4 cylinder diesel question & tyres

Hi all,
I’m looking around for a Hilux ute for occasional desert trips (SA and NT) and bush trips out west in NSW and for a run around town car when not on trips. I like the look of the Hilux because it isn’t too big yet looks like it has very good off road performance. I’ll go for a dual cab to fit the 2 (young) kids in. I’ll probably have to settle on a late 80s early 90s model to match my budget but I’m happy to keep it for a while and iron out little bugs as they crop up.

The questions I have are-

1/ 4 cylinder diesel engines? (I’m talking about 2.4lt and 2.8lt engines) I’ve heard varying comments from friends – everything from “those little 4 cylinder engines were rubbish – you’re better off with a petrol” to “diesel’s the only way to go for reliability etc”. I suspect the truth lies somewhere in between. Any comments? Preferably from mechanic types who’ve been on the business end of servicing or fixing up problem engines in older vehicles. (I should say that I’m not all that worried about the lower performance of the little 4 cylinder engines – what I’m asking about is the reliability and cost of maintaining it).

2/ Wheels – from what I’ve read it sounds like I want light truck tyres for durability rather than car tyres. What size/width are best for about 60% around town but will still perform OK in sand and scrubby stuff in western NSW for the other 40% (I won’t be doing much rocky stuff, if any). And I’ve noticed that some run non-Toyota rims – what’s the benefit of doing that?

BTW - I’ve just discovered this forum – great work everyone, it’s good to see a really informative and useful forum on the web!

Thanks,

Luke.