a marathon drive
across india in the ford ikon
28.54kpl
for 20,000km

DRIVER’S
DIARY
‘The Autocar-Ford Ikon
Cross Country Drive
AN IKONIC
was a test of the Ikon’s
endurance, durability
and reliability.’
wo Ford Ikon saloons, powered by the 1.4-litre TDCi engines,
drove out of the Ford facility gates in Chennai on April 22,
2009. Accompanying the Ikons was a Ford Fiesta 1.6 petrol
acting as the support car. The cars would circumambulate
India, driving over 20,000km in the process. They would go
from the mountains to the plains; from dry to rain; from hot
to cold. The Autocar-Ford Ikon Cross Country Drive would be a test of the
Ikon’s endurance, durability and reliability.
Most Indian customers are obsessed with fuel economy, while failing to
appreciate that fuel consumption accounts for only a part of the running
cost. There are consumables like engine oil and brake fluid. You also have
to factor in tyre wear. And service costs. So while kilometre per litre is
important, what’s more important is cost per kilometre. The mission of
the Autocar-Ford Ikon Cross Country Drive was to find out how cheap, or
expensive, the Ford Ikon is to run in the real-world environment. So apart
from keeping an eye on the fuel gauge, the team monitored every paisa
that went into running the car including consumables and service costs. It
was also a test of the cars’ quality and reliability. In this one drive, the cars
have encountered more extreme conditions than most do in a lifetime.
The cars returned to Chennai on June 13 after clocking 20,263.7km
on the odometer. Independent auditors KPMG were on hand to validate
the facts and figures of the drive. How did the cars fare? What was the
best mileage? And the worst? What was the running cost per kilometre?
RoSHnI CHInubHAI
Where were the best driving roads? And the road to hell? Here’s the
complete story.
Chennai Pondicherry Trivandrum Mangalore
0.0km 124.5km 782.8km 1446.7km
2 3

DRIVE
AROUND
The cars proved as robust as
the historic BMC building in
Mumbai built in 1893.
The wheels rotated Flag-off by Michael Boneham, managing director
1,1,3,92 times to and president of Ford India, with executive director
complete the drive. of marketing, sales and service, Nigel Wark.
ThE TEAm
Ameya Dandekar — Driver
Baljinder Singh — Driver
Manish Sarser — Driver
Rahul Kakar — Driver
Ravi Dhama — Driver
Santosh Gangadharan — Driver
Niki Sorabjee — Support car driver
Noel Alok Krishnan — Event co-ordinator
Ashley Baxter — Photographer
Himanshu Pandya — Photographer
M Sathya — Photographer
Abhijeet Anand — Photographer
Conceived and executed by Autocar India Special Projects for Ford India Ltd
Words Joy Chaudhuri, Ameya Dandekar, baljinder Singh, Manish Sarser, Rahul Kakar,
Ravi Dhama, Santosh Gangadharan Design Ellared D’Souza Image editing Pralhad
Kusuma Printed & Published by Haymarket SAC Publishing (India) Pvt Ltd Printed at
Kala Jyothi Process Pvt Ltd, 1-1-60/5, RTC X Roads, Musheerabad, Hyderabad 500 020
Dal Lake in Srinagar
Bangalore Daman
Panjim Gandhinagar
Hospet is heaven on earth. Hyderabad
Udaipur
1802km 2501.3km 3007km 3486.3km
 

DRIVE
AROUND
‘The Autocar-Ford Ikon Cross Country
Drive was independently audited by KPmG
who monitored and verified all the data and
figures. The cars were constantly tracked
throughout the drive using Reliance Telematics’
GPS/GPRS-based vehicle tracking system.’
Gandhi
Pune Daman Nagar Udaipur
4063.6km 4383.3km 4806.3km 5138.1km
 

DRIVER’S
DIARY
ike everyone else, when I first heard about the trip, with a feather-light foot is important.
