Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

Hallo,
Im brand new here because im finally in the market for a late 4.5 or early 4.8.
I know they are heavy on fuel, and thats OK, i figure amount of smiles per km will make up for the fuel cost.
My question is more wrt running cost (exc services). How much does maintenance average per year for you guys? Also, except for the dealers, how are parts availability, specifically around Cape Town

Albert G

Hi Albert,

you're looking in the right direction now ;-)

Running costs, so difficult of course related mainly to model/year/mileage are the big factors. In my case the running costs are still minimal because my Trol is only 16 y.o. and just a little over 200,000 km, so still new :-)
Parts are generally easlily available and there are several sites that now offer 'exotic' parts with minimal delivery fees. Service quality is key and I can recommend 2 top notch mechs in Cape Town.

Good hunting! Ps. Tinus Lotz can assist with finding a good 2nd hand Trols.

I think the type of parts that need to be replaced other than service parts are similar between all brands.

Suspension bushes, radiators, hoses, fan belts and exhausts all need replacement at roughly similar intervals, and they probably cost similar amounts once you know where to start looking.

Normal service parts like plugs and filters are all available through the normal spares shops although you might have to tell them exactly what you need (as in GUD Z292 rather than "I need an oil filter for a 2005 Patrol", as the spares books are poor and the counter staff don't have the knowledge.

For bushes and hoses and whatnot, Terrain Tamer is a good starting point.

Normal services are fairly expensive just because of the volumes of oil you need (but similar to other similar vehicles) but there aren't timing chains or other very expensive service items.

Thanks guys! ill definitely ask for some contacts once i start tinkering

AG

Two things from my point of view.

On any Patrol, use OEM or OEM spec coolant only
On 4.8 GRX, use OEM or OEM spec transmission fluid only

Quite an expense for those, and a mission to find generic equivalents to save a buck, but that's just how it is. Everything else though is much of a muchness