Gaurav

In my experience RR are the most comfy and friendly car I have ever owned and at same time I always felt like I am sitting on a ticking bomb. What desertdude is explaining the fact, but after your first year of ownership and few bad bites you will graduate to that level of ownership experience when you can differentiate between real and honest LR professional and just greedy monkeys. What Danny shared is based on lot of greedy monkey experience touting around the market and LR name, esp RR name become too notorious because of those greedy workshops. They made this judgement that everyone who own RR is a big shot and if they rip them for couple of thousand then it's acceptable in their business dictionary. I have even come to hear from one of such greedy mechanic - that you drive RR and looking for a bargain.....! Ticking bomb was the beep of EAS - Beep beep beep - I still remember it clearly and it used to be the most haunting beep of my life, that while driving all of sudden three beeps can turn your ride in to limping beast running at 60 kmph. After couple of attempts, I finally gave up on EAS and switch to solid springs (softer version) and enjoyed my RR thoroughly. Like desertdude mentioned, I also agree that in newer version RR have improved much better on their EAS build quality and reliability. I also tasted Arnott ballons that comes about the same price and last forever in one of my close friend car, who is still driving the same RR without any haunting EAS beeps with best ride comfort. The second best thing of RR after comfort is the seating position that shows you almost every nook and corner of the road with almost zero blindspot - some seriously amazing design done by LR guys, much better than Porsche, BMW and Merc in similar league. As I owned my RR, I happen to realize that they are very easy to work on many DIY things like changing oil, filters, spark plugs and other basic maintenance that if you just have an honest mechanic, he wouldn't charge you fortune for same jobs as compare to LC, Patrol or any other Japanese 4x4. For ride comfort explanation, all I can say that I drove that RR to Salalah and while coming back due to some rush, I drove 1600 kms in 12 hours non-stop, with just fuel top-up break every 400 kms.

@Danny with all due respect, this is not the way you need to address anyone on such friendly forum. Please learn to show some respect, even when you don't agree to other's point of view. Challenge it professionally than just with these kind of insulting comments.

Sweihan drive is back on and hope to do it nicely this time. Fingers crossed.

After all this you can argue all day long. We were not comparing that, as there is no comparison on that ground. I used my car and his car wiki stats to prove a point that engine displacement is not everything as in some cases engine displacement difference makes a noticeable difference and in some cases it doesn't, whereas his argument was "no it doesn't" @treks based on my several year of off-road experience, especially in sand - Power-weight ratio is "KING". For rock climbing and mud tracks may be not but for sand hp/ton makes the big difference. Then second comes the torque band - lower the prime torque delivery RPM, better the response unlike prime torque delivering at higher RPM. Third is gearing for sure makes a big noticeable difference. DOHC engines are better than SOHC when it comes to performance gains and higher RPM for various reason: More variable timing per cyl gives valve better (fully) opening and closing times Dedicated cam for each exhaust and intake valve Due to two cam on each bank makes it less restrictive movement unlike SOHC and offer more balanced movement require for higher RPM. Few videos to clear that myth:

For 265k car he shouldn't be bother about 5k fuel consumption every year. I used my Cayenne for almost two year and spend 5694 AED for 16341 Kms

It's not mental hurdle, but experience. I kind of agree that now Japanese are not as great as they used to be before, but they are still FAAAAAR better than US cars in terms of durability, reliability and resale.

You can go to Jabal Tokyo (055 5175077) behind Macro emirates for Mitsubishi Scrap. I have used them for my Pajero parts few times. If they don't have then check few neighboring shops especially one inside the gully next to Jabal tokyo. https://goo.gl/maps/UZHTvsigexy 25°18'52.6"N 55°24'56.7"E 25.314608, 55.415740

