Rizwanm2

mabrook @Ismail. you cant go wrong with Lexus anyday. 

@Ismail if you intend to use mild offroad and 90% daily commute. Then why not check out Lexus GX. from price point there wont be a big difference between prado limited and lexus GX but you will enjoy 90% of the time being in lexus luxury. 

just my 2 cents. 

Bravo @Benjamin... 

Welcome to support team. 👍

Congratulations @Saverio Arena 

Congratulations @Frans M

Congratulations @Gary F and well done 👏 

2 hours ago, Nilakantan Erode said:

Have read through many of the posts and would request some views in buying a stock SUV for off-road.

This is to be used for a bit of city driving (but as a 2nd car) and definitely week end off road.

I have got some new car options to start with (based on immediate or 4-5 weeks availability (hence not listing Toyota and some other SUVs). Will start my research on pre owned / used vehicles soon. 

1. Mitsubishi Pajero 2020 signature V6.. NEW with some minimal (<100 km) from Al Habtoor PREOWNED division… with warranty until 2026. Price AED 125-130K. Seems good price  but not sure if I need to do some modifications for dune drives / off-road. 

2. Jeep Wrangler Sahara V6 - NEW from Trading  Enterprises. 3yrs Service + 5 yrs warranty . Price AED 240k. Not sure if maint / resale especially if I move out of UAE in 3-4 years)

3. Nissan patrol Super safari V6 VTC 4.7L. NEW from Arabian. 1-2 month delivery. price AED 210K plus 3yrs Service / 5 yrs Warranty . Good off-road reputation but fuel efficiency seems very low! 

4. Nissan Patrol SE titanium V6. NEW from Arabian plus 3 yrs Service 5 yrs Warranty. Price AED 260K. Seems heavy and not sure  if this will be an over kill. Also not sure if maint. 

Do let me know your views. Hopefully I can close out something and join you folks on off-road trips soon!

Cheers… Neel

if you cant wait for 4-5 weeks i would recommend to consider 1-2 year old low mileage Toyota prado with service history and warranty. Which will be much better than all other option you listed. 

1 hour ago, Benjamin said:

Hey @SamMills1994 welcome to the Middle East! Off-road desert driving is one of the best experiences you can do in this region, perfect for the car enthusiast, shutterbug, social gatherings, Adrenalin junkie, or even time away from work. 
 

So I Don’t drive an Xterra so @Krishna R, @M.Seidam, @Rizwanm2 @Chaitanya D might be some of the people that might be more qualified in answering your question. 
 

however in my opinion if it’s in your budget a new car is a much better option especially if your planning to off-road. Only reason for this is because used off-road cars could have a list of issues you aren’t aware of, especially the chance of a bunch of third party modifications which you don’t need to enjoy the deserts of the UAE, this way you avoid the need of thoroughly checking and testing cars from previous owners, and you can get warranty for certain dealerships. 
 

Besides those minor inconveniences you can go ahead and check out used Xterra’s there is a bunch on the market if you look at carswitch or dubizzle even the Facebook marketplace might be a place to check, you’ll notice used cars will have a better price but don’t let them fool you, especially when buying from Sharjah, another big tip is to always check the VIN number of used cars this way you can see if it’s been in a accident in the past and determine if the previous accident is worth it for the integrity of the vehicle 

Thanks @Benjamin

I love my Xterra and everytime i take it to the desert it put a big smile on my face. 

However to be honest the second gen Xterra are bit old now. Even the latest 2015 model is now 8 years old. most of the exterra in the market have seen its better days. but still if your budget is less than 50k i would recommend Xterra as number 1 option. 

SInce you have 100k budget i would recommend something much new. my shortlist will be 

1. Prado, 

2. FJ Cruiser 

3. Fortuner 

4. Patrol Y61

5. Pajero 3.8

Most of the above vehicle for sale will be clean mall crawlers, so you will have much more offroad life left in these. 

59 minutes ago, Frederic said:

Hi @SamMills1994! 

Welcome to the UAE and welcome to Offroading in general  

If you are looking for a daily commuter that will also serve as a good offroader within 100k budget, i would recommend looking at the following new or young second hand models:

1. Toyota Landcruiser Prado (second hand). very capable on road and off-road.

2. Mitsubishi Pajero. Excellent value and capable off-roader with minor mods. 3.8 Engine is the best option.

3. Nissan Xterra 2022 model. Nice off-roader but not for heavy dune-bashing (underpowered due to 4 cylinder engine).

4. Mitsubishi Montero Sport. Nice off-roader. slightly underpowered but manageable. 

 

There's probably few more models but these are the first ones that popped into my mind.

