Frederic

Thanks Richard ! Don’t worry about intermediatoryness... it will arrive at the exact right time.

Nicholas Sparks As soon as a drive got posted that carried the name Liwa, I knew that there was no way back. And as soon as the signups starting rolling in with the big names of the Carnity Off-road world, i was determined to drive even for days to be a part of it. Going to bed early the night before and forcing myself to get some sleep was difficult, as I kept mentally going through my list of items to take with me in the car. My plan was to leave early, having sufficient time to stop for coffeebreaks and power naps if needed. I arrived around 06:00 at the petrol station and soon saw two gentlemen @Srikumar and @Gauravwith steamy windows rolling in. What caused the steamy windows will forever remain a mystery in the Carnity books 🤣 Soon we were joined by @Emmanuel, @Rahimdad and @Asif Hussain while the sun slowly started to rise. We headed off the nearby track and deflated, hungry for the dunes that we noticed on the horizon. @Asif Hussain carefully created a route beforehand and showed up with enough equipment to make the latest Fast and Furious movie. A few hours into the drive I became more and more amazed by the shape and formation of the dunes that were presented to us. They looked creamy, wavy, irresistible, and extremely scary at some times. When @Gaurav announced that he would do a sidey on a Dune that rightfully scared the living hell out of me from just seeing it, I knew that there was no way back and that my little blue’one would have to unleash all its ponies and more to make it in this terrain. Which it did. We all had our chance to lead, and seeing @Srikumar his smile and his reluctance to hand over his lead, brought to my mind that this little playground would be in our hearts forever. After having reached the track that leads to the road, we said goodbye to our friends Emmanuel and Asif, while the rest of us starting looking for a nice camping spot. Finding that nice spot came with its challenges: it was getting pitch dark, we were all getting tired, and soon we found ourselves in a serious tricky spot. We eventually found a nice area near the track and settled down to set up camp. Our buddy @Srikumar that we can thank for bringing the massive amount of nice firewood, left very early in the morning. I heard the double crank and him driving off but my body was still in lockdown mode. The drive back home in the morning in the presence of @Gaurav and @Rahimdad was a true blessing, to see two friends and soulmates being so in tune with each other. We stopped over at the AD car museum for a snapshot of the big Jeep and headed home tired but extremely happy. Happy that we were able to spend time with likeminded souls that understand each other without words, and happy that we all made it home safely, except for the radio rollover incident 🤣. And there we have it: the first Liwa drive of 2020, that was an unforgettable experience for me and i encourage every off-roader to put this on the top of their To-Do list. Don’t do it for the massive dunes or the lack of cellphone reception, but do it for spending time with an exceptional group of people that will get you to do things you’ve never could have imagined.

Hey buddy, Oman is absolutely amazing. Have a look at the topic i posted last year which reviews the wadis and the trips itself. I would love to go back soon, but getting time off work is currently impossible unfortunately.

I renewed my 1999 Pajero last September and got the following quote: I added Roadside assistance and ended up at 1083 AED with RSA A few weeks back i renewed for my 2008 LWB Pajero, and went for AXA. Paid 1172 which included 24h roadside assistance and Oman coverage. Since arriving in the UAE i am getting the quotes done by insurancemarket.ae which saves me a lot of hassle of calling around. They provide 2-3 quotes based on your requirements and take care of the complete process. I am really happy with these guys.

Tesla will definitely become one of the most hackable items in the future, creating opportunities for tuners, eco warriors, or just Wizzkids doing it for the fun of it. Considering that they sell the drive trains to other companies already this basically means that it becomes a commodity item. The software that has been written by a young team of engineers will float in the cloud in a couple of years, allowing other coders to decode it and use the building blocks.

Thanks 🙏 @Rahimdad for the faith and guidance. Wonderful report that took us right through the adventurous dunes again.

My tips: * Reduce on meat consumption. Max 2 days per week little meat, and even less if possible. * 2 pcs of Fruit per day, some nuts, and enough veggies. * Walk a lot. If you are having a desk job, walk for at least 45min to 1 hour per day every morning or evening. Running is even better but for losing weight walking is a very good start. * Avoid alcohol, fizzy drinks, and anything that contains too much sugar. Try to start reading what's on the ingredients list. You'll be shocked to see what's inside in many cases. * Drink enough water. Many people gain weight because they don't drink enough. * Eat small portion 5-6 times per day. This sounds weird but it keeps your stomach from becoming lazy. A friend of mine used to work nightshifts and only ate one big meal per day and kept gaining weight because her metabolism was not working properly. And most of all: Forget about the ideal weight and BMI: try to find something that works for you. If that means a bit more than the average so be it, we are all individuals and as long as you're healthy and happy with yourself that's all that matters.

I've sent him above replies. He will keep in touch with me and will keep this topic updated. He has leaf suspension at the back, but the noise sounds like a bearing that's failing. Let's see.

My buddy’s H3 has developed a weird clicking noise from the back side. He brought it to his workshop but they were not able to figure this one out. The sounds are louder in the morning and decrease after 15-20mins which makes me think the diff oil provides better lubrication at operating temp and lessens the noise. Below a small video of the issue: https://www.dropbox.com/s/dtvurdcx3fefrse/VID_20200209_165956.mp4?dl=0 @Tbone you complained about drive shaft sounds also lately. Does it sounds similar to this ?

