2000 - 2004 Nissan Xterra review

2000 - 2004 Nissan Xterra (Photo: Nissan Canada)

The Nissan Xterra is a good choice for people with active life style. The rugged Xterra with its great ground clearance and sporty off-road look asks to take it on a camping trip or off-road. The Xterra is fairly reliable and dependable truck, but don't expect it to be cheap on gas. Based on the Frontier pick-up, the Xterra has body-on-frame design with double-wishbone front suspension and solid rear axle with leaf springs. Available as rear-wheel and 4-wheel drive, with a choice of V6 and 4-cylinder engines and 4-speed automatic or five speed manual transmission. Anti-lock brakes are standard. The interior is rather cheap-looking, simple controls, rear seats fold flat, but to do that you have to remove the bottom seat cushions. With its great ground clearance and body-on-frame construction Xterra feels a bit bulky and drives like a truck. Great maneuverability, good off-road capability, but even the V6 engine feels underpowered on pick up.

Nissan Xterra interior. (Photo: Nissan Canada)

Engine

Nissan Xterra comes with the choice of 4-cylinder 2.4L or 3.3L V6 engine. The 2.4-liter 4-cylinder DOHC engine is a good reliable engine with the long-lasting timing chain, but for this truck it feels way underpowered. The 3.3-liter V6 SOHC also feels a bit slow on pick-up, but for daily use it's a good, durable simple engine. It has a timing belt that needs to be replaced at certain interval. The SE model comes with supercharged version of the same engine with more power.

Strengths

- Affordable, good value for the money
- Good off-road capabilities
- Maneuverable, small turning radius
- Plenty of cargo space, including the roof rack
- Fairly reliable and dependable

Weaknesses

- Poor gas mileage
- Seats are not very comfortable in a long run
- Bulky ride
- Cheap looking interior materials
- Slow pick-up
- To fold down rear seats, the seat cushion needs to be removed.
Problems are mostly minor, check engine light, some electrical, e.g. faulty fuel sending unit, some noises.

Overall

Are you an outdoor person? - this truck is for you. Nissan Xterra is a good inexpensive choice if you need an off-roader. It's pretty reliable, and doesn't have major problems. This truck is not for city commuting with its poor gas mileage and tall, bouncy ride. I recommend to look for models without supercharger - it adds too much load on the engine wearing it faster. In addition, models with supercharger require premium gasoline.

What to look for buying a used Nissan Xterra

Definitely check the used car history records to protect yourself from hidden problems, follow this link: How to check used car history
- Check the service records if available - it's important to verify that the car was properly maintained.
- If the "check engine" light is on, have the problem assessed with your mechanic or a Nissan dealer before buying a car; in worst cases repair might be quite expensive.
- Black soot in the exhaust or a smoke may indicate excessive oil consumption.
- Look for signs of corrosion.
Learn more what to look for when buying a used car
- Prior purchase have the car inspected by a mechanic of your choice.
Shop wisely, check few cars to compare; it's worth to pay a little extra for a well-maintained vehicle in good condition. Check our step-by-step used car buying guide for more information.
Some models may be costly to insure. Get the insurance quotes first.
Consider an extended warranty to protect from unexpected repair costs.

Few maintenance tips

- Wash and wax your car regularly to protect the paint.
- If you live in the area with high humidity, rustproofing will help to protect the car body from corrosion.
- Regular oil changes are very important to keep your engine in a good shape.
- Rear drum brakes need periodical servicing.
- Overheating can cause serious engine problems.
- Change transmission fluid regularly using only original transmission fluid.
- Don't forget, you also have from and rear differential and transfer case fluids to change.
- If your Xterra has a limited-slip differential, make sure to use the correct oil.
- Stick with original parts.
- At least once a year have your car inspected in the garage on the lift (e.g when doing tire rotation) to keep it safe. Many components (e.g brakes, steering, suspension) cannot be properly inspected by simple visual inspection at one of those fast lube places; the car must be on the lift.
Check more Car maintenance tips

2004 Nissan Xterra short specifications

Links

If you are looking for Service Manual

If you want to find more technical information such as repair manual, check engine codes description, electrical diagram, diagnostic procedures, vacuum line diagram, fluid type, maintenance schedule, component location, technical service bulletins, etc. follow this link: Where to find repair manual

by Vlad Samarin