NISSAN PATROL 4.8l engine

Dear Mr Miller,

Thank you for your reply.

Is that car suitable with LPG or better leave it as it is with petrol?
Generally, is it more expensive to run than the 3.0l diesel Patrol or Landrover TD5?

Thank you again for your reply.

Sincerely,

Colonel

Hi Colonel

The 4800 is as suitable for gas as any other engine and the one in our family works and goes very well, and cost little at the fuel pump.
We brought it with injected gas already fitted and after it had its head replaced.
(I don't personnaly go for gas or hi-tech diesels)

And that is the issue with gas and almost any other extensive aftermarket modification.

The success depends heavily on the installer and the amount of failures massively exceeds that of the well known 3lt diesel engines issues.

Cost of running is not significantly different between the cars however the way the costs accumulate is.

Overwhelmingly depreciation and loss of interest on higher purchase price dominates true car running costs, however many see only the cost at the pump each week.

So in the short term and old TD5 or 3lt patrol (mechanically sound)) is the cheapset way to go. ( Talking sub $12k cost price )




I prefer to take a longer term total cost of ownership approach, and keep a seperate account for car costs.

Briefly in my case I recently looked at new cars and couldn't seperate an LC200 from the 4800 GU from the functional point of view.

However the LC200 was $85k and GU 4800 $50k

So I brought the Patrol - banked the spare $35k and earn some $1500 interest off the cash.

The $1500 roughly pays for the extra cost of petrol over the diesel cruisers fuel so I have negated the cruisers principal advantage and get to keep the cash.

In a few years when it comes time to sell, I expect the Patrol & cash will be worth more than the Cruiser.

Robin
Love your analgy.
Even makes sence.

Cheers
Bucky

ps about to get one of these Click here
One big MF Intercooler kit

Hi Robin,

I agree with your cost comparison, well sorta... ! After say 4 years both vehicles would have depreciated to say ~65% of purchase price (though I reckon the 200 depricates less, but for the sake of the discussion lets not complcate it!).

This means that the cash difference between the $35K banked (no interest as its paid for GU fuel difference) and the depreciated 200 is just over $12K in total of $3K per year.

So, the real question is whether the $3K per year is worth it to be in a 200 over a GU? Given I had a GU and now have a 200, well for me I know what I prefer :)

Cheers

Captain

PS. One could "argue" all day about the purchase price (my 200 was cheaper, a 4.8GU was more than $50K at the time) running costs, final sale value etc.. but your above analogy and my simple addiiton is IMHO more than close enough to be fair to both.

Robin pretty well nailed it.

These fuel cost debates quite often ignore the fact that the single largest expense by a wide margin of owning a new vehicle is depreciation.

Mr Robbin Miller

Dear Mr Miller,

Your comments do impress everyone. You seem know a lot about Nissan Patrol.

1. Which one among them (Land Cruiser, Patrol or Landrorover Discovery TD5) is the easiest to work on if we want to maintain the car by ourselves?
2. Generally, which one has the cheaper spare parts and easy to find one?
3. As you mentioned the Landcruiser is $30,000 more expensive. Do you think the LC is a better quality car and last longer than the Nissan 4.8l?

Thank you very much for your time to commend.

Sincerely,
Colonel

Hi Colonel


Question 1 & 2

(Presume your referring to late model cars otherwuse I'd lump 60 & 80 cruisers in with my petrol GU patrol comments)

The petrol GU Patrols are the easiest/cheapest to maintain yourself.

Without getting in to much detail , I service all my cars from new myself, and I am no mechanic - they just don't ever go back to a dealer - there are not many who have this confidence in a product.
I wouldn't even consider this if I had the 3lt diesel version Patrol.

Parts and there fitting for petrol Patrols since 1990 have been cheap and straight forward, a much higher percentage of Patrol parts bolt on and off than most cars with less special tools required - even a current commodore in ourfamily is a pain by comparison.

The relatively simple electronics have helped- for examle even the $9.95 spark plugs only need changing every 100,000km.

Driveline and suspension and manual transmission components and basic, very strong and readily available - geez even a replacment windscreen once only cost $145.

The above is backed by healthy online forum groups as these cars have proven to be so easy to work on and play with.




Question 3

Overall I would say that the landcruiser (LC200) is a better quality car - but it would last no longer if fact maybe less because it has a higher level of technology which goes obsolete and becomes
more difficult to work with, and is more expensive over time.

Both cars will last 10+ years , unlike some other 4wds so its not so relevant.

You have to be careful by what you mean by quality !

I often refer to one of the Patrols 4wding strong points - it has a higher tip over point than any other mainline 4wd.

However one reason for this is that the steel thickness in its upper panels is thinner than in the cruiser and it dents more easily.

Also the interior paintwork on the Patrols looks shinner than the cruiser - this is because it has less clear coating - the result being that the Patrol marks a lot more easily etc.

Dear all,

Do you know Nissan Patrol mechanics in the western suburbs of Sydney?

Please give me their names and phone numbers.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
Colonel T

Dear Colonel,

http://www.yellowpages.com.au/search/listings?clue=nissan+dealers&locationClue=sydney&selectedViewMode=&emsLocationId=