GU 3 litre "hand grenade" engine

[Dr Gary]

I read a lot about 3 litre GUs blowing engines. I also believe there were some upgrades, including increased oil capacity.
Does anyone know when (if?) any upgrade was introduced.
Any war stories on blown engines?
I have a 2006 GU, 3 litre that seems to work fine so far :-)

[growler2058]

I think youre fine mate I believe it was only 2000-03 that had the "issues" there are mods that can be done (NADS) to prevent these from detonating. Also i think there are mods that you can do to yours to up performance. Sorry i cant help im a td42 kinda guy, bound to be others here thatll be useful to y ;-)

[jimmyz]

Hi Dr Gary
Search ZD30 Engine Problems and you will be reading for days.
I have a 2003 GU111 i am looking into at the moment. Finding very different oppinions.
Long story short you need to control the boost spikes.
There is a Referance Document on this site for the ZD30 engines.
Yet to do them as yet but i am getting very close to making a start

Hope this helps

Jimmy

[koxxwasp]

I to have the 2006 3.0lt, so far so good, kinda scary when you read the woe stories. They can,t be all that bad as you see plenty of em about,but I guess you only hear the bad press eh?

[Brisvegas]

Early ones had the dramas

[Dr Gary]

Hi All
Thanks for the feedback. I guess I will check out and do what I can, then enjoy it until it dies [or I do :-) ]

[Fred Schenck]

Cross countgry 4X4 Sell handgrenade kits for the patrol and everthing you need will be in it see the bottom of the attached page at this link. http://www.crosscountry4x4.com.au/products.php?category=42


I read a lot about 3 litre GUs blowing engines. I also believe there were some upgrades, including increased oil capacity.
Does anyone know when (if?) any upgrade was introduced.
Any war stories on blown engines?
I have a 2006 GU, 3 litre that seems to work fine so far :-)

[mudski]

Cross countgry 4X4 Sell handgrenade kits for the patrol and everthing you need will be in it see the bottom of the attached page at this link. http://www.crosscountry4x4.com.au/products.php?category=42

Your better off buying all the bits separately.

Dawes valve from 3Bar racing in the USA
Needle Valve from Dependable Distributors in Adelaide ( not in the CC kit)
Catch Can From Ebay, Provent 200 ( Most recomended one to buy)
And your hoses and fittings from your local hose supply
EGR blanking plate from whats his face that hangs around here :icon_bonk:

Get the Boost and EGT gauges and fit them first. I bought a McNally Gauge. They look awesome and its two in one and is mounted inbetween the speedo and tacho.
http://mcnallyelectronics.com/

[jimmyz]

Can any one tell me did the ZD30 motor in the 2003 Nissan Navara have any over boosting problems.
And if the Navara has not suffered from the grenade problems why is that.

[koxxwasp]

I keep hearing that it was the earlier ones that were prone, my questions are..........
What did they do to fix it?
Was it a quick fix? (a panic fix by Nissan)
What year did they fix it?
Mine is april 2006.......is it safe?
I also hear from a good diesel fitter that the EGR is there for a good reason and that I should leave it, I am not a mechanic and this is the first oil burner I have had, so why if Nissan spend millions on development and have all the little intelligent engineers do we (the public) think we know better?

You all seem a friendly lot and pretty clued up (far more than me) I am learning heaps on here, however I still think things are better left alone if they are good to start with.

Please don't think I am being smart, I just want to get everything straight before I go messing with her.

[the evil twin]

snip...

I also hear from a good diesel fitter that the EGR is there for a good reason and that I should leave it, I am not a mechanic and this is the first oil burner I have had, so why if Nissan spend millions on development and have all the little intelligent engineers do we (the public) think we know better?

You all seem a friendly lot and pretty clued up (far more than me) I am learning heaps on here, however I still think things are better left alone if they are good to start with.

Please don't think I am being smart, I just want to get everything straight before I go messing with her.

We don't "know better" as such. The issue is that the Nissan Engineer has to work within the constraints of the laws as they exist. EGR being a case in point.

It is essentially only there as an anti-pollution measure but the trade off is that the engine "swallows" a whole heap of contaminents etc at the cost of accelerated wear and performance. Indeed that is why EGR is blocked by the ECU and Engine management at higher engine loads

Blocking the EGR is great for the engine but terrible for the environment.

[koxxwasp]

Thanks for that info, but does blocking it of affect other things. And if it is only for emissions can just the EGR be blocked off and nothing else?

