Maroc Challenge - Rookie!
Discussion
So, based on some inspiration from users Poppopbangbang and CA (and maybe a little fear of getting old!), 6 months ago I suggested to my wife that we go on an adventure trip in the form of the Maroc Challenge.
For those who aren't familiar, the Maroc is an organised desert rally for amateurs in a variety of vehicles. It is a lower cost event that is accessible to all in most vehicles from a £10 Ford Fiesta to a £500,000 Dakar rally prepared race truck!
Vehicle Choice:
My aim was to give it a good shot within the budget of a half decent summer holiday, therefore the vehicle couldn't cost too much. Whilst you can do it in 2WD hatchbacks and estates, I wanted to stand half a chance of making it back to the UK and to be as adventurous as possible whilst out there, so used the following criteria:
Sub £2,000 budget
4WD
Locking centre diff
Good parts availability
Reasonably economic (30mpg +)
A/C
Cruise control
I considered the likes of Nissan Pathfinders, Mitsubishi Shoguns, Land Rover Discovery 2, Porsche Cayenne, ect. Most of these were either too expensive for a decent one, or ruinously thirsty!
I then looked at vehicles a little smaller and narrowed it down to either Dacia Duster (gen one) or Suzuki. The Duster looked an ideal choice as there were plenty of them, loads of parts, economical (1.5dci) and 4x4. However they don't have a locking centre diff and many of the 4x4 variants have been converted to 2WD.
Therefore I decided on a Suzuki Grand Vitara (gen 2) 5 door as it had much more space than a Jimny. Its got a locking centre diff, low range and the 1.9dci engine is economic enough and parts are easy to find (Renault engine).
After a bit of searching, I picked up a 2008 1.9dci model for £600 from FB Marketplace. Bargain! It did smoke, but that was down to a cracked intercooler. It was meant to be as the registration plate spells the name of my wife's horse! I did a full service, changed all the fluids and had a garage do the timing belt and water pump and she was good to go. I have taken it for a few longer runs and been using it as a daily driver for the past 4 months, so i know its reliable (even with a remap).
Modifications:
The rally requires a number of minimum basic requirements in order to pass scrutinising focussed mainly on safety. Items such as fire extinguishers and under body protection are mandatory.
I have gone a little further with the following items:
Full sump, steering, gearbox and transfer box under body protection.
Snorkel raised air intake
Light bar
Roof rack (which is so cheap that it started leaking wet rust all down the car when it rained!)
2x spare wheels
Mud tyres
Suspension raise by 2.5inch
CB Radio
12v supply for rally GPS
Dash cam
GPS speedo
12v onboard air compressor
Sand ladders
Tablet mount
I can't think of much more, but on top of that I have a full range of spares including wheel bearing, seals, sensors, filters, etc. and the mandatory recovery equipment.
With the costs of the rally (entrance, hotels, ferry's, ect) on top of the vehicle I think we are coming in around the £4k budget i was anticipating (so far....).
We are due to leave the UK from Portsmouth on 24th to then head south to the Spanish boarder on 25th and then arrive in Almeria on 26th. The ferry to Nador is due to leave on 27th where most rally participants will meet prior to boarding.
I hope to update each day with how we are getting on.
Fingers crossed all goes well!
For those who aren't familiar, the Maroc is an organised desert rally for amateurs in a variety of vehicles. It is a lower cost event that is accessible to all in most vehicles from a £10 Ford Fiesta to a £500,000 Dakar rally prepared race truck!
Vehicle Choice:
My aim was to give it a good shot within the budget of a half decent summer holiday, therefore the vehicle couldn't cost too much. Whilst you can do it in 2WD hatchbacks and estates, I wanted to stand half a chance of making it back to the UK and to be as adventurous as possible whilst out there, so used the following criteria:
Sub £2,000 budget
4WD
Locking centre diff
Good parts availability
Reasonably economic (30mpg +)
A/C
Cruise control
I considered the likes of Nissan Pathfinders, Mitsubishi Shoguns, Land Rover Discovery 2, Porsche Cayenne, ect. Most of these were either too expensive for a decent one, or ruinously thirsty!
I then looked at vehicles a little smaller and narrowed it down to either Dacia Duster (gen one) or Suzuki. The Duster looked an ideal choice as there were plenty of them, loads of parts, economical (1.5dci) and 4x4. However they don't have a locking centre diff and many of the 4x4 variants have been converted to 2WD.
Therefore I decided on a Suzuki Grand Vitara (gen 2) 5 door as it had much more space than a Jimny. Its got a locking centre diff, low range and the 1.9dci engine is economic enough and parts are easy to find (Renault engine).
After a bit of searching, I picked up a 2008 1.9dci model for £600 from FB Marketplace. Bargain! It did smoke, but that was down to a cracked intercooler. It was meant to be as the registration plate spells the name of my wife's horse! I did a full service, changed all the fluids and had a garage do the timing belt and water pump and she was good to go. I have taken it for a few longer runs and been using it as a daily driver for the past 4 months, so i know its reliable (even with a remap).
Modifications:
The rally requires a number of minimum basic requirements in order to pass scrutinising focussed mainly on safety. Items such as fire extinguishers and under body protection are mandatory.
I have gone a little further with the following items:
Full sump, steering, gearbox and transfer box under body protection.
Snorkel raised air intake
Light bar
Roof rack (which is so cheap that it started leaking wet rust all down the car when it rained!)
2x spare wheels
Mud tyres
Suspension raise by 2.5inch
CB Radio
12v supply for rally GPS
Dash cam
GPS speedo
12v onboard air compressor
Sand ladders
Tablet mount
I can't think of much more, but on top of that I have a full range of spares including wheel bearing, seals, sensors, filters, etc. and the mandatory recovery equipment.
With the costs of the rally (entrance, hotels, ferry's, ect) on top of the vehicle I think we are coming in around the £4k budget i was anticipating (so far....).
We are due to leave the UK from Portsmouth on 24th to then head south to the Spanish boarder on 25th and then arrive in Almeria on 26th. The ferry to Nador is due to leave on 27th where most rally participants will meet prior to boarding.
I hope to update each day with how we are getting on.
Fingers crossed all goes well!
)
Cheers everyone! Our team name is Suzuki You Later 
So after daily driving her for a week, mud tyres were definitely a mistake! The tyre roar is pretty bad. Ahh well committed to them now, hopefully they will pay off in the desert.
Pic below of what she looks like - definitely needs a clean before we go ha!
So after daily driving her for a week, mud tyres were definitely a mistake! The tyre roar is pretty bad. Ahh well committed to them now, hopefully they will pay off in the desert.
Pic below of what she looks like - definitely needs a clean before we go ha!
Just over a week to go until we head off. Apart from spare tyres we have bought most things.
We found eSims were a bit better value than the ones provided by the rally, so bought those instead. Came across an old army shovel which was my wife's dad's when he was serving, so taking that with us as a nice little link to him.
Just need to clean and pack the car this week, fit the CB radio and download google maps on to our iPad. After reading reviews, it seems that the Gaia GPS app is the most user friendly, so bought the premium subscription and will download mapping later this week when we are sent the route.
Dog gets dropped off next week at the parents and we are a go!
We found eSims were a bit better value than the ones provided by the rally, so bought those instead. Came across an old army shovel which was my wife's dad's when he was serving, so taking that with us as a nice little link to him.
Just need to clean and pack the car this week, fit the CB radio and download google maps on to our iPad. After reading reviews, it seems that the Gaia GPS app is the most user friendly, so bought the premium subscription and will download mapping later this week when we are sent the route.
Dog gets dropped off next week at the parents and we are a go!
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