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Hi for my 2 cents worth. After every drive, turn off radio/music once on asphalt, build speed slowly to listen for any new noises. Wiggle the steering and also use speed bumps to your advantage. I generally half the recommended service intervals for all service items. Including transmission and diff fluids. When the car is up on the ramp at the workshop, I walk through the underside of the car with the mechanic and check for any issues. On the pajero check status of all suspension bushes, engine and transmission mounts, steering rack, shocks and springs. All of these have needed some maintenance on mine over the last 2 years. Wheel alignment every 1 to 2 months depending on driving, or when something feels out. Wash on a regular basis but full underbody was every 6 months or so, unless have been in a muddy area. Compressed air in the engine bay. Keep air filter clean and change every service.

I think we’re all roughly in the same place: Before every offroad drive: Quick walk around check, tap some panels, stare at the tyres etc, look under the car (especially the garage floor - great way to spot any slow leaks), and check the major fluids (oil, coolant). Basically just looking for anything out of the ordinary. Starting off: Radio etc off and ears out, window open - this is probably your first moment of driving in 4H (the drive over would have been on highway in 2H/AWD). You develop a surprisingly effective ear for things sounded off. And by the way if something sounds off, definitely shout up on the radio and take a look. Sometimes it’s really simple stuff (flag not secure, door not closed properly), but sometimes it’s an early indication of a bigger issue (bearings, seals, etc). I’ll usually monitor things until I’ve covered a few bumps and revved the engines a few times. Occasional checks whilst driving: I glance at the gauges when there’s a calm moment. Just looking for anything higher than usual and not coming down, and a quick check in tyre pressures. After drive and regular maintenance : - Oil and other consumables at half the on-road intervals (so eg if you should do an oil change every 10k, do it at 5k). - Blow out the air filter every other weekend or after the drive if a heavy one. - Visually inspect the engine bay too. - Maybe once a quarter I’ll go around and tighten certain bolts I know can get loose…for my Jeep that can include beadlock ring, sway bar bolts, offroad light fittings etc. - I generally wash the car most weekends. Don’t let the guys go crazy, power washing seals etc in the engine bay is bad. Catching problems early will usually be feasible if you’re consistent and can spot a slow trend early. As for garage…could write a book on this. I go to different places depending on what it is (OEM warranty claim, offroad specific mods, simple stuff I might do myself for convenience). General rule is trust no one and verify everything before and after.

Very good topic @Suneedh Wrangler! You will surely find different answers to your questions. These are mine: After a desert drive, do you always go for a full wash, including underbody? Or do you only do a full wash occasionally and just rinse the important areas most of the time? i wash my cars at home and rarely go for full or underbody wash. I brush off / blow off the dirt and dust from inside the engine bay as i don't want to have any water in there. Do you do anything special after drives (like checking skid plates, suspension, bushings, brake dust, etc.) or do you mostly just wash and go? after the drive i tend to listen if a new suspicious noise has come up When it comes to fluids — do you change engine oil and filter earlier than the manufacturer’s recommended interval because of the heat, sand, and harder driving? I change my oil around 7000km (fully synthetic Castrol/ROWE/Mobil1). Air filter i clean myself regularly (10 days). Same question for transmission oil/filter, differential oils, and transfer case oil — do you stick to the recommended schedule or do you shorten it for peace of mind? I stick to recommended schedule here as i don't push my cars that hard. Do you use the agency for everything, or do you prefer trusted garages? (And if so, what’s the main reason — cost, quality, speed, or experience?) my cars are too old for agency, so i go for trusted garages. And lastly — any “must-do” maintenance tips you’d recommend to someone who wants to keep their car healthy long-term while enjoying desert drives regularly? You've covered most of it here above, but i always recommend to check your engine and coolant levels before every drive, and keep a good watch on your temperature gauges (engine/transmission) throughout the drive. I also don't do any high level drives towards or in the summer to avoid overstressing.

Lovely mid-week drive there. @Luke K P great lines as always, and just the right amount of increase in speed/complexity to step us into FB+. @Suneedh Wrangler and @Nabeel Abdul Rahman - that was well driven, well done. Important part for me was that everything was safe, and you had great instincts for accepting the situation and not trying to stretch a bad line into a worse situation. When we do ridge crossings as a short convoy it can be quite dynamic and sometimes quick decisions have to be made on when to turn off/turn down, and when to follow someone or move to a clear area safely instead. You both showed good instincts on these points.

