Duncan

Thanks everyone. My wife and I love the outdoors as much as we love our racing. Cheers

Hi Dilesh The outdoor market is very big here. So all the stuff including the trailer was bought off the shelf. It is up to the individual to pick and chose and build around his requirments.

Hi guys/gals The off-roading/camping guys will like this! My wife and I got our selves an off-road tailer and then customised it to our requirments. We load the trailer with all our camping equipment and supplies and then tow it with either our Hilux or Pajero. The trailer has a loading capacity of 650kg and is built for any off road abuse. It is also water and dust proof once the lids are closed. It's list of fittings include:- 2X50L water tanks (mounted on either mud guard), 2 X 5Kg gas bottles (mounted on either side), motorised shower, top mounted 2 person tent, dedicated battery to run all electrics, DC-AC converter (for charging camera batteries and Sat Phones), S/Steel kitchen and work top, flourecent lights all round, 2 X 40L Fride/freezers, 4 X 20L Jerry cans (for extra fuel), OME Suspension and ample loading space. Once at a camping site all we have to do is set up the trailer and then have the towing vehicle free to drive around. The trailer is built using ultra light materials, even when fully loaded we are able to cruise at 120 - 160km/h on the tar. Once in off-road the trailer chassis and suspension is able to cope with any terrain abuse we throw at it. Cheers

All Honda fans must be pleased with JB's pole. But what are your predictions for the race tomorrow? My prediction - Alonso, Fisi, Button

What an idiot!! I have seen a guy around here driving a Mitsu FTO with......Ferrari badging. Another dumb ass drives around a Mazda MX-5 with Lambo badging. IMO cartainly not enthusiasts.

I hear you bro, but here is the thing. In our (and some others world over) market, both Ford and Mazda products are sold through the same dealer network. In fact in some show rooms both the Drifter and the Ranger is parked right next to each other! They even have identical mechanical components!! So does it mean that the brand offering a lesser Warranty is expecting buyers to be real dumb and not see the difference??

Hi guys I have posted this question on other forums, also put them to my motoring enthusiast friends, and yet not received a satisfactory answer. So may-be you guys can shed some light. In certain markets, one model of vehicle is offered under several different badging. Ford and Mazda are famous for this. For example, here in SA we can buy the identical p/up truck as a Mazda Drifter or Ford Ranger. But the warranties offered are completely different. Anyone got an answer for this?? Cheers

Unfortunately in this day and age of mass production and shorter model life spans what you say seems the norm. For example, the new VW Jetta and Passart looks almost identical, the interior of the Chrysler Crossfire has everything borrowed from Merc SL, etc. IMO (though this may not apply to every mass production model out there) the days when much more emphasis was put into model identitiy is a thing of the past. Cheers

I am just curious and you could say bewildered!! I just saw a 1985 SWB Pajero put up for sale on the site for Rs1,875,000. Is this the going rate for such a vehicle in SL?? GOOD GOD!! Cheers

Hi aabody Try this... ..using an allen socket or a trox bit and remove the CV joint. Then with a bit of persuation and force play pop the flange out. Cheers

Hi Fuzzo 21k is low even if running in thick traffic all the time. I personally don't entirely trust dealers so when they tell me that they have installed genuine parts, I take it with a pinch of salt. I think, try out the used set and see what return you get before you start getting too concerned. By the way.....did you actually see the pads worn out or were you just told about it? Cheers

Hi Fuzzo What is your car? How old is it? This info would help in trying to be more specific. Assuming that there was sufficient coolent (not just water) and that there was nothing to block the air flow through the front grill, I would suggest that you have your radiator and cooling system checked. A pressure test will indicate any faults in the system. Even a worn out radiator cap could cause overheating. Also sometimes, runnig the A/C and being on a wrong gear exerts undue strain on the engine. Especially when climbing. This could also lead to overheating. When climbing hills, extra demand in placed on the engine than during normal driving conditions. At times like this the cooling system has to be working as efficiently as it should to absorb all the heat generated by the engine. I once had a similar experience with my 4x4 when doing some thick sand driving. Never had the problem taken place before. Later it was discovered that the A/C compressor bearing was worn out and with the A/C running tighter than usual, undue load was exerted on the engine in addition to the engine having to work hard to overcome the thick sand. Cheers

Hi guys I hear what you are saying and sadly enough the marketing gurus are using just about any thing to get products sold. Or at least attracted to the products. However, no true enthusiast will be distracted towards making the purchase purly on the display. What gets to me though, is if the image potrays harm to the environment or animals, etc. the rights activists are very quick to jump up and down and creat havoc. But when it comes to issues of sex and marketing where the hell are the so called "women's rights" activists??!!

