Spanish Patrols

[terranosaurusdoug]

Good pics, the lwb is very tidy, I couldn't help notice the terrano on the lift though

[Max]

@terranosaurusdoug - yes, we have all sorts here - Mitsis, original Landies, Gallopers (Spanish made Mitsis), Mavericks, Opels, and even the odd Land Cruiser. I like them all, but my true love is my RD28 Y60 1989

[terranosaurusdoug]

Have you had it a long time?

There seems to be mainly swb trols, am I right?

[Max]

Ooooh - getting on for 18 years! She has 450,000km on the clock and the original engine. She's been a good friend to me (wish I could say the same about the missus!) and saved my and my daughter's life through strong construction. (We were T-boned on a green traffic light by a Renault Megane which was a write-off. The Patrol needed a new side door and sill only, purely for aesthetic reasons - the door still worked! They must have been moving as we were spun 180º into the path of a van).

You are right - there are few LWBs. Why? The SWBs are much more offroad friendly as not so slithery in mud and better ground clearance with shorter wheelbase. The LWBs are HUGE inside and I always stop when I see one to have a look. I suspect the price differential when new was enough to turn the farmers off the LWBs. Can't say for certain. I would guess that the SWBs outnumber the LWBs by 20 to 1.

Mine has a very low ratio box (4H) which will grind it up the steepest hills, which I tried once with my son on a nearly vertical dirt track - truly scary - we thought that she was going to somersault backwards!

[terranosaurusdoug]

Bloody 'ell that is pretty strong, surprising it survived a smack that, would probably be a write off over here.

[Max]

The insurers wanted to write it off on the grounds that it wasn't worth anything until I showed them the car sales websites. I didn't want the money, I wanted my car back! There was also a dent where we spun round into the van. The panel beater said that it nearly killed him knocking it back out! Anyway, here's one I saw this afternoon.

[Max]

It amazes me that the paintwork on these cars is still in some sort of condition. 28 odd years in the Spanish sun, which can strip varnish off wood as you watch it, which bleaches everything, which is so strong that you can burn yourself on the car's bodywork, which has been scratched by branches, rubbed against by a thousand goats and their horns, been frozen by winters, attacked by hailstones (yes, big ones like golf balls) and they still have a good layer on them! More photos to come as I see them!

[terranosaurusdoug]

I like that one, good colour and the decals down the side look ace

[jims-terrano]

Wow Max, you are a big Patrol fan aren't you. Nice to see older motors still on the road.
As for your truck saving your daughters life, I can really associate with that. My first Terrano that was a 1996 that we had owned since 2002 saved my wife. There's a thread if you have a look. Basically she was hit by a car coming speeding in the opposite direction on the wrong side of the road. Totally wiped the Terrano out but it saved my wife. Somehing to be said about owning a 4x4 with a proper chassis and rugged bodywork.

[don simon]

Great to see these motors and seeing so many older Patrols and Terranos convinced me to get a Terrano.
We had an immaculate T1 in our village, a beautiful motor.
If I get back to Spain, I'll definitely be looking out for a LWB high top Patrol.

[Max]

Hi Jim
Totally agree - nice to have some metal around you. Even offroad, you find yourself skidding into a bank or rock - just reverse and carry on. Half the cars nowadays have plastic wings. I looked up a couple of old photos of the crash:

[Max]

And the Patrol. I was using it for weeks after the crash while the garage was looking for a breaker's door (Spain isn't the speediest of countries!):

[Max]

Thought I'd include a Patrol GR as it was in such good nick. You don't see as many of these as the original Y60s.

[Max]

....and a nice codition Patrol that I saw in Huéscar last week.

[jims-terrano]

I want to move to Spain!