Srikumar

Yes, it's a very stupid setting by Mitsubishi. I showed it to the Habtoor guys and they also mentioned there is no solution. Guess you will have to live with it.

Congrats @AlexPol you were an asset on our last Newbie drive with your extended shovel and willingness to help in every refusal or stuck. Look forward to catching up on the Fewbie drives

A very innovative solution Mr. Newton. And when you think about it makes perfect sense. Will try it out on one of the drives. Now only what we need is a Pajero to get stuck. Shouldn't be too hard 😂

Just an update to everyone that is going to Abu Dhabi is that from 24th Dec, the testing centers at Ghantoot and Al Faqa have been closed. So all COVID19 testing has to be done at the SEHA Centers or other authorized centers.

Just an update to everyone that is going to Abu Dhabi is that from 24th Dec, the testing centers at Ghantoot and Al Faqa have been closed. So all COVID19 testing has to be done at the SEHA Centers or other authorized centers.

With the number of Wrangler drivers facing issues with linkages, and having to crawl below their cars to push the transfer case in position, thought I would reshare the transfer Case (TC) linkage upgrade that I had done with my Cherokee XJ. To just give a quick background, I have been driving a Cherokee XJ since 2017 and like most of you, after a few months of purchase I decided to lift it by a couple of inches and that's when the problem started. With the lift and a TC drop, the OEM transfer case linkage was never aligned properly resulting in a lot of stress on the rubber bushings. I replaced the bushings multiple times (each bushing costing AED 20), and still after every few drives I would have a loose TC handle. So I would crawl below my car to push the TC shifter in the right position and this became tedious especially when the car was at an awkward angle and I had to crawl below to shift the TC into 4Low. After reading a lot on various forums, I finally decided to upgrade the linkage to a Boostwerks linkage. Its been 3 years since and this linkage eliminated the following problems: Smooth Shifting between 2H, 4H and 4L Never pops out of 4H when I go through some extremely bumpy tracks. My original linkage would suddenly go into 2H when I used to hit cross tracks. Imagine that happening while doing a sidey or a long hill climb. Never having to crawl below the car and no burnt hands as exhaust manifold runs close to the transfer case Best Part : Peace of mind that my transfer case would not fail me when I needed it the most Though Boostwerks dont make the linkage for Wranglers, Advance Adapters do and they have got a lot of positive reviews on various forums. Ofcourse, you need to read up a bit more to see which model would suit your car depending on the year and the amount of lift, TC drop, etc. There are various other options as well, but this is something that you guys need to seriously consider especially if the TC lever is frequently becoming free. https://www.advanceadapters.com/products/715596--heavy-duty-jk-cable-shifter-upgrade/ Note: I have no affiliations to any of the above vendors and have just shared an experience that would probably help other offroaders.

