Leaderboard

Hi @Adel Muradov as far as you have done few day drives, you should be fine with night drive too. Please come 30 minutes early for the newbie brief that involves lot of 4x4 and safety training, which is mandatory for all newbies joining the carnity offroad club. In your model Patrol, front bumper is the main concern and though you have addressed it very nicely, so you should be good to drive by yourself.

Hello Gents, Have a question: i have an experience of driving in desert only during the day, have total of 5 trips with Another Club, have flag, extra light for night drives installed, and aluminium short bumper. Driving Nissan Patrol Platinum Y62. Would you recommend me to come for a night drive? I have never driven at night before.

This thread becoming like a ship and a hammer story now. Everyday new suspense popping up with thrilling angle.

So first I went to Habtoor for AC checkup, and I asked for a full list of items needed to be serviced it was a list of 23 items however I got quoted a nonsense quote, hence I fixed only the AC there as it was recommended by other Pajero owners. I took the list of the service items that mentioned in the quotation which was explaining every problem and which part to change (including the diff bushes) to a garage was recommended to me by another Pajero owner. and that was the first time that I fix the car outside Habtoor service. However the garage changed all these mentioned service items successfully and professionally but when it reached the Tok sounds they said we fixed what was in Habtoor diagnoses however sound still there. I went back to Habtoor they confirmed its the axel, from there I decided to go back to the garage to fix it again as I paid already to them to fix the problem but I still have it and the sound was annoying me while driving. To make the story shorter the garage mechanics came up again with 3 different things to fix/change: 1- Differential (change) 2- The black part of the crankshaft 3- Changing the axel hubs Each one of these diagnosed issues would have cost me 3k at least without labor charges I guess, here at this moment I feed up and decided it's enough I went back to Habtoor but this time I was told to go to DIP branch they are better to fix this rare issues. And it was just as simple as cleaning the axel and greasing, 400 AED they charged me with 3-month warranty if the problem appeared again they will fix it for free. PS: this took me 2 month time running between Habtoor and the garages. I hope this informations are helpful and my story will save money, time and efforts to others. Cheers to all

Problem is majority of people take 0 intrest in thier cars and how they work, even so called petrol heads, what are the common issues with it and common ways to solve them. 30 mins on the net can save them 1000s but they just refuse to. There are entire workshop manuals available to download and most major and popular cars have dedicated forums with a lot expertise on them. Most recent example I just mentioned, the car my friend had just bought. It was a Honda having never really owned one besides my first 91 civic I have no clue about them. But an hour with google told me its most likely either the main relays or cam sensor. Since relays were cheaper and easy to deal with we tried that first 25dhs worth of relays but no luck. But worth the shot anyways. Then most likely culprit was said to be the cam sensor hidden behind the timing belt cover. So a 80dhs sensor and 40mins of elbow grease to loosen then valve cover so the timing cover can cone out and then back again and now car is running perfectly. Now if I would have acted like idiot avg joe car owner and gone to some grease monkey I know I would have ended up with a new fuel pump, coils, plugs etc etc and car still stalling out after warming up. Similarly my old range rover AC comp clutch wasnt engaging. AC gas was fine and AC clutch was also fine, just not getting the signal to energize. Since Im not very good with the electric side of things I went to this hot shot electrician in Rashidiya who works on porsches, ranges etc etc. He looked and said I will have to leave the car for a week thry will have to remove the dash and fuck all what not. But I could tell sonething was not right in funky town. I excused myself reluctantly opened up the electronic trouble shooting side of the workshop manual and got reading. The P38 has a ridiculously complicated AC setup. So after a day of reading and looking at wiring diagrams I narrowed it down to sonething called the tertiary pressure sensors with only two wires located behind the drivers side fog light. So I got down underneat, unplugged it. And shorted the plug with a paper clip wrapped it all nicely with electrical tape behind the bumper and lo and behold conpressor kicked back into action. And added advantage was the condesor auxliary fans would cycle on and off with the AC clutch which made the AC even more cooler and this lasted me years until I sold the car. So a days worth of reading and 10 fils paperclip saved me potential 1000s

@Gaurav With a radio Engineer on board we can finally have a chat about all our two-way radio concerns ! Welcome to the club @Adel Muradov !

Thank you @Rahimdad and @Gaurav!

@Adel Muradov. I agree with @Gaurav bhai. You are most welcome to join, just be 30 minutes early to the meeting point for Newbie brief. You can also go through theme posts that were suggested to @Michael sammy.

Hi @Michael sammy Please read all below important topics before joining the drive MUST READ: Offroad Club Structure, Levels and Rules Off roading - Everything you need to know Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities Tire pressure deflation for off road driving Off road Club Grading Structure Off road Driving Etiquette's Levels of Offroad Drive Off-road Convoy Rules

Look only for the VTC 4800 model. Which only comes in a LWB configurations for those early years. The 4500 is like a church mouse in front of the VTC and avoid manual like the plague. Horrible box for offroading in the desert. Youll have to look very carefully as its a favourite car among the shabab and usually played around with quite a bit on and offroad. look for bone stock versions with 0 mods. straight body panels and no repaints, underneath look for bent axel tubes, chains around the drive shaft and petrol tanks and caved in petrol tanks. All signs of a pervious life spent offroading. Diff lock really isnt a requirementIts nice to have but not a must

Just a quick update, fixed my oil level. I went back to the same garage to explain the problem and they have took out the extra oil it was almost 500 to 750ml What annoyed me no apology nor any warning to the mechanic that done the mistake, life keeps going and it's our responsibility to take care of our car lesson learned not to trust any garage even for a simple job as oil change.

