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Thank you so much for this promotion ! I want to thank a few people who helped me to get this far. First of all my other (better) half @Frederic, if he didn't keep talking about Carnity and asking me to please join the club, I would never have known how much I enjoy off roading. He always came home exhausted, covered in sand and I wondered what the hell was enjoyable about that but once I did my first drive, I knew what he was talking about. Now we come home on a Friday together exhausted and covered in sand and now the kids are looking at us the same way I looked at Fred 2 years ago .... I also want to thank @Srikumar, @Gaurav, @Rahimdad, @Asif Hussain, @Emmanuel, @Ale Vallecchi and @Wrangeld for teaching me everything I have to know and trusting me to support them on their leads. And especially @Srikumar who was my mentor when I started leading convoys. It was very scary in the beginning and I was insecure but he helped me to believe in myself and he talked me through it all ! I know when I started driving, a few people weren't completely sure it was a good idea to try and take my Big Blue up to the higher level drives, the LWB Pajero is not the best off road car and mine is a complete stock car but I worked really hard and I definitely wanted to prove that is possible to get as far as you want as long as you keep believing in yourself and the capabilities of your car. That's why I am always talking to Absolute Newbie who come with their stock cars and think they will not be able to take their car up to higher levels. It's not only the vehicle unless there is something seriously wrong with the car of course but it's mostly the driver who does it and I keep believing that !! I am very proud to be the First Lady Marshal in the club but I surely hope I am not going to stay the only one ..... One day, I will organise a ladies only drive to make @Rahimdad's dream come true, I promise !

Hey @Zed, congrats on your new purchase 😀 I love anything Toyota 💪🏻 I can tell you from experience, the tires are the best and first change I ever did on my FJ. I went from BF Goodrich (which were still practically new), to the Yokohama Geolandar. The difference is night and day on the drive. The BFGs, being so heavy and with thick walls to resist punctures while rock crawling, just wouldn’t deflate and mold themselves to the sand as nicely as the Yokos do. Now, I abuse the crap out of the Yokos, and in turn, they just deliver pure performance 😀 I highly recommend them. I went with same size as my stock tires 275/16r. I could have gone to the 285s as my rims permit that, but I think bigger tires would have robbed me of a little horsepower; which is a commodity I’m not willing to sacrifice. You know people on forums recommend stuff based on their own experience. An excellent tire like the Goelandar, will perform great no matter what car it’s on. Frankly, I find it absurd that people suggest that a car responds better off-roading to a particular brand of tires. It’s not like the Geolandar is gonna wake up one day and tell itself, oh, I’m intalled on a LC? I’d better perform poorly because FJ or Pajero is where I wanna be 🤣 You can tell I’m biased and opinionated 😀 Second mod, would be the bash plates. Not only do they protect the guts of your truck, they’ll also make the vehicle ‘sand-dynamic’ and more prone to sliding on crests and downhill as the bottom of the car becomes a smooth flat surface. Regarding bash plates, I would say get at least 8mm thickness. The cheap ones are thin and don’t protect. They might look good, but they’re only for show... After these two changes, the sky is the limit. I personally opted for a heavy breather air filter, better exhaust, and a cold air intake snorkel. I also installed a Pedal Commander for better responsiveness (works so good btw). All those mods gave me a tiny bit of extra horsepower, and the car is more relaxed under duress and performs a bit better tackling the dunes. My most recent modification, after a long, long time off-roading (kidding, I’v only been off-roading since October last year 🤣) is the suspension. It was a bit expensive, but definitely worth it. The FJ is not as ‘bouncy’ as before, and I am much more comfortable driving on the worst cross tracks. The drive is much smoother 😀 In any event, that’s my experience so far. I’m sure you’ll find your own path down modification lane 😀 P.S. Rims/wheels like method bead locks look great, but I would save my money for other crucial mods 😀 Good tires will spare you from buying new rims. The Yokohamas do not pop out, even used, abused and deflated to 8 PSI💪🏻