This one is for @shadow79, to clear some myth that engine displacement difference is not everything.......! Real key for off-road or race track cars is the power - weight ratio. No point in having 1000 hp truck that weighs 10 tons (100 hp/ton) to move that elephant. Better to have 225 hp on car that weighs 1.5 ton (150 hp/ton). Below are sourced from wikipedia on what my model Pajero has and also how much difference it has from 3.0 and 3.5 models. This is not only based on theory but my ownership of 2 years for 3.0 model and 7 years of 3.5 model. 3.0 = 177 hp 3.5 = 215 hp 3.5 = 225 hp (GCC specs with DOHC model) Difference of about 48 hp, which is about 27.112% over 177 hp with an engine displacement difference of 500 cc, because of applying different engineering of DOHC (Dual Overhead Cam) to have 4 cam per engine than 2 cams (SOHC) on 3.0 engine. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Pajero ____________________________________________________ The second generation was introduced on 22 January 1991 and manufactured until 1999. It retained the two body styles, but design was rounder and more city-friendly than the previous bulky model. The 3.0 L V6 gasoline engine was retained, now available with a 24-valve head, capable of 136 kW (177 hp/185 PS), while the 2.5 turbodiesel's power was slightly increased to 73 kW (98 hp/99 PS). In 1993, the Pajero was slightly restyled, and larger engines were introduced, a 3.5 L V6 with 153 kW (215 hp/208 PS) and a 2.8 L SOHCturbodiesel rated at 92 kW (123 hp/125 PS). These versions introduced Mitsubishi's Super Select four-wheel-drive system (known as Active-Trac in the United States), with an electronic transfer shift that could split power between both axles without the need to stop the car. It worked at speeds up to 100 km/h (62 mph). ____________________________________________________ Now comparing your RAV4 engineering 1.8L = 123 hp 2.0L = 150 hp 2.4L = 158 hp In 200 cc extra displacement RAV4 showed better gains of 22% over 123 hp, than 400 cc extra displacement shown only 5% gain over 150 hp. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_RAV4 ____________________________________________________ The second generation, XA20 series RAV4 went on sale in July 2000. Like the previous model, the XA20 was available in three- and five-door configurations and was constructed on a platform that shared Carina and Corolla elements. Development began in 1995, with a design freeze in the first half of 1998. Styling was done at Calty Design Research Incorporated (also simply known as Calty) by Yasuhide Hosoda and Kevin Hunter from 1996 to 1997.[4] The second generation RAV4 was originally offered in a number of trim levels in the UK: NV was front-wheel drive, while NRG, GX, and VX were permanent four-wheel drive with differing levels of equipment.[8] Although the RAV4 was available as a three-door in Europe, Asia and Australia, the American model was now only available in a five-door configuration. A 1.8-liter inline-four engine (only with 2WD) producing 92 kW (123 hp; 125 PS), 2.0-liter inline-four engine producing 110 kW (150 hp; 150 PS), 2.4-liter inline-four engine producing 118 kW (158 hp; 160 PS), and a D-4D diesel engine were available. Some RAV4s came with anti-lock braking system, electronic stability control, air conditioning, a height-adjustable driver's seat, cruise control, a six-speaker CD stereo and power windows, mirrors and seats. A sport package added a mesh grille, bonnet scoop, colour-keyed door handles, a roof rack, silver sport pedals, heated mirrors, gray-painted bumpers and fender flares, and sport fabric seats. Other options included alloy wheels, heated seats, a sunroof and keyless entry. 16-inch wheels were standard; larger tires were available on all-wheel-drive models. ____________________________________________________

This is sourced specially for "my priend" @shadow79 to explain the function of center differential and it's existence since long time

As promised after my two weeks break, will offer something really exciting for all experienced off-road drivers at Carnity. So what better than Sweihan adventurous night drive in the month of July when we have some well experienced night hawks in the convoy now. Thanks to Rahim bhai teaching in last few drives to break their fear of leading, I think this Sweihan night drive will hone their skills even more with tall rolling step dunes. They are difficult to enter due to their height, and one can only access them through "steps" strategy. Once on top they are fun to drive as all big dunes are inter-connected and offer broad ridge to ride and kick your last drop of adrenaline. P.S. This is real Sweihan area drive and not Nahil area what we did in March. This will be quiet a few notch above Nahil dunes. When: 13 July 2017 Meeting time: 11:00 PM Starting time: 11:15 PM (SHARP) Where: First ADNOC service station on E20 (Al Haiyir to Nahil) after turning right from Dubai - Al Ain (after faqa). GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/CgheV2mSLp12 Level of drive: Fewbies - Intermediate Type of drive: Adrenaline kicking fun drive with plenty of breaks and food time on top of some awesome dunes Plan: Learn advance night sand off-road driving What to bring along: Food, water, liquids, smiles, stories, enthusiasm and willingness to learn Approximate finish time: 6 AM - 14 July 2017 Safety advice: All vehicles should have proper tow hook in front and back Drive is only open for proper 4x4 vehicles, not for SUV's, AWD, and Sedan's Vehicle should have minimum 10-12 inches of ground clearance Every vehicle should have proper shovel, deflator and tire pressure gauge Two way radio, air compressor, tow rope, Jack and shackle are advisable to carry if you have Please leave your name and mobile here and RSVP on below calendar:

Due to some unforeseen situation we like to switch the drive to Maliha area instead of Sweihan. Rest everything as usual. Apologies for last minute change and will definitely do the sweihan route next week IA. Meeting time: 11:30 PM, convoy will move sharp at 11:45 PM Where: Adnoc Petrol Station Maleha Road GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/mzb26kxzte72

@baselsm83 where are you buddy.....? Are you coming?