Passing a big landslide
I was only thinking about how much fun we were An advantage of a diesel car is the torque.
en route to Gangtok was not a
problem for the Ikon, thanks to going to have. once on the road, reality hit us soon Ford’s fantastic Duratorq engine, which we love
its superb ground clearance. enough. And the first thing to hit us was the heat. The for its low-speed response, enabled us to drive
scorching, tar-melting summer heat. Since we wanted to, the car and change gears without touching the
among other things, test the effects of air-conditioning accelerator. This also helped us save a lot of fuel.
on the Ikon’s fuel economy, we were driving one of the The journey was incident-packed too. Gangtok
cars without the AC. In the height of summer! Driving is just 110km from Siliguri, so we expected to reach
through Central India and bihar was a nightmare with the Gangtok within three hours. Little did we know what
temperature inside the car reaching over 50deg C. The lay ahead. Around 50km before Gangtok, there had
Every litre, every
baking sun turned the interiors of the Ikon into a sauna. been a massive landslide. A huge rock had fallen
kilometre was documented.
no wonder most of the drivers lost weight on the trip. onto the road. And when I say huge, I mean it — the
The most difficult part of the trip was not the heat. truck standing next to it looked like an autorickshaw
It was not being able to floor the accelerator as we passed in comparison. The locals told us that it would take
through some fantastic driving roads. our mission was around seven hours to clear the mess, so we tried
to check the fuel economy figures of the car, not to set taking a different route. As luck would have it, there
speed records. was a landslide there too. So we were stranded and
on one of the runs I managed to get a fuel economy contemplated heading back to Siliguri. Just then a Jeep
figure of 38.63kpl. To get a good economy figure is as showed up with 10 people who began clearing the mess.
much brainwork as driving. And patience. The brain bit It took about four hours. There was enough room for small
comes in your ability to read and predict traffic. Driving cars to pass through and we managed to get through. only
at a constant speed gives maximum mileage, while the it took us a total of 11 hours instead of three!
engine consumes most fuel taking off from standstill. AmEYA
So you have to be able to read the traffic and make your
The effect of AC on fuel economy DANDEKAR
move smartly, somewhat like in a game of chess. The fact a AGE: 22 YEARS
that there was relatively less traffic in this sector helped us From To With AC Without AC
in achieving the figure. Lucknow Jhansi 24.73kpl 32.42kpl
Your driving skill plays a role too. Throttle control is key. Jhansi bhopal 28.29kpl 36.7kpl
bhopal nagpur 27.29kpl 37.42kpl
‘Driving
Even the slightest bit more pressure means feeding the
nagpur Raipur 29.83kpl 38.63kpl
engine more fuel. You have to drive believing there’s an
Raipur Raigarh 30.80kpl 37.62kpl
egg between the pedal and the floor. The ability to drive
through
Extreme heat in Central The contours of this lake in Central
India took its toll on the Shillong somewhat resemble
cars as well as the drivers. the map of India. India and
Bihar was a
nightmare
with the
temperature
inside the
car reaching
over 50°C. ’
We experienced rain
Jaipur Bikaner Chandigarh Amritsar
nearly in all parts of
5752.9km the North-East. 6091.9km 6675.9km 6905km
8 9

DRIVER’S
DIARY
Bangalore’s Vidhana
Soudha. Just another
landmark we drove
by without stopping.
Sunflowers as big as my face; a rare occasion when we were forced to make a stop.
fter you have lived 52 days inside a car, you
emerge with a completely new perspective.
An inch is not a unit of measure but the difference
between cramped and comfortable. Quality is not an
esoteric term; it means peace of mind. And MacPherson
rules over bhp.
on such a long drive, comfort is key. Discomfort
can lead to fatigue, and fatigue can lead to loss of
concentration. This can be dangerous. The Ikons
thankfully proved to be extremely comfortable.
While today we can boast of world-class roads and the kilometres we did in less than two months. And most
BALJINDER
the GQ, there are very many roads in India which seem road cars will never be subjected to the kind of demands
SINGH
AGE: 24 YEARS to have been constructed before the invention of bullock we made of the Ikon. Yet after 20,263.7km, the two Ford
Despite the heat, we enjoyed
carts. That the Ikons made it through these roads, past the Ikons were ready to turn around and do it all over again. the fabulous roads through
line of broken-down trucks, without picking up a rattle is Whether the drivers were ready is a different matter the deserts in Rajastan.
a minor miracle. And that none of us have had to visit a altogether.
chiropractor after a 20,000km drive is another. The truth be told, there were times that I wished that
The Ikon, when it was launched 10 years ago, made the car would break down. Let me explain why. This We prayed for a safe No Golden Quadrilateral this.