The older generation Xterra models (up to 2015) are famous for Offroad capability. They also make great daily commuters but without fancy options of course as these are very utilitarian 4x4's. You will find them second hand but will need to do your homework to double check they have not been abused too much.

If ur budget is 100k I would throw in Toyota fortuner 4.0 in seconplace of above list. 

@MisterPoet sorry to hear you are still struggling with this issue.  if you haven't please check any vibration in driveshaft. sometime minor imbalance in driveshaft also can cause mystery vibration. 

Dear @CasperPL  im another happy xterra owner. i got mine about 3 years back. i got it from sharjah car market. it was zero accident super clean car. yes its hard to believe. apart from dubizzle and FB when you have time please rip through car market as well, you will find some good examples. 

wish you good luck for your search. 👍

congratulations @Davie Chase... 

Hope to support and drive with you soon. 

dear team, 

please find below convoy list for tomorrow morning, lets use radio channel 4 fo comms.

congratulations my friend @Looper,  

Good afternoon, sand sailers

@Imteeaz @Krishna R @Gurcharan Mehta @Ishak @Felix Obst @Patrick van der Loo @Mark B @Bjoern @Chris Wing @Mahmoud Taha @Looper @Davie Chase 

also i would like to invite waitlist members @Amr Aydin @Zed to join the drive. yes it long train but i trust all of you guys👍.

Also i noticed that tomorrow sunrise is at 5.30 so we should be able to start the drive by early morning. So im changing meeting time at 5.15 AM  and lets drive off by 5.30 AM 

Kindly everyone confirm, i will post the convoy list later today. 

DRIVE DESCRIPTION

This is a retake of one of my previous drive. It will be super hot, super soft with lot of push.  I would emphasize to double or triple check your car, Please make sure you don’t have any overheating or any mechanical issues in your car. Its going to be a challenging drive, Hence please be prepared.  

MUST READ AND COMPLY

• Off-road Flag Guideline
• Two Way Radio Guideline
• Off road Driving Etiquette's
• Emergency details for all off-roaders
• Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities

DRIVE DETAILS

When: 14 May 2023 Sunday

Meeting time: 05:15 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions).

Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/A1Q6WarVVUY2EAPv5  

Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance.

What to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), smiles, face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Approximate finish time: 09:30 AM

Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance.

What to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), smiles, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Mandatory off-road gears: Tire deflator, tire pressure gauge, compressor, walkie-talkie radio, off-road flag, shovel, first-aid kit and fire extinguisher.
 

LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE

• This drive is limited to 10 cars only. RSVP will close on FRIDAY - 12 PM
• If the RSVP is full, you can add your name to the waitlist, once anyone drops, you will be moved to the RSVP list.
• RSVP will close a day prior to preparing a convoy list.
• Latecomers will be returned back - Without any exceptions.
• Members without RSVP will be returned back - Without any exceptions.
• Please withdraw your RSVP, if you aren't joining, so your spot can be taken by others.
• Repeated no-show members after RSVP will have their account suspended for a month.

PLEASE RSVP ON BELOW CALENDAR

Congratulations @Ale Vallecchi

there is always something special about your drives. Looking forward to drive with you more. 

Well done and well deserved 👏 👍 

i used to clock about 50k every year on my daily driver and changed tyres annually.  my number 1 recommendation would be Michelin Primacy 👍 .  Bit expensive but worth every penny. 

Congratulations @Krishna R Enjoy your new level. 

congratulations @Yaseen87,,, 

congrats @Sam K... Well deserved,.. Enjoy your new level. 

congratulations @Davie Chase and @Looper... 👏

going forward you will enjoy the desert in totally different way.. 

4 minutes ago, Rob S said:

Looking forward to it, I have changed car now so will be in FJ if you want to update Car list. It should be changed on my profile now.

Thanks for letting me know. 👍 convoy order will be the same. 

Dear Friends 

@Sam K @Benjamin @Patrick van der Loo @Fabien Monleau @Mahmoud Taha @Jona @Imteeaz @Rob S 

Hope you all ready for some action in Faqa. below is the convoy order and radio frequency.  See you all tomorrow morning. 

58 minutes ago, salah2u said:

@Rizwanm2 hi, I have been given space in 2 day over landing drive, therefore  taking my self out. See you in next drive 

Enjoy your overlanding trip. See you next time 👍