Totally agree with adil and desertdude, that you can get half cut cars with engine intact. I have seen many afghani scrappy keeping those intact to prove the engine worth. Also desertdude rightly mention to stay away from local (khaleeji) engines as 99% they are cooked already. Japan imports is awesome. BTW my Pajero is running Japan import engine, which barry rebuilt from top head for replacing the leaking valve and now it's almost as good as new climbing iftar bowl and faya from front.

That's why gave her 10 minutes, regular one will last 5 min only.

Thanks Saleem for the offer and I know for sure RAV4 can't cope up for first 10 minutes in sweihan. Just FYI, I have driven most of the dinkiest car in off-road including RAV4, Jimny, vitara, pajero io, daihatsu terios, renault duster etc.

Then consider having 5 liters of blood transfusion will be lot cheaper than doing reverse engineering on poor RAV4. Just kidding.

Thank god, you started writing with full stops, commas and paragraph now to make my head spin less. Somehow I still fail to understand what was that long post made for to justify "other cars aren't better than RAV4" or "RAV4 stand equally to any 4x4" Either case read below two advices and hope it will help you understand the things better: In end leave all theory, mechanism, or power band aside and put RAV4 to real test with any so-called 4x4 cars: Hill climb without momentum Soft sand crawling - self recovery Drag a dead weight Side sloping Ridge riding

Thanks Barry, any idea from where to buy those and what are their specifications and how expensive they are? desertdude: My FM reception isn't bad at all, but I like to optimize more for road and off-road.

I have owned several cars but some car has better FM reception which hears almost next to CD quality, and others have very poor FM signal with lot of distrurbance. Wondering if there is any device or mod we can install over the antenna or FM receiver to improve the FM signal. Secondly this should also help in bumping the signal strength so that we can hear some crisp music in offroad weak signal area.

I would vote for LC and not Patrol due to various reason: LC is more reliable to clock over 500k if maintained properly. IRRESPECTIVE of people BS here on Toyota cars. My company has three LC's running over half a million kms. Patrol is abnormally big with swollen looks. 2017 LC looks much better than new Patrol LC has better resale than Patrol LC still made in Japan unlike Patrol

Word of wisdom.

Here comes another mechanic head to favor the brotherhood. lololololol. Where are end users like me and OP to favor the practicality and cost effectiveness.

You can buy them from many car accessories shop in deira (ramy4x4), naif (golden wheels, fany, khateeb etc), shj industrial area etc. This bullbar is mainly aimed for rock climbing situation and it won't protect your rear bumper damage from sand offroading. For sand Pajero bumpers tends to scoop lot of sand and that's what damage them. You need to install a metal plate inside the bumper to close that scoop permanently.

Barry and Treks, you both are ONLY looking from mechanic point of view and taking things really personal by saying no mechanic can rebuild engine at factory specs. Read my post again and off course high class ultra professional mechanic can rebuild any engine but what's a point in spending double the car value unless it's a rally bred car or high performance off-road car. My advise is from end user perspective who spend money from his own pocket and based on my own experience it's better to get accidental engine as they are hardly driven. Just FYI, Habtoor quoted me 18,000 AED for engine rebuild labor only without spare parts cost. I like what barry said, in case you rebuild then diagnose first the cause of failure - highly recommend it.

@Barry what you are saying is worth more than 10k - 15k AED in labor cost only for PROPER engine rebuild and based on my experience rebuilding in above scenario is a trap as you don't what all other piston, rings, valves are damage unless someone do the endoscopic therapy like we did, lol. I been in similar situation once and estimate for 2500 AED for parts shot up to 6500 AED once engine was open and let alone the rebuild cost of 2500 AED from a semi-decent mechanic. And after 9000 AED still that engine busted in first push in offroad application as no spare part and mechanic job can replace what has been provided by the factory unless you do some serious performance mods. Best way is to source a yard engine is from half cut accidental car that still has odometer intact so that you can verify whether it's 50,000 kms done or 500,000 kms done. Search in Sharjah Industrial area behind troy university or behind macro emirates, plenty of Afghani breakers sell the intact engine. Last bet is to scout in Sajja (bit more tedious, though). @AnishCrew don't fall for blind bet from mechanic as he will simply multiply his engine plonking charges by saying how do I know what's inside once engine fails. Better to take some time now and search proper used engine from scrapyard by yourself. It's a tedious job, but one day of scouting can save lot many days time and money.