TWO TO TANGO

The impressive Toyota Hilux meets the mighty Himalayas

- AKSHAY JADHAV

Just like it takes two to Tango, enjoying the abilities of a pickup truck as iconic as the Toyota Hilux needs an equally challenging terrain. I have been driving the Hilux in the urban jungle and am impressed by how well it exudes the lifestyle element.

The bold looks, authoritative stance and a sizeable list of creature comforts are enough reasons to convince you to make the Hilux your daily driver. However, I am keen to explore more of the pickup’s potential so the logical step is to drive it up to the mighty Himalayas.

My journey commences with navigating the chaotic New Delhi traffic and the Hilux makes it feel easy. Once you get past the large dimensions, the light steering and relatively short turning radius helps navigate through the notorious “shortcuts” of the capital. I admit, at 5325mm it is pretty long to be domesticated as an urban vehicle but the controls are easy and the massive pickup almost shrinks in size around you.

The only anxiety is the diesel particulate filter (DPF) regeneration in the Hilux. All BSVI diesel vehicles come factory fitted with a DPF unit which keep engine emissions in check. As this technology better operates on highways, getting stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic is a nightmare for the DPF as it needs optimal temperature and certain variables to meet the needs for regeneration.

At slow speeds, the soot keeps on accumulating thus choking up the DPF and the vehicle can go into the limp mode if one doesn’t manually regenerate the DPF using the button provided or floor it at 70kmph plus speeds on the highways. To my surprise, the Hilux’s DPF regeneration is quick even in heavy traffic.