Is there such a thing as a happy 3Litre diesel GU Owner?????

[bogged]

I would get the 4.2, they out accelerate the LS6!

[bogged]

As for performance I know a 3 litre wont get anywhere near my 4.2. It had a fair amount of money thrown at it over the years and went pretty hard for an old tractor.

I wouldn't be so sure. The 3.0 teamed up with an auto will do a better job than the 4.2 when towing. Actually it will do better in everything except the sand and when in low range (you need 85% reductions with the 3.0) At best the 4.2 will try and keep up with the 3.0 when in the hills until it gets hot and you have to lift off to bring the temps down, at which stage the 3.0 keeps going and disappears over the hill and blows up.

then the nice slow 4.2 (or if modded nice quick) 4.2 will happily tow the grenade home once again

[Bingham]

mate you many have to determine happy! As in happy right now? or long term? or if you just picked up 2 sweedish girls?

Patrol wise i am happy right this moment as just took me to the shops and did not blow up. ... would i be confident to bo back up the cape with it not a chance but prob would with racq's new "ultimate care" they practically fly lap dancers in while they tow it out (i have nothing to back this up with nor read the pamphlet)... talked a bloke whos blew on way to birdsville...... the shit fight that would come from such i would rather spend an extra 10k and get warranty..

Nissan australia says everyone is happy so not sure where this is all coming from

trust me i was a bit ......yeah whatever 3L blah blah but when it happens to others but when yourself even me not paying for it winds you up a little..

[bogged]

Nissan australia says everyone is happy so not sure where this is all coming from

Thats the bit I dont get.. Look at Toyonissan, and several others that have cut their losses on their grenades... It really is hurting people.
Its ok for the dealer to give you a bill for $15,000, but many people dont have that cash layign around

[Bingham]

the problem is the desire for a certain lifestyle without the budget and knowelege to do better....

Pricewise and for what you get they are in a market of there own within reason and part of the reason why people take the risk..... but most dont know the risk till it blows.. and learn the very hard expensive way.

bit like buying a house in a shit area cause it cheap then getting broken into 4 times ay ear and living next to noisy drung dealing trash..... wish you had spent the extra few grand but you did not have it at the time....

how is inala these days lads so 3L's are the inala or maybe even gympie or nambour of the 4wd world :-) no offence to those in those area's.

[Patroler]

I don't get the love affair some people have with the 4.2

ok they could barely pull a cat off a cushion in stock form, but depends where you plan on driving them, sometimes 200 killerwasps isn't everything.
No they aren't great fun to drive around town stop start(thats what bikes are for), but on my last trip, from vic, through, tibooburra, innamincka, birdsville, flinders etc i managed to average around 13.5L/100 (five people in car with full length rack loaded) and sleep soundly with a fair amount of certainty that it wasn't going to blow on me - only ever wanted more power once - when the wife was driving and tried to overtake a caravan - ive got more patience than her.
td42 boat anchor? maybe, but personally i only pop the hood every 5000 kays so i really don't mind whats under there as long as it goes when asked.

If i was in the OP's position i'd want my GQ back, if that wasn't possible and i couldn't get hold of a td42 GU, then personally my next preference would be the 4.5 or 4.8 petrol - although they don't mind a drink - that may or may not be an issue - some people don't care, gas? limited range, although its reasonable available it can be dear inland e.g. lyndhurst S.A. (thats not that far from port augutta) Diesel was from memory $1.50 and gas $1.15, so quite different to the city.
Depending on how much you drive it in the city the cheapness of gas may offset the expense outback?

[300WinMag]

2 of my work mates own 3ltrs, one is on its second motor and third turbo, the other is having turbo problems, both are stock standard no mods. The technolodgy in these engines was still in its prooving stage when they went into production trying to get the jump on Toyota. Obviously it was a failure, if you do your reseach you will find the problems with the grenade are well documented, not just on this site which you may think is biest. If you own one that hasn't not yet caused any problems consider yourself lucky, make sure you get it checked out by a good Diesel tech who has a dyno for diagnostics and install a boost gauge aswell as a pyrometre. Cheap insurance compared to 10k + rebuild or replacement engine. If you don't take our advice your a fool, if you check peoples profiles you will find out alot of us are tradesman and engineers.

