Happy Diwali Long Weekend : A Drive Up Genting Highlands

Welcome to Genting Highlands!

Nice and cold weather!

Okay, so here I am at Hotel Highlands writing a piece on the test drive of the Forte SX up Genting Highlands. You have probably read how the Forte did beautifully in its assent and descent of Cameron Highland's long and winding roads earlier the week; so let's put the Forte to the test on the sharp slopes and turns of Genting Highlands, where you can always find cars parked alongside the road with their bonnets opened.

Pulling strong...

Nice power play...

We kept overtaking each other off...

The weather is nice and cool up here, and the wind is blowing massively outside the hotel room's windows. Earlier the day, I made a trip up here in my well-maintained Civic EG and along the way, I had the opportunity to drive alongside a nifty Forte 1.6 SX, which gave me plenty of chances to squeeze every ounce of my B16A juice against its eager Gamma powerhouse.

Fun with a capital F!

Power at your fingertips!

Now, my B16A has been tuned and dynoed for best results; and the fact that the presumably stock standard Forte SX was still pulling strong despite us travelling at speeds in excess of 130 kmph on uphill driving indicated that it should be fun to take the Forte SX up the mountain for a spin.

Gamma engine can be fun!

So, after we have checked into the hotel, I decided to drive back home and climb the mountain again- this time in our Forte SX too.

And the fact that I am writing here showed that the Forte SX had no issues taking up the hills; although at certain stretches it seemed to huff and puff a little. Note that our Forte SX is completely stock standard for now; and a simple drop-in or open-pod filter should improve things somewhat. And the tiptronic was a wonder to use and functioned beautifully- enabling me to overtake cars in a furious yet comfortable pace throughout the journey. 

Simple driving made fun!

No wonder I see so many Kia Fortes at the car park earlier- it's just so easy to tackle the mountain roads with the well-designed Forte SX!