Gaurav

@desertdude it's an industry MYTH that you are referring to and I have done my extensive research based on calculations and data before suggesting this. Viscose clutch fan direct will take max 2-5 hp additional and won't scream or howl as you are mentioning. I am using direct clutch fan since 5 years, especially for off-road vehicle with older cars - that's the bestest and bomb proof solution to keep borderline 4x4 run cooler. On the contrary 4x4 will loose tremendous HP if its overheating or "RUNNING WARM" as oppose to less 2-5 HP used by clutch fan. Bigger tires probably slows down more by adding several kg extra weight on all 4 axles than this clutch fan load. Offroad tires makes more noise on highway than this fan clutch howling (so called). I was like you too scared of all these before going this route and I havent "noticed" any big change in noise level or climbing faya from front face, before and after this change.

What you all have gone through yesterday was a part and parcel of the infamous Shuwaib area that start right behind Iftar bowl and spans to few kms with treacherous vast desert. I wont say this area is jinxed as many offroaders of my era use to call it, but this area is well known among offroaders community to test your patience, skills and teamwork. We have had endless incidents and issues in the same area that whenever we step there, we know that we are going to get into some serious action today. It's very unfortunate of tow hook breaking due to sheer negligence as it broke with gentle tug, that means it has never been checked properly for integrity before. @Srikumar and @Wrangeld every promotion thread has this line, so now it's time to implement firmly and start sending drivers back, who don't understand the importance of acquiring off-road gear as basic as shovel. @Jeepie heartiest congratulation on successfully completing your first independent drive lead under Marshal supervision and that too in such a tricky terrain plus without any prior navigational research and planning. Really well done. It is so nice to read that we have so many great contributors and team player than just silent observers who stand up to the occasion to help and support when the need arise. Well done @Kalahari, @Tbone and @Rinelle Sanaani

Great, while at workshop ask them to do the radiator clutch fan direct as that will help a lot, as in aged cars many times viscose clutch doesn't engage in right time and keep turning fan at half the rpm when engine need better cooling at full rpm (as per actual design of clutch). And this thing is almost impossible to trace by the many mechanic here. So the 5% extra noise of clutch fan is better than cooking your engine and moreover its your offroad vehicle so better cooling is always advisable to have great performance.

I highly agree with @Barry and @desertdude on not using any stop leak thing in cooling system. And let same or other mechanic diagnose it 100% about the coolant leak, as in present summer all engine coolant system are working in 200% capacity to keep engine cool and smallest leak can be fatal on your next drive. So please do not ignore or prolong such maintenance, it might be very pricey if you cook your engine.

Cooling system overheating on tarmac is a sign of overall cooling system inefficiency. My best guess is probably it has some air pocket as you mentioned recently topped up with new coolant, so probably mechanic didn't bleed the air bubbles out. You should do this first by yourself. Open the radiator cap when car is completely cold, top up the coolant in radiator if it's low, then start the car and let little bit of coolant overflow from the open radiator cap. This way some air bubbles might escape the cooling system. Ideally less than 5 min with open radiator gap is good enough and then close the cap. And drive for 30 minutes to let jeep reach its ideal temperature and then switch off the car. Let it cool off for an hour or two, do again same exercise for 2 or 3 times until air bubble stop coming out from the open radiator cap. P.S. If too much coolant comes out as soon you start the car, switch off and show it to mechanic, there is something more serious that need to be checked with "competent" mechanic. P.S. 2. NEVER EVER open radiator cap when car is hot. Let car sit for an hour or two before opening the radiator cap. If after this bleeding the coolant system, still car overheat on the tarmac, let us know how high it goes. Ideal Jeep wrangler sits at 200 degrees Fahrenheit = 98.8 degrees Celsius. Little movement (upto 10%) with AC on while slow speed in this peak summer is borderline acceptable,if it shoots beyond 10%, do not drive. Check without AC while on tarmac if it stays fine then it needs better air circulation and need additional fan. I guess @Wrangeld recently got AUX fan installed, so do the same from any workshop near you. It's the easiest and fastest fix. Secondly, you can get the viscose clutch fan direct by some turning guy, so it will always run at idle rpm and providing better cooling.

Added your name

Convoy Numbering Gaurav Khanna - Crew - Silver Pajero Gregory Perkin - Fewbie - Red Wrangler Veedooshee - Newbie - White Pajero VipinShetty - Newbie - Red Grand Cherokee Matti Brockman - Intermediate - Red Wrangler Carlos Fernandez - Newbie - Green Wrangler Nizam Deen - Fewbie - White Prado Colin Jordan - Intermediate - Red Wrangler Jun Zamora - Fewbie - Green Wrangler Jose Martin - Fewbie - Silver Pajero Nacho - Fewbie - White Wrangler E.C. TAN - Fewbie - Grey Wrangler

That's how we drive through out the year and still enjoy desert in the summer when its blazing hot. Actually this year got bit late for night and late evening drives due to COVID timings and restrictions.

SUPERB.