Especially the bit about the "black part of the crankshaft". I should remember that one...

The only steering wheel designed for Jeep that works:

Thanks a lot, for sure I will be there earlier than 30 minutes 🙏

How bout you write it down anyways for future reference

This describes the difference between mechanics and professional mechanics. Being a professional is NOT all about how much you know- it's is ALL about having the best interests of your customers foremost in your mind. The doctrine of "Do No Harm" counts for professional mechanics as much as it does for doctors.

You forgot to also mention a winch..

This is good but need lost of patience and craftsmanship

This is making me excited again to do it.

Go to a decent upholstery shop and get a leather cover made and sticthed, should cost about a couple of 100dhs. Make sure shop works with actual leather and not pleather otherwise known as ragzine locally.

I give up on self stitching after reading few reviews I agree and Isn't that supposed to be the basic most thing any accessory shop should keep.....? Unfortunately price race to the bottom killing the quality, now.

I think this will fit very nicely to the pajero. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PFS2T2V/ref=twister_B07PK8FN7G?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1 I think you mean this one: https://www.amazon.com/Superior-58-0550B-Sport-Steering-Wheel/dp/B00029KA7C/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=steering+wheel+wrap&qid=1563968655&s=gateway&sr=8-4

Thanks @Michael sammy for the detailed explanation. This here ^^ was among the diagnosis I got and this came from no less an ex-Habtoor mechanic (who has his own garage now) so it is possible that this might also work in my case. Sometimes its just the simplest explanation that makes sense. I am inclined on getting my 120k service done in his garage so I will definitely bring this up with him again to include among the services to be done. Thanks again.

I forgot to mention that i changed my suspensions to dobinson suspensions stage 2 to solve the problem, but it wasn't any thing from the suspensions parts, i paid a lot but it wasn't the main problem.

Thanks a lot, these are important information i started reading some of these articles but its very helpful you listed all the links together in one post appreciated 🙏

Totally agreed if you start eating sunflower seed in your car it will look like farm barn

@Michael sammy welcome to Carnity. You are most welcome to join, but like @Gaurav bhai mentioned please be 30 minutes early for absolute newbie briefing and you're good to go.

One way is to see the prices available for a similar condition vehicle on Dubizzle and then start negotiating to get it as low as possible. If you have decided the vehicle and you are buying it on cash, it would be good to carry the cash with you and do one final negotiation before getting the transfer done. A seller also would like to sell his vehicle at the earliest and it's a good time to negotiate if you are serious to buy.

Which steering wheel cover you are using and from where did you buy it? It's such an important stuff that your hand is always in touch but at the same time its of such a low priority that you will wait till it breaks down to pieces. I always buy the best steering wheel cover and every time it only last for couple of month and then I keep on prolonging to change as its so low priority item and drive with flaking steering cover most of the time. I really appreciate some heads up to buy some F. Good quality steering wheel cover that can last a long time.

Like inspector Gadget

First one mine can you fix a air compressor in the baofang radio it already has FM radio and torch....?

I never found a good shop selling quality Steering Wheel cover here

Hahahahahahaha you're right buddy it's a Gen1 😂 Joke's on me now

Oh yes, let's bring all the breed of radios you are collecting and give Adel some work to answer our concerns

I had a same situation few days back. Removed excess oil from dipstick hole using suction hose as mentioned by @Gaurav. You will find this oil suction pump in few garages or at petrol stations where oil change is done.

Overfilling almost always leads to premature seal failure and increased zeal in fuel consumption 1 cm in many cars means 250 ml to half liter Better say to measure is warm up then let it sit for 30 other 40 minutes Or more precise one is to leave it overnight and check 1st thing in morning

You can go to any petrol station service guys and they have a thin suction tube that can suck excess oil from dipstick hole.

That attitude is always much appreciated here occasionally 😂

I shall do that Tomorrow, happy to help others.

Has anyone ever seen a shop in UAE that keeps white wall tyres in stock?

Many maybe countless times I have called or talked or brought in technicians to brainstorm the problems I have encountered which have stomped me some even made me think what have got myself into . if asking for help is being stupid then my friend you really have to reassess the values on which you make those assumptions Where do you get those are you talking about Haynes then forget it they are as generic as my technical school books they miss many aspects which are only covered in factory service manuals

@Michael sammy you need to remove the aluminium lip in the rear bumper. There are 4 botls on the top and 4 underneath the car. You can get it removed very easily in any garage. It's a 10 min job. If not possible, then we can look at it before the drive and get it out.

