Frederic

@Rahimdad thanks again for the fantastic lead in the beautiful area 53. Some areas were proven to be a bit tricky with soft patches and all of us had to stay on our toes a bit, which is actually a good thing when driving at night. @Gaurav your skills as first sweep are something I really look forward to learn in the near future. Your fast reactions, anticipation, clear communication, and the ability to stay calm and composed is what makes a true crew member. Thanks for the assistance and company on this adventurous night. Thanks to the rest of the team for keeping the spirits high, even after consecutive stucks or refusals. The more time you will spend with your car the more you will feel it’s strengths, weaknesses, and you will learn how to apply either a feather touch or a full lead foot on the pedal at the right appropriate timing. Idem ditto with keeping distance which like Gaurav bhai mentioned needs constant adjusting based on the terrain, overall pace, and person in front of you. @Shamil when I announced that I didn’t see you in the convoy anymore you seemed to got lost. Don’t be afraid to immediately announce on the radio that you don’t see any team members anymore and best to stop the car and walk to the highest dune nearby. We’ve all been in similar situations and I know it feels a bit scary. see you guys soon !

Near my hometown in Belgium there was a massive fog pile-up incident in 1996 that caused 200 cars to crash into each other and took the lives of 10 people, with 56 heavily wounded and 30 light wounded. Abu-Dhabi in 2008 had similar accident where 8 people died and also 200 cars were involved. Main reason was that there was a lake next to the highway and the fog over that lake caused a massive fog-wall that morning only on that specific area. Due to the crashes, fire started and people got killed purely from not being able to escape the fire. I still remember this clearly and i hope to never see it again. Please drive safe whenever fog sets up and use fog lights if possible. NEVER use the hazard lights. Adjust your speed until you can ensure that you have sufficient visbility and time to react.

As most of my family and especially my uncles all drove Opel, The Manta A and B series, and then the Corsa, Kadett, and Astra models are part of my youth growing up. I can still recall the smell of the lightbrown perforated leather seats of the Manta my uncle used to have, and was totally in love with the Manta GT/E. A friend of mine still has the Kadett GT/E which he uses for oldtimer meetings. Opel however was known for rusting faster than the speed of light, especially on the wheel arches. Technically they had their hits and misses but if i ever come across an Opel GT, or Manta A in good condition i'd be shouting "TAKE MY MONEY"

We get most of your fabrication and welding works done by Najm Al Waha, located in Sharjah near university city road. They are however more specialized in industry so not really sure if they cater automotive but might be worth asking. You can give a call to Mohammed Shafeeq on 050 409 4183.

I guess we all have bought a few lemons in our lifetime and every time life throws a lesson at you. I'm still stuck with the issue that i sometimes tend to completely fall in love with a car and overlook all the technicalities and pros and cons. I've also bought quite some cars that i knew had some issues and fixing to do, but that helped me in knocking down the price and then get a reliable mechanic to do a decent repair and do some other fixes myself too. Many junkyard worthy cars i bought ended up looking 10x better after a year and always sold them at a decent price. If i can choose between losing money on depreciation, or buying an old car and putting some money down to restore it to its former glory, i'd go for the second option as i gives me more satisfaction.

The boys from Dirt Every Day have a new episode dedicated to the XJ, @sertac and @Srikumar you might like it: Would love to go and check out these trails with these guys !!

De bonne vacances Copain !

That was a 2010 model if i remember correctly. He bought it in Dubai and took it with him when he had to move to Saudi. Wonderful car, but you don’t see them often on the roads.

Had a friend with a Hyundai Vera Cruz 3.6. Has put 400,000km plus on it and hardly had any issues.

I’m flying back to the sandpit tonight after a week in Barcelona. God I will miss the food, weather, and the people.. see you guys next week if there’s a drive ! Take care !

After arriving in Saudi Arabia and looking for a fun car to drive that i could also take to the desert, I went shopping around and came across a 2008 FJ Cruiser in voodoo blue with the roof rack, stereo upgrade, cold air intake, and hardly a scratch. Mileage was a bit high at around 200,000 kms but it was the best looking FJ in the area after weeks of searching. Fast forward a few weeks when I go into a small patch of desert near to the compound where I’m living and get stuck immediately, although i deflated and ASSUMED this was a permanent 4x4. Well, this US model was a 2WD.... hence the low selling price 😔😔 Kept it another year and then left Saudi, but that was a hard lesson learned not to be falling in love too quickly and hasty. But the car itself was fantastic as pretty fast.