For over a decade now, I have been riding down to Goa. In fact, ever since I got my licence, I have never driven to Goa until now. My family yearned to visit our native place there, and this was going be my missus’ first time there, so naturally, I had to take the long-term Dzire along for the drive.
I had my doubts whether it would make it through the NH66 safely with four people and a trunk full of luggage. Assuming that this could be a long journey, we set off in the dark, and the car’s LED headlights didn’t really stand a chance when the oncoming traffic was using high beams, so I took it slow in an attempt to go safely through the bad stretches. Surprisingly, the loaded Dzire handled things just fi ne.
A quick caffeine break around sunrise and we were back on the road. Although I would have preferred a little more oomph from the engine, having my family with me meant I had to be a little gentle with my right foot. And even with that, we were doing good speeds through the steep ghats.
All this while, my parents were extremely comfortable, and didn’t feel the need to get out and stretch their old legs. In fact, I had to insist and ask them to step out of the car for a bit after six hours of non-stop driving. At the end of it, we made it to the hotel in under 11 hours and in just a tankful of petrol. In Goa, too, this car was just about perfect to drive through the narrow lanes. The trip back was even shorter and I never thought I’d ever say this, but maybe driving down to Goa isn’t a bad idea, after all.
