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As i have now visited Oman for the second year in a row, i wanted to start this topic with describing the wadis and places i visited, and my experiences. There are lots of other wadis and things to see and do, but i will just mention the ones i visited and give a brief explanation on what they are about. Once you google the specific areas you will find hundreds of photos and more information. https://www.omantripper.com/ Above mentioned site has really nice information on the topic. The best season to visit Oman is between Mid-October to March as the temperatures become enjoyable. Visting the Musandam protectorate is also nice and I will post a topic on this one later. Trip to Oman preparation * Arrange your visas online in advance. https://evisa.rop.gov.om/. Visa on arrival is not allowed anymore from what i've heard. * Make sure your car insurance has Oman coverage. If not ,you will need to purchase one at the border itself (bit of a hassle). * Do not carry alcohol or other items which you would not be able to travel into UAE/Oman. Drones are not allowed. * Make sure the car is registered under your name and that the driver is part of the travel group. * If driving in convoy, a two way radio is very handy to stay in touch and announce the coffee breaks. * Make sure your car is in proper technical condition. Pass by your mechanic to have all fluids checked before leaving. Check your tyre pressure, and verify if the spare wheel is OK. * Top up the fuel regularly to avoid running empty. There are nowadays more and more petrol stations, but some remote areas will require a long drive to find one. Wadi preparation Visiting a wadi is a fantastic thing to do with family and friends, but you have to come prepared if you want to experience it fully. You will need the following: Cap or hat to protect you from the sun as well as sunscreen Food, snacks and plenty of drinking water. Swimming clothes and towel.. Sturdy footwear with good grips: something that can get wet and you may need to swim with (old sneakers or water shoes from Decathlon will do). Life jackets for the children. Camera and water proof bag: In many places you will need to swim in the pools to go from one place to another. We used the Decathlon waterproof special zip lock bag that you can put around your neck, that holds your phone and car keys. Other items that can get wet can be put in a rucksack. It is recommended to arrive in the early morning (7-8am). The more touristical wadis can get very busy after 10am. Dress respectfully: bikinis and cleavage are not really well accepted. When you enter a wadi and see the first water pool, do not think that this is the end of your destination. A wadi is a stream that can sometimes be kilometres long and involve hiking or driving till the end. Ask around and the locals will gladly show you the sweet spots. Camping preparation If you're planning on camping, be aware of the following: * You can freely camp on the beaches, but many of them have pebbles, so take an air mattress. * Be careful when roaming around the bushes at night. There are snakes and scorpions around. Long pants and closed shoes are recommended. I had a very very close encounter with a viper recently. * Do not camp in the wadis. There is risk of flooding and you will never make it out in time once a storm hits you. * Do not camp near river beds or stagnant water: mosquitos will be having the time of their lives devouring you or attacking you. These are the places we visited on our 2018 and 2019 trip: Wadi Shab Wadi Shab parking area: 22.839733, 59.247116 You can easily park underneath the bridge, and a small boat will carry you across the river where the adventure starts. You can choose between following the walking path, or using the wadi pools to swim from one side to the other. The reward is at the very end where you can swim in a cave. This is a perfect wadi to start with. Its family friendly, not too crazy adventurous, and you can decide for yourself how far you want to go. You do not need a 4x4. Wadi Tiwi and Mibam Village My personal favorite wadi that makes you truly feel you are in another world. You will need a 4x4 to navigate through the very steep and narrow village road. You will be greeted by the local youth that will offer to give you a hand carrying your bags, assist your children, and show you the most beautiful places. We had 3 local boys that really helped us out and were the perfect guides. Once you reach the village, you have to descend along the terraces where you will see banana trees, mango trees, and many others. The biggest reward is at the bottom where you can swim in a huge caved area with lush greeneries and waterfalls. Reaching the bottom is not possible with children. Its a tricky descend and climb where the locals will give you a hand, but in theory this is the kind of thing where you would need some climbing gear and safety ropes. Picture below shows idiot me doing without climbing gear but with help from a guide. Starting point: 22.822144, 59.258530 Bimma Sinkhole 23.036267, 59.071988 This is a sinkhole near the coast, and nearby Wadi Tiwi and Wadi Shab. It's a small circular lake with turquoise waters, approx. 20m deep. If you stick your feet in the water, the little fishies will give you a free foot scrub There is a play park next to it, so the kids can enjoy while you have some snacks. Wadi Al Arbeieen Starting Point: 23.078278, 59.045630 This wadi involves a very nice winding road, where you will need a 4x4 to venture through the water passings and river beds. They are not very deep so a regular SUV or 4x4 will manage. It's about a 20mins drive to the actual parking. The wadi is consisting out of nice water pools where you can take a dip, or you can go for a walk around the area. Wadi Bani Khalid This wadi is very popular among the tourists, so it is recommended to arrive early. It has many beautiful water pools, and the more adventurous people can go a bit further into a bat cave (Muqil Cave). Other things to see and do in Oman: Muscat: Capital of Oman. Visit the souqs or some of the historical buildings or just stay overnight to catch up on some sleep. The beach is also nice. Nizwa: was originally part of the trip, but we left it out because of lack of time. Apparently it is an old historical town, nice to to for a stroll or eat at the local restaurants. Sur: As we visited the Ras Al Jinz Turtle reserve, we stayed into a nearby hotel in Sur. The Sur Plaza Hotel was a welcoming place and the comfort of a real bed and shower is a bliss after the camping activities. Sur is a calm town with some nice forts and watch towers. Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve: Ras al Jinz Turtle Reserve محمية راس الجنز Ras al Jinz، Sur, Oman +968 9655 0606 https://goo.gl/maps/asetNTxmVGeDE9FH8 Definitely worth a visit to see the turtles hatching in the sand and going back into the ocean. Beautiful building with hotel and facilities. Nice restaurant with buffet. We went for the evening visit that started at 8:30pm. The most beautiful thing I saw that night was the night sky. The moon was not out and it was pitch black in that area. Reply with your feedback, questions, or information! Let’s share the best spots for this winter season !

