Nissan Elgrand - Have You Driven One?

[pixel8r]

Hi there,

The title probably says it all.

I'm in SA and there are almost none for sale here (just a couple dealers, and they only have petrol models). I've been doing a lot of research, checked a few out etc.

So I just thought I'd ask if any of you have driven one / owned one, and what you think of them as a family car.

Obviously I'm aware of what they look like etc. so I'm really just wanting advice from people who have owned one or driven one

In other words, can they replace a stagea as a family car (if we rule out performance & handling)?

Pros: comfort, space, versatility, fuel economy (the diesel is great on fuel for a 2T car).

Cons: performance, handling?, parking.

I'm interested in the E50 3L turbo diesel model (ZD30DDti common rail - and yes I'm aware of the potential issues - same as nissan patrol. There are many thousands of patrols still going strong...so I'm not too concerned).

[(OO)SKYLINE(OO)]

A friend of mine has an E50 with the VQ35DE, which I have drove.

Nice car (van) to drive, quiet, powerful and very spacious.

He has also did a Gas conversion and can run both when he wants.

Coming from a Performance / Handling point of view:

It's a van, your not going to be thrashing it around corners / taking it up for a hills run it's just a big cruiser.

Parking would help with parking sensors but you get use to having such a big car / van.

[Duncan]

Yeah I've driven one and I think they are excellent for a larger family. even the performance was reasonable (ie not a slug).

One important point to note, AFAIK there is no compliance for Elgrands other than as a camper van with no seats in the rear. ie if you find one with 8 seats or whatever they have, make sure it has been engineered as an 8 seater. I'll bet 99% of them are illegal 8 seaters and therefore super dangerous legally.

[pixel8r]

Yeah I've driven one and I think they are excellent for a larger family. even the performance was reasonable (ie not a slug).

One important point to note, AFAIK there is no compliance for Elgrands other than as a camper van with no seats in the rear. ie if you find one with 8 seats or whatever they have, make sure it has been engineered as an 8 seater. I'll bet 99% of them are illegal 8 seaters and therefore super dangerous legally.

Yeah I've been doing a lot of reading about the seating issues and it all boils down to the fact that Japan says that a person weighs X kg and Australia says a person weighs Y kg and so therefore when they come over here, the GVM only allows for 4 people (plus luggage allowance) rather than 7 or 8.

Normally during compliance, the necessary modifications are done, and then they are able to be registered as an 8 seater (or 7 in SA).

I'm looking to buy through a dealer in NSW and I will not be purchasing one unless it is registered in NSW as an 8 seater. Hopefully it is as simple as a plate ID check to get it registered in SA, but worst case I need an engineer certificate...which according to others who have done it, is just a matter of having an engineer inspect it, and provide the cert. About $300-400 I'm told. They wouldn't need to do any modification because the modification has already been done in order for it to be registered in NSW. The only sticky point is that Transport SA apparently wont accept an engineer cert from another state, hence the reason for needing an SA one.

It does suck a bit but at least I know what I'm up for and it only needs to be done once.

I dont think there are too many getting around illegally. Most dealers who bring them in will get them registered as 8 seaters...so its probably only private importers who think they can save some coin by not getting them modified to support 8 seats legally.

---

As for the other points, I was pretty impressed by the interior of the elgrand - very luxurious. The rear seats reminded me of a limo.

Other big plusses were: soft-closing sliding door, soft-closing rear door (like the stagea boot), dual-zone aircon (front/back), super comfy seats, seats can all slide forward/back and can all lay completely flat. Just so much car for the money.

We only have 2 kids at this stage, but with 2 child seats in the back there's barely enough room for even 1 extra passenger if we ever have someone travel with us. The elgrand would give us greater flexibility and would be a big asset for long trips and weekend trips. Some have built-in DVD player that can be operated from the dash (some have replacement units, or the factory units can play NTSC format discs).

