8 Months into owning a 95 GXL Manual Prado (Petrol)

[Duffer34 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Duffer34]

Just thought i would put my experiences of owning my Prado to date.

Loving the solidness of the car, had it on an off road training course and it put a few of the Patrols to shame that had $$$$'s spent on lift kits and big wheels and tyres. Still think about the Range Rover Sport- but the build quality of the Prado is so bloody good the Range Rover Sport takes a back seat!!!!.

I have the leather interior (factory option) and i love the cabin, very good for the corporate life in the city, and off the beaten track it comes into its own. Sometimes i get a bit frustrated with the fuel costs but i love driving this beast so much that it doesn't bother me that much.

Upgrade the speaker system with an Eclipse SAT NAV head unit and MB Quart speakers which sound unbelievable.

I have always had VW's GTI's and BMW's, this is my first toyota since i had a Camry 10 years ago, it wasn't the most beautiful car on the road but it went for so long it was amazing and drove like new.

I cant think of any car that i would trade my Prado for, i'm not a massive fan of the 150 so god knows what is next but at this rate i can see me keeping the Prado till it dies and buying a nice Audi A4 Avant Sline for the other half to cruise around in!!!!!.

Keen to hear some thoughts from some other Prado chaps!!!!!

cheers

Nick

[geograzza Member Find all posts View Profile Close geograzza]

I've had my 03 GXL for almost 2 years, and like you I'm loving it. The fuel economy isn't real flash, but that's a small price to pay for such a nice vehicle.
In the next few months we'll need to change our commodore for something that will be inexpensive and have room for 4 trainee humans. Even though it won't need to be a 4x4, at the moment a 90 series Prado is probably near the top of the pile because they are such a versatile vehicle.

[EasyCompany24 Member Find all posts View Profile Close EasyCompany24]

Just thought i would put my experiences of owning my Prado to date.

Loving the solidness of the car, had it on an off road training course and it put a few of the Patrols to shame that had $$$$'s spent on lift kits and big wheels and tyres. Still think about the Range Rover Sport- but the build quality of the Prado is so bloody good the Range Rover Sport takes a back seat!!!!.

I have the leather interior (factory option) and i love the cabin, very good for the corporate life in the city, and off the beaten track it comes into its own. Sometimes i get a bit frustrated with the fuel costs but i love driving this beast so much that it doesn't bother me that much.

Upgrade the speaker system with an Eclipse SAT NAV head unit and MB Quart speakers which sound unbelievable.

I have always had VW's GTI's and BMW's, this is my first toyota since i had a Camry 10 years ago, it wasn't the most beautiful car on the road but it went for so long it was amazing and drove like new.

I cant think of any car that i would trade my Prado for, i'm not a massive fan of the 150 so god knows what is next but at this rate i can see me keeping the Prado till it dies and buying a nice Audi A4 Avant Sline for the other half to cruise around in!!!!!.

Keen to hear some thoughts from some other Prado chaps!!!!!

cheers

Nick

Hey.
That's pretty cool.. this is my 8th month of owning my Prado as well! Freakyy

[amec Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close amec]

I am into my 9th month of ownership of mine.

It has seen McKillops bridge and Buchan in Vic. 2 visits to Tom Groggin on the Murray River. Next month it is taking 2 mates and I to the Burke and Wills dig tree on the Cooper Creek. Weekend jaunts in the forest.

I got mine cheap, did the major servicing with the help of a friend. Timing belt, radiator, water pump, all fluids. New suspension, tyres (had 3 different tyre brands fitted). Made a fridge cabinet and fitted a fridge slide. Dual battery in the cargo area with a voltage sensitive regulator under the bonnet.

Love the car but not a fan of the fuel consumption. My previous car was a Mazda 121Metro. The definitive chalk and cheese comparison. A workmate recently purchased a diesel version of the same car and paid $14K more than me and his still uses fuel, but just a small amount less. He did a trip and wont tell me his fuel consumption... Makes me wonder.

[marknatasha89 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close marknatasha89]

I've owned my 5 speed 1999 3.4L 95 series for 2 years now. I LOVE the fuel economy because I had mine converted to LPG. Uses between 15 and 17L per 100km depending on city / highway mix, thus just over $10 per 100km using a Coles voucher. Given the federal LPG rebate, I calculated a conservative paypack period of 25 000km on the LPG, assuming equivalent resale value. I'm half way there already thanks to a smooth trip to the snow last year. My range is still at least 800km including the petrol subtank and 72L LPG tank, so I'm confident to tackle the Plenty highway in the next year or two. The fuel savings are working out as planned with no compromise to performance or reliability.

It has been completely reliable except for an electrical short that melted half the loom wires, nearly setting them on fire! It took 3 weeks and $2000 at the auto electrician to sort this one. It came down to poorly connected earth points under the battery and at the fuel pump (at the sub tank). Take note!

I have changed the timing belt (despite the 150 000km service stamp should have included a timing belt change), battery, belts, hoses, leads and plugs, checked the valve clearances (all within spec at 200 000km), installed a Blupac / Lovells 2" lift, cargo barrier, Thule roof racks and about to install a UHF CB. It already had an ARB bullbar, Bluetooth stereo, new King mags and Nexen 265 A/T's all round when I bought it.

It definitely exceeds my requirements and expectations, so hope to have it for years to come.