Nissan Patrol 2000 News

HALF a day of driving through sand dunes stands between Craig Lowndes and victory in his first off-road race.  The V8 Supercars driver extended his lead to about an hour in the penultimate leg of the Australasian Safari in Western Australia yesterday."We had a great day," he said.  "That is how I expected to the Safari to be; open and fast roads through forestry."Today, Lowndes and co-driver Kees Weel of the Gold Coast tackle two tough stages in the coastal sand dunes near Esperance with their Holden Colorado.  "There's only one more day to go, but apart from the first bit which is rocky, it's all sand," Lowndes said."There are three small stints and we have to navigate right and keep our momentum.  The bikes set off first and will set a rough course and I think we will be the first car off, so navigation will be the ultimate component tomorrow."We've been lost and found our way back before. Kees is pretty experienced at this; it's his 13th Safari."  Lowndes said he wasn't thinking about how they would celebrate if they won tomorrow."We'll celebrate by getting back on the plane and thinking about Bathurst," he said.  Lowndes and Weel were followed by Victorians Darren Green and Wayne Smith in their Nissan Patrol and Bruce Garland and Harry Suzuki in their Isuzu D-Max, the first diesel-powered vehicle.The order changed in the bike section yesterday when third-placed rider Rod Faggotter of Longreach pulled out after the first leg suffering with a broken thumb from a fall the previous day.That leaves a trifecta of KTM riders at the front lead by Bathurst rider Ben Grabham heading for his third victory.  He is followed by Todd Smith of Condobolin, NSW, and Matthew Fish of Kyneton, Victoria.RESULTSPos Veh Crew Vehicle Cat/ SS15 SS16 SS17 SS18 Pen Total No Class1 100 LOWNDES - WEEL 2003 Holden Colorado A5.2 25:00 03:06 02:57 24:38 30:54:592 122 GREEN - SMITH 1999 nissan Patrol A2.2 30:12 03:31 03:18 27:47 32:11:383 102 GARLAND - SUZUKI 2010 Isuzu DMAX A5.4 23:36 02:55 02:58 23:33 32:42:424 105 TURLEY - TILLETT 1996 Nissan Patrol A5.3 25:16 04:48 02:58 25:46 33:41:135 101 FLOOD - VAN KANN 1992 Mitsubishi Pajero A5.1 27:07 05:35 03:53 30:24 34:35:466 177 DI LALLO - MASI 1999 Mitsubishi Pajero Evolution A1.1 30:11 03:43 03:18 31:48 38:18:387 106 MULDREW - EARLE 2004 Mitsubishi Pajero A1.2 31:47 03:40 03:32 36:31 39:02:378 112 MUIR - WALKER 1998 Mitsubishi Pajero EVO A1.1 39:44 03:42 03:17 31:26 41:52:179 110 KNOWLES - VILLANOVA 2008 Hummer H2 SUT A5.2 25:11 03:55 03:01 29:30 43:30:59 10 109 WALKDEN - LONG 1998 Mitsubishi Pajero EVO A2.1 28:13 03:18 03:17 27:21 43:35:3111 137 YUAN DE - TAIGUANG 2005 Quang Qi Chang Feng CFA2 T2.1 47:15 03:42 03:39 34:37 45:09:3912 103 TWADDLE - TWADDLE 2000 Mitsubishi Pajero A0.2 01:01:44 05:00 04:54 MCf 01:30:00 45:44:5113 115 OWEN - CAIRNS 2004 NISSAN GU PATROL A5.3 27:39 03:03 03:03 26:05 47:35:0214 127 YOUNG - MCBEAN 2002 Mitsubishi Pajero A1.5 52:14 03:48 03:31 32:41 47:41:3315 136 WEI YU - MIN 2005 Guang Qi Chang Feng CFA2 T1.2 44:46 03:25 03:19 25:54 47:59:11104 HARRINGTON - HARRINGTON 2007 Nissan Patrol A5.3 24:45 03:01 03:03 DNF DNF107 DENHAM - DENHAM 2003 Mitsubishi Triton A5.2 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF108 OLHOLM - DOBLE 2004 Mitsubishi NM Pajero A5.2 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF111 DUNN - DUNN 1998 Nissan GU A5.3 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF113 WATMAN - WATMAN 1998 Mitsubishi Pajero EVO A1.1 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF129 QUINN - FEAVER 1995 Mitsubishi Pajero A5.2 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF142 HOFFMANN, Glenn 2010 Dirt-Buggies Superlite A4.4 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF 150 PINSON - DENBRINKER 2002 Ford ba rtv A3.4 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF155 MONKHOUSE - MONKHOUSE 2006 suzuki vitara A5.1 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNFMCx2 - Missed Start and Finish Controls, MCf - Missed Finish Control, - Time recorded but Out of Late Time Date 9/25/2010 22:10:50.145 Form No:205 Page 1 

