I want to thank kingreign for being the first to respond to my enquiry.

Sadly for a couple of reasons which I shall state, I did not follow his suggestion.

My reasons are as follows:

1. The tales I have heard/experienced about the state of roads in Abia State, although the clear villian here is Aba, and Umuahia seems to a lot better

2. My interest in knowing the standard route followed by commercial transport companies which happened to coincide with the routes recommended by dokiOleye and nathanjnr

3. The need to avoid paying tolls to locals at village tollgates who victimize road users who have to avoid the main road due to its bad nature which causes even trucks to get stuck, not to talk of cars.

All the same, who knows, the curiosity in me might cause me to try that route someday again, maybe in a vehicle appropriate for the sort of roads there. Read that to mean a 4WD or AWD.

One Guinness Stout for you Kingreign!

The vehicle I used has the following specifications:

Length : 4,750 mm (187.0 in)
Wheelbase : 2,840 mm (111.8 in)
Width : 1,831 mm (72.1 in)
Height : 1,745 mm (68.7 in)
Curb weight : 1,659 kg (3,657 lb)

0 - 60mph in 12.1 seconds
Quarter mile in 18.6 seconds
Automatic Transmission
2.5L V6
FWD (2WD)

Depending on who you ask the fuel economy data is follows:
1. 18 city/23 highway
2. 16 city/ 21 highway/ 18 combined / 5.6 gallons per 100 miles

A full tank is 18.5 gallons and should be able to do a range of 296.0 miles city/388.5 miles highway

Am running 16" wheels and 215/60/R16 tires from Michelin

I carried 1 space tire

A Windows phone for GPS navigation and several pieces of paper with a summary of all the knowledge I gathered on this thread

Fuel economy reference data sources:
1. https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/noframes/16228.shtml
2. http://www.edmunds.com/mazda/mpv/2000/features-specs/

Picture credits: edmunds.com

i had decided to follow the following route:

Abuja - Lokoja 206km (128mi) Note: Refill tank here
Lokoja - Ajaokuta 56km (34.7mi)
Ajaokuta - Enugu 198km (123mi) Note: Refill tank here
Enugu - Abakaliki 79km (49.1mi)
Abakaliki - Abba Omega 42.6km (26.51mi)
Abba Omega - Itigidi 26.6km (16.5mi)
Itigidi - Calabar 135.8km (84.4mi) Note: Refill tank here

Total Distance 744km (466.7mi)

I planned that the trip would take anywhere between 10 hours and 15 hours

But I carried two extra notes with alternative routes just in case as detailed below.

You know what can happen, a sudden riot or fracas or a trailer falls and blocks a road and that route can no longer be used.

Alternative route #1

Abuja - Lokoja 206km (128mi) Note: Refill tank here
Lokoja - Ajaokuta 56km (34.7mi)
Ajaokuta - Enugu/9th Mile 199km (123.7mi) via Ayangba Note: Refill tank here
215km (133.6mi) via Ayangba/Enugu Otukpo Road Note: Refill tank here
264km (164mi) via Enugu-Onitsha Exp Way Note: Refill tank here

9th Mile - Umuahia 129km (80mi)Note: Refill tank here
Umuahia - Ikot Ekpene 55.5km (34.5mi)
Ikot Ekpene - Odukpani 83.7km (52 mi)
Odukpani - Calabar 28.3km (17.6mi) Note: Refill tank here

Total distance:
via Ayangba 757.5km (470.7mi)
via Ayangba/Enugu Otukpo 773.5km (480.6mi)
via Enugu-Onitsha Exp Way 822.5km (511.1mi)


Alternative route #2

Abuja - Lokoja 206km (128mi) Note: Refill tank here
Lokoja - Ajaokuta 56km (34.7mi)
Ajaokuta - Enugu/9th Mile 199km (123.7mi) via Ayangba Note: Refill tank here
215km (133.6mi) via Ayangba/Enugu Otukpo Road Note: Refill tank here
264km (164mi) via Enugu-Onitsha Exp Way Note: Refill tank here

