Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

Chris Skinner wrote:The tyres that delaminated - Yes, it was the Cooper Discoverer AT'3
Not sure if they were standard fit on this vehicle or not... these are not really appropriate for Patrols, but warn any buddies with the lighter 4x4 and SUV's to be careful.

I would not say that was an issue. It is a cosmetic/ side wall protection panel, not nice to have happen but no danger of the thing exploding on you.

Chris Skinner wrote:The tyres that delaminated - Yes, it was the Cooper Discoverer AT'3
Not sure if they were standard fit on this vehicle or not... these are not really appropriate for Patrols, but warn any buddies with the lighter 4x4 and SUV's to be careful.

Apparently some at3's are LT spec and some are not... which are those?

Not sure, the tyres were removed in Walvis and replaced.

Its time to start downloading some ifo from the Bots part of my trip, but will start a new post for that.
I saw how effective Peters format is ie lots of good photos and some interesting details, so the next phase coming soon!

LD are the light duty
LT are light truck.

Assuming the LT are the tougher of the two. Sorry if you have already mentioned (I have a finicky internet connection and cannot open the attachments)... but what pressures and speeds were you travelling?

My old patrol had the TPM system attached and when running low pressure and higher speeds the tyre temps climbed alarmingly. High temps are usually the cause of delimaination.

biggles wrote:
My old patrol had the TPM system attached and when running low pressure and higher speeds the tyre temps climbed alarmingly. High temps are usually the cause of delimaination.

I have often heard that temps are the killer, but nowhere have i found anything about what temps are possible without damage. Does anybody know how hot one can safely run a tire?

I have 80C in my head for some reason.

The more bulge you have in the side wall the more heat it generates.

If the heat generated exceeds the tyres ability to dissipate the heat the temps rise and cause failure. Hot outside temperatures affect the cooling rate and driving in sand and thick dust/ powder limits the cooling.

biggles wrote:I have 80C in my head for some reason.

The more bulge you have in the side wall the more heat it generates.

If the heat generated exceeds the tyres ability to dissipate the heat the temps rise and cause failure. Hot outside temperatures affect the cooling rate and driving in sand and thick dust/ powder limits the cooling.

I know my TPMS's default alarm temperature was 88 degrees. I have set it down to 65, but have never exceeded 63. And they have never gone over about 55 on dirt. On last hear's dune trip, i was running 0.3 bar, and they never went above 45 (with ambient air temperatures over 37 degrees).

I admit that i have never done the Namib dunes, but i wonder if the average speed could have been high enough to generate temperatures of over 80 degrees?

I also have a TPMS Peter, and my tyres never got near to even 55C. This issue with the Prado tyres started on the second day already even before the heavy sand...

Chris,... Thank you for taking the time to write this report. I really enjoyed every chapter, along with your pictures. In fact, you have a way of writing that made it very enjoyable to read. the history bits were also fascinating. Thank you.

It was nice to see the old 60 series Cruiser in the fleet. hard as nails.

Your patrol looks sensational i must say. I know Eben Delport raves about the patrol, after many many years driving land cruiser, so if anyone knows what works in those conditions, its him. he had a white 4.8 which he used on those trips.

As for the LC V8 station wagon (assuming you mean the 200 series VX)... i see no reason why it would not perform flawlessly, apart from poor driver input.
Even with electronic interference, at half the power and NM, it would still have enough to get it through. I've seen the 200 series maul the dunes in Australia (diesels) and in Dubai (petrols), no worries. I must say though, i would buy the no frills GX version of the 200 if i had to chose between the two. less nonsense to interfere , plus it just looks better with a split rear door. lots of 200 series used in Namibia , all seem to cope fine.