Holden Frontera

There is a small article maybe 200 words in the July or August issue of Aust4wd monthly.I cant put my hands on it right now but I think they recommended the 2.8 diesel over the V6 on reliability concerns and economy.

I don't have a Frontera, but just personally I think I'd go for a Nissan Pathfinder in that segment of the market.

The Frontera has been dropped locally and parts seemed to be an ongoing issue for them.

The early Fronteras had a poor suspension setup for our conditions. It is built in the US and the original setup was designed for their smooth roads . Later models from about 2001 and on had a recalibrated setup for Aussie conditions.

The V6 is rock solid and the performance of the Frontera on road is amazing. Best in its class at the time.

Member Vince ( I think?) Away at the moment, has just had to have his late model low milage, welded up around the firewall some where as the body was cracking up.
Personally I would be looking for something a little heavier, Pajero, Prado for example.

Hi,

I have a late 2000 Frontera so I can give you some inside information.

Petrol engine is great and has heaps of power but is a bit thirsty around town and also in 4wd. Standard tank is a 70 litre. Mine is auto and the trasnmission is sweet. In fact mechanically it is a great vehicle and so far other than servicing I haven't had to spend any money on mine.

Its main shortcoming is that it sits too low and needs a decent lift kit to help it out. There are numerous places who can do this for you. The height problem is compounded by the fact that the fuel tank has been placed in front of the rear axle and acts like a flat anchor when you are in the soft stuff. The fix is a replacement tank which can be mounted up high behind the rear axle. I could never work out why the manufacturer didn't put it there in the first place.

Given this the car is very capable and has taken us to some amazing places. Mine is getting the two fixes I mentioned earlier once I get a few spare dollars.

Spares are not too hard at present and a lot of rodeo parts fit the car.

Go to isuzu.com and you will see it is still sold and going great guns in the USA but it is sold as the Rodeo over there. There is a possibility that GMH may be revitalising it and are currently looking at where it may be sourced from.

In the size range I think the Pathfinder is better although I am led to believe from a couple of mates who have them that fuel economy is about the same. The Pathy in my opinion is beter off road because it doesn't have the clearance problems.

I hope this helps you out and please give me a yell if I can help with anything else.

Cheers

thanks all for your replies.

Hi,
I have a 2001 SE auto with 44000kms and to date have'nt had any problems.
I agree it could do with better ground clearance but with that said it has suprised me with where it will go, even if it does sometimes bottom out, but if you go slowly it will go most places.
I tow a jayco camper with mine and it does it easily although I did fit some polyairs to the rear coils and its made a big difference laden or unladen.
Around town its a great 4wd to handle corner braking etc.
Average fuel is 14lt/100km and about 17lt/100km when towing.

Hope this is helpful any other Q's let me know.

Regards Spratty.

Hi Mate,

We live in Brisbane and have had our Frontera for just under a year. In that time we have done several trips to Fraser Island and have been able to get to everyhwere we have tried to get to. We get bogged at times but that's all part of the experience I think.

We also regularly go to Double Island Point and Rainbow Beach and there are a number of great drives in this area plus the beach. Both of these spots offer a variety of camping and accomodation options as well. These are two of our favourite places and they are great.

Off to Bundjalung National Park in Northern NSW shortly for a few days. I can't comment on that spot as yet as this will be our first trip. We are planning to stay at Woody Head camp ground while we are there so that should be good. I hope to get amongst a few fish while we are there. I gather it is about three hours travel time from Brisbane.

The only other place we have gotten to so far is Spicres Gap which is out near Cunninghams Gap.

Our intention is to start going further afield once we can grab some decent time away from work etc. I have just ordered a new camp trailer so that should help us get a bit better organised for some more serious touring.

Cheers.

Hi,

You certainly will be able to do a large part of Fraser and all around Rainbow Beach and Double Island Point. I would suggest that the Northern areas around Ngkala Rocks etc would be difficult if not impossible in a standard Frontera however don't underestimate these cars as they can get to a lot of places you wouldn't think possible.

The hubs are automatically engaged at any time four wheel drive is selected. You can select 4WD High on the fly by way of a dash mounted switch at speeds up to around 90 KPH I think. Low is selected by stopping the vehicle and shifting into neutral and then selecting low range then the gear you want and away you go. Low back to high also involves stopping the vehicle, selecting neutral and then selecting high range and your gear and off you go.

I haven't had to do tyres as yet and mine has a set of Yokohama Super Diggers on at present. They are a bit noisy on the bitumen and I think I will go to BFG All Terrains when I change over. My son has them on his 80 series cruiser and they have been excellent.

I hope this helps you out.

Regards

Hi Large,
My apologies I just realised I stuffed up on the correct way to reply and stupid me I followed up to myself. der!!

We have a 2002 Auto. Just got back from Cape York going up the Old Telegraph Road. Absolutely no problems with the car. We have TLM 2000 series suspension fitted with the front torsion bar wound up so the whole car is lifted about 70mm. We also had a second 75 lt tank fitted by Out of town 4WD in Newcastle. We do not have a snorkel and the maximum water depth we did was 700mm. We used a Michele Sacs blind bought from ARB Sydney South. Very easy to fit and remove. It created a great bow wave that kept the engine bay dry. I checked the airbox after and noted a little water had got in but it had drained out without even wetting the filter.
We used Cooper ST tyres (75 instead of 70's) and they performed well. Ran them at the 26 psi recommended by Holden on the dirt but put the rear up to 28 psi on the road. Dropped them to 18 psi in sand. We did not have space for a spare tyre casing or wheel so I look a couple of radial inner tubes with me. Luckily I did not need them. The closest place for spare Cooper tyres was Tyrepower at Cairns and i checked they had them in stock before we set out.
I did bog the car once in sand on the Stewart River but that was my fault going the wrong way. The standard fuel tank does tend to act like a dozer blade but I have learnt to try and ride high on deeply rutted tracks. This is just a matter of knowing where the wheels are. Being lighter than Cruisers and Patrols helps.
The car loaded weighed in at 2450 kgs.
Fuel consumption ranged from 13 lts / 100 to 17 lts / 100.
Changed the air filter on the way back at Cooktown.
Also fitted an Exide extreme battery before we left.
The only noise we had when we came off the dirt was from the air box where it passes through the inner guard. It squeaked and WD40 fixed it.
Hope this helps.