All absolute newbies driving for the first time with Carnity off-road club, please watch 15 minutes newbie briefing video. It is mandatory for everyone even if you have previous off-road experience. Trip lead will verify by asking questions from the briefing, so please watch it in advance than watching it on deflation point and making the whole convoy wait. @Biju Abdul @Adam Koster @Islam Soliman @Anam Fatima @Ahmed Farghaly @Edgar @David Ortells

We have lost two carnity spare radio's one with sticker at the back and one without it. Both are Motorola MT777, if anyone finds it please return it to any of the Marshal or your trip lead. Thanks in advance.

JUST FYI Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive.

RSVP is now closed for this drive. @Gregory Perkin will be our second lead tomorrow. @Matti Brockman - Center forward - will be trained for tow rope recovery tomorrow. @Nacho and @E.C. TAN will be our sweep. We will have plenty of easy level newbie track and dunes for newbies along with plenty of play time for fewbies during the route and towards the end at Pink Rock. No one is allowed to step out of their cars without my or Matti's permission with a legitimate reason. We all need to respect COVID precautions at all times, especially while inflating and deflating tires - The most. This is just a desert drive and let's just keep it like that - WITHOUT any gathering or stepping out for photos and video. Radio channel 1 will be used for all communication (446.006 Mhz). but still program all 5 channels. Please make sure you have your radio programmed as per our Walkie Talkie tutorial. Convoy Numbering Gaurav Khanna - Crew - Silver Pajero Gregory Perkin - Fewbie - Red Wrangler Veedooshee - Newbie - White Pajero VipinShetty - Newbie - Red Grand Cherokee Carlos Fernandez - Newbie - Green Wrangler Nizam Deen - Fewbie - White Prado Matti Brockman - Intermediate - Red Wrangler Jun Zamora - Fewbie - Green Wrangler Jose Martin - Fewbie - Silver Pajero Nacho - Fewbie - White Wrangler E.C. TAN - Fewbie - Grey Wrangler See you tomorrow ! @Veedooshee @VipinShetty @Nizam Deen @Jun Zamora @Jose Martin @Carlos Fernandez

Click (on mobile) / Hoover on desktop on the tiny heart on right side under every post - to reveal 8 emotions. 3 from right is "Totally Agree

Probably yes. Can you please take a closer and clear picture in hi res of the right and left chassis channel (bar). Because those chassis channels have few holes on which that eyelet sits, so if those holes are accessible and not too far off, we can use the soft shackle (in case of emergency - this week) and you get the tow point install for next week.

Which year is your Xterra? Is it GCC spec or imported? Usually xterra back tow point (actually eyelet) is on the left side, if you are standing behind the car and facing the car.

What Richard trying to explain is: You don't necessarily need off-road lights if you aren't leading but then if you have off-road lights you will see better, learn better and drive better even in the convoy situation. Especially in night drive if your distance increases beyond 20 meters from the car in front for those few seconds you will end up leading by yourself and in those few seconds, if you have a better light you will feel more confident. If you drive with stock lights, Hi-Beam is your best friend and you will be always chasing the car in front to not to loose him, and that creates a bit of sub-conscious pressure, that can be relieved if you have an off-road lights. I have driven (followed) and lead offroad for 10+ years with stock lights as LED bars were god damn expensive to 5-6K and we were fine. I bought my first LED bar in 2017 and realize what a world of difference it makes when you can see properly in night drives.

Hi @Nabeel Ahmed Welcome to Carnity. When you already know the Nissan Altima CVT gearing "Failing issue" and still even think about buying is like standing in front of a firing squad and hoping all guns will fail by a miracle. Fixing cost of 7K or 17K doesnt matter as once gear is rebuild you will be again hanging on that thin rope and sitting with a lemon that no one will buy from you at quarter of the price. Deniz has driven 62k so far and such problem starts from 70K - 80K onwards. These CVT gear failure is a very big known issue. Check here: Like @Frederic mention you will be extremely lucky if previous owner has changed the CVT fluid. Here's my advice: If you are hell bent over Altima, buy with a "WRITTEN WARRANTY" that Automall will fix the CVT gearing if it fails and sell the car before warranty expires - be it 1 or 2 or 5 years. My actual advise is - "Do not buy Altima", when you are already know the CVT gear issue exist. To compare in correct league, you should compare Altima with Camry and even if you have to downgrade 2 or 3 years to fit in your budget, that should be your No: 1 Choice - Style, performance and Toyota reliability proven in Dubai taxi since two decades. You can safely put 200K in next 5 years on Camry if you maintain it reasonably well. Alternatively, if you like Corolla and happy to live with it's minimalist design and feature for next 5 years, then that should be your next best logical choice - ANYDAY. Wish you good luck for whatever you decide and hope it brings peace of mind for years to come.

Totally agree with @Chaitanya D comment and @Ale Vallecchi our "NEW" Expert lead is pushing the bar VERY HIGH for all of us here. Well done Ale, Keep it up and always keep inspiring us.