Hi @Zed welcome back and I have had same LC100, 2005 model but V6 from 2006 - 2008. V8 is an inch better in power but heavier too so it equates to same characteristics overall. LC100 is inherently big boat and slightly underpowered 4x4 tbh for the things that you wish to do at higher levels, BUT it's a beautiful, comfortable, safe and reliable 4x4 that can go for years and years taking regular off-road abuse. If I am in your place, Ill check all fluids level, belts, leaks etc. and straight take it to Newbie drive to see how in complete stock state it behaves and what all concerns I may have. You can join @Chaitanya D Sweihan this Friday to test it: For your mod list here are my order after you test drives on few drives of course: A. Tires, if yours is still on Dunlop Grandtrek then don't deflate below 14 PSI. And change to Yokohama Geolander as soon as you can. Kumho Road Venture are good too but Geo's are the best. I have used 3 sets since 2012 and they are simply amazing. B. Your LC100 already has a thin 2 mm curved bash plate and that should be enough for now, when you start bending that, you should consider replacing with 6-8 mm thick bash plate. I have used in my Pajero factory 2 mm curved plate for 10+ years and it work great and at every oil change mechanic can hammer little bit. Idea is lighter the better and why 2 mm curved with waves design deliver lot of rigidity, almost equal to 6-8 mm flat metal plate. Heavier plate will add more weight on the nose of your car and restrict your climb capabilities in already underpower vehicle. C. Bead lock, not needed until you reach to a rally stage driving speed at 8-10 PSI. For normal weekend toy, they are overkill. I have had plenty of pop outs on my LC100 with Dunlop Grandtrek and named as a king of pop-out. Changed to Michelin LTX for road comfort and pop out was a history. In my current Pajero I have had 4-5 pop out in 10+ years and all because of accidental bumps hitting on bushes with a jump. D. Lift for 2 inch is good and safe but once you are 100% convince that you want to keep this car for long and this car can make you happy for long. You will probably understand this after 2-3 months of driving.

Hey @Zed, The Pedal Commander does add responsiveness to your gas pedal. You press the gas, and the car just goes. No lag... PC does not increase HP, however, I like it because it gives you 4 driving modes: Eco, City, Sport & Sport+. You can switch modes with a press of a button on the PC panel itself, or via the app on your connected phone; if you’re lazy like me 😀 You can also select how responsive you want the pedal to be. Tuning/chipping on the other hand, does seem to increase HP and torque (at least that’s what they claim when they post Dyno result pics). Chipping can also remove the engine cutoff limit and the top speed limiter, change the fuel to air ratio mixture, etc. One thing to keep in mind though, the map they download on your car cannot be changed or turned off on the fly. To go back to stock, it would require another visit to the garage to re-download the stock software. Oh, and I added front and rear metal bumper anticipating losing my plastic bumpers to jumps😀 The bumpers increased the weight of the car and changed its driving dynamics. Something I hadn’t thought of before making the switch... I still like the metal bumper and I’ve almost learned how to drive my car with changed weight (car is nose heavy now and wants to lean into all bowls I face 😂). It was terrible in Liwa as I kissed and visited every bowl we drove 😂. As to the bead locks, if you still want them, @Rahimdad and I can take a permanent marker and draw some bead locks on your existing rims. No one will ever know the difference 🤣

@Ahmad Shaker @Rajeevan Vickneswaran @Trekado @Michael Glavanis @Hossam Anwar @Shaaz Sha @William Fernandes @Serafino @Arshad Roojee @Dodi Syahdar @Janarthan Good morning guys, just a reminder to make sure you have the required equipment for the drive. 1. Off-road flag 2. Tire deflator and pressure gauge 3. Shovel 4. Radio ( tuned to the Carnity frequencies ) 5. Air compressor to inflate after the drive. The convoy numbering and radio channel we would be using will be updated here by around 8 pm tomorrow. See you'll in the sand.