a reputation for itself as a driver’s car. In this drive, was my first trip to South India. It was a spectacular journey at the Golden Some national highways can’t
especially when we hit good roads, it soon became kaleidoscope of colour and culture. From Hyderabad’s Temple at Amritsar. even be called roads.
apparent why. The driving position is perfect. The steering Charminar to the Auroville Ashram in Pondicherry to the
‘That the continues to provide joy and feedback. The dynamics of
the chassis begs for nice, sweeping corners and we got
Vidhana Soudha in bangalore, it was my opportunity to
see them all. Actually I saw them all, but didn’t see any. I
Ikons made more than our fair share in north-East India. just saw them pass by our windscreen since we had no
Most importantly, the cars proved to be bullet-proof. time to stop and visit them.
it through We were only forced to stop to refuel. And attend to After a long, hard day’s drive everyone looked forward
without four punctures. Two service stops on the way just saw a to the end of the day. The nights were a lot of fun as we
routine oil change and a much-needed wash. all got together over dinner and discussed the day’s
picking up When we returned to Chennai, there were just some interesting events and the strategies for the next day.
a rattle is slight squeaks from the suspension since the thousands but more than that, it was about poking fun at each other.
of kilometres of bad roads had taken their toll on the After all, we had to do something to unwind.
a minor
’
bushes. nothing that a few hundred rupees would The drive is over, but now I have a new dream. buy
miracle. not rectify. myself a Ford Ikon and do the drive all over again. but
on an average, a car takes about two years to rack up this time I will stop at all the places.
Srinagar Pathankot Shimla Delhi
7419.2km 7488.2km 8158.8km 8579.4km
10 11

DRIVER’S
DIARY
It’s not just cows on the road you have to watch out for; a most memorable lunch at Haveli, Jalandhar; at the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun.
The star peacock preened while Himanshu shot away near Guwahati.
hat do you get when you go driving across the with the photography. Every little thing was captured in our
country? Well for one, you get to do what many lens and I mean everything — right from insects to famous
people will never do. You’ll see the diversity in landmarks. I remember this peacock that our photographer
terrain, the people, their cuisine and their culture. but Himanshu had taken a special liking to. We waited patiently
most of all, you will come back with an experience of a for it to pose while Himanshu shot without a care in the
lifetime; something which words simply cannot do justice world. He had forgotten that we had to get to Guwahati and
to. The Autocar-Ford Ikon Cross Country Drive was a very were in the middle of nowhere! We finally forced him back
good opportunity to see India. And since the drive was into the car, much to his dismay.
also about testing the car’s fuel efficiency, I was on the Another interesting episode occured on the road to
team by default. Agartala. There is a checkpost some 120km out of Agartala in
Driving is something that everyone on this team loves a village called Mannu. The rules (which we were obviously mANISh
We made friends everywhere. A very helpful Balkar Singh and his team at Itanagar; it took 11 hours to cover 110km from Siliguri to Gangtok. and enjoys, day in and day out. We love driving quick and unaware of) were that no vehicles were allowed after 6pm. SARSER
revel at the sight of curvy mountain roads. but since we So we had to stop over for the night in this village and AGE: 25 YEARS
were testing the car’s fuel economy, we had to curb this wait for the next military convoy which leaves at 7.30am.
The Ikons were allowed to temptation. It did break our hearts, but I can proudly say The Company Commander – Rajesh Sharma of the CRPF
proceed to Agartala only under that we did not succumb. In fact we turned our heartbreak – was really helpful and was kind enough to even arrange
the protection of a heavily armed
into a game and challenged each other to see who could accommodation for us. I’d like to thank him and Mr balkar
military escort vehicle.
extract the best mileage from the cars. And the winner was Singh of the Itanagar checkpost. both these gentlemen were
Ameya who managed to squeeze out 38.63kpl between very helpful and definitely made our passage through the
nagpur and Raipur. area much easier than it would have been otherwise.
We began our journey from the Ford plant in Chennai. but what I’ll remember the most is the drive up to
The first few days I was charged up even though the
weather wasn’t on our side. The southern belt had a
Srinagar from Pathankot. It is simply stunning, that place.
