Nissan started calling its little Jeep-inspired thing the Patrol back in 1958. It was a very rugged vehicle with no creature comfort in sight. But it was reliable and a capable off-roader, the key ingredients if you are planning to hit the trails. The car that we feature today is a 1990 Nissan patrol 4.2 turbo the fourth generation of the patrol (Y60). Staying true to its roots, it is still very reliable machine (even 30 years later) and continues to be a capable off-roader.
For these reasons, it’s obvious why the Patrol is still popular in Cyprus and especially in the off-road scene. This was the selling point for the owner to acquire one,despite being from a Jeep family. Although the fourth generation of the Patrol was the first one to have coil springs on the rear axle instead of leaf springs, there is always room for improvement.
Function and form
As you may have noticed this Patrol is not only taller than stock, but also wider. That is owned to the 12-inch wide wheels and 35″ BF Goodrich tyres and a 5-inch old man emu lift kit. Also, some fiberglass fender flares are working hard trying to cover these massive tyres. Another aesthetically pleasing and at the same time functional touch, is the custom rear bar that increases ground clearance and tucks in the exhaust as well.
To spice things up, in the imposing front end a custom front bar has been made and LED projectors replaced the factory headlights. Which not only modernize the look of the truck but are also functional. As per the owner, ”the factory headlights are close to nothing when it comes to hitting the trails at night”.
Straight as an arrow
The driveline was beefed up to handle the extra power and also to compensate for the added load from the wheels. Chromoly shafts have been utilized in both axles. While an ARB air locker up front, keeps this thing moving under any conditions.
Another requirment for anyone using wheels this big, is an old man emu stering damper and a tough dog rear stabilizer. This helps to keep this thing pointed in the right direction. As you can probably judge from the images this thing gets driven hard. It’s not a stranger to the trails near Delikipos and Stavrovouni. Obviously it makes the occasional drive to Akamas – a place where you definitely need a serious off roader.
That is why a full-size spare wheel is at hand at all times.
If you ever tried off-roading yourself, you might have reached that point where you could really use some extra torque, especially in the low rpm area. This might be difficult for an NA diesel, even for a 4.2L 6 cylinder one. Thus, the owner turned to the path of forced induction, hence a 4.2 patrol turbo was born.
Boost is always the answer
Boost is supplied by a Garrett turbo. Borrowed from a mark three supra and rests on an AXT manifold from the land down under. Boost is set at wastegate pressure (0.8 bar) and in order to cope with the added air, the injector pump was given a tune. Engine internals remain untouched and this is a statement to how reliable and well-built these things are.
Power figures are unknown, but the butt dyno of the owner states that it transformed the character of the truck completely. The engine bay is exactly what I expect to see under the hood of something like this. Functional and full of dirt! In the near future the owner plans to fit a top mount intercooler and an Exedy Safari Tuff clutch kit.To get along with the increase in power.
The 90s. When passenger comfort was not even a thing
The interior is a time capsule back to the 90s, with excessive use of plastic and angular corners everywhere. The only interior mod was the addition of buggy seats. Taken from an Opel GTC, they do a far better job of keeping you in one place when you are driving towards the clouds, compared to the factory items.
To sum things up you may have noticed a theme here of borrowing parts. From other makes and models, but if you have ever built a car on a budget you know the struggle. Considering the owner is still a student and he tackled this project with his brother, they managed to do wonders on a tight budget.
To be honest I was never really into the off-road scene and it is something different to me from what I am used to. But after witnessing what is this build capable of. I understand a bit better why off-roading is one of the biggest scenes on the island. It is a shame that SUV’s lost their way and went from being the toughest vehicles on the planet, ready to take on anything to being basically a minivan to haul the kids to school.