[brad-chevlux]

bit like buying a house in a shit area cause it cheap then getting broken into 4 times ay ear and living next to noisy drung dealing trash..... wish you had spent the extra few grand but you did not have it at the time....

yeah but you can fix that by getting two dogs that bark like fark at people walking past your house.
that way they steal shit from next door and your place never gets touched (true story)

two dogs won't fix a patrol with ZD30 in it.

come to think of it, if you own a ZD30 patrol, the best thing you can do is move into a shit crime ridden street but with out the dogs. that way it'll get stolen and when insurance pays out, you can buy something reliable/dependable.

[chimpboy]

install a boost gauge aswell as a pyrometre. Cheap insurance compared to 10k + rebuild or replacement engine. If you don't take our advice your a fool, if you check peoples profiles you will find out alot of us are tradesman and engineers.

Asking again... if you bought a used one that seemed to check out okay, and you installed these gauges, how safe would you be? Could previous abuse mean it's a ticking time bomb or is it more that they are either okay or dead?

[alki]

bought mine new in jan 2002.
180000km so far.Cape York,Simpson dsrt, tanami trk,Vic high cntry,etc.........
happy with it.

[brad-chevlux]

install a boost gauge aswell as a pyrometre. Cheap insurance compared to 10k + rebuild or replacement engine. If you don't take our advice your a fool, if you check peoples profiles you will find out alot of us are tradesman and engineers.

Asking again... if you bought a used one that seemed to check out okay, and you installed these gauges, how safe would you be? Could previous abuse mean it's a ticking time bomb or is it more that they are either okay or dead?

well i get what your saying. the first crack in the piston could already be there. it may run for ever with out a problem, but it may just blow a week after you get it.

What i don't get is all the people that seem to be oblivious to all the carnage and financial hardship these poorly thought out mistakes have already caused. There is a reason people love TD42s because over the last 20 odd years they have proven them selves to be reliable and dependable.
I know that time and time again my TD42 will get me where i need to go and it will get me home without the need for flat bed.

[300WinMag]

In my opinion they are a time bomb. You could never be sure it won't blow up around the next corner, if you forget to watch your gauges and it all goes wrong just think about the cost to fix it. It's like playing russian rulet really. Why bother.

[whitiepatrol4x4]

Asking again... if you bought a used one that seemed to check out okay, and you installed these gauges, how safe would you be? Could previous abuse mean it's a ticking time bomb or is it more that they are either okay or dead?

I would say that the motor would have had to have been through some very hard times (intentional or not) for it to fail later with the gauges installed.

The main question I would ask is has the MAF been changed? If not, then the motor would have an excellent chance of never been over-boosted or over-fueled.

If the answer is yes, then it depends on what the person behind the wheel has done, have they driven for months with it blowing black smoke? Have they driven hard until the boost hoses have popped off - only to put them on tighter and hope that it does not happen again? Or were they the sort of person that was in tune with the truck and could feel that there was something wrong, drove it sensibly until they got it fixed....

You would need to be confident on the answer to that but I am guessing that this is no different to purchasing a 4.2 that has not been serviced well either?

Re the gauges WinMag, you only need to look at them when you are loading the motor up very heavily – and half of the time they will make you change your bad driving habits as well (being in the wrong gear etc) 

[Bingham]

Gents while i appreciate gauges have their place and do some good things i dont think they are going to save the world or the 3L for that matter that some suggest..... I just believe that some comment to the direction of gauges will effectively stop them blowing up is a bit misleading..... my last one was driven as hard if not harder and lasted twice as many kms with me then was sold on and never got any phone calls

If the guages are as important for these motors as suggested and we are all "driving them to hard" then what every 3L will be easing of the pedal to do 90km/hr & All but stop towing. ?????

??Can anyone specifically say with these gauges on 3L's when they are get the pyro to hot etc. eg just once since they bought the car towing a 100 ft boat across the desert or once a week when overtaking up a hill? need some speciific tech lads.

In a few weeks i shall add my own but till then...

[chimpboy]

install a boost gauge aswell as a pyrometre. Cheap insurance compared to 10k + rebuild or replacement engine. If you don't take our advice your a fool, if you check peoples profiles you will find out alot of us are tradesman and engineers.

