Prado 120 series some help...

[Prerderp Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Prerderp]

I'm just another person jumping on the petrol bandwagon.

I've only noticed two real problems in owning a petrol engine:

1. When towing, every single time you get to an incline on the highway - it's really annoying having to constantly pull out to overtake all the diesels who ran out of power and can't maintain the speed limit.

2. There's no such thing as high-flow petrol pumps. The thing has 180L tanks, it takes like 10 minutes to fill up from empty.

In all seriousness, I've never been wanting for more power or torque with the petrol. I've said it in a different thread before, power is more important than torque anyway. If you're running low on torque, you can shift down a gear. If you're running low on power, there's not much you can do but slow down.

[vitelli Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close vitelli]

oh no, dont go there..................

[AussieAndy Find all posts View Profile Close AussieAndy]

Nitrous
Turbo
Meth injection

Realise it's a 4wd and smile

[Dabeanian Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dabeanian]

Dont you love pp people he he.
Cheers alan.

[Pradopolous Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pradopolous]

If u want to drive a car hard buy a hsv or rex, both the diesel and petrol have their good and bad points. These are 2 ton plus slugs, folks are deluding themselves rambling on about smoking cars at the lights like some round here.. Both make power, in different ways and thus need to be driven differently.

If u think yr going to be doing alot more shorter suburban trips, buy petrol, but if yr doing more longer trips perhaps a d4d might suit. They both go well and dont get to hung up about some of the bs bandied round these forums. Some make out every diesel is gonna explode, bewlsheet. 2008 onwards d4ds have fewer issues, find an earlier model with service history and u will be fine, either way. egr plate, bin the cat cheap upgrades for the d4d

FYI, i filled both tanks up on bp ultimate diesel but not right to the top of the filler and ive just turned over 1421kms and it still hasnt hit E yet running a/c 90% of the time with 70% highway kms, so might get another 100kms possibly before the orange light flashes, so if range touring is a consideration ???

before i purchased mine i did lots and lots of reading and am reasonably up to speed with the issues, apart from the injectors, seats they a very reliable and i bought a plum well looked after car, be patient still lots of good 08's out there..........and its always been about torque, always.

Now go buy one

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

Funny how just about every battered up old Prado I have seen across this country is a petrol. The diesel models always appear to be in better condition.

[scottrods Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close scottrods]

Hi gang.

I'm in the same boat as @Bash - trying to select my first 120 series, over here on the Eastern Island (NZ). Possibly trying to import from Japan, but now find out that from 1st March 2016, we can't bring in an SUV without Electronic Stability Control. So - which model of 120 series is that std on? I think VX only, but can't find enough info on which year they started the ESC on the 120 series.

[MidLifeCrisis Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close MidLifeCrisis]

You missed my point, the original poster asked what is better to buy 2nd hand. I suggested a petrol auto as it's a nicer car to drive daily and is bullet proof reliable. Why buy into a potential money pit if you don't need to...

You can listen to people talk crap all day about diesels. I'm not asking for anyone's comments, these are my comments based upon my experiences.

I have a D4D, I have it serviced every 10k, I only use quality original parts and the thing still exploded at 76K. Cracked and holed number 1 and cracked number 3. It has a new engine, a diesel. In my opinion the D4D is not a reliable engine, requiring too many modifications and too much additional attention.

If you have to have an endoscope shoved up your rear every 10K your are terminally ill and that's what the experts say you should do with a D4D.

If you have to have your arteries blocked with something that gives a 7mm hole, you have a problem, your not operating normally, same with the D4D.

If you have blocked arteries you're in trouble, same as the blocked oil filter in the sump. AVOID this crap at all costs.

There is no relaxing with this crap motor, just waiting to be the next victim and this is not a small numbers game, if you chose to not make any modifications and chose to follow the service book, the numbers are statistically against you compared to better built motors where shortcuts to emissions measurements are not done in a cheap arsed fashion.

Buy a petrol that does NOT have these issues.

