Looking for owners of 3.2 litre pajero's

aussietraveller · Guru

Looking for owners of 3.2 litre pajero's

wombat50 · Veteran Member

Hi AT,
I have a 2016NX Pajero 3.2 turbo diesel.
On the highway I average about 10.5 klms/L
Around town is approx. 9klms/L.
Not sure if we are allowed to post links to other site or not but if not please remove the link.
www2.pajeroclub.com.au/forum/forumdisplay.php
you will get heaps of info about pajero's here.

Ross

erad · Guru

I have a 2013 NW Pajero (manual transmission) AND LOVE IT! It is a diesel, and although I drive like and old grandfather (Hell, I am one), I get the following consumptions for varying speed and conditions:

With my 16.5 Ft Jayco Poptop in tow:
Flat country or gentle downhill eg Cooma - Sydney, 11.7 L/100 km, averaging around GPS 95 km/h. AWESOME.
Flat country, GPS speed 93 km/h (speedo indicated 100 km/h) 12.2 L/100 km
Flat country, GPS speed 103 - 104 km/h 14.2 L/100
Flat country or gentle uphills eg Sydney to Cooma, 14.2 L/100 km - speeds near legal maximum because we are heading home
Hilly country, speed varying but not over 100 km/h up to 15 l/100 km

Without the van:
Flat country eg Cooma to Melbourne 7.8 L/100 km at max legal GPS speeds
Hilly country the consumption can get up to 8.8 l/100, but not much more, because typically the speeds go down somewhat in hilly country.

All of the above figures are taken from my log books, and are based on actual fuel fills and distances traveled. Consumption when the engine is cold is much higher, and at times the engine takes up to 20 km before it reaches operating temperature. Once it gets there, things seems to settle down and good performance and consumption follow. Winds can have a major effect on consumption. Look at the difference above between 93 km/h and 100 km/h (both speeds measured with GPS). If you push it even more, consumption will soar, but in places such as the main drag up to Alice Springs, there is a tendency to say "To hell with consumption, lets just get there ASAP".

The sheer pulling power of the Pajero is astonishing. Lately, I have been using CEM (Cost Effective Maintenance) products in the fuel system and although it is too early to say for sure that there is an improvement, it certainly looks that way right now. The engine is certainly quieter and smoother, and it starts easier, although in summer times that is no problem anyway. I have no affiliation with CEM (I wish I had because it is expensive stuff), but I think I will continue to use it once this batch has been used up.

-- Edited by erad on Sunday 21st of January 2018 09:36:41 PM

deverall11 · Guru

We owned a 2007 ex-police Pajero. Had about 50k on the clock. This thing burned fuel like nobody's business. Could barely get 300km out of a full tank across the Nulabor towing
a 2.5t van. A number of people told us there was something no right.
Traded it on a 200 series Landcruiser V8 diesel. Never looked back. Yes, higher purchase price but also higher resale value.
If you don't believe that, have a look on carsale.com.au for a used 200 series diesel Landcruiser vs the same year whatever (Mitsu, Mazda, Coli etc)
Larry

aussietraveller · Guru

My Pajero is a NP 2004 model 3.8 litre, and on our last trip across the Nullabour using a combination of LPG and Petrol and towing a 21 foot van using gas first then petrol, which makes it hard to determine the actual economy of each fuel but the combined figures are.

Location distance litres per 100

Nyngan to Kimba 412 klm 27.7
Kimba to Ceduna 435 26.1
Ceduna to Nullabour 153 36.1 HEAD WIND
Nullabour To Mundura 212 32.7 HEAD WIND
Mundura to Nardoo 182 28.3
Nardoo to Caiguna 211 27
Caiguna to Balladonia 151 26.5
Balladonia to Norseman 181 27.8

cruising speed between 90 & 100 kph most of the way but down to 80 in strong wind are

Average running in local area on LPG is around 22 litres per 100 klm
Average running in local area on petrol is around 15 litres per 100 klm

Hoping Diesel works out much better especially when towing I would like to replace the Pajero with another Pajero just a mor economical one.