Asking again... if you bought a used one that seemed to check out okay, and you installed these gauges, how safe would you be? Could previous abuse mean it's a ticking time bomb or is it more that they are either okay or dead?

well i get what your saying. the first crack in the piston could already be there. it may run for ever with out a problem, but it may just blow a week after you get it.

Thanks, that's what I meant. For example an engine I used to have was prone to dropping valve seats if overheated. The thing was that they didn't necessarily drop at the exact moment they were hot. All you needed was a bit of a history of overheating. This meant that a used one was always going to be a risk no matter how good it looked.

On the other hand with some engines if they look good, sound good, blow no smoke, and check out okay, I would not care much about their history because they are either good or they're rooted.

Just trying to see which scenario fits the ZD30 better... *if* you accept that careful management with the right gauges is as effective as people say.

I have had lots of cars that people say are "lemons", but with a little bit of effort they could all be made bulletproof. Surely this is possible with the ZD30 as well.

[whitiepatrol4x4]

If the guages are as important for these motors as suggested and we are all "driving them to hard" then what every 3L will be easing of the pedal to do 90km/hr & All but stop towing. ?????

Hi Bingham, no one has said that they are being driven too hard?

In standard form, they are designed to tow and be driven as hard as you like. The ECU has set parameters which allow for these full load conditions, the problem is that the ECU is not designed to be able to tell if its sensors are telling it porkies.

These motors can be driven all day at their max load, but if a sensor plays up, you could exceed the operating parameters of the motor and the ECU would be no wiser.

Bring on the gauges, with boost and EGT gauges (really only need an EGT gauge but boost is a nice to have for mods or fault finding), the owner is now able to keep a weather eye on what the electronics are up to.

Bottom line is that with the gauges on, the motor cannot overboost or over fuel without you knowing about it so you can take remedial action and not harm the motor.

If the motor is not forced to operate outside its designed tolerances by people who are none the wiser, it will give you many years of faithful service as noticed by people who have striped them down.

There will still be the odd real mechanical fault, but these are rare as hens teeth compared to the engine failures caused by a faulty sensor that could have been avoided by the installation of the gauges.

[bogged]

I have had lots of cars that people say are "lemons".

You still do

[chimpboy]

I have had lots of cars that people say are "lemons".

You still do

True

[Bingham]

If the guages are as important for these motors as suggested and we are all "driving them to hard" then what every 3L will be easing of the pedal to do 90km/hr & All but stop towing. ?????

Hi Bingham, no one has said that they are being driven too hard?

In standard form, they are designed to tow and be driven as hard as you like. The ECU has set parameters which allow for these full load conditions, the problem is that the ECU is not designed to be able to tell if its sensors are telling it porkies.

These motors can be driven all day at their max load, but if a sensor plays up, you could exceed the operating parameters of the motor and the ECU would be no wiser.

Bring on the gauges, with boost and EGT gauges (really only need an EGT gauge but boost is a nice to have for mods or fault finding), the owner is now able to keep a weather eye on what the electronics are up to.

Bottom line is that with the gauges on, the motor cannot overboost or over fuel without you knowing about it so you can take remedial action and not harm the motor.

If the motor is not forced to operate outside its designed tolerances by people who are none the wiser, it will give you many years of faithful service as noticed by people who have striped them down.

There will still be the odd real mechanical fault, but these are rare as hens teeth compared to the engine failures caused by a faulty sensor that could have been avoided by the installation of the gauges.

all fair points, the follow on would be has any of the gauge boys on the 3L's noticed such issues then what are they and how was it rememedied.. ?? Taking to shop to lower boost or fuel or simply easing off on hills from now on...

What would be an expected run of the mill max egt on the 3L when working... Still working on the 500?

[KiwiBacon]

Hi Bingham, no one has said that they are being driven too hard?

In standard form, they are designed to tow and be driven as hard as you like. The ECU has set parameters which allow for these full load conditions, the problem is that the ECU is not designed to be able to tell if its sensors are telling it porkies.

These motors can be driven all day at their max load, but if a sensor plays up, you could exceed the operating parameters of the motor and the ECU would be no wiser.

