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There is no way to really end this debate with a yes or no answer. People have their own experiences and driving styles. Some people can drive manual, some can drive auto. Some people can't drive either without hitting the only tree in the desert. My conclusion, drive what works for you. Kali wali what anyone else says. It's you driving, not them.

From my limited experience of last season, I got the bumper one first that only helped me to enhance the headlight vision with more detailing and white light. Then I opted for the second bar on top and that made the whole world changed in night driving and boosted my confidence of night lead from 50% to 5000% literally, as I can see things well within a 500 meters like dune formation, dips, sand pattern, ridges, a soft patch in night. If you going for one, I HIGHLY suggest to go for the top one and get the biggest possible you can accommodate on top - 42 -52 Inch. Glare will be there, but try to position with the light on and without installing as to find the best place for the least amount of glare. Too back on roof, you will have bounce on roof and max light will be wasted. Too out will have light flush on bonnet and blind the driver. So before installing find that sweet spot and ask the guy to fabricate a bracket for that GOLDEN spot. For spot or spread, choose the bar that has mix of both means last 6-8 bulbs on both sides are spread and curved out and rest all 70% bulbs are spot in front. Have a look at my top bar to understand what I am saying. Last but not least go only for CREE bulbs, no matter what. They are amazingly bright than the regular ones.

This "expert's" analysis can only be accurate if he had tested every automatic on the market against every comparable manual within the same model range for every manufacturer. In my experience - 400 000+ km completed in several overland expeditions through Africa - automatics are just not up to the task in these conditions; in fact, you'll be very hard pressed to find an automatic expedition-grade vehicle- anywhere. However, I do agree that (some) automatics have (some) distinct advantages over (some) manuals in the local (UAE) environment, simply because in local off-road conditions, automatics are generally not pushed as hard, or for as long as they would be in a heavy expedition vehicle. Automatics have come along way in the past two decades or so, and if the driver is experienced and knows his vehicle's capabilities and limitations, he can do pretty much everything an experienced driver with manual gearbox in a comparable vehicle can do. Having said that though, the trick in successfully comparing automatics with manuals involves comparing comparable vehicles- anything else is just stating personal preferences, which serves no purpose in a discussion of this kind.

After last week's adrenaline drive through Area 53, this week would be a relaxed newbie drive in our much-loved sandbox - Maliha - Fossil rock - Faya. Looking forward to an easy relaxing drive for everyone with plenty of opportunities to learn and grow, hill climb, and ridge riding. Newbies and Fewbies will have great chance to see and learn the real fun that off-roading offers in a very safe and organized environment. Level May be changed upon convoy level. When: 27 April 2018 Meeting time: 02:00 pm, convoy will move at sharp 02:15 pm Where: Adnoc Petrol Station Maleha Road GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/mzb26kxzte72 Level of drive: Newbie - Fewbie - All are welcome Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 10 inches of ground clearance. Plan: Drive, train and enjoy till about 11 am What to bring along: Loads of snacks, plenty of water - whatever you like with little extra to share, water, liquids, smiles, stories, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 7 pm

Not too hard though, I know 2 people in my other LR group one has an Auto P38 Range Rover and the other a L322 Range Rover which never came in manual form, both have converted their vehicles in to expedition vehicles and done the entire length of Africa, north to south, east to west all alone, and they had no issues what so ever. The guy even put his fully converted L322 up for sale at a very reasonable price, just didn't have the $$$$ at the time to buy it. Manual for expedition always wins simply because as stated above unless they exploded into a million pieces, can still be driven or even fixed out in the bush if you have the right parts along with you and any good prepared overlander carries atleast a spare clutch plate with them. You don't have that luxury with an auto.

You know my light bar. For me i am pretty happy with it. It is good enough for night drives so far. If you are planing to lead, than you may need bigger one on the top. For following the group mine is good enough for me. This Friday you can drive around and see how you will feel with it. Also lately @EmVarlet put new light bar to his car, as i see he is having on the corners spread light middle focused light. I am thinking it will be better than mine which i only have focused light as i understand with my limited knowledge.

