suitable 4WD for big trip to cape york, kimberley etc.

GQ & 80 Series were'nt factory turbo but a lot have after market turbo's fitted. Any of above will do. Opinions will depend on what model respondent likes best. I favor nissans but thats just me.Regards Bob
Where to next

Each one will do the job easily.

Drive each one, see what you like the 'drive feel' of as they are all different.

80 and GQ are on par. Preference - GQ, I like the solid Truck feel of mine. Turboed now too..

Disco would be the thirstiest and more expensive for parts.

Sean, I know we all get a bit parochial & defensive about these things, but I'd have to say that suggesting a Jackaroo is "not up to it because of independent front suspension" is complete BS. I have a 1997 Jackaroo with 128,000 bush km and have been in most of those areas, and worse (e.g Iron Stirrup Ranges), without any problems at all. So, no doubt have a lot of other Jackaroo owners. These vehicles have a reputation for being very well screwed together, are a bit abandoned by GMH in terms of service & price of genuine spare parts (both of which can be gotten around), and were known as the "poor mans' 4WD" in the secondhand market because of their value for money versus an equivalent Toyota or Nissan. Now that GMH has stopped selling them new there are some even more excellent 2nd. hand prices around, and you may be able to get a considerably newer Jackaroo than you could a Toyota or Nissan for your $s. Mind you, you'll also get less for the Jackaroo when you sell it. I simply do not see the connection between IFS and 4WD driver skills you mentioned in your post. IMHO you should put the Jackaroo back on your possible list and make further inquiries about it on this excellent forum before you write it off.

IFS is not as bad as everyone cracks it up to be. The main limitation with IFS is you can't jack the front end up without comprimising some articulation. (well without big mods anyway).
All of my previous 3 4wd's have had IFS and I have taken them everwhere the GQ's and 80's have dared to follow. I have never turned away from a challenge that a rigid axel 4by has attempted. Ok articulation may not be as good, but dif lockers in the front come a long way to resolving any issue that may arisein the traction department, and normally that is only a problem when hopping rocks or in deep ruts, all of which I have done in all 3 IFS 4bies I owned without a problem.
I too got scrared away from the surf when buying my previous 4by and now that I have bought one (many years later) I still find me kicking myself that I didn't buy it years ago!
Don't knock the Jack's either, they will keep up with the big guys any day of the week! We had one of those poxy 2.0L 2 door jacks in the pilbra in the early 80's (we lived in marble bar for nearly 7 years). One of the first 4bies with IFS was the little jack and mate we towed frig'in broncos and cruises out of the mud on several occasions and towed an offroad camper through some of the toughest terrain you'll find!
GUYS IT'S NOT THE SIZE THAT MATTERS, IT'S WHAT YOU DO WITH IT! ;-)
- C'mon now everyone let me have it!

Iam with Arkay, I was at a Qld Gov auction late last year and a Jack with about 50k and two years old tdi went for $25k, I would think that would be pretty good buying,
Hope you find what your looking for.
Bruce MU-ving on

Sean

Be careful of the 80 series turbo model. There was an issue with the main bearing material not being of suitable grade in some of the engines. This actually led to the 100 series not beinhg available with the turbo variant initially .

All 80 series turbos should be at an age where if there was a problem they would have failed by now.

Cheers,

Peter

Sean The jack in my oppinion is a very undreated 4x4 it would do the trip as good as any choices in your short list.
If I had to chose from your short list I would go for the Patrol

Good luck
Eric

www.capeyorkconnections.com.auCape York Connections

Yep the Surf is no good for Cape York and the Kimberley !!!! Don't know where you got your advice but I can say my Surf went to Cape York in 2002 and we did not do any of the by passes on the OTL and it completed the Frenchmans track to Chilli Beach. Last year did the Kimberley and Mitchell falls and the Bungle Bungle - and guess what no problems on either trip with the Surf and I saw plenty of other vehicles on trucks going home ! Just be warned you can buy an older Patrol or cruiser but ensure it has been a city vehicle otherwise metal flatigue from corrugations could be an issue - my mates Patrol had a few issues from this. Would I buy another Surf for the same trips - yep you bet ya - they are not too big and they look great aswell. I'm a proud Surf owner and I have had no problems with parts. Any way best of luck - go with your gut feeling - I know when I imported my Surf I was worried from all the talk but now I know different. There are some jealous 4WD owners out there that paid way too much for vehicles equivalent to the Surfs, especially seeing that the KZN185 Surfs have the same motor and suspension as the Prado. I can say also that the auto goes as well as the manual - if not better !Cheers, Beddo
Surf KZN185
<- Yengo NP, Central Coast NSW

Sean - mine is the 97 model which is a totally different shape to the old Surf (4Runner style) - so if I damage a panel it maybe a little difficult to locate one but they do bring in half wrecks from Japan for us to get panels off etc. I have not had a problem with parts but I have with working out the part number - but there is a good support line on Surfs so finding the part number is usually not a problem - I also have tried the sites in America and they have provided part numbers overnight - these part numbers I have found are hilux or Prado. The only problem I had going north and west was that a mechanic treated my axles as a straight hilux and put the apropriate parts in but missed out on the ABS components(Cairns) - so a rotor for the ABS was not included resulting in the new seals not sealing correctly - have fixed since though - nothing has stopped our holidays for any length of time (2 days to get new axle seals done in Broome) this is when we discovered the missing components and the mechanic and I had to do some website research to see what were the parts that were missing. Other stuff which went wrong were accessories - crack in bullbar and a crack in a long range tank. All easily fixed - and were aftermarket gear.
Oh yes it is the 3L diesel intercooled motor - same as Prado.
I have been happy with it - the many corrugated roads have resulted in a few more rattles but that's about it. We also have fitted a snorkel and beafed up the suspension after the Cape York trip - still standard height though. Do they build them weaker for Jap market - I don't think so as they are the same parts. I paid 32 K for mine on road with 68 000 Kms on it (2 years ago) - it now has 130 000Kms on it and all I have done is replace axle seals and regular servicing. A cruiser or patrol of similiar year may be stronger but I am sure it would cost more. My thing has I believe a few too many options - sun roof, climate control, criuse control, electric windows etc - don't need it all but it came with it for the price. Cheers, Beddo
Surf KZN185
<- Yengo NP, Central Coast NSW