With the success of the "Maruti Suzuki Raid de Himalaya" over 5 consecutive years, Himalayan Motorsport has been inundated with requests from motoring enthusiasts all over India for a car rally having a lower level of competition, stress and difficulty; but one which would allow the adventurous to enjoy the real Himalayas in a stock car, without the expensive modifications that rally cars are compulsorily subject to.

More importantly, the idea is to enjoy the vast cultural heritage of a land that is exotic, beautiful and awe inspiring to say the least; without having to sacrifice the family car in the attempt ! At the same time it is necessary to introduce an element of competitiveness that would make this rally much more than a tour. 

With the vast improvements in the reliability of the average stock car today to make this concept workable,  we will run again the "Raid de Himalaya - Reliability Trial". This will be a rally open to cars and 4X4’s and motorcycles above 350 cc and will run as a Regularity Rally as per international norms. The cars will be in a separate group since they are handicapped somewhat in ground clearance when compared to the 4X4's on the same event. All the motorcycles will be in one group irrespective of make and cc.

This means, that like every other TSD rally, you will be given an average speed to maintain over an unspecified distance  and be marked on the accuracy of your arrival, against the optimum timings set out as the target. The time controls along the route will all be secret except that of the Start and End of Leg check points! Being both early, or late, will earn penalties. Too fast may be worse than too slow !

The speeds on the Reliability Trial will be lower than those specified for the Maruti Suzuki Raid de Himalaya - X-Treme ; yet they will be challenging enough to keep you on your toes !

The X-Treme version on a scale of 1 to 10  would rate an 8 in terms of difficulty.

The Reliability Trial version would rate a 5. 

It is suggested that all first timers in the 4 wheeler category participate in the Reliability Trial this year and then move on to the X-Treme levels next year. However this is not cast in stone and first timers may be permitted for the X-Treme version after being assessed by the "Participation Committee" of Himalayan Motorsport for competence and preparedness.