Yep I sure did...I thought it was for expert level 😉😂. No worry..now left..

Why would you want to crust them, baking a dune pie?

Apparently now the thing in Dubai is make sure the ad says "British owned". If it says "lady" in the title, bonus points. If the owner was a "British lady dentist", you hit the jackpot.

It looks a bit like a bicycle pump that clips onto where your radiator cap goes. Usually you pump it up to 12-14 psi and it will push coolant out through any leaks but you could go up to 18-19 psi and it something is bad you will find it

Is the radiator new? or used. Well you gave your car a good jolt that whacked the radiator into the main fan. Which could have also damaged the water pump which the main fan is bolted on to. The water pump is not designed to take any physical abuse. Causing it to start weeping. https://www.amazon.ae/dp/B07VX79GY8/ref=asc_df_B07VX79GY8/?tag=googleshopp09-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=386233137014&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=7611363433706531902&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9047580&hvtargid=pla-822032744129&psc=1

That's why Im saving my "Going" for last minute

@Gaurav he was asking about how to buy, not how to list a used one for sale

Hi Gaurav, Good to hear that you're getting back on the bike, it is definitely relaxing. I am not an avid biker, more like a recreational one. I live next to the Al Qudra Cycling track so that helps too. In general i have to say that the infrastructure in Dubai is still quite weak when it comes to cyclists, but there is slight improvement. If you want you can also rent a bike near to the Al Qudra lakes (Giant store). My best advice would be to start slowly and enjoy every ride. Your stamina will quickly improve but it is important to not overdo it and to keep an eye on your heart rates. If you monitor those properly your physical strength and stamina will improve without pain or injuries. Good luck !

