Thread: Toyota Prado 1996 (ish)

I've been looking at selling my old 1994 ln106 hilux for something more highway freindly, does anyone here know any issues to look out for with these cars? I would be looking at the 3lt (non turbo probably) most of them seem to have around the 250k's on the clock. It would be used for a bit of soft roading at the most but more for towing my current boat - and probably the next one (bigger one )

I've been looking at:
- Toyota Prado 3.0 TX LTD 1997 | Trade Me
- Toyota Land Cruiser Prado PRADO TX 7-SEATER 1996 | Trade Me

I would probably lean towards the non turbo for reliability?

Any pointers would help

get the solid axle ones bro, best of both worlds, comfy highway use with coils, pretty good articulation with soild axle and coils. Cheaper and more reliable too!

Originally Posted by Pointer

get the solid axle ones bro, best of both worlds, comfy highway use with coils, pretty good articulation with soild axle and coils. Cheaper and more reliable too!

Eh are you taking the piss... You mean Patrol? I've got my heart set on one of those 4.2lt Turbo 1999 ish ones but I cant afford them haha and people on trade me want stupid money for the old ones (ie more then ln106's)


Cheers Stu#, I wouldn't mind auto if its turbo (more grunt) --- A couple of lights you say.. that's pretty rough hah! I might do a bit more looking around


(ah are you talking about the old school ones pntr?

They are holding their value as you cant import them anymore. The low mileage ones are pushing $20k+
Just regular oil changes (as any diesel) and rountine servicing.

I've raised mine a bit and fitted some aftermarket suspension as the springs were shot at about 200k

Rest is "as new" lol

The do suck a bit of fuel as any 3.0 monster would but there's a large 90 litre (?) tank.

I would definitely PM Cambo though - he'll give you the good oil I'm sure

Hi timmay,

Both these prados you are looking at are turbo, They are a reliable vehicle but they do have there problems.
Firstly they crack heads, not every one, but we would do one every couple of weeks in our small toyota dealership. And not just vehicles that are not well serviced.
Then the rear shocks leak, the front brake hoses perish,and the steering rack bushes flog out and if you are really unlucky the glow plug tips fall off and can make a bit of a mess.
The majority of these items are run of the mill service items but will need doing if not already done.
Cheers

Originally Posted by Timmay

Eh are you taking the piss... You mean Patrol? I've got my heart set on one of those 4.2lt Turbo 1999 ish ones but I cant afford them haha and people on trade me want stupid money for the old ones (ie more then ln106's)

(ah are you talking about the old school ones pntr?

Yeah mate. Not too sure on specs, the Toyota guys will know, but there was one that came out with hilux diffs and coils front and rear - in Oz the SWB ones were called a bundera. I've only seen jap import LWB ones in NZ but they are bloody good off road and easy to modify. I can't tell you about the exact specs or reliability, I'd say Titan or Cambo will give you the inside info on them. They are cheap, so are older safaris

But yeah the late 90s GU patrol, awesome!

Yea pointer not sure which model you are on about there.

the hiluxs don't have solid front end and coils.

2.4 early hilux Ln65 have leaf springs over solid axle.
89 on 2.8 Ln106 have leaf springs over solid axle.
98 hilux Ln167 with 5L has torsion bar on front wishbone suspension.
2000 on hilux kzn165 1kzte also has torsion bar over wishbone.
2005 hilux on Kun26r has mcpherson strut with wishbone.

Could be a option overseas ??

Timmay another option would be a 96- on surf which is 2wd normally and 4wd is engaged manually when needed , this still has the same 1kzte engine and can be bought in intercooled or non intercooled options. They are also usually cheaper than prados to. 15k would easilly buy you a tidy one.

Just my 2 cents.

The 3.0l 1KZTE diesel engine is bulletproof, as long as it's serviced. The Prado is a great vehicle but in 230,000 k's I have had to change 2 rear stop lamps

Ask Cambo - he works on them (or not!)

(Dunno about the manual, they are pretty rare, most are auto)

Titan has pretty much covered the common faults they have.
Shocks, rack bushes and glow plugs are all easily replaced relatively cheaply. A head job or more gets costly.

The best thing to do if you are really keen on 1 of these, is to get a comprehensive prepurchase check done by a Toyota dealer.
AA, VTNZ and the like are a waste of money as they really have no idea, to put it bluntly.

Get a leakdown and compression tests done. Another test very worth doing is having the glowplugs removed (good time to see if they need replacing), pressurise the cooling system and leave it on for 1/2 hr or so. Then with the injector pump unplugged, crank the engine over. If coolant comes out - it's screwed.
The reason for this is the heads crack above the valves in the intake ports.

