Outer Limits 4x4 Board

I am after a new truck for work and play. I am an earthmoving contractor so need to drag around a 200L fuel tank grease, oil, tools etc.(about 350kg) most of the time plus the cab is generally my office and rubbish bin too. So what should i get to replace my Extra cab hilux? (its going cos its to gutless)
Have seen loads of GU Turbo utes, Landcruisers by the dozen for Around the $25,000 mark. But have just been offered an 01 F250 4.2L turbo S/cab diesel for around the same figure. Always had toyota's and really like the extra cab. but not an option in the big utes.

So what does the collective wisdom of O/L crew think is the pick of the three???


Cheers John

the ford has the most room in the cab and tray should have more grunt than the toy or nissan but crap off road

What about a Defender TD5 130 HPC duel cab, best of all worlds and the highest load rating after the effy.

big price difference in the 3...

Have a lot of earthmoving contractors where I work and the F250 is a very popular choice - seems to have a lot of power and it's sounds great! They really seem to be built to handle the load (fuel tank, parts, fuel, crane etc).

Chip the f truck and you'll have more power than the other two put together. Best bit dosent change fuel enconomy that much.

Nick

CWBYUP wrote:Chip the f truck and you'll have more power than the other two put together. Best bit dosent change fuel enconomy that much.

Nick

but pretty useless offroad.. depending on what sort of offroad you wanna do

yeah you need to spend big coin on them if your going to use them as off road truck.

fergo's ? ( 3rd's ) is nice though.

Nick

I test drove a 2002 turbo diesel intercooled gu ute as i was going to upgrade,this was the most gutless car i have ever driven and was sadly dissapointed as ive always loved this car,also i have two mates with them and they need low range to pull there 18 foot fishing boats up the ramp,i think youll find after a test drive you will be very dissapointed,thats just my opinion though.Both have been taken back to nissan and nissan say that is how they are.one of the guys had a 6 cylinder petrol cruiser and it was effortless to pull the same boat up the ramp.

my cusin has a gu 4.2 turbo diesel the one b4 they were intercooled. this motor goes pretty hard. just as hard as the 4.2 petrol in the later gqs...i would say they'd have plenty of torque up a boat ramp. but havnt personaly seen how they go in this area.

I dont think its the tourqe thats the problame ,its were the tourqe comes in,by memory i think this engine only has about 20nm more tourqe than the 1kzte,im shore some one on here will no the exact figures.

Been in a couple of the V8 turbo deisel utes. But I think a 4.2 would be very underpowered, same size donk as the other two but more truck to lug around..

Wow. I'm suprised by the results of the poll.. The F250 is the vehicle for what you want to do but i guess given that most people on here are thinking of the off road aspect the Pootrol is the choice for them.

The Effy will serve you well

blackmav wrote:Been in a couple of the V8 turbo deisel utes. But I think a 4.2 would be very underpowered, same size donk as the other two but more truck to lug around..

i total agree 4.2 is a was off time and not alot off power even with turbo . the 6.5 turbo goes well . or 7.2 turbo .both pull as hard as a 14 year old in a nudist camp

yeh if u need a bit of extra room and plenty of carring capacity the f250 is the go. nothing worng withg the 4.2l it makes around 520nm where as the cruiser 79 series turbo and patroll gu make about 380nm and 360 nm each.

a;;tho when we got our f250 it was a disaster major front end problems but being second hand it may be ok.

for your kind of work
1. f250
2. cruiser 79
3. gu patroll

Mate I would go with the F250 as a work horse you cant go wrong.
If your right into wheeling keep the lux.

I have a few mates with the 7.3 F250 and they love all that grunt but al have spent mega bucks on front end dramas $3000-4000 a time about every 75000km. So that has put me off somewhat. the guy wants around $27000 +Gst for it which is cheap but its always been a work truck so its a bit scruffy outside. 2001 with 200000km. For the same money I'd get a tidy 2000-01 GU non intercooled with a selection of goodies. Same with Cruisers.
It'd would be a work ute all week but weekends it becomes my play ute fire trails forests camping sand dunes shooting trips etc. I'm worried the F250 will be too wide for most of that limiting my fun patrol seems the better option coils all round more comfy loads of mod gear more go than the hilux then the cruiser cos they are still a bit old fashioed looking.
I didnt consider a land rover cos they seem to old fashioned and poorly finished for the money have heard lots of horror stories about TD5 electrics too.
Any further suggestions????