Hey @Frederic, I hear you on the concern about damaging the car😀 The reason I am comfortable with the PC, is because I’ve used the equivalent of it (Power Commander) on my Harleys for over 10 years with no ill effects 😀 The only difference between the two, is that the latter is Harley branded and costs about AED 10,000 to have it installed 🤣 A couple of notes, the PC does not void the car factory warranty. The Pedal Commander works within your vehicle’s stock safety parameters and there is no risk of it harming your ECU because it does not connect directly into the ECU. Now as to the rest of the things that will get damaged, I’m not sure what will, and frankly, I’m not too concerned 😀 The improvement in my drive with the PC on vs it being off is worth it to me. YOLO brother, YOLO 😀

There’s a reason why you’re a doctor @Mohamed Seidam 😀 Helping people is in your blood, and you can’t help reading and understanding user manuals no matter how long and boring they are 🤣 Thanks for sharing this information buddy! I’m reconsidering my setup after reading this. Now I will either store the jack horizontally as the manufacturer suggested, or I will wrap it with a Spinneys bag to collect the oil that leaks out 😂

We'll need a big shovel if we have to dig it out 🤣🥵

Hi @Ahab Shamaa i am a little bit concerned when it comes to the Pedal Commander. I understand how it works (the throttle output signal that goes to the ECU is being altered). I would presume that the OEM would fine-tune the throttle response signal from the factory based on reducing internal stresses, for example the stress on the drive-train must be a lot higher when accelerating from standstill in Sport+ mode, potentially damaging gears, shafts, or other mechanical points. Or am i overthinking this ? I once saw a promotional video from the PC where the guy put it on his Pajero and drove around Al Quoz, and the car drove super agressive in Sports+ mode, which really looked and sounded unnatural and not very healthy.

All set and excited to join your drive for the first time @Brette 👍👍👏👏

Hey @Hisham Masaad, yes indeed, you have a beautiful FJ as I recall, and I owe you some pictures from our scenic drive wih @Ale Vallecchi in RAK 😀 Since we’re not allowed to post names here, I would say do a search for FJC Molle panels. A few results should come up. I got mine shipped from the US and installed here. Good luck with this and let me know if you don’t have any luck finding what you need... We’ll figure out something else 😀

Thanks @Chaitanya D! I knew the doctor in you would appreciate a bit of tidiness 😀 @Rizwanm2, the box is something I built out of plywood, and secured it in an outer shell that I had bought from Amazon. I secure the whole thing to the FJ’s floor via ratchet straps, who in turn are attached to the trunk’s floor (the FJC has 4 attachment points in the floor of the trunk). That thing doesn’t budge despite the jumps and bumps were subject our cars to 😀 As to the Pro Eagle Jack, it’s mounted to my rear door. I have temporarily removed it, to reinforce the mounting points where the molle panel attaches to my rear door. The steel on the Toyota is much weaker than the steel used on the molle panel. So in order to ensure the attachment points on the FJ do not bend/warp, the garage is fabricating reinforcement brackets that will bolt on to the FJ’s door under the plastic cover panel. I’ll show it to you next time we meet 😎

Great research and definitely agree with the tire change, but why do you need the lift kit without even taking it for its maiden voyage. Bash plate is again a good idea and should be number 1 or number 2 in your list. Why do you want to spend so much on beadlock rims? How many pop-outs did you have so far on your LC100? Do you know what is the perfect tire pressure for you in the sand? Do you know why you got the pop-out? Have you tried changing your drive style? I have been driving 12 years in the desert and had a pop-out only twice and never got beadlock rims. I suggest start from a couple of newbie drives to get a hand of your new ride and decide on what you need rather than going at your ride before even taking it to the sand.

Thanks , I will take that as a compliment 😅.... I am all set to test my pajero to its limit 😎....

@Gavin Hill has a very special shovel. If you ask him nicely he might show it to you !

@Mohamed Seidam firstly thanks for posting on this subject, really appreciate your time and effort, it helps us remind and remember the basics. In my opinion, all 3 cars took a different line of approach, didnt follow the leader's track. they were focused on the video rather than track and off-roading (don't have flags, probably no radios, hence guessing just friends out for fun). lastly dont think they had checked or kept proper tyre pressure (trye tracks for Pajero and FJC looked deeper than the first track, could be just optical illusion for me).