Enugu - Okigwe 86.4km (53.7mi)
Okigwe - Afikpo 97.3km (60.5mi)
Afikpo - Amasiri 11.8km (7.3mi)
Amasiri - Abba Omega 21.6km (13.4mi)
Abba Omega - Itigidi 15.8km (9.8mi)
Itigidi - Ugep 14.8km (9.2mi)
Ugep - Calabar 120km (74.6mi) Note: Refill tank here

Total distance:
via Ayangba 828.7km (514.9mi)
via Ayangba/Enugu Otukpo 844.7km (524.9mi)
via Enugu-Onitsha Exp Way 893.7km (555.32mi)

Starting Odometer Reading:
180876mi @0712

Stopped to top-up 188877 at Forte Oil Opposite Mr. Biggs Jabi, and left finally set out @0715

Filled up the tank with 59.75 Litres (15.78 Gallons) at the cost N5,169.00

Missed my way inside Kogi and found myself on the Lokoja-Benin Expressway and then retraced my steps once I noticed the mistake, because am supposed to have found myself in Ajaokuta heading towards Enugu and not facing Okene/Benin!

I was in Lokoja 2 hours later

Stopped to refill at one of the Total Petrol stations within Lokoja this time around after covering a total of 147 miles (236.6km)

The odometer reading was 181024, this time around I bought 41.96 Litres (11.1 Gallons) at the cost of N3,629.50, As well as Total Injector Cleaner for N580.00.

So it seems that I used 41.96 Litres (11.1 Gallons) or N3,629.50 to cover 147 miles (236.6km).

I once more stopped to refill at the NNPC Mega Station opposite one school (whose name I cannot recall) along the Enugu Expressway.

At that time the odometer reading was 181198 which meant that I have covered an additional 174 miles, this time around I bought 53.76 Litres (14.2 Gallons) at the cost of N4,650.00

So it seems that I used 53.76 Litres (14.2 Gallons) or N4,650.00 to cover 147 miles (236.6km).

I never refueled until I got to Calabar and I have a little over 1/4 tank of fuel left.

So I used about 49 Litres (12.0 Gallons) or N4,238.5 to cover the remaining 143 miles (230.1km)

When I arrived Calabar, my odometer read 181350 and the time was 7.20pm

if you subtract 180876 from 181350, you will get 474 miles or 762.8km, but then I missed my way and added about 10 miles to the journey, so it seems to me the more accurate thing to say would be that the distance between Abuja and Calabar using the route I choose is 464miles or 476.7km

Well detailed reportage

For anyone traveling Abuja and Lokoja, it is important to take note that as soon as you reach the very first military checkpoint on that road, that is a signal that speeds should be reduced and extra care should be taken in driving because of the sheer number of potholes and well as the spread of the potholes over the road surface.

There is another reason why extreme care should be taken, the road surface though tarred is extremely uneven.

It is extremely important that extra care be taken while commuting that section of the road in the rainy season.

I stumbled upon a trailer that must have ignored the need to slow down due to the above stated reasons and it tumbled and found itself in the valley beside the road.

There is another reason why care should be taken, if you do not want to bear the expense of replacing your tires. I think it is safe to drive along this section of the route at speeds below 100km unless you know how to dance your way around potholes without getting scars.

Finally, I have in previous undocumented journeys ( I mean on nairaland) seen vehicles that apparently jumped and had side impact with the concrete road dividers, so it may also be the course of wisdom not to drive too close to the concrete road dividers and to hold the steering really tight.

I wish I had a voice activated recorder, there is so much I would have loved to share but my safety is paramount so I cannot be taking notes and driving, nor trying to make audio recordings on my phone while trying to keep 4 patches of rubber firmly planted on the road.

I think I need to equip my vehicle with at least 4 cameras, one facing front, one facing rear and two to cover the left and right side.

Any ideas on such a rig that can record continuously for 12 hours as well as GPS/time-stamp the video, since I want to be able to review my journeys in the hopes of improving both skill and technique and correcting any errors I might have made in future drives?

