COVID 19 Compliant - Morning Fewbie Desert Drive - Lisali to Margham- Dubai - 18 Dec 2020

[DANIEL NOGUEIRA]

Great pace drive, unfortunately we had a traction problem with 1 car and right after we drove him out to the track we had another car overheating... I hope it's all easy fix...

thanks @Foxtrot Oscar for the lead, was very nice , also @Ale Vallecchifor the sweep, always teaching us some tricks ... thanks also all drivers, everyone was handling very well.... 

I uploaded Some pictures in the gallery. 

See you in the sand !!!

[Foxtrot Oscar]

Drive Report

Well that was eventful!

We started off just at the side of the highway and followed the track for a short while before we ventured left into the gentle dunes The scene was as perfect as you will see: gazelles darted around amongst us, no less than 6 hot air balloons dotted the skyline as the sun rose majestically on the horizon.  So far so bliss!

We continued at a nice pace, playing where we could and tackling some small technical patches, which I had no doubt @Malachy McGrogan and @DANIEL NOGUEIRA would  handle very well in their XXXX – long trucks as I had driven with them before.  The only issue we had was when I stopped on a steep incline to assist @Malachy McGrogan and the entire contents of my boot fell out!! 🤣 Thanks Daniel for helping me get it all back in. (note to self, don’t open your boot on a sharp incline)

Everything was going to plan as we picked our way to the promised land of Margham’s play area. However, @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ 's   wrangler had other ideas; a small innocuous refusal left myself and @Ale Vallecchi scratching our collective heads as to what to do next. @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ realised there was some fluid loss and we discovered the car had a traction issue. After a lot of shovelling and an unsuccessful tug from the back, we changed tact and @Rizwanm2, using two ropes, pulled him from the front. We still couldn’t get him out fully, but we did manage to get him on the flat.  Credit to @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ for eventually driving his car out of the little gully, and with that the only option available to us was to lead him safely out via a track and onto the tarmac. 

With all issues resolved ,and with the agreement of the convoy, I decided to up the pace and hot wheel it to Margham. This provided us with opportunities for ridge riding and criss-crossing, which everyone handled really well and aside from a couple of second attempts, presented no major issues,.  

We were at the halfway point and had covered a lot of kilometers when @Arda Yagcioglu 's car decided to throw in the towel. We tried in vain to tackle the overheating issues and with the car also losing power it was decided the best policy would be to exit. I picked a very gentle path to ensure @Arda Yagcioglu didn’t have to push his car too much and we all reached the original deflate point intact.

Every drive is a learning curve, cars overheat, transmissions fail, and a plethora of other obstacles are thrown our way. This is why we love to drive in the desert. We don’t just get to see nature in all its glory, but we are constantly challenged, whilst having the most fun you can have in the desert.

Thank you @Ale Vallecchi for your assistance. @Rizwanm2 for being my second lead and of course to @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQand  @Arda Yagcioglu for providing us all with learning opportunities.

Until our next adventure 😊  

[Ale Vallecchi]

Thanks a lot @Foxtrot Oscar Angela for the very pleasant lead: great choice of tracks, very smooth ride, and well managed, reassuring, handling of the situation we encountered with the cars. BTW @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ, let us know what was the problem with your car, hoping it was just a temporary issue. 

[Ale Vallecchi]

BTW @Arda Yagcioglu did you have your car checked yet? Any news? 

[Arda Yagcioglu]

Thanks @Foxtrot Oscar for the great fun ride. The lead and routes were great but unfortunately I experienced the radiator hose pop up issue in my car. Due to the pop up, most of the water and coolant got spilled all around the engine. We filled some coolant (wizard Angela pulled a bottle from her magic  bag in the trunk) and water which was just enough to take me home eventhough I faced some power losses on the way.

And yes @Ale Vallecchi, I got it checked just today, looks like some of that water created a short circuiting in the UNIchip unit which I am getting deinstalled(it was just there when I bought the car) And of course getting the hose replaced with a newer clip. Hopefully that will be all.

Once again Thanks to all of you, @Foxtrot Oscar, @Ale Vallecchi, @Rizwanm2, @DANIEL NOGUEIRA, @Malachy McGrogan again for your patience and offers for help. 

Hope to see you again in another ride.👋

[DANIEL NOGUEIRA]

1 hour ago, Arda Yagcioglu said:

Thanks @Foxtrot Oscar for the great fun ride. The lead and routes were great but unfortunately I experienced the radiator hose pop up issue in my car. Due to the pop up, most of the water and coolant got spilled all around the engine. We filled some coolant (wizard Angela pulled a bottle from her magic  bag in the trunk) and water which was just enough to take me home eventhough I faced some power losses on the way.

And yes @Ale Vallecchi, I got it checked just today, looks like some of that water created a short circuiting in the UNIchip unit which I am getting deinstalled(it was just there when I bought the car) And of course getting the hose replaced with a newer clip. Hopefully that will be all.

Once again Thanks to all of you, @Foxtrot Oscar, @Ale Vallecchi, @Rizwanm2, @DANIEL NOGUEIRA, @Malachy McGrogan again for your patience and offers for help. 

Hope to see you again in another ride.👋

Today was my day bro.. my car broke and is sleeping in the desert... hahaha 

[Arda Yagcioglu]

Oh really 🙈,  but what happened and how ? Hope insurance is gonna cover that..

[MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ]

@Foxtrot Oscar & @Ale Vallecchi Thanks a lot for the drive, it was fun while it lasted 😂. Additional thanks to @DANIEL NOGUEIRA @Malachy McGrogan  @Rizwanm2 & @Arda Yagcioglu for their assistance in getting the Wrangler out of that nasty bowl with only 2 wheels spinning 😬.

About the Wrangler, well, we had a Leaking front differential in addition to a Broken front drive shaft, so no share of power for the front axle. We left the car over at the mechanic’s, hopefully it will be back within 2 days.

@DANIEL NOGUEIRA Sad to hear about what happened today, hopefully there wont be any issue while retrieving the car from the dunes.

Edited December 19, 2020 by MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