The scenery, the people, the narrow roads, it was all so
‘Every little
number of long sectors which meant early starts and late different — there was something about it that I will never thing was
finishes. While we drove, our shutterbugs did a brilliant job forget. I even had half a mind to stay back a few days
and catch up with the team later. other places I have
captured
A WoRD ABouT THE IKoN on my ‘do again’ list would be Shimla, Gangtok, Shillong in our lens,
and Aizwal.
Since I love driving, I have always loved the Ikon. But after this
20,000km drive, I am a certified fan. The Duratorq engine is Sitting here at home, I look at the photographs and relive
right from
fantastically refined. It pulls strongly from the lower revs and
doesn’t run out of breath. The fact that it’s extremely frugal is icing those exciting moments. on the drive, I knew that once all insects to
on the cake. on this long drive the other thing I learnt to appreciate this was over, I would miss waking up in a new place every
about the car is its robustness. It took whatever we threw at it famous
’
without any complaint. When you are miles from the nearest day (even though at that time I just wanted to go home).
signs of civilisation, knowing that the car won’t leave you stranded
played a large role in ensuring that we enjoyed the marathon trip.
It’s not so much fun out here in Mumbai anymore. I believe landmarks.
it’s time to dust off that leave form.
Dehradun Bareilly Lucknow Jhansi
8826.5km 9138.4km 9318.1km 9668.4km
12 13

DRIVER’S
DIARY
The support car loaded with all our luggage; the GPS recalculating to get us back on the track; Ikons passing a series of ditches en route to Aizawl.
hen I was first informed about the car, the Ford Fiesta 1.6 petrol. The Fiesta sits lower than
cross country drive, my idea of the event the Ikon and this being the support car was loaded with
was that it would be a fun-packed outing. all our luggage and equipment. Moreover, a truck was
The cherry on the cake — this was ‘official’ beached there leaving little space for the car to pass
work. Sure, it was a fun experience. However, during through. It was a bit of a tussle but then the Fiesta too
the course of our journey, I learnt that it takes a lot of made it through. I nearly kissed the car in gratitude,
hardwork, discipline and commitment to successfully since if the cars hadn’t made it through we would have
complete a marathon trip like this. had to spend the night on the road.
The drive not only tested the Ford Ikon, but the The other aspect that really stood out on this trip was
people driving it too. Inside the car, temperatures the dismal state of safety on our roads. If I remember
ranged from as high as 60deg C to as low as 10deg C. on correctly, India has the worst road safety record in
RAhUL an average we drove 400 to 500km every day. Getting the world. on each of our 52 days we saw at least The Ikon tasting some dirt
KAKAR delayed because of poor road conditions, traffic jams four accidents. At first we tried to keep count of the
on the road to Lucknow.
AGE: 24 YEARS
or natural calamities like landslides were a part and number of accidents, but soon lost count. While you
parcel of the drive. Then, at times, miscalculations by can blame the roads, the major cause of road accidents Even Roadhouse Blues
the GPS navigation system took us through much longer is a complete disregard for traffic laws. Throughout preaches “Keep your eyes
routes to add to our woes. Every day was like rush hour the country we saw people driving down the wrong on the road and your hands
as we couldn’t afford to waste any time given the tight side of the highway. We saw vehicles that shouldn’t be upon the wheel”.
schedule we had to stick to. You had to be alert every on the road, on the road. Trucks without lights, with
moment since vehicles would pop up unexpectedly, girders sticking out of the back, with bald wheels, with
driving down the wrong side of the highway. To ensure a inadequate brakes. We saw vehicles overloaded with
safe journey, we tried to make certain that everyone got people and goods. We saw drivers who should have
a good night’s sleep; difficult under the circumstances. their eyes tested. And also tested for intoxicants.
Well, you can’t expect a journey as gruelling as under such circumstances, the solid build of the
‘The solid
this one to come without its share of adventures. Ikon was reassuring.
one such incident happened en route to Aizwal. In case I have given you the impression that
We started from Agartala at around 11.30am, but it was a drive through hell, I apologise. In some
build of the due to the rain and bad roads we were still 450km parts of the country like Rajasthan, the roads are a
Ikon was away from our destination in the evening. As the rain driver’s delight. As we travelled from state to state,
continued, the road kept getting worse. At times, the the landscapes changed like a slideshow on a
reassuring Ford Ikons had to struggle to make it through, with the computer screen. We drove through some of the
on our cars’ underbellies scraping rocks that were hidden in most spectacular vistas in the country. We met many
knee-high slush. The next ditch we came across was wonderful people. And throughout the drive, the cars
dangerous
’
really deep. The Ikons almost got stuck there, but thanks performed flawlessly.
highways. to their ground clearance managed to make it through. Driving through India is an exhilarating experience.
next was my turn. I was behind the wheel of the support now if only we could make it a safer experience.
