Niki

4 hours ago, Hisham Masaad said:

You never know @Niki, peace might come soon. My sun Abdelghani started taking driving courses, and his eyes are open on my Fj.

If decide to look for another car, I will post on the forum, asking for suggestions again, matching my requirements and preferences.

@Hisham Masaad 

#1 you have brought your son up well it seems! 
#2 don’t bother posting your requirements, the answer to your (and any 4x4) question for us, is ….. an FJ!

We are hard wired to our cars! 

7 hours ago, varunmehndiratta said:

Hahaha @Niki ... I actually like FJ Xtreme has really a nice feel to it, especially lole the way doors open. It's pretty unique and cool....only thing that i have been trying to figure out is where to go once the mystery door opens...😃😃😃

It's a beautiful lamp but no space for poor Genie...😉😉

@varunmehndiratta The rear space in an FJ serves as our motivation to get into shape!  The car doesn’t only takes care of us off road! 

I have started to draft the peace treaty …. This could be a monumental week  

1 minute ago, samamara said:I must say though, on your note re: the brand afinity, I have gotten lots of great answers from everyone here, most of them seem objective, and I'm really happy and thankful to all for that 😊🙏🏼!

When @varunmehndiratta recommends a Toyota and @Hisham Masaad  a Jeep … we will officially declare peace in the Middle East  

@samamara … this has made a great read for us all … thanks for starting the discussion and for all that shared.  Keep us posted on your findings and decision! 

@samamara I almost am glad I found carnity ‘after’ I decided the car to buy!!!!! 😳 … your short list has got longer.

I don’t think there’s a wrong choice in the list given… if buying new using the banks cash - Jeep is the only new or nearly new car still on your list.  Photo trips where your passengers can stand as the roof is off and shoot freely cannot be rivaled.  Also go head out to the nearest dealership and go for a true test drive to get a sense of the road comfort and noise… our ears on this forum are programmed due to, as Gaurav calls it, ‘brand afinity’ … let your own ears and experince be the ultimate judge!  
 

My experience in Jeeps with the roof down… the novelty wears off very quickly on highways and dunes … however your Wadi adventures are a completely different game and that experience would I imagine add a completely new dimension (ability to look up and out as you cruise). 
 

Hey @samamara as a FJC owner I would not recommend it if you plan to carry adults  comfortably in the back for long distances. 

That said it’s far more roomier than any SWB car so if you go the Jeep/Pajero SWB route - know who ever you put in the back seat will feel you don’t like them much!  

Can you not keep your LWB 3.5 Pajero as your group tourer and then buy a SWB for yourself or yourself +1?  or if you had Jeep money, you could just buy 2 Pajero’s 🤣 3.8 LWB and a 3.8 SWB. 

I know that’s not very helpful .. hopeful the unbiased FJ commentary does help a little to confirm your original thoughts (both side suicide doors open, rear windows do not open, there are no AC vents on the back as they receive cooling from the front and underseat only, AC is okay and not Nissan level cooling) 
 

I haven’t laughed this much in a drive, or for that matter, in my 10years in Dubai… !  For the guy ( @Wrangeld) who came up with the idea of themes for a drive, I salute you! 🙌🏽 …… on the other hand, to the guy who invented zero, thanks for nothing. 
 

thanks everyone for such a memorable morning … 

18 minutes ago, Matt.T said:

This is exhausting already....

@Wrangeld dad jokes you said!!!!! what kind of car does a jedi-drive?  a Toy-Yoda!!!!

(like it or not more of these will be brought to the drive)

@Enrico Biscaro :

• Mean Mother - google search mean mother compressor dubai, the first non-Ad result is the UAE dealer (where i purchased from) 
• ARB - have a branch in International City and trade via every offroad shop or ACE in the UAE.  
• The Dobinsons Compressor which has a tiny tank (approx 900-1kaed) and they are available direct from Dobinsons, Amazon or a google search lists (second result) a supplier. 

I have switched to the ARB portable twin with a tank and couldn't be happier.... if you have the budget just jump straight to that setup vs taking my route which had me holding 3 compressors at one stage prior to the current setup! 

@Looper give the number below a call/WhatsApp.  He has the ARB air gun itself.

+971 55 248 1803

hth … ps without a tank the air gun will ‘pulse’ air vs a continuous stream. 
 

Thankyou @Ale Vallecchi … what a drive!! Nearly 100km on the dot… no ropes and barely a shovel!  Moving for nearly 4 hours!! 🍻🍻 and how you navigated the closing stretch with all that glare and almost no visibility/contrast on the dunes! 🙌🏽
 

@Kalahari &  @Shehab Alawadhi - great support for all that needed it!  And @Ranjan Das nicely done as SL! 
 

very quiet on the radio for a drive with @Shehab Alawadhi in the convoy but that’s also recognition of how great the trip was today- always moving and needing concentration..  fun being with this group and see you next weekend! 

8 hours ago, Gaurav said:

It was a joke bhai, I know there is no replacement for brand affinity.

As all above poster covered what I could add (compressor air, outside garage etc.) so I thought of making a bit joke to dilute your frustration and disappointment.

 

Lol  brand affinity … love it.. I think many of us have this bug .. I am the guy below! 

A ‘mattress’!!!!! Okay I may try and beat Gaurav’s recliner by bringing my camping Cot and a pillow! 

like you @Gaurav I was coming to enjoy the show vs shoot, but now @samamara has kindly offered to help with some MIlkyway shots - i may arrive a little earlier and try that out ... hopefully finish by the time the convoy arrives for the shower and then sit back (not able to recline as not yet at the 'posh' level of glamping to have a reclining camping chair) and enjoy the show. 