Other than:

1. missing my way inside of Lokoja and

2. the left tie-rod end giving up about 30 miles (48.2Km) into Calabar around 5.05pm and needing to be replaced, causing me to spend almost an hour to fix it and then leaving that spot around 5.55pm

3. being stopped by Police and delayed for almost an hour somewhere in Ebonyi, the journey to Calabar was smooth.

In another post, I will detail the Police stop

Nice review.

Quick question - how did you miss your way from Lokoja to connect the Lokoja-Ajaokuta expressway? Was it the fault of the maps or wrong directions given by people you met along the expressway?

[quote author

I think I need to equip my vehicle with at least 4 cameras, one facing front, one facing rear and two to cover the left and right side.

Any ideas on such a rig that can record continuously for 12 hours as well as GPS/time-stamp the video, since I want to be able to review my journeys in the hopes of improving both skill and technique and correcting any errors I might have made in future drives?[/quote]
I'd like such a contraption too.

Nice detail. A few pics would have made a goo feast for the eyes. Sorry if I missed it, what car did you do this in?

Piyke:
Nice detail. A few pics would have made a goo feast for the eyes. Sorry if I missed it, what car did you do this in?

Mazda MPV

Piyke:
Nice detail. A few pics would have made a goo feast for the eyes. Sorry if I missed it, what car did you do this in?

Oga mi good day sir, pls send me the number of the guy with the black camry SE V6 you referred to me concerning the overheating. I misplaced his number. Pls send his number via SMS to 07034581213.
Thanks.

aieromon:


Mazda MPV

Thanks

kingreign:


Oga mi good day sir, pls send me the number of the guy with the black camry SE V6 you referred to me concerning the overheating. I misplaced his number. Pls send his number via SMS to 07034581213.
Thanks.

Sent

Piyke:


Sent

Seen.
Thanks bro.

Piyke:
Nice detail. A few pics would have made a goo feast for the eyes. Sorry if I missed it, what car did you do this in?

I'll spice it up with pictures.

Kinda busy but the story isn't finished yet...

I'll be back...

I have answered the question of the sort of vehicle in pictures

Picture credits: edmunds.com

How the engine bay looks like

Picture 1 credits: http://gtcarlot.com/data/Mazda/MPV/2001/5701941/Engine-47474804.html
Picture 2 credits: http://images.gtcarlot.com/pictures/59192359.jpg

Picture 3 credits: edmunds.com

FEGEITOK:


I'll spice it up with pictures.

Kinda busy but the story isn't finished yet...

I'll be back...

I have answered the question of the sort of vehicle in pictures

Picture credits: edmunds.com

Thanks

aieromon:
Nice review.

Quick question - how did you miss your way from Lokoja to connect the Lokoja-Ajaokuta expressway? Was it the fault of the maps or wrong directions given by people you met along the expressway?

Sorry for my bad manners, I should have answered you first! But it escaped me!!

Well, I have only driven that route once I mean the Abuja - Lokoja - Ajaokuta way.

I have been driven in a bus more than once but less than 3 times and I did not take note of the turns and twists so I could drive.

So I really was dependent on my Here Maps Drive+ to take me from point to point. As my Sygic had expired and so there were no more voice prompts.

I made the mistake at the last left turn around a roundabout because I misunderstood the directions from the navigation app.

Until this moment I refused to stop to ask for help. When it became patently clear that I had lost my way, I ate the humble pie and asked for help and got back on track!

I suffered from corruption of the map installed on my phone due to the use of the wrong kind of car phone mount and the effects of potholes and crackers shaking the car mount from its foundation or should I call it base which happened to be the car vents.

I have attached a picture of the kind of mount that got me in trouble.

Problematic car phone mount picture credit: http://www.amazon.com/WizGear-Universal-Magnetic-Swift-SnapTM-Technology/dp/B00PGJWYJ0/ref=sr_1_2?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1455628492&sr=1-2&keywords=car+mount+wizgear

Recommended car phone mount: http://www.amazon.com/Karnotech-Auto-Smart-Universal-Samsung-smartphone/dp/B017XJVKCM/ref=sr_1_1?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1455628889&sr=1-1&keywords=car+phone+mount

A better car phone mount should be able to grip the phone on both of its sides and is less susceptible to shock

Sadly try all I did, the phone refused to download new maps over a cellular connection. It insisted that I must be connected to a WLAN before I can download the maps again.

