Frederic

The Opel (Vauxhall) Manta A. I have a very very faint memory of an uncle who had one with the beige leather perforated seats and that smell and cabin still sits gently on my mind. The Lancia Fulvia or Delta, Triumph Spitfire, VW karmann ghia, Golf 1 convertible, Alfa 33, Saab 900 Turbo are all in that same boat of semi- affordable retro cars I’d like to have in my modest little garage to tinker around with once I ever retire and find the time 🤪

Just came from London a few days back where just a glimpse of sun was like a god gift. Having a drink with friends on a terrace here now so I am not complaining about this time of year 😄

PIV gearboxes were very popular in the days. We had only one mechanic who we trusted to service them. http://www.corrugatedbox.com/gearbox.html But yes, the VFD in combination with a normal gearbox has taken over most applications in the industry. Barry, If the transmission needs reprogramming, is that due to a faulty original program from Nissan ? Or is that solely to match the newly installed transmission with the onboard program ?

Welcome to Carnity @Jas Gajaria !

My dad has CVT on his Mercedes A class. Had a big issue once where they had to replace the electronic module between gear lever and CVT itself from what i understood. Had some rental cars with CVT and wasn't so fond about it; it's takes time getting used to it i guess. https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=1204698

In my search for a family 4x4 for my wife a while back, I came across a very decent Gen 3 2004 3.8 LWB for 12k. I ended up going for a Gen 4 2008 3.8 because the price difference of 7000AED was in my opinion justifiable for a younger car with more whistles and bells, and much lower mileage. The LWB is very good for camping and family outings, but for off-roading purpose a bit bulky and heavy, but hey it works of course. Lift-kit might come in handy if required. Be aware that the cars you will find for 8-10k range are NOT for immediate high performance Off-road drive. You'll need to get a complete checkup done of suspension, engine, gearbox. Most probably another 3-4 kAED will go into that, and if you're unlucky like me that 250K engine will misfire or head gasket might give up the ghost and that's another 5-6 kAED minimum. Adding this up your 10k car comes close to 20k. I just want you to realize that old cars perform only as good as the care you or the previous owner took of them.

We went for a beach camping last year. Drove to the port of Khasab and asked one of the fishermen to take us to one of the nearby beaches along the coastline. Was in the area of below coordinates: 26°12'35.4"N 56°16'21.7"E * Beware to arrange your visas online, as the visa on arrival option has been stopped. * Most fishermen only speak arabic. We luckily had a friend with us that spoke it very well. * You will need to have ownership papers of the car when crossing the border. If it's under leasing or different owner you will need to arrange a POA form, and even then it's sometimes a bit of a hassle. * You will need to have Oman coverage in your insurance and prepared to show this paper at the border. If not you'll need to buy insurance at the border (takes a bit of time during busy periods) https://evisa.rop.gov.om/ * Definitely take water slippers because the beaches have pebbles and sharp stones. We had a fantastic time and saw the magical show at night called the fytoplankton. It emerges during certain times of year but you will only see it at night when you move your hand in the water, or just at the shoreline. We went swimming in it and it felt like magic (remember the movie Life of Pi..) https://epod.usra.edu/blog/2018/02/bioluminescence-in-the-gulf-of-oman.html

I am more of a function over form guy and doesn’t like to to too many mods to a car because you lose the money twice, you spend it, and in most cases your resale value drops more if not done properly. a good audio setup is indeed a must for me for a daily driver. I prefer to spend my cash on proper maintenance and upkeep of the car.

Love to join in on this one, led by an expert @amir.rophail @G.huz let's go guys. @Gaurav @Rahimdad @Srikumar i am fine with either drive on Friday afternoon, but i'd like to go for Emmanuel his intermediate drive if that's ok to make sure there will be at least 3 cars. @Emmanuel i'll need to pickup my mother in law from the airport later that night, so i would like to refrain from sweating too much or having my car full of sand 🤣 (just kidding)

@Emmanuel congrats buddy ! More than well deserved !

Sorry @Barry i was out of the country for business trip and only landed this early morning. Shame i didn't see those 4x4 monsters in real life. Would 've been great to meet up with you and the Off-road clubbers. As you can see, the Carnity forum and the Offroad club can perfectly live together next to each-other after all and there’s no need to leave Carnity because of the popularity of the off-road club 😉

Awesome video @Asif Hussain good to hear you're back !

Congrats @dberclaz !!

Probably boxes. Just hand them out on your next off-road drive 😂

Happy birthday buddy !!

Ouch.... That was a pretty big blast. I've heard many stories about super-cars and high-end luxury vehicles catching fire, but those were not battery driven cars. I am sure Tesla will investigate this matter seriously,

Amazing to see such a diversity in the club. I guess we all have one thing in common: We made the UAE our home away from home, and as an expat we need to get out, explore, travel, and meet friends, colleagues, buddies, that makes us feel as our home is here. I feel very blessed to have met so much amazing people yet, and look forward every day in meeting more !

@M.K Good quality bolts can be purchased through Wurth.

Thanks buddy, but I’m far from an expert. In my line of work I just need a very broad range of skills and that has always helped me. About the carbon steel, you’re right as it’s slightly more flexible than SS. I didn’t consider that one. let me check with our procurement guy where we buy the decent quality of bolts. Most of them are from the general traders, but for some application the 10.9 rating is very critical and necessary, as well as proper torquing and quality of the bolt itself. These are coming from bigger industrial suppliers.

I've checked in several Pajero forums (South-Africa, Australia) about my OEM recovery points and they seem to be of good quality. No reports have been posted about damages. Getting them fabricated is an option, or going for aftermarket ones. If i'd get them fabricated, i would go for Stainless Steel 304 or 316. Takes away the worries about corrosion. I guess it depends from driver to driver if he thinks his OEM points are "good enough" or if they would invest in aftermarket ones. Have a look at attached bolt grade markings and strength chart. 10.9 and 12.9 are preferable.

I’ve seen crazy accidents after being 20 years working in manufacturing industry. Taking into account the crazy amounts of stress load that comes into play when recovering a vehicle, EVERY possible step in minimizing the risk should be considered, and the soft shackles are i god gift in such situations. i would like to add that it’s advisable to use a sandbag over the tow rope while doing a recovery. I don’t often see that being done here. In this case above, the OEM tow hook would have been dragged to the ground instead of going through the windshield. @Gaurav it’s pretty difficult doing a load or stress test to assess your OEM tow hook. But severe corrosion should have been noticed by the owner of the vehicle. A test rig could be built by attaching a winch to a tow hook, with a load scale in between like they use on cranes. But this would be only partly accurate or reliable, as the kinetic pulling energy is far more than a steady buildup of force. As I mentioned before, kinetic ropes are a fantastic tool, but as you feel the jerking feeling less, people often pull like crazy, and the kinetic snap-back is really extremely forceful and puts great stress at factory tow points. Again stressing the fact that kinetic pulling should be slowly built up in 2-3 attempts. Very sad to see what happened there and makes me realize again the forces at play🤕

Wow that’s a massive amount ! I always learned about the rule of thumb which was 0,03 times your body weight = recommended water intake per day.