TRIP REPORT It was truly a Christmas Day Special drive, as we laughed, played and enjoyed each other company while driving through some beautiful red sand at Bidayer. Everyone reached the meeting point on time and after a quick briefing we were on our way to scale the beautiful Pink Rock. However, with some refusals and some heavily churned up tracks we decided to reroute and go around Pink Rock. We again encountered a lot of churned tracks which honestly for me was a real bummer. And of course the churned tracks did ensure a fair share of refusals. But the further we moved away from Pink Rock, we were able to find some relatively cleaner tracks. With some good Newbies in the convoy, I was very eager to push the boundaries as we zigzagged through the dunes. Throttle response and tight steering control was the order of the day as we went on some nice roller coaster dunes that needed the drivers to take the right approach angle and momentum to get on top. Ofcourse, these kind of drives would challenge most Newbies and we did have a fair share of refusals and stucks. But, with the wonderful group that we had who were more than willing to jump out of their cars and give a helping hand we all had a blast shoveling and tugging the cars out and that for me is the true essence of Team Carnity Spirit. @imranaasghar81 was my second lead and he nailed it to perfection. And why I say that is because, wherever he saw that my car hit a bump or was struggling, he kept an eye out for a smoother path by going a meter to the left or right. Superbly done buddy and that's what is expected of a second lead to correct the route of the lead ever so slightly for the rest of the convoy. @Abilash Madhavan though had a difficult start, but was driving much more confidently as the drive proceeded. Your throttle and steering control improved a lot in the second half of the drive. He also provided us with opportunities for all of us to stretch our backs which I am quite sure everyone enjoyed a lot. Keep practicing by taking the right approach lines and be attentive to how much gas the car in front has given, and you will start seeing a big step in your offroad driving skills. @Nafiz was driving a mighty Lexus V8 and though it was his second drive, he managed it very well in a route that required more of finesse and less of power. Well done. @Hassan Almousa managed most of the terrain extremely well with limited refusals and was a very good helping hand in all the shoveling that we did. It was really nice to meet you and hope to catch up on our next drives. @Sanjay Malik joined with his family and a visitor from the US who was down on his knees every time we needed help to shovel. Hope your visitor had a good time shoveling sand instead of shoveling snow in the US winters. In terms of driving, his experience showed where he had probably zero refusals. Well done. @Michael Glavanis was the quiet one in our group but was silently going through all the dunes and towards the end brought out his drone to catch the beautiful desert. Been on your first Absolute Newbie drive, and its evident that you do manage the LR3 extremely well. @AlexPol was the shovel man of the day. A big help and a fantastic helping attitude through the drive. Really enjoyed your company and look forward to meeting you on future drives as well. And finally a big thanks to @Vanessa8580 for supporting the drive. She probably did more shoveling and tugging in this drive than most of my recent drives put together, and with the biggest smile as always. Please ensure that you have the right gear for your offroad rank, and some of the Newbies came without a proper shovel. For those who have completed the required number of Newbie drives, you can apply for promotion as mentioned in the below topic You all made Christmas Day a very Jolly and Fun day and for that I would like to thank every one of you. Wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. See you in 2021.

Convoy Numbering 1. Srikumar - Cherokee XJ 2. Imran - FJC 3. Nafiz - LX470 4. Hassan - Pajero LWB 5. Abilash - Pajero LWB 6. Sanjay Malik - LC 7. Michael - LR3 8. AlexPol - Wrangler 9. Vanessa - Pajero We will be using Carnity Channel 2 (446.031.25). See you tomorrow at 6:30 AM

This is our old buddy who is selling the car due to persistent overheating issues

You are an exception and don't feature in the general public category. 😁

Thats what we call an upgrade. 😅

Automatic vs manual, the discussion will never end. Automatics in my honest opinion for the desert would be more easier to maintain than a manual purely because despite how many ever years you have driven manual on the road, in offroad you will burn through a couple of clutches till you get it right. And each original set including labor can set you back by approx AED 2000 - 2500 depending on what all parts are changed. Having said that, the guys who drive a manual would always vouch for it as it gives them more control on which gear to be used at what moment. Plus with self recovery, a manual would beat an automatic any day as they can easily be rocked by pressing and releasing the clutch. In automatic, as long as you have a proper '1' gear then you should be fine. Wranglers are definitely more fun to drive compared to the Pajeros but since they are normally abused, to get a clean one needs a bit of searching. But the number of options or upgrades for a Wrangler are endless, and while I personally dont endorse all of them, some of them are really nice. Plus the parts are quite easily available either locally or from the US. The negative of the Wrangler is that they can be a can of worms and you need lots of patience to get it desert ready (which can take a bit of time). Wrangler TJ : Till 2005 (TJ Model) - 4.0 i6 engine - 5 speed auto / 4 manual - Awesome car if you can get it clean Wrangler JL : 2006 to 2011 - 3.8 V6 Engine - Reliable engine but has some heating issues and the engine is not powerful enough Wrangler JL : 2012 onwards - 3.6 V6 Pentastar Engine - Powerful but earlier year models had a knockings issue after 100K km, but in newer models this problem has been fixed Pajeros are definitely more reliable in terms of all their components. And its relatively more easy to find a clean vehicle as they are quite a few that are 100% driven on the road. But you need to stay away from the 2008 - 2011 year models as these cars have an upshifting problem. In the Pajero a 3.8 SWB should be a very strong vehicle as it not only gives you the added power at high RPMs, but also has the rear difflock. Regarding the death wobble, thats a common problem in all solid axle cars and not specific to a particular year. That happens when you have worn out bushings or tyres. I had it during the first year of my XJ where I could bring the entire traffic to a standstill once they saw the death wobble. But once I changed all the front bushing and steering linkages plus tyre I have not had the DW in the past 3 years.

