With the legend and awe that both brands create from social media to communicate with their customers, the Nissan versus Toyota war extends for a very long time.
With both limited models of cars and aftermarket options, automotive consumers eagerly looked forward to the promise of more.
Becoming a driving force in improvements as car makers continued to perfect their products by producing more power and torque, or offering an aftermarket upgrade to grab these consumers’ attention.
In today’s market, the rivalry between wildly different models comes under fire as they all have their own niche buyers. However, Nissan Patrol series 5 continues to be widely popular with its functional features.
Kye Appleton was in the market for a new rig after owning two GQ Patrols powered by a TD42 and 350 Chev respectively.
More recently, a 2015 Ranger Wildtrak and a 2012 Jeep Wrangler were part of his stable, but Kye was keen to adopt more of the latest technology when it came to his latest build.
“I bought this car because I wanted a vehicle that was able to power through tough terrain and had the size for comfort.” ‘The Powerplant’ and fuel economy are not ideal for travel, but the SUV is particularly good on paved roads and heavy off-road driving.
The 2021 Ti-L Patrol here was the outcome of a meticulous design process with attention-to-detail, utilizing modern engineering methods to achieve success.
Tye’s primary goal for his Off-Road build was to have a clean, almost UAE Standard Patrol, and bring the interior in to the 21st century.
He increased factory power, including a proven QR motor and a QR fuel injection pump. When it came time to work on the build, Tye wanted all of these features to be safe, reliable and free from gas line pollution.
Kye designed his patrol to be efficient and capable of handling any day’s duties in the busy city of Karratha. It is quick enough for daily tasks, but also has the ability to commute the rugged mountains and rivers in the region he calls home.
By supporting weekend excursions with jet skis, spending a bit extra on his purchase wasn’t going to put him overstretched as a result of potentially needing to run around Karratha on an emergency.
Engine modifications
When Kye got the call that Nissan was going to provide him with a V8-powered sedan, he wanted to try it as much as possible so that it wasn’t an unused purchase.
After linking up with a Queensland supplier, the Patrol was shipped to Melbourne where Matt at the Horsepower Factory installed the Harrop TVS2650 (Twin Vortices Series) supercharger to the VK56VD 5.6L petrol V8.
The company used a supercharger pulley that allowed the blower to push six pounds of pressure of air over one hundred pounds of engine pressure through the torque pulses.
In addition, Harrop offered an intercooler, keeping heat out and down by using water to cool the intake air in.
A Harrop Direct Injection Fuel Pump Upgrade, which replaces the Factory ECU to remove boost limiter and compensate for an uneven injector supply, provides a 47% increase in power output compared to the factory tune while simultaneously increasing torque by around 40%.
The exhaust allows the engine to exhale extra combustion gases, which is important for removing air from the cylinders in a manner that’s more efficient.
The start with large catalytic converters that helps with gas and oil boiling, then is built up into dual 3-inch pipes, then finally a 3.5-inch single exit.
With its new-found power and performance, Kye is sporting a set of tortured Maxxis RAZR MTs in a 35×12.5 sizing with 20-inch Simmons S6 rims in a matte black finish.
The 4×4 community would have some trepidation about handling serious off-roading, but for Kye there was no issue getting to anywhere he needed to go.
Kye admits that he likes a 20-inch rim on his car. He also says most of the Patrol cars out there have tiny rims and tires, making it seem like they skipped the gym to go pick up the car.
To ensure the operability of the vehicle, Kye has invested in a Blackhawk UCA for traction control, and a two-inch lift for increased ground clearance.
By utilizing their proprietary intake system (which allows for installation without depressurizing Nissan’s HBMC), they were able to install their new suspension without negatively affecting any other system.
A pair of airbag man airbags provide added support, when needed.
UAE influence
Refining the exterior of the Jeep to resemble a UAE-type build meant leaving that area mostly unchanged with the exception of add-ons and modifications, while blacking out any OEM bright trim.
If that was impossible, they found appropriate black signage or accessories to replace it.
Bruno from Hydrographics WA dipped the chrome on plastics, like the grille and vents, into a pearl-like paint called Night-Sky Pearl.
At the same time he whipped out the fake wood with a matte white paint, as well as dipping the stereo surround and centre console into a gun-metal gray finish.
The Rhino-Rack Pioneer bar, with a PV panel and laser 48-inch light bar across the top (sticking out from the pole) is split down the middle. On either left or right, there are two sets of lights, an LED light bar, and canary yellow camping lights.
Kitchen set-up
Kye didn’t want to carry and refill a canister that was awkwardly shaped. Gas cooking free of handles just as appealing in this case.
He needed to find the best way to heat his kitchen and deal with the lack of electricity. He could go with a typical induction cooktop which would generate enough magnetism to work on any iron-based cooking appliance.
Improvements in battery and inverter technology make it a very viable option to start with twin, 150 amp 12-volt AllSpark LiFePO4 batteries.
The batteries feed a KickAss 3000-watt inverter that can support induction cooking, as well as 240-volt GPO twin sockets mounted on the driver’s side D-pillar should the need arise.
The vehicle’s lithium batteries are charged up at 50 amps per hour with a Redarc BCDC, while the engine is running. A solar panel mounted on top of the roof streams power from the 240-watt Victron shunt.
The vehicle has lots of inputs as well as a Victron shunt and Anderson plug, plus a spare input from the lot.
Keeping supplies fresh is a retro green Legacy Edition Engel fridge loaded on an Engel slide. It includes a single storage drawer with a pull-out kitchen bench and features a generous roll out shelving system mounted on an Engel slide. This was mainly built and shipped to Karratha before being installed by Kye in their own home in Karratha.
Kye, the author of the blog post, has found that the Patrol can function as he believes it should after five full days on the road.
There is a healthy rival with his hometown’s LC200 owners and many people like to build their patrol just as Kye did.
Kye says the EATS200 plates make for a great show for those who own the 200 Series. When you smoke them at the lights or in the sand, with that subtle whine from the supercharger, everyone smiles. Including those watching from behind!
Cluster replacement
Kye felt a digital dash cluster would not be as appealing to her customers, so she opted for leather seats and climate control with Bose 12.1 speakers for the interior. She also equipped a six-pack holder along with her Patrol Ti-L.
The guys at CaRobotor devised a new way to replace the OEM cluster. They replaced it with a full digital screen, that’s more in line with the European automotive market.
Swinging over to the stereo, Kye stepped it up even further with a 12-inch PX6 touchscreen stereo replacement. Running custom Sergey Kozlov firmware allowed Kye greater control, being able to reverse the standard AC display back to the Australian market positioning, and insert pictures of his own car on the display, along with more choice in themes. An added benefit being ultra-fast boot-up times, which came with the new software.
