Krishna R

Thank you @JeromeFJfor organizing such a lovely drive in Nahel. The terrain was new and refreshing with literally no cross tracks and we enjoyed the tranquil dunes with amazing bowls. The fog was slowing us enroute to the starting point but every one made it almost on time and we did not have to wait for anyone. Except @Abdul Basit Khanwho informed that he couldn't make it due to car issues. With a quick briefing, we entered Nahel and immediately the big dunes started rolling in. The middle part of the drive was pumping with huge dunes and big bowls. The lines were simply superb and the pace was consistent. Post the break, we entered a meditative state of driving with no radio chatter and just flowing with the dunes. Finished the drive with a sabkha full of camels and called it a day Thank you @JeromeFJfor the SL. It was great following your lines especially the technical portions Thank you @Zed for the CF support and your witty banter on the radio. Always a pleasure driving with you. I can see you are loving the Hemi more with every drive. The LC is gonna become your mall crawler. Thank you @Amr Aydin for the sweep support. Sadly, you and @Zeddid not have much work today as the convoy was driving brilliantly. After all, it was a no shovel drive. @Gurcharan Mehta Amazing drive. You handled the heavy LWB beast wonderfully. No stucks and followed us everywhere. You make me feel bad for selling my infiniti qx . I should have given her another chance @KAMALIO It was great meeting you and hearing your jeep with the Borla. You and @Amr Aydin were just eating up the desert in the back. @Pascal Great stuff as always. Climbing like there's no tomorrow. Almost a perfect drive except for a crest where you surprised us with your amazing self recovery. Jerome announced on the radio that we have to shovel you out. I shut down my engine, opened the boot to take my shovel and heard on the radio that you were out. My mouth was just wide open as to how you could manage getting out of that crest, that too within a minute. Kudos All in all, was a fun drive made even more enjoyable with a brilliant convoy. A fewbie plus drive in a new terrain, that too with high climbs and steep drops, was completed with zero stucks, very very minimal refusals, zero shoveling and zero tugs says a lot about the calibre of the lead and the drivers. Looking forward to seeing you in the sands again guys. Until then, Keep calm and Ramadan kareem!

Crazy fog guys. drive safe

@JeromeFJ Tharun will not be able to make it tomorrow. He is unable login to Carnity.com so he asked me to inform you. His number is +971 54 791 4177, just in case. I am confirmed and looking forward as always.

Thank you Doc @M.Seidam for a Magical drive in Qudra with the full moon lighting our way. We experienced everything - tech dunes, side sweeps, ridges and also a surprise stint in the African savannah The pace was superb during the middle part and touched intermediate a few times I generally come to night drives with less expectations and I can safely say that the off-roader in me was very happy and content last night. @Felix Obst an amazing second lead and your lines were perfectly in sync with Doc's @M.Seidam lead. Thank you @Simon D for the support and your helpful tips. Impeccable sweeping done by @Haitham Khattab supported with @Tareq Al Turq. The convoy performed brilliantly with seasoned off-roaders like @Tharun Kumar V @Gary F in sync with their machines. It was a delight guys. See you in the sands soon guys. Until then, keep calm and Ramadan Kareem.

@taz911 My 2 cents on this. I was in the market for an offroader a few months ago and went through the same situation as you. As you are looking for a vehicle that can do everything (on road comfort, off road capability and decently spacious), FJ wouldn't cut it for you. Rear seats aren't spacious and you will have to rent a 7 seater when your in-laws are in town. For me, the decision to get an Xterra was simple as i was looking for a dedicated offroader. I have seen 3.8 pajeros do wonders in the desert, Maybe it cant do the other 5% that proper offroad cars can, but Pajero is a wholesome package and you will enjoy the desert sans the 5%. R51 pathfinder is a good offroader with decent on road performance and spacious as well, But the pajero is more handsome IMHO. R50 pathfinder - same as above but the overall look borders vintage. Again, very old cars = surprise issues and higher maintenance. I would suggest you to explore fb marketplace and you would be able to find mall crawlers and cars from people who are leaving the country. On a totally different angle, as your budget is around 35K, you can get a on road SUV for 15-20K and a decent offroader for 15K