Can you check with the Mitsubishi dealer and find out from them if 75W-90 is acceptable. The difference between the two grades is that 75W-90 would have more kinematic viscosity at 100 deg. C. I feel as a first option you should try to get the same grade of oil from other car manufacturer brands like mentioned in the earlier post.

Check up in other brands like Nissan, Kia, etc. For the transfer case, the Mitsubishi brand oil is not as critical unlike the ATF. And if your owner manual specifies GL3 or GL4 stick to that only. The GL5 has some sulfur additives that can damage brass components in your transfer case. Alternatively, if your owner manual says 75W90 is acceptable then I would recommend Redline 75W90 GL4 full synthetic. They have got some excellent reviews. Each litre would cost you approx AED 60 - 65.

This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to go through below information and and strictly follow these guidelines in order not to jeopardize someone's health, and to ensure we can keep organizing these drives safely. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: BAN POST 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: NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING Drive Details Level: Newbie and above (All Level) When: 25th Dec 2020, Friday Meeting time: 6:30 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: - 2nd December Cafeteria - https://goo.gl/maps/FKYbyLTcwgz46zjA7 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: 10:30 AM P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 15 cars maximum. RSVP will close on Thursday - 9 AM. 1 Lead Marshal + 2 or 1 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. Members that do not confirm the terms of the COVID requirements will be removed from the RSVP list. 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

Good evening everyone. @ashique rahiman @Kamal Fayad @Omar Al-khoori @muzrma @eidooo @Srijith Gangadharan @Martin. @Barisyuregir Please ensure that you have the following as a minimum for tomorrow's drive : - Proper Front and rear recovery points or a shackle hitch receiver is mandatory. Tow balls are not acceptable. - Those who are joining us for a second time, please ensure that you have a fully charged and programmed radio, deflator, pressure gauge. flag and a shovel. - Spare radios would only be provided for those who are first timers with Carnity. Convoy Numbering 1. Srikumar - XJ 2. Srijith - Pajero 3. Barisyuregir - Patrol 4. Muzrma - Ford Expedition 5. Kamal - Infiniti QX 56 6. Eidooo - FJC 7. Ashique Rahman - Xterra 8. Omar Al Khoori - Wrangler 9. Martin - Pajero See you at the meeting point at 6:30 AM sharp. A bit early would be better. We shall be Carnity Radio Channel 1 (446.006.25) for tomorrow's drive.

Do you need to hypnotize to hide the reality that Jeeps are actually better? 😂

Congrats @Tariq Carrimjee look like the Wrangler is taking you places that the Y62 had not. Well done.

Congrats @Mohamed Seidam you are a very good contributor to the Carnity community in addition to being a very good offroader. Well done.

Congrats Angela. Truly well deserved. Your positive energy and wicked sense of humor is good to have in a Lead. Hope to be as a support on one of your drives very soon (though you officially don't need it anymore).

