90 owner & qualified mechanic here. You seem like an office worker trying your hardest to pick on one of the most reliable 4x4's on the market. If you want a vehicle with more room & more performance, buy a bigger car. A smaller vehicle like the Prado is much more capable & also stops you loading it up with junk/weight. Road noise? Lost me there. Lifting above 2" don't bother. Illegal in all states. Power could be more on road but is perfectly suited for off road. There are a couple of weaknesses, but overall these are easily the best value for money 4x4 on the market.
Definitely looked like you were trying hard to find bad points about the old rig. The lower ball joints annoying for me, but easy to work around. One point i will make though is that they may not be top pick in the 4wd world, but there is literally nothing else on the market that comes close to the capability, robustness, reliability and range for the price they are selling for. I've done some insane stuff in mine including the cape with a 2" lift and 32" muddies and a snorkel and winch.. otherwise bone stock and picked it up for $4,600 with rego and rwc.. my mate just picked one up for $3,500 with rego and only issues was a maf sensor problem and the sub tank solenoid. They'll take you anywhere the big rigs will go, might need the winch a bit more often, but in my experience not really and the ifs has equally good and bad points but i just carry a spare set of CV's and the lack of travel hasn't bugged me much since i set my suspension up correctly for the weight to get full travel and i disconnect the front swaybar on particularly difficult tracks.. the lack of flex has been outweighed by having the extra clearance under the front diff which has helped me pull through multiple times when the rear diff was still dragging a bit. The 5vz is definitely not a power house, but it's definitely the pick of engine in these rigs and goes really well on 32's and tows really well too without needing more. I also get around 1,200km range out of the tanks on long trips loaded with camping gear, so they are pretty good on fuel. Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, easy to work on, easy to get spare parts for, built for touring with the long range tanks, cruise control and just the way they are set up. Might not be the best of the best 4wd out there, but sure as hell by far the best for the price to buy and maintain. You'll be looking at atleast $15,000 and up to find another 4wd that'll exceed these as such a solid all round performer. Little underdog and underpriced weapons they are!
Awesome info ! Picked myself up a 1999 5VZFE Prado :D. The ride comfort on road is in terrible even with a new Dobinson IMS kit in it. Are the 90 series not so comfortable or am I missing something ?
I had a 90 series, and had it anywhere where the patrols and cruisers in the 4wd went. In saying that, people from the club tended to not be silly as most rely on their 4wd for commuting to work. I really loved mine, but the v6 mated to the auto is what finally pushed me to get something else. My camper is 1.2T loaded, and the prado will happely maintain 105km/h in 3rd towing it, but as soon as you drop below that, it became a struggle and soon you were doing 80km/h. That and the fact that i was looking at fitting a rear locker, made me look at something different. Ended up buying a 2012 Amarok... If you think the aftermarket aupport for the Prado is poor, I wish I could get basics like recovery points at reasonable prices...
To be honest 4 out of the 5 problems happen because of the after market mods you made, plus it wasn't made specifically for offroading, that's what the land cruiser is for. Front drive terrain problems only happening because your trying to push it to far in the offroading (if you want to do that buy a 80 or other more capable car). After market support, if you want more after market support, like you said, buy a 80 or other nissans. Road noise is because of the 35's.
The only thing that bugs me about our 90 (apart from the dumb LBJ design) is lack of space. Moving from a 60 series to a 90 was a huge reduction in carrying area in the back but we make do. We have the 3k turbo diesel and are pretty happy with that engine. It isn't meant to be a sports car so I don't expect 0 to 60 in 6 seconds LOL.
Personal I wouldn't hate the car because of there not being aftermarket support for the car, it would be great if there was but it's obvious that big companies like ARB, TJM, Ironman and so on have skipped the mid size 4wds and gone straight for the full size rigs like the 80-105 series cruisers and patrols due to the solid axel simplicity
i don't agree with couple thing like engine power. 1KZTE diesel. pulls like one of Putin's 60T battle tank. for me it's perfect. aftermarket support i agree. i wanna know where did you buy your front bumper. thanks
I have to disagree on what you said about the diesel being low on power. the early models are pretty sluggish but the efi diesels are actually pretty good.
Storage and under powered are annoying, for sure. I have a 2001. I feel like it should have a 4 litre engine. And the damn wheel arches covers in the rear stop the smallest drawer systems from fitting...I'm gonna make my own so I can squeeze every last useful inch of space out of it.
I have the 1kz te and its alright in my opinion i run 32s so its enough for easy offroading etc .. 😂 but everything after 80 to 100 kmh its to loud to realy Talk to a Passanger 😂
I get were your coming from as a 90 series owner but I feel like you are being pretty unfair, pretty much all of these issues you can figure out just by checking one out and you know what your getting into not sure why you didn't get a land cruiser or patrol as the issues like IFS, limited mods, not much hp and limited interior space could of easily been resolved and considering its a nearly 30 year old car it should be expected to be rather noisy on the road unlike brand new cars
90 owner & qualified mechanic here. You seem like an office worker trying your hardest to pick on one of the most reliable 4x4's on the market.
If you want a vehicle with more room & more performance, buy a bigger car.
A smaller vehicle like the Prado is much more capable & also stops you loading it up with junk/weight.
Road noise? Lost me there.
Lifting above 2" don't bother. Illegal in all states.
Power could be more on road but is perfectly suited for off road.
There are a couple of weaknesses, but overall these are easily the best value for money 4x4 on the market.
