1998 Nissan Frontier Reviews - Page 5 of 5

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1998 Nissan Frontier XE 2.4 from North America

Year of manufacture1998
First year of ownership2001
Most recent year of ownership2001
Engine and transmission 2.4 Manual
Performance marks 6 / 10
Reliability marks 9 / 10
Comfort marks 8 / 10
Dealer Service marks 8 / 10
Running Costs (higher is cheaper) 10 / 10
Overall marks (average of all marks)
8.2 / 10
Distance when acquired12000 miles
Most recent distance16500 miles
Previous carVolkswagen Jetta

Summary:

Solid, reliable and good value for the money

Faults:

The driver's side splash shield (inside the wheel well) ripped off at some point, necessitating a $12 replacement.

General Comments:

This is a simple truck, and some may call it crude. However, if reliability and basic transportation are your main requirements, it's difficult to go wrong with a Nissan truck. I had a regular cab 97 several years ago, and my 98 Frontier extended cab is a much more refined vehicle, while still retaining the easy to maintain, reliable design of the earlier models.

Don't compare these to a Toyota - there's a reason the Toyos are several thousand dollars more. If you settle for a Nissan, you'll never be happy, but if you value the characteristics of Nissan trucks, the Frontier will put a smile on your face.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th July, 2001

Comment on this review

2nd Mar 2002, 03:43

Nice way to sum it up.

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1998 Nissan Frontier XE 2.4 from North America

Year of manufacture1998
First year of ownership1998
Engine and transmission 2.4 Manual
Performance marks 1 / 10
Reliability marks 1 / 10
Comfort marks 0 / 10
Dealer Service marks 0 / 10
Running Costs (higher is cheaper) 0 / 10
Overall marks (average of all marks)
0.4 / 10
Distance when acquired11 miles
Most recent distance38010 miles
Previous carFord Ranger

Summary:

A cheap hunk of junk, and a sorry company

Faults:

Tires blew at 500 miles.

Airbag light kept going off, fixed.

Emission test failed, fixed.

Clutch gone at 38,000 miles.

Transmission gone at 38,000 miles.

A/C went out 3 times.

General Comments:

This truck is very poor, and the service is poor. Nissan paid for everything except the clutch and transmission.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 19th April, 2001

Comment on this review

29th May 2001, 18:28

My mom has a 1999 Frontier and the front end started falling apart. I have a 10 year old Ford Ranger and jump little hills and play in the mud with it, and it doesn't rattle at all, go buy a Ford Ranger.

Reply to this comment

7th Jul 2001, 00:28

I bought my 1998 Nissan Frontier brand new and have never had any problem with it whatsoever. It has 63,000 miles on it now and it runs as good as new. So to say that Nissan Frontiers are "hunks of junks" and no one should buy one is a very false generalization. I would dare to say that your case is very isolated and that there is an endless list of positive reviews for Nissan Frontiers on the web.

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1998 Nissan Frontier North America from North America

Year of manufacture1998
First year of ownership1998
Most recent year of ownership2001
Engine and transmission Manual
Performance marks 5 / 10
Reliability marks 8 / 10
Comfort marks 1 / 10
Running Costs (higher is cheaper) 7 / 10
Overall marks (average of all marks)
5.3 / 10
Distance when acquired25 miles
Most recent distance25000 miles
Previous carFord F150

Summary:

Lemon, cheap, lemon, cheap, UNRELIABLE DEALER service, lemon

Faults:

Terrible vibration from the drive train at 40+ MPH.

Seats not comfortable.

Very noisy vehicle, in general.

Terrible noise and vibration from the cooling/heating fan motor.

General Comments:

The Nissan service manager first blamed the vibration problem on a bad batch of Wilderness tires. He then blamed the vibration on a heavy-duty rear-end that needed more weight. Both excuses were invalid.

Nissan ultimately refused to fix the truck, meaning I had to take them to court to enforce the warranty.

Don't EVER buy a Nissan.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 20th February, 2001

Comment on this review

11th Sep 2002, 23:21

My neighbor was trying to sue Nissan under the Lemon Law for his Nissan Frontier.. but the lawyers want too much money upfront. Does anyone know how he can find out if there's going to be a class action suit? Or how to find a lawyer that will get paid after case is closed? dianimall@aol Please let me know... he's been dealing with Nissan for several years now and still has a crappy truck.

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21st Jun 2008, 22:25

I hope I'm not the only one who can't take this review seriously because of the vehicle being called a lemon because of drivetrain vibration. Gimme a break! Want to feel the real lemon experience? Go back to Ford my friend. My '98 Frontier with well over 100k miles had a noticeable, but not unreasonable, drivetrain vibration at idle and when driving at slow speed in top gear. I'd take that over a prematurely failing Ford Ranger transmission any day. Besides, my '97 Mercury Tracer has a noticeable, but not unreasonable, vibration at idle and at low speed in top gear as well. It's just the way some vehicles operate. Get over it.

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Average review marks: 7.4 / 10, based on 19 reviews