Petrol Pajero NP

[pauld]

Hi Guys,

I have a friend who is comparing a few cars at the moment but it is looking likely he will be in the market for an NP Pajero, Petrol.
Wants to spend about 15K odd.
Isn't a 4wder or camper but will use to drag a few trees around his bush block.
Rarely tows, never a caravan.
I don't know much about the petrol Pajeros.

I know all the answers will be already here somewhere but in different sections, would very much appreciate some answers to the following questions from the knowledge base:

- What year did ASC, ABS and TC come into the Pajero? I recall that the Exceed may have got these goodies earlier?

- What year did the 3.5 migrate to the 3.8? How do the two compare, is it as simple as you would definitely want the 3.8?

- Common problems - the only one that I would be aware of is companion shafts but this is unlikely to affect him anyway. What else?

Anyone got one for sale in Melbourne?

Thanks in advance.

[dolphin]

drag the trees around with a nice NP. tell the mate he only needs an old landrover or hilux ect for this .

[Bundyk]

The 3.8 was fitted to the MY04 (from late 03) and i believe all the electronic aids were fitted at the same time. Exceed did get them a little earlier from memory

Common probs as for most gen 3's, clogged radiator, companion shafts, temp gauge, cracked exhaust manifolds. Make sure the services have been done properly (obviously)

[pauld]

drag the trees around with a nice NP. tell the mate he only needs an old landrover or hilux ect for this .

Sorry, I might have confused the issue, the only off road he will do is dragging some trees, he will do maybe 10-15K of on road kms per year also, mostly around town.

[Easykill1978]

Hi Guys,

- What year did ASC, ABS and TC come into the Pajero? I recall that the Exceed may have got these goodies earlier?

- What year did the 3.5 migrate to the 3.8? How do the two compare, is it as simple as you would definitely want the 3.8?

- Common problems - the only one that I would be aware of is companion shafts but this is unlikely to affect him anyway. What else?

Anyone got one for sale in Melbourne?

Thanks in advance.

ok ASC, ABS and tc are stock with the diesel.

Petrol economy not so good, esp driving from home to farm/plot.. with the diesel its easy 10l/100km.. not to mention the torque and low rpm..infact my weekly fuel dockets expire before i get to use them..

i got mine for 12k drive away...

[pauld]

ok ASC, ABS and tc are stock with the diesel.

Petrol economy not so good, esp driving from home to farm/plot.. with the diesel its easy 10l/100km.. not to mention the torque and low rpm..infact my weekly fuel dockets expire before i get to use them..

i got mine for 12k drive away...

He wants / needs petrol for a legitimate reason to do with $. Not a story to explain on here.

"ok ASC, ABS and tc are stock with the diesel." - are you saying there is a difference between petrol and diesel with these?

[Ian Sharpe]

I have an NP Exceed petrol 3.5l , Oct 2003 build. Has ABS, EBD, TC, but no ASC.

I don't rate them ahead of the Gen 2 NL, but its too hard to get low k NLs now, whereas much more NM, NPs around. They are noisey on the road, harsher in the suspension & bigger for parking etc (all IMO) .

cheers

[Easykill1978]

He wants / needs petrol for a legitimate reason to do with $. Not a story to explain on here.

"ok ASC, ABS and tc are stock with the diesel." - are you saying there is a difference between petrol and diesel with these?

yes for petrols i believe abs came standard and the rest was optional.. unless you got the exceed.

[pauld]

Can anyone tell me more about cracked manifolds? How common? Is this caused by anything such as perhaps vehicle on LPG?

[jjacer]

Manifold cracking is just an inherent fault with 'em although mine have 250k up and still intact.
Temp gauge issue is well known and an easy fix if you own a soldering iron and have 40 mins spare.
Also watch for leaking top gaskets/seals, plug tube 'o' rings and rear cam seals too-common issue after 200k.
Front hubs can be a problem too-usually one side or the other rarely both.
My radiator recently had it's first check since new in 2000 and was like new still but some report issues with clogging probably due to incompatible coolants being used etc.
The 3.5v6 is a great motor and underrated imho but tyhen I haven't driven a 3.8 though.
The whole diesel thing is really dependant on what you do more often and what you can live with for example most diesels wear the drivetrain components quicker due to max torque at lower rpm, they cost more up front usually and cost more to service, they also have their own issues which tend to be ridiculously expensive to repair compared to petrol variants ( single row timing chains breaking causing massive engine damage with no warning, dpf filters clogging and injector failures all very expensive repairs).
I don't know about some of the reports about noise/handling etc but my NM is very quiet & well mannered on road but that may be due to my choice of tyres. Coming off a week on Fraser Island recently my two passengers from Melbourne couldn't believe the limo like performance especially after how brilliantly the paj handled the rough stuff.
Overall they are a great vehicle with a few quirks like most 4x4's but I reckon it is the best vehicle of any type I've ever owned and definitely the best all rounder by far.

[BarryM48]

I traded the following in on a new GLX-R on 4/10/2013. Full service history and the companion shafts were done June 2012.

I found it a great truck!

http://www.tradingpost.com.au/Automo...D4584502629012

Got $11k trade in

[Mitsu Miyagi]

The 3.8 was fitted to the MY04 (from late 03) and i believe all the electronic aids were fitted at the same time. Exceed did get them a little earlier from memory

^^^ this

Have a look on carsales/redbook. Even the base model GLX in 04' got ABS, EBD, Brake assist, Traction & Stability Control.

Base model GLX passenger airbag was an option until it became standard in 05'

Petrol very heavy on fuel, expect 18L/100km around town, and thats driving like miss daisy, trust me. Love the car though......

[Bundyk]

Can anyone tell me more about cracked manifolds? How common? Is this caused by anything such as perhaps vehicle on LPG?

They are quite common, not caused by LPG or anything like that, more just rubbish casting it would seem. I replaced mine with Pacemaker extractors as the original manifolds are fairly expensive. Keep in mind, the 3.8 has EGR which runs off the drivers side manifold. My Pacemakers have a provision for the valve, the exhaust shop just needs to drill the centre of it out.

[jjacer]

^^^ this

Have a look on carsales/redbook. Even the base model GLX in 04' got ABS, EBD, Brake assist, Traction & Stability Control.

Base model GLX passenger airbag was an option until it became standard in 05'

Petrol very heavy on fuel, expect 18L/100km around town, and thats driving like miss daisy, trust me. Love the car though......

My 3.5 gets consistent 14l/100klms around town and doesn't change much doing highway k's but making the change to 98 octane fuel has made a massive difference and I do mean massive.
Anyone who wants better fuel economy in their petrol Pajero should switch to high octane fuel, the extra cost at the bowser is more than compensated for in extra mileage.

[Mitsu Miyagi]

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