John

So you have ruled out the f250

If you drive heaps I would get the nissan they is good wheelers to but as a work horse you cant beat a cruiser but the seats are uncomfortable

get the nissan and put a turbo upgrade kit on it. The f250 is far too big off road unless you are driving in the desert.

either the cruiser or the patrol. At work (eastlink freeway) the boys mostly drive yotas.
Prob better for carrying the load being leaf sprung on the rear.
Can get a rear leaf sprung patrol but i haven't seen to many around. If you get a coil rear GU and will be carrying loads, it would probably be a good idea to get the top of the spring mounts strengthened as apparently if they are used for constant heavy loads they tend to bend.

Hope this helps.

Matt

Go the 79 series turbo I pull a 2 t trailer around no prolems with 35's on it
Good on fuel & heap more go than a gu
My old 60 series has as much go as a new gu as i have had a race up a hill both running 35's & there was no differance i couldn't pull away & he could't catch me
Dan

johnboy wrote:I have a few mates with the 7.3 F250 and they love all that grunt but al have spent mega bucks on front end dramas $3000-4000 a time about every 75000km. So that has put me off somewhat.

We have the V8 diesel F250s for our company. They are awesome for towing and carrying heavy gear but as said above they are not too reliable. Apart from one issue both utes have suffered identical problems. Not sure if the 4.2 has the same problems but many of the problems wouldn't be engine variant specific.
Ours are dual cabs and are longer than the single cab however when I need a real 4wd for work (or just a small one for tight tracks) I take my own Disco. Even if you can fit the F250 down the track they are a nightmare to turn around if need be.

Anyway if you want it for load carrying it will eat the other two alive however for the type of offroad this site is interested in then go for the Cruiser or Patrol.

Ruffy wrote:Wow. I'm suprised by the results of the poll.. The F250 is the vehicle for what you want to do but i guess given that most people on here are thinking of the off road aspect the Pootrol is the choice for them.

The Effy will serve you well

Yup my thoughts too.....
And as a Jeep owner its sorta funny to hear people saying the Patrol is better cause it's smaller

seeing 95% of its use will be carting loads on the road I think u would be mad not to get the F truck.

personally id pick the L/C cause the leafs in the back will help you carry stuff better than coils in the patrol and the 4.2 will be better on juice that the f truck. But if you got heaps of money you cant beat the f truck for power and load carrying

yeh for load carryind u would realy want the leaf sprung gu and in that configuration all they give out to the cruiser is more comfortable cabin more car like in the gu. but u make a sacrifice in power and rugedness.

in the end just pick wich one looks best bettween the two both are good trucks

dont pick the land rover with better off road cred and almost same capacity as the f truck that would be stupid. get the under powerd missan or toy motor

I am an earthmoving contractor so need to drag around a 200L fuel tank grease, oil, tools etc.(about350kg) im pretty sure a small load like that isnt going to worry him no matter what suspension setup he chose. Go for the smaller ute, patrol or cruiser, a truck like the F-series would just be overkill. Iv driven all of them, the F-truck will leave them both for dead power wise, handles ok aswell but it really isnt nescessary imo. Coil all round patrol would be my choice, reliable, comfortable and still the pick off-road when u wana play on the weekends

Go the Patrol. Bulletproof drivetrain and comfort and performance of coil springs. They can be a bit doey in standard guise but fit an upgrade for buggerall. Better still find one that has been done. Perhaps fit Polyairs to carry excessive weight. The F trucks are pretty soft and unreliable as they always have been but if you are towing big weights you may not have a choice. The 4.2 seems to have a better reputation than the 7.3.

Go the Patrol. Bulletproof drivetrain and comfort and performance of coil springs. They can be a bit doey in standard guise but fit an upgrade for buggerall. Better still find one that has been done. Perhaps fit Polyairs to carry excessive weight. The F trucks are pretty soft and unreliable as they always have been but if you are towing big weights you may not have a choice. The 4.2 seems to have a better reputation than the 7.3. The Tojo is imo is still a 1985 model despite some minor upgrades.