Nothing Can Match Drives and Memories

“I’m bored”, I said. “Why must all Mondays be like this?”

“You’re especially feeling like this because of your vacation”, Vikrant said. I had just returned that morning from a 5-day trip to Goa. I was missing the beaches, the food, the lovely weather and… well, everything that we do in Goa. Add to that the Monday morning blues and the feeling of staring at a computer screen, attending meetings, and wading through office politics for six whole days and the moodiness was compounded.

Vikrant sensed it, and offered to drive down to Datta Snacks in Panvel where we could drink kokum sherbat. We had time to reach office, but not so much that we could drive from Kopar Khairane to Panvel and back.

“Dude, you’ve already been away from office for 5 days, right?”, he asked.

“Yes.”

“So how will one more day hurt? Plus, this will prepare me for the week ahead too.” Fair point.

So he stepped on the gas of his recently-restored Suzuki Gypsy. The feeling of speeding past office on a Monday morning brought a smile my face. Vikrant assured me that we would return in a little more than an hour. This was also an opportunity for him to really test the Gypsy’s abilities - he hadn’t opened the throttle in a while.

The road to Panvel passes from under the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. As we approached Kalamboli, I thought aloud that the Expressway would have been a great place to test the Gypsy. And as we approached the diversion, I waited for him to turn. Instead, he went straight and got onto the Expressway.

“Vikrant, what are you doing? We will miss work!”

“Tune apna mooh kyun khola? Ab chup chaap chal (Why did you open your mouth. Now come along without resistance).”

Datta Snacks? Be damned.

Even worse, office? Back to fair point.

So we drove along. Vikrant rarely shows emotions - stoics would be proud. But today, I could see his teeth. The engine had done its 1,000 kilometres run-in so he opened the throttle. The Gypsy motored along at 110 km/h on the Expressway, but the fumes which get into the cabin were giving me a heady feeling. Anyway, the breeze compensated and I survived till we turned for Lonavla. We stopped at a hotel to have breakfast and fresh lime soda. And I started feeling better. Maybe it was the soda, maybe it was the feeling of sitting in an empty restaurant on a Monday morning while people were rushing to work… but Vikrant knew that the best way to rejuvenate me was to put me at the wheel. Again, if you know me, you also know that I am not formal with friends. And I love the ghats of Lonavla. So the “oh, are you sure? She’s your baby” dialogue never took place. I sat on the driver’s seat and prepared for a lovely drive up to Aamby Valley. I was keen on testing how the front sway bar and the CEAT Plus One R16 tyres would aid the SUV’s performance on the twisties.

For a vehicle which had been introduced around similar times to the Yamaha RD350, the vehicle’s stance was impressive. I had to put in some effort in turns because she didn't have power steering (Vikrant is a boisterous Jharkhandi who didn’t want power steering). But every turn I took, the 16” CEATs ensured that the Gypsy stuck to the line that I took. The heady feeling was quickly replaced by one of relaxation. Here’s a little secret: just before Aamby Valley is a diversion which is off-road terrain and leads to a village. When I offered to take the Gypsy there, Vikrant’s eyes lit up and he snatched the steering back (not literally, of course). And the SUV went through the ‘course’ with remarkable aplomb. On rocky terrains where one would gingerly have to drive a sedan at the speeds of 10-20, the Gypsy seemed comfortable at 60 kmph. This time, I heard Vikrant laugh.

By the time we were back home, it was 4 already.

There was hell to pay for the next day. Not only because both of us called in sick just an hour before office started, but because our other friends shared a piece of their mind about our adventure without them. Especially because Vikrant didn’t hand over the keys of the Gypsy to anyone until the previous day. To compensate, he let everyone drive the SUV around the campus during the lunch break (our office had a 140-acre campus). And as they say, all’s well that ends well.

Honda Amaze - Test Driven for a Whole Day

I hadn’t given the Honda Amaze much thought just yet. We don’t see as many of them on the road as the Swift Desire or the Verito. Maybe because the Amaze was launched just this year. Honda had finally added a diesel horse to its Indian stable and that created quite a buzz. But as I said, I hadn’t formulated an opinion about it. That was until I drove one.

Honda invited a few of us auto enthusiasts and Twitter addicts to drive their Brio and Amaze from Navi Mumbai to Aamby Valley City, Lonavla, and back. You don’t get such opportunities often and so sane people don’t decline. Well, I’d like to think I’m sane.

