rjs5689 Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 Hey everyone, I wanted to make a post introducing myself and explaining a bit about what I’m considering. I’ve been a car enthusiast for my entire (short) life. I’ve owned three very different vehicles. I started with a MKV GTI (which I went to town modifying). I moved north and sold the GTI for a Subaru Legacy GT SpecB (also very modified). After I moved back to NY, I decided it was time to switch cars for something small, light, fun and very trackable. I now own an NC Miata, which rides on custom coilovers and has some other work done as well. It makes a great daily/commuter car and is a warrior out on the track. I throw snow tires on in the winter time; coupled with the mechanical LSD I’ve never really had any trouble in the snow (unless it gets really deep—there’s only so much you can do with 3-4” ground clearance). I’ve thought about retiring it for the winter and picking up some sort of beater. The two strong contenders for me are: a WJ Grand Cherokee, which I really like. I also think looking at a Japanese truck would be wise. I want to consider an R50 Pathfiner, but I know absolutely nothing about them. The Pathfiner would serve as a second vehicle for me. I’d like to keep it under about $8,000 and would plan to buy sometime mid/late summer. What should I specifically look out for with a used R50 Pathfiner?? Are there certain common problem/weak areas? Is the engine overall very reliable? How about the transmission and drivetrain in these vehicles? I’m open to any and all advice, problem areas, cautions, etc. to look out for when shopping for an R50 Pathfiner! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubbley11 Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 Im not sure about the r50's but the frame of the early path's love salt back there(rust). The vg model's are great engines, almost bullet proof. Trans and drive line should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 (edited) I'm confused about your post. It sounds like you plan to retire the Miata for the winter and get a "beater", and your two candidate beaters are a Jeep WJ or a Nissan R50. Do I have that right? What are your planned uses for this "beater" WJ or R50? Edited January 27, 2014 by XPLORx4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gv280z Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 What you call a beater for $8000 I call a damn NICE Infinity QX4 from around 2003 - 2004 year model, last one before the R51. For that much money you should be able to find one with low miles (low meaning around 100,000) Or you could get two really nice 98's loaded and have a back up spare for your secondary vehicle! As far as I know (I've no experience with an R50, I'm a WD21 owner) Rust is always a big deal so if you can find a more southern vehicle where the snow is less, that might help. I'd poke around in here and see if you can find any patterns developing on certain issues, what are people always seeming to be dealing with? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushnut Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 As a proud R50 owner heres my 2.5 cents. It has clean lines, great ride, comfortable driving position, ample room for all my camping crap and my dog. a shift on the fly 4x4 system that has a true low range transfer case, even with crapy tires its unstoppable in the snow. Good on road manners and surprising off road even in stock form. very easy to work on, not a lot changed between 96 and 2004 so lots of Junk yard treasures to be found. usually priced much lower than a 4runner! very reliable has never failed to start for me even at -40*C with no block heater. heres the bad. Northern trucks will suffer from corrosion. especially around fender wells and rear hatch not to mention rocker panels. the kill is corrosion in the main unibody subframe around the front struts (factory recall info is available). the 3.3L VG30e engine is very reliable and bomb proof. though a little underpowered and thirsty. In 2001 there was a change to the 3.5L VQ engine. more power! but with it's own issues, namely the auto transmission has coolant lines from the rad in it that tend to fail. there is a very easy work around. An external tranny cooler is a must upgrade. not as simple to work on as the VG30, but with more power comes more responsibility. Unlike the WJ there is very little aftermarket support. I would say almost none. As you enjoy moding things spend some time on this site to see what is possible. being creative helps. The head lights are a little weak. though again an easy fix if you do your research. would I buy another one if this one needed to be replaced?....... yes though I'd most likely look for a newer VQ powered one with a manual transmission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjs5689 Posted January 28, 2014 Author Share Posted January 28, 2014 I appreciate everyone's feedback. Yes, I plan for the WJ, R50 or whatever I decide on to be my "beater". It will be the car I daily drive in the winter months, rainy summer days or days on which I'm working on the Miata. Rust does seem like it'll be a big issue to overcome, especially on a Northeastern vehicle. I do plan to expand my search to warmer, snow-free climates. Someone told me that the Nissan SUVs have a worse rust problem than the Toyota trucks (Tundra/Sequoia and Tacoma) but I don't know if there is any validity to the statement. Ahh the good ole VQ35. My first car had the VQ35 in it. A rebadged Nissan Maxima, aka an Infiniti I35. That was a torquy engine, held back by the 4-speed auto. Thankfully I'm in no hurry to buy, so I have time to do research. