I know your answer allready ........ BUT .....

[V8Patrol]

sad day when the last patrol was sold a while back .....
and tommorow the troopy leaves for her new role .....


and for the first time in 20 odd years I'll be without a 4x4




so........

been thinking a paj might just fit the bill




Ain't rich so the budget is a max of $2500, this places me in the very late 80's to mid 90's range (88-94), preferably V6 for towing the work trailer & for long distance runs.....
( the $2500 budget is also because it wont get treated well, I cant justify spending more simply because as a work hack it WILL cop a hammering in every aspect, dents / spills / lack of lovin will all come into the equasion at some stage




Questions:

can a commodore V6 be transplanted with minimal ease/cost ?

what is the 'head issue' I see with many of the early V6 motors ?

off road suspension capabilities in standard form is good/poor ?

fuel ecconomy .... diesel / petrol figures for road use is ?

is the 2.6 motor in the ealier 80's a 'real' alternative if I down size the work trailer (possiable) ?



Useage:
towing work trailer as stated.

long distance driving
(must be able to do 5 hours straight non stop with driver comfort a plus)

reasonable offroad abilities in most terrain types, but specifically shale rock, sand, & mud .... these are the most common terrains I drive.



and before everyone yells out buy my truck..... I'm in no hurry, I will most likely be seriously looking in a few months time, at the moment its homework time.....


Kingy

[MightyMits]

Hey,

The commy V6 is the easiest engine swap for the pajero, i'm not sure about cost though. Marks 4wd adapters have kits for a price.

I believe you have been mistaken about the head problems, the V6 pajeros didnt really have head problems, the fameously unreliable Astron 2.6 4cyl had big problems though with warped and cracked heads. So, the 2.6 from the early models is not a "real alternative"

in standard form, with maybe some decent tyres (Mud or All terrains) a pajero will go almost anywhere a patrol would with the exception of where articulation is needed. My old LWB, ifs, went up tracks that an equally modifed (35" muddies and a lift) GQ couldnt. Some tracks i couldnt make it up but the patrol could. So their pretty even.

fuel economy wise, i dont know about the diesel but, lets just say their not as economic as the newer jap engines, but still slightly better than the tb42.

And NO, you cant buy my shorty

[Sand plough]

I own a 24V SOHC 6G72 3.0L Delica, I know that engine is also fitted to Triton, Challenger, overseas Pajero, Magna and probably a heap more. The engine was actually built in Australia and sent to Japan for all models using it, it does not have many issues, I have not heard of many issues with any 6G72 but I do know there is or was issues with the DOHC 3.5L 6G74 but I have not heard of issues with the 24V SOHC 6G74.

Commondoor 60's Buick motor has been fitted to Gen 1 (bloke around the corner has a nice looking Gen 1 SWB with a Crappydoor V6, he done it in the late 90's) and no idea if anyone has bothered to fit the old rattler to Gen 2 Pajero, don't pretend they have big power output, it is only due to the .8L extra capacity, the dunnydoor 3.06 first gear in the Turbo 700 and relative light weight compared to comparative brands.
Then again they are common and cheap as every second wreckers would have a pile of them in their yard, Supercheap probably has even the rebuild kits on the shelf, but then comes the cost of the conversion parts and labour if you can't do it yourself.

[Sand plough]

Can I ask why you ever got rid of a Patrol V8

I am going looking for details about it, if it was originally based on a GQ 4.2 it should have been a weapon you would never want to get rid of, getting rid of a cruiser I can understand, especially if you drive through a lot of mud and drive like you stole it. (I worked for years on both mines Patrols and Cruisers, they drive them like they are stolen).

[NJV6]

Search Noob

The answer you are looking for is, yes they are suitable for what you want, they are comfy, underrated and have tough running gear. As you have picked the only possible fragile bits are more likely the engines but many don't have problems at all. There are so many about parts are easy to get.

Get one with a factory rear locker or fit an air locker to the front and then you also have a pretty capable off roader.

I have been spoilt with a shorty 3.5 Manual. I would look at a 2.8 TDi another time, I couldn't step back to a 3.0 and wouldn't get a 2.5 TDi again.

Glen

[MightyMits]

I have been spoilt with a shorty 3.5 Manual. I would look at a 2.8 TDi another time, I couldn't step back to a 3.0 and wouldn't get a 2.5 TDi again.

I know what you mean, my old LWB was a 3.5 and it had guts, my new shorty, well, it doesnt.