That's a big no no in the BMW world too not to mix it's blue coolant with any other because it will turn into a gel.

It can happen that the various corrosion inhibitors in different brands of coolant react with each other to form an acid that attacks seals and/or mating surfaces under gaskets and seals. Other times, and depending on the mixture, coolant additives can cancel each other out, so you may think that your engine is protected, but meanwhile, the coolant mixture is destroying it from within in various ways, and the first time you notice something is wrong is when you start getting coolant leaks. So no, mixing coolants is never a good idea.

Final Update Vibration was due to 1 teeth missing , Last night we opened everything again and found out left side Belt was missed by 1 1/2 timing. It took me 6 Sparks Plug, 2 coil and cleaning of Injectors to find out this cause. in this course my Manifold was damaged due to wrong fitting. Finally the vibrations are gone, but will drive for a week to see if it returns

Cruise control is meant only highway driving hence the name cruise control i.e cruising down the highway.

There are 9 people coming I am pretty sure they all have place for at least 1 person and some are driving alone so they have place for 6 more person's in their cars . Anyone will be more than happy to accommodate 1 person so they can help to navigate...

Absolutely! And it would be nice to explore that new area. Where should I meet you? Rahim has my whatsapp number, in case you need to contact me faster. Thank you!!! I’m so excited

Just like I can't remember half the phone numbers of my family and friends since mobile phone has all of them stored. Similarly with adaptive cruise control we would loose our sense of braking. Let the kids learn it the hard way.

There are instance like that but I am sure that can be totally avoided if the person is calm and aware of his surroundings

Unfortunately, I did not go all the way to Jordan from UAE but rented a car there 😃 Anyway, it could be useful! Will do 😃 All right, will do! 😃 Thanks

Snakes are cool. Tasty too deep fried in batter with soy sauce. I used to have a pet Boa constrictor. She grew to almost 2 meters. Once you learn to handle them they aren't so scary. Its about respect. Most of the time if you don't annoy them they won't annoy you. If you want to pick one up, just be careful of the bitey end. If you pick up a snake properly it won't be able to bite you. But, some snakes can be just as cuddly as a kitten too. Mine used to curl around my leg and sit and watch TV with me. Snakes don't want to bite people. Purely for the reason that they swallow their prey whole, and a person is too big to swallow. If a snake bites you, its not the snakes fault, its yours. The snake bit you because it was scared. Snakes get a bad rep sometimes but its not their fault, its ours. We are the ones encroaching on their environment. They were there before we started decided to build villas over their habitat.

I recently saw a very nicely modified olpost 05 Pathfinder in Muhaisana. Got a 4 inch lift bash plates. And looked liked it had gone on a few serious drives. Was just thinking if it had that 310hp V8 in it. It would be a nice ride Anyone who has driven a Titan or Armada even on road know they are pretty quick. Under 7 second 0-100 for such big beasts imagine that in a smaller and lighter package.

just saying...

@amir.rophail if you are coming to this one I'll take the compressor with me I'll give it to you for 50 aed it cost me more but I just don't need it. I used it like 3 times only

Hi Jamy; Sorry our good forum policy not allowing for PM if you are not purchasing some level of membership. I checked with my friend he said it is 2016 VXR but registered at 2017, 40.000km It has; Navigation, Leather Seats, Backup Camera, Parking Sensors, Blind spot Sensor, It has original Built in Compressor and flag point on roof. Full service history, has warranty till 2021. For price you can call him or whatsapp him. +971 54 791 7955. He is selling because planing to get A G63 Merc.

Look for the 3.5 LE if you want the Full Option. This is the one with leather electric seats and all the creature comforts. PF's are quite reliable so as long as it doesn't look to used and abused you should be in good hands. Good Luck!

