Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

Evening all,
I left for Botswana on Wednesday afternoon, slept over in Mafikeng, and on Thursday morning crossed the border into Bots. 166Km into Bots on route to Werda, traveling at 127Km/h (GPS speed) there was all of a sudden a horrible noise from the engine and when I looked in the rear view mirror plumes of white smoke pouring out the exhaust!!!
Well to cut a long story short. I limped back to Alberton (Jhb)very slowly, a total of 550Km, and 15L of oil. I'm impressed that I got the Maiden back home, but was not looking forward to opening the motor!!
So Saturday morning I started stripping, suspecting a burnt piston..... well this morning I lifted the head off......
Number 2 cylinder ...in its glory. EGT Guage was showing 168 deg when the motor blew.... I am now convinced my EGT probe is faulty ( I'm trying hard to see the funny side of this!!

I was convinced that the 4.2 did not suffer with these types of problems.

So now..... I need some assistance please. I need to do a proper job, but at the most economical price and way. Unfortunately I'm a bit cash strapped after just buying the Maiden 3 weeks ago.
1) I want to replace all 6 pistons with ceramic pistons. Where do I get these and roughly how much are they? Are they readily available?
2) The block has a bit of damage. Here I know very little as to what to do. Is there a sleeve/barrel on these blocks that can be put in. If so where does one get these, and how does one do this, or who can I take it to, to do it. What would it cost?
3) When taking the diesel pump out ( I haven't yet), do I need to mark anything, for timing purposes. I don't have a manual yet ( will get that soon). If anyone can give me a step by step thing to take out the pump, I can then take out the crank and sump and get the pistons out.

Please guys, any pointers and things to watch out for ..... please let me know. I need to get the Maiden up and running ASAP !!! ....I'm going to Mocambique In one months time !!!!!

Get the CD Workdhop Manual for the Ystrekoei from Oom Herrie. Spend meny hours with REAL experts and people who has DONE it - then tackle the job.
But i smell a rat - why is it everytime we go to Bots that these engines skop die emmer giv up the gost and VREK with a BANG ??? And mine was just after Ganzi - havung put Sell in [since I only do Total] and Sasol locally
BUIT - Ric, dont dispiar .. its only gagga when youre in it - the joy when it is fixed , makes up for it [vra maar vir JG]

EN ek gaan vir Lobo in 'n HUMMER se lyf inbou ... met so bietjie vrannerdinge by - meer kom ons kry eers jou ysteranteio aan die loop,

Ricster,

OH KNOW - I DON'T BELIEVE WHAT I AM READING HERE THIS IS AWFUL - I am really sorry to read about your loss. My stomic literally made a couple of turns when I looked at your photos - it was what I was met with as well with my 3.0l when we opened her. Not a nice reminder and not a welcome site - and definately not common on the 4.2D. You are the first person that I have heard of with a 4.2D that this has happened too. And coming to think of it - in the short period you owned Iron Maiden this can not be due to you - this problem has been looming from the previous owner already. And yes that EGT probe of yours has definately not been giving you the correct readings. But even if you had the probe replaced I don't think his would have been prevented - it is a matter of "die koeel was klaar deur die kerk".

It is a pity you stay in Gauteng - Tour de Frans and Mayhem really knows these 4.2's inside out - and Frans has just finished my 4.2 conversion. He is away this weekend but I will phone him tonight and ask him to post or pm you - I am sure he will be able to give you a good couple of pointers. I was also going to go the ceramic coated piston route if I was going to fix my 3.0L - Frans knows a place in Joburg that does it. But I think you can buy them coated already as well - not too sure.

Perhaps you should pm him and ask him for his cell no so that you can phone him. Oh yeah - and get that CD manual Uncle Mac is talking about - or the Max Ellery workshop manual (book) - it will not only be helpful know but also in future - in fact it is an investment into your vehicle.

All the best with the repairs - once Iron Maiden is running again you WILL FEEL MUCH BETTER!!!

Good luck

Cedric, I am so sorry to hear of your woes. I agree fully with what Pieter said: The damage was probably just about done already when you bought the car. Perhaps that one injector was not atomizing properly or was not metering correctly or perhaps the car was run for some time in the past with the injector pump overfueling.

Depending on exactly where the thermocouple is installed, an EGT gauge might or might not be very sensitive at picking up the effects of a single injector that has lost the plot, even if the EGT gauge, thermocouple and wiring are all A1.

Jees Cedric, this is a sad day old friend. I feel sorry for you man, and it came at the worst time didn't it. But remember, if you keep positive and keep moving on it you can still have a great time in Mozambique, and that will dowse the fire burning inside you (and your engine).

:idea: Forgive me for saying this, i may be out of line here, and/wrong , but now that you gotta pull the motor and all, why dont you revert back to Normally Aspirated configuration and forget the extra 10 - 15kw on the wheels, and at the same time you can then forget about turbo boost checking,EGT's,overfueling ,underfueling ,Dyno's, Probes, and all the other issues related to turbo's. I know there are success stories out there, but in relation not as many as NA .(before people go nuts now, i can appreciate that NA motors can be over/under fuelled, but normally its a case of once everything is set to factory spec its good to go....and go,,..and go.....and go....)

Ps: you don't have to answer this, it wasn't a question , just a thought, so please don't feel like i'm grilling you.. ...I'm certainly not an "expert".

Go well bud, If you need anything sourced in CT i can help out as best i can, just ring me 083 66 22 129 ,

Cheers
Russ

TRAGIC TRAGIC TRAGIC !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry to hear about it.

Thanks guys.... I appreciate it.

When taking out the diesel pump, is there only one way it will go back, or do I need to mark the position of the valve timing to where the injector timing is. I want to take out the pump, crank and pistons today, but am a little uneducated as to the diesel pump side of things... guess I'm gonna learn quick hey !!

Hi Cedric,

So sorry to hear. All the best!

Cedric,

I am so sorry to hear this. I also agree with other members by saying that you bought the car with the damage already done. We hear so often about a major breakdown of a recently purchased second hand car. If I may...there is a bright side somewhere on the horizon. You will fix your car in such a way that you know what the quality of repairs were and you will drive your car with trust and calm in your heart.

Good luck!!

Hi Cedric, jammer om van jou probleem te hoor!!! Ek het vir jou 'n manual.