NG Pajero- cut my loss????

[Sammyboy]

G'day, i'm not feeling too good at the moment. I have been preparing my old but reliable turbo diesel Paj for a trip over to WA from Melbourne this month. It's been fitted with a replacement ring gear/flywheel, new starter motor, new alternator. That cost me more than $1000. I then took my car to a diesel specialist for a dyno tune. I needed a turbo rebuild and intercooler hoses. This has cost me $1460 for turbo, hoses, dyno and diagnosis. They couldn't complete the dyno run because my car kept loosing coolant and overheating due to combustion gases getting into the cooling system, and I was eventually told that now I need A) a new cylinder head, B) a new head gasket or C) a new block... This was totally unexpected and i'm just weighing up my options.

I found somebody in northern victoria who will replace my cylinder head, timing belt and other bits and pieces for about $1900 including labour. This is by far the cheapest place I could find. I found him on e-bay, he's an engine builder with a 100% positive feedback rating. When I rang him, he was very helpful. He said he would ring me back in 30 minutes to book a time, and guess what? He actually did. He also said that at 8am today he would e-mail me with a written quote and directions to get to his workshop, and once again he did exactly that. Customer service may not be everything, but if he is respectable enough to stick to his word and follow up on his actions, maybe he is a respectable person? Other people have quoted me around the $2500 mark for replacement cylinder heads.

By the way, my Paj is a 1990 NG 2.5 turbo diesel intercooled. 7 seats, 2.5" exhaust, upgraded fuel pump, 13psi turbo boost, 2" suspension lift, 31" bighorns, 146L long ranger fuel tank. It is set up just the way I like it with a UHF radio good stereo fed through good speakers and amp.

The only negative that I can think of is that it's done 520,000km... everything else has been A) replaced or B) given the all clear. What do I do?

[chimpboy]

It sucks a bit, but even if you add all of that spend up it it not too bad as long as you end up with something you trust.

There is no guarantee you need new heads, you may just need new head gaskets.

Based on what you've written I would probably get it fixed rather than cutting my losses. But that's easy for me to say when it's your money.

[shakes]

I'm with chimp. If you like the car, know everything else is in pretty good condition then I'd be trucking along and you'll know it'll soon be fairly fresh and reliable. It's replacement might be a complete lemon and you've just thrown all your money away...

But if the car has a heap of other big ticket niggly items, driveline/suspension? or you hate driving it around I'd be more inclined to cut my losses.

Can't comment on the mechanic sorry.

[Sammyboy]

Here's more info on my car:

This year I have done the tyres, flywheel, starter, alternator, turbo, intercooler hose and battery. The fuel pump is all good, the gearbox and clutch are good and the diffs are good. The things that haven't been touched are the fuel injectors, engine block, cylinder head and the radiator/cooling system.

Last year I did the front steering and suspension components such as pitman arm, idler arm, upper control arms and new shock absorbers.

With the cylinder head, I just hope and prey that it works well, because i'm planning on heading to WA less than a week after it's all fitted. Money, money, money...............when does it all end?

[nabstud]

I agree with the others. If it suits your needs perfectly, spend a bit of coin on it to make it spot on, especially if you have no plans to sell it anytime soon.

I am in a similar situation. I have a GU 4.5 on gas. Has all the mods/accessories, very reliable (I would jump in it and drive the nullabor tomorrow without a worry), drives well, the missus likes it(very important) but chews the fuel. I would like a diesel but it would be a $15-20k changover to get the same truck but 4.2 diesel. That's a lot of coin for a different motor that will cost even more to get the performance I would like, and it could turn out to be a lemon.

Think about this. Some guys spend $20k putting 6.5 diesels in their trucks. Your $1900 is peanuts compared to that!

[Sammyboy]

Thanks for all your support guys. I really don't want to get rid of my 'little' truck. It's something that I have built myself (sort of) and suits my family just fine. As others will agree, it's no Patrol or Landcruiser, but it still gets me where I need to go and uses less fuel in doing so!