@Mohamed Seidam fully agree with you, Ego cannot be your passenger when off-roading (or for that matter any where in life).... I think the driver was inexperienced to take all the challenges... he had not done the Absolute newbie, newbie, fewbie... etc drives didn't have good mentors like we do at Carnity....😄 few things that i can see what should not have been done were his speed, he was travelling too fast (as captured by @Abdul Rahman Abdul Kader), he could have continued to do a sidey and turned back down, probably changed his mind mid way. At about 56-57 secs riding on the ridge he drifted to the right of the dune (our left) and then swerved back to the other side, at high speed and on downward direction reaction time was limited and was too late for him to correct anything, he should have continued down the dune on right side of the dune and towards gravity that may have saved the disaster (on the hind sight).

Let’s put “ Ego” aside momentarily , speed and approach to the ridge is fast and improper ( if I was in such speed I would slow gently without releasing the accelerator paddle , and won’t ride the ridge this way and steer left down . Now with “Ego “ or “overconfidence “ .. the driver decides to ride the ridge as such , now riding a long ridge in descend to me is more difficult than ascend as speed and control is extremely sensitive here to avoid fishtailing on the ridge which what happened with the driver , now trying to correct it in such speed let to initiate a second fishtail that aided the vehicle jump back to the side we see in the video and was about to flip , however input to the steering to avoid flip brought the third fishtail that driver couldn’t apprehend any more which lead to the sad roll over . what I learn is always sticks to the basics and try all your best play it safely and when it come to “ gut versus Ego” I will always choose what my guts tell me and just ignore the Ego and swerve it behind with big smile 😄

Over confidence after having driven for almost a minute and half. Didnt stabilise properly once on the ridge. Speed into the ridge could also have affected the overall ontrol of the vehcile.

I think firstly it was the speed (which may not necessarily be the main reason), secondly as he approach the ridge and failed to get on top of it by falling on the right, he decided to fight gravity 😈(I guess his ego was hurt that he couldn't make it on top of the ridge ) and lost balance on the vehicle and Thanks to the power of this particular vehicle, he was able to jump the ridge again and fall on the other side in a very awkward way while it was in an unstable position the motion made it rollover in a very unfortunate manner.

Another one regardless of vehicle brand what has happened ? The first passed and the second got refusal hint : always remember desert means proper momentum along the right approach

Good morning everyone. Unfortunately have to skip this fantastic trip. Got things to do. @Ale Vallecchi, I have unsubscribed myself from the drive participation list. All good luck to all and to the next off-roader in the wait list. Have a lovely day ahead.

Appreciate @Ahab Shamaa for following rules of Carnity.. Will do some research, if failed, might be able to get some help from you when we meet😀😀

Looks great @Ahab Shamaa, I have fj and would love to have the same arrangement as yours. Where can I find them please. So far struggling with getting things in order.

Thanks bro @Ahab Shamaa , good info on bigger tires require more horsepower! Hmm yes I forgot that we do a lot of downhills, so bash plates are important. 8mm minimum, ok I'll note that. I guess changing front bumpers too, but seeing this is a 2002 Land Cruiser, I can live with "broken" bumpers for a while until some body works is needed 😂 For Pedal Commander, is that the responsiveness of kicking the throttle? How is it different compared to Chip Tuning? I've heard chip tuning can increase your horsepower & torque and turn Throttle Response Rate Increase... Thanks for another "no-need-Methods-wheels" advice, I think I'm not excited about beadlocks anymore 😄

