Motoring | Reader's Drives

Abdullah Saeed's 2012 Jeep Wrangler JK

Abdullah is on to his third Jeep Wrangler and says his current 2012 JK is the best of them all. He tells Imran Malik all about his 285bhp, heavily modified beast

By Imran Malik, wheels
Published: 16:36 January 3, 2013

Image Credit: Dennis B. Mallari/ANM
The powerful 3.6-litre Pentastar V6 is 40 per cent more powerful than the previous 3.8-litre motor, which had 202bhp.

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You are a bit of a petrolhead, aren’t you?

I guess I am. I love cars and am always changing them because I want to experience as many as I can. Since my childhood, I have been interested in cars. Most of my toys and gifts were cars and I was only 16 years old when I learned how to drive.

Your first car was quite special. Tell us a little about it.

It was a 1992 Toyota MR2 SW20 Turbo. It was an amazing car with a powerful turbocharged engine.

I’d get stopped by people in the streets so they could have a closer look at it because it was imported and rare to find in the UAE. I decided to sell it because getting spare parts for it was becoming an issue. Since then, I’ve had quite a few cars but then I discovered the joy of the Jeep Wrangler. I’ve owned three; a 1997 TJ, a 2007 JK and now my current 2012 JK.

They’re just what you need to tackle the desert with.

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I would say it is the best off-road vehicle out there. I had a Land Cruiser in between the Jeeps, but I guess I was in love with the Wrangler so I sold the Toyota and bought the 2007 JK.

I sold that and got the latest model and have been happy ever since. I usually take it off road every weekend and my favourite areas are Al Faya and Al Badayer. I have a lot of friends who own Jeeps so most of my trips are with them. And now I am planning to join a club, which will have more members so there will be more fun to be had for sure.

You’ve modified the Wrangler quite a bit. We like the new-look bumper and Bushwhacker fenders. What else have you done to it?

I’ve installed LED headlights, Hella off-road lights, Drake off-road bonnet latches, a AEV tyre carrier with a Motortech LEDs, off-road rubber antenna, smoke LED grille signal lights, AEV heat reduction bonnet, AEV savage wheels wrapped with 315/70/17 Cooper AT3 tyres, throttle body spacer, K&N cold air intake, a Corsa dual sport exhaust and a premium sound system. My friend, Mohammad Al Muhairi, did a good job helping me with the modifications for it.

He sure did. It looks great. What do you like best about it?

The fact that I can remove the hardtop and enjoy the winter months while driving. Also, I like the powerful 3.6-litre Pentastar V6; it is 40 per cent more powerful than the previous 3.8-litre motor, which had 202bhp. This one has 285bhp and a six-speed manual gearbox, which makes it all the more fun to drive not to mention, better to control in the desert.

What do friends and family think of it?

They think it’s amazing and love how easy it is to change its looks by swapping a few exterior parts. But some of them complain about getting in and out of it because it’s got a 3.5in AEV SC lift kit!

From the pictures, it looks like it has more than enough power to tackle the dunes.

You are right and I loved every second of it!

Be honest, did you get stuck?

Nope and to this day, I have never got stuck! It’s because of a combination of factors; driving skills, the JK’s light weight, the lift kit, engine and off-road tyres. I have come to the rescue of many people when they have got themselves stuck and I love helping them in such situations. I try to give them some helpful tips to avoid getting stuck again.

Didn’t it have a red chrome wrap finish? Why did you remove it?

It did and it was turning heads everywhere I went, and I was very happy with it. I decided to remove it because I plan to drive the Wrangler to Qatar and Kuwait and I thought it would be best to take it off and avoid any trouble in case it is illegal there. But I’m thinking about getting another chrome wrap in the future. Watch this space!