Hey Guys im a musician who does a lot of driving both in the city and country looking at buying a 1989 petrol hiace supercustom just wanted to know if anyone had any info regarding ......fuel consumpson realiabillity and general mainteinence costs........ are they expensive to run are they reliable????? any info would be fantastic!!!!! WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU ALL....... CHEERS!!!!!!! javascript:emoticon(':57:',%20'smid_3')

Hi Shorty,

I periodically hear of problems with them on forums like this, where people share their problems ;). But really one post in 20 seem to be about the gassers. Might be more in the UK. There seem to be lots of limeys on this forum:

http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/HiaceSuperCustomWagons/

The hiace is very reliable, as a rule. It can be expensive to fix, depending on where you are in the world.
Engine access makes engine repair harder and more expensive. So get one with a good engine. If it's a petrol, get a compression test.


I hear they are not the best on gas - 13.5l /100km or so. Of course, if you get a standard with 2wd and few if any sunroofs that will make a difference over the Auto 4wd versions. That's not much worse than my diesel, mind you. Looks like they do not have the power issues the older diesels (2-LT and 3-L) have.

Which engine does it have? I know the '92 had the 2.4 Litre 2RZ-E, used in some of what we call the tacoma in NA, which you might call some kind of Hilux. I have yet to read much bad about that engine, not that I've looked hard. Remember though that Engine has much less air flowing past it to cool than it would in the front of a Hilux. I think I recall something about cooling issues for the gassers, but I am not sure.

Mind you they are great fun as buses, whichever engine you put in. Comfy, with a ride to die for. they turn on a dime too, and are supposed to be hard to break into, which makes them a good choice for a musician I think.

I hear the 1-KZT turbo diesel ones - 93 and later- really move along and are pretty reliable if well treated. the 3-L is bombproof if you keep the cooling system up. Whatever you do, avoid the 2L-T. the head cracks.

Keep us posted if you get a gasser, I'm curious. The gassers go for cheaper over here, and the engine is easier to get fixed than a 3-L.

Cheers,
-Mark

1-kzt turbo has some head issues as well. gas engine like 3y, 22re, are supergreat. they are as reliable as disel except no vibration and fast accelaration.

Cheers man this is awesome you guys sound like you know your stuff!!!!! the one im looking at is 89 petrol 2wd no sunroofs i think its the fuel injected one but could be carbie model........ hopefully its not to bad on the juice.... Also any information on where to find parts ect.... (in australia) or trustworthy online stores would be awesome........ Cheers for the reply..... really appreciated....

hey it the fuel injected model 1RZ engine

The 3L also has issues with cracking heads.

As does the 1KZ-TE if you don't pay attention to the cooling system.

I have also discovered that with the turbo variants (2L-T, 1KZ-TE etc) that the head cracking issues are caused by heat build-up from the turbo and a restrictive exhaust system.

Once the old exhaust system is removed and a new, larger diameter pipe is installed (2" or larger) then there is never again a problem with the head cracking as it allows the heat to escape from the turbo much more efficiently.

As a general rule, the diesel engines are more economical on fuel than the petrol ones, but the non-turbo engines suffer from lack of power, especially on hills - even worse if it is an auto.