Excited today cos I just renewed my Carnity Subscription and got a sweet deal on an LC-100 V8 😁 InshAllah I will join next Carnity drives (if they're in Abu Dhabi), and so with an old car, it's time to turn this off-roading thing into a hobby (hobby = something you'll spend monthly on 🤣 ) To all the seniors who've modded their cars, what do you think the order should be? (no such thing as 100% right order, so preference opinions are fine) For the list below, my order of preference is ABCD. If you think I should do differently, please advise why, so it'll add to my learning 🙏 A. Change tires. After extensive research (reading hours until midnight), it seems my LC-100 can fit 285/75x16 without rubbing. Options are: Kumho Road Venture AT51 (what https://www.pitstoparabia.com/ offers if I type 285/75x16). These tires will give extra 1" lift without suspension kit. Stay with stock size 275/70x16 which means I can go for Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015 or BFGoodrich T/A KO2 (premium! 😭) B. Lift 1.5", cos anything more would require diff-drop. If I opt for the Kumho 285/75x16, maybe it will be total 2.5" lift achievement ? C. Beadlock wheels Beadlock technology (or BeadGrip if using Method wheels) supposedly hug your tires tighter to prevent tyre pop-out. Considering I've experienced a rollover with popped-up tires (not sure if the tires popped during the flip or before the flip), maybe this is a safe investment? My only problem is my lack of knowledge in this department cos the stock wheel spec is 8Jx16 ET60, which means 16" diameter rim, 8" width rim with 60mm offset. I can see beadlock wheels in 16x8 spec, but most offset is 30mm instead of 60mm, so not sure if it fits? D. Bash plates to protect the underbody... Anything else to add to the list that is important as a first series of mods? Thanks in advance folks...

Sorry guys. I went under self quarantine😣 Should be released in 10 days insha'Allah.

Hi Wrangled, I have a stock Cherokee 2001, which I know doesnt have any after market tow bar or anything like that. Is there anything I can do to get it more perepared, as I dont want to miss out on the drive? The vehicle obviosly has tow points but normally needs a look over to find options. I have driven light offroad in Fortuner and Silverado on 15pis, but nothing crazy. I am going to watch the videos now.

Thx @Ale Vallecchi

Yes @Islam Soliman you are in. See you Friday. Thanks.

awesome reply @Gaurav as usual... agree that Lift now should be last on my list cos it only makes sense if it's going to be a long-term relationship with this LC100. Now i' totally convinced to go with Yoko Geolandar 👍 For the drive on 29-Jan may not be able to make it, wifey confirmed to go camping with friends on Thu 😅

Hi, My name is Ashwin, I am a new member and will be joining with a Jeep Wrangler. I have no experience with offroading. My car has exposed tow hooks and is well maintained.

And that is why i asked multiple times if you were sure that it was a 3.5 as i could not recall 3.5 models on that generation Pajero (or maybe rare). To complicate matters even more, the 3.0liter 6G72 was made in SOHC 12Valve configuration with 146Hp (like mine) and in 24Valve SOHC configuration like yours (+/- 170 hp). The 6G74 3.5 is made in SOHC version (regular pajero 3.5 models with 190hp) and rare DOHC engine that @Gaurav has 225hp). The DriveArabia website shows quite accurate information about the GCC models, as Pajero/Montero was made all over the world in many different configurations.

على راسي حبيبي هشام 😘

Dear Friends @Hasan Wahlan, @Alex Sidorov, @Ruan van den Heever, @Hashem Rihan and @Amanda Milnes. Thanks for signing up for this drive on Friday. Please make sure you have gone through the newbie briefing video. Do check your car tow hooks - front and back are in good condition. Timing for the drive will be 8 am to 11.30 am. Plan: We will start after a briefing , and proceed either towards north or south along the dirt track driving through the amazing dunes of Sweihan. Looking forward to see you all on Friday Cheers

This is the word I wanted to see ( (( ((( EGOOOOO ))) )) ) .... please please and pleaaaase ego and desert don’t match even if you are walking not driving in the desert . I like your analysis @Abdul Rahman Abdul Kader 👍

Congrats @Pancho!

Congrats @Pancho

Congratulations @Pancho 🎉

Well deserved @Tamas Hoffmann !

@Ahab Shamaa excellent job buddy indeed , thanks for sharing the visuals 👍 only one thing crossed my mind isn’t it better to secure the 2t floor jack horizontally , from fluid ( oil ) stasis in gravity dependent position that theoretically may leak by time ) !

