Frederic

I was thinking about getting some hammerite paint and applying over the most affected areas. First the surface needs to be cleaned with wire brush, but after that you can either spray paint it or apply with soft brush. If you have a friend with a lifting bridge it would take you maybe a half day to do it yourselves and wouldn’t cost too much. Getting it done would cost around 1200 if I remember correctly.

My 2008 Pajero has far more rust under the body than my 1999 one. I suspect the owner of the 2008 one lived much closer to the sea, as this makes a big difference. Have a look at these guys, they seem to be doing rustproofing and detailing. I’m not affiliated to them but there was a sticker from them on my rear window when I bought my ‘99 Pajero so I assume previous owner went there. http://saraautocare.com/

For the 10 people that check theirs regularly the answer will be Yes !!, for the 90 others that hardly know which car they drive their answer will be How ?? 😂

Lovely dunes ! Good thing my desert dogs are keeping me busy cause I really want to hit the dunes again soon ! Will post an update soon on the Pajero !

Those buttons mechanisms are notorious for getting stuck. What helps sometimes is to hit it from the front with a rubber mallet or something soft. Once it’s open some WD40 will do the trick.

Lovely write-up ! I can imagine these little ones are hard to find ! All’s well ends well and you didn’t have to kill the little creature ❤️

Somebody using this app ? Just registered but I’ll need to take it for a ride and compare with Motion X. I do like the rescue function and overall usability.

Underpowered imho. We should ask @Barry if he could throw in a Clio Williams engine or RS engine in it. Would make a nice little project 😂

The Kia Mohave was pretty capable and powerful with low range gearing, but a bit more difficult to find and angle approach didn’t look very appealing. https://www.google.ae/amp/s/www.drivearabia.com/carprices/uae/kia/kia-mohave/2012/amp/

Is the previous Fortuner model 4.0 a contender here ? Prices came down since the newer model was introduced. I’m not so fond of the previous model but it’s probably the cheapest entry Toyota with that 4.0 ?

As you know i am on a manual gearbox, but had the same thing twice when being a bit too fast in going from 4LO to 4H without putting the transmission gearbox in N. I don't think that there is a locking system to prevent that. After all there is no physical connection between transmission and transfer gearbox i'd assume.

Bring some Swedish meatballs or blue eyed girl and all will be forgiven 😁

Nice topic ! i think you’ve covered 95% of them, maybe except for a few rare models such as Isuzu Trooper which I was looking for a while back. But like you say, finding the good condition rare ones cost money and lots of luck and efforts. How would a Hilux or L200 manage ? Probably somewhat underpowered and in need of some extra clearance? VW Touareg 2005 is also going pretty cheap. No idea how it would go in the dunes.

Fantastic @Emmanuel ! Looking forward to one of your lead drives soon !

Congrats @Brette !!

This sounds like an episode of Stranger Things: “In search for mysterious circles our friends suddenly experience mechanical issues as if the car was taken over by a evil force. The man with the hammer disappeared and reappeared without reason, and the Sweihan area became the backdrop for governmental experiments in alien technology”.... NOW on Netflix ! Love your write ups too buddy 😉

The funniest i saw was at the Qudra Lakes a few months back. I was inflating my tires on the side of the road after going for a small drive and a guy comes up in his Porsche Cayenne all nicely dressed up, he drives next to me and says with a grin "i don't think i'll need to deflate with my car", so he goes into the first patch of loose sand and immediately gets stuck. What he does next is what most idiots with 500+HP cars do: he starts revving like a maniac to get unstuck and all the time i am standing there looking at him with my biggest grin.... Eventually he gets out and approaches me with a 50dhs gas station rope and asks me if i can pull him out. I tell him in a friendly way that he should use that rope only to tie a floormat on his roofrack.... After deflating and removing the sand in which he reluctantly had to rollup his sleeves and sit on his knees to help me, he quickly got out and all this time his wife kept on shouting at him at what an idiot he was 😂. The worst stuck i've yet have to experience.. The Carnity boys are so experienced that even pulling out a Pajero from out of a massive deep bowl with several ropes tied together seems like a walk in the park for them 😉

Great article @Javier M I have seen those hi-lift jacks mounted on almost every Wrangler i see driving in my community. Hence i sometimes have the feeling it is more a form over function thingy like a spoiler, but i could be wrong. The bottle jack will do the job, but surely only when it's properly secured on a scaffolding plank / wooden board. The 2 ton floor-jack as @Gaurav points out is also my preferred one. I haven't got to buying one yet as i have one laying idle in my house in Belgium which i always talk about bringing it with me when i travel, but in the end my suitcase is full of other stuff .

They would make a great duet: Lady Gaga and Scotty Kilmer live at the Grammys 2019 😂

Talking about world famous engineers: Who has seen Scotty Kilmer on YouTube: He cracks me up, he’s a bit rough mouthed but his common sense approach to engineering is actually quite funny to watch, probably that’s what got him the 1,8 million followers

Well i'd like to compare it with going to the gym because you want to get in a better shape: Option 1: You go alone to the nearest gym, mess around a bit with the equipment, get sprains and injuries, and maybe you will become a bit more fit once you get to know how the equipment works, but you are left to your own devices and not always sure about if you are doing the right thing OR if it is even safe to do with the health or equipment you have. Option 2: You join a gym and go for 10-15 lessons. Your personal teacher will assess your current condition and will guide you safely to minimize injuries or accidents. Thanks to his experience and knowledge you will progress much faster than others and will be grateful for having somebody to learn something from. Joining an Offroad club like Carnity is free, and you get professional advice from people who can safely guide you through and avoid mistakes which in the desert can end up being costly or even fatal. But don't take it from me, take it from the dozens of people that joined Offroad clubs and learned essential stuff like how to deflate properly, recover yourself, and what you and your car can do. If you or your friends get stuck, do you know what to do or which equipment to use to safely recover yourself ? I go for regular camping trips myself with a group of friends, but we don't venture deep and definitely don't do the stuff we are doing in an Offroad club. We drive around a bit, set up camp, and have some drinks. We avoid the real dunes and difficult tracks because most of my friends have very little Offroad experience and we don't want to get in trouble having our car full with kids, dogs, etc... Joining Carnity Offroad and doing the Newbie drives gave me more confidence and far less stress when going camping with my friends, as i know that my car is always equipped with recovery gear and i know how to use it. And most of all i can help my friends by sharing that information. PS replace "teacher" by our Offroad Specialists like @Gaurav, @Srikumar @Asif Hussain, @Emmanuel, @Rahimdad and more team members who will take your under their wings and teach you all the skills and fun our UAE deserts have to offer....

Alcohol dehydrates....

Omg is that one of those tourist off-road organizations?