As most of you know im selling my nav. Now im thinking on what to buy next.
Bit of a list of what i want.
- Diesel (anything around 4.0L)
- Preferrably Turbo
- solid axle
- coils
- can run 36's-38's (with the right gearing of course)
My plan
- crawler gears
- twin locked
- 36-38's on beadlocks
- can travel on highway comfortably.
I was 100% on buying a bog stock 4.2gq for around 10g and have 15g left for all the mods, but then i was told about the 105 series and how the toyota engine is so much better especially with the 1hd-fte (but that only came on the IFS front landcruiser)
Do you guys have any other thoughts on what model would fit my lists of wants?
G’ day mate,
When it comes to reliability, The Outback Challenge off-road endurance race sorts the men from the boys! The following sit-rep is from their website;
The Outback Challenge is Australia’s premier 4x4 off road adventure
The Outback Challenge is held over a week of tough competition, around the gateway to the outback, Broken Hill in New South Wales, Australia.
Competitive stages are held over giant sand dunes, rock strewn gorges, thick and gluey mud, deep river crossings and in choking dust. Endurance, navigation and winching skills are also put to the test. Teams have to demonstrate vehicle recovery and navigation skills. It’s not just about driving quickly.
The Special stages are designed to emulate tough Outback driving conditions so it’s a true test of driving skills. The personalities of the teams emerge in each event, making each of these videos a must for the 4x4 enthusiast!
Since its inception in 1999, Nissan has won the vast majority of the Outback Challenges; this is a testament to their strength and reliability off their drive trains. Toyota has never won a challenge to date!
My advice before you but any vehicle is to contact any 4x4 wrecker and enquire how much a second hand gearbox/transfer case costs for either a 4.2 Nissan Patrol or Toyota Land cruiser. You will be staggered by the prices. The manual Patrol is around $ 1000. The Toyota’s around $3,500 to $ 4000.00. Why the massive difference in price? Simple, supply and demand, the wreckers cannot keep up with the demand of constantly damaged gearbox/transfer cases for the Toyota’s due to weak front in-put bearings and second/third gears breaking and the main bearings failing in the transfer case, resulting in the destruction of the gears.
The demand is not there for the Patrols due to the stronger gear box/transfer case. The same goes for differentials; you will pay an arm and a leg for Toyota, due to their weakness.
I have always researched the Outback Challenges for the strength and reliability of the drive trains used these guys push their vehicles to the very extremes. Toyota’s over the years have been constantly dogged by poor drive-line failures.
PS, All the best with your choice!
Regards,
RLI