My First BIG Road Trip In A Small Car Feat. The Renault Kwid

There is a saying that company and friends matter more than the destination on a road trip. But for this author, there’s another thing that matters just as much, and that’s the car. So when Renault invited us to experience its MY2024 lineup on a road trip from Bangalore to Goa, I was quite excited for it.

Dreams of cruising through the scenic routes were flying through my head, of me driving the Renault Kiger turbo-petrol, giving it the beans on the butter smooth roads. But boy, was I wrong! We were assigned the most humble car out of Renault’s lineup — the Kwid. My heart sank a bit because it’s the least powerful car here, with the least amount of features.

But life throws challenges at you and like Barney Stinson says in ‘How I Met Your Mother,’ I grabbed the keys and said — “Challenge Accepted.” This is my first-ever road-trip in such a small car and I had plenty of thoughts running through my head in anticipation. In this epic 600 plus km road trip, the Kwid will be put through the ghats of Coorg, the broken tarmac of the West Coast Road and even through surprise torrential rains.

Day 1: Bangalore To Madikeri Via Mysore

After completing all the required formalities, our convoy flagged off from our hotel near the Bangalore Airport to Madikeri. Our first task was slicing through Bangalore’s traffic which was the perfect environment to check out how the Kwid performs inside town.

Thankfully, an afternoon start meant skipping Bangalore’s peak traffic, but the roads were still packed. Sadly, the Kwid’s achilles heel, its poor low-end response, meant we had to work the gearbox to keep it in the boil. But mercifully, that wasn’t a task, thanks to the light clutch and controls.

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We reached the new Bangalore — Mysore expressway in about an hour. A new 10-lane highway (six main lanes and four service lanes) which cut short the 110-odd km driving time from three hours to just 1.5 hours. Roads were smooth, no doubt, but the traffic wasn't as smooth with many examples of poor lane discipline and stopped vehicles, that too in the fast lane.

Also Read: Marvelous Rajasthan In A Mahindra Thar

Soon, dark grey skies start