So as a result I had to depend on the navigation app pulling down the map from the internet as and when needed which was not all the time since they were blackspots ( i mean areas without cell phone coverage) or stopping to ask for directions or switching to the silent Sygic navigation map

Here is another of the kind of mount i will use on my next trip

http://www.amazon.com/Universal-Black-Mount-Holder-Plum/dp/B00JZCNKQ0/ref=sr_1_20?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1455628240&sr=1-20&keywords=whiz

Emperoh:
Following!

Great man, I hail thee.

Like I said before, I was stopped by a police vehicle marked OSSO TSIAKA ISIAGU 002 with registration number NPF910D, and I lost an hour there.

My crime according to them was attempting to pass a police checkpoint without slowing down.

Am sure drivers will relate to this.

A group of policemen are busy trying to do whatever with a driver (you can let your imagination run riot!) they have stopped on the opposite side of the road.

Noticing that they are all busy with the driver of that vehicle, you see no need to crawl to a stop at an unattended checkpoint. But you slow down a bit, but not so much, at least to safe passing speed in case of anything happening given that there are people standing on the road, and plot how glide past another checkpoint without having to stop and add minutes or hours to your arrival time.

Question is, is that a crime? By any standards?

So by the time I got pretty close, one or two of them noticed that a vehicle was coming and decided to turn around and face me, so out of respect, I slowed down and stopped and I was accused by trying to run them down. When they were not even on my side of the road.

I have attached a picture of the GPS coordinates of the location of the stop.

I feel that except for the loss of an hour at this stop and the need to stop to replace a faulty track rod end ( tie rod) I should have gotten to Calabar by 5pm).

Has this happened to anyone? Do you relate?

In the end, I left without spending a kobo because one of them said we speak the same language, and threatened that if the head of the team did not allow me to go, he would retaliate when someone who spoke his own language was stopped and he wanted to let him go!

Nice report Op. Even though I have the GPS map whenever I'm traveling, I still rely 100% on my hard copy map which I uploaded on the first page. That map has never disappointed me.

lonelydora:
Nice report Op. Even though I have the GPS map whenever I'm traveling, I still rely 100% on my hard copy map which I uploaded on the first page. That map has never disappointed me.

I think it is a good idea to have a paper map, although my step by step guide which listed which city to get to before getting to the other was helpful

Analyzing my fuel usage shows that the vehicle has a fault which I discovered to be P0171, too much air, too little fuel.

I am going to try to sort it out so I can do the trip again and compare the results.

I planned to use around 9,000.00 to 10,000.00 fuel but spent almost 13,000.00

I will post the results of my attempt to sort this issue out as well as complete the second half of the journey

i think it is related to a recent work done on the intake manifold, I think the seal is not air tight enough and at full throttle, I hear the sound of air appearing to be sucked into the engine or sucked by the engine very greedily and loudly.

Here is what OBD-CODES.COM has to say about the fault:

A lot of times, cleaning the MAF sensor and finding/fixing vacuum leaks fix the problem.

If you're on a tight budget, start there, but that may not be the fix for certain.

So, possible solutions include:

Clean the MAF sensor. Consult your service manual for it's location if you need help. I find it's best to take it off and spray it with electronics cleaner or brake cleaner. Make sure you are careful not to damage the MAF sensor, and make sure it's dry before reinstalling

Inspect all vacuum and PCV hoses, replace/repair as required

Inspect all hoses and connections in the air intake system

Inspect and/or test the intake manifold gaskets for leakage

Check for a dirty fuel filter and proper fuel pressure

Ideally you'll want to monitor short and long term fuel trims using an advanced scan tool

If you have access, you may want to run a smoke test

FEGEITOK:
i think it is related to a recent work done on the intake manifold, I think the seal is not air tight enough and at full throttle, I hear the sound of air appearing to be sucked into the engine or sucked by the engine very greedily and loudly.

