Which Truck is best suited for expedition??

[Bosvark]

Hi .
I have been lurking here for a couple of years now and this is a GREAT Forum. I m in the market looking for another 4x4/Expedition truck again. I’m looking for a spacious(7seater) reliable Diesel Truck.
I’m based in the UK so we do regular Green Lane/camping trips 2-5days at a time which are in general short trips with in the UK. And then there are the longer trips to Norway/Sweden/Finland and Poland/Romania/ and France/Spain/Portugal and then North Africa. All these longer trips involve long distances on tarmac to get to destinations where we wil go of the beaten track which will be easy to moderate off roading to ensure we will make it back home.
The truck will be kitted out with the up-grated suspension, 33” or 35” tyres, roof rack with roof tent and off road trailer.
I had a Land Cruiser 80 and 95(Prado) in the past as well as Land Rover D110 and Discovery1 which was all great vehicles. ( all the above were set-up for my type of use as mentioned)
At the minute I’m looking into another Land Cruiser 80 as well as the 100 as well as the Discovery 2 and 3.
I was just wondering how the Nissan Patrol Y60/61 stack up to the above Trucks.
My only requirements are Comfortable 7/8 seater, large capacity diesel, strong, reliable truck.

Any comments/recommendations will be much appreciated.

 

[RMP&O]

Patrol, TD42, 4-door.

Super reliable engine
strongest axles of the bunch
plenty of room with the 4-door and rear jump seats
Full box frame that will be hard to kill
All the luxury items like A/C, P/W, P/L and so forth

 

[Bosvark]

Hi, thanks for the reply.
I forgot to ask, what is the better gearbox in the patrol, manual orauto. Most of my previous trucks was manual apart from the Discovery1. And that was very good in off road sitiations.
I've heardvery good positive replies about the Land Cruiser Auto box as well.
How does the Patrols compare to the Land rover and Cruiser box?

Thanks

 

[RMP&O]

Hi, thanks for the reply.
I forgot to ask, what is the better gearbox in the patrol, manual orauto. Most of my previous trucks was manual apart from the Discovery1. And that was very good in off road sitiations.
I've heardvery good positive replies about the Land Cruiser Auto box as well.
How does the Patrols compare to the Land rover and Cruiser box?

Thanks

The manual is stronger by a fair amount in the Patrol over the Cruiser or Rover. Although I am sure this oculd be debated to no end and the Patrols t-case is chain driven. Many guys in Australia are running 500hp+ engines with the stock gear boxes and have no problems. Having said that, I have an FJ60 with a v8 in frotn of it. The gear boxes and axles are holding up fine.

I can't comment on the autos as I only have had one in my 04 Tacoma. However, it sure seems to me that the autos in the 62 series Cruisers like to give up by 200,000 miles.

 

[Abitibi]

Mine! :wings:

And you should be good to find a good one on your side of the pound... Good luck!

 

[Bosvark]

There are 4 Patrls on e-bay at the moment, one TD2.8 , x2 TD3.0 ad a TD4.2. So I will kee a close eye on them, I would prefer the TD42 but they are few and far between over here.
Are all the patrols part time 4wd or did Nissan doe some fulltime 4wd as well like LandCruiser and Lnd Rover?

I found out that the Auto box in the Patrol is the same 5spd auto in the 350/370Z the Titan and Infiniti cars which are all the hi performance cars, so the g-box from one of those cars maywork as a replacement....

 

[RMP&O]

The Patrol never came in full time 4wd. I can't comment on the newest version of the Patrol though as I know nothing about it other then it is not really a Patrol!

 

[drbandkgb]

I hate to say this but id say a Land cruiser ... Even though I love my Nissan.. The LC has parts all over the world.. Even here in the USA its much easier to find them vs the Patrol

 

[RMP&O]

I hate to say this but id say a Land cruiser ... Even though I love my Nissan.. The LC has parts all over the world.. Even here in the USA its much easier to find them vs the Patrol

Only because they break down more!! Hahaha I couldn't resist!

 

[Abitibi]

As long as you have the part number Nissan will bring you what you need and won't charge you shipping... But as RMP&O said, they don't really break down so it's just a nice to know!

 

[drbandkgb]

WEll.. I dont know about breaking down... I love my Xterra... I love the Patrols.. dont get me wrong.. Just seems to be so hard to find in the states

 

[RMP&O]

Um yeah, Patrols were only sold here from 1962-1969, total being 2616. That doesn't exactly warranet much parts support. Go to Colombia, Australia or any other of the dozens of countries they were sold and parts are just as easy and just as plentiful as any Land Cruiser.

If Patrols had more of a following here in the USA we might see more people importing the newer ones here but alas nobody is really into doing that besides guys like me. And guys like me are few and far between....

 

[Bosvark]

Hi Guys
I have pulled the trigger on a lovely Patrol 1998 GR SE touring 2.8TD manual. At a very good price as well:wings: It is a very nice example in very good condition with 116000 miles on the clock. Just can't wait now to pick it up next weekend.
I know it is only a 2.8 but there are loads of info how to get more power out of it on the Patrol forum, which is good:smiley_drive:.
other option may be to look for a 42TD and do a swap......
Thanks for all your inputs

 

[AdventureMAD]

well done

hi, well done - good buy. Have you collected the Patrol yet? What are your thoughts?

I used to have a Patrol - was very happy with it, had to sell due to finances. Now driving a Discovery 3 (temporary thankgod). Hoping to buy a Land Cruiser or Patrol asap.
What do you need to do to upgrade the one you bought, is it very expensive? I will probably need to do quite a bit to the LC or Patrol when I buy it, as they are usually not kitted out.
How soon are you going overland to Europe/Africa, as I am hoping to do the same sometime, especially Norway, but would rather do in a group (wife demanding it as well!!), and might take children along (2 teenagers).

I am from near Leeds by the way, whereabouts are u? O yes and have to mention I am still a bit new to 'proper' 4x4 driving, so might need some tips!

 

[jfarsang]

Personally, I would have either waited for a TD42 or imported one from Japan to the UK. The TD42's are bombproof tractor engines and mated with the 5spd is one killer combo for global overlanding.

But ! I've seen some amazing things done with the little 2.8TD

WEll.. I dont know about breaking down... I love my Xterra... I love the Patrols.. dont get me wrong.. Just seems to be so hard to find in the states

Walk into any Nissan Dealership in any country and order the part you need. Nissan = global parts support for any manufactured Nissan. Toyota = local parts support for domestic Toyota vehicles.

JDM Toyota 80 series with the 4.2TD engine from Japan. You can't walk into Toyota and get parts. They will look at you like an alien.
JDM Nissan Y60 Patrol series with the 4.2D engine from Japan. You can walk into Nissan and get any part, including factory body panels.

Nissan USA (and aftermarket ARB/OME) supplies central/south America with a lot of Nissan parts for the 2nd-latest gen Patrols. I got my brakes from Nissan in Oregon shipped up to Nissan Canada.

Pretty cool.