Tata Motors recently organised Full Throttle Trails at Lonavala with about 20 Tata Safaris participating in the event. We too were there
The eighth edition of Tata Motors Full Throttle Trails was held recently at the quiet little hill station of Lonavala, close to the company’s Pune headquarters. And we, at Car India, were able to be a part of this wonderful off-road experience.
Basically, the event was open only to the owners of Tata SUVs and a healthy 15+ Safaris were seen participating. Most of the owners were rookies when it came to off-roading and that was one of the reasons why Tata Motors chose the Rajmachi trekking route for this excursion. It is a narrow off-road course where there are places which can only be tackled in a 4 X 4 SUV. However, many of the participants were able to cross these sections with ease even in their 4 X 2 Safaris. I was driving a Xenon, which proved to be a perfect partner for this trail. There were also a couple of Sumos, which were brought by the organisers.
This trail was like the other trail events Tata had organised in the past. The total distance was just seven kilometres since most of the course was proper off-road. We had to cross around five challenges before reaching the turn-around point before village Rajmachi.
We started from the Upper Deck resort, which lies at the beginning of the trail. We headed to our first challenge, which was located two kilometres from the hotel. We had to cross a stream, making our way between big boulders and water before coming out on a slushy piece of land on the other side. At first it looked as if the 4 X 2 Safaris would get stuck at the end of the challenge. However, none of the Safaris got stuck. The Xenon I was driving crossed the stream in less than 40 seconds as its powerful 2.2-litre DiCOR motor and the four-wheel drive system helped it glide through the obstacles and get out on the other side with ease.
After this challenge it was time for some serious slush and mud. Challenges two and three were sort of combined challenges as first I had to cross the slush and mud, which went like a breeze in the Xenon, and then it was slightly uphill on a very rough, rocky terrain, which again proved to be an easy task for my Xenon. The 200-mm ground clearance and powerful 4 X 4 system of the Xenon make off-roading look like child’s play.
After crossing the three aforementioned challenges it was time for another challenge, which involved crossing a stream once again. This time it was a little more difficult than the first stream crossing. In the Xenon, however, it was not an issue as I simply switched to ‘4 High’ and attacked the stream with vim and, before I could realise it, I was through, but the challenge did not stop there. After crossing the stream the trail went uphill and it was filled with mud, soil and rocks, but the Xenon took everything in its stride with ease.
After tackling water once again I was on my way to the last and final challenge, which involved crossing a hill. It was a steep climb, but with 320 Nm of torque and four-wheel drive at my beck and call, I simply nailed the throttle until I reached the top and then turned right to go downhill. The last challenge was a particularly tricky one because of a sudden right-hand turn. But it was the most fun-filled too.
After completing the five challenges I felt relieved, but the fun was not yet over as we had to drive back to the hotel the same way we came and now, being familiar with the route, I simply nailed the throttle and was going at it as if in a rally. Coming back was more fun than going as there was no obstruction and no stopping. It was simply a mad rush going back to the hotel and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
This trail also proved that Tata Motors SUVs with two-wheel drive also have the same off-roading capability as shown by the fact that none of the 4 X 2 Safaris got stuck anywhere on this trail and faced no problem in tackling the challenges.
In the Xenon, however, it was not an issue as I simply switched to ‘4 High’ and attacked the stream with vim and, before I could realise it, I was through
Story: Ravi Chandnani
Photography: Tata Motors