[slydar Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close slydar]

Go Petrol .....Diesel means worry at each fill up on a bad tank and alot more out of town

you don't want a bad batch of LPG either - friend of mine got it on the way to cairns, cost a pretty penny to clean it out but at least the engine lived through it

[5T3L7H Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close 5T3L7H]

If u want to drive a car hard buy a hsv or rex.

Hi Bash,

Please forgive the extremely long post, but for what it's worth, I was in exactly the same situation as you about 3 months ago (minus the boat towing). I lost my Prado virginity late last year, and in doing so will very soon be selling my lightly modified 2006 WRX (hence the quote from Pradopolous' post). I ended up deciding on a 2005 petrol Prado.

The other half and I do a bit of hiking and camping, as well as mountain biking. The WRX was just becoming impractical to carry all our gear, and it prevented us from accessing some sites, which spoiled our plans on a few occasions. Although our gear would never weigh close to as much as a towed boat, its still a little extra weight, maybe 200kg on a bigger trip (camping gear, bikes, tools, firewood, etc). The petrol doesn't even notice the difference on flat ground, and barely makes a difference climbing hills. I was hesitant when buying a 4WD, thinking I'd be frustrated with the lack of throttle response, coming from a pretty lively car. I've never once found myself complaining about sluggish behavior.

Some of my personal reasons for choosing the petrol are as follows, many have already been mentioned, and they are in no particular order:

• There is significant feedback on here that the petrol engine is more reliable. When doing my research, I read posts from lots of diesel owners that regretted their decision, and wished they went petrol. Didn't come across many (not any at all?) petrol owners that wish they went diesel.
• Petrol has much better throttle response.
• Lower purchase cost - The 5-10K you save can go a long way towards modifications if you are planning any.
• Difference in fuel costs is negligible in my opinion, the oil tycoons shaft us either way, petrol or diesel. Unless you fill up once per week or more, any difference would be minimal. Comparing petrol and diesel is not the same as comparing petrol and hybrid, for example, where there is a very substantial difference in economy. (And as others have said, the savings on the purchase price can justify this difference if its a concern.)
• I chose the 2005 in particular, as it has the 5 speed box, so gives better economy than earlier models.
• Easier to service a petrol myself, saving money (I know lots will debate this, it's just based on my own personal experience, having never touched a diesel engine before)

If your boat isn't 2T or more, I'd say the petrol will tow it just fine (that's only based on feedback from others and prior research, not from experience). As people have said, yes, petrol will use more fuel. But if you own a boat, and you're considering a 4WD, I'm assuming you'll be able to afford the fuel bill either way? If fuel is a huge concern, sell your boat and your current car, and buy a Tesla. lol

I was worried I'd regret not buying the diesel for the fuel economy and extra range. 3 months in, and I haven't regretted it once. Even if range was an issue, you can fit an after market replacement subtank, giving you 260L of petrol on board (I think?). Not many places you can't reach with that much fuel...

The majority of my driving is short suburban trips (yes, I hate my life). We do longer drives ranging from 50km to 500km when we go hiking, biking, etc, but sometimes there are several weeks between trips. In terms of fuel economy, I always use 98 octane, and I'm getting 1100-1300km from a fill (170ish L, give or take). The fluctuation is obviously due to traffic, where I'm driving (I don't drive it to work, so it doesn't have a "standard daily route"), and how excited my right foot is feeling. I don't think that's bad at all for a 4L engine, hauling a 2.5T car around, half the time stuck in the chaos presented by inner Sydney suburbs! I fitted a bullbar and winch the first week I got it, so you'd get even better economy if you ran the car without these.

Also being my first 4WD, I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of drive-ability. I was given an analogy from the previous owners, and I believe it explains it well. The petrol drives more like a "normal car". A diesel drives more like a "4WD". I know that might sound overly simplified and a bit stupid, but it made sense to me, and still does now that I own the car. Interestingly, the previous owners of my car were selling as they had upgraded to a 2015 Landcruiser Sahara diesel (no petrol version available apparently?). They loved the new car, obviously very pimp, but were unhappy with the characteristics of the diesel, and missed the responsiveness of the petrol engine.

