I’m yet to take my SUV to the service centre for evaluation.
BHPian RijuC recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
Couple of minor accidents and Jimny build quality:
On 29th March, we were heading towards Kasol. It was a bright sunny day and we were enjoying the drive through the tunnels and butter-smooth new tarmac. After crossing the Atul tunnel in Kullu, there was a turn and suddenly I could see a stranded Honda City in the middle of the road! Applied the brake in full force. However, my Automatic Transmission Jimny failed to stop fully and touched the rear bumper and Dickey of the City. Later I came to know that the place is just opposite to “Thalaut” police station. What I could understand was that a couple of policemen either flagged down or were talking to an Alto. The Honda City behind the Alto could come to a halt safely. But I was the unfortunate guy. Both parties came out to inspect how much was the damage and then parked their respective cars on the roadside. Policemen were very delighted to intervene. They took sides of the Honda City accusing that I crashed into a stationary car.
I readily offered them insurance filing charges and also informed them that their insurance claims would perhaps be covered by my third-party coverage. However, policemen found that the Honda City didn’t have any valid insurance. It was actually a pre-owned car (as informed by the owner). The elderly gentleman called up his other group cars and about 7-8 young hot-headed chaps arrived in two more Honda City cars in no time. It was kind of an “Animal” scene for them. They wanted to break the windshield and glasses of my Jimny for which I gladly agreed and said, please go ahead. It would cost me 3000 rupees only to replace those glasses. The policemen wanted to seize both the cars and lodge an FIR. I said, please go ahead. Since the Honda City was on the road without any insurance, the case will be in my favour in no time. Meanwhile, things were getting heated up and I couldn’t connect to any of my known guys from Kullu/ Manali/ Bhuntar readily. They demanded 10k from me. And finally, damage to my wallet could be negotiated to 5k. During all this drama, I could check that there was no leakage of any fluid, oil, coolant etc. The bumper grill clips were visible, the right side metal panels around the grill were dented and the paints peeled off at a few places. The car engine and AC were running absolutely fine during the negotiation. I was driving at a lower speed (I guess it was not more than 40 kmph). However, I am yet to install the dashcam. Hence couldn’t analyse the sequence of events, speed when I detected and pressed the brake, speed at the impact point etc. Since the airbags didn’t deploy, I guess the impact or speed was lower than the airbag actuation set point.
There was absolutely no injury to anyone. I am lucky that there was no damage to the headlamps. I am attaching the photographs of the damaged Honda City rear part and dented/ scratched parts of my Jimny.
Ultimately, the matter was settled and we finally arrived at Kasol. The next day, we visited Sri Manikaran Sahib and then started for Tosh. It was raining heavily and heard that it was snowing in Tosh and nearby areas. Just after Manikaran, we had to cross the river and then take a hairpin bend in the uphill direction. It was raining heavily and muddy water was flowing down on the tarmac. Suddenly I could see a flying bike coming down, taking the hairpin bend at high speed, losing control and screeching sound- just like an intense action movie. There was a heavy impact on the right side, a banging sound, screaming co-passenger. This time, Jimny came to a halt within no time. The biker was in full riding gear. It was a kind of sleek racing-type bike and not a heavy cruiser like Royal Enfield etc. (Since I can’t ride a bike, I have no idea about the brand or type or spec of the bike). The right knee of my co-passenger rubbed against some interior surface and she felt pain. I came out and inspected the right side. I could see a few scratch marks on the right side front door and on the right side rear wheel arch plastic cladding. Fortunately, the biker could stand on his feet with the help of a few nearby bystanders. I am not sure whether they are friends or strangers, whether it was just an accident or they were filming reels for stunts and I arrived there at the wrong time! My wife asked me to return back to Kasol immediately. However, I decided to proceed towards Tosh for a few kilometres, have a tea (actually inspect the vehicle closely) and then return back. It was past 4 pm already, and after a few kms drive, I could sense the weather was turning bad and decided to turn back.
After returning to Gurgaon, I have yet to visit the service station for evaluation and repair work due to overriding priorities. Next week I have plans to visit Sahibabad or Ghaziabad NEXA service stations since I don’t have any confidence in Gurgaon NEXA service centres to carry out any repair works of Jimny.
Once upon a time, Honda City was one of my dream cars. However, now I am happy to drive a Jimny.
Need to check the following things at the service centre:
- Any metallic structure damage behind the bumper,
- Any damage to airbag actuation sensors,
- Headlamp alignment.
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