Zed

Hi @sertac man why you gotta bring that up?😁 Now i just had a seizure of flashback where my Pajero went flying (this is why my feet usually brake automatically on the tip of dune pyramid, to prevent flying again) and hit the back of Nissan Armada v8. I think that Armada went for total loss and I felt so bad 😢

Flash-forward now, yeah I want to avoid to be in that same situation. Cheaper car, yes definitely to avoid total loss where insurance gives you puny amount of cash, but at the same time Strong Metal to protect your head for when that flying thing lands on your car *knock on wood

Speaking of Jeep, should I be worried after looking at this:
https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle/jeep/wrangler-4-door-suv/2020

Thanks @Gaurav and @Frederic , Fred's remark on resale value hits the spot right there on the heart... so now i'm leaning on getting a 2nd car for off-road purpose. Question for @Gaurav : why is XTerra better than Patrol for offroad? I mean both are Nissan... example if I look at this ad https://tnydu.biz/DOy9Ol  for a 47K XTerra, will I have bumper issues like Y62 too? Or at least that can be used as baseline for further modifications...

Thank you @Srikumar for leading this drive and thank you @Emmanuel for pulling my Patrol when it got stuck at the tip of triangle dune 😁 .

I think this drive is above Newbie, since some people also got stuck at the tip like I did and there was a lot of slide sloping more than Sweihan last time. 

Also my rear bumper is coming off, so my CFO (a.k.a wife) demanded i fix this first before the next drive. Now i'm torn either to remove it completely so i don't have to deal with bumpers everytime (since the drives get more advanced & challenging) or start looking for second-hand Jeeps 😂
 

thanks everyone who joined the drive, felt the camaraderie after a bit of hiatus 😊

1 hour ago, Gaurav said:

Hope you found it back?

unfortunately not, went back to the Inflating Point at 24.801074, 55.370360 https://goo.gl/maps/8amceGajaNcriFwy6  and searched but no avail... i'll post on the drive thread maybe someone knows someone, otherwise just have to let it go as a ramadan gift 

In case anyone in today's drive is wondering, it's this long cable that can deflate/inflate 2 tyres at a time:

@Srikumar i left my deflator on the inflating point, coming back now. If anyone did keep it, pls call my mobile 056-7242156 so we can meet at Qudra Adnoc / Last Exit 😅

On 5/12/2020 at 9:01 AM, RohanH said:

Hi bro @RohanH , is this the right map of Dolphin Auto Accessories >> https://goo.gl/maps/ANrrU3NcrmQMz3Yh8 .

Thinking of doing it for my Nissan Patrol too 😄

15 hours ago, Srikumar said:

Hi Zed,

As an exceptional case since you are coming from Abu Dhabi one of us would stay back till you can make it to Qudra. I presume it takes 90 minutes, right? Once you come to the meeting point, you and the senior member can enter the desert and join the rest of the convoy.

Thanks for the gesture @Srikumar !  Forgot to update that I manage to book a hotel in Barsha, so hopefully I can make the 7am without troubling anyone to wait for me 😄 

@Srikumar just remembered Curfew is until 6am, so I have 1 hour to drive to Qudra to make 7am sharp? . i will check available hotel in Dubai, otherwise i need to skip this drive.

Is it a Landcruiser 70-series or a G-Class? Gotta watch till the end...

Thanks @Srikumar  for leading the Sweihan Convoy, and you even called it off at the right time so that everyone's in the Adnoc Station by 12noon, so those going to Qudra can make it (I hope they did) and also the rest of us can continue with the afternoon.

Some Lessons Learned yesterday:

• My first time shoveling with the Spoon. I was sure that we were gonna tug that Pathfinder from behind, since there's a small ditch in front of  it... but wow, Mr. @Srikumar patiently advised and mentored the driver to slowly push forward, then a bit to the right, and voila! Wow, that Big White Pathfinder just got itself out of the ditch! This is very useful in case I get my White Patrol stuck in similar situation (though I hope I don't find myself in that position *fingers crossed).
• Years ago, I had a "Flying Pajero" incident, where my I hit full gas on the acceleration and experienced that thrilling feeling of Superman in seconds, before of course... gravity reality sets in, and... oh well, i leave that story for in-person BBQ chatfire sessions 😁 This is why every time I go up and hit full gas, I just had flashback and sort of hesitated. But Mr. Sri again managed to mentor me and I pulled through my first Side-Sloping with 3,500kg car. After that, hey I think I just conquered my fear and pat my Patrol on the steering wheel. Turns out you don't need a  4L for this kind of maneuver.