Prado was my first choice, but even for 50k the models I checked were too old and used, a lot of kms too... I didn't find any descent one and got frustrated and tired looking for one. Which year and model would you say? and reasonable price? Because a brand new one is 160k... and As Rahim said, I wouldn't be keen to taking it to the desert hehe The car would be for me alone btw. No passengers to take into consideration, at least right now and the near future

Don’t hit the kerb. I saw something on another site a couple of days ago, Reddit or 9GAG or something like that, I don’t remember. Some guy screwed rubber onto the kerb outside his house so he wouldn’t damage his wheels when parking. I felt like making an account just to tell him if you can’t park without hitting the kerb, you probably shouldn’t be driving. I see this every day. Some people have no spatial awareness and no idea of the size of their car. They will driver until they hit the kerb and use that as a feel for when to steer. It’s not just tyre damage. It knocks your wheels out of balance so the steering wheel vibrates when you drive. It also upsets your steering alignment so your car doesn’t drive straight when you let go of the wheel.

Why is that riding a bike in the direction opposite to traffic is against the law. In India with cars driving so close I would not want to put my life in the hands of the car driver who has to judge the distance so that he can miss me. Same would apply here as well due to the high speeds even on internal roads. Unless there are dedicated cycle tracks I personally think it's safe for the cyclist to drive against traffic. What say? @Gaurav if you are driving in a low light area, it's better you get one of those reflector jackets and wear light colored clothing

Thanks @Frederic for this nice share. I would add an axe to cut wood sticks when there is a lot of trees available around your camp (If you are not in a protected area of course)

Yes, totally right. I have a really decent drone laying around at the house that would have been perfect, but i did not take it with me as it takes up too much space. Have edited the post thank for the comment.

I know mixing red and green color radiator coolant is totally unacceptable, but can we mix different brands of same color - green coolant while top up? I have filled originally with Mitsubishi coolant and then used ENOC green coolant occasionally to top up since last 1 year. Recently added Prestone green coolant to top up and now I had 3 leaks in 3 weeks. So doubting if coolant mixing could be the cause or is it a pure coincidence.

OMG! Finally my wife's perfect Pajero the diff light is on the blink and the lights showing the rear tires as green has gone blank. After stopping the car on road side and switching off the engine, letting the computer reset itself the system is back to normal. As per @shadow79 I am shifting the car every now and then from 2H to 4H and back. I am still facing the issue once in a while. Its seems the switch has an issue and will try to find out more over the coming days, however thank God I do not have any unwanted vibrations.

Well you don't believe anything other than your Pajero can do anything so that's a moot point.lol Once you said a patrol can't do anything then even a turbo Cayenne was also useless had to post videos of both. One with me on the wheel. Anyways It's a fun little car which also happens to be a proper body on ladder frame chassis with a low range box. Weighing in slightly over a 1000kgs it's little 1.5 is good enough to have a whizz around the local sandboxes. Once again not everyone wants to enter pissing contests of climbing x dune from y side. Having a playful romp in the desert as shown in the video is good enough. And all that for cheaper than a Corolla

Try driving adaptive cruise to cruise down the highway here, you will know the stupidity of designer and also impulsive road user here. Both are at extreme. Fred, your car also had a 100 meter braking distance or is it Range only....?

As it's time to have an intermediate level drive, let's go deeper in Al Yahar/Nahil side of Sweihan area. The plan is to start from this amazing spot we discovered in June (and returned to at the end of summer), head North-East through very promising sets of dunes and exit on the E95. When: Friday 18 October 2019 Meeting time: 5:45 AM sharp Where: In order to earn time, we will meet not far from deflation point (exit from E16). GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/ZRq6a2g2WHMYCj6P9 Last petrol stations : 1. ADNOC Al-Hiyar (if you come from E66) https://goo.gl/maps/FU1LJn8bfaJ4AQXw5 ; 2. ADNOC Sweihan (if you come from E16, with a small detour) https://goo.gl/maps/kfRXapzVXqgp2F6E9 Level: intermediate and above Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 10 inches of ground clearance. Plan: Drive and enjoy till about 10 AM. What to bring along: Snacks whatever you like with little extra to share, water, liquids, smiles, stories, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Please RSVP on the below calendar:

I love that part of dunes a lot.. once done it without bash plate on my pajero and it was a nightmare at the end.

