End of gu soon?

During 2 different conversions recently, it was mentioned that Toyota will cease production of 70 series within next couple of years as they can't (or don't want to) get top safety rating thereby being able to sell to government departments and mining industry. The live front axle being one of main reasons. I would have thought stronger front end would be safer but perhaps on road performance is more important to those who make such decisions.

If this is true, will this spell the end of GU as well?

Has anyone heard more or have more reliable info?

I was reading the only reason 70s were a worthwhile seller for Toyota in last decade due to the biggest customer being the mines. But now with the safety rating gone it's not feasible for them any more.

It was also something to do with them not having crush points that de-rates them in safety.

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the cockies will be gutted i reckon

IMO they will continue to produce the GU/GR as they have continued with the D22
For how long would depend on emission control and safety ratings I would think
Not all can afford a y62 nor want one, what left then ??

Realistically the Y61 has already ended... Australia is pretty much the designated "run down" country as Nissan tool down the production lines and stock and go with their world car concept of the Y62.
Nissan contiue to state that there won't be Diesel Y62 here until the next generation of Y62 (read 4 years or more).
So, FWIW I agree with 3D, they will sell Y61's here until they won't pass emission/ADR or until the Diesel Y62 turns up (which ever happens first).

i think they are going to switch to the dual cab markets as the navaras are such a big seller and thats what people want now dual cabs, a work car during the week and a family bus on the weekends, the days of the 7 seat 4wd with good space are almost gone i reckon unfortunately

As long as my arse points to the ground and I have my GU, I see no end. :thumbup:

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Originally Posted by 93patrol

i think they are going to switch to the dual cab markets as the navaras are such a big seller and thats what people want now dual cabs, a work car during the week and a family bus on the weekends, the days of the 7 seat 4wd with good space are almost gone i reckon unfortunately

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Nah, can't really agree with that, otherwise they wouldn't have gone down the path of the Y62 but you are on the money with the booming dual cab market.
Love the Navara's and the BT50/Rangers in our work fleet are bigger than my GU wagon (bull bar to towball and have 50% more grunt while using 20 to 33% less fuel).
I haven't driven any of the Colorado's but the guys who use them reckon they are excellent

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Originally Posted by Hodge

I was reading the only reason 70s were a worthwhile seller for Toyota in last decade due to the biggest customer being the mines. But now with the safety rating gone it's not feasible for them any more.

It was also something to do with them not having crush points that de-rates them in safety.

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Yes and Toyota is going to flog the HiLux to the mining industry instead.. All based on safety.

So given the 'inflated' prices of late model 4.2Tdi Y61’s as a result of demand caused by Nissan's failure to replace the motor with another seen as being equally 'desirable' ............ What is your prediction regarding their future prices? Obviously they will drop as the vehicles become older & gain higher mileages, but do you think their prices will remain relatively high, or drop 'overnight' to be on par with other 'comparable' vehicles?

I would predict that as time passes that their lack of 'computer control', & relative ease of fixing out in woop woop will become less attractive as the more mechanically complex, sensor ridden, plug in to a diagnostic machine, faster & more fuel efficient, smaller engined replacements become all that people know.

Hard to believe but the biggest selling "car" in Australia at this time
is the Hilux dual cab, out selling Camry, ford and Holden.
The new breed of dual cabs give you plenty to think about, but gone are the days of motors
reaching huge KMs. it will be like Japan and the States where a 3-4year old car is considered old
and of very little value, and japan where its cheaper to buy a new car than re-register the old one.
We are sheep and will follow the trends set by others, but we tend to keep cars longer than other countries

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Originally Posted by Cuppa

So given the 'inflated' prices of late model 4.2Tdi Y61’s as a result of demand caused by Nissan's failure to replace the motor with another seen as being equally 'desirable' ............ What is your prediction regarding their future prices? Obviously they will drop as the vehicles become older & gain higher mileages, but do you think their prices will remain relatively high, or drop 'overnight' to be on par with other 'comparable' vehicles?

I would predict that as time passes that their lack of 'computer control', & relative ease of fixing out in woop woop will become less attractive as the more mechanically complex, sensor ridden, plug in to a diagnostic machine, faster & more fuel efficient, smaller engined replacements become all that people know.

