Is a Nissan patrol a good idea?

Hello guys!

This is my first topic in this forum.

I am looking for a good vehicle to do offroading (not serious, just some weekend warrior things. Camping and stuff too haha) and I'm preparing for an overland trip in a couple of years from Cape Town to Lisbon in Portugal. I have found some nice Jeeps (Sorry, I know this is not the place for jeeps) Wranglers but I also have found some nice deals on the Nissan Patrol Y61. The problem is that as I live in Dubai all the engine trims I can get are 4500 and 4800. No diesel in this sandpit unfortunately.

Has anyone had an experience with this engine for long travel? Luckily fuel is cheap here so it doesn't hurt so much the poor fuel economy of this car but in Africa it will hurt.

Has anybody ever used a Patrol like this for long trips?

Thank you very much, I'll continue reading the stories in this forum.

Very good vehicles as like the Terrano they use truck petrol engines which are built for reliability and durability.

Welcome JuandriR!

I wouldn't worry about the petrol vs. diesel issue. You can find either in most places. Nissan makes some good trucks, so try to find one in good shape mechanically and you're good to go, I wouldn't discount the Jeep Wranglers either. I drove one for about ten years and never had a problem with it. There is a guy circumnavigating Africa now in a Wrangler JK: http://theroadchoseme.com/

Choose what you are comfortable with and make it work. People have done those kind of trips in everything from home-built dune buggies to converted lorries.

I look forward to hearing about your plans as they develop!

Actually, an interesting story that kind of puts your idea into perspective is this book I read recently. Peter Fleming was a British engineer working in Oman in the 1970's. One of his buddies handed him one piece of an old Land Rover sliding glass window as a joke and challenged him to build a vehicle around it. So, Peter took on the challenge and by scavenging bits in old scrap yards assembled a truck. When it was done he drove back to England from Oman when his contract ended. So, starting off with a truck in one piece is a much easier proposition!

Tembo wrote:

One of his buddies handed him one piece of an old Land Rover sliding glass window as a joke and challenged him to build a vehicle around it. So, Peter took on the challenge and by scavenging bits in old scrap yards assembled a truck.

A great challenge in itself, the Oman-England trip really was icing on the cake.

Hi and welcome.

Nissan Patrol, the French off road community love them for all types of stuff from mud plugging to expedition vehicles.

As long as you stay away from the hateful Chromosexual Navarra pick up you should be fine, we had two as company vehicles and they were woeful plagued by electrical issues, recalls fractured wheels and the older ones suffer from terminal tin worm these days or though that said in a dry country that shouldn't present a problem.

Long live the mighty Patrol.