Leaving for Central Asia tomorrow!

[mbglo]

Tomorrow we are about to leave for Central Asia. From northern Europe, through Europe, Turkey, Iran, Stans, Russia, back to northern Europe. Visas sorted. Car bought. Carnet fixed. Our Mitsubishi Pajero Pinin cost us around £1600. We know absolutely nothing about cars, but I guess that's all part of the adventure. Most likely we bought a lemon.

I suppose the roads are going to be great through Europe and most likely in Turkey and Iran. They might worsen a bit after that, and on the way to, and in, the Pamirs roads are going to be fairly crappy. Hopefully the car will hold up until we reach Istanbul (or something) and we can have a mechanic check it there, as well as buy some extra equipment.

What do we NEED in terms of extra equipment? Remember that the Pinin is tiny so we cannot bring too much. What do we need to think of in general when it comes to taking care of the car? (None of us owned a car before). I would appreciate any kind of advice you could think of for three ignorant young (barely) adults. Best road tripping tips!

[James Rothwell]

I would try and familiarise yourselves with the Pajero first, learn how the 4WD functions. Read about reading the terrain and tyre pressures. Learn how to check the oil, brake fluid, etc on your car right now.

You say you haven't had a car before, do you have much experience driving though?

[RussG]

Whoa, crazy but I love it!

I had a Pinnin for a short while, a pretty capable little 4x4.

At this late stage the only advice I would give is to travel light. I'm assuming just 2 people? If so think about chucking out the rear seats. More space and less weight. Adding weight will kill any car but you don't have much capacity to begin with.

Go slowly, read the road and be mechanically sympathetic. Investigate any weird noises, vibrations before they turn into something terminal.

Good luck and I'm impressed!

Oh and did I mention weight:-)

[James Rothwell]

Hope these guys come back and let us know how they got on and what happened.

[mbglo]

Sorry for a late reply; just envisioning next journey, and thought I'd visit here. Last time the engine broke down in the Pamirs and unfortunately we had to abandon it there. Apparently a quite common problem for that particular type of engine.

Also we had several other break-downs along the way, but they were always easy to fix. Part of the adventure! This time I'll try to a little bit more of research!