2003 Nissan Pathfinder SE review from North America

Nothing yet.

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.