To be fair, Prado's hold their price really well. So even with high k's you can still be looking at paying 10k plus.
They do ride nice, but I wish they were a selectable 4wd rather than constant 4wd.
Being constant 4wd they wear tyres more and can be thirsty, especially if towing.

Manuals are quite rare and they tend to be the lower spec'ed vehicles like the basic RV model. The autos drive nicely though. No real reason to pick a manual over an auto apart from personal choice. Unless doing heaps of towing, but if your going to be doing that, there are other vehicles that would be better suited.
The manuals have a 2 piece flywheel, which can be an issue. If there is a metallic rattle on start up it is usually a sign the flywheel is starting to fail.
There are aftermarket solid kits available which are cheaper and better than the genuine 2 piece part.

Hope that helps

All that info is perfect Thanks Cambo and titan308. I 100% don't want full time 4wd, so that will scratch the prado off the list, with the price of fuel I don't need a bill that's higher.

What would people recommend other then the usual older safari/patrol as they are just stupid expensive. I don't mind spending around a that 15-16k mark.

I'm wondering if just spending 1500 to turbo my 3l hilux is the way to go...

Originally Posted by Timmay

All that info is perfect Thanks Cambo and titan308. I 100% don't want full time 4wd, so that will scratch the prado off the list, with the price of fuel I don't need a bill that's higher.

What would people recommend other then the usual older safari/patrol as they are just stupid expensive. I don't mind spending around a that 15-16k mark.

I'm wondering if just spending 1500 to turbo my 3l hilux is the way to go...

I've got a 97 Terrano Regulus. Had it for 7 years, done 165,000km in it, its done about 215,000. Its pretty much standard. I've put slightly larger rubber on it. I've only had to do the alternator, and the shocks. Its a 3.2 diesel, turbo and intercooled, auto. It will pull anything, took a large horse float with 2 big horses from Invercargill to Chch no problems, cruised at 100k easy. Also surprisingly capable off road, had it in to Boundary Hut in Mavora the other weekend, on road tyres.
I highly reccommend them. Although apparantly the later model ones (3l diesel) have motor probs.

Originally Posted by Timmay

All that info is perfect Thanks Cambo and titan308. I 100% don't want full time 4wd, so that will scratch the prado off the list, with the price of fuel I don't need a bill that's higher.

What would people recommend other then the usual older safari/patrol as they are just stupid expensive. I don't mind spending around a that 15-16k mark.

I'm wondering if just spending 1500 to turbo my 3l hilux is the way to go...

i have a 1996 prado tx 3.4 petrol that is selectable 4x4 it does love petrol thou would get diesel if i could. picked it up for 12k with 165km

Originally Posted by mucko

i have a 1996 prado tx 3.4 petrol that is selectable 4x4 it does love petrol thou would get diesel if i could. picked it up for 12k with 165km

You sure it's selectable 4x4 mucko? I have the same model although a 98. I didn't realise it was fulltime 4x4 untill I tried to do a paddock hack and nearly rolled it lol. Going into 4x4 locks the back diff I believe, diff lock works well in mine I get quite far on aggressive a.ts and would do much better on m.ts. I have the 3.4 petty aswell and you'd be amazed the fuel economy if you keep it below 90kms really stretches a tank out. I get 500-550 driving normally I get 600-700 driving like a bitch.

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Originally Posted by Cartman

You sure it's selectable 4x4 mucko? I have the same model although a 98. I didn't realise it was fulltime 4x4 untill I tried to do a paddock hack and nearly rolled it lol. Going into 4x4 locks the back diff I believe, diff lock works well in mine I get quite far on aggressive a.ts and would do much better on m.ts. I have the 3.4 petty aswell and you'd be amazed the fuel economy if you keep it below 90kms really stretches a tank out. I get 500-550 driving normally I get 600-700 driving like a bitch.

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It locks the centre diff

I must say that I like the power output of the Toyota 1KZTE engine, we have one in an AWD Hiace. Sure outstrips the non turbo 4.2 in the Safari going through one of the early slush boxes. Just hope it all stays together and I don't have the cracked head issue. I don't push it hard, though it does a fair bit of towing, and keep the maintenance up.

Another vehicle I'd consider is a 2.8 Isuzu, good reliable engines and drive trains, nice strong tight diffs. Garnish with a turbo and enjoy. If I had to replace the Safari I'd likely go the Isuzu, getting fed up with 24V systems. Most of the newer stuff, although more powerful, just seems too soft.