How many K's are too many on petrol engines?

Its still all about servicing.

You should have no trouble in getting 3 or 400,000 out of a Petrol if its serviced correctly.

A couple of little things though. Not sure of the newer models , but certainly on the earlier PJ's , timing belts needed to be changed every 100,000. Its a PRICK of a job , so , you may even pay to take a vehicle slightly over 100 , rather then one under 100 , if the Timing belt has been changed (assuming same sort of pricing).

Gajm,
don't know if this helps you with your decision or not but i drive a petrol nissan patrol and i lease this as my company vehicle, my curruent one is a GU 1998 that i was so happy with i bought at the end of the lease it currently has 380,000 klm on the clock and has never missed a beat.
I get it serviced every 10,000 k's by my mechanic ( not nissan ) and he assures me that with regular maintenance i should have no problems for a while yet. Mine does 90 % on road but it has also done extensive out back touring towing a camper trailer and tows our boat as well. So in short i would not hesitate to buy a petrol engined car with 140,000k's on the clock if it had been serviced regulary.
Pmacks

Hi Glenn,
These days if the vehicle is serviced as required then the choice is all up to you as the average petrol engine can easily reach 200,000 ks without major trouble. Check that it has been serviced regularly.
Although I am A Patrol Owner (oiler) my choice in your terms would be the Prado as they are the girls car and dam good in the rough.

Can't tell you about the Mitsi but the Toyota will go on for a long, long time. there are plenty of high KM Prado's around now that have had no probs. 140K is only just run in anyway.
I would be more concerned on previous use/history than the K's.

Also don't forget you may pay more now for a Prado but when you get rid of it you would also get a higher resale so really its down to pay now - save later or save now pay later!
Happy hunting.

as stated , it all comes down to servicing, i have seen some engines totally knackered at 100k just from pure abuse and neglect, have seen plenty of others at 300 + still running like a charm, due to proper warm ups and generous regular maint. Either model would do the job you want, but i would advise getting the missus to drive them both and make the choice on which one she is comfortable driving.

If it is going to do mainly short stop start work, keep in mind the exhaust will soon rust out, and the oil will get diluted quickly, so it may be worth doing the oil & filter every 5k But definetly no longer than every 10. And remember that these multi cam engines need and love a really good oil, dont be scared of synthetics either.

Hi Glenn,

You haven't said what your budget is but if it will stretch to 2000/2001 NM Pajero or even a later model then you will truly get that "car" feeling especially with the very clever 5-speed auto that was only in the early model Exceeds, not the GLS (I think).
I sold a 2001 NM Exceed privately in Jan 04 with 120,000 kms on the clock for $33,000. The wholesale price was $30,000.
This car was meticulously maintained, had done a reasonable amount of dirt road and dirt track work but was in excellent condition inside and out.
It drove like new so I dont think 120,00 kms was a problem.
When I advertised it, the phone rang off the hook but once I told people that it had done 120,000 there was as much interest.
If you are interested in a Pajero and want some informed coment, check out the forum on www.pajeroclub.com.au. Post a question and see what happens.

Some of the older vehicles which I have owned all needed engine rebuilds around 380,000km. I was unable to tell what the previous life of the vehicle was like but normally picked them up at around 250,000km, serviced them regularly and used them, not always with care! Anything under 250,000km should still give you a good run.

Hi Gajm,

I have a Pajero in exactly the model you are looking at. It is an NL GLS that is just about to hit 90k. The comments above about needing the timing chain are not quite right as they need to be done at 90k and yes it is probably the most expensive service.

As a general comment though this vehicle has cost me less to maintain over the time I have owned it than any other I have had in the past. I have had Commodore wagons, Falcon wagons, V8 Discovery and now the Paj and the only one that I extended the lease on and then bought rather than paying it out early has been the Paj. It has been to Cape York, Uluru, Fraser many times, towed the boat, towed the camper trailer and still I don't want to sell it. If you have dogs it is the best car as it has the sliding windows in the back. When the kids were a bit younger it carried half a cub pack around as well.

The GLS has electric windows, cruise control, 16" alloys, 7 seats, CD stacker all standard. By the time the NL model came out they had sorted out any problems that may have been there in the earlier ones.