Definitely looked like you were trying hard to find bad points about the old rig. The lower ball joints annoying for me, but easy to work around. One point i will make though is that they may not be top pick in the 4wd world, but there is literally nothing else on the market that comes close to the capability, robustness, reliability and range for the price they are selling for. I've done some insane stuff in mine including the cape with a 2" lift and 32" muddies and a snorkel and winch.. otherwise bone stock and picked it up for $4,600 with rego and rwc.. my mate just picked one up for $3,500 with rego and only issues was a maf sensor problem and the sub tank solenoid. They'll take you anywhere the big rigs will go, might need the winch a bit more often, but in my experience not really and the ifs has equally good and bad points but i just carry a spare set of CV's and the lack of travel hasn't bugged me much since i set my suspension up correctly for the weight to get full travel and i disconnect the front swaybar on particularly difficult tracks.. the lack of flex has been outweighed by having the extra clearance under the front diff which has helped me pull through multiple times when the rear diff was still dragging a bit. The 5vz is definitely not a power house, but it's definitely the pick of engine in these rigs and goes really well on 32's and tows really well too without needing more. I also get around 1,200km range out of the tanks on long trips loaded with camping gear, so they are pretty good on fuel. Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, easy to work on, easy to get spare parts for, built for touring with the long range tanks, cruise control and just the way they are set up. Might not be the best of the best 4wd out there, but sure as hell by far the best for the price to buy and maintain. You'll be looking at atleast $15,000 and up to find another 4wd that'll exceed these as such a solid all round performer. Little underdog and underpriced weapons they are!
Awesome info ! Picked myself up a 1999 5VZFE Prado :D. The ride comfort on road is in terrible even with a new Dobinson IMS kit in it. Are the 90 series not so comfortable or am I missing something ?
I had a 90 series, and had it anywhere where the patrols and cruisers in the 4wd went. In saying that, people from the club tended to not be silly as most rely on their 4wd for commuting to work.
I really loved mine, but the v6 mated to the auto is what finally pushed me to get something else.
My camper is 1.2T loaded, and the prado will happely maintain 105km/h in 3rd towing it, but as soon as you drop below that, it became a struggle and soon you were doing 80km/h.
That and the fact that i was looking at fitting a rear locker, made me look at something different. Ended up buying a 2012 Amarok... If you think the aftermarket aupport for the Prado is poor, I wish I could get basics like recovery points at reasonable prices...
Well said
To be honest 4 out of the 5 problems happen because of the after market mods you made, plus it wasn't made specifically for offroading, that's what the land cruiser is for. Front drive terrain problems only happening because your trying to push it to far in the offroading (if you want to do that buy a 80 or other more capable car). After market support, if you want more after market support, like you said, buy a 80 or other nissans. Road noise is because of the 35's.
Yes, not much in the way of bolt on goodies in the UK, but I will say my 2001 d4d has loads of power.
The diesel is easy, put a bigger exhaust on and a snorkel, before every thing else, the petrol is a pain in the ass 😂
Sad that mods for kzj95 is much more limited here in the UK
The only thing that bugs me about our 90 (apart from the dumb LBJ design) is lack of space. Moving from a 60 series to a 90 was a huge reduction in carrying area in the back but we make do. We have the 3k turbo diesel and are pretty happy with that engine. It isn't meant to be a sports car so I don't expect 0 to 60 in 6 seconds LOL.
Aha yeah fair storage and power are key
I own a 90 series Prado diesel cheers🍻 from Fiji Islands 🏝
Nice! I was there a few months back
Personal I wouldn't hate the car because of there not being aftermarket support for the car, it would be great if there was but it's obvious that big companies like ARB, TJM, Ironman and so on have skipped the mid size 4wds and gone straight for the full size rigs like the 80-105 series cruisers and patrols due to the solid axel simplicity
Yeah fair enough, ran out of bad things to say about the car
i don't agree with couple thing like engine power. 1KZTE diesel. pulls like one of Putin's 60T battle tank. for me it's perfect. aftermarket support i agree. i wanna know where did you buy your front bumper. thanks
Hi yes, would be interested where u got yr bull bar, roof rack and snorkle from, thanks
Only thing id be bothered about is the partial paint job tbh rest look pretty solid
I have to disagree on what you said about the diesel being low on power. the early models are pretty sluggish but the efi diesels are actually pretty good.
I have the LJ95 with the naturally aspirated 3L engine. This must be the sluggish engine referred to😆. But i have no complaints.
Storage and under powered are annoying, for sure. I have a 2001. I feel like it should have a 4 litre engine. And the damn wheel arches covers in the rear stop the smallest drawer systems from fitting...I'm gonna make my own so I can squeeze every last useful inch of space out of it.
Have u ever thought about getting the gauge cluster that sits atop the dash??
I Have and Im mot going to do it
What Snorkel and Bullbar do you have?
ebay cane toad 75 bucks
Is it just me. I couldn't hear you very well at the start of the video.
Yeah, I'm getting wireless mics now
I have the 1kz te and its alright in my opinion i run 32s so its enough for easy offroading etc .. 😂 but everything after 80 to 100 kmh its to loud to realy Talk to a Passanger 😂
Sas it? I've seen a sassed 120
#1 question being: Would you recommend buying one??
Yes, wait till I make a video. 5 reasons I love my prado
Love the rig...WHERES THE PATROL?? I miss it
The builtpatrol?
I get were your coming from as a 90 series owner but I feel like you are being pretty unfair, pretty much all of these issues you can figure out just by checking one out and you know what your getting into not sure why you didn't get a land cruiser or patrol as the issues like IFS, limited mods, not much hp and limited interior space could of easily been resolved and considering its a nearly 30 year old car it should be expected to be rather noisy on the road unlike brand new cars
Yeah to be honest I was struggling to find things thay where bad with it.
So many positives about it.
Great video man, keep up the good work.
Thanks!
Still very capable and reliable rigs
Yeah definitely
Mine rips
i love ur car dude
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