2000 qx4 recently acquired, purchassed with 142,000 4 months ago, now has 154,000

this was a customers car that i had serviced since it was brand new in 2000 with no miles.
the distributor locked up broke the cam and the customer did not want to fix. after spending around 1500 bucks in parts she is back running on the road.

repainted it the factory color, new tires, brakes thermostat, t-belt, water pump tensioner, distributor, wires, plugs, camshaft, seals, fuel filter, serviced front, rear diffs, transfer case, p steering fluid, trans filter change, new wipers tint, hids rewired wire harness on passenger side due to pinched wires causing turn signal and foglight failure.

its my new daily driver and crazy as it was the first vehicle i ever serviced 10 years ago

2001 3.5L SE, was my mother's car. It was a new lease. She put about 109k miles on it. Currently has 119k and have had no new major mechanical issues as of yet. This is my first car and I just got my license back in December. Replaced two bad camshaft sensors that were causing P1140 and P1145 for years now back in May. The oil leak I posted about earlier was dealt with by adding some oil additive to help seal the leak, and it seems to have worked well. It's only a very minor, slow drip now, which I hope will stop completely with the next oil change and additive. Still runs great!

2002 QX4 4X4. 90,000 mi. Third set of tires, spark plugs, front brake pads, cat/tail pipe, 02 sensor, third battery, right headlight bulb. Vehicle still looks and drives excellent. Was thinking of replacing with new vehicle now, I may replace stereo and keep for a while longer. Especially like the fact that the 3.5 has a timing chain vs. belt. No need to replace.

2001 QX4 2WD - 189,050 miles

Nothing major so far other than new shocks all around. Just maintenance items like brakes, fluids, belts, tires.

2000 Pathfinder LE 4x4

149k miles. Recently had (and fixed, I hope) misfiring issue with engine. Hate to admit it, but that seems to have been due to missing some maintenance.
Other work done (mostly all maintenance or replacing stuff due to lack of funds for maintenance):
Water pump went out at 40k miles. Had that (and timing belt while they were in there) done under warranty.
Timing belt / water pump again at 138k, paid a mechanic.
New front rotors a few years back, diy.
Brakes, change all fluids at intervals (oil, tranny, rear diff, transfer case). Flush radiator every couple years. all diy.
CV boots tore at about 110k miles. I just let em go because its just as expensive to replace the CV boots as it is to replace the front axles. Replaced front axles and wheel bearings at 140k. Paid a mechanic.

I bought an extended warranty when I bought the car. I have to say, it didn't actually pay off. This car needed *nothing* except for the water pump until > 100k miles.

This car (until I let the plugs go bad) has always, I mean, always started and run great. The 3.3 engine is rock solid but is definitely underpowered. It does, however, produce a really nice roadster-ish exhaust note. I have always wanted to drive a 2004-2005 pathfinder for the 3.5 engine to see what it's like. Took it offroad a few times. No it's not a jeep and I will not be taking it to Moab anytime soon, but it can certainly handle itself offroad. In even deep snow, it'll get you around like a champ.

The thing is an absolute terror to work on. I am a big guy with big hands. I don't think I have ever owned a car that crams more stuff in hard to reach places. But if it keeps running like it has been, that won't matter. But my 2000 is rock solid and should give me another 100k miles at least. Just do the maintenance. Take care of the pathfinder and it will take care of you.

2001 2WD LE 155,000 same owner still running great
Flipped the car in a ditch in 01 bent the axle and minor damage, Mostly a ton of mud. Truck survived, very tough, would trust it with my life. No significant problems over 10 years other than oxygen sensor and mass air flow sensor.

I purchased my '01 Pathfinder SE brand new in May of '01when I came off lease of a '98 Pathy SE. I have 84,000 miles on it and it still looks like new. Got rid of those crappy step bars (which always rust out on the bottom) and replaced them with some high quality stainless steel steps that fit the Pathy perfectly. The stainless steps give the Pathy a really nice unique look. No real problems. Change all fluids as recommended. Had some issues with 02 sensors but that's all to common on Pathfinders. Had to replace a camshaft position sensor. That's about it. I am going to remove the Bose radio and CD player. CD crapped out with the all to often ERR2 message. Im going with a single disk Pioneer system for the upgrade with blue tooth built-in and satellite ready.

2001 Infiniti QX4, currently have 171,000 miles clocked on it. I purchased it at 155,000 miles and it needed some work, wasn't driveable. To get it running as it is today I have replaced these:
- MAF
- Crankshaft Sensors
- Ignition Coils
- Spark Plugs
- Brakes
- Fluids

Now I am working on fixing the 4x4. Overall it has been a solid vehicle, it's too bad the previous owner treated it so poorly.

