Faults:

* Radiator started to leak at the Zimbabwe-Botswana border. Used powdered curry to fix the problem.

* At 215000km at the Skeleton Coast, the front auto hub bearing started to make a noise. Turned the hub switch to full time - problem solved.

* Injectors stared to give troubles at 230000 km - a new set with work was 380 euro.

* Seats are uncomfortable for long drives - still have to find a solution to that...

General Comments:

4x4 legend. Big, chunky, reliable and dirt cheap to maintain, as long as you stick to regular oil changes (that's 9l every 5000 km).

Great for travelling! I removed the back seats, made a plywood arrangement to have a flat floor, installed a proper mattress, and took a drive through Africa from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean (over 6000 km).

This vehicle is a mammoth - a dead breed. No more Patrols with solid front axles are made by Nissan, except a single cab version. My Patrol uses about 13 liters of diesel for every 100 km. A bit more in the city drive mode.

It is not capable of reaching 100km per hour in less than 5 seconds, or even 15 seconds later it still is far from reaching 100 km/h, especially up-hill. Nevertheless, I love my car, because I can trust it. When travelling to places where one's life depend on a car's reliability and speed is not an issue, you can trust Patrol to get you through your adventure, and then back to civilization.

This type of car will be highly sought after item in less than 20 years, that's my prediction.

Faults:

Alternator went twice.

Clutch went at 70000 miles, I did not use this car for towing.

Air flow meter.

Glow plug relay.

At 7000 miles, it took a mind of its own about whether would start or not. It would start perfect for one week, let you down the next, could not trace the problem.

General Comments:

All in all, I found this car OK. But being a Nissan, I thought it would be more reliable.

For a car with low mileage, there were a lot of problems. Other than that, it was OK.

It did about 32 miles per gallon of diesel, which is OK for a big heavy jeep. It would cruise all day at motorway speeds, but it takes a while to get there, so not one for the boy racers.

It is huge inside, but the boot seats do restrict loading space, as you cannot take them out.

In four wheel drive it would go anywhere; better I think than a Land Rover.

I would not buy another Patrol.