I can live with the size of the car - its actually pretty similar length/width to the stagea, and as mentioned the reversing camera would help with parking.

I sat in the driver seat of one, and looking around into the back I felt pretty confident with the visibility out the back windows. Definitely not as bad as I had previously imagined. They are a compact van, despite the spacious interior.

[Big Fella]

engineers certificates in SA will cost more than $400m especially for something as critical as seatbelts and seating.

I had an e50 el grand highway star, vq35de went very well, parts were easyto get, and for a people mover it handle better than most

The dealer we bought it off in SA had it registered as a 3 seater, then happily provided me with the other seatbelts and a wink and told me whatever happens next is my business.

hop onto the elgrand forums and ask the question. alot of guys interstate were having alot of trouble getting it regoed as an 8 seater, and when i rang regency they told me flatly no. after chasing it up, i was told, maybe, but it had to be engineered and it had to be new seatbelts for some reason??

good luck with it tho, they are a great car and look pretty cool for a huge van

[PN-Mad]

Is the trouble with the motors that they hole pistons? I think I remember patrols doing that a while ago. Same motor?

Have you thought about a delica? I think they just got compliance for the later model. Have a bit of a search, maybe ask ironchef

[pixel8r]

Re engineer cert. Yes it would cost more if I was getting it engineered. But you misread my comments. These cars are ALREADY engineered and registered as an 8 seater in NSW, so there is no extra engineering required to be done to register it here. You just need an SA certificate rather than a NSW certificate, so the engineer just needs to check it and provide a certificate, no actual work done. Seatbelts etc are all looked after during compliance and prior to first registration in NSW.

As for the ZD30 issues - yeah I think they are similar to the issues with the patrols, but hard to tell which engine is which. There are many variants of the ZD30 and obviously many patrols have a much harder life than the elgrand.

The issues mostly stem from too much soot fouling up different components in the engine, eventually leading to overboost and overheating on piston 3 & 4. The simple protections for this are to regularly clean the MAF sensor (this is the root cause of the problem), and fit a manual boost controller to limit boost. Some people also block off the EGR valve but I dont really want to do this. Rather, I'd just inspect it every now and then and clean it out where necessary.

The ZD30 is still a pretty good motor if looked after. A couple of members on the nissanelgrand forum reported fuel economy as low as 8L/100km on the highway. From a stock engine and a 2T vehicle, this is pretty good.

[iamhe77]

Is the trouble with the motors that they hole pistons? I think I remember patrols doing that a while ago. Same motor?

Have you thought about a delica? I think they just got compliance for the later model. Have a bit of a search, maybe ask ironchef

D5 Delica = S.L.U.G.

[pixel8r]

D5 Delica = S.L.U.G.

and very expensive for this model. not even slightly interested in the earlier models anyway.

[Grungle]

D5 Delica = S.L.U.G.

Really? I drove one in Japan and it was fine. A long way off the stagea obviously...but that's kind of the point.

We'll get one in the next 12 months (once prices are more realistic). As far as I know there are only a handful in Australia at the moment.

[pixel8r]

changed my mind and decided to look at the petrol (VQ35DE) instead.

Couldn't find a diesel in good condition, and there are not many around.

VQ35DE is undoubtedly the best engine, most reliable, and most powerful. Just a bit costlier on fuel. But with the price of diesel going up, I'm thinking petrol might not be so bad.

[GoldZilla]

I drove an E50 (the earlier model with the VG30 in it) a few weeks back. Isn't too bad for the age of the car, goes pretty well and didn't struggle with 6 people in it. It sounds kinda busy on uphill stretches at freeway speeds, but if you look down at the tacho it's only pulling about 3,800rpm at roughly 100-110km/h in 3rd gear.

Obviously the centre of gravity is higher, and that took some getting used to, and (also obviously) trying to drive around potholes doesn't really happen. The one I drove had "adjustable" suspension, but in auto mode it was very floaty, and in sport mode it was a bit harsh over bumps - which, like I mentioned, are hard to steer around to avoid.

