TheBigBoy wrote:Mate the 80 series is by far the ducks nuts. My mates 1 has 500 000k's on it and he still does skids and burn outs. Very very proven truck. Im selling my V8 GU and getting an 80 series aswell. Ive had a 4.5 cruiser. Cant kill those engines but they do drink. Water is no problems either.
Gu's do have a stronger gear box and drive line. 80 series drive heaps better, with no apparent problems if maintained. Better flex and no 80 shakes from factory.. My bet cruiser all the way. Gu's are slow as shit aswell.
Also can run what ever size rims you like.. Damn crap nissans
Like I said I have already been through the same exercise for financial/practicality reasons and although I own one I still don't see the blind faith in Toyotas and 80 Series. Nothing wrong with a 4.5 petrol Patrol engine, plently fast enough unless you want to enter it into the V8 Supercar series and last time I checked skids and burnouts don't make a good 4wd or are considered socially acceptable these days.
As for no apparent problems if maintained you could say that about most 4wds, however I see heaps of discussion on toyota forums about supposedly maintained vehicles damaging or breaking - steering boxes, front diffs, rear drive hub studs, BEB's, the pesky heater hose on petrols. The swivel hub studs that hold the steering arms on work loose and or break. There are as many things going wrong with Cruisers as apparently go wrong with Patrols but you know in all my years on the Patrol forums I never came away with the sinking feelign that they were fragile yet that is the impression I get from toyota forums.
As far as your comment re having any wheels you like on a 80 series I am totally lost there. The only Nissan you have to watch out with wheels is putting 15's on a 4.8 petrol Patrol all the others will take 15's up, offset is much the same issue with both in that with big rubber and offset you can scrub the guards and damage the flares but I don't recall Nissan guys complaining about tyres damaging the flares. The Cruisers before 93 cannot run 15's so I don't understand your argument about wheels, care to explain.
I reckon my GU was a far more comfortable and smooth ride than this 80 so maybe mines a bit of a dud but others haven't impressed me enough to justify the overinflated prices expected. Not all Nissans shake either ?i've had a GQ and 2 GU that were fine and I have a couple of mates who have no issues either.
At the end of the day it's probably not totaly fair to compare the 80 series vintage to the GU but that is what was wanted here but you know I have ridden in a few 80's and now own one and I would go back to a GU in an instant if I could afford to swap around again.
About the onyl thing I really like about the Toyota is it's diesel engines but by that I'm talking 1HD-FT onwards, don'yt see anything special about 1HD-T or 1HZ's.
I'm not actually trying to say the 80 is particularly bad just that it's not special or really any better or really worth the money some people seem to think they are. Oh and I'm not really a died in the wool Nissan fanatic either.
Oh and Toyota spare parts prices are just absurd.
. The 4.8 brakes were a bit better but not a lot, just the originals were not bad. Just cause a cruiser has 4 pots doesn't automatically mean they must be better there are many factors that make brakes work well or otherwise but certainly the early cruiser brakes are very ordinary with 35's. That's why I'm in the middle of upgrading them as many others have done.