Bring on the gauges, with boost and EGT gauges (really only need an EGT gauge but boost is a nice to have for mods or fault finding), the owner is now able to keep a weather eye on what the electronics are up to.

Bottom line is that with the gauges on, the motor cannot overboost or over fuel without you knowing about it so you can take remedial action and not harm the motor.

If the motor is not forced to operate outside its designed tolerances by people who are none the wiser, it will give you many years of faithful service as noticed by people who have striped them down.

There will still be the odd real mechanical fault, but these are rare as hens teeth compared to the engine failures caused by a faulty sensor that could have been avoided by the installation of the gauges.

My thoughts exactly.
The only thing which can throw a diesel into meltdown is overfuel. To the driver who doesn't know any better it's just pulling really well today. But the driver with an EGT gauge knows what temps are unsafe and backs off.

Of course one guy I know has a ZD30 powered pathfinder/terrano which has given no problems but sounds like a dryer full of spanners when it starts up, even in warm weather. It's that which would turn me off buying one.

[whitiepatrol4x4]

Of course one guy I know has a ZD30 powered pathfinder/terrano which has given no problems but sounds like a dryer full of spanners when it starts up, even in warm weather. It's that which would turn me off buying one.

Too funny, simple fix would be to use a different engine oil Tell him to try the Dello 400 15W40 which is JASO DH-1 certified, that should fix the spanner problem

all fair points, the follow on would be has any of the gauge boys on the 3L's noticed such issues then what are they and how was it rememedied.. ?? Taking to shop to lower boost or fuel or simply easing off on hills from now on...

What would be an expected run of the mill max egt on the 3L when working... Still working on the 500?

The Nissan boys rarely lower boost or fuel as the ECU does that, more common is to just replace the MAF sensor - it can be tested with a voltmeter for correct operation. Some people that go remote bush keep a spare in their kit.

As the driver, you could ease off the throttle up the big hills until the problem is sorted out. People with the gauges have found the boost going balilstic but not much power, or lots of power but low boost and high EGTs, or intermittent flat spots in the acceleration with sometimes visible black smoke out the tail pipe and high egts..... All were caused by a failing or failed MAF sensor.

This sensor sometimes gets a smear of oil on it due to blowby and it can then overheat and start sending dodgey signals back to the ECU, that is one of the reasons why we install a Blowby catch can - other than to keep the oil from mixing with the EGR soot whilst also smearing the intake system with oil making it less efficient.

Re max EGTs when working, IMHO 550c (just after the turbo) gets my attention. This still leaves headroom as the motor is tuned to take 600c which also has a little headroom built in. They can go all day at 500c but I leave the 500-550c area for brief stints up very steep hills etc,

[Chook350]

Ok, time for the wifes point of veiw, my patrol has a chev but shes got a gu2 with zd30.

I've had Trucky (YES it has a name) for 14 months. Got it with 162,000km on it.
It has now done 200,000km and overall I am very happy with it.
I've had the Alternator fail, as well as the Injector pump.
Both I believe were original, so they were old and tired.
Other than that it hasnt skipped a beat and its taken me where I needed to go.
SO I am a HAPPY GUII ZD30 Owner.

PS. Its been washed once in 14 Months and in 2 days it was dirty again...like the driver.


Hehehehehe
Chook and Chuckles

[KiwiBacon]

Too funny, simple fix would be to use a different engine oil Tell him to try the Dello 400 15W40 which is JASO DH-1 certified, that should fix the spanner problem

Interesting. I know this guy doesn't change his own oil but I'll save that info for someone who does.

On the MAF issue. I own two nissan cars, a 98 and a 2000. Both use the same hot film sensor which could be the same as the ZD30's of that error. I've cleaned both with contact cleaner at different times, picking up fuel economy and power on both vehicles. One is petrol, the other a YD22 diesel.

[whitiepatrol4x4]

On the MAF issue. I own two nissan cars, a 98 and a 2000. Both use the same hot film sensor which could be the same as the ZD30's of that error. I've cleaned both with contact cleaner at different times, picking up fuel economy and power on both vehicles. One is petrol, the other a YD22 diesel.

Good advice KiwiBacon, I clean mine with electronic contact cleaner (non residual type) every service

Cheers