Btw, who has my photo of me nose-diving with the Patrol? cc @Jas Gajaria ?

Thank you everyone who were at the convoy, some camaraderie and hope to meet you at future drives, cheers!

7 minutes ago, Srikumar said:

Tell her that you are gifting her the Patrol and will buy a cheap second hand car.

That's a Pro right there.... years of experience does bring a fountain of Wisdom 👏

4 hours ago, Gaurav said:

OK I have been silently reading this space and holding my temptation to not to spoil your fun or be harsh on your emotions, but keeping all my good man behavior aside, I strongly think you all need to face the truth to get out from a stage of denial. 

This breaks my heart... but I was already looking at Dubizzle for second-hand Wranglers, and now just need to convince CFO (aka Wifey) to approve the expense 😁

Btw, with all these Y62 mods, what do you guys think @Chaitanya D @Salarios of Nissan Patrol Gazelle? Should one, say, sell his Y62 and upgrade to Gazelle? I mean it already has winch, 2" lift kit, and fully serviceable by Nissan. I'm guessing this will also pass RTA annual tests... >> https://en.nissan-dubai.com/vehicles/new/patrol-safari/gazelle.html 

2 hours ago, Salarios said:

 

I just took a screenshot of these and save it in my scrapbook under "Things to do whenever bonus comes" 😁 Thanks @Salarios for sharing.

Yesss, I managed to RSVP this time, although No. 13 😂

7 hours ago, Gaurav said:

@Alexander Sarte as his trusted Toyota 4runner decided to give up half way up the climb. There was no sign of engine overheating or any other mechanical damage or accident but just it wasn't moving in any gear. We tried shifting to Lo and High but gear wasn't engaging and kept on making grinding noise as soon as we drop in D or any other gear.

...

I had this "grinding noise" problem when shifting back from 4H to 2H with my Pajero 8 years back... that feeling is scary, but luckily was able to drive (at slow speed) to the nearest Mitsubishi service center to get it looked at. This may be one of the cons of driving Automatic, but now after every 10,000kms service, one of the things I checked after getting the car back from garage is whether I can shift from 2H to 4H-4L and back again to 2H... hopefully @Alexander Sarte's 4Runner is fixed in timely manner before the next drive. 

9 hours ago, Xaf said:

...

Gaurav came back with an option to get out, but before we decided to do it, we discussed the risks. We think Alexander made a good call not to do it and first let a mechanic look at it and if the mechanic can't fix it to ask a recovery company.

...

Wow, @Gaurav  *came back* after showing everyone the way home? Give this dedicated man a standing applause please 👏👏👏 . That's some dedication & leadership right there 👍

No worries @Gaurav bhai, luckily this thing happens every week, so will join the next ones 👍

RSVP Limit reached 😢, still can squeeze 1 more spot? ☺️

Thanks @luwaimn  will add Al Nahda to my list of visit 👍

Thanks @Rahimdad  bhai, putting it in my to-do list for weekend cruise 👍

Haha good one guys, i still open my door and look outside while parking in tight spots, but can't say the same if wife's driving the Petrol... or maybe just get her a smaller sedan will do i guess 😁

Hi all, my Patrol Y62 didn't come with the fancy 360-degrees Bird Eye's view Park Assist. I was wondering if anyone has installed this technology from aftermarket shops? If so, any recommendation of which garage can install it in a day and price range? *Thanks in advance.

Hi all, so wifey discovered the photo below after the recent Solar Park trip where I should have braked properly 😅 (*lesson learned!) 

And now I'm looking into modifications (I hope I won't be addicted to offroad mods after this)... but do you guys invest in Skid Plates? I got a quote for Nissan Patrol Y62, front skid plate AED1850 (not including VAT) and rear skid plate AED1300 (not including VAT).

If it's really worth the price... should you do just the Front skid (and only invest in rear skid after a situation like this happens to the back of car) or might as well do both front+back skids in one-go?

3 hours ago, Srikumar said:

All Newbies please ensure that you reach the meeting point with a full tank of petrol

I guess this applies to 140 litres Patrols too 😄🏃🏻‍♂️🏃🏻‍♂️🏃🏻‍♂️