Here is what OBD-CODES.COM has to say about the fault:

A lot of times, cleaning the MAF sensor and finding/fixing vacuum leaks fix the problem.

If you're on a tight budget, start there, but that may not be the fix for certain.

So, possible solutions include:

Clean the MAF sensor. Consult your service manual for it's location if you need help. I find it's best to take it off and spray it with electronics cleaner or brake cleaner. Make sure you are careful not to damage the MAF sensor, and make sure it's dry before reinstalling

Inspect all vacuum and PCV hoses, replace/repair as required

Inspect all hoses and connections in the air intake system

Inspect and/or test the intake manifold gaskets for leakage

Check for a dirty fuel filter and proper fuel pressure

Ideally you'll want to monitor short and long term fuel trims using an advanced scan tool

If you have access, you may want to run a smoke test

Feels so good to troubleshoot and fix a stored P0171 and later a pending P0174 and to see STFT/LTFT reduce to single digit from double digit.

I can bet that I can go to Calabar now with just 10,000.00

My STFT is now 0 percent for both bank 1 and bank 2

While my LTFT is hovering between 2 and 3 percent for bank 1, and under 1 percent for bank 2.

Next post will tell how I did it!

So first of all, how did my P0171/P0174 go?

DAY 1
I took of the intake manifold and used generous amounts of RTV to ensure there was no opportunity for air to escape, but the code did not go.

I went against the grain of the quoted advice above because i felt that since i opened up the intake manifold i must have created a leak.

DAY 2 and DAY 3
When that did not work, I then replaced the hoses around the PCV valve but i only noticed improvements in the fuel trim for just one out of 2 banks. This was repeated the next day, I even purchased clamps to ensure air tight seals at all junction points.

DAY 4
I took out the fuel filter and gave it a good clean and then replaced it, still no difference. Infact I even created new codes from failing to connect the fuel gauge plug tightly.

DAY 5
I opened up the EGR valve and then used RTV between it and the manifold to ensure a perfect seal (improvement on the way to gwagwalda), but when I returned and tested the car the fuel trims had gone awol again for one bank

DAY 6
so I decided to clean the MAF sensor and then only then did everything go to normal and have continued to stay normal.

Lesson learned:
1.I should have started with the MAF sensor as advised above.
2.It took over a week to sort it out. troubleshooting takes time.
3. In most cases you cannot troubleshoot without a code reader and the ability to understand fuel trims. I would perform a fix in the morning, then hook up my obd code reader and drive and keep checking if things have changed. When they did not change, I would start the day with another fix and do the obd code reading of pending codes and stored codes and fuel trims. if your mechanic does not use an obd scanner and doesn't know how to read them, you can still use him for certain things, but start looking for one who can cause you will need such sooner than later.
4. a lot of residual knowledge is required to fix cars
5. you need to be painstaking and thorough to troubleshoot cars properly

Morale of the story:
troubleshooting a car can be a pain in the ass, so if your mechanic sorts out an issue for you, be him a Kazeem or a well-trained engineer, pay him his deep respects, it takes a lot of knowledge/experience to accurately diagnose and fix car issues.

isn't it funny.

I kept fighting a stored code P0171 and a pending code P0174.

After having gone through all the the above listed, turns out that the engine was sucking air via an improperly seated oil dipstick.

Now what many people do not realize is that the engine is a giant air pump. And that the are approved and unapproved inlets and outlets for air to come in and go out.

Well, I have known that for a while.

But it never occurred to me that the engine would attempt to suck air from the oil dipstick tube and so keep throwing my diagnosis off the mark.

Well, my dipstick handle broke so I did not seat it properly and it never occurred to me that I was creating a lean condition by so doing

What surprised me is that is not one of the things included in the list of things to look out for in AllDataDIY

You can read more about the P0171 here http://repairpal.com/OBD-II-Code-P0171-and-P0174