Totally. I've got an '08 Tacoma and my buddy has a similar vintage Frontier. On paper, they're practically twins. Pop the hood, though, and I can see the top of both of my fenderwells in the Tacoma and you need to send a search team to locate the oil filter buried in the Frontier.Originally Posted by TCinVA
--Josh
“Formerly we suffered from crimes; now we suffer from laws.” - Tacitus.
A friend of mine has one of the mid-sized SUV's of recent vintage and with a heck of a lot less miles on it than that it's falling apart one piece at a time. Ain't nobody got time fo 'dat!
Older Nissans were real rivals for the Hondas of the same period, IMO. Now not so much.
3/15/2016
But if you date a high output model with a few aftermarket improvements, you sure will enjoy the ride on the way. I view every dollar I spend on a car purchase above whatever it would cost me to buy a simple econo-box as as an entertainment expenditure. If all I really wanted to do was get from point A to point B, I could do it in something a hell of a lot cheaper and more efficient than my Trailblazer SS, but it sure wouldn't be fun.
I had a 93 maxima that had 180k and was going strong. Probably would still have it but my brother wrecked it.... I loved that car though. Great engine and it never had problems.
Evil requires the sanction of the victim. - Ayn Rand
I really like my strippers then.
1986 Reliant wagon (5spd A525 trans! sold with 203k miles on it. still see it running around locally.)
1992 Dodge Shadow (5spd. still have it. 243k miles on it and still going)
1993 Plymouth Sundance (5spd. got ape raped by a semi one day. RIP)
2005 Dodge Neon SRT-4 (the track toy)
2003 Chrysler Sebring LXi (auto. wife's former car. was SO nice inside. suede/leather everything. too bad she rear-ended a school bus with its lights on! burned it to a crisp)
2005 Dodge Stratus (auto. wife's car)
2007 Jeep Liberty (6spd. v6. the tow monster)
When the Shadow dies I'm already planning on it's replacement... Dodge Dart.
Last edited by hufnagel; 03-16-2013 at 05:31 PM. Reason: i'm not as think as you drunk I am.
Recovering Gun Store Commando. My Blog: The Clue Meter
“It doesn’t matter what the problem is, the solution is always for us to give the government more money and power, while we eat less meat.”
Glenn Reynolds
stick shift too!
I personally put 2 clutches in it.
and an alternator
and 2 timing belts
and a water pump
and a head gasket (after the water pump puked. motor got a little warm.)
other than general maintenance parts that car ruled. the sheer quanitity of stuff you could pack in it and still get 40mpg doing 70 was just awesome. something about the combination of light weight, skinny 185 80 series tires, a massive overdrive gear and a 3.50 final drive. burying the speedo (85mph) in 3rd with still more to go in that gear alone was something to behold. I grew up in that car. I miss it.
Those were both powered by Mitsubishi engines. The 2.5L motors in those things were quite durable. The only issue I really ever saw with the motor itself was a tendency to blow the head gasket. The automatic transmissions in those things, however, would grenade itself pretty regularly. By getting the 5 speeds you avoided the biggest source of problems with them. This is one of the reasons why I prefer a manual transmission. Assuming you know how to treat a clutch and the transmission itself isn't garbage, they tend to be the Energizer Bunny of the transmission world.
You're a braver man than I am. My family has been Mopar for at least three generations. About 25% of the cars/trucks bought have done well. The other 75% have ended in some form of disaster.When the Shadow dies I'm already planning on it's replacement... Dodge Dart.
A Chrysler made by Fiat? No thank you.
Probably the most reliable car I've ever personally had anything to do with was a 1986 Toyota van. The only thing it ever needed done to it was replacing the clutch, and that was probably my fault because I learned how to drive stick using it.
3/15/2016
that's actually incorrect. the 2.2L and 2.5L engines (commonly known as Common Block motors) were styled after the old Slant 6 engine. the Mitsubishi engine you're thinking of is the 2.6L that was used when they couldn't make enough 2.2/2.5 motors... and it was a total chode of a motor. same with the 3.0L mitsu motor... junk from hell.
Head gaskets were a simple cause of overheating... and should be looked upon as a "relief valve" type of failure... in prevention of far bigger problems from overheating an iron block/aluminum head engine. Anyone who didn't know how to do the Slip-n-Slide in under 30 minutes while consuming a 6-pack didn't deserve to have any nice tools.Every head gasket failure I'd ever had (and I've had a couple) was always preceded by some failure of the cooling system (pump, radiator split hose from road debris, sudden loss of the heater core hose when I forgot to put the clamp on right... etc.) Same for everyone I've ever met.
the 3spd autos would fail because people/mechanics would put in the wrong fluid... thinking that "any ol' ATF of the time is fine!" uh uh... 7176/ATF-3 was the only service fill you should ever put in them. otherwise you'll burn out the converter and clutches with impressive speed. I agree though, gimme a stick any day (it took me a year to find a Jeep with one to buy.)
'99 Subaru Forester. 197k on the clock. $2500. (Too bad "Cash For Clunkers" shot the horse out from under the really cheap used car market; I did a fair amount of shopping around, but I couldn't find much of anything under $2k I'd trust for a 700 mile round-trip roadtrip...)
If I can get another three years out of it, I figure I'm money ahead.
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