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RB30 patrol - pros and cons

Tech Talk for Nissan owners.

Moderators: toaddog, V8Patrol

Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 9:20 am
Location: tweed heads

Post by aubinator »

have you thought about test driving them all and decide witch one you want to buy yourself, only you no wot you like. heaps of people like diesel i couldnt handle a non turbo one would have a turbo one tho, as 4.2 petrol i feel they are stupidly heavy on petrol, gas would be good. rb30 with injection apart from heaps of electrics to go wrong i think there real good for price, keep in mind mine is just a weekend car that i dont give a rats arse about and if it breaks i can still get to work they are cheaper for parts then the rest.if it was my daily driver i wouldnt wont it id have a turbo diesel. but cant justifiy the price difference for sumthing that i dont use all the time and mine will get were everyone elses will for less then half the price i paid 1200 for mine with 4" lift since then i have injected it and new 33s, cheap fun
Posts: 72
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Location: Brisbane thrashing my Troll

Post by Warnie »

aubinator wrote:Have you thought about test driving them all and decide which one you want to buy yourself, only you no wot you like. Heaps of people like diesel. I couldn't handle a non turbo one, I would have a turbo one though. I feel the 4.2 petrols are stupidly heavy on petrol, gas is a good option. I believe the rb30 with injection are really good for price, apart from heaps of electrics to go wrong. Keep in mind mine is just a weekend car that i don't give a rats arse about. If it breaks I can still get to work and they are cheaper for parts then the rest. If it was my daily driver I wouldn't want it, i'd have a turbo diesel. But can't justifiy the price difference for something that i dont use all the time and mine will get where everyone elses will for less then half the price. I paid $1,200 for mine with 4" lift and since then i have injected it and new 33s, cheap fun.
Not tyring to be an arse but i like what you have to say and people will be able to read your insightful comments if the punctuation was better.

I went for the 4.2 EFI and don't really know that much about the rb30, alot of my mates really diss their lack of low down torque and this put me off the thought of ever owning one. My 4.2 on gas gets 21L/100kms (current rate of $0.625/L ~ $13/100kms). This does however sacrifice a bit of power but the money saving is way better than the alternative.

Cheers Adam
LWB GQ (Sharleen) RIP
1995 GQ LWB ST (Elizabeth) + some fun stuff
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Location: Canberra

Post by chunks »

An RB30 can be pretty torquey when matched with a suitable ball bearing turbo.
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Joined: Sun Nov 29, 2009 9:20 am
Location: tweed heads

Post by aubinator »

Warnie wrote:
aubinator wrote:Have you thought about test driving them all and decide which one you want to buy yourself, only you no wot you like. Heaps of people like diesel. I couldn't handle a non turbo one, I would have a turbo one though. I feel the 4.2 petrols are stupidly heavy on petrol, gas is a good option. I believe the rb30 with injection are really good for price, apart from heaps of electrics to go wrong. Keep in mind mine is just a weekend car that i don't give a rats arse about. If it breaks I can still get to work and they are cheaper for parts then the rest. If it was my daily driver I wouldn't want it, i'd have a turbo diesel. But can't justifiy the price difference for something that i dont use all the time and mine will get where everyone elses will for less then half the price. I paid $1,200 for mine with 4" lift and since then i have injected it and new 33s, cheap fun.
Not tyring to be an arse but i like what you have to say and people will be able to read your insightful comments if the punctuation was better.

I went for the 4.2 EFI and don't really know that much about the rb30, alot of my mates really diss their lack of low down torque and this put me off the thought of ever owning one. My 4.2 on gas gets 21L/100kms (current rate of $0.625/L ~ $13/100kms). This does however sacrifice a bit of power but the money saving is way better than the alternative.

