Offroad-Express

Hi all,

I am looking at getting back into 4WD'N, but not in an extreme way, i,e I will be doing the odd outing to Red Rocks and trails similar to this, but nothing full on, I suppose Shiny is all I intend to do.

Now here is my dilema, I have been reading the forum and have asked questions about certain trucks, but cant really decide what to go for and are now looking for some advice.

The advice I am looking for is positive advice (why you would recommend the truck) as I have read everything and anything on this forum as to WHY not to purchase a specific truck each time I have found one which I think would be suitable.

I am presently looking at the following options:

SWB Pajero
Bighorn
Nissan Terrano
Hilux Surf

And the only mod to any of these would be a lift and bigger tyres in time.

All of the above mentioned trucks will be petrol as I will not use the truck enough to justify all the add on cost associated with diesel millage.

On a side note, I have a friend who has a SWB Pajero which has a 50mm lift and is running a 3.8 V6 Commy engine which has been certed.

The catch is........ (which if I get it checked out will give me all the answers.

* Its currently dropping some oil
* White smoke on start up (could be due to that its never used
* And the biggie, popped the radiator cap and the radiator is full of brown muck, spoke to a mechanic and he said a flush would sort this. But, im my opinion looks like, smells like and could be a head gasket. But, the weird thing is that you can still cruise around in it without a problem (yet?).

I know this question has been covered several times over re which 4WD to purchase , but I am hopping to find out about the positives re the above mentioned trucks.

commy motors are a dime a dozen...you can pick up a decent runner for $150...

ive got a vr motor sitting in my shed thats had flowed heads and a cam, and i cant sell it...

that would be your best option in my opinion..

nothing wrong with a SWB 3.0 or 3.5 litre Pajero.
getting something in standard form potentially means less ongoing niggles to deal with.

Get a surf they go hard stock standard and you'll be able to fit 31's on without a lift.

heres an idea...

because its YOU buying and driving it...

get the one YOU like...



edit: the commy motor needs new radiator and head gaskets and or heads/overhauled or new second hand motor. looking around the 1k (maybe more) to drop off at a workshop to do this if you cant do yourself so you have to add that to purchase price

i'm a toyota man and love the surfs and really only know surfs so ill coment on those,have had mine 5 years,gone most places i wanted,as said throw some 31s on easy enough of body lift and 33s,mine originally had the 3ye and although no power house just keep on going,well till it blew up anyway ,plenty of room to sleep in them and have gear,as you've said all trucks have there down sides but with my surf ive found those problems reasonably easy to get around
a note on your mates truck,as said engines are cheap as and if already certed saves you the hassle and i would say would go quite well

Anything will do as a shiny if it has a low range.

So look at everything and get the truck you think is in the best condition for the $$ being asked for it.

D21 Terrano's are well priced at the moment and are as tough as they come.

Have to agree with this^^^ The TD27's are an awesome motor and reliable as, my dads ute is up to 440,000 and still going hard

BMC wrote:I am presently looking at the following options:

SWB Pajero
Bighorn
Nissan Terrano
Hilux Surf

Hi BMC and welcome to the forums,

As said the Best Truck is the one you like driving the most,

Saying that *My* pick of the lot (and Ive owned every truck on the list except the Terrano) would be the V6 Terrano, they drive nicely on road and with bigger tires and a bit of work to the weak front suspension go pretty much anywhere.

Paj's and bighorns both drive nicely on road but I always got the feeling that they "felt" top heavy on sidlings, the old Gen 1 Paj in particular are very narrow and tippy feeling.


Petrol V6 IFS Surfs are known as hand grenades waiting to blow, the older model 2L Petrols are bulletproof but a little gutless. From my experience the IFS Surf is one of the nicest 4wd's to drive on long trips, they are nice to drive and feel more like a car than a 4x4.

V6 Terrano's have reserves of grunt, parts are plentiful and i've become extremely impressed with there offroad ability.

take all of them for a drive and see what one says "buy me" for the type of 4wd'ing you want to do, all of them would fit the bill. Out of the box Stock though the Terrano would prob be the best offroad and weak steering aside be the most reliable.

just my 2 cents worth.

