BENNY THOMAS

Dear all,

I gotta say i had a real amazing time participating for the march 30 newbie drive, it was my first time offroading and its much more fun than i thought it would be, the best part is all the marshals were very patient and so much cooperative in helping us newbies understand how its done and how to get out of stuck positions, everytime we got stuck in no time two or three marshals are already out of their vehicles and approaching our vehicle and gets us out in no time. thanks to superman@Rahimdad who was the group leader and @Gaurav bhai who was always adding on relevant informations and helping us out of situations with ease, the drift champion on jeep was also awsome to watch how he went over the dunes and back down, and also to mention @skumar83 who was also out of his vehicle in no town we had a problem, who also brought his son also along which i am also gonna be doing once my boy is bac in town. the last decent was the best part of the trip,  I had a wonderful fun filled friday, looking forward to tag along for many more trips, cheers

Great!  I plan to go too,  what details do you wanna know?  I have a jeep grand Cherokee limited 2017 model,  

On 19/03/2018 at 10:40 AM, treks said:

@Rahimdad gave you some excellent advice, but more importantly, you should always take your willingness to learn with you. Without that essential piece of equipment, the advice of experienced drivers isn't worth a damn. 

Among the above items which are manadatorily required for a newbie fewbie trip?

hello everyone,

hope you all are doing great! my JGC is 9months old and i can't wait to test it on the sands and also meet all you legends.

when is the next trip which i can tag along? i see there are no upcoming events but just asking to get an idea.

Apart from the default kit i got when i bought my jeep what are the essential things i should mandatorily have while offroading FOR THE FIRST TIME.

Benny Thomas

Hi everyone, Benny thomas here,  I'm new to the Group, got my new jeep grand Cherokee limited two weeks ago,  looking forward to meet all of you and tag along in newbie  off-road trips, we r from Kerala India,  staying in Fujairah.

Guys,  I rolled out my new JGC limited cherry red (colour is awesome)  yesterday from Sharjah showroom, enjoyed the soothing ride back to fujairah, will need sometime to get used to the vehicle and then I hope I can take part in rides with you guys to the extend that all of you advice me. What do you suggest, when is the best time I can try my red dragon on the sands.. 

Wow @shadow79 @Asif Hussain I dint know those facts,  now am assured am getting advice from the elite :), looking forward to meet all of you

Benny Thomas 

On 6/21/2017 at 10:11 AM, Rahimdad said:

@BENNY THOMAS congrats. Don't forget to bug them for the Jeep Academy coupons as the tips and tricks they show in that session are something which no one can help you with. Capable off-road machine with proper care and technical know how.

I asked them about the coupons and they simply replied that they don't have such coupons Now

Thnx @Rahimdad tats a relief to know, do u go offroading as well? 

9 hours ago, ayman_khateeb said:

Jeeps are not known for long term reliability, they are not in the same category as Japanese trucks, but they are backed by some of the best warranty services in the gulf, so you are pretty much covered for the next 5 years (or warranty period), their warranty exceeds the Japanese agencies here especially if you offroad or modify your truck..

also some Japanese vendors are also suffering from tranny issues, Nissan CVTs for example..

that's said, Jeeps are not terrible either. I would be happy to own a new grand Cherokee & take it for camping & normal desert drives, don't be scared of it, it is a good truck.

on the other hand, I saw many issues with friends driving Ford trucks, even pure on road ones.. Jeeps are really better!

it boils down to how hard you are going to push it, if you are going all out in the desert, then a smipler, less gadgets in the car will survive the abuse longer.. and then you should have a dedicated desert toy, as it will break eventually regardless of the brand.

if you are going to drive family kind of trips, the grand cherokee is more than up to the task, and in style!

Thanks @ayman_khateeb You are the only one who gave a positive feedback, everyone around me are trying to make me change my mind 

Guys I am getting the shivers when reading online about all the complaints about transmission and others exterior/interior equipments on older models as well as 2015/16/17 models, thinking about backing out

4 hours ago, Rahimdad said:

@BENNY THOMAS congrats. Don't forget to bug them for the Jeep Academy coupons as the tips and tricks they show in that session are something which no one can help you with. Capable off-road machine with proper care and technical know how.

Thanks mate, I will surely do so, i totally appreciate bcoz without the knowledge it is not possible to ensure the safety of the passengers or the vehicle, thank a lot.

Thank you for the comment Mr. Ayman khateeb.

I have booked the 2017 Jeep grand cherokee limited, hopefully after Eid they will deliver the  car. Once i familiarize myself with the new car looking foward to meeting all of you and tag along on offroad trips

Appreciate all your comments. I am going for JGC and looking forward to meeting all of you.

Mr. Rahimdad and Mr.Pankarjg thank you for your comments. 

With reference to the above reasons of Ford explorer not being the right choice, what do you guys think about 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee limited?  low mileage but  perfect for offroading, not so bad luxury and on road performance

Thank you for the reply  Asif Hussain

I am looking for an SUV which can serve as a family vehicle on-road and also has the capability to go for soft offroading. I was in the impression Ford explorer was a good family SUV and also not so bad for family offroading trips. If i am wrong which vehicles do you recommend for this kind of requirement.

Hello everyone,

I am planning to buy a 2017 ford explorer XLT, I would like to have your advice on how capable is the ford explorer XLT for soft offroading. is it possible i can participate in the yearly Gulf news  fun drive or group desert drives conducted by offroading clubs? i have experience in offroad driving but what i need to know is whether the vehicle will perform if i take it for desert drives, I am not refering to hardcore offroading but normal drives and maybe a bit of not so high dune bashing.