Preparing for multi-year remote drives means relying on gear that handles heavy loads and unpredictable terrain. Below is the exact tool inventory currently mounted to the vehicle’s roof rack and rear storage panels.
Dropping tire pressure down to 15-18 PSI is absolutely critical for gaining traction over loose sand or deep trail mud.
If the vehicle high-centers on a mud shelf, these high-impact polypropylene boards slide under the tires to provide instant traction.
A 20-tonne recovery strap with reinforced eyelets, packed in a roll-up bag.
| Item | Last serviced | Next due |
|---|---|---|
| Tire deflator | 2026-07-25 (cleaned) | After every trip |
| Recovery boards | 2026-07-25 (rinsed) | After every trip |
| Snatch strap | 2026-07-25 (inspected) | Annually |
The goal isn’t to carry the kitchen sink. It’s to carry the minimum viable recovery kit for the kind of terrain this vehicle will actually face. Three items, well-maintained, are worth more than thirty items gathering dust.
# Quick reference
loads:
snatch_strap_min: 8000 # kg
recovery_boards_dim: 1150x330x80 # mm
deflator_accuracy: 1 # PSI
]]>Reminder: Test the gear at home before you need it on the trail.
The Fortuner ate up the ECR in comfort. No notes on the suspension, no fuss on the curves. Cruise control held 90 km/h for most of the run.
Driver Note: Fuel efficiency stayed at 11.8 km/l on the highway — better than the city average of 9.2 km/l.
fortuner.In our next log, we’ll cover the post-trip wash and underbody inspection.
]]>The monsoon rains were relentless, turning the standard mountain pass trails into challenging muddy tracks. The vehicle handled the slippery switchbacks flawlessly — torque delivery remained smooth, and the new traction-control settings kept the chassis incredibly stable through the river crossings.
Driver Note: Fuel efficiency dropped to roughly 9.5 km/l due to heavy idling and low-range gear usage in the deep mud sections.
The night at 4,200m was -5°C. The sleeping bag we used was rated to -10°C and kept us warm through the freeze.
| Stage | Distance | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Manali to Rohtang Pass | 51 km | 2-hour wait at the top due to landslide |
| Rohtang to Gramphoo | 23 km | First water crossing of the trip |
| Gramphoo to Kaza | 110 km | Long day, lots of slush |
| Kaza to Leh | 230 km | Via Kunzum Pass |
| Leh to Manali | 316 km | Return via the same route |
# Sample YAML used in the field
trip:
start: 2026-07-20
end: 2026-07-25
vehicles: 1
crew: 2
In our next log, we will inspect the air filters and check for underbody debris before pushing further north.
]]>_data/expenses.csv tagged with car: "Fortuner" rolls up below — fuel, maintenance, accessories, tolls, and other — across every trip and every one-off spend since the vehicle joined the fleet.
The report card at the bottom of this page is regenerated on every build. The itemized log can be expanded to view every line.
Append a row to _data/expenses.csv. Each row must set:
date — calendar date (YYYY-MM-DD)car — Fortuner (must match this post’s car: exactly)trip_id — for spend tied to a specific trip, use that trip’s id. For non-trip spend, use a stable identifier like ownership-2026.category — one of fuel, maintenance, accessories, tolls, otheramount — whole rupees (no commas, no decimals)description — short free textSee docs/data-format.md for the full schema.
fortuner.The report card below auto-renders from _data/expenses.csv on every Jekyll build.
_data/expenses.csv tagged with car: "Honda Elevate" rolls up below — fuel, maintenance, accessories, tolls, car wash, and other — across every trip and every one-off spend since the vehicle joined the fleet.
The report card at the bottom of this page is regenerated on every build. The itemized log can be expanded to view every line.
Append a row to _data/expenses.csv. Each row must set:
date — calendar date (YYYY-MM-DD)car — Honda Elevate (must match this post’s car: exactly)trip_id — for spend tied to a specific trip, use that trip’s id. For non-trip spend, use a stable identifier like ownership-2026 or first-wash.category — one of fuel, maintenance, accessories, tolls, car wash, otheramount — whole rupees (no commas, no decimals)description — short free textSee docs/data-format.md for the full schema.
honda-elevate.The report card below auto-renders from _data/expenses.csv on every Jekyll build.
_data/expenses.csv tagged with car: "Thar 4x4" rolls up below — fuel, maintenance, accessories, tolls, and other — across every trip and every one-off spend since the vehicle joined the fleet.
The report card at the bottom of this page is regenerated on every build. The itemized log can be expanded to view every line.
Append a row to _data/expenses.csv. Each row must set:
date — calendar date (YYYY-MM-DD)car — Thar 4x4 (must match this post’s car: exactly)trip_id — for spend tied to a specific trip, use that trip’s id. For non-trip spend, use a stable identifier like ownership-2026.category — one of fuel, maintenance, accessories, tolls, otheramount — whole rupees (no commas, no decimals)description — short free textSee docs/data-format.md for the full schema.
thar-4x4.The report card below auto-renders from _data/expenses.csv on every Jekyll build.