Newbie, Advice on buying please.

[mcnallykev]

Hi All,

Been looking at Patrols, Land Cruisers etc. Patrol is winning out. I like the thought of a y60 4.2 diesel but doesn't everyone it would seem. I have had cars on PCP for a few years and with Covid it has made me re evaluate what I need to be spending money on.

My PCP deal is up in December and I will make money on my car strangely! So, going to buy the balloon out and use the extra to buy something else. I have seen a W reg 3.0D on gumtree but the owner says the engine was replaced under warranty. It seems to be a reasonable price @67,000 miles with the engine having done half of that. but also needs work done and Tidying up.

Question is are the replace 3.0D engines reliable and generally are they fairly good on rust etc. I'm not expecting a perfect car but owned a Range Rover for two years about 4 years ago and it cost me £10k in repairs so a little wary!!

Thanks in advance for advice/help.

Kev

[elty001]

The early 3.0 l patrols are the ones with the problematic engines.
What year are you looking at??

[mcnallykev]

Thanks for the reply. It is a year 2000. The current owner has added this in the description.

THE ENGINE AS ONLY COVERED HALF OF THAT MILEAGE ABOVE. THE REASON BEEN YEARS BACK THEY WHERE A CERTAIN FEW PATROLS WHERE THE OIL PICK UP PIPE WAS NOT LONG ENOUGH WHEN TRAVELLING UP HILLS,.CAUSING MAJOR FAILURE. NISSAN REMOVED THE ENGINES AND REPLACED THEM WITH A NEW MODIFIED ENGINE...

Cheers

[Barrbeast]

Hmm, if Nissan replaced the engine under warranty because of the issues with the early 3.0s that would make sense I guess (technical point, any early 3.0 engines that didn't go pop, Nissan just fudged a fix on them by shortening the length of the dipstick so increasing the oil capacity )

To be honest though, if you're looking at 3.0s I would just try to stay clear of any 3.0 older than late 2003 which is when Nissan refined the engine design - so many of the early 3.0 engines were trash. Some of them are fine but it was the early ones that established a bad rep for the 3.0 which has been hard for it to shift.

Later ones should be no bother as long as you keep them serviced. I had a 54 plate for 4 years, 3 of them as a daily, and she was modded and used and abused offroad throughout that time (and as far as I know is still going strong). I only sold her as I wanted a 4.2 and the right shorty came up at the right time.

I did some engine mods on my 3.0 but if you were going to do any of them I'd say fit a catch can. You can do others but I'd say catch can is the best if you have to pick one.

The number one rule with the 3.0 is that you need to do a bit of research before doing most engine mods as it's ECU controlled with various sensors and changing one factor can have an unwanted knock on affect.

Blanking the EGR is a classic example as if you don't adjust the turbo boost when you do it, you can cause the engine to start overboosting which then leads to bang time.

I blanked the EGR and had a straight through exhaust after the cat on my Y61 but I also lowered the spool rate to compensate and had no issues (I quite liked how the combination changed the characteristics).

[Fez_uk]

2000 year is getting on a bit too, 20 years old. Spares for running gear, engine etc are easy to find but you can struggle to find body parts and chassis parts like you can on landrovers.

They don't rust quite as bad as landrovers, But their body panels are steel. If it was me i'd look for a patrol in good condition rust wise rather than strictly low mileage.

[mcnallykev]

Thanks guys. There is a SWB on Autotrader at the moment that I really like but I'm not sure if the boot is big enough. I would have to fit a dog cage and holiday stuff in as well as tow a caravan. Wife and 2 kids as well! If you think it will be big enough I'm all ears! I like the shape of the Y60 more but totally understand the benefits of the Y61.

Cheers

[Barrbeast]

Like Fez said I'd look for decent chassis/ body condition as mileage shouldn't be as much of an issue with Trols, especially if they've seen at least a sniff of servicing.

One thing on rust, Y61 Trols are notorious for rusting at the radiator crossmember "the factory rust". So don't be disheartened by rust there, the rest could be in great condition.

I like my SWB Y60, the boot is surprisingly big but if you are fitting 4 and a dog cage in you will probably find a SWB Trol (Y60 or Y61) lacking in storage unless you run something like a roofbox. A LWB of either gen will have plenty of space.

A SWB Y61 is going to be a 6cyl 2.8 (grunty enough but slower than the 3.0 although fairly dependable and easier to tweak) or probably a pre 2003 3.0. The 2.8 would be my pick if going with a SWB Y61

[mcnallykev]

Thanks for that. In my Mid 40's now a bit of nostalgia for Mid 90's cars creeping in! I'll keep an eye out for a LWB y60 but seem to be few and far between. Got a Skoda Superb at the moment which is nice and roomy!

[Barrbeast]

I've had both and I love my Y60. My Y61 was great but I still wouldn't go back to a Y61 given the choice

[mcnallykev]

I really like the look of them but I take it a Y60 4.2 diesel lwb is like rocking horse shit?

[mcnallykev]

I take it parts for Y60’s like body panels are few and far between? Seen one on gumtree but I think it could just be a wreck. Cheers.

[Barrbeast]

Originally Posted by mcnallykev

I take it parts for Y60’s like body panels are few and far between? Seen one on gumtree but I think it could just be a wreck. Cheers.

Not something I've ever had to look for tbh bud. You'd need to have a Google, probably not totally scarce, just not as common as for a Landy.

Parts in general have improved since I bought my first Trol in 2013 and if you can't find parts from the UK they're usually available from Europe (quite a lot of good mods being supplied by Poland for example, that's where my front and rear bumper are from). For some of the Gucci mod stuff though you're looking to get from Oz as they love Trols out there.

[Barrbeast]

Originally Posted by mcnallykev

I really like the look of them but I take it a Y60 4.2 diesel lwb is like rocking horse shit?

Not quite as bad as a Y60 4.2 SWB but certainly not common and usually in high demand when they do pop up. Most Y60 LWB you find will be 2.8TD or 4.2 petrol. Solarman on here runs a Y60 2.8TD LWB.

[mcnallykev]

Hi all again! This one intrigues me. Very low mileage. Basic spec but seems to be priced high. Anyone any ideas whop the international company are?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Nissan-Pa...ab54%7Ciid%3A1

[solarman216]

Invoices and receipts costing "thousands" sounds odd to me for an 06 motor, other than that what a horrible looking motor "white" yuk, Rick