NOW THATS BEAUTIFUL!!!

Hello everyone What do you think of this......lately more and more motoring mags (what ever media it may be) seems to use sex to attract buyers. As a true enthusiast I am quite disgusted by this (not that I don't like chicks in skimpy outfits - don't get me wrong), but when I am looking through great cars and related stuff, I sure don't want to see some chick showing her assets off. Cheers

Hmmmm Toyota SA manufactures the identical model and sells it to us as the TOYOTA QUANTUM. There are 12 different variations to choose from. Our HIACE is completely different.

Don't worry guys, we South Africans are in the same boat as you.

I know some European countries have banned bull bars. But to bann rear tow bar.....now thats a new one!

Seems the US Auto makers will try anything these days to get their cars sold

Well that was the problem. Could not disengage. So had to back up a long way, and then give it hell!! With enough momentum built up, we were able to clear the climb. But some of the older vehicles like the hilux, patrol and the defender was able to climb at a very slow and peaceful pace. Giving it all is one thing, but then the safety and preservation of the environment goes to hell.

A group of us decided to do a hill climb a few weekends ago. There were 9 vehicles in total and some of them were "new age" machines. The Vehicles were; VW Tourag V8, VW Tourag V10, Subaru Outback, Nissan Patrol, LR Defender 3, Nissan Terrano 3, Toyota Hilux s/cab, Toyota Hilux d/cab, and LR Defender 110. The climb consisted of a moderately steep gradient and then the last 30 or so meters towards the top it got quite steep. the track was mostly wet, loose stones. The entire climb was close to a kilometer. The newer vehicles had traction control which came into play when the onboard computer sensed loss of traction. Well at least in theory that how it was supposed to work. As the drivers of these vehicles got closer to the top and the wheels lost traction, the traction control kicked in and brought the engine to idle. No power on tap.Considering how steep it was (especially the last 30m) and the lose stones, only adequate momentum would have got any vehicle through. But the computer thought otherwise and decided to stop sending power to the wheels. What the darn computer did not know was that lack of momentum on a surface like the one we were on would send the vehicle on a slide backwards. This was one heck of a scary experience as the stricken vehicles would now start sliding back down. Braking was the last thing one could do. So my question is, whether the designers of these fancy features really know what the real world is about.

I think this is a die hard redneck.

Hey , young man, Pericles No point in carrying on. But look me up when SL has something to show for. Cheers

I agree with you Isuru and everyone else on the fact that SL Drag scene is quite advanced. I have been to drag races in several countries around the world and must admit that what I saw in SL is quite impressive. In fact we in SL is quite good at a lot of things (motoring and other wise). But it stops there!! What we lack is organisation and development. I have always been saying that the Drags in SL should be taken to another level. Made into a main streem sport in the country. I would love to see our guys taking part in Drags out side of the country. But at this point in time, it still remains far from becoming anything other than organised. We in SL have such a rich motor sports heritage than most other countries could even dream of. The same goes for a lot of things. But ( I say it again) organisation and development seems non existant. Along the way we seem to get tangled up in other things and lose focus. By the way, India has a driver in F1 and All road going and track racing Ferraris are powered by Indian software. The irony is, whilst other countries are able to boast about what they produce (good or bad), we in SL continue to boast about what other produce. Where is the sence of pride in that??

just one question..........since some of us are in the "India bashing mood".....what exactly have we in Sri-Lanka done right? At least the indians can boast of being one of the fast growing economies in the world with all those so called "made in india crap" making their mark in world market.