Rahimdad

Dear Derick, you are only as old as you feel, and we men never grow up when it comes to cars, electronics and everything in between. Honda is known to copy BMW from the early 1980's, whether it was the computer cluster found on the Honda Accord EXR, to the double power steering which eased up when parking or stand still and harden up as the speed goes up to get a good steering feel. Even the power locks where the drivers' side could not be locked by hand with the fear of leaving the key inside the car. in my opinion the Honda Civic from last year model started looking like the Volvo which i am not a huge fan of and their technology seems outdated and they are only following the trend rather than coming up with any innovation of their own. i believe the first and the last time they introduced something of their own was back in 1991 when the new Honda Accord came with a zero vibration engine. However to each their own choice and I would suggest for you to check with Trading Enterprises for the new hatch back as the Honda staff should have a fair idea of what is to be released to the Dubai market in a month or two.

Just my opinion. BTW Derick, you never know, I may be older to you in age. Hehehehehe

Thanks Derick for your kind words. Its worth every minute spent on writing the report.

Derick you are starting to sound like a Honda Fan boy. It is not bad at all, but there are better looking hatchback out there. However, the feel of driving the Honda is a solid one. My first car was a Honda Civic back in 1994 and if I get a good deal I would like to own a Honda again.

After all these false claims we will still drive cars produced by liars, as grown ups we know that many factors affect fuel consumption. After cribbing for some time we will all go back living our normal lives, buying cars, filling them up at fuel stations and driving them knowing we are never going to achieve the fuel figures the manufacturers claim.

Here they say Jeep is a Jeep and than cry that Just Empty Every Pocket.

Hehehehe.

Thank you Gaurav Bhai for your encouraging words.

Just a brief report on the trip on Friday.

We all met on time at the Adnoc pump at 6 am, however none of us were aware of the surprise at hand. There seemed to be a stubborn Nissan Patrol with some mods and since some of the team was there since 5 am they were watching him go duf duf every once in a while and not leaving the petrol station, later we discovered it was because of a police vehicle waiting to confiscate it and any Nissan Patrols around. We had 2 in our group. So alternate plan put into practice, instead of the start at Mahafiz we jumped right into the desert behind the Adnoc pump and after a drivers briefing and positions handed in the convoy we were on the move. We were a total of 11 cars.

This little terrain is white sand and a bit difficult to read, but thanks to the early morning hours and not a very difficult section we decided to head to Fossil Rocks, on to Camel Rocks and than the Faya area to play for a while. However, with a couple of stucks early on and a pop-out the plan was changed to Big Fall instead of Fossil Rocks and cross over to Faya to play for a while. After about 7 kms into the desert some of the more capable off-roader became enticed by the dunes around and the opportunity to play. So we divided the group into 2 and while the more capable friends played around we continued into the wilderness. After some flat tracks we crossed over to the darker side of the dunes.

This darker side is slightly pinkish in colour so it is easier to read these dunes but there are tricky and more challenging dunes to tackle. Let me mention that everybody did amazingly well and we conquered dune after dune without any incidents, stucks or refusals. About 8 am we all got a bit hungry and after not finding a shade and the cloud cover and cool breeze just made it comfortable enough we stopped for a quick bite, a few drinks and a chit chat. It was good to know that everyone was having a good time, and it was time to change the plan again.

So we decided to follow Saeed this time with me in the Sweep, all this time and until the end Gaurav bhai remained as a number 2 lead and had a marvelous run. Saaed led us to some nice dunes and all of a sudden we were in an area with huge dunes which were absolutely marvelous to play in, specially side sloping. We all had a great time in those dunes and each one of us would have had two to three tries at letting the sand fly from our tires while using the gravity and challenging at the same time for some real fun moments.

Next part of our journey saw us climb the Fossil Rocks with is darker red and easy to read, but with some soft spots and even more challenging dunes. We all reached the top safely to find some of the mountain bikers on top, out of which one had fallen off his bike and sustained injuries in his ribs area. We agreed to help them bu taking hi down to the base of Fossil Rocks near the cable lines as it would be the most comfortable way. Saeed and myself took the injured biker and waited for his friends to take it fro there. Saeed did offer help to take him to the closest hospital but he declined saying that they have a friend in a 4x4 and he would help them out. Saeed and myself headed back up the Fossil Rocks with Gaurav Bhai documenting each moment with a picture to help us out if needed.

Coming down the Fossil Rocks on the front face is another challenge, after a short briefing one by one the cars came down with the excitement of decending one of the steepest declines in this area. We than headed out to the petrol station, inflated our tires and after a chat we were all headed back home, a trip that was supposed to conclude at 9 am went on till 11 am due to some nice weather, amazing company and an emergency which was handled successfully.

As a conclusion to this trip, it was an amazing drive due to excellent weather, amazing people and covered all different types of terrain and a rescue mission which was successfully handled. Special thanks goes out to Gaurav Bhai who woke up in the early morning hours to join us along with bhabhi and special thanks goes out to bhabhi for some wonderful clicks. She definitely captured the essence of the trip and I hope everyone will be able to enjoy the write up with some of the most beautiful pics and co-relate the experience and relive it any time they please.