It amazes me the kind of questions that pop up on your mind at 3:30 am @Looper😁 Well, my take on this is, very few people own broncos as it's a fairly new launch. I have seen hardly 5 cars on road till now, and the off-road heads generally go with tried and tested cars. I am yet to see a bronco in carnity drives. we should start seeing more of those soon. Thinking to change the Jeep to a yellow bronco ? Huh @Looper

well done mate @Ishak well deserved!

Hahaha. Love the protective totem animals @Frederic

Looks Killer. Cant wait to see it in the flesh

Hey @Vanessa8580, Great to see you back in the sands! Heard you got her painted a different blue. Share pics pls

I am in as well @JeromeFJ

Hey @SrikumarThe top leaf broke. The rest seem fine. It can be my suspension as well as I have profenders and they have much more travel than stock. However, there is nothing in my car except for a jack, shovel, air compressor and tow ropes.

Ok. This is an old thread but wanted to share my experience. In my last drive in Al Saad, as i was climbing, I heard a loud thump from the rear and found that the topmost leaf spring just cracked in half Replaced the leaf springs nearby and took it to my mechanic for a check up and identify the issue. The leaf spring that broke wasn't rusty, it looked solid. Turns out the rubber padding between the leaves had turned hard (not brittle) and rock solid and literally became a hard object between the leaves and were stressing at the contact point which ultimately cracked the leaf during a bump. So, rubber between the leaves is a good idea to stop the squeaks but they need to be replaced time to time and not let them become hard. I am currently running them stock (without the rubbers). Don't care about the squeaks but I cant handle another breakdown in the desert. Once the leaf spring cracks, the rear axle slides to the back of the car and the wheel touches the fender. Good luck with that if you don't have @Asif Hussain and @Jona in your convoy. FYI @Chaitanya D, @Foxtrot Oscar, @M.Seidam, @Tbone, @Rizwanm2, @Zulfikhar Naiyar@Ashutosh Garg@Chinthaka Ruwan, @Brendan White , @Xavier Treasurer, @Janarthan, @Mukundan Nair

Hey @Zed They did not remove the wheel. Took off the suspension, unlocked the u bolts, took out the broken leaf spring assembly and fixed a new one. The old leaf spring isn't safe to be repaired and used but i bet he will fix it and sell it to another unsuspecting guy

Al Saad - Asif Hussian What should have been an epic drive but was cut short by vehicle issues. Al saad and @Asif Hussainwere both a first for me and I went with less expectations. The weather was 15 degrees at the starting point which was a nice surprise. We did a quick briefing and entered the sand. 5 mins into the drive, my mouth was wide open looking at the size of the bowls and Asif Bhai's lines. I was grinning every 2mins and mentally repeating to myself "It's gonna be an epic drive" , driven more with Asif bhai's promise of an amazing play area at the end of the drive. The whole convoy shared this passion and were executing the climbs and side sweeeps in a smooth fast paced manner. About an hour into the drive, I heard a loud thump when climbing and thought it was the rear bottoming out. Continued climbing a couple of dunes and then i heard a whirring noise from the rear. Stepped out and was greeted by the rear wheel touching the fender. My heart sank at that moment and I informed on the radio that i needed help. Quickly, the convoy came together and assessed the situation. Looked like an exit I cant say enough thanks to @Asif Hussain@Jona @salim @Abdul Basit Khan @Zed @Pascal @Joseph Rajuto have spent more than 1.5 hours to fix my car and take it out. The ingenuity to come up with a hack to get the car out of the desert is commendable. With whatever odds and ends we had, @Asif Hussain and @Jona came up with interesting ideas to fix the car which would put many accomplished auto mechanics to shame. Finally we came out of the desert with my rear axle cursing me. It was held together with ratchets and straps Once out, I literally had no idea on what to do and @Abdul Basit Khan was my knight in sining armour. We booked a recovery and @Abdul Basit Khan took me to Sanaya and got a mechanic that replaced the part in 10mins flat. We had a hearty lunch and sped back to Dubai (Or atleast i did, I had to ditch him on the highway and sped off as I was late for a family commitment). Blacked out at 8 pm and woke up at 7 am . The sleep wasn't enough . Taking the car to the garage today to check for any other possible damage. This shows the true spirit of carnity. Obviously I felt very bad that the other couldn't enjoy the virgin dunes of al saad but everyone made sure that i did not feel low and were chipping in with their support and kind words. Endearing of @Asif Hussain to check with me the next day on the status of the car. The whole convoy drove brilliantly and were climbing as if there's no tomorrow. @Zedwith his new beast took care of music for me. The hemi sounds too good bro. A couple of more drives with the jeep and you're gonna leave the LC in the garage itself. @Jona we were at the end and had a lovely banter looking at the guys in front. Your ideas to fix the car amazed me buddy. Thank you for everything. @Asif Hussain I loved the area, the route and especially the calm and composed manner in which you dealt the situation. Lets go to al saad again please with the same convoy. It will be my redemption! Until next drive guys. Stay calm and check your leaf springs (if you have any)