Bhopal Nagpur Raipur Raigarh
10064.1km 10436.5km 10711.2km 10944.5km
1 1

DRIVER’S
DIARY
Elephant falls at Shillong; HAL Ajeet fighter at the airforce museum near Shillong; we came across some fantastic driving roads all through.
e are a nation obsessed with fuel efficiency. sector. That is better mileage than the Ikon
“Average kya hai?” is the stock question. without the AC. How did this happen? Well, the
After driving over 20,000km, I can say there is reason again is speed. While the lead non-AC Ikon
no average average. one of the key factors that affect the was tearing down to Delhi, the second Ikon maintained
fuel economy of the car is the road condition. A good a relatively relaxed pace. So if you really want to get
road where you can maintain a steady speed translates good mileage from your car, keep an eye on your
into good fuel economy. Thank goodness, India has speedometer. It’s the biggest culprit when it comes to
started investing in good roads. It not only makes the fuel economy.
drive more comfortable, but also saves the exchequer on the other hand we encountered some fantastic
heavy oil import bills. roads that helped us record some amazing fuel
Driving up to Shimla from Pathankot, we had to economy. The road between nagpur and Raipur was
traverse some narrow roads with lots of broken sections. a flat stretch with hardly any traffic. Though there were a RAVI
It was mostly second gear-third gear throughout the few obstructions to steer around, for the most part DHAmA
314km sector. no wonder we recorded one of the worst we could maintain a steady speed and rarely had to AGE: 25 YEARS
fuel economy figures here — 20.52kpl. shift out of fifth gear. We recorded an average of
The team spent more
Another bad section was between Agartala and 38.63kpl in this sector.
money on tolls than on
having the cars serviced. Aizwal. It was perhaps the worst road in the entire trip. The Autocar-Ford Ikon Cross Country Drive has
That it was a mountain road just made matters worse. proved to me that modern car engine technology
Again we got an abysmally low mileage, just 24.32kpl. is inherently efficient. Then it is up to us to use it
Living together in such close You may be laughing when I talk about 20kpl as a most efficiently.
proximity for 2 days can test terrible average, since most of you will be more than
the best friendships. BEST SECToRS
happy with it. but for us, who pride ourselves on driving
Sector Remarks Average Fuel
a car in the most efficient manner possible, this was a Speed Economy
badge of shame. nagpur-Raipur Good flat roads, with some
diversions and sparse traffic. 43.5kph 38.63kpl
Surprisingly, we recorded the worst fuel consumption Raipur-Raigarh Sparse traffic encountered,
on a good road. The road between Shimla and Delhi is two-laner all the way. 38.7kph 37.62kpl
‘Speed is
bhopal-nagpur Lot of traffic in the beginning and
mostly a four-laner. We left Shimla at five in the morning slightly uphill, the road opens up
later and goes downhill. 42kph 37.42kpl
and had to cover 420km in eight hours since there was
a press conference scheduled at one in the afternoon.
WoRST SECToRS the biggest
Sector Remarks Average Fuel
So it was a pedal-to-metal drive whenever possible.
And entering Delhi we got stuck in heavy traffic which Shimla-Delhi Flat-out drive to reach Delhi,
Speed Economy
culprit when
reduced our speed to a crawl. The combination of
ghats at the beginning and
then a four-laner all the way. 44.5kph 17.50kpl it comes
Pathankot-Shimla narrow ghat roads, lot of broken
spirited driving and congestion played havoc with our sections of roads, mostly uphill
to fuel
’
fuel economy and we recorded just 17.50kpl on this run. all the way till Shimla. 36.3kph 20.52kpl
economy.