skins · Senior Member

I've got a 2015 NX exceed 3.2 diesel and love it. This model Paj does not have a diesel particulate filter. Only done 45000k's. Get anywhere from 9.3 to 10.5 around town and towing a 2900kg van get anywhere between 15.5 - 17.5. Of course your aware to drive in 4th (auto) so it locks the torque converter up so that the automatic transmission fluid doesn't overheat and if you tow over (I think) 2500kg's your allowable ball weight decreases to 180 Kgs, which is a pain. Would be best to check this out with the new models however to see if they have improved it or its the same. And very important the Pajero have a habit of having the inlet manifold block up. So invest in plug & play EGR mod. Takes about 30 seconds to fit for a novice and prevents the EGR valve from blocking up the manifold. If you have a look at the Pejero club of Victoria there is a wealth of info about it and is highly recommended otherwise you run the risk of the manifold being blocked anywhere from 80 to 100,000 kays. EGR mod cost about 120 bucks and is very easily removed for dealer servicing. Cost of inlet manifold clean 1200 bucks. Also the Paj is renown for have a very soft rear suspension. But I don't have any dramas.

hope this helps - skins

aussie_paul · Guru

We have a 3.2 diesel 2010 Pajero. Yes the rear end is a little soft. Van is 2.7t, gross combination is 5.6t. We sit on 90 or a smidge more and seem to average 16 liters per 100km.

Aussie Paul. smile

The Celt · Newbie

Howdy AT

We have an auto late 2010 NT Pajero diesel. We tow a 20'6" Sunland dual wheel van at 2900kg fully loaded. The Paj has 105K on the clock. In original spec (apart from the suspension), the rig would consistently average 19L/100km at 85-95KPH. Towing through protracted runs of hills, this average would go to 22L/100km and speed would vary between 70 and 85kph.

I later put a chip on the Paj, but its performance was not overly impressive when towing. I then had the ECU re-flashed instead; added an extra transmission cooler and fan (in series), and had a GVM upgrade done that included a change to the tow-ball load index. Can now legally to a 3 tonne van with a tow-ball load up to 300kg (this made a vast improvement to the towing stability over the need to keep under the original 180kg limit). Because of the ECU remap, I am able to achieve transmission lock up regularly using 4H in 4th gear (manual mode), and the fuel usage average has decreased to 16.7L/100 (up to 19L/100 through hills). Fuel usage unladen around town is a fraction higher, but I am happy to accept that factor.

The diesel Paj has proven to be the single best (most reliable), vehicle I have owned in 49 years+ of driving. While servicing costs are higher than the petrol model, the towing capabilities of the diesel far out-way the additional costs IMHO. It is a brilliant tow machine.

If you are looking at a standard model, the Paj will easily tow 2500kg, but I would suggest a suspension upgrade, or at least heavier rear springs and decent LT tyres like the Toyo AT11's.

denmonkey · Senior Member

whilst I can't advise of mileage just yet, I can certainly say upgrading the suspension front and rear to heavy duty springs has made a massive difference.
When I loaded the van with the original springs (lots of miles on them though) the paj would squat down at the back considerably.
With the new springs in, it barely moves. Van is 17ft with ball weight around 160. So well under what you're considering.
So much so, that I compared it with the load levellers on and off and was unable to spot any difference in the ride height, front or back and that was using a tape measure.
First trip since the upgrades coming up in a few weeks.

I've only had the paj for a few months (2010 model) deisel auto and changed over to this from a petrol V6 3.0L dellica.
Needless to say, it's night and day there :)

swamp · Senior Member

HI

I hope none of these figures are from onboard trip computer . On board trip computers if so equipped more often than not are inaccurate .
Measure the old way fill till the top of tank .

The Celt · Newbie

swamp wrote:
HI

I hope none of these figures are from onboard trip computer . On board trip computers if so equipped more often than not are inaccurate .
Measure the old way fill till the top of tank .

No - the old fashioned way using data from long trips. Petrol receipts versus litres pumped in from the last full fill. As you say, they are inaccurate and a lot are "generous". A simple tyre profile change will throw the on-board unless you get it calibrated. It's no use going bush on the basis of the on-board figures - can be plain dangerous.

The old way is still the best way - just means a bit of work and most of us are up for that.