Welcome Michael to Carnity and its offroad club. If drive lead Rahimdad allow you for this drive, then please come 30 mins early for newbie briefing - very important for new joiners. Just arrange the flag, for lights you can use high beam until you are convinced with your new hobby. Same for skid plate. Hope your Pajero rear bumper is sorted, if not @Srikumar can guide you here on what's needed to remove it for the drive.

I would like to join this drive i need your advice guys if i should? my off-roading experience as below: I have Pajero 3.8 LWB since 2010 (well maintained) all in stock with 2 inch lift dobinson suspensions stage 2, i have been as a passenger in off-roading at least 4 times and i have gone off-roading as a driver 2010 1st time off-roading and it was a night drive. then i drove 2 times light off-roading between these years and more off driving in and out to the beach on sand. PS: I have no flag, night lights nor skid plates. if needed i can fix, please let me know.

They also sell stickers (I'm not sure how long they will last though) https://www.amazon.com/Tire-Stickers-White-Wall-Yourself/dp/B01N10IA0Z/ref=sr_1_10?crid=2ZDNZ0Q6TGLVA&keywords=white+wall+tire+paint&qid=1563862344&s=gateway&sprefix=white+wall+tire+%2Caps%2C361&sr=8-10 https://www.amazon.com/Port-wall-White-Portawall-Insert/dp/B07T2VNR22/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_2?keywords=white+wall+tire+paint+roller&qid=1563862523&s=gateway&sr=8-2-fkmr2 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Anvil-Car-Motorcycle-White-Wall-Tyre-Tire-Paint-250ml-Cruiser-Hot-Rod/253912781831?epid=9024424994&hash=item3b1e619407:g:UigAAOSw4DJdNoYN&vxp=mtr https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tyre-Whitewall-Machine-Redwall-Paint-Roller-Applicator-8mm-Paint-Bottle-New/172986713641?hash=item2846cfc629:g:E0AAAOSwal5YIlUn&vxp=mtr

Totally Agree, but sadly fake and greedy mechanic love to hide behind this "Nobody's perfect" theme and spoil the name for 20% genuinely good mechanics that fails on occasional attempt due to tricky scenarios. If you are failing 1 or 2 out of 10 times, you are still considered good. If you fail 8 out of 10 times then either you are fake or greedy and need to learn your profession from foundation again. I ain't put my time and money for such people, charge me 50% extra but fix it in first time and that 50% extra labor will save me tons of hassle, time and unwanted parts cost. We go to mechanics considering they are professional and "should" know what they are doing. If they also do the guesswork and pull the trigger in dark, then whats the point. I even encountered a mechanic told me that one of my car engine cylinder is gone bad and he need to change that one cylinder. I was looking at him on his face and told him: This car doesn't have LPG cylinder. Then there is dealership scare for brake drum change. How critical are they to be changed in this service. Sir, its very critical and if you dont change them now they will break in two pieces on the very next hard braking you might do. You don't want to break them at SZR on 120 and loose control and damage your car and end up on a hospital bed. I was like, please change it NOW. Later I googled and found OEM thickness was 6MM and mine was at 5MM and I could have drove that for next 1 year easy as 4MM was change time and 3MM is the threshold. How will you trust these guys again......? Another dude quoted me 2000 dhs for wobbling Discovery and then after 1 day of research on car forum, I bought an original Land Rover drive shaft U-Joint for 35 dhs and labor for 50 dhs and car was perfect without any wobble. And that was a Land Rover Specialist. Im more scared from specialist now as they know all the in and out of all the known problems but love misguiding the customer for endless repair bills. I can go whole day with my horror stories and how some people spoil the name of others that ends up spoiling the name for everyone.

And even good mechanics have it wrong sometimes on diagnosis, and that’s perfectly acceptable if there is transparent communication. I used to repair electronics and when I had a customer that brought me a 50y old amplifier that had some intermittent issues like crackling sounds and unstable volume, I’d go for a capacitor replacement and clean out of all potmeters, although this MIGHT not have been the main culprit but it’s the most likely one and you want to exclude it out of your diagnosis. Same might sometimes occur for a car that gives weird noises and when looking underneath there are 15 things that might be the culprit. We need to start somewhere and hope that the gut feeling and experience weighs through. If you’re happy with your mechanic, then you’ll accept that he’s only human too and that a clear communication and mutual respect goes a long way.

I get this every day. I recently repaired the AC on a car that was worth close to 5 million dirhams. Owner took the car to another shop to get some engine modifications done because he didn’t like my price. In the process, they removed the AC compressor and let all the gas out. But it was somehow my fault because I repaired the AC 2 months ago? Sometimes I miss being an oil rat where I just have to fix the problem and fill out some paperwork and not have to deal with the general public.

I’m not looking for white lettering. That’s easy, you can buy a special pen and DIY. I’m looking for white walls

It is available on some selected tires and there sizes. There is no fix shop for such case. Like last time @Srikumar went to buy Geolander and ended with white lettering one. Find a tire size and the research on which size the while lettering comes and then find that size.