Turbo v Non Turbo

Charlie,
I would have to be one of the most died-in-the-wool Nissan blokes on this forum (even if I do say so myself...hahaha)

BUT.......if the choice was only going to be out of the 2 vehicles you have mentioned, even I would choose the Toyota 1HZ over the poxy Nissan 3L.

You could always bolt a turbo on to the Tojo later if you couldn't live with the lack of herbs. But with the 3L Patrol, that is about as good as it's ever gunna be.

Now, what about the 4.2TD Patrol....doesn't come in auto, but a better vehicle than either of the others you've mentioned IMHO

Hi Charlie

I have a non-turbo 4.2L Landcruiser, and almost always tow a trailer. I have not found that I need more power, as I have calmed down a lot from my younger days. Now I just cruise along at 100 using the aftermarket cruise control, and have a relaxing drive. Gutless is in the expectations of the driver. I'd rather be certain of getting where I'm going than go for speed and power.

If I did want more herbs, I would bolt on a turbo to the 1HZ as this will give more power than the factory turbo motor. The 1HZ is a reliable power plant that is pretty well bullet proof, although like any diesel I'd make sure it has been properly serviced (and I don't mean by a dealer, I mean properly).

Have fun choosing.
John

Hi Charlie,

I previously owned an 80 series 1HZ 4.2 cruiser and then upgraded to a 3.0TD GU. I also did a lot of towing of my camper van (also 1600kgs) so have owned and towed a similair size load (click on my rig pic below to see)

Now while the 1HZ did the job, it was S..L..O..W and averaged over 17.5l/100kms while towing (12.5 l/100kms around town solo). I used to sit on 100 km/hr but any incline would knock that back pretty quickly. I remember one time heading into a strong head wind near Geraldton and I couldn't get over 80 km/hr on the flat road. I then added a 2 1/2" system and extractors. Now this made a difference (estimate 10-15%) but still slow.

Then I bought the 3.0TD GU. You cannot compare the two when towing, the difference is that much!!! Hills that were 3rd gear in the cruiser were now 5th in the GU. Note that I have added a Dtronic so i have 420Nm of torque at 2,000rpm. The cruiser has 272Nm so its no suprise that the extra 148Nm in the GU makes one heck of a differnce. Thats 4Nm more torque than the V8 100 series cruiser!!!. Fuel economy is just over 15L/100kms when towing so not only can you stick at 100 km/hr up the hills, you get better economy.

The other thing is overtaking, something I virtually never did in the 1HZ. Any overtaking required a long straight stretch. Now in the 3.0TD GU I was regularly overtaking and could reach 140 km/hr, something that the 1HZ couldn't even dream of (note - I do not condone these speeds when towing, but they can be achieved if required).

Now dinasours like Roachie don't have much time for the GU 3.0TD (and early models certainly had more than their fair share of problems) but I reckon the series III or later 3.0TD's are as reliable as any vehicle on the market. While the 1HZ has a proven track record, they are old technology and are fuel inefficient and power deficient in comparison to the high tech diesels.

But to balance the comparison, the 1HZ was in its element in low range first gear tracks at idle. It has oodles of torque at very low revs and I cannot think of a better engine for this type of work. But put it on a beach or soft sand where power is everything and the 3.0TD will simply blow it away, there is no comparison. Even with a Dtronic, the high tech, small capacity diesels achilles heel is very low revs. At these speeds they are a low compression (17:1 vs 22:1) small motor without the turbo spooled up to breath enough air. Also engine braking is not as good, simple maths says a smaller lower compression engine cannot be as good.

Now if you are like me, unfortunately we spend 90% of out time driving on the blacktop dreaming about being in 4WD. The point is that as a daily driver the 3.0TD easily keeps up with traffic and still gets 11 l/100kms whereas the 1HZ is simply a slug.

If I had my time again, I would not change a thing. I reckon the 3.0TD is the best compromise for what I do and if you have a simliar situation then I can recommend this from experience - not the usual hearsay and bias that you often read in forums :)

Cheers

Captain

Why do you spend time answering these questions??

4.2lt v 3.0lt?

Was hes name Charlie Sheen?

Charlie,
basically it comes down to what you want in a tow vehicle. As other follow ups have said the 1HZ will do the job non turbo but will be slow. Slow is not a problem if your not in any hurry. For me, I am fitting a turbo mainly for towing. I am no race driver when on public roads but towing in hilly country gets really frustrating for me, slugging up hills at snails pace hour after hour. So the Denco kit, with intercooler, will be bolted on in the very near future. After much research and discussion with various experts I am of the understanding that there is no comparison.

Toytruck

Charlie I fitted a turbo to my 1995 troopy 18 months ago and towing our 2t van is not too bad I just sit in 4th gear most of the time at 90, Hills are not a great problem, but I do need to drop back to 4th and hills like Cunninghams gap I use third.

Regards Bob