Agartala-Aizawl Very long stretch of ghats and the
Another interesting fact crops up here. The Ikon, with worst road conditions encountered
throughout the drive. 37.2kph 24.32kpl
the AC switched on, managed to get 17.95kpl on this
Ranchi Patna Siliguri Gangtok
11282.7km 11577.6km 12019.8km 12161.8km
1 1

DRIVER’S
DIARY
Some more miles to go before we sleep. . . ; floating market at the Dal Lake in Srinagar; passing through Jawahar Tunnel, the longest in India.
t was around 10 at night by the time we reached So when the Indian Army soldiers fired a volley of
the outskirts of bikaner. The unlit highway was questions at us, we could barely speak as we’d never
deserted as it meandered through the ghostly had to talk to the barrel of a gun before. Since our
silhouettes of trees. The GPS was mapped to the white faces and chattering teeth didn’t fit in with the
hotel we were supposed to stay at that night. With profile of an extremist, they waved us on. It was to
three kilometres still to go before the city limits be the first of a series of encounters with the army
began, the GPS announced that we had arrived. What we were to have that night before we could reach GPS cannot always keep pace
with the constantly changing
surrounded us was sparse desert vegetation, and the safety of Guwahati. That these ominous-looking geography of our cities.
what lay ahead was a desolate road. Maybe the GPS soldiers, armed to the teeth, looked tense as their
was wrong? Then we saw it. To our left, barely visible eyes constantly surveyed the darkness didn’t do our
in the darkness, was a small gate. We had indeed confidence much good. It was only behind the locked
SANTOSh
arrived. A group of travelers stranded in the middle doors of the hotel that night that my pulse slowly
GANGADHARAN
AGE: 33 YEARS of the night, in a hotel in the middle of nowhere. This returned to normal.
was the perfect setting for a Ramsay brothers movie. While danger lurks in the darkness in Assam,
nothing could be further from the truth. A retinue extortion thrives in daylight in bihar. The only
of smiling, friendly staff received us with welcome way past the groups of men blocking the road
drinks. The cottages were luxurious. And the dinner is a fifty-rupee note. Think of it as an unofficial toll
by the pool, under a moonlit sky, was one of the best for the privilege of driving through some of the
I have ever eaten. worst roads in India.
‘The unlit
This was just one of the many surprises we While we encountered some terrible roads,
encountered in our long drive, some good and we also got some fantastic ones. The one road
some not so. shining bright in my memory is the Golden
highway was A not-so-pleasant experience was the drive to Quadrilateral stretch from Kolkata to
deserted Guwahati. The sun goes down early in the eastern bhubaneswar. It is a perfectly laid stretch where
part of the country and it’s dark by early evening. you can see for kilometres ahead, and the colour of
as it As darkness descended, we were still a distance the road is pure white!
meandered away from Guwahati. Frequent patches of bad road Another image that sticks in my mind are the roads
were slowing us down. And as it became darker we of Chandigarh. Actually not the roads themselves, but
through realised that we were the only people on the road. the cars on the road. nearly every car in Chandigarh
the ghostly All around us was the jungle swallowed up by the is kitted out in alloys and upsized tyres. Chandigarh
inky darkness. but we soon found that we were loves alloys and big tyres like no other city in India.
silhouettes
’
not alone. The wave of a torchlight brought us to a They say that India is a land of contradictions. It
of trees. halt. In the darkness at the side of the road was a took me over 20,000km to truly appreciate what that
It’s a lovely drive to Shimla.
Jeep with a machine gun aimed straight at the car. statement really means. And then it gets even better.
Guwahati Itanagar Shillong Agartala
12732.2km 13051.3km 13440.3km 13947.4km
18 19

IN
NUmBERS
Number of days on road: 52
oVERALL FuEL ECoNoMy: 28.54kpl WoRST FuEL ECoNoMy WITH AC:
Highest elevation: 2,205m, Shimla
17.95kpl between Shimla
Number of days lunch was skipped: 34 BEST FuEL ECoNoMy: 38.63kpl and Delhi Lowest outside temperature:
between nagpur and Raipur 13.4 °C at Patni Top, J&K
Number of wheel rotations: 1,15,53,592
ToTAL DISTANCE TRAVELLED:
Every drop accounted for.
ToTAL LITRES oF DIESEL: 709.82
GPS used to compute data.
