quality of giving you the assurance to thrust done whatever. Honestly, adjacent the potholes and bumps it takes connected rather well. Yes, it scrapes connected velocity bumps but you ne'er erstwhile consciousness that this car wont thrust though anything. The lone existent nemesis this car has is wading done water. Thankfully, contempt the dense rain, KL roads had amended drainage than our Bluru roads and did not brushwood immoderate heavy h2o anywhere. If determination is heavy water, conscionable don?t thrust done it.
The instrumentality travel was thing to constitute location about, it was ace boring astatine stretches, truthful boring that the attraction alert popped up for the archetypal clip connected this trip.
(attention assistance warning)
Overall, you truly admit German engineering successful moments similar these. This car inactive has immoderate clip with america and I deliberation determination are galore drives similar to travel successful the adjacent future.
Hope you enjoyed speechmaking astir my experience! Let maine cognize if you person immoderate comments.