Congrats @Abdul Basit KhanEnjoy the new level

@Varun Mehndiratta+ Sweihan = Deadly combination I clicked going as soon as I saw Sweihan and Varun on Monday and I ain't disappointed. The drive time was a bit less due to the cluster f**k of events but we made sure we were going to make the most of it. Climbed some amazing dunes with super soft bowls. Din feel like we lost time during recovery. The long drive to sweihan and back was justified by the amazing climbs we did today. Everyone drove brilliantly and I had a few surprises from a few fellow drivers. I was betting mentally on each driver's climb and lost quite a few times @LooperHope you were able to sort the issue with your jeep and get it out. Sorry, I don't have your number and couldn't call to check up on you. Have a quick fast paced week guys and lets meet on the weekend soon!

can someone share the location of a fuel station nearest to the starting point?

@Varun MehndirattaConfirmed and charged up. my adrenaline is so high now itself that I am gonna struggle to sleep tonight😜

@Asif Hussainis it too late to join now?

confirmed

@Tharun Kumar VAll the best bro. Very well deserved. Lets race to intermediate!

Incredible drive! Thank you @JeromeFJfor planning and executing this awesome drive to perfection! Perfect introduction to Fewbie plus. I am sure @Yaseen87would agree on this. The variety of the terrain was incredible and the "Fudra" part was the best I had a close call as @JeromeFJmentioned, I lost the ridge and then tried to climb it on the soft side and nature politely reminded me about gravity by tipping the side of the car over gently for a split second and I fell back on 4 wheels soon. For a second, i felt proud of myself for having stopped at the right moment but was soon overcome of the repetitive saying of the marshalls - Never ever fight gravity! The longest drive I have ever been and supported by an amazing convoy. we ate up the desert like theres no tomorrow. Thanks a ton @Rajiv Samfor the sweep and support. Calm and cool as ever with a hint of humour! @Joji varghesePerfect second lead. It was like watching my car 30secs into the future @Yaseen87Bro. We gonna kill the fewbie plus. Lets race to intermediate. I loved the way you were climbing with bare minimum momentum. I never heard your car roar. That shows your true offroading skill @Pierre de Maigret Your drive was wonderful. I was seeing you in the rear view. You left a nice gap and were smooth in your ridge riding and just floating in the sand enjoying the view @JeromeFJThere as a reason why i picked your drive this weekend and I am pleased with my decision until next weekend guys!

Looks like its FJs and Xterras for now

Thank you @Gauravand to all the marshalls and mentors that I have driven with, for having taught me directly and indirectly to improve my off-roading skills. The new car nitro-boosted the pace of my learning as well Looking forward to new challenges in fewbie plus!