1997 Pathfinder SE standard. 121,884 miles
Great shape other than I am going to replace the "death wobble" rear lower control arm bushings this week

My old 1997 Pathfinder got 211,000 on it and was still going strong when i wreck it. Bought it in 2003 when it had 145,000 miles. Could still fix the front to get it drivable but would ve costed more than it's worth right now so decided to upgrade.... Only thing i changed out of schedule was the head gasket a few months after i bought it. also the serpentine belt driving the A/C went out after 6 yr so replace the whole 3 belts. other than that and regular oil change every 3k miles, nothing else... brake pads and tires last easily 40k+.... would have changed the timing belt eventually if i didn't wreck it....

Just got a 2002 Pathfinder with 118,000 miles. Hoping my new 2002 will be as good..... I did notice worse fuel economy with the 3.5 engine... oh well, guess you can''t have extra 70 horses for free...

beastmoore wrote:1997 Pathfinder SE standard. 121,884 miles
Great shape other than I am going to replace the "death wobble" rear lower control arm bushings this week

97 with only 121k? wow, that's super low mileage

2001 Pathfinder SE 145,274 miles
Replaced a couple of the O2 sensors 5 years ago (dealer), replaced radiator 2 years ago. Refilled air conditioning coolant (self) last year, replaced thermostat, hoses & radiator cap this year.

Regular oil changes. Replacing MAF filter is next on the list!

2001 4x2 Pathy, purchased August 2010
144,000 miles
Averaging 16-17 miles per gallon (filling with 92 octane)

Beautiful truck, obviously babied by previous owner. Interior immaculate, exterior has a couple of what appear to be parking lot dings.

Had a bad cable leading to the battery, causing intermittent "I'm-being-abducted-by-aliens" random instrument panel idiot lights to turn on occasionally. Problem got progressively worse until I lost *all* electrical on the way to work one day, and the rig just shut down. (Thankfully, I drive a pretty mellow two-lane highway to work - I'd hate to think what it would have been like on the freeway somewhere). Had it towed to a shop, $200 later, electrical all happy, no other problems than a slightly loose serpentine belt I that squeals when it's cold outside or if I ramp up the RPMs over 5000. (Gonna get to that this weekend).

Experienced the slow power windows, took the advice from another thread about spraying a buttload of silicone lubricant down into the rails, and now they all work like they're brand new.

This is my third Nissan product, and all have been exceptional vehicles - as many have said, seemingly impossible to kill. I had two different '86 720 series pickups (one a regular cab with an automatic, the other a King Cab with a 5 speed), and I loved them both, but my Pathfinder takes it all to a new level.

Love. This. Rig.

I bought my '95 pathfinder se 4x4 in '07 from a used car lot with 105,000 miles on it for $3000. I drove it less than 2 weeks, and the oil pressure sending unit blew out and pumped all the oil out and locked the motor up on my way to work. After sitting 5 months at a repair garage, i was told the 6 month warranty didn't cover it, so I found a wrecked donor with 94,000 miles on it for $500. I swapped the engine and tranny myself, and it now has 146000 miles on it including two round trips to New Orleans, and hauling seven guys to work there every day. While I had the engine/ tranny out, I replaced everything hard to get to while they were out. I replaced the plugs, wires, thermostat, tranny filter/gasket, and put all new manifold studs on(4 were broken), one front tension rod, took the rear sway bar off, rear springs & shocks(2 sets), and put an external transmission cooler(eliminated stock unit). The frame is getting pretty bad on it now. Despite all the trouble I had, it still runs great, and honestly it goes better in deep snow/offroad than my '06 xterra, and it rides much more comfortably,also. I got my $ out of it definitely. I would recommend if you have an auto, add an external tranny cooler, and periodically check the tranny wires and rear o2 sensor wire that hangs above the tranny and make sure they aren't melted in half like mine were, and check your oil pressure sender for leaking. And if you have to change engine/tranny, seperate them and pull them out seperately(trust me, I learned the hard way), and put the engine in 1st, then the tranny.

Hey there - I was just researching reliability of the Pathfinder when I came across your post. Great work - here is my info. Please add me to the list to send the results of your study.

1997 Nissan Pathfinder
199 K miles
2" AC lift package
HKS Intake

I've owned the car since 2001 when it had 50K miles on it. Since then I've experienced relatively few mechanical issues:
I replaced the clutch at ~120K
Suspension was replaced at ~90K due to bushing failure. This is one spot where the Pathfinder setup is destined to fail. The bushings in the suspension components need to be replaced every 5 years or so. The rear lower control arms, if I recall correctly, wear out and cause the body to sway at highway speeds when letting off the gas. The front lower control arms suffer the same bushing failure, causing the steering to feel loose and wobbly. Either job is about $350 for parts and labor per control arm.

