Maruti Suzuki Kizashi: Weekend Drive to Udaipur

There is no doubting the fact that this year the summer has been harsh and Delhi has been at a boil for months on end. Every weekend car loads of people shipped themselves away to the nearby hills to enjoy a few cold days and then it’s back to the grind. I however didn’t budge from Delhi during this summer for a number of reasons, and the first being that the hill stations would obviously be too crowded, second being the condition of the roads getting there and the third and final argument that I have against the hills is that the drive is cumbersome and slow. With the weather getting better and the rains finally cooling the northern plains down, I decided that it was finally time to get out of Delhi and hit the road for now my options were open and I could venture towards the far corners of Rajasthan.

Why Rajasthan? Well, ask anyone who’s got a penchant for road trips and they will tell you that Rajasthan offers some of the best roads our country has to offer. Not only are the long straight roads mostly empty, they are well tarred, and are rather picturesque as well. Basically the roads in Rajasthan offer all the ingredients for a great weekend drive, especially when you have a powerful sedan at your disposal.

The vehicle of choice for my weekend jaunt to Udaipur and finally on to Devi Garh was the Maruti Suzuki Kizashi. The Kizashi is a well-packaged vehicle and offers a rather decent level of passenger comfort. Moreover, it is a powerful machine as it comes fitted with a 2.4 liter petrol engine that is capable of churning out a solid 178PS at 6,500 rpm and generates 230Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm. The car at my disposal happened to be the slick automatic which boasts of having a continuously variable transmission (CVT) and it comes with all the goodies such as tiptronic and paddleshifts mounted on the steering column. Capable of touching 100km/h in just 8.8 seconds and going on to a top speed of 205 km/h, the automatic Kizashi was surely right at home cruising along the open stretches of road that I found on NH8, NH79 and NH 76. The sheer delivery of power that the Kizashi offers made it easy for me to maintain a high pace throughout my drive.

The brilliant handling and solid ride quality made my 680 kilometer journey a literal walk in the park as I didn’t find myself strained or tired. I was able to sit behind the wheel for long hours without having to take a break and this made it easy to cover large distances without having to break my pace. The comfortable seats were definitely a boon and I should add that the quality stereo proved to be a great companion along the journey! Along the way I encountered a number of rain pockets and despite the road being wet I was confident to continue at a decent speed thanks to the fact that the Kizashi comes fitted with ABS, EBD and ESP which offer a sense of security in the knowledge that this car isn’t going to slide or go out of control easily. Thanks to all these measures, I was able to cover the distance from Gurgaon to Devi Garh in about 10 hours and was still fresh enough to enjoy the weekend and visit some the sites around Devi Garh and Udaipur.

MARUTI SUZUKI KIZASHI

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Udaipur is known as the city of Lakes and the pride of Udaipur is the Lake Palace that is situated right in the center of Pichola Lake. It’s as up market as you can get and even James Bond couldn’t resist visiting this Palace! Apart from Pichola Lake, you can also visit Fatah Sagar Lake, Udai Sagar and Swaroop Sagar. Udaipur is also a great place to go shopping for traditional Rajasthani handicrafts and the shops selling these can be found in the dozen. I however didn’t have plans on sticking around in Udaipur and was set on staying at the Devi Garh Fort Palace hotel located in Delwara, which is a few clicks away from Udaipur City.

Leaving Udaipur towards Devi Garh, just happens to be a brilliant little drive as well as you make your way through the twisty hill climb through the Aravali hills on NH8 towards Delwara where Devi Garh is located. The twisties also proved to be a great handling test on the Kizashi and the sedan truly lives up to its name of being a sports sedan for it took those corners almost as if it was on rails and I was able to cover the hill climb in no time at all. 

Finally, I was at my destination, namely, the 18th century Devi Garh Fort Palace Hotel. A neat heritage property that offers a quite retreat away from the city and a spectacular view of the hills, it is also a great base to explore the sites in the nearby, which is exactly what I ventured out to do. Apart from enjoying the scenery, I also visited the rather unique ‘Saas-Bahu’ mandir (mother-in-law, daughter-in-law temple), which is a must see if you are in the region. With my sightseeing over and done with, I made my way back to the hotel to hang up my driving shoes and soak in a weekend of vintage Rajasthani lifestyle.

Basic Driving Route:

• 0-371 KM: Take NH8 from Gurgaon towards Kishengarh (via Jaipur Bypass)

• 371-595 KM Take NH79: Kishengarh towards Chittorgarh (via Bhilwara)

• 595 KM: Turn onto NH 76: Chittorgarh bypass towards Udaipur

• 658KM: Turn back onto NH8: Head towards Sundercha

• 680KM: Turn towards Devi Garh Fort Palace Hotel, Delwara, Rajasthan (about 40 km away from Udaipur City)

Driver’s Note:

The total distance from Gurgaon to Devi Garh Palace Hotel is 680 kilometers. The drive time is approximately 9 hours 22 minutes for this journey; however it depends on traffic conditions and the number of stops you make. ZigWheels did the journey in 10 hours 12 minutes, which included a 45 minute dinner break and a 25 minute tea break. Gurgaon to Jaipur is a painful drive as the highway is under construction, however get past Jaipur and you truly enjoy the roads Rajasthan has to offer.

MARUTI SUZUKI KIZASHI