My favorite area, Fossil Rock and Faya. Too much fun. I'm in with full support.

this post is already biased towards the auto...so its a uphill fight.... @desertdude well you cant say that a catastrophe with the manual one as eventually before the mechanical intervention (changing the clutch kit) you did drive out till the workshop without much assistance did you..? the last time i had one come in to shop drove it without the clutch as its oil pipe got leaked you remember right @skumar83

Think I can be of help here too as I just recently stated in the previous thread I started off with a manual and after a numbers of years moved on to an auto. Same car, 100 series Land Cruiser, almost driven daily off road with a full load of 6 pax and I can tell you I prefer the auto and it performed better and most of all many times we had very long days starting very early in the morning long drive on the highway then good part of the day spent in the mountains or wadis then another long drive on road then entire evening in the dunes then at night stuck in city traffic to drop off the guests, those were the days I really appreciated having an auto. And in all my time I experienced one catastrophic failure with a manual and one with an auto. The manual was in a Land Cruiser pick up fully loaded till the roof with heavy gravel, I gave it to a newbie collegue and he managed to burn out the clutch plate. On the Auto, just when it was time to call it quits, loaded up my people hit the first climb out of the camp and within minutes lost drive. Torque converter seal gave up and all the ATF leaked out, refilling did nothing as it would leak out again in minutes. So IMO same car same duty over a period of years Auto wins

How much did you enjoy your first drive? It equal parts fun and learning What did you enjoy about the drive? Welcoming atmosphere with good challenges Which part of the drive you think you enjoyed the best which you would like to repeat? The whole drive Do you think there was a good mix of lecture and practical, was the lecture too long, and any part that can be avoided or done in a shorter or different way? Do you think anything else could be added to the lecture? Yes, will let you know if anything comes to mind later Do you think prior reading material would help? Not necessarily. Would you know where on the Carnity forum you would be able to find the information you are looking for? Yes, fairly simple and straight forward Is there anything you think could be done in a better way? Will think about this. How do you suggest to make things better for the new comers? Radio and flag should be considered important How do you think you can progress within the current atmosphere and learning opportunities provided? Sky is the limit

Reviving an old topic, but with Night desert drive expecting to start from next month onwards I am looking to get some LED bars installed. Those who have already installed or have some experience, if you could give your feedback on the below points: 1. If I have to install only at one place, i.e., near the headlights or on the top, which one should I go for? 2. If you suggest the top one, there can be some glare. So what is the normal distance that you position the LED bar from the top of the front windshield. 3. Do you suggest to put a spread light or a focused light. Not sure if I have got the right terminology. Unfortunately, my night eyesight is not the best and I do have issues with bright lights as well. So glare of lights is a big concern for me. Just some more information, is that I drive a dark green color vehicle where light might not get reflected off the bonnet as much as in a white or silver colored car.

That is a nice option. I was also thinking to recommend him some external system. Coming to your problem, I have had an iphone which had no issues abosolutely. Couple of months back when i switched on to Android, i started facing this problem. It could be more of a phone update thing with android since there are many android users who are facing the exact same issue. Alternatively you can ask in your dealer to upgrade the firmware for the device if available Thanks Gaurav!

This is why you should always carry bananas when going off road.

Ok so I thought I carry on this discussion afresh, so this info doesn't get lost in between all those pages. I found this very informative video on this subject, The guy is well known personality in the world of 4x4s and offroading downunder and presents a very good point by point rundown on the subject. So to go over, there are some places where manuals are better and vice versa. Although there are a couple of points I don't 100% agree on. 1: Manuals use less gas. In my personal experience I've found autos use less gas. I've had the chance to run two exact similar cars on a long term basis on and off road and found the auto used slightly less gas. 2 Automatics more likely to overheat than manuals - Agreed 3. Manual more wear and tear - Agreed 4 Can't bump start an Auto - Agreed 5. Damaged box situation, Manual wins - Agreed 6. Which is cheaper to repair, manual wins again - agreed 7.Sand Driving . Auto kicks manuals ass -agreed 8 Dune climbs Manual is better. Disagree, but he later also makes the same point about locking gears as we have in the previous thread so I still say its a win for the auto due its long gears, thus not really requiring frequent changes. So IMO auto wins here again 9 Rock crawling : Auto wins : Agreed 10 Mud. Manual wins : Somewhat agree 11 Water wading : Auto wins. Agreed 12.Steep hill climb Auto Wins Agreed 13 Down steep hill Manual wins. Disagreed. I've personally gone some very steep tracks in the hajar mountains the steepest and trickiest being Zighy beach climb which is now tarmac and closed off due to Six sense spa, but back in the day in was a very thrilling climb and descent, and not possible without low range up or down and Ive done it both in auto and manual. For auto low range 1 is good enough. Overall winner : Auto. Do you agree with this, if not why ? Which points do you agree or disagree with? Watch the full video to see why one wins over the other in each given situation

Point Of Sale? For all the mechanics that seem to be charging you for stupid stuff 😂