The heavyweight off-roader is already a sell-out in the Middle East, with an Infiniti luxury model also on the way, but right-hand drive production does not even have a start-up date.Nissan Australia is bringing a Patrol to Australia later this month for a number of events, including the Australian International Motor Show, but cannot confirm when it will be followed by production models."We don't know yet when it's coming. The Arabs are soaking up everything that is being built," says Nissan Australia spokesman, Jeff Fisher.  "It's going to be more than 12 months. It's still between 12 and 24 months.  It will get here. It's in the slot, but it's a matter of waiting."Fisher says the problem is the low demand for right-hand drive Patrols.  "South Africa has said no, England is not interested, so it's just Australia."  The demonstration Patrol is coming fully loaded for the show and a range of driving demonstrations including a press preview in Queensland. "It's packed with technology. It's got a type of active suspension with hydraulics, tyre pressure monitoring and a lot more. It's a big story," Fisher says.  "We're bringing it here to showcase the technology and get some feedback."The special Patrol is also being used to celebrate the 50 anniversary of the model in Australia.  "The Patrol is 50 years old in Australia. And this is the first all- new model since the GU in the 1990s, so there is a lot to talk about," Fisher says.

Following in the footsteps of the new V8-powered, independent suspension in the Toyota LandCruiser, Nissan has revealed its seventh-generation Patrol in the Mid-East.Drivetrain and equipmentThe new Patrol is powered by a V8 – which will be the first in a Patrol for the Australian market -- a 5.6-litre direct-injection engine has 400 horsepower and 550Nm of torque while the new Patrol also features fully independent suspension rather than a live rear axle.The Mid-East launch in Abu Dhabi presented a more luxurious and softer looking Patrol with more leather, polished aluminium and wood grain trim, a cool box in the centre console, multi-screen DVD entertainment system, seven-speed automatic transmission, more interior space especially in the second and third rows, a claimed quieter ride and a curtain of cold air over the windows to prevent heat from penetrating the cabin.The new Patrol also has newly developed All Mode four-wheel drive which allows the driver to electronically switch between sand, on-road, snow and rock modes.  It has Hill Start Assist to prevent the vehicle rolling back and Hill Descent Control that uses the brakes to maintain a constant downhill speed of 7km/h in 4H mode and 4km/h in 4L mode.Patrol also features a Hydraulic Body Motion Control System to keeps it flatter with less body roll when cornering.  Nissan has revised its tyre pressure monitor system with a tyre inflation indicator that beeps the horn softly when the suitable pressure has been reached.   Patrol also gets a new hydraulic brake booster and four-piston opposed front calliper with larger 358mm front discs.Patrol for AustraliaNissan Australia senior corporate communications manager Jeffrey Fisher points out that the Mid-East unveiling at the weekend was not a world launch and different configurations could be available here."They launched it with a V8 petrol engine because they are only interested in big petrol engines in the Mid-East, he says.  "However, we will take it (the V8), because we see a role for it. It’s more frugal than previous versions.”  He says Australia will likely continue with the option of a four-cylinder diesel engine.Nissan has declared its intention to move toward small electric cars such as the Leaf, rather than hybrids. Fisher says Nissan has not mentioned anything about a hybrid version of the Patrol.  "But never say never. The way the world is moving we should keep an open mind,” he says.Fisher says the move to independent suspension would not reduce the hardcore off-road ability of the vehicle, however it is difficult to see its rock crawling abilities matching the current GU series.  "Popular theory says that things with a live axle are better for rock hopping, but where were heading with this (independent suspension) is that we think it is a good blend with the ladder suspension, he says."The expectation is that it is every bit as good and will match the current Patrol in off-road ability, however we don’t have the ramp-over angles and details yet, so we can’t tell.  Nissan claims only about 15 per cent of Patrol owners worldwide take their vehicle off road."Anecdotal evidence is that it is higher in Australia, but probably not much," says Fisher.  The new Patrol is not expected to arrive in Australia this year.  "Its still some ways off. Not this year,” says Fisher."We are into a launch countdown but it won't be this year. We are still awaiting right-hand-drive production dates and spec advice.   "GU is the current model designation, but we’re not sure what the next model designation will be. They are calling it P61G, but that may change.”Large SUV sales last year were down by almost a third, but Fisher says there is still room for large and capable off-road vehicles in Australia."Patrol is iconic and we would argue that it is one of the vehicles that has created a reputation for Nissan here, he says.Patrol was the first vehicle to successfully cross the gruelling Simpson Desert in Australia in 1962."When a lot of Australians think of a Nissan, they think of Patrol.  "It is a backbone in Australia for large 4WD wagons. Definitely something we want to continue."Sales have retracted a bit. In its heyday in the early 90s we were looking at 800 a month and we are about half of that now.  But (Land)Cruiser 200 is back on the scene and doing well reviving their fortunes and we think that when new Patrol comes along we will help grow the whole sector.