[thehanko]

i would be inclined to spend the money - sucks i know, even if its ust the gasket, your head etc wil need to be decked etc and work done to m ake sure its reliable again.

my only concern would be that its still a block and bottom end with high k's.

have you looked into an exchange engine complete fitted? or a second hand low k engine fitted?

be worth a look at both options to be sure of your decision, but if you like the truck and have come this far, keep going if the rest of it is good.

[RAY185]

i would be inclined to spend the money - sucks i know, even if its ust the gasket, your head etc wil need to be decked etc and work done to m ake sure its reliable again.

my only concern would be that its still a block and bottom end with high k's.

have you looked into an exchange engine complete fitted? or a second hand low k engine fitted?

be worth a look at both options to be sure of your decision, but if you like the truck and have come this far, keep going if the rest of it is good.

Completely agree. I would put a reco or low km second hand motor in rather than throw a fresh head on a 500km block. Bottom end failure can't be too far away with that sort of mileage. It's all $$$ though, but considering you have set this thing up just right for you I think it's worth it.

[DamTriton]

Maybe consider a Jap import replacement motor?

After 500 thou km the bottom end is probably getting close to it's wear limits too. Most Jap motors have less than 100 thou on the clock.

[chimpboy]

Maybe consider a Jap import replacement motor?

After 500 thou km the bottom end is probably getting close to it's wear limits too. Most Jap motors have less than 100 thou on the clock.

Not a bad idea, probably only $2k or so for the motor with a warranty and then some labour.

[craz3d]

Think about this. Some guys spend $20k putting 6.5 diesels in their trucks.that!

Nah, its 10k installing it and 10k trying to cool it

[Sammyboy]

When I got my car (Feb 2007), it was on 380,000km, but the engine it came with was dead (intercooled 4D56T) which apparantly was something to do with the crank... At that stage, I had an NA shorty (non intercooled 4D56T) with a f__ked up gearbox. I had that engine fitted to the NA in 2005, and back then, it was a low k import with under 100k on it. I reckon I used the engine in the NA for about 70,000km before transfering it to my newer NG, so at 380,000km, the engine fitted in my car (I am guessing) had done 170,000km, now my blue Paj has done 520,000km, so the engine I am guessing has done 310,000km. Does that change anything with my block? I really don't want to look at getting a newer engine just yet, but I wont have a choice if it goes...

Here's my car at the highest peak on Skytrek at the Flinders Ranges, SA

Here's my car in the Sturt Stony Desert, NSW

[Ruffy]

I'd spend the dollars on getting the head done.. Low k imports are getting rarer but then i haven't looked for one lately. Once the head is off you'll have a bit of an idea of the bottom end. If you've looked after it service wise then 300 odd thou isn't too bad.. may just have quite a bit of life left in it.. If you haven't serviced it too well then 300 is alot..

Dan

[-Scott-]

Sammyboy, stop thinking about how much money you've thrown into your Paj, and think about how much you'd need to spend to buy a vehicle with a similar known history. Yes, your vehicle is nominally "old", but so much of it is in much better condition than its age would suggest.

Stick with it. Better the devil you know, etc.

It may only be a head gasket - easy fix. So take a gamble. Commit to the fix; whatever it takes.

Whatever happens, do some research before your trip on where you can find an import replacement. Worst case, have it shipped to where you are, and find somebody to fit.

It's like insurance. You only need it when you don't have it.

[Sammyboy]

Tomorrow I will be taking my car to have the cylinder head replaced. It's driveable, but i'm still a bit nervous driving it just in case something goes wrong. Let's just assume that the problem is a cracked cylinder head. I am going to be driving it very carefully (probably 80kmh max) and taking several breaks so that I can check the coolant and oil levels. Is there anything else that I should be doing, or anything else that I should know about? Am I taking a big risk?