Join us to explore Sweihan Desert in Abu Dhabi And learn the art of offroading in a versatile playground for your first off-road adventure. You will learn to self-drive your vehicle from experts having decades of off-roading experience in the UAE. This area offers a good mix of playable long set of dunes and broad ridges to test your off-road control. Drive is open for all 4x4/4WD/SUV/AWD vehicles having 8-10 inches of ground clearance and (MANDATORY) Front and rear tow hooks (MANDATORY) What you'll learn: Introduction to off-roading. Desert driving basics and etiquette. Desert driving tips, techniques, myth and best practices. Off-road and safety gear familiarization and recovery procedures. Vehicle orientation, risk analysis, deflation and outdoor safety advice. First time with Carnity Off-road Club: Please share your vehicle details - Make, Model, Year. Do you have any prior off-road experience? Confirm your vehicle has front and rear tow hooks / eyelets. Why should i join? We will teach you how to self-drive off-road safely and learn the best offroad driving and recovery techniques. If you have already driven in sand before then you can learn more from experts having decades of offroading experience in the UAE. This area offers a good mix of playable long set of dunes and broad ridge to test your off-road control. Can my vehicle do this ? This drive is open for all 4x4/4WD/SUV/AWD vehicle having 8-10 inches of ground clearance and front and rear tow hooks. If in doubt please first announce your questions on the drive thread so we can advise you further. Any stock 4x4/4WD are most welcome, you don't need any vehicle modifications. Can i bring passengers ? Yes of course, but if you are absolute new to offroading it is better to drive alone first to avoid any distractions. Learn More About: Carnity Off-road Club This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to go through below information and and strictly follow these guidelines in order not to jeopardize someone's health, and to ensure we can keep organizing these drives safely. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: BAN POST 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: NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING Drive Details Level: Newbie and Above (All Levels) When: 18 Dec 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 6:30 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: - Sweihan - https://maps.app.goo.gl/spKVT3NPoGYE8AP58 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: 10:30 AM End Point: Sweihan ADNOC Station LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 15 cars only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 9 AM. 1 Lead Marshal + 1-2 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 BELOW CALENDAR EVENT