This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to respect and follow these guidelines strictly in order to not jeopardize someone's health and to ensure we can keep organizing these drives safely. MUST READ: Not following these rules and precautions = Not allowed to drive. No Gathering | No Briefing | No BBQ | No Eating Together | No Touching | No Hugging We are only allowed to drive through the desert, as we are driving on the road now. So we will only do the desert driving just by sitting inside our cars at all the times and leave the drive without socializing or coming close to each other. Just like before we like to continue our desert drives through out the year, but this time we need your immense support to understand the strict control and to help everyone follow them all the time. How to maintain "STRICT" Social Distancing Meeting point will be set slightly (100m - 200m) inside the desert track. You individually deflate your tires on the tarmac before reaching the meeting point. While deflating tires, stop cars 10 meters away from any other car. Drive signup on calendar will be closed on Thursday morning by 9 AM. Convoy numbering and briefing will be posted here on this drive post before 6 PM on Thursday. All participants need to read & acknowledge the briefing by clicking "Totally Agree" reaction. Switch on your radio when you reach the meeting point on the set frequency advised by the trip lead in the critical briefing here. Once everyone reaches to the meeting point, everyone stay inside the car at all the times. Trip lead will do the roll call, convoy numbering recap, critical briefing over the radio. Any suggestions or issues will be discussed over the radio too. You can also speak to other members through the radio only. So please make sure that your radio battery is fully charged. Once all set, trip lead will start the drive as before. Refusal and Recoveries with Social Distancing Every drive will have 1 lead Marshal and 1 or 2 supporting senior members/crew. Whenever there is a stuck or refusal, only a Marshal / Senior Member / Crew is allowed to handle the situation. Everyone else including the stuck car driver, stay inside the car - AT ALL TIMES. Marshal / Senior Member / Crew is only allowed to step out to access the situation and do the recoveries: They will wear mask and gloves at all times when they are outside their car. They will try to help self recover through the radio guidance. If not they will use required recovery gear and do the needful (shovel, tug or winch, as required). If at any time Marshal require help, then only you are allowed to step out by wearing face mask and gloves at all times. Drive completion and inflation There will not be any gathering or sitting down together for food-break like before. Once drive is finished, after reaching the tarmac, everyone is requested to move away 10-20 meters before starting their inflation. For drivers having no compressor, can head to the near by fuel station. If drive is ending at a place where there is no fuel station near by, then trip lead will inform in advance so that drivers having their own compressor can join only. Strictly no sharing of compressors, radio, shovel or any recovery gear, at any times. Mandatory things you require to attend the drive Face mask - at least TWO face mask is needed in case one get damage or fly away. Disposable rubber gloves - at least two sets are needed. Wear face mask and gloves at all the times, when you are out of your car. Carry plenty of hand sanitizer and object sanitizer (spray). Use your sanitizers generously, whenever you step out to help or recover. Sanitize your hands before getting back into your car. Sanitize your recovery gears, if you have used them. Fully charged and programmed radio - without any excuse - No radio = No drive. Shovel - Must for every car, to do little self recovery Safety flag - Must for every car, like before Compressor - If joining the drives that is ending far from the fuel station. Mandatory precaution that you need to take at all times Do not step out of your car UNLESS/OTHERWISE advised by Marshal / Senior Member / Crew. No shaking hands, hugs or touching each other. No sharing of food, drinks or recovery tools. If you are not feeling well, please stay at home and take a lot of rest. If you have travel in last 14 days, then please do not attend this drive. If you feel unwell during the drive, please let trip lead know so he can plan an early exit. Not more than 3 pax in a car and if all 3 aren't living together, then they should wear the mask inside the car too. Two Way Radio Guidelines Every Offroader brings his own radio, programmed to the frequencies described in below advice topic. We will not share spare radios or program your radio on the drive. If you need assistance in programming the radio, post a topic on the Carnity website with your questions and we will help you out. Make sure your radio is fully charged. It will be your only way of communication while driving. Before buying, please carefully read below advice so you are informed properly on which model / cost / shops... No radio = No drive. It is an essential tool and you should make sure you bring it on every drive and learn/practice how to use it. MUST WATCH: OUR NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING: Drive Details Level: Newbie, Absolute Newbie and Above (All Levels) When: July 03 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 5:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Tawi Nazwa Farm - https://goo.gl/maps/LjPWf8DebrAuNSWg9 Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance. What to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), smiles, face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 09:00 PM End Point: 2nd Dec Cafeteria - https://goo.gl/maps/MxnMF2fHeGnKZ4vf7 P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 15 cars only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 9 AM. 1 Lead Marshal + 2 Senior Members + 12 Members. If the RSVP is full and you wish to join, please mention your name on the drive thread to add on the waiting list. Latecomers will be returned back - without ANY EXCEPTIONS. Members without RSVP will be returned back - without ANY EXCEPTIONS. Please withdraw your RSVP, if you aren't joining, so your spot can be taken by others. Repeated no-show members after RSVP will have their account suspended for a month. PLEASE RSVP ON THE CALENDAR

Super smooth

You will have lot more fun at fewbies level and truly cherish your perfectly lifted FJC with off-road tires.

I will remember that, for sure.

Well done @Asif Hussain it's so good to see you back in the game after so long break.