[V8Patrol]

Can I ask why you ever got rid of a Patrol V8

MQ shorty,
350 chev conversion
5 spd conversion
duel LPG tanks
stainless exhaust
35" BFG's
SOA
diff locks
custom paint & interior
and all the usual sliders/winch/bullbar etc etc etc...

Got bored with it ....
nothing I couldnt drive with ease, took the 'fun' out of wheelin
I actually enjoyed driving a stock SD33 on split rims over the 'big beastie'....


I bought the troopy as it was dirt cheap at the time and after 4 years I was offered more than I payed for her, although it was 99% stock except for a larger set of tyres, it was a very capable old tart....


As for a paj..... the 3.0 V6 would suit for local duites (work etc) but the diesel would suit for the long hauls out into no-mans land.....
this sort of thing would suit.....
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... K:MEWAX:IT" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



Heads issue explained.....
after a troll through eBay I seem to constantly fine 91-94 models forsale cheaply but all with "new engine required/water in oil/ in parts and needs heads fixed/" adds .....
Brotherinlaw has an 89 ..... sitting waiting for new heads.....
Guy in my club has just had new heads fitted to his 92....

havent actually heard of a 2.6 giving problems as yet..

Kingy

[MightyMits]

Hey,
so all the head problems you found on ebay were of the 3lt V6?
Cause ive never heard of the V6 having head problems, the 2.6 petrol astron motor has had head problems since the early eightys when it was released in the first sigma and still had head problems when the pajeros came out.

[Sand plough]

I just wouldnt go for a 2.6 as they use a lot of fuel for nothing in return, V6 is far better.

There is thousands of Pajero V6's out there, with age, kms and percent out there I would expect to hear about blown head gaskets, more likely the higher percentage is caused by poor maintenance (easier to blame the car then themselves), sort of like arseholes, the more people there is the more we are going to see them.

[sick01]

I bought my nh with blown head gaskets, the guy blew a hose and kept driving.
I agree that i see quite a few 3.0 v6's for sale for this reason.

I think one of the reasons would be there is quite a lot of external water plumbing on the 3.0, much more than most v6s i have worked on. with the age of the vehicle, and the chances of someone bothering to replace all of these annoying hoses.....a blown pipe is likely.

The other reason is corrosion of the water jackets in the head, when i took my heads in to be done up the machinist pointed out where mine needed to be welded up, he also said its a very common problem with these heads.

For the commo moo v6, marks adaptors makes an adaptor for the auto 4l60e or turbo 700 to jero transfer case, it cost $1200.
Or v6 conversions makes a kit to keep the jero manual, and bolt in just the commo motor.

I recently put a factory supercharged vx commo v6 in my gen 2, detailed thread link is in my signature.

[V8Patrol]

I think one of the reasons would be there is quite a lot of external water plumbing on the 3.0, much more than most v6s i have worked on. with the age of the vehicle, and the chances of someone bothering to replace all of these annoying hoses.....a blown pipe is likely..

That sounds fairly likely to be the culprit......

Much like my beloved 300zx, there are heaps of external waterhoses all of which are prone to fail if not replaced every 10years.....
so,
There is a bypass for the 300zxz that forum members have discovered and it deletes over 75% of the small hoses that can cause a major engine meltdown.

Have you guys done likewise ?


Kingy

[sick01]

Nah, not as bad as your 300zx- they copped a real bad reputation until it finally came out that the real issue was lack of maintenence.

This would be the go.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Radiator-Hos ... 1c1d0ecfa0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Repco sell a good quality one for $130 from memory, some of them are a real prick to get at, i think even removal of the intake manifold was needed.

[v6triton]

hey mate, hope this helps, ive got a 89 triton 4x4, originally 2.6/5speed, and i converted it to a later model ecotec v6/ auto. got conversion kit from marks adaptors, was a simple conversion, there instructions are very clear, although i had to put a 2inch body lift otherwise body would hit inhibitor switch on auto. its got heaps of power, economy is great and lots of fun. being a light car i can go places any 4x4 goes, just put my foot down and bounce on the rev limiter, it screams like crazy, but for a car with no diff locks, ive never been bogged or close to it (knock on wood)! ive had the car drive thru water, water level was up to my t-bar hump inside the car, and electrics still seem to be fine. as for towing, ive towed a 1.8 tonne excavator, pulling the thing was good, no overheating, no slip from auto, but tryin to stop the bastard was the scary thing! felt like my calliper pistons pierced the brake pads and grinded my rotors! hope this helps you out,