Cheers Adam
yeah sorry mate english is not one of my stong points haha stuggling to type takes me ages to do anything on a computer probably noticed spelling is bad to
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Location: Central Victoria

Post by coxy321 »

aubinator wrote:
Warnie wrote:
aubinator wrote:Have you thought about test driving them all and decide which one you want to buy yourself, only you no wot you like. Heaps of people like diesel. I couldn't handle a non turbo one, I would have a turbo one though. I feel the 4.2 petrols are stupidly heavy on petrol, gas is a good option. I believe the rb30 with injection are really good for price, apart from heaps of electrics to go wrong. Keep in mind mine is just a weekend car that i don't give a rats arse about. If it breaks I can still get to work and they are cheaper for parts then the rest. If it was my daily driver I wouldn't want it, i'd have a turbo diesel. But can't justifiy the price difference for something that i dont use all the time and mine will get where everyone elses will for less then half the price. I paid $1,200 for mine with 4" lift and since then i have injected it and new 33s, cheap fun.
Not tyring to be an arse but i like what you have to say and people will be able to read your insightful comments if the punctuation was better.

I went for the 4.2 EFI and don't really know that much about the rb30, alot of my mates really diss their lack of low down torque and this put me off the thought of ever owning one. My 4.2 on gas gets 21L/100kms (current rate of $0.625/L ~ $13/100kms). This does however sacrifice a bit of power but the money saving is way better than the alternative.

Cheers Adam
yeah sorry mate english is not one of my stong points haha stuggling to type takes me ages to do anything on a computer probably noticed spelling is bad to
Easy. Just read what you've written, and whenever you would normally pause or stop to take a breath - put in a full stop or comma. Easy! :armsup:
Posts: 41
Joined: Fri Jul 24, 2009 1:22 pm
Location: Wodonga Vic

Post by BOOSTED GQ »

chunks wrote:An RB30 can be pretty torquey when matched with a suitable ball bearing turbo.
x2 my mate vl is just a mild setup with the money spent in all the write places it makes good power 250+rwkw and with wicked midrange power. It starts to make boost around 1800rpm and full boost under 2500rpm and at 17 pound boost at 2500rpm its got heeps of torque. No it will never have masive torque at low low rpm as its only a 3 litre engine but I would still have a rb30 over a tb42.
Posts: 721
Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 3:01 pm
Location: on top of a large pile of rocks

Post by AFeral »

After owning a rb 30 power patrol for 4 years
Pro's
Cheaper to buy, spare parts easy to find and cheap too.
Less powerfull engine does not give the drive train such a hard time so less breakages.
Con's
Bit gutless needs to be thrashed everywhere to get it moving.
Yes the engine can be built to make big power however getting that power where you need it is another question. I have yet to read a build thread or talk to someone that has built a V8 beater. Not just drags but all round 4x4 drivabilty.
Most of the threads I've read involve fryed clutchs or heavy duty clutchs. Usally followed by broken gearbox. Think there is a convertion to a turbo 700 gearbox which solves that problem. Or exspensive internals for the manual.

After thinking about it and doing some sums I bought a Tb48 engine.
Anything is possible, it just comes down to time and money.
Ferals build www.outerlimits4x4.com/ftopic164570.php
Posts: 121
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2008 6:39 am
Location: pomona, sunny coast

Post by grinch2 »

AFeral wrote:After owning a rb 30 power patrol for 4 years
Pro's
Cheaper to buy, spare parts easy to find and cheap too.
Less powerfull engine does not give the drive train such a hard time so less breakages.
Con's
Bit gutless needs to be thrashed everywhere to get it moving.
Yes the engine can be built to make big power however getting that power where you need it is another question. I have yet to read a build thread or talk to someone that has built a V8 beater. Not just drags but all round 4x4 drivabilty.
Most of the threads I've read involve fryed clutchs or heavy duty clutchs. Usally followed by broken gearbox. Think there is a convertion to a turbo 700 gearbox which solves that problem. Or exspensive internals for the manual.

After thinking about it and doing some sums I bought a Tb48 engine.
completely agree, i just wish i didn't learn the hard way, so much waisted time and money, wish i went the ls1 in the first place
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