gq patrol review Page 5

The GQ Nissan Patrol (late ’80s to mid-’90s) is a square-jawed brick that treats bush tracks like speed bumps and fuel bowsers like tapas. With stout live axles, coil springs and that legendary TD42 diesel (or the TB42 petrol if you enjoy octane smoothies), it’s tough, simple and gloriously fixable with a shifter and optimism. Off-road it’s a mountain goat in steel-capped boots; on-road it’s comfy enough but hardly subtle—noise, vagueness and thirst are part of the charm. Common gremlins? Rust in roof gutters, floors and rear quarters, tired suspension bushes causing shimmy, leaky power steering, and elderly electrics that sulk after water crossings. Buy on body condition and maintenance history over bolt-ons, and budget for modern tyres, brakes and cooling to wake it up. If you want a classic 4x4 that’ll outlast your patience and probably your driveway, a tidy GQ is still a cracking choice.