Agin I am not being smart I am just inquisitive.

Cheers

[mudski]

Thanks for that info, but does blocking it of affect other things. And if it is only for emissions can just the EGR be blocked off and nothing else?

Agin I am not being smart I am just inquisitive.

Cheers

The other things it will affect is lower EGT's and slightly better fuel economy and maybe a tiny bit on performance. As for the second q, its just the EGR we block for emissions.

[Sir Roofy]

Thanks for that info, but does blocking it of affect other things. And if it is only for emissions can just the EGR be blocked off and nothing else?

Agin I am not being smart I am just inquisitive.

Cheers

if you have questions and want to know
just ask away ,where here to help each other

[koxxwasp]

So if I just the EGR thing I should be sweet?
I have cleaned the MAF sensor, it looked pretty good to be fair, but the oil is very black an its only done 1000k's since it was last changed. I thought I should get into the habit of doing the sensor when I do the oil.

[mudski]

Its a diesel. The oil will always be black. Its because of the detergents used in the diesel oil to wash the innards of the engine down because of the fuel used creates a lot more soot in the engine. If its not black you should be worried the oil isn't doing its job.

[Cowboy]

lets turn the table a bit.....
Ours is the 2004 GU MAnual and now has 240,000 kms on the clock AND tows a 2.5 tonne caravan, and no mods done to it.
We did replace the head in february this year, but that was to be expected as there is supposed to be an issue with the glow plug heating and the heads, but hey, with that many km's.....no complaints.
I am considering putting a fan on the intercooler and maybe put a snorkel on for a bit more air before we start doing the lap, but thats about it...

[threedogs]

Mines an 04 Auto and after alternator was changed, having boost problems big time, just fitting NADS at the moment. have heaps of stainless blocking plates for Di and CR

[Murph68]

lets turn the table a bit.....
Ours is the 2004 GU MAnual and now has 240,000 kms on the clock AND tows a 2.5 tonne caravan, and no mods done to it.
We did replace the head in february this year, but that was to be expected as there is supposed to be an issue with the glow plug heating and the heads, but hey, with that many km's.....no complaints.
I am considering putting a fan on the intercooler and maybe put a snorkel on for a bit more air before we start doing the lap, but thats about it...

Hey Cowboy,
how much did you spend for the new head incl. labor?

[buzzbro]

There was a recall on the first of the zd30 series of engines in the patrols, it consisted of changing oil capacity from a meagre 5.9 lt to 7.4 lt's. Service intervals were decreased from 15,000 down to 10,000 km threre was abreather hose change and I think from memory a PCV valve as well. The easiest way to see if yours falls into this catagory is to look in the vehicle hand book and see if there is a sticker over the capacities section. There should also be a recall sticker on the drivers A pillar but that will probably be long gone or faded. I donot recall the rework number. This started betwwen 12 and 18 months of it's initial release

[koxxwasp]

So a 2006 will have the relevant improvements done to it as standard? I have had it a couple of months now, used it for towing dirt bike on a trailer, goes well, far better on the juice than the old Prado. I am very happy indeed.
I do have one niggle though, the bloody speedo is out a fair bit, I was doing bang on 100ks the other day and I was pulled over and done by the filth, I was gunned doing 106ks. It is totally standard, on standard tires. I have checked it since with my GPS, and yes it deffo out.
GPS is now the speedo of choice for this Patrol owner

[Dr Gary]

All you readers/contributors: It seems the Provent is designed to collect oil vapors especially when the engine shuts down. Maybe an alternative solution is to block the vent tube ONLY when the engine is off so the vapor is contained in the crank-case. To that end I have located a 20 mm 12 volt electric air valve that can be put into the vent line before it enters the air intake. Part is VA-12 and Costs $50 plus shipping from "Hornblasters.com
This system will allow the oil vapor to flow to the turbo (upper cylinder lube) but not to the MAF sensor. Any comments on why this is a bad idea

koxxwasp--the EGR is a pollution control system, does not do much for performance, and is illegal to remove. :-)

[Dr Gary]

My 2006 is exactly on at 100k according to my GPS--guess it is the luck of the draw.

[teleman]

My 01 GU has never missed a beat. Intercoolers are prone to cracking an splitting so thats one thing to look at. I all ways treat my trol with respect and it has rewarded me 10 fold. They just need a bit of care and they will last forever. :)