Long Weekend Effect: 100s Of Cars Stranded With Burnt Clutches On Expressway [Video]

Most people in India are currently celebrating the long weekend, which commenced yesterday on the occasion of the 79th Independence Day of India. During such long weekends, people like to go on short trips near their cities and towns for leisure. However, due to the traffic, this sometimes becomes the cause of problems as well. Recently, a video has gone viral on the internet, which shows hundreds of cars stuck on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway due to their clutches being burned after trying to climb a hill with heavy traffic.

Cars stranded on Mumbai-Pune Expressway

This video, showing these stranded vehicles on the side of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, has been shared on Instagram by Ride With Soldier on their page. In this short clip, we can see a number of cars, including a Renault Kiger, Toyota Innova, Maruti Suzuki S-Presso, Hyundai Creta, Maruti Suzuki Swift, and many others parked on the side of the hilly road to Lonavala.

We can also note that most of these parked cars have their bonnets open and their occupants standing outside. The line of vehicles continues for a few kilometres, as generally, when there are a few consecutive holidays, the Lonavala road gets completely flooded with traffic from Mumbai, Pune, and other places nearby.

As per the post, it is currently taking five hours to reach from Mumbai to Lonavala, which generally takes only two hours. This particular delay is caused by the massive traffic jam on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway due to the long weekend. In the clip, we can note that there are hundreds of cars that have been stranded on the road due to this traffic on the inclined road.

What happened to these cars?

As mentioned above, most of these cars are suffering from overheating, and their clutches have burned. For those who may not be aware of what clutch burning is, it happens when drivers ride the clutch constantly while climbing steep inclines in stop-and-go traffic.

Cars with smaller engines, like hatchbacks, generally suffer more quickly. However, it has to be noted that even bigger SUVs and MPVs are not immune to clutch burning. Also, the engine gets overheated in such stop-and-go traffic, especially in hills, and it is another reason why many vehicles are seen stranded on the side of the expressway.

Why don't authorities do anything to help such vehicle owners?

Prior to most long weekends, the Maharashtra highway police issue traffic advisories, but the problem is that compliance is very limited from the public. As a result, most vehicles and their owners are left on their own to deal with such situations.

Over the years, there have been many calls from vehicle owners for timed entry systems to prevent excess cars on the ghat sections, better use of alternate routes, and encouraging public transport instead of private cars. However, none of these methods have worked so far. There has also been demand for road widening projects and expressway bypass tunnels, but those have been delayed for a long time.

How to avoid clutch burning on hills?

If you are someone who wants to know how to avoid burning the clutch, here are a few things to keep in mind. Make sure that you don't ride the clutch. Avoid keeping your foot half-pressed on the clutch pedal. Either press it fully when changing gears or release it completely while driving.

Also, when driving on hills, use the 1st or 2nd gear when climbing hills in traffic. This is because lower gears give more torque and reduce clutch strain. One important maintenance tip to keep in mind is, before going on any long weekend trip, make sure that your clutch has adequate life left. Clutches that are near the end of their life burn quickly.