Sensible driving !!! That hits me back. wont it be a problem if we start crusting dunes? 😔

@Mikhail LukichevYes please. We will wait for your travelogue. Please post pictures of your journey too.

The old P38 is a bad comparison. Tech was new then and more than hardware the software was the issue. And that is what really gave Range Rover s a bad reputation of unreliability. Now even sedans are riding on air and air susp tech has come a long way since then. I have friends who haven't changed their bags since 2002. Still riding on the original bags the car came with from factory.

Seems like we won't have quorum again.

@shadow79, is AED 315/- price for whole mirror with assembly or only the inside mirror? A couple of months ago, I inquired by calling a spare parts shop - the mirror with assembly cost AED 850/- in Sharjah.

SORRY Bhai I saw it on google involuntary response.

Traditionally. Just before and begining of Summer vacations. As many people sell off their cars they want to get rid of before they go and usually get a new ride before the start of the new school year. And worst time to buy a 4x4 is at the start of the winter season here i.e now. But due to the slowdown for the last couple of years it's been a buyers market and more and more people leaving or sending families home. More cars for sale than buyers these day. But the above mentioned factors still do come in play

Well i'd like to compare it with going to the gym because you want to get in a better shape: Option 1: You go alone to the nearest gym, mess around a bit with the equipment, get sprains and injuries, and maybe you will become a bit more fit once you get to know how the equipment works, but you are left to your own devices and not always sure about if you are doing the right thing OR if it is even safe to do with the health or equipment you have. Option 2: You join a gym and go for 10-15 lessons. Your personal teacher will assess your current condition and will guide you safely to minimize injuries or accidents. Thanks to his experience and knowledge you will progress much faster than others and will be grateful for having somebody to learn something from. Joining an Offroad club like Carnity is free, and you get professional advice from people who can safely guide you through and avoid mistakes which in the desert can end up being costly or even fatal. But don't take it from me, take it from the dozens of people that joined Offroad clubs and learned essential stuff like how to deflate properly, recover yourself, and what you and your car can do. If you or your friends get stuck, do you know what to do or which equipment to use to safely recover yourself ? I go for regular camping trips myself with a group of friends, but we don't venture deep and definitely don't do the stuff we are doing in an Offroad club. We drive around a bit, set up camp, and have some drinks. We avoid the real dunes and difficult tracks because most of my friends have very little Offroad experience and we don't want to get in trouble having our car full with kids, dogs, etc... Joining Carnity Offroad and doing the Newbie drives gave me more confidence and far less stress when going camping with my friends, as i know that my car is always equipped with recovery gear and i know how to use it. And most of all i can help my friends by sharing that information. PS replace "teacher" by our Offroad Specialists like @Gaurav, @Srikumar @Asif Hussain, @Emmanuel, @Rahimdad and more team members who will take your under their wings and teach you all the skills and fun our UAE deserts have to offer....

Thanks, @ging for the suggestion, I got a helmet and gloves so far and will see what else I can afford in this heat and the non-cycle friendly world. @Barry I totally agree with your thoughts on this as the first day I chose street ride for 2 km to reach to cycling strip and got the creeps as every passing car was so close to me, so while coming back I thought to ride bike in opposite lane and almost every second car was dipping the high beam as if I couldn't see them and making me blind in hard shoulder. Then I decided to stick to the 1 km rough patch than the side street.

For me personally, the Gurkha name attached to a vehicle stirs up feelings that it’s going to be tough as hell, a force to be reckoned with. I know who the Gurkhas were. And they got screwed over for a long time. But it’s good to see them now starting to get the recognition they deserve.