TRIP REPORT Absolute Newbie drive has a different charm from other level drives, as it always reminds me of the day when I started offroading as an Absolute Newbie. At that stage I completely moved away from my comfort zone having never pushed my car beyond 3000 rpm and always worrying about what is on the other side of the dune (it took a wise man to tell me that there is only sand on the other side, so do take a leap of faith esp if the car in front has done it). While some might feel its one of the easiest drives to lead, it can become extremely challenging very quickly. Yesterday was one such drive which was quite challenging in a different manner and this is despite no use of a rope or shovel. All the participants did the first perfect thing of arriving at the meeting point on time which is much appreciated. After a proper briefing we headed out towards the long range dunes at the back side of Qudra. We started with small sideys and U-turns so that everyone would start getting a feel of steering as well as how much gas is needed. As the level of confidence increased so did the pace of the entire convoy, with longer side slopes on the long range dunes of Qudra. As we ventured deeper into the desert, we cam across a group of locals that called us out for help. It seems they had a pop-out and didn't have a proper compressor to reinflate their tyre and plus a leaking clutch oil resulting in difficulty for them to engage the gear. So it took us a while to help them fix the pop out and after giving them a can of clutch fluid we were off on our way. As we were approaching one dune we noticed that @Juan Carlos Elizalde Reyes had a flat tyre as a result of worn out tyres. Sadly we had to exit him on to the road and return back to the rest of the convoy. As the desert can be quite unforgiving, tyre conditions are extremely important and hope you get them replaced soon and join us for a drive. With more than expected few breaks and delays we started moving towards the flat track to get an exit. Unfortunately what stood between us and the flat track was some semi technical dunes. Many of our other members would be aware of how nasty some of the technical dunes in Qudra can be, and for Absolute Newbies to listen the instructions carefully and go through them with the minimum of delays, was a brilliant achievement. Well done everyone. Few mentions about all the drive participants: @Harold Roberts was my second lead in his mighty FJC and did the necessary rerouting as and when needed. And once we reached the flat track towards the end of the drive he also managed to have a conference video call from the desert. Overall well driven. @jayachandran joined us with his Prado. While a powerful beast you need to keep practicing on how much gas to give and also listen to the instructions more attentively. This will come with a few more drives, but still overall you had a good drive. @Juan Carlos Elizalde Reyes It was good to see you back after the last AN where you had to exit out as soon as the drive started. Your Cherokee felt and sounded much more healthier than a few months ago. Just put on some good tyres of the same size (235/75R16) but preferably ATs like Geolandars (which are among the lightest AT tyres in the market). If you are at stock height, this would be the largest size that would fit your car without causing rubbing. @Sanjay Malik joined with his family in a nice 2005 Land Cruiser and let his daughter Tanvi drive throughout the day. She managed the might LC pretty well and overall was quite impressive. As mentioned during the debriefing, moving forward please make a separate ID for her, so that we can track the progress of each driver. @Michael Glavanis brought the all powerful LR3 which performed very well during the entire course of the drive. Ofcourse, with these cars at times the electronics can play mischief, so it would be better you can get the air suspension checked once if its at fault. Rest, you and your car seemed to be at home in the desert. @Alphin Aloor brought a beautiful Xterra and the power of the Xterra helped him push through some of the churned up sand left by the cars in the front. As mentioned, just get a proper bash plate and a kill switch installed for the traction control and ABS. We have a lot of proud Xterrians in our group and I am tagging a few of them to give you some advice @Emmanuel @Chaitanya D @sertac @Foxtrot Oscar. At the moment there is no need to spend a lot of money on other modifications unless you really want to. All these senior members I have mentioned do Advance level drives in stock Xterras. @AlexPol had a nice Wrangler and with some prior offroading experience hardly set a foot wrong as he went through the entire truck with the minimum of fuss. Well done. @Saneesh Thomas was with the second wrangler in the convoy and through he struggle in the initial phase his confidence grew along the duration of the drive. As mentioned in the debriefing you might have better results by driving it at 10 psi especially since you have heavy thick walled side tyres. @N@ved had a nice clean (which is kinda rare) TJ at the back end of the convoy and it was wonderful to hear the roar of your 4.0 through the dunes. Nicely done. Finally a bit shout out of appreciation to @Vanessa8580 who has been supporting quite a few of my Newbie drives and is always a constant source of motivation and energy for all the drive participants throughout the day. Moving forward you all will be joining the Newbie drives and not an Absolute Newbie drive. Drives are announced every Sunday at 11 am, and they go live on Sunday at 7:10 pm. Due to the high demand, these drives get full in about 10 minutes, so please be online at 7 pm to book your spot. If you miss a spot, put your name on the waitlist asap. Generally, by Thursday with dropouts everyone does get a spot if they have waitlisted. For the next drives, please bring along a deflator, pressure gauge, flag and radio as a minimum. Learn to deflate your tires and checking them precisely Learn to fix a flag on your car Learn to program and fully charge your radio Also like I mentioned during the debriefing, join the Carnity Whatsapp Drive Notification to get the latest updates on the drives, so that you can RSVP on time for the next weekend's drive. Please have a look at below topic which describes the tools needed for every level. There is a separate tutorial inside which explains which radio we recommend and how to program them: (Please do not buy the Baofeng 888S spare radio we gave you, as these cannot be programmed without a special cable and software). Please have a look at below grading structure that explains various off-road levels: See you guys soon in the sand again !

RSVP is Closed Convoy Numbering 1. Srikumar 2. Harold Roberts 3. Jayachandran 4. Juan Carlo 5. Barisyuriger 6. Sanjay Malik 7. Michael Glavanis 8. Alphin 9. Alex Pol 10. Saneesh Thomas 11. N@ved 12. Vladimir 13. Vanessa See you tomorrow morning at 6:00 AM Sharp. A little early would be better. For those who have radios can program to Carnity Frequency 446.006.25 (Channel 1). For those who don't have radios, we shall be providing spare radios.