Best Nissan Patrol years to buy, and which to avoid
5 generations of the Nissan Patrol, and for each one the model years owners and specialists recommend, the ones with documented problems, and the recalls to check. Two of them have a clear sweet spot; the rest are best bought on condition.
Sweet spot years owners and specialists recommend · Beware years with documented problems · Recall years with a recall to check by VIN. Each one is sourced on the model's own guide.
Patrol 60 Series
1960–1980No single year stands out: owners and specialists say to buy on condition and history rather than model year.
Patrol 160 / MQ
1980–1989No single year stands out: owners and specialists say to buy on condition and history rather than model year.
Nissan Patrol Y60 (GQ)
1987–1997No particular year. Guides and owners choose a GQ by engine, not by build date. 4X4 Australia says the TD42 was the outback tourers' favourite for its simplicity and 'legendary reliability', and NissanPatrol.com.au members say TD42s fetch a premium over the TB42 petrol and the smaller engines. Wikipedia notes that the RD28T and TB42 suffer head-gasket trouble when driven hard, and Perth dealer Westside Auto calls the RD28T underpowered for towing. Some owners prefer a pre-August-1993 'Silvertop' TD42, because Wikipedia says the lightened engine is weaker, but others say the black-tops are still very strong. Buy the best-kept TD42 manual you can find.
Patrol Y61 (GU)
1997–2016 (later in some markets)For a touring diesel, the TD42 years. CarsGuide calls the TD42 turbo-diesel 'the pick of the Patrol engines from this era', and Westside Auto names the 2005–07 TD42T ST and ST-L as the GU's sweet spot for reliability. The TD42T arrived in 1999 and the intercooled TD42Ti in 2003, and Australian sources date the end of the TD42 to 2006 or 2007. Be wary of 2000–2003 ZD30s. In the Gulf, where petrol GUs dominate, CarSwitch rates the 2008–10 Safaris as the most refined Y61s.
- 1999TD42T turbo-diesel added (to the ST in Australia). It's mechanically injected with no electronic engine control. CarsGuide calls the TD42 turbo-diesel 'the pick of the Patrol engines from this era'Sweet spot
- 2000GU II (April): 3.0 L four-cylinder ZD30DDTi diesel arrives with an optional automatic. The naturally aspirated TD42 reportedly left the wagon range around this time. Early ZD30s (2000–2003 in Westside Auto's guide) are known for piston and bottom-end failuresBeware
- 2003Factory-intercooled TD42Ti arrives, with electronic injection timing from February. ST-L grade added. 4X4 Australia rates its reliability and simplicity for remote travel, and Westside Auto names the 2005–07 TD42T ST and ST-L as the GU's sweet spotSweet spot
Patrol Y62 / Armada
2010–presentCarSwitch, a UAE used-car marketplace, rates 2015–2017 trucks as the value sweet spot and the 2020–2021 facelifts as the best recent buys. Perth dealer Westside Auto calls the 2020-on facelift Patrols the most desirable on the used market. CarSwitch suggests caution with 2010–2012 trucks because of transmission valve-body problems and early fit-and-finish issues. In the US, run any 2020–2021 Armada's VIN for the fuel-pump recall.
- 2010–2012Early trucks: CarSwitch flags transmission valve-body issues and early fit-and-finish problemsBeware
- 2015–2017CarSwitch's value sweet spot for used Y62s: it says most early-production mechanical kinks had been sorted by thenSweet spot
- 2019Second Patrol facelift with a new front end and Nissan Intelligent Mobility driver aids. CarSwitch and Westside Auto rate these 2020-on facelift Patrols as the most desirable used Y62sSweet spot