2.8 gu

Gday Stefan - welcome to the club! I find as far as highway use goes, it probably accelerates as well as my mates 4.2, and seems to like to cruise at 120kph all day. Keep the revs up and it tows ok as well. Its a motor that is very unforgiving off road, get the gear wrong and pay the price. Mine's booked in for the lpg injection at xmas, will give a full report when done.

From what I've read here, they "chip"well also.

Cheers Andrew

PS they will do a burnout - on full lock under hard acceleration, thoink its more to do with the LSD though!

Same reasons for buying and sentiments for me. They are slow off the lights but put a few revs on the tacho and they go all day long, especially around the 100-120km/hr mark where you have to keep watching the speedo like a hawk so that it doesn't try to wind further around. In the soft stuff on Fraser I found that with second gear with 2500-3000rpm in high range the big girl never even felt like slackening speed and just kept on going (cant say the same for my HJ75 trayback 4.0 Diesel which has never got this acceleration thing). That said, the highest I have ever had the 2.8 was 3600rpm when I had to punch past a roadtrain that was doing 125!!!, I normally go no higher than about 2800 when coming off the line and just let the turbo go till revs catch up and is surprisingly easy to keep up with the traffic. Even with a 5.45m boat on the back I have not found it neccessayr to slip the clutch to such an extent that some people claim to, original clutch is great (touch wood!!) after 175km, that said though I always use low range on boat ramps as it cures both the lack of power and provides a far more controlled ascent than to rev the $hit out of it to get it to pull away inhigh range. Mine has towed the boat for fair amount of kays in fifth and though the gearbox is weaker than the 4.2 it is beautiful to use and mine is yet to have any probs. If you want to go a bit, and I stress a bit, faster then go the petrol but I dont want your fuel bill for doing so. I drove both when deciding and just found the 4.5 petrol had no go across the upper rev range and the horrendous fuel bills drove me towards the 2.8l.
I know that this will evoke some interesting replies but I believe it was a retrograde step for Nissan to drop the 2.8 for the 3.0. Both lack power off boost and though the 3.0l is a more powerful donk there have been far less issues with it. Any way how could you go wrong with a 2.8l 6 cylinder?
Some people are unaware of this but the RD28 and RD28ETi are relations of the RB series of striaght sixes that are found in Nissan Skylines. In the RB25ET some people are reliably making 250-300kw out of these engines so the block is more than capable of handling a chip and exhaust upgrades that would bring it close to the factory 3.0 without to much fuss if more go is your thing.
Don't doubt the 2.8, it's economical and atleast it will get there!
When new one comes along it'll be the 4.2 though.

And after all that mate I forgot to say:
Happy welcome to the 2200rpm club

Hey GQ_TUFF,

I've had my 2.8 for about 2 years now and besides some suspension upgrades, regular servicing and a heap of backyard mods, have had no problems and had nothing to do to it. It's been to some pretty remote spots around WA and never missed a beat. It is booked in for dieselgas on the 5th of October so will let you know how it goes.

Have fun!

Hello to all I also have a 98 2.8td which has just clocked 100,000kms. Our local mechanic who services several 3.0 Nissan,s claims the 2.8 is far more responsive.
I tow a camper trailer around W.A and found it more than adequate I have now fitted a roof rack for the boat, now I have to find a place for the motor but that's another story.Keep the service,s upto it and you should be right.

Hi Stefan,
I have written quite a few responses on how good the 2.8 is, if you've missed them let me know I will try to dig them up and let you know where they are.
If you think they go well now may I suggest you spend $1500 and put a Motson's chip in it and leave the 3lt's behind at the lights and the hwy, no, I'm not joking, I have done it a couple of times, EO member Trevor will attest to that and he drives a 4.2lt with the stage 2 MTQ upgrade.
I also own a 4.2lt GU with dump pipe, exhaust and tune-up done, SWMBO was following me in the 2.8 with an empty heavy duty 8x5 off road box trailer hooked up, when we got to a particularly steep hill in fourth at around 80kph she had to back off so as to not run up my backside, I dropped into third to get going when I saw her coming, albeit too late, she stayed in fourth to the top.
Don't get me wrong, the 4.2 is a great motor, but I think Nissan screwed up when they stuck the 3.9 diff gears in it, It's just too tall for the motor to pull comfortably, when finances allow ( apparently I have too many toys ) I am putting 4.11 back into it, like the GQ's, and hopefully get some power and GQ fuel economy back.
IMHO the Motson's box is the single best value for dollar mod you could do to the 2.8.
As I have said in other posts, mine has 250000k's on it and has given no probs except with the fuel pump, which was a common, easy fixed problem with that model, and the top radiator tank hose connections deteriorating, still doesn't use any oil between changes.

Avagoodn
Pezza

Hey Pezza, the one thing that has always been funny with my 2.8 is that unless it is warm it does not fire after the glow plugs go out without a lot of cranking. I have not thought much of it and waited about six seconds after the glow plugs go off before cranking and it fires first time everytime. I was looking through some old posts and found some info about a kit by Motsons that was a replacement shim or something for the fuel pump that fixed this proble. From memory, as I cant find the particular thread again, it was something about the pump not allowing enough fuel to pass when starting due to a worn out shim ?????
I rang Motons this morning and found that there not open on weekends. If you have any info on this kit, price ect could you please let me know. I have come to live with the six second wait but to elimnate it would be frigging brilliant.
Thanks

Thanks for that mate, It aint hurting it so I aint gonna touch it. I was just wondering if this is a common thing (which obviously it is).
Thanks for the reply.

Ben

Hi Guys,
Touch wood I have not experienced this starting problem yet?? At least I am prepared if it comes. Mine now has 117000 on it, I am REALLY interested to hear about the Gas injection system and how the car goes with it.
O.K I am going of on a new direction here, I thought I got a great deal on mine I paid $20000 even down from the $21990 sticker price with TJM winchbar, Warn 9000lb winch, safari snorkle, KAMAR rear bar, HELLA 6" spread and pencil beam and Duel batt's, it had 109000kms on it when purchased. Its the ST as well.
How does that sound to everyone? Was it a fair price or a good price? Well I guess I'm happy so its a good price!!

Just curious thats all