Frederic

UPDATE: Wheel balancing done and definitely improved on how the car behaves in terms of stability. Vibration is still there but less noticeable. They found a large nail stuck sideways in the tyre, but luckily not a puncture. Could have created imbalance. Both front upper arm rubber bushes are worn, so that’s up for the next service. Probably not the culprit. Both tie rod end bushings are also on their way out too, but that’s nothing new and will definitely improve the on road stability even more. Did some slow motion donuts and no crunching sound from the CV axle this time. The rubber boot however is torn and I’m afraid sand might have gone inside and messed up the bearing I’ll keep an eye on it the next coming weeks and schedule some works on the next service. Thanks for the swift replies and help !

Makes a person think, and that’s what I liked about it. Especially the part on agregate efficiencies was an eye opener.

You’re missing the point buddy. A Land Cruiser is gonna cost you a lot more on fuel and maintenance. The higher price Tag is also because of Hybrid Technology.

Thanks Barry. I’ll go for a balancing tonight to start with, but I’m also more thinking about a worn CV axle. On the last drive when making a full turn right I started to hear a slight crunching sound every now and then. Could that be the culprit ? It does not change with revs, and the vibration itself is pretty high in frequency, bit like holding a beard clipper in my hands instead of the steering wheel 😆

I’m gonna sound very blunt and rude now but as much respect I have for these guys I see 80 percent of them driving as they should, while the other 20 percent drive like they stole the bike and think they are in a video game. In no possible way is any job worth risking your life for and if you don’t ride defensively in UAE on a motor bike you’re signing your own death warrant. For some reason whatsoever many of them can’t seem to grasp when they are driving in the blind spot of the car in front of them, or overtake from the craziest angles and speeds. Sorry for these people I have zero respect

Since a few days the blue lady has developed some humming kind of vibration from the steering wheel, most noticeable between 70-90kmh in 2WD on the highway. Below or above these speeds the vibration disappears. The steering wheel is not shaking, it’s a slight vibration felt in the center of the steering wheel. I was suspecting a wheel bearing so jacked up the front and turned the wheels but couldn’t really find anything wrong. Later i realized that on 2WD my rear wheels are driven and the front ones are freewheeling so I’ll still need to check the rear wheels. The vibration is also there during coasting (release gas and put in N), so I suppose drivetrain could be excluded ? Unless drive shaft maybe ? Also thinking about wheel balancing: maybe a balancing weight fell off from one of the wheels.... Tyre pressures are all at 35psi. any other hints or tips before I go for the balancing ?

@Barry Remember the business you wanted to start ? Here you have it

Get yourself a nice big plastic tool box that is properly strapped in your trunk. Speedex has very nice ones for 100-150dhs. I use one for storing recovery rope, shackles, floorjack, gloves, etc...

I have never been a big fan of the Toyota Corolla. It always looked to me like it was designed by an accountant on a Sunday morning. Driving it was also never an exhilerating experience. It did what it had to do, and the cabin was well put together, but never gave a real welcoming feeling. That was also mostly due to the fact that most people here in UAE buy the basic models, which suits them well as company tradesman car, rental car, or simple reliable commuter car. And in that aspect the Corolla has been a huge success. The resale value of a well maintained Corolla with acceptable mileage has always been above average, and you can bet your sweet tooth on it that if you'd put one on Dubizzle in decent condition, that within 1 day it would be sold. Now, looking at the 2020 Corolla which is now available in both Hybrid and Petrol versions, the new model looks more sleek, modern, and is becoming more and more like a Junior Lexus, which is not a bad reference. The Hybrid, having a 1.8 litre engine on board accompanied by 16-Volt electric motors, is clocking in at 95,500 AED. Having 121Hp and 142Nm of Torque are not world shocking results, but with a fuel economy of 3.9 l/100 km we are looking at a damn fine commuter car. Petrolheads amongst us that want to stay true to the black fossil blood, will have the choice between either a 1.6 at 121hp / 154Nm, or 168hp / 200Nm for the 2.0 litre version. The base model will be available from 71,900 AED onwards, Transmissions are CVT, which are partly responsible for the excellent fuel economy numbers. There are as many haters as there are lovers of the CVT trannies. I'm not fond of them as they take away a lot of the driver's engagement in how the car revs and behaves, but for the Candy-Crush playing commuters it will hardly make any difference. Toyota being a company of no surprises does again what it does best: make a car that will sell, no questions asked. Competition has been strong the last couple of years, especially from the Koreans which boast more exciting designs and lower prices, but high resale value kept the Corolla in the top spot and that will likely not change soon.

You will be missed buddy. See you soon again in the Arabian Sands

I have the JZX 2 Ton floorjack from DM. Works great and came with warranty.

it's a fuel additive, Every bottle is good for 4 fuel tanks, You can slightly increase the amount if your idling is unstable. I remember putting half a bottle in it the first two refills. Here is the link: https://www.desertcart.ae/products/57497251

The Redex came recommended by @Gaurav and i must agree that it has reduced my consumption slightly. I used to get maximum 390-400kms on highway, now i am around 420-430 on average. The biggest change i noticed was the idling. Although my injectors were cleaned a while back by a guy in Rashidiya, after having used two bottles of Redex, the idling became more stable. I get the Redex through desertcart.ae

I paid 1050 for my Pajero. Only weird thing is that the car shows as 4 cyl 2400 cc in the paperwork, so maybe they selected Pajero io model in their computer 🤔

Hint: all parts belong to the car. Be aware this is not a “regular” vehicle 😉

Try to find the radiator !!!

Welcome to the club of stick shifts 😂 @Srikumar Will confirm manual is more fun !

I am also a happy RSA customer. Their rates are good, used them only once for a small incident where my neighbor bumped into my car, and everything was settled professionally and repair was done by a decent workshop that did a wonderful job. Heard good things about Oman Insurance too. I need to renew next month so i will definitely compare them.