Honda Amaze VX

I had never driven the car nor had I been inside Aamby Valley. This event would let me do both. I got to drive the highest variant of the Amaze – the VX (petrol) both ways. The 1^st thing that struck me on getting in was the air conditioning. It was so powerful that I leaked more water than I drank during the day. In fact, as evening settled in, my friend sitting at the back asked us to turn the A/c off. And mind you he’s the guy who complains why rickshaws don’t have air conditioning. That speaks volumes for Amaze’s in-car cooling. It’s especially useful in India where the summer is boiling hot and winter is just a word. As you start driving, you notice how nimble the car is. As one who drives compact hatchbacks (Santro, Polo and Swift), I thought I would have to be careful lugging a car with a boot around. But you don’t feel the weight of the boot or the extended wheelbase at all. It didn’t strike me until the end of the day that I had been driving a sedan effortlessly. The bootspace and rear leg room in the Amaze borders on levels of 'obscene'. The tallest and widest of people can sit comfortably. And you can load 2-3 dead bodies in the boot and still have space for luggage. Of course, smoothness doesn’t need a mention. That’s expected from Honda; Honda and refinement are synonymous.

Amaze-ing bootspace! Don't you agree?

As we hit the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, the 1.2 litre powered Honda finally got to stretch her legs. There we got to experience how planted the car is. It isn’t often that you average 130 kmph in an entry level sedan packed with 5 people and camera equipment. The expressway has a many fast sweeping bends, which the Amaze lapped up with Amaze-ing stability. I didn’t have to lift my foot off the gas. Plus the car did a top whack of 145. Bet she would’ve gone faster if the load was lesser.

Once we reached Lonavla, I got my wish. The camera crew got off. No more camera, no more restrictions... just the Amaze, my friend and me. I’ve always loved the road from Bushi dam to Aamby Valley because it’s filled with twists, turns and slopes. You get to test the limits of a car/bike (or yourself). And the Amaze didn’t disappoint in handling. The front end entered every corner with confidence and the car went exactly where she was directed. The ABS offered one of the best feels while braking, allowing me to complete turns shuffling between the brake and throttle. We also took the car off-road a little, and she was fine there too. The McPherson struts and Torsion beams hauled the 965 kg vehicle decently over stones and gravel. The height adjustment option of the driver’s seat was a blessing at this time, giving me more visibility of the road (or gravel). Priced between 6-8 lakhs on road Mumbai, this is the perfect entry level sedan. It has everything a family can want.

The only drawback of the vehicle is the sluggishness while accelerating. The car takes a few moments to gain momentum, as if the engine has a turbocharger with some lag. Lifting off from the 2^nd gear is difficult; you have to use the 1^st gear if you’re standing still. The people at Honda say this is a rev happy vehicle, and she did sound throaty at high revs in lower gears. But you wouldn’t want to push the car to 6k revs in the 2^nd gear. Plus, like the Honda Civic (which, sadly, Honda doesn’t plan on bringing back soon), the gear lever feels woody. Not like the Hyundais or the VWs. But I guess that’s trademark Honda by now.

We had a great time at Aamby Valley. The city is a township in itself. Beautiful roads, plantations, houses similar to those in Bali and auditoriums... but that’s a different point altogether. We were given a presentation on some ‘Wow’ aspects of the Brio and the Amaze. It’s amazing to know that while the Brio is more spacious than the Maruti Alto, it has a shorter wheelbase. The management of Honda were patient in answering all our questions. Lunch was great too, contrary to mediocre food dished out at most events. And then there were the events. The slalom course challenge in the Brio and Filled Tumbler challenge in the Amaze. Glad to say that yours truly won the Filled Tumbler challenge, spilling a mere 100 ml of water while driving through the cones. The event was perfect. Hats off to Anmol, Songita, Diwakar, Subesh and Shweta from Bloggers’ Mind and to others for organizing an awesome event. The challenges were designed around the strengths of the cars. It was an event focussed on showcasing the abilities of the car instead of just creating hype. It was great to meet and interact with Shivani san, Shakeel san, Siddharth san, Sen san, Aneesh san and others from Honda. They were warm, approachable and hospitable. As the saying goes “You meet the nicest people in (a) Honda.”