Suspension was replaced at ~150K to install the lift coils, not because of failure. These things are really stiff for about 10k to 20k miles, but eventually break in.

I've experienced evap canister failure and o2 sensor failure - both were relatively inexpensive fixes.

- James

gavnator wrote:I purchased my '01 Pathfinder SE brand new in May of '01when I came off lease of a '98 Pathy SE. I have 84,000 miles on it and it still looks like new. Got rid of those crappy step bars (which always rust out on the bottom) and replaced them with some high quality stainless steel steps that fit the Pathy perfectly. The stainless steps give the Pathy a really nice unique look. No real problems. Change all fluids as recommended. Had some issues with 02 sensors but that's all to common on Pathfinders. Had to replace a camshaft position sensor. That's about it. I am going to remove the Bose radio and CD player. CD crapped out with the all to often ERR2 message. Im going with a single disk Pioneer system for the upgrade with blue tooth built-in and satellite ready.

Hey man I'd love to see a pic of those stainless stepsides...

Hi, folks. First post for me.

I have a 2000 LE Pathfinder Black and I still love it. First owner. 151,000 miles. To be honest besides the usual belts, brakes, wear/tear items, the only thing I have ever had to replace on this car is the harmonic pulley. And that was just last month! It has also been an outside car this whole time and it still looks great!

Interior still perfect with only slightly cracking leather seats, but that is my fault b/c I think I have only conditioned the leather once in 10 years.

It is in the shop right now b/c some idiot completely ignored a stop sign and ran into me. I decided to get the hood repainted while its in there b/c of some rust that has started to develop where there were some rock chips. I figure since I am planning on keeping her until she dies, I should go ahead and keep her looking good!

No mods excpet beefier tires than OEM.

My other ride is a 2002 BMW Z3 roadster that I baby. She has 91,000 miles on it. I hope to keep her forever, too!

The Pathy is my Fall/Winter ride and I tend to use the Z3 in the Spring/Summer (and put her to bed in the winter).

First time I have ever been on a Pathfinder forum, so looking forward to checking it out!

ETA: Just saw the OP runs truedelta. I actually participate in that. Small world!

2001 silver SE (Black leather)

Purchased 4 years ago with 45K on it.

I've replaced all 6 coil packs (2 were bad but I did the others for insurance).
Constant oil changes, Just changed Rad fluid and all other Tranny/diff/transfer case fluids.
New Front Brake rotors/Pads due to slightly warped brakes (again a little overkill but I like things perfect)
Weld Repair to rear resinator pipe that seems to always fail over rear axle (3 years and holding)
Set of Tires (Toyo HT's...which kinda blow in the snow)
One Rear O2 sensor
Had a guy in Calif Fix stock CD player 3 years ago (found him on the "bay"..flawless eversince).

Getting ready to install front manual Warn hubs.

Currently 70,000 miles and runs great interior is MINT exterior 8/10...just lousy MPGS...

Bought my 98 Chilkoot in fall 2009 with 216,000km. Now at 253,000km and just did a trip to Florida in December about 5500km, performed like a champ. Turned over 250k in the middle of the trip, great milestone.

The car was sold certified so the following was fixed before I drove it off the lot:
-ball joints
-front brake rotors

Following was replace free under recall:
-gas tank filler tube

Replaced items due to wear and tear in the first 12 months of ownership:
-exhaust system
-control arm bushings (most critical of all items as it's a safety issue)
-rear struts

Outside of normal maintenance items (distributor cap, plugs, filters, oil, belts, fluids, tires, alignments etc) nothing major has gone wrong and it's been 100% reliable every day, and has not failed me yet. Looking forward to the next 250k, the body is mint with minimal body rust except usual spots in the fenders. I have touched up any small rust spots on the chassis that were starting. Next major maintenance will be the 200,000 mile timing belt change. Also looking at front shock replacement, front wheel bearing replacement and a stereo upgrade. I already have a Clarion CX400 head unit waiting to be installed.

Has some minor issues like any other 13 year old car:
- pops out of 3rd gear when you are off the gas (synchro issue)
- throw out bearing squeals every now and then, mostly a cold weather symptom
- idle issue after I cleaned out the throttle body, I know this can be fixed / reset though.
- rear washer motor died a month ago, new one on the way from eBay

I have spent at least $2500 on parts/labor since I have had it (doing some work myself) but most of it was required maintenance stuff, not major things that were breaking. New tires eats up a fair chunk of that, as well as the bushing replacement job.

