CAR CARE
Your car is the most important person during the trip. Lavish your attention on it before, during and after the trip. A well-maintained car (with an intelligent preventive maintenance schedule) is the best guarantee for a trouble-free smooth trip. Have the car serviced before you leave on any long trip. Make sure that all vital signs are OK – oils (engine, brake), coolants, belts, etc. Sensitise yourself to listening for those tiny squeaks and noises that signal impending failure or mechanical problems.
Tyres are the most important. Good treads, proper air pressure (keep checking them often, invest in your own pressure gauge) and inspect for bent rims and cut sidewalls. If possible, balance your wheels even during the trip (i.e. if you find a balancing shop). Check your spare tyre, keep a couple of spare tubes and don’t forget your jack and spanner.
Keep away from roadside mechanics as far as possible and collect addresses of dealers and service stations en route before hand. Maruti car owners, don’t worry: that ad of Gypsy in the Ladakh Himalayas was not exaggerated – there are Maruti service stations all over India.
Remember you are not driving in the city. Refuel well in advance of your tank emptying out. Quality of petrol can be dubious, so always try to refuel in relatively larger towns, especially in pumps that appear to be popular. Keep track of your consumption.
Familiarise yourself with simple mechanical tasks to do if something goes wrong in your car. Several problems can be traced to the electrical fuses, so locate them in advance. Carry your service manual with you always. Carry spare keys, spare spectacles and photocopies of important documents. Carry a couple of powerful torches and simple tools such as scissors, scotch tapes and adhesives.
During our North east trip, we had to replace one of the shock absorbers, balance the tyres twice, clean the filters midway and top up the engine oils and coolant. Air pressure in the tyres was checked daily, often a few times during the same day itself. Fog lamps failed thrice because the wires were swept away by impact with rough roads. Two punctures, but then we carried 4 spare tubes and we have mastered the art of changing a tyre in 5 minutes flat.
Driving is definitely not for the squeamish.