Postby smj999smj » Fri Mar 16, 2012 8:29 pm
My advise for buying any vehicle is to have a shop or mechanic of your choosing look the car over before you put down any cash! It's a lot easier to pay $50-$80 and know the condition of a vehicle than to pay several thousand and find out you invested in a money pit of problems! A Carfax report can come in handy, as well! As far as off-roading, R50's are "capable," but because of it's unibody chassis, may not be the best choice for some. The WD21 Pathy's of 87-95, R51's of 05-12 and Xterras have a full frame chassis which may be more desirable for serious off-roading. A big issue to look out for on the R50 is the bottom of the front strut towers can rot out. There's currently a recall for this issue. Some of the problems reported on the 01-03 Pathys include power valve screws dropping into the intake manifold, oil consumption issues, bad ignition coils, bad catalytic converters, bad oxygen sensors, bad cam and crank sensors, bad rear suspension link bushings, leaking oil cooler "O" seals... The pre-2001 R50 with the VG33E engine had a lot less power than the VQ35DE, but the engine was a lot less problematic. IMO, the WD21 Pathy or an Xterrs is a much better off-road choice.