Looking at SUV's

[h23]

Well I'll be heading off to college at UND next year and I'll be doing A LOT of hunting, so I will be needing a vehicle that can handle driving through tilled fields and mud and be able to haul trailers and my boat. I'll be selling my s14 in mid to late april (for $4,500, 92k miles if you're interested) and I'm looking at the 2001+ Xterra and the 2001+ Pathfinder, or possibly a 4runner. The pathfinder would be more roomy and have the vq35 which is a very reliable engine, but it would cost about a grand more for one with the same miles as the Xterra. The Xterra IMO looks better, and is pretty much the perfect size that I'm looking for. I am just unsure on the reliability of the VG33 (any insight?).

Just looking for opinions on what you all think is the better of the two and why. I'll only have 10 grand to spend.

Thanks for any and all help!

[C-Kwik]

I haven't had a chance to drive a VQ powered SUV yet, but if it mimics the smoothness of the Passenger car VQ's then I'd be more inclined to point you towards the Pathfinder. My parent's own a S/C Frontier and it's quite rough and weak for a truck. I test drove the N/A Frontier when we looked at the one they got for comparison and it was quite a bit worse. It's not necessarily a terrible motor, but for a grand extra, I'd bite the bullet and get the VQ powered truck.

If anything, test drive both and see if the difference is worth the difference.

[hsckris]

The motor is dead reliable but its underpowered.

I also think a 4 runner is a solid choice, but any of them would be really. I would suggest test driving them all before you buy one.

[Encryptshun]

Gen 2 Xterra (2005 - current). VQ40DE. Drives like a dream. Tows like a clydesdale. Reliable as an ugly girlfriend. Get one -- you won't regret it.

[Desert Rat]

Gen 2 Xterra (2005 - current). VQ40DE. Drives like a dream. Tows like a clydesdale. Reliable as an ugly girlfriend. Get one -- you won't regret it.

Engine, trans, etc. - great.Axles - There's some real issues here.

The 2005+ 4x4s have an aluminum housed R180 diff and either a C200 rear or a Dana 44 variant rear (off road models only).

I frequent other Nissan sites and know of 20+ front axles that have split apart. The same holds true for the Dana rear. Junk. I'd never consider one unless I was doing full axle swaps on it. These are even failing in stock configurations.

The 2000-2004 Xterras are rock solid vehicles, reliability wise. The VG33 comments are dead on - underpowered but extremely reliable. There is significant aftermarket support for them as well from simple suspension lifts to full on solid axle swap kits. The weakest link is the steering on these, and while it holds up fine on a stock vehicle, if you lift it, look for an aftermarket steering fix to maintain that reliability.

VQ pathfinders are nice too. They'll tow better. They are a bit lower to the ground and don't have nearly the aftermarket goodies that the Xterra has. They are also unibody constructed (97-04 models), so they lack a body on frame construction which is a solid platform for a good 4x4 rig. However, if you plan to keep the vehicles box stock, I'd probably choose the R50 pathfinder over the X. If I wanted a purely offroad rig, the X is a better choice.

[Bryant0086]

My wife drives an '04 Quest SE. It has the VQ35DE engine in it. It is so quiet, you can't hear it run when it idles, yet it offers 240HP and we have packed seven people (all adults less one) and cargo in that van and I couldn't tell a large performance decline. The VQ35DE is a world class engine. If I was choosing on the motor alone, it would be an obvious choice, but my suggestion is to read reviews and test drive them yourself. When we were shopping for the van, I looked at a Mitsubishi Montero that was on the lot as well. I was surprised how well equipped it was. I don't know anything about reliability of those, nor performance, but I liked the way it looked and was trimmed out.

Bryant