Nissan 3.0Litre diesel. Improving towing ability

Hi snoopyone, thanks for your response. I did get on to one of the Nissan forums and found a bit of info that was helpful and also a lot of comments written by people simply wanting to see their names in print. I have a feeling that someone in our group of readers probably has faced my exact problem and maybe did what I am proposing. Maybe I'll get lucky.

Cheers

Peter

Peter,
Try this forumhttp://www.patrol4x4.com/forum/ If you do a search there you will get heaps of info about your 3lt Patrol and engine mods to make it more reliable if you put a chip in it.
Cheers Dave.

Hi Terrafirma, thanks for your response. I have posted a reply to all those that responded to my questions and I covered your queries about vehicle age etc.

Cheers

Peter

Markie, Markie, mate you should know that the 3.0 lt in the Navara was built by God and 3.0 Litre in the Patrol was built by the Devil. LOL
Sorry we will not be at Silverton, but you may be able to join us next year in CQ, have a great time.

Cheers Bruce and Annie

hey Bruce.......you could be right there :-)

shame you guys will miss the gathering at Silverton.......must make a place to catch up again someday.

speaking of evil 4wds....i will have that 80 series following me out tobroken hill this year ;-)

speaking of evil 4wds....i will have that 80 series following me out to broken hill this year ;-)

AHAHAHA, You guna tow him all the way just to make sure he gets there.ROFLMAO.

Hmmm, What can I say Dave?
Pull ya head in
;)

Daza is right, too much truck for too little motor. I'm guessing your 20ft Goldstream van weighs in at somewhere near 3 ton loaded,then you have all your travelling goodies in the Patrol with you as well.
The Patrol weighs in at just under 3 ton so lets say for example , there's 6 ton your trying to lug up some of the mtns in the Snowy region, with a little 4 cyl diesel motor. On top of that the air down there is much thinner and the poor old motor is trying to breath with even further difficulty.
We dont have a turbo on our 4.2 Patrol, but its got more pull up hills than a float at the Gay Mardi Gras.

cheers Unc

Not so much too much truck for too little motor but too much truck for that particular disaster of a motor.

My Rangie 2.7 TDV6 is a heavier vehicle with a smaller motor and has absolutely no issues pulling 3.5t and the later versions - 3.0TDV6 and 3.6TDV8 tow even better.

Garry

Alan

this stuff is even better than the MAF Sensor cleaner your talking about. had a friend spray her pajero sensor with the stuff from Supercheap and it coated the sensor with a film of some sort. she gave the Maf sensor a hit with the circuit board cleaner and her engine has never run better.

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you can buy it from Jaycar

Hi Andrew,

Is there any way I can contact you please ?
Looking for some info from your set up on the 2003 3.0 ltr turbo Diesel and the Dtronic Chip.
Can't send you a message, not a member.

Thank You P&J

Pete

just give me your Email and I'll respond to it..

Don' t realy like putting over internet, as have had trouble before doing that.
It involved Police and more. How else can I do it ??

I think the only other way is join as a member, then you can send messages to who ever you like...I think...

hey guys.
maybe if a moderator is reading this or if you "alert moderator" one might be able to send contact details off forum for you?

just a thought?

cheers.

I think Robin is on the ball here about fitting manual hubs.
By going into low range it effectively halves the effort for every gear.
Of course this would only be used when absolutely necessary but it's much friendlier on the clutch as well.
Regards Andrew.

I have read all the replies to your ? and see no body has mentioned Diesel / Gas installation
I had D/G fitted to my 2002 Navara some 4 years ago and the extra torque and power is truly amazing.
I was actually about to post a thread on my experience with D/G after 4years so apart from the power and torque I am now getting 13k's / litre up from around 10. This seems to have been a gradual increase having gone to 11, 11.5 12 12.5 and now 13 since installation. I really can't explain this gradual increase but I have also been using 2 stroke oil at 200ml to 70 litres of fuel. Has this made the difference I don't know just thought I'd give you the figures.
I do agree that a decent flow through exhaust would be an advantage ( I don't have one but would if I had the money)
Anyway just my thought for the day

Regards
Richard

pop-Im no fan of the ZD30, but I reckon your theory may be a little to simplistic.
If what you suggest was the case then there would be no 3 litre or smaller TD that was successful.
I think its a little more in the case of (as suggested) too much car for an incapable motor. Note that it seems this engine has been quite successful in the Navara.

Thanks Shane, of all the responses I have read I seized on yours because you have actually done what I am proposing. I really needed to hear from someone who has fitted a chip, EGT gauge and/or free flowing exhaust. I am not looking for miracles with my ZD30- but an improvement that equates to money spent is important. Are you able to give me a bit more detail of your Patrol's performance as follows?

* On flat undulating roads in good conditions does the car "labour"in 5th gear?
* Does the car hold about 2600 rpm in 5th gear without excessive throttle?
* Are hill ascents noticeably easier ?
* At what odometer reading did you fit the DP Chip?
* Have you fitted a free flow ( 2.75 "- 3.0 ") exhaust ?

If you are able to respond I would be most grateful.

Thanks again to all who responded.

Pete Drew

Hi Peter,

First thing to do above all else if fit a boost gauge and EGT gauge. Then block the EGR. A big improvement on how fast the turbo spools up will be noticed as well as the quietness of the engine. Its easy to do, about an hour all up. Get an ECU talk or a scangauge for your patrol as blocking the EGR will throw up the occasional code. It's nothing to worry about when the engine light comes on for this reason. It's just saying that the EGR isn't working. The ECU talk will clear the code.

My DP chip was fitted at 70000kms. I don't have a bigger exhaust.

I do not tow in 5th gear at all as I dont sit on any higher than 95kph. If i drive faster than this with all the weight the EGT are around 430 degrees. If I sit on 95kph the EGT are around 370 (on the gauge, plus 150 to 200 degrees as the probe is installed after the turbo). It cruises easily on 95 in 4th gear with the van on the back, tinny on the roof and heaps of other crap.

If i hit a big hill I am generally back to third gear doing about 60 to 70kph. I just take it easy and watch the EGT. I pretty much drive to keep it under 400 degrees.

Blocking the EGR will see an increase in boost. You need to install the boost gauge first so that a base line can be gained on the boost levels.

Fitting a bigger exhaust will generally see higher boost again. After these mods you might need to install a dawes valve to set the boost at a pre determined amount.

The CRD engine which I have has a smarter ECU which controls the boost better with these mods.

Best advice I can give you is to get on the Patrol forum and read, read, read. See you on there.

Shane

Thanks Shane for responding so quickly. Have taken everything on board and will make some enquiries re cost etc over next few days. Will post a report once I have made any mods. I keep very accurate records of fuel economy so will be able to report actual improvement accurately. Will be taking the van away to Mitta Mitta in Nth East Vic on Grand Final weekend so that will be the first major test.

Cheers

Pete

Hi Pete,

Shane has offered some excellent advice here, I had done some of it to my old GU (Chip, EGT block) and was vey happy with the improvement. About the only thing I would add is an exhaust, not for the power increase (though it will help) but because it will lower EGT. Having too high an EGT is arguably the biggest cause of the 3L being a "grenade". Anything to lower EGT can only be good :)

Cheers

Captain

Hi Damo1970

Thanks also for your comments. You along with Shane have confirmed my intention to have a new exhaust and chip fitted. It will be done next Monday (12/9) and I will post results about a week later. Results of towing will have to wait until after Grand Final weekend which is when we head off to Mitta Mitta in NE Vic. Work will be done by MTQ in Dandenong Vic. I will detail what was done in a further post.

Cheers and thanks again

Pete Drew