General Comments:
This will be my first entry for our new used 2003 Pathfinder. We picked it up in St.Paul, MN after 30 days of research and shopping Craigslist and CarSoup.
The truck was in pretty nice shape and we purchased it for $8635. Our pre-negotiated price was $8820. That price was based on the power seats option, which it did not have. I'm glad it has manual seats, one less thing to break. The truck has 88,000 miles on it.
It is an SE model with the following options.
- Power sunroof
- Heated cloth seats (didn't know there was such a thing)
- Bose audio
- Color matched bumpers
- Towing package
- Power windows, locks, cruise.
- Multi-CD
- Alloy wheels
- ABS
- Air bags
- Cassette
- Tilt
- Air conditioning
- Roof rack
- Running boards
- ABS
- Dunlop tires are nearly new
I got 23 mpg driving the Interstate back to Grand Forks, ND. I went 60 mph the whole way.
My first impression is very positive. It has a solid, quality feel to it.
I test drove 3 vehicles yesterday before deciding on this one.
First was a '04 Xterra, which was in poor condition and not worthy of our consideration. Pre-negotiated price was $8700. (Pre-negotiated means the price was determined before viewing, assuming condition was acceptable and options were as stated)
Second was a '01 Pathfinder LE. It had lower mileage than the one we bought, but it was in tougher shape. It also had a "cheapness" about it. When you locked the doors, it sounded like you were in a tin can. The paint was chipped and scratched all over. I would have had to repaint the entire car to get it looking as nice as the one we bought. We passed hoping for something better. We found it. Pre-negotiated price was $8600.
I will be going over the truck thoroughly this week replacing all fluids, cleaning the engine compartment and installing a new battery. The wife is going to use this truck in Bayfield, WI this winter. We bought a home there on the side of hill, and the Maxima would not have been a good winter vehicle. The Pathfinder may even face a challenge once in a while with the amount of snow we get.
Why did I choose Pathfinder? There were a few reasons.
1. Superior engine. On Wards 10 best list for many years.
2. I'm disappointed with the quality of domestic vehicles.
3. I think the Pathfinder is a very good value right now.
4. I would have liked an Xterra, but the 3.3 engine has a timing belt and low power. There also weren't many Xterras available at our mid to high 8 Gs price point.
Now all we need to do is sell our Maxima.
Check back soon for other feedback. I really enjoyed this site and used it a lot for our shopping.
Email me if you'd like a copy of my used car checklist.
We used a spreadsheet to drill down to a few cars that were worthy of consideration. If you'd like a copy of my spreadsheet and some info on using it, let me know.
removethese23charactersnissan@netcrafting.com
Thank you.
2nd Oct 2008, 21:26
I'm the fella that started this thread. I'll try to precede future posts with my handle, coppcar.
After spending several days preparing for and tearing into our new truck, I have a couple of observations.
- Whenever you buy a used car, assume that no maintenance was done unless you have proof that it has been done. In our case, no proof was provided, and the previous owner only said that the oil had been changed regularly. With that in mind, I gave it a fresh oil change at Jiffy Lube before the 300 mile trip back to ND, with the intention of changing it again at home. This will give the system a nice flush. I hate taking my car to the shop. It seems every time I do, something is goofed up. I have many horror stories. This oil change had minimal backlash. He torqued the drain plug too tight and some bolts were missing from the brush guard. I had to fuss with the plug and find some new bolts... sigh...
- You'll need a special tool to pack the front bearings.
- The fairing on the roof rack makes cleaning the area behind it difficult.
- The fairing makes having the sunroof open at highway speeds infinitely more pleasant. The sunroof on our Maxima seldom gets used because of the noise.
- Maintenance chores won't be too tough. Once the splash guard is removed, you can get to lots of stuff easily. Oil filter is easy to get to. Serpentine belts are relatively easy to replace. Although getting the tension correct may prove challenging, since the truck does not have automatic tensioners like the ones on my GM cars. Draining the coolant is easy, just remove the lower radiator hose. Both axles have easily accessible drain and fill holes.
- I think I'll have a front end alignment done. I don't want to risk messing up the tires.
- I'll try to post bits and pieces of useful stuff on a Pathfinder page I'll be putting together. I'll try to keep my posts here focused on likes and dislikes. http://netcrafting.com/car_mx/pathfinder/