The main issue I had with it, though, was the total lack of feeling in the steering. It's way too light and feels like it tends to wander a bit - this might be helped with a wheel alignment and some extra caster, but who knows...

It had plenty of gadgets though, so seemed pretty good value.

Oh, one other thing: my left leg was sore after about 45mins of driving, and I was on the road for just over 4hrs total that day (home near Parramatta to airport, then airport to Central Coast, then back home again via airport). Between gear changes, I'm used to being able to rest my left leg on the centre console of the Stagea, so maybe the fact that I was driving an auto and didn't have anything proper to rest my leg against (especially for the amount of time I was on the road).

[ECR33_RB25DET]

I imported for my father in law a E51 Highwaystar running a VQ35DE and 4WD at the same time as my Stagea Axis.

The El-Grand is great to drive, big, fat, transformers looking cruiser with all the electronic bits and bobs.

The key thing is; initially the vehicle gets registered on the road as a camper (4 seater), then immediately after words you get it rengineered from camper to people mover (7 or 8 seater).

You have to do it legally and get all the paperwork for insurance purposes, you would be stupid to drive around as a people mover with passengers without an engineers certificate.

Mine become a 7 seater.

I have driven the E50 diesels; 1 word; $hit. Slughish for such a big and heavy car.

If you want to convert it to gas, then you are also an 1diot.

Realisically you wont be thrashing it, its an awesome family cruise not a 1/4 mile drag racer or drifter. Believe me, it still hammers, give alot of family wagons and sedans a run for their money.

Gas will only reduce the life of components within the motor.

The quality, ride comfort, reliability, looks out weigh any other under spec piece of $hit you find on the Oz car market.

Edited December 6, 2011 by ECR33_RB25DET

[pixel8r]

I imported for my father in law a E51 Highwaystar running a VQ35DE and 4WD at the same time as my Stagea Axis.

The El-Grand is great to drive, big, fat, transformers looking cruiser with all the electronic bits and bobs.

The key thing is; initially the vehicle gets registered on the road as a camper (4 seater), then immediately after words you get it rengineered from camper to people mover (7 or 8 seater).

You have to do it legally and get all the paperwork for insurance purposes, you would be stupid to drive around as a people mover with passengers without an engineers certificate.

Mine become a 7 seater.

I have driven the E50 diesels; 1 word; $hit. Slughish for such a big and heavy car.

If you want to convert it to gas, then you are also an 1diot.

Realisically you wont be thrashing it, its an awesome family cruise not a 1/4 mile drag racer or drifter. Believe me, it still hammers, give alot of family wagons and sedans a run for their money.

Gas will only reduce the life of components within the motor.

The quality, ride comfort, reliability, looks out weigh any other under spec piece of $hit you find on the Oz car market.

Yeah that's the word I've been hearing everywhere about the diesels. The VQ35 is pretty awesome though. I found it drives like a normal car, except for the higher centre of gravity. Takes a bit of getting used to, going round corners. It does have a very tight turning circle if you want but also can be a bit touchy on the accelerator when you're not used to it...kept feeling like I could roll it if not careful

In the end I decided to play it safe and have put a deposit on one at sinergy motorsports here in adelaide. No registration hassles, and the price was as good as anywhere else. If you factor in the extra cost and hassle of rego changeover from purchasing interstate, I think we did ok.

The one we got is a 2002 silver E50 with VQ35DE (2WD). I love that the E50 VQ35 is cable driven, so no "I know better than you" ECU smarts getting in the way. drive-by-wire probably delivers fuel economy benefits but after the M35 stagea I'm not convinced its a good idea.

All up the drive is fantastic. Ours has an aftermarket exhaust (fitted in japan), which is very quiet when cruising but sounds awesome at idle. Not overpowering at all. I'm not a fan of loud exhausts, but this one really improved the car.