20,263.7km Highest outside temperature:
Average distance covered in a day:
440.51km WoRST FuEL ECoNoMy: 17.50kpl NuMBER oF CITIES & ToWNS
44.8°C at Gaya
between Shimla and Delhi VISITED: 43
Maximum distance covered in a day: Number of chocolate bars
693.1km from Varanasi to Kolkata BEST FuEL ECoNoMy WITH AC: ToTAL SERVICE CoST: Rs 5,246 consumed: 124
Service support throughout. 30.41kpl between bikaner Road mishaps common.
Minimum distance covered in a day: and Chandigarh CoST PER KILoMETRE: Rs 1.39 Number of hotels stayed at: 46
112km from Siliguri to Gangtok
Number of roadkill spotted: 500-plus
Lowest average speed: 28.9kph Total cost of tolls: Rs 5,441 Number of CDs listened to: 4
Number of road accidents spotted:
Service Centre in Delhi. Highest average speed: 77.4kph Number of punctures: 4 Number of pictures taken: 7,700 300-plus Food was always welcome.
Number of state capitals visited: 25 Number of drivers: 6 Distance travelled with armed escort: Number of times papers and
120km between Kumarghat documentation checked: 6
Number of union territories visited: 3 Number of drivers who got the loosies: 5 and Agartala
Amount of drinking water
Puncture on the lead Ikon.
Number of Ford dealerships en route: 28 Total time behind the wheel: 406.6 hours Lowest price of diesel: consumed: 728 litres Checkpost at Itanagar.
Rs 29.77 at Agartala
Number of service stops: 2 Total time of the trip: 1,248 hours Longest time behind the wheel: 26 hours
Most expensive diesel:
Total engine oil consumed: 9 litres Number of Red Bull cans consumed: 528 Rs 35.30 at Hospet Shortest time behind the wheel: 4 hours
176 Number of Red Bull cans that exploded: 1 Lowest elevation: 6m, Puri Number of times got lost: 3
Highest outside temperature. Number of toll booths: Toll booth at Jammu.
Aizawl Shillong Siliguri Kolkata
14505.4km 14864.9km 15405.4km 15977.6km
20 21

BEST &
WORST
Tyre wear afTer 20,263.7km
on front-wheel-drive cars, it’s something of a norm that the front tyres wear out
quicker than the rear tyres. Well, this is something we were able to confirm on the
drive, as we monitored the wear on the Ikons’ tyres. We noticed that the front tread
wore out far quicker than the rear tyres, which was mainly due to the type of terrain
we were forced to steer the car over. The initial tread depth at the beginning of the
drive was 7mm.
righT rear lefT rear
Outer middle inner inner middle Outer
Tread Tread Tread Tread Tread Tread
5mm 4mm 5mm 5mm 4.5mm 5mm
righT frOnT lefT frOnT
Outer middle inner inner middle Outer
Autocar India handing over the drive Tread Tread Tread Tread Tread Tread
certificate, validated by KPMG, to Ford India. 5mm 4mm 3mm 3mm 3mm 4mm
bEST AnD WoRST oF THE AuToCAR-FoRD IKon CRoSS CounTRY DRIVE
BEST DRIVING RoAD BEST LANDSCAPE WoRST WEATHER WoRST MAINTAINED
bikaner to Chandigarh Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir Raipur, Chattisgarh PRIVATE CARS: Delhi
WoRST DRIVING RoAD WoRST LANDSCAPE
Agartala to Aizwal Patna, bihar BEST oRGANISED BEST CITy FoR RoAD
TRAFFIC SIGNS: Chandigarh
BEST FooD BEST STATE RoAD Gangtok, Sikkim WoRST CITy FoR RoAD
Haveli in Jalandhar INFRASTRuCTuRE WoRST oRGANISED SIGNS: bareilly
WoRST FooD Rajasthan TRAFFIC
uberoi Anand, bareilly WoRST STATE RoAD 90 per cent of India BEST FEATuRE IN A
INFRASTRuCTuRE CAR oN A LoNG DRIVE
BEST HoTEL Mizoram BEST MAINTAINED Air-conditioner
Ri Kyunji Resort, Shillong PRIVATE CARS WoRST FEATuRE IN A
WoRST HoTEL BEST WEATHER Chandigarh CAR oN A LoNG DRIVE
Darya Darshan, Daman Shimla, Himachal Pradesh bad co-passenger
Bhuba- Visakha-
Vijayawada Chennai
neswar patnam
18713.9km 19263.9km 19818.1km 20263.7km
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DRIVER’S
DIARY
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