Tips when shopping for an R51?

Any topics related to 2005-2012 R51

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Science Abuse
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Jun 11, 2015 4:13 am

Tips when shopping for an R51?

Postby Science Abuse » Thu Jun 11, 2015 11:58 am

I mis-posted this in the wrong forum, great first impression!

After much reading and test driving, my next car is highly likely to be a 2012 Pathfinder LE or Silver, when I can find something with low miles. I'm coming out of an Outback that I put 200,000 rough miles on, and no one makes anything like that car anymore, so I'm creeping up in size.

The Xterra caught my very serious consideration early on, until I found out that the R51 is like a long wheelbase Xterra, with more comfort stuff that an aging fart like myself can enjoy.

My questions are technical, hoping someone may know:

-The "LE" has 18" wheels? Is there anything stopping me for switching to 16? Are the brakes the same across all 4 options packages?

-What differs between the Xterra drivetrain and the R51 apart fromt he IRS? Does the R51 have anythig watered down? Were there different gear ratios offered within the Pathfinder line-up?

-Both the Xterra and R51 are on the F-A chassis, is there much part compatibility?

-Any common consumables, recalls, or "weak links" in the R51? (like the head gaskets in my Subaru). Looks like a Trans cooler bypass is a foregone conclusion.

Since posting this, I found a great resource that helped me navigate the mess of options and model codes:
http://www.auto-brochures.com/nissan.html

Thanks all for your time, I appreciate any advice!
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skinny2
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Joined: Sat Dec 26, 2009 10:07 pm
Location: BFE, Ohio

Postby skinny2 » Thu Jun 11, 2015 3:53 pm

-Brakes are the same across the board. You could downgrade to 16's if you wanted. You can probably find someone to swap you plus give you cash for the 18's. Although 17's are a lot more common and the best compromise in my book. I've run the crap out of mine and my stock 17's still look like new rims at 135k miles.

-The radiator was fixed by '11 so the bypass is probably not necessary. I probably wouldn't do it for awhile anyway while you're under warranty. I think most of the kinks were worked out by '12.


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