At one time 4x4 motors used to do a good job, but now with the market they have also changed their tune. The dealers will always try to keep a margin as they need to sell it back to a customer. Your best bet will be to sell it personally as that is the only way you will get a better price. Dubizzle is an excellent website where you can advertise your car besides Carnity, they charge AED 200/- now. If you have a Toyota, there will always be buyers and you will get an exceptionally good value for your vehicle. BTW which vehicle are you selling and what is your expected price.

I have been active on this forum for the past few days and realized that there is nothing for Renault. I am sure with sales soaring specially for the Renault Duster, there should be quite a few enthusiasts looking for where to share their Renault stories.

Kindly request the moderators to start a Renault thread.

Thanks Amid.

Friday morning drive:

Date: 23 September, 2016

Meeting point : Adnoc Petrol Station Maleha Road (https://goo.gl/maps/mzb26kxzte72)

Meeting time : 5:45 AM - 8:30 AM

Plan: Lets drive from the petrol station to Fossil Rocks and on to Faya where we can finish off with some play time.

Basic recovery equipment is very important and carry lots of water

1. Rahimdad
2. Stephen
3. Abdullah
4. Malav (Newbie)
5. Gaurav Bhai (Sweep)
6. Michael
7. Jaison
8. Rajesh
9. Ratheesh
10. Derick (Newbie)

Still place for a couple of more newbies.

Hi Derick you are more than welcome to join in. Pajero was built to off-road and it will never be a waste of time for you or me or anyone on this trip. This drive is supposed to be for absolute newbies. Looking forward to seeing you on Friday.

13 hours ago, gautam said:

More than likely the viscous fan no longer works as it should. When it starts to fail it slows down the fan's rotation speed, so check if you can spin the fan by hand when the engine is switched OFF. There should be no free rotation when you try to spin the fan, or, you can take the vehicle to Barry to check out the condition of the radiator fan.

Interpreting the condition of a viscous fan requires some experience of these fans, so don't think it "looks OK". Have it checked out by a professional mechanic. 

+1

Better to start a new thread and have a confirmation as to how many people interested, so that you have the exact numbers and than go shopping.

Ford - Found on roadside dead.

Hi Barry, you are an awesome dude, but not everyone can be Barry.

Only way to lift the Jeep Commander is by a Coil Spring Spacer, 2 inches is safe.

I had Boston Acoustics premium sound system on my Jeep Commanders 5.7 Hemi and amazing music without having to put and external speakers.

Could be a dirty radiator, Just go to one of the radiator shops and ask them to clean it properly and replace the coolant. Most cases that solves the problem.

+1

I had the Jeep Commander 5.7 Hemi 2006 Black and recently a 5.7 Hemi 2008 Silver.

The Jeep Commander is more than capable, but you need to take care of these 3 things and than you are good to go.

1) Since the ground clearance is a bit low you need to lift it by 2 inches and the only lift kit for the Jeep Commander is a Coil Spring Spacer, however due to comfort the suspensions are soft and you just need to drive and get used to them.

2) Please install a bash/skid plate in the front as the radiator and hoses are open up in front, the rest of the car's undercarriage is well protected.

3) Find a way or add a button to switch of side airbags, very sensitive and will deploy specially during criss crossing the dunes, that is, from 45 degree angle on the left travelling to the other side of the dune at 45 degree on the right or vice versa, the car thinks its has turned 90 degrees and releases the curtain airbags which are very expensive to repair.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Trek, yes it is very important if the Check Engine Light comes on to get the error checked and access whether action needs to be taken to rectify the problem. However my response was based on the Service Light coming on during service intervals and if you get it serviced outside the Nissan dealer the outside garages are unable to reset the Service Engine light.

Again thanks to Wikipedia, my question has been answered...

As per Wikipedia:

Datsun is an automobile brand owned by Nissan. Datsun's original production run began in 1931. From 1958 to 1986, only vehicles exported by Nissan were identified as Datsun. By 1986 Nissan had phased out the Datsun name, but re-launched it in 2013 as the brand for low-cost vehicles manufactured for emerging markets.

In 1931, Dat Motorcar Co. chose to name its new small car "Datson", a name which indicated the new car's smaller size when compared to the DAT's larger vehicle already in production. When Nissan took control of DAT in 1934, the name "Datson" was changed to "Datsun", because "son" also means "loss" (損 Son) in Japanese and also to honor the sun depicted in the national flag.^[1] Nissan phased out the Datsun brand in March 1986. The Datsun name is most famous^{[according to whom?]} for the 510,Fairlady roadsters, and later the Fairlady (240Z) coupes.

I remember back in the 1970's and early 80's they used to be called Datsun/Nissan, what happened to Datsun and why it changed to only Nissan since late 80's?

Sorry for the 2 years delay in response, however this is intended to help those who will need this guide as a future help.

Since this is a bit complicated I am posting it step by step.

1.)turn the key to the on position (do not crank over the motor....dont start the engine)

2.) wait 3 seconds.... and then fully step on the gas and let go fully 5 times with in 5 seconds.... (ex. wait...3....stomp.stomp.stomp.stomp.stomp

3.)wait 6 seconds....(not stepping on gas pedal)

4. FULLY PRESS down on gas pedal and hold for about 10 seconds.

5.) the check engine light should be flashing.10 times and stop a few seconds and then 10 and stop.....etc.

6. hold down pedal again 10 secs.

7. release pedal.....turn key off.....

8...wait a few seconds and turn the motor on.....check engine light should be gone.