Consider yourself lucky in the presence of these drivers ;) I am sure they were able to give you a taste of high-octane thrills and adrenaline and I’m sure you’ll be coming back for more of that stuff 😋

TRIP REPORT This foggy morning reminded me a bit of the winter season in my home country Belgium, so when I left the house I was a bit worried that the fog would remain for the whole morning. I was delighted to see most people made it on time, with @Tbone being the winner as he arrived shortly after me. Some came a bit later due to the fog, but these things happen and we need to keep safe in traffic. This was my first ever briefing so I hope i kept it a bit interesting and I heartfully thank the others that stepped in to help to complete and detail on some points. Also this was the first time we started using 3 different frequencies for the separate convoys. We will come back soon with more updates on that as it still needs improvement. After having split up the convoys in two newbie convoys led by @Rahimdad and me, and one slightly more thrilling newbie+ convoy led by @Gaurav, we hit the dunes and started enjoying the beautiful area. @balaji0007 was my second lead and I was really impressed in his calm and composed driving and clear communication. @Denizzalbayrak aka Koleos managed well, so as @Jun Zamora with his Murano. These AWD vehicles unfortunately possess lots of electronical gizmos so I can imagine it’s not always easy to unlock the full power. The next coming months with dryer sand coming up this might become even more challenging. Francesco and his 3.8 Pajero, the Wranglers @Rinelle Sanaani @Colin Jordan @Febin Frederic , @Ahmedmustafa90 his Xterra, were all driving great with their capable cars and with @Javier M as our center key player and @Wrangeld and @Jeepie in the sweep, i was surely in good company. The tow rope stayed in the car, only some small refusals kept us a bit busy and at the same time we got to learn something. Again thanks for Richard, Rahim and others who were at the top helping out @Jun Zamora and a special thanks to @Javier M to lead him around the mountain. My apologies for not having the proper place and time to do a full debriefing and feedback session after the drive, we lost a bit of time climbing over Fossil Rock. We will make that up on the next drives. I thank you all for joining us on this beautiful morning and hope to see you all back soon !

Thanks for informing ! Take care and see you soon !

@Mostafa Taha welcome to Carnity ! Kindly provide us the following information: * Which 4x4 are you driving ? * Any prior offroad experience ? If so, where and when ? * Are the vehicle's towpoints in good condition ?

@Marko Todorovic Welcome to Carnity ! Kindly share with us the following information: * Which 4x4 are you driving ? * Do you have any prior offroad experience ? If so where and when ? * Are your vehicle's towpoints in good condition ?

Dear @AbdulBasith Welcome to Carnity ! Your compressor will come in handy to inflate after the drive. Your rope we won't be needing on your first drive. If you have a tyre deflator and pressure gauge lying around you can bring them. Once you join more often, then a flag, deflator, shovel, and two-way radio will be essential. Dear Muhammed, No problem we are here to teach you. Our question with regards to the towpoints is quite important, as we have seen time and time again that people enter the desert with defective, rusted, or even without proper tow points or recovery points. In that case we can't recover the vehicle safely. Please do check and verify if you have towpoints and if they are fixed properly.

Dear Biju, Please RSVP on the calendar by clicking on "GOING" so your name will appear in the list.

@Muhammed Riyaz welcome to Carnity ! Kindly provide us the following info: * Which 4x4 are you driving ? * Do you have any prior offroad experience ? * Are the vehicle's towpoints in good condition ?

Welcome to Carnity @kinnu Kindly RSVP on the calendar and provide us with the following basic info: * Which 4x4 are you driving ? * Any prior off-road experience ? * Are your vehicle’s towpoints in good condition ?

NOTIFICATION to all Carnity Offroaders: Please have a look at below topic that notifies about the new Two-Way Radio Frequency list. For the members that have a radio already, please have a look if you can program it at home prior to the drive. If in doubt, kindly approach us before the drive briefing so we have some time to assist you in setting up your radio.

Dear Carnity Offroaders, With the successful growth of the Carnity Offroad club we are now frequently having several convoys driving in the same area. Due to the fact that we were still working on one single frequency, this caused sometimes confusion and interference between convoys. Because of that, we have decided to add 4 new frequencies to our list, and to use the exisiting freqency 462.8875 Mhz only as backup purpose. A comprehensive explanation can be found below, and also shows the frequencies and tutorial on how to program them in your radio. Please familiarize yourself with your radio and try programming the channels at home. If in doubt you can approach us before briefing time so we have time to assist you in setting up your radio.

Perfect. Thanks for the quick reply. See you on Friday !

@Ahmedmustafa90 welcome to Carnity ! Kindly provide us the following basic info: * Which 4x4 are you driving ? * Any prior offroading experience ? If so, where and when ? * Are your vehicle's front and back towpoints in good condition ?

That doesn’t look good. I’ve been going through some forums and apparently the vehicle does not come with stock front tow hooks. Considering the weight of this truck i would not advise taking it to the desert. Recovery from both sides has to be possible at all times. installing Mopar tow hooks: https://youtu.be/G_M3oSq0ybc