Re posting 1999.5 SE Limited which has now 124,xxx Miles New System only major problem since last post was two front tires kept sprawling out causing some major tire wear. Has been fixed

2001 pathfinder se bought in 02 with 19,000. Had at Nissan 3 different times for o2 sensors. 6disc changer quit working running boards rusted through and tow hitch has a lot of rust Tennessee winters. It now has 165,000 and I'm still loving this thing. I've heard there's an investigation on the rust issue maybe we all get a free undercoating???

edogg27 wrote:got 118k and still runs like its brand new.. the only things i replace are drive belts tires brakes and oil every 3000. one problem i have had recently is when i start it my rpm goes down and it shuts off.. but if i start it and give it a rev it runs just fine... if it a cheap fix ill do it but i dont think its hurting anything but let me know if u know what it is

Try cleaning your MAF sensor and changing your fuel filter.

hello. im new here but not new to nissans and infinitis.

i have a 01 QX4 purchased end of last summer at a repo auction for $2800 and it has 125,000 miles on it. loaded minus navigation. I now have 140,000 miles and no problems other than the commonly rusted out rear muffler section. i had a muffler shop just toss a pipe with a tip on that section instead of replacing the ugly looking muffler (doesnt make it louder either). total cost was $60 labor and the pipe i supplied the tip. so far im pleased with it other than the gas mileage. i recently hit a deer (super light hit) took out the lower portion of the bumper 2 fog lights and busted a flare mounting tab and blew the clips off the grille. i got lucky on the headlights (1 broken tab on each) needless to say the insurance company gave me $5400 to repair it and im a cerfified autobody tech so they cut me the check. lets just say that deer hit paid for the vehicle and then some. i fixed the headlight tabs (they gave me $1200 each headlight lol) I found a bumper and fog lights on ebay for a total of 400.00 and about 150.00 in paint supplies. fixed the tab on the flare and im rolling again.

ok aside from my deer hit luck i dont really have any complaints. my sunroof has no power going to the switch and i cannot find the fuse or relays to fix the issue. i plan on changing the plugs as i just got new DENSO platinum plugs. (# pkh16tt 1.99 each) not sure if those will be equal to the stock NGKs but the parts store says they are. im kinda picky on plugs so i guess ill hope for the best. no coil pack problems yet. i do have a custom made short ram intake that i made and it has been working good until recently when i cleaned my MAFS. now the throttle response seems wierd and the trans shifts kinda funny but doesnt slip. almost feels like a CVT trans like the new maximas. the vacc lines are in the same locations as they were on the stock air box. ill post a thread on that later. anyway i just replace the crappy pirelli scorpion ATRs out in favor of some cooper M+S tires and they are awesome! i highly reccomend them since they go thru snow with ease and barely need to use the 4wd.

all in all at the end of the day its a awesome SUV for free lol. well technicly free after the deer hit and the price i paid at auction. its a great vehicle to haul my daughter around in and it hasnt rusted out on me like my silverado did lol. i hope to keep this QX for a while.

my old 97 PF must be one of the higher mileage if not the highest in this forum with 211,000 miles?

I have a 1997 Nissan Pathfinder with 306,594 miles on it as of today. Many of those miles have been off-road and on long highway trips across the American West. It is the best and most reliable car I ever owned.

FWIW, an employee in the parts department at my local dealership has owned a pre-facelift green R50 (not sure what year, didn't ask him) since new and has 187k miles on it. He says it's still going strong, didn't ask him any specifics of any major work done or maintenance or whatnot, just chatted for a minute on my way out of the dealership as I saw him pulling in.

My R50 on the other hand now has 122.5k miles, no issues other than a blower motor resistor failure, $89 replacement part from local dealer.

2000 Nissan Pathfinder LE

We just broke 200,000 this week.

After new battery, cap/rotor and plugs... she runs like a champ.

I have a 2001 QX4 with 165,000 miles. I love that the interior of this vehicle was designed to last forever. Even the leather still looks new. As for mechanical issues, I am just now starting to experience some. I believe the symptoms I am experiencing are due to a dirty fuel filter, which seems easy to replace. There is a weird knocking noise when accelerating at mid-throttle; I'm still not sure what is causing the noise, though I don't believe it's a piston slap. My air conditioner is also making noise...not sure if it's the compressor or clutch. Overall, I love this car. I sold a 2007 Volvo S80 with 26,000 miles to buy my QX4 with 150,000 because the difference in quality was night and day.

Just bought my 03 SE last week with 86k. I've put 0 miles on her.
She sounds good and I'll be taking her out of the driveway for the first time today .
Straight to the car wash and tune-up.