Good info, thanks @Thomas Varghese! Luckily you got it fixed before it developed into something much worse. I still think car manufacturers should have a warning light/sound alerting you that you’re driving in 4Hi once you reach 100km/h or whatever that threshold is, but what do I know. The important thing is that you’re safe 😀 See you Friday!

Thanks @Rahimdad, the plan was not to do ABCD in one shot, but one mod every 2 months (to feel before & after mod + of course saving up for the next mod). Wow 2 pop-outs in 12yrs? Ok cancel the beadlocks then, I think I'm watching too many Jeep instagrams 😅. What do you think about the tires tho? Heavy tires might sink into sand, that's why people go to 10psi. Geolandar ppl say is not heavy, but not sure why the LandCruiser club on FB is bashing Yoko and recommending Toyo instead. Why lift kit? Hmm yeah I just assume higher ground clearance equals less chance of stuck since sand will not easily touch the chassis. But maybe it's better rock-crawling and less effective for sand? Definitely will join the drives again... just got the LC100 V8 yesterday so i missed signing up for @Gaurav's Sweihan, next time then 🙂

Congratulations @Pancho!

I also do not use TRC while driving in the sand . As per my observation It’s just one of the features given in the car for a better and smoother drive. I myself have so many times not even bothered switching it on. I have also used the diff lock just for recoveries. Usually I always drive on D, with the occasional use of the trip tonic to climb up.

@Ahab Shamaa as per Nissan Xterra Manuals its ok to drive the car in 4H on tarmac provided you don't exceed 100km/hr. Once you cross 100km/hr the torsional forces developed in the axles and the differential causes the system to fail. The differential cannot cope up with the unbalance and will fail. I realised this painfully after the drive with @wrangled ended last friday and was cruising happily on Emirates road. Once I crossed the 100km/hr limit and cruised at 130km/hr sound started to develop and the car had a strange vibration. Suddenly I realised its not been shifted to 2H and I immediately did. Sadly the damage was already done. I wished the vibration and sound will go off once I shifted back to 2H. 2 days later I checked what was the damage in a garage and found the front left axle had almost come loose from the differential tearing its millings and the oil in the differential was too low as it was spilling outside. Infact I was lucky to have checked it soon as it may have caused a sudden stop very soon and I might have had to tow it if I escaped the accident it may have caused. AWD are designed with differentials which can keep all the wheels driven but a pure 4WD is not. Couple of thousands lost but a very valuable lesson learned. Poor but wiser. Thankfully I could source the same differential model with same gear ratios from Sajaa as again I found out different models of Xterra has different gear ratios and is not easy to match. 2 differentials had to be brought and checked by fixing and driving it to finally choose 1. (1) How 4WD (4x4 - Four Wheel Drive) Works - 2H, 4H, 4L, LSD, Centre Diff, Diff Locks, Traction Control. - YouTube 2008 Nissan Xterra Owner's Manual.pdf

Hey @Foxtrot Oscar, @Niki Patel, @Chaitanya D, @sertac, @Emmanuel, @Mohamed Seidam, @topgear, @Srikumar, @Jefy, @GauravSoni, &@Gaurav. I’ve almost tried it all 😂 I hate, absolutely hate rattling and things moving around while off-roading. I’ve tried to tie down bags, nets, external bags on my spare tire, bags on my roof rack(not practical), and nothing has quite worked like the molle panels. They are great and can hold just about anything; provided you use good quality, to purpose tie-downs. Having said that, if you do decide to get some molle panels, go for good quality ones that will support the weight of equipment; including a 2 ton hydraulic jack 😀. Some panels in the market, are cheaply made and will bend and crackle when driving or under load. Some companies produce specific panels for your particular car, and I found those to be the best, since fit is perfect and they have installation instructions and support. In any event, even with a bit of a higher spend, it’s a once in a lifetime investment and worth every penny 😀 One last thing; there are literally hundreds of bags and holders that are designed for the molle panels, which is a great thing. This system is still being used by militaries around the world to this day. Here are some pics from the back of my FJC; everything is nice and tidy 😀

@Denizzalbayrak you are first on the waitlist

Hi @Jeepie, Can you add me to waiting list please? Thanks