Cheers Meece

[quote="wopass"]heres an idea...

because its YOU buying and driving it...

get the one YOU like...



I agree get what you like to drive, go and try some

its gotta feel right for you to enjoy it..

when i got my first 4x4 (90 mu) we test drove a surf,terrano (v6), a bighorn, and paj...we settled on the mu cos it handled well, and had the power over the rest,and the brakes were better too..

it also helped that i used to work for paul kelly motor co at the time so i knew all about the pros and cons of most jap trucks..

we got a warranty for it straight away as i noticed some rtv on the sump....6 months later it did the mains,so it got a brand new rebuilt motor put it at $6000,cost us $350...was an awesome truck but being a swb it was twitchy on wet open roads..towed my racecar just fine..

i then got a cheapy 87 surf from the buy sell for $1200,had a blow by infected 2lt in it,got it a wof,reg etc,fitted a catch can and sold it before it expired...was allright to drive,even offroad it was quite capable..

then got a 92 proceed, lwb made it a c---t to turn into parking spots and round tight bends,but was good on the roads and on some tracks, didnt have much power and used heaps of fuel,but also towed well and could crawl pretty good for a petrol 2.6...

weve now got a 2000 explorer, i wouldnt even consider taking it offroad...dont ask...we are wanting to sell this now that ive just got a 92 ln130 surf.....


so definately try before you buy..even ask some owners of different trucks for a spin or a ride to see how each goes...

im stoked with my surf i just got,even though i havent seen it in the flesh yet(not until next month)..i only paid $2000 for it with wof/reg/rucs,new tyres and shocks...i just hope it makes it back home from auckland

Just my2c I have had a LWB Gen1 V6 Pajero in the past and now have a V6 SWB Bighorn (Safari's inbetween)

The bighorn would be my pick of the bunch at 280kms it doesnt blow any smoke and always starts first pop. Cant beat Heated Recaro Seats, the Irmisher's have Sway bar disconnects in the rear & feel really stable on and off road I have fit 32inch tyres with LWB springs and a small wind up of the front. The 5 speed manual's are good for off road use I would recomend getting a H/D clutch as the standard ones cant handle to much before they slip (speaking from experience) unless its just my driving style.

I have been in a LWB one and they did feel quite dodgy on side slopes but it was completely standard on H/T tyres.

But each to there own you will know the one you want right after you leave the driveway for a test drive.

Thanks for all the good advice so far.

Agree, I suppose I need to get out and try a few.

What I intend on doing, i.e user friendly trails, most trucks will do with ease, but like you have all said, confidence and comfort in the trucks ability go a long way.....

In the past I have run a 1998 2ltr Grand Vitara on A/T's, I found it quite capable in stock form but lacked a bit of grunt and after market or cheap improvements were not available.

At least you now know what I am compairing the above mentioned trucks with now, and I suspect the GV would loose hands down to them, besides being more modern and less thrashed.......

BMC wrote:Thanks for all the good advice so far.

Agree, I suppose I need to get out and try a few.

What I intend on doing, i.e user friendly trails, most trucks will do with ease, but like you have all said, confidence and comfort in the trucks ability go a long way.....

In the past I have run a 1998 2ltr Grand Vitara on A/T's, I found it quite capable in stock form but lacked a bit of grunt and after market or cheap improvements were not available.

At least you now know what I am compairing the above mentioned trucks with now, and I suspect the GV would loose hands down to them, besides being more modern and less thrashed.......

Go Terrano, If your only doing user friendly tracks then you dont need to worry about the front end, and the rest of the vehicle is reliable as!

i've found the pajeros to be really nice to drive on and off road.They have got a really strong driveline esp in the front end. If your after a good hassle free truck that wont need a tie rod or cv replaced after a trip then thats what i'dgo for.
With a lift with good rear springs/wound up front and some manual front hubs you'll have a good everyday truck that can go places.