I pick it up next week - will post pics here when I get it

[ECR33_RB25DET]

Yeah that's the word I've been hearing everywhere about the diesels. The VQ35 is pretty awesome though. I found it drives like a normal car, except for the higher centre of gravity. Takes a bit of getting used to, going round corners. It does have a very tight turning circle if you want but also can be a bit touchy on the accelerator when you're not used to it...kept feeling like I could roll it if not careful

In the end I decided to play it safe and have put a deposit on one at sinergy motorsports here in adelaide. No registration hassles, and the price was as good as anywhere else. If you factor in the extra cost and hassle of rego changeover from purchasing interstate, I think we did ok.

The one we got is a 2002 silver E50 with VQ35DE (2WD). I love that the E50 VQ35 is cable driven, so no "I know better than you" ECU smarts getting in the way. drive-by-wire probably delivers fuel economy benefits but after the M35 stagea I'm not convinced its a good idea.

All up the drive is fantastic. Ours has an aftermarket exhaust (fitted in japan), which is very quiet when cruising but sounds awesome at idle. Not overpowering at all. I'm not a fan of loud exhausts, but this one really improved the car.

I pick it up next week - will post pics here when I get it

Congrats mate! You will love it for sure!

Only reason I pushed the old man in law to getting the E51 is in my opinion it looks bit more evil on the road and more modern plus mechanics and electronics are just that bit more refined. There wasn't much price difference in the end too, only a few g's.

Father in laws Elgrand come down with a nismo rear muffler from the diff back with these awesome twin nismo tips, so jealous.

Fly by wire is the $hittest technology implemented in a car!!! I am looking at a ETC (electronic throttle controller) to resolve the issue. Car goes when you don't want it too and doesn't go when you want it to go....

[pixel8r]

Congrats mate! You will love it for sure!

Only reason I pushed the old man in law to getting the E51 is in my opinion it looks bit more evil on the road and more modern plus mechanics and electronics are just that bit more refined. There wasn't much price difference in the end too, only a few g's.

Father in laws Elgrand come down with a nismo rear muffler from the diff back with these awesome twin nismo tips, so jealous.

Fly by wire is the $hittest technology implemented in a car!!! I am looking at a ETC (electronic throttle controller) to resolve the issue. Car goes when you don't want it too and doesn't go when you want it to go....

I could have probably gone with the E51 for a couple grand extra but we were already stretching our budget to get one in SA. I'm not a huge fan of the look of the E51. They look more like a courier van than the E50, but that's just my opinion. They certainly have a lot more and some nicer features and yes the newer technology is a plus too. The dash looks a bit space-age to me too...but again, fairly subjective. I did have a budget to stick to and in the end I think we got exactly what we were after So much car for the money!

Our E50 also has twin tips out the back, making it look very tidy and it sounds pretty nice too.

Very happy with the car - its in very good condition and is exactly what I was looking for - more space for us and the kids and it is just fantastic to drive it.

It is a bit bouncier and can roll a bit on corners - as expected due to its higher centre of gravity and extra weight (it weighs 2T).

Still, it feels pretty solid, and the VQ35DE is very responsive and delivers lots of torque! The elgrand wont break any land speed records, but for a van it goes pretty well. Highly recommended for anyone needing more seats/space.

btw, the Stagea is for sale now. Click here for more details...

Edited December 18, 2011 by pixel8r

[slippylotion]

Looks sweet. A nice set of wheels with compliment it nicely. ?

Edited December 19, 2011 by slippylotion

[PN-Mad]

Is that the NISMO exhaust?

I think one with a nismo parks at work...

[pixel8r]

Is that the NISMO exhaust?

I think one with a nismo parks at work...

No idea. I'd have to have a closer look at it.

Looks sweet. A nice set of wheels with compliment it nicely.

for sure.

just need someone to buy my stagea

[DJBarnstar]

Massive thred bump but how is the Elgrand going? I'm looking at an E51.