We had a great FB+ drive for first night of Ramadan. Minimal cross tracks, big dunes, quiet area. Really nice high ridge riding from @Suneedh Wrangler and @Nabeel Abdul Rahman on your FB+ debut! Even with the couple of refusals we had, most importantly was that all of them were safe refusals, with easy quick recoveries. Thanks @ChrisW for talking through the recoveries to make sure they were done gently. We covered 50km of terrain, looking forward to seeing you guys on the next one!

Nice topic. I under car pressure wash maybe once a month or two. Remove sand from cabin with a handheld air blower. Replace oil every 5k at agency. New OEM paper air filter after 10k. Wheel Alignment one a month. Retighten beadlocks bolts at random when I remember. Listen while driving on road and head back to agency to check out weird clunks etc. I have found no off-road garage or car shop in Abu Dhabi that can do even basic service or repair work on the Pajero or the Ranger, so go back to agency. Absolute horrific mechanic work in this side of UAE 😫😫😫😫

The summary so far (with some AI help): Post-Drive Checks Turn off radio, drive slowly on asphalt, listen for new noises Visual walk-around — check panels, tyres, underneath the car Look at garage floor for slow leaks Washing Full underbody wash only monthly to quarterly, not after every drive Blow out engine bay with compressed air — avoid pressure washing near seals Regular exterior wash weekly or biweekly Engine Oil & Filters Oil changes well before manufacturer intervals: every 5,000–7,000 km with full synthetic Air filters cleaned every 10 days to 2 weeks, replaced every 10k km or at each service Transmission, Diff & Transfer Case Fluids Some halve the recommended intervals (Andrew, ChrisW) Others stick to manufacturer schedule if not driving aggressively (Frederic) Wheel Alignment Every 1–2 months — desert driving knocks it out fast Bolt Checks Periodically retighten beadlocks, sway bar bolts, light mounts, and other known loose points Pre-Drive Essentials Check engine oil and coolant levels before every drive Monitor engine and transmission temperature gauges throughout the drive Agency vs. Independent Garages Agency preferred for warranty and reliability (Luke) Trusted garages for older vehicles (Frederic) Mix depending on the job — "trust no one, verify everything" (ChrisW) General Advice Halve on-road service intervals for off-road use Walk through the underside with your mechanic when it's on the ramp Avoid hard drives in summer to prevent overheating Catch problems early by being consistent with checks

Another great drive with @Luke K P and @ChrisW ! Had some refusals, but got sorted quickly (thanks to the expert guidance). The criss-crosses were scary at first but then started getting the hang of it. Looking forward to the next drive!

Enjoy the Salamat madness! It is a very special place, sorry I could not make this one!

I wish I could make it … does anybody has a free promotion coupon I could use ?

BIG TERRAIN APPETISERS

No one can stop me chattering SORRY.

Trip Report We started the week with 7 cars signing, and by the weekend we were down to 3 cars for the drive. Liwa is definitely not a place to attempt the terrain with just three cars. Honestly, if I hadn’t driven before with @Sam Selim and @Beide Worku, I would have called the drive off. I had 100% trust in you both, and that confidence is what made me continue with the drive. A huge thank you to both of you for joining and making this drive possible. We all met on time on Sunday morning at the meeting point. Without making any changes to the planned route, I led the drive through those set of dunes with few breaks in between and we reached our destination Moreeb Hill, by 1 PM. After successfully climbing Moreeb Hill a couple of times, we took a 1 hour break in a shaded area. It was a great time with interesting conversations on topics from around the world. After the break, we began our return backtracking journey parallel to our first half track, and finished the drive right on time at our starting point. It was a wonderful day out in those massive and technical dunes with full of surprises at times. Despite a few refusals and some stuck situations, we managed everything smoothly as a team. At one point, I found myself stuck in a position where only a winch recovery could solve it. There was absolutely no room for recovery vehicle from the front or the back. But @Sam Selim with his Jeep, and @Beide Worku instructing on the radio, executed a fantastic reverse angle rope recovery. It was smooth, controlled, and flawless. Truly impressive teamwork.. Once again, thank you guys for making this drive possible. See you soon… LIWA LIWA!