Servicing costs are reduced for the Paj over the Prado as the services are 15k intervals with only an oil change at each 7.5k if you want to do it. I also know of a number of these engines that have gone a lot further than mine has so far. One of the old 3 litre motors I know of went in excess of 300k and then had a relatively minor rebuild and looks set for another 300k.

The argument about resale value is irrelevant since the Toyotas are overpriced to start with and what you should be looking at is the actual dollar difference between the pruchase price and the selling price as that is how much it will cost you over the time you own it. As an example if I pay 50k for a new car and sell it for 25k two years later, someone else pays 60k and sells theirs for 30k two years later they have still spent 5k more even though they have a better resale value.

I suppose that shows I'm biased towards the Paj doesn't it? I have never understood why someone would pay more for a car that is a copy of the original and somehow get's the unbreakable tag when most of the parts are not as robust. Must be some pretty good marketers there.

Anyway the only car I would possibly change to is the latest turbo diesel Pajero but I can't justify the cost to myself yet as I am not unhappy with what I already have. 10 years warranty is awfully tempting though.

Hope that helps :).

Tim.

I have a customer with a Prado that has covered just under 250 000 ks and hasn't even had a clutch. Only had to replace the suspension as one spring sagged. The Prado needs timing belt replaced at 100 000 k as well. The one I am talking about has towed a camper van every where and been all over OZ outback stock standard. Excellent vehicle. I am a LCruiser owner but will definetely be buying a TD prado next.

I have a prado that has just clocked over 202000 km . I bought it with just over 100000 km and it has been the most reliable vehicle that I have ever owned. It had a full service history when I bought it and since then I have kept it serviced every 10000 myself. The timing belt on the Prado has to be changed every 150000km.
My Father in law has owned 2 pajeros and has never had major dramas with his 2 vehicle.I would just drive both and buy the one that you enjoy the most. Good luck and let us know what you buy.

Agree with Tim. I also have a NL GLS & couldn't be happier. When I started looking for a 4wd, the Patrol was my 1st choice until the wife sat in in 1 & said 'stick it up my jumper' 2 big, uses 2 much fuel etc etc. Never really considered a Pajero, but saw this really nice 1, wife was happy, couldn't complain. It does everything I want; towing my ski boat, off road capabilities are pretty good & not bad on fuel. 1 think to consider, Prado is constant 4wd wheras Pajero is not, meaning higher fuel consumption with Prado. Admit that interior is more 'upmarket' with Prado, arguably better resale, but is so much more expensive for IMO, little if any better vehicle. Mate has Prado & uses far more fuel when travelling to same destination. Mine has done 120k with no problems & expect to do 200+ with no problems, if serviced regularily.

Cheers
allanmac856

Hello Gajm. I own a 1992 Jack v6 petrol and has done 236000K and still going strong. I know you are not looking for a Jack but I would think 500000K is reachable with due care of the motor so any vehicle(providing it is not a lemon) should do many Kays without worry.

Sparkie(IE not Y) ;-)

G'day Gajim,
I went through the 7-8 seat fourby thing. We are four kids and two adults. I am very pleased we went for the Prado, ending up with a 96 GXL, auto, petrol, 140k km. As Eric said, with you budget, you could get lower than 140k. There are a lot out there that have never been off road and have been well serviced. We only have one vehicle and it works very well for us during the week and weekends/hols. And yes, the eighth seat certainly comes in handy. Give Eric a call I reckon, you might even pick up a Grande.

Jeremy.

Gajm,
There is a lot of slanging about the Prado being a copy of the Pajero etc. Some of it is possibly true, some not.

However, if you are after seating, make sure that you sit in the middle row of seats including the centre seat and see which is more comfortable.

I have 3 kids and we did this, and in the end we bought a 98 Prado, as the Pajero middle row of seats (even though it has three seat belts) are in my families opinion shaped only for two people, not three.

I note a similar thing with the newer 4wd's and I have sat in the current Nissan Patrol, the current Prado, and the current Pajero, and found that most centre positions in the middle row would be very uncomfortable for any period of time.

Food for thought.

Cheers,
Mal