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You are probably right there Cuppa. Once the old school die off, the smaller computer drive utes will be all the go.
Won't worry me though as now I've retired and after a couple of big trips this and next year, I'll be mainly only doing local trips over to Fraser so fuel costs won't be so important and maintenance can be managed ok.
As for value of our 4.2s, don't know how soon and by how much, but they will drop.

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Originally Posted by Wizard52

As for value of our 4.2s, don't know how soon and by how much, but they will drop.

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Not for a long while though, it seems like it. I've been keeping an eye on 4.2s, especially the last of the lot that was released, and it seems their price keeps increasing along with their mileage. Looking back at prices, when I bought my grenade, about a year ago, and looking at them now, they're definitely jump. These are still gonna be highly regarded for a long time, as long as people are willing to pay for the 4.2's (and they are), the prices will hold too.

Somebody mentioned hiluxes will be the new mining tool of choice above, but I thought the ford rangers, were the new "thing" in the mines. This i just a word of mouth I've heard.

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Originally Posted by the evil twin

Realistically the Y61 has already ended... Australia is pretty much the designated "run down" country as Nissan tool down the production lines and stock and go with their world car concept of the Y62.
Nissan contiue to state that there won't be Diesel Y62 here until the next generation of Y62 (read 4 years or more).
So, FWIW I agree with 3D, they will sell Y61's here until they won't pass emission/ADR or until the Diesel Y62 turns up (which ever happens first).

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Garbage - the waiting list for Y61s is longer than the waiting list for Y62s here. The Y61 is very much alive in the Gulf region.
4.8 Pickup (Ute), 4.8 SWB & 4.8 LWB are all selling well. So Australia is hardly the "run down" country.
Australia is almost unique in wanting diesel Patrols.

the ford ranger is the pick for the mines over here in WA but they are apparently rattling themsevles apart, one of the boys I work with told me his Bro-inlaw has been through 3 in the last 18months due to diffs and transmission issues

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Originally Posted by 93patrol

the ford ranger is the pick for the mines over here in WA but they are apparently rattling themsevles apart, one of the boys I work with told me his Bro-inlaw has been through 3 in the last 18months due to diffs and transmission issues

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The traffic control contractor boys we use, told us the same thing. Their rangers have spent more on the dealer hoists then on the road. They have a fleet of about 30. And they use them on the road. Mine is a lot rougher, so I'm not surprised.

We had hiluxes gear box clutch and diesel injector issues. Cars just aren't made tough anymore.

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Originally Posted by Bulbous

Australia is almost unique in wanting diesel Patrols.

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Add the UK to wanting Diesels mate.

G'day folks,

This is from Nissans latest news website!

Regards,

PMC

Nissan product chief hints at long-awaited Patrol diesel – via the next Titan ute's new Cummins TDV8

Nissan has made its first positive statement about the potential for diesel power in its new-generation Patrol, and its solution could be worth the wait.

Launched exclusively with a 5.6-litre petrol V8 in February last year, the fancy new $82,000-plus Y62 Patrol wagon sells alongside the recently upgraded (but still $30,000 cheaper) Y61/GU Patrol wagon and ute.

Unsurprisingly, Nissan Australia has fallen well short of former managing director Bill Peffer's claims that it would sell hundreds of new Patrols a month and that it could even match the success of Toyota's 200 Series LandCruiser without a diesel engine.

Despite an extensive marketing campaign espousing the petrol V8's whole-of-life running costs and the dismissal of suggestions that sales of the 15-year-old Y61 would not continue to erode, Patrol wagon sales declined more than 26 per cent last year and almost 45 per cent so far this year.

Including the GU (Y61), Nissan sold 2362 Patrol wagons in 2013 (for an average of 197 a month), while Toyota found 9311 homes for LandCruiser wagons, or more than 775 a month.

Patrol sales have slowed even more dramatically this year, with just 491 registered to March, equating to less than 164 per month.

Meantime, the 200 Series kept on trucking with 2222 sales – more than 740 a month – and Toyota's share of the mainstream upper-large SUV segment has never been greater at 82 per cent.

It's well documented that diesels account for 95 per cent of all LandCruiser wagon sales and the 200 Series is the Y62 Patrol's only direct rival in this two-horse race.