If you want to shoot the milkyway we can do a slightly earlier arrival and play around a bit. 

That’s a great plan @Frederic … I am in!  🍻

@Zed I’d be open to a newbie style night drive Wednesday with the midnight pause for the shower .. we could even consider an evening drive 8pm-midnight … so we are close to the exit and watch the shower at the end of a drive vs in the middle? Either way … open to options and only ask is to consider ‘newbie’ level to ensure @munkybizness as the originator can join  (plus I am still scared of driving in the dark 🤦🏽‍♂️) 

Just now, Gaurav said:

Requesting Mr. @Frederic  the great chairman of lens club, director general of photography to plan some star gazing drive for this meteor shower, please.

@Mikhail Lukichev @Niki and all other astro heroes to find the best suited time to get our maximum wish come true.

 

@Gaurav oh I'm in for this - thanks @munkybizness for the post and suggestion! .. Frederic has created a photography club and we have had a few Astrophotography session close to Murquab Mosque - a super site i suspect for the meteor show also.  

@Zed time to bring your low-light camera skills into play again! 

we just need to take @Frederic passport off him so he doesn't travel! 

I suggest August 12th (Thursday) evening - would need some more experienced folks to advise on timing of the meteor shower that day.  for our Astro shots we usually meet around 6:30 and are leaving the desert by 9pm - i suspect those times would not work for this event. 

Nissan Patrol Gazelle

If your budget is growing 👍🏽
 

@Enrico Biscaro with regards your used Jeep experience pls go and arrange to test drive for a brand new SWB from dealers or others and that way you can immediate get a perspective on the experience. A full service history from trading enterprises is a good sign… the rest not so much however if that’s how a new stock jeep runs then you definitely have a good option.  The crazy part is that car new was approx 105k (pre VAT days) so the used market is still steep it seems! 

2 minutes ago, varunmehndiratta said:we have been blessed with a little doll just 11 days back (that's why wasn't on drives for two weeks). Not an issue there is always the next drive and always a new box of cupcake...and hopefully soon our little one on one of these drives..😃 See you all soon. 

Wow!! Many many congratulations @varunmehndiratta for the new addition to your family!! Such wonderful news and being tired as a new dad isn’t so difficult after being tired after every early summer drive  

May you daughter bring you fortune and happiness and look forward to celebrating (socially distanced of course :)) when we next are on a ride! 🥂🥂🥂🥂

@Wrangeld thank you even more so knowing you ignored your Dr advice and took us out driving again!  An hour night driving and playing in the bowls in the dark really has got me out of my comfort zone and am feeling more confident than ever to try a full night drive - thank you and the massive-light-rig brigade @Lakshmi Narasimhan @Watteau @Ashok chaturvedi who made it feel like we were driving with flood lights in the massive bowl. 

@Lakshmi Narasimhan I insist and may start a petition to have you restore your last/final edition Pajero to stock and keep it as a museum piece… it’s too nice to be getting sandy! That said the gadgets were super useful today and we all learnt how to best use the winch!  Also the durability of the geolandars is something else… hopeful after a good clean they are undamaged.

Was a pleasure being on @Danish Mohammad @Abdul Rahman AK first intermediate drive and both did great … it felt like a newbie reunion for us!  @Dodi Syahdar @Ashok chaturvedi always a pleasure and looking forward to future rides. 

@varunmehndiratta missed you today but hope you are recovering. 

looking forward to part 2 of this trip! 

Many many congrats @Ranjan Das 🎉🎉🎉🎉

3 hours ago, Enrico Biscaro said:

It looks like the FJ is a favourite. I will need to do more research, but especially I will need to go against my Italian  nature and accept the sub par design. I am just kidding of course. 😀 I must say the Jeep still is the better looking car, per my personal taste.

@Enrico Biscaro I spent months looking for a used jeep last spring/summer (just for this hobby not as a daily driver) with you I preferred the look of the jeep (utility and rugged with so much customization … was like lego for grown ups and the roof/doors could be removed  )

last summer when the market wasn’t crazy for used cars as it seems to be now…  I really struggled to find a non modified one… I then learnt many ‘Jeepers’ Jeep’s were bought modified to do the school drop / spinneys-route and never saw a dune however I didn’t have the skill to spot one of those!  

I didn’t have the patience (hitting November) or mechanical skills to gamble so then decided to just buy a new car for the hobby and the FJ cruiser just became an absolute no brainer!  It was about budget and resale (in the event I didn’t like the hobby).  

Now if you are buying used don’t give up yet on a Jeep and see if you can find that unicorn version used for the school runs etc… (they exists as I see so many at my kids school)  If by September you still have zero success then rapidly change plans as Offroad season picks up in Oct and so do the used prices for those type of cars. 

I have zero regrets with my FJ… more so am actually glad I went this path from a reliability and Offroad performance perspective (however I do find myself sneaking a look at every Jeep in our club and have the Jeep TJ top of my dream off road car list to supplement the FJ in the future).  

Good luck (one car I would add to @Frederic unbiased list would be the Nissan Patrol Super Safari SWB… though used these are even rarer… think ‘talking unicorn’ )

Many congrats @Danish Mohammad 🎉🎉

@Looper @Fredericour cooler gurus … this is a great write up and opinion piece!  
 

I like the product below and know it’s easy enough to build one at home also  … my use case would be (once they allow it again) to have this for the kids sports events… having to stand watching 25 matches of netball/rugby in September/October could be made bareable with this 

https://www.icybreeze.com