Sunil Mathew

lost concentration for a split second and alas!! WL#2  😐

now praying for all the evil stuff 🙂

@Ashutosh Garg..looks like the video is not public yet...🙂

Have a look at your settings?

Congrats doc @M.Seidam…  very well deserved… after listening to your story on the last night drive, we know how close to your heart is offroading!!   

hope to drive with you soon in your new robes 👍🏻👍🏻

Removed myself 😔

not able to reach

hi doc @M.Seidam

Pls consider my attendance tentative.. I have a sea trial to finish in the morning and if we are done in time, and reach back on shore, i will join..i will try to confirm by noon , but in case i am not in mobile coverage i wont be able to do that as well.

so if i dont turn up on time, please do not wait for me

hope you understand

On 8/29/2022 at 9:33 PM, Ale Vallecchi said:

change the meeting time to 2PM

Hi @Ale Vallecchi..i assume the meeting time is 2PM and not as per drive post still showing 2.30 pm?

Thank you Doc @M.Seidam for the refreshing start to the weekend...enjoyed the drive yesterday to the fullest. Was my first FB+ drive with the Fortuner, and i believe it went just fine...  Thanks for the dates and laban , although the combo sounds a bit unusual, it was good  ...and was nice to listen to the story of how Qudra desert is dear to you and Abdallah...God Bless!!

Good to drive with all fellow members @Rajiv Sam - great SL, @AlexM, @Amr Aydin @Joji varghese @Gregory @Senthil Kumar @Morshedi and @Alexander Alcala

See you all on the next one!

1 hour ago, Ale Vallecchi said:

Dear @Ignacio Quindós, @Sunil Mathew and @Rajat Verma, considering the short convoy, It is unlikely that any other members will be left out of the drive, or will not find space if they sign up late. In consideration of this, I will be happy to confirm your presence, and if OK with you, I will move you to the Going tab. Please let me know. Thanks a lot.

Sure @Ale Vallecchi..Thanks for adding!

Saturday wont work for me @Ale Vallecchi.. car is booked for some work.. will remove myself from WL 

@Vanessa8580 - thank you for making my Sweihan debut amazing , and 10 times worth the 170 Km drive from home !!! Had enough of the tall dunes and apologies for the untimely question  - "Are we done with the tall dunes" early on the drive  

Our drive was mostly smooth flowing , couple of tugs, self recoveries and pop outs thrown in as garnishing !!

 ...  Couple of pop outs with @Andrew McCarthy and @Pierre de Maigret..   While Andrew's pop out  was a result of being a bit overambitious to climb into and out of a narrow ditch  , Pierre's one was due to hitting a dry bush/ sand mound at the wrong angle...both were solved in no time with the able involvement of @Zed, @Waqas Parvez and @Vanessa8580

@ASAD. and @AlexM - trouble free drive, i believe

...see you all when our paths cross again on the next drive!!

great come back @Anish S..smooth , fluid and fast drive, with lot of climbs, ridge rides , criss crosses...we ticked all the boxes for an IM drive definitely....Convoy response was amazing ...see you all .   @Senthil Kumar @Tom B @Ashok chaturvedi    and @Waqas Parvez - thanks for the shovelling support!!

Its about time @Anish S...welcome back 👍

Congrats @Rizwanm2....looking forward to joining your drives !!

Thanks @Brette for the great drive...i was still on testing mode with my changed car   ...had enough opportunities to get used to the car and its gearing

Also, really appreciate the efforts  put to give special attention to our absolute newbies @premindra rajaram, @Benjamin and @Lewis2009  ...warm welcome to the club, and i believe you got a great intro to this hobby, and please dont feel pressured if you were not able to do some side slopes and straight climbs or if you struggled to get through .. Its a new skill and you need to give it time..and @Carnity is a very patient club 👍....

Good to drive with mostly new faces  @Mohammed Sirajuddin, @Sunny84, @Emanuel@Juzer Gandhi @Zulfikhar Naiyar   

@Pacific - good to see you again, hope all fine and your urgent call from work is sorted out

@DP1011 , Deepak wrangler - nice to meet you, and see you on the next drive!

Some photos in the gallery...

@Kailas - excellent drive, smooth lines, enough adrenaline  and great  overall itinerary with intermittent breaks, time to relax and have some small talk ...I should say it was a test for me and the Fortuner, mainly  in terms of long climbs, pace and navigating cross tracks at many places with a stock suspension, but my car did not let me down , and honestly i was amazed at its climbing ability on first gear and the way it holds the gear at high revs...

On 8/21/2022 at 6:31 AM, Vaibhav said:

I know jeeps are the best. @Sunil Mathew I know you agree with me on that.

I am not a contender to this toyota vs Jeep fight at all bro. you should pick someone of your size, probably @Rajiv Sam or @Waqas Parvez  ...i am a good 50 hp less than you guys ..😂 ..anyway so far , am happy with my choice 🤘

Good to drive with you @Felix Obst, and veteran @Ashok chaturvedisir, i echo what @Vaibhav said...always good to listen to you and your experiences and frank opinions..

Good to meet you @Karthik Raptor, see you on the next drive

Jzx 2 ton comes with carry case..i just bought one

@Waqas Parvez

The 3 ton is too big, but has lot of lift height, and no box..were you looking at the 3 ton?

@Kailas...confirmed..will join

Congrats @Karthik Raptor, welcome to IM, see you on IM dives!!

Congrats @DP1011 , Deepak wrangler, ..not sure if we have met, see you soon !

Congrats @Santoso Marjuki, and welcome to IM...see you soon!

It was indeed a Lahbab loop and here is how it looks - the loop we took , approx 49 Kms driven

Thanks to @Ale Vallecchi,  we had a very relaxed newbie drive, which occasionally bumped up to a newbie plus level, with some criss-crossing and  ridge riding thrown in for added flavour. A mid drive briefing , as is usual on Ale's NB drives helped all of us to learn the theory behind what we practise on the dunes.

Other than @Arshad Roojee 's car giving up on him with an immobilized transmission shifter, the drive was pretty smooth with only a couple of minor refusals and a stuck which was easily sorted out by @Waqas Parvez -  excellent support at the back. Arshad has informed that he managed to get the car to a garage.

@Usman Basit in his GMC Sierra was driving in front of me who did pretty well most places. What was missing was accurate throttle control during some maneuvers , ending up in excessive wheel spin and throwing up/churning sand. You just need to find the sweet spot where you give just enough gas to maintain required momentum, and not to get through with raw power which your car obviously has  .

For me the drive was a first with my new (used) car - a 2015 fortuner v6, (an obvious downgrade from the jeep wrangler JKU )_....now getting used to the car's behaviour, gearing etc to prepare for higher level drives and find its limits, as well as mine.

Good to meet all new faces - @Anthony Cupit - hope you got a solution for your disobedient flag  , probably a rubber gasket between the clamp and the roof rail would hold it in position. @James Lovell, @Ali Shah, @Andrei @salah2u @Daniel Rodas - see you all soon!!

Looking forward to the drive after a vacation gap of more than a month... @Ale Vallecchi just to let you know that i will be joining in my new avatar.. a 2015 Fortuner V6.. my profile is updated with the change

Sold my jeep before it starts biting back 😄😉

And decided to upskill myself by driving a not so popular/capable car 🙂..testing the newbie waters as a start

Congrats @Ahmad Shaker...

See you soon on IM drives !!

Congrats @Ranjan Das, see you soon in the same role, but new label  !! 

Congrats @munkybizness, see you soon in the new role!!