As Pradopolous said though, don't expect the petrol to be a race car like people are making out, because its not. That's one thing I will miss about my WRX - If I chose to drive like a hooning tosser, I could smoke people at the lights (Don't knock it if you haven't tried it. And for the record, I only ever did it when it was "safe" to do so on an empty road. I'm not one of those people that drives like an eff-wit in traffic...) But with that driving background in mind, I am more than happy with how the petrol Prado performs when I put my foot down. It drinks fuel like a fish when you do, but I think that should be expected with any car. Feather foot it, and the economy is great for what you're getting (Remember, you're not buying a 1000cc Mini Cooper that weighs 800kg!).

The only common negative I can think of with the petrol engine is the "ticking" noise it has. I've done some research on this since I got mine. If you test drive some, the sound is very much like an exhaust leak. Be prepared for that, because almost every petrol you drive will have it. It's not a leak, its actually caused by the shape of the factory exhaust manifold. Well documented on here and other sites. If it bothers you it can be fixed, or at least reduced by swapping over to some after market extractors.

Only other thing worth mentioning is the infamous cracking dashboard... Lots of the 120 series have issues where the vinyl on the dash starts to crack, even if the car has been garaged its whole life! It's a manufacturing defect, and Toyota are aware of it. Apparently they have a "10 year customer satisfaction program" running, where they will replace cracked dashboards that are less than 10 years old. One of the reasons I picked my car out was because the dash was in primo condition when I bought it. I was aware of the issue when I was car searching, and asked the owners if they ever had it replaced. They said "No". Some dashes don't experience the cracking, so I figured this was just one of the lucky ones. A month later, and it started to crack, despite living in a garage at home... Just very unfortunate timing I guess. I haven't had the chance to make it down to Toyota yet, but plan to very soon, as it would have just scraped outside the 10 year mark. My advice - If this bothers you, find a car that has already had the dash replaced.

They're really a great car, and no matter what year you pick, or what fuel type, I'm very sure you'll get a lot of enjoyment out of it. Just thought I'd share my experience, because it is very similar to your situation, and is pretty current. Hope the feedback helps. Keep us updated with how you go, and enjoy the forum. So many automotive geniuses on here, its a seriously great resource.

Best of luck with the search!

Dan

[slydar Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close slydar]

Hi gang.

I'm in the same boat as @Bash - trying to select my first 120 series, over here on the Eastern Island (NZ). Possibly trying to import from Japan, but now find out that from 1st March 2016, we can't bring in an SUV without Electronic Stability Control. So - which model of 120 series is that std on? I think VX only, but can't find enough info on which year they started the ESC on the 120 series.

just bought such a beast and it has it (2006 VX)

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

[QUOTE=scottrods;537703]Over here on the Eastern Island (NZ). Possibly trying to import from Japan, but now find out that from 1st March 2016, we can't bring in an SUV without Electronic Stability Control. /QUOTE]

Well, if the driving styles and (in)abilities of your countrymen resident over here in Aus is any indication then your government has made a wise decision.

[Sumodog Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Sumodog]

I'm just another person jumping on the petrol bandwagon.

I've only noticed two real problems in owning a petrol engine:

1. When towing, every single time you get to an incline on the highway - it's really annoying having to constantly pull out to overtake all the diesels who ran out of power and can't maintain the speed limit.

2. There's no such thing as high-flow petrol pumps. The thing has 180L tanks, it takes like 10 minutes to fill up from empty.

In all seriousness, I've never been wanting for more power or torque with the petrol. I've said it in a different thread before, power is more important than torque anyway. If you're running low on torque, you can shift down a gear. If you're running low on power, there's not much you can do but slow down.

We own GR petrol and V9X in the family and both drive well . On highway inclines V9X absolutely destroys a GR .Trailer or no trailer. Speed limit not an issue .