It's also no secret that Australia is the only significant market for right-hand drive diesel SUVs, making it difficult for any car-maker to justify the investment required to develop a diesel version of a vehicle that sells in significantly greater numbers in predominantly petrol-powered left-hand drive markets like the US, Middle East and Russia.

It's not that Nissan hasn't tried, but so far no reports of deals to share diesel engines – including expensive high-tech European V6s from Daimler and Nissan's industrial ally Renault, whose 3.0-litre oil-burner sees duty in the Navara ute – have borne any fruit.

That could change, however, according to Nissan's worldwide product planning boss Andy Palmer.

Despite ruling out the possibility of the Patrol being fitted with the same new Cummins 5.0-litre V8 turbo-diesel when it was announced for the next full-size Titan pick-up last August, Palmer suggested just that at last week's New York motor show.

Asked by motoring.com.au if there was anything to report on Nissan's quest for a diesel Patrol, Palmer said: "We continue to study... The trouble with that is basically economies of scale – right-hand drive and diesel... there's not too many markets.

"However, what I can hint at is that with the next-generation Titan we're bringing diesel engines to the US.

"When you start to do that you start to get those economies of scale. And you can start to imagine that when you get those economies of scale it makes it easier to put a diesel engine in the Patrol and a few other vehicles."

If we've extrapolated correctly, Palmer indicated that production of the first diesel engine for Nissan's volume-selling US truck, the Titan, could make the same earth-moving oil-burner viable for the Japanese-built Patrol.

When that might happen is anyone's guess, but North America's next-generation Titan pick-up is not expected to break cover until next January's Detroit show, before entering production at Canton, Mississippi and going on sale in the US within 18 months.

That means it's unlikely to arrive in time for Australia's facelifted Patrol, which is yet to be confirmed but is likely to bring the same cosmetic upgrades revealed at the Dubai motor show last November.

When or if it powers the Patrol, the new Cummins-sourced 5.0-litre quad-cam turbo-diesel V8 will be a corker, easily shading the LandCruiser's 195kW/650Nm 4.5-litre twin-turbo diesel V8.

Built at Cummins' Columbus plant in Indiana and already undergoing public-road durability testing in the new Titan, Nissan says it will deliver at least 225kW of power and about 745Nm of torque, and deliver the right kind of towing capacity and fuel consumption expected in America's largest and most competitive vehicle segment.

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Originally Posted by threedogs

Japan and the States where a 3-4year old car is considered old
and of very little value, and japan where its cheaper to buy a new car than re-register the old one.
We are sheep and will follow the trends set by others, but we tend to keep cars longer than other countries

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When I read threedogs post about keeping a vehicle in the States for 4-5 years I thought our family was out of the norm. My son has my '98Toyota Tacoma 4x4 v6 TRD with 182K miles on it, still uses it as his run around rig. His work truck is a '04 Ford F250 4x4, about 110K miles. Daughter has my Dad's '01 Toyota RAV I bought him, she just put a new set of tyres on and has 155K miles clocked. I have a '07 Dodge RAM 3500 DRW that I drive when I have to go back and work at the vineyard, I have no plans on getting rid of it and if they still will do a RHD conversion on it when we finally (hope, hope, hope) sell the bloody farm I might consider going through that process.

Anyway, not to start a PI$$ing match, I ran across this article on-line a couple days ago and was really surprised myself, 3-4 years seemed to soon, 7 years I thought was the normal back in the old country but apparently not.

"The average age of cars and trucks in the U.S. remains at an all-time high of 11.4 years as of Jan. 1, according to IHS Automotive and its Polk subsidiary."

Having lived in Tokyo for 2 plus years, they are fanatics ... cars have to me 100% road worthy and no signs of any smash damage or rattle can paint jobs.... There were a lot of LHD cars as they are a 'status' symbol given the high import tariffs, etc. No mandatory conversion or signage required.. Somewhere I have a picture of a H1 in a garage that the person HAD to have used the sunroof to ingress/egress .. I'll post someday when I find it..
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i heard from a nissan rep that 2014 was it, has anyone heard about the Cummins rumour re the new diesel, sorry if im not updated ill have to check it out, but worth a mention whilst on the matter.