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleurys Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 Hey jon, your mixing the R51 tranny issues with the R50. The r50 has not coolant issues with the transmission.... it is the 2005 and up.... The VQ engine has the dreaded power valve screws issue that must be taking care of right of the bat...under than that, real nice and powerfull engines... S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 (edited) On a reliability standpoint, bar none is the Pathfinder compared to a WJ. I like Jeeps too, but a WJ especially a '99-'01 Overland or Limited, is rolling disaster. Just about everything that can break on them does. Should have been named the Jeep Murphys really. The only real upside to them is that they have tons of power especially the HO 4.7Ls. For a rig that can take a beating and keep on ticking, its hard to beat a Pathfinder and for $8K you can get yourself one hell of a nice one. Find a nice, well maintained one and you could easily see it into the 2-300k mile range without too much issue so long ad you keep up on the timing belt maintenance. Edited January 28, 2014 by Kingman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devonianwalk Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 My dd is a 92 MX-5 NA (and I love it!!!) and my "beater" is a 99.5 R50. It has the VG33E and has proven to be very reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushnut Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 my bad! oh so many numbers to remember! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjs5689 Posted January 28, 2014 Author Share Posted January 28, 2014 (edited) On a reliability standpoint, bar none is the Pathfinder compared to a WJ. I like Jeeps too, but a WJ especially a '99-'01 Overland or Limited, is rolling disaster. Just about everything that can break on them does. Should have been named the Jeep Murphys really. The only real upside to them is that they have tons of power especially the HO 4.7Ls. For a rig that can take a beating and keep on ticking, its hard to beat a Pathfinder and for $8K you can get yourself one hell of a nice one. Find a nice, well maintained one and you could easily see it into the 2-300k mile range without too much issue so long ad you keep up on the timing belt maintenance. It sounds like you're confusing the WJ with a LR Disco . The reliability reports put the WJ in the middle of the road--not the most trouble-free, but not the most problematic vehicle, either. I'm still on the fence about the WJ. I love it. I really, really do; however, I want to feel comfortable with my purchase and not worry about running into major problems. I'm definitely going to look at Pathfinders. I've been told they had some serious rust problems around the struts; wasn't there a recall in 20 winter states? This should be easy to spot during an in-person inspection, I'd imagine? So, overall it sounds like the Pathfinder is extremely reliabe, just watch out for rust/rot and be aware that there's little to none in the way of aftermarket support? My dd is a 92 MX-5 NA (and I love it!!!) and my "beater" is a 99.5 R50. It has the VG33E and has proven to be very reliable. Small world! Are you on miata.net? Here's my NC: Hey jon, your mixing the R51 tranny issues with the R50. The r50 has not coolant issues with the transmission.... it is the 2005 and up.... The VQ engine has the dreaded power valve screws issue that must be taking care of right of the bat...under than that, real nice and powerfull engines... S. I'd imagine this problem also plagues the VQ35 in the QX4? Edited January 28, 2014 by rjs5689 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleurys Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 yes same engine in the qx4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjs5689 Posted January 28, 2014 Author Share Posted January 28, 2014 yes same engine in the qx4 I will have to look into this issue. I've found some very nice QX4s local to me, but I'm reading that the VQ35 power valve screw has caused many engines to grenade. I can't seem to tell how widespread of an issue this is, but it's not a chance I'm willing to take. Is there any way of knowing if the issue has been addressed, when looking at a used vehicle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleurys Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 I will have to look into this issue. I've found some very nice QX4s local to me, but I'm reading that the VQ35 power valve screw has caused many engines to grenade. I can't seem to tell how widespread of an issue this is, but it's not a chance I'm willing to take. Is there any way of knowing if the issue has been addressed, when looking at a used vehicle? In general, if the engine burns oil, it is a bad sign. clicking noise in the engine also is a sign... Of course the real way of knowing if some screws have fallen, is to check them by removing the intake. Be aware also, that this problem is only for automatic... For some unknown reasons, the manual version was not equipped with the variable length intake runners (where the power valves opens or closes the butterflies)... For me if I was to buy another R50, I would deal the seller to pay for the checkup (about 2-4 hours of labour), and if they are all there I would buy and pay the checkup, if not he pays and I do not take it ..... It's worth a try... S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjs5689 Posted January 28, 2014 Author Share Posted January 28, 2014 In general, if the engine burns oil, it is a bad sign. clicking noise in the engine also is a sign... Of course the real way of knowing if some screws have fallen, is to check them by removing the intake. Be aware also, that this problem is only for automatic... For some unknown reasons, the manual version was not equipped with the variable length intake runners (where the power valves opens or closes the butterflies)... For me if I was to buy another R50, I would deal the seller to pay for the checkup (about 2-4 hours of labour), and if they are all there I would buy and pay the checkup, if not he pays and I do not take it ..... It's worth a try... S. Great information, thank you! I wish the QX4 came with a manual and I wish manual Pathfinders were more common. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thorpe991 Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 if your still in ny i would look at pa if you close to the boarder as most of the pathfinders in ny are ether over priced or rotted out i got mine from pa and is has no rust other than in the chrome and i paid 2800 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjs5689 Posted January 28, 2014 Author Share Posted January 28, 2014 if your still in ny i would look at pa if you close to the boarder as most of the pathfinders in ny are ether over priced or rotted out i got mine from pa and is has no rust other than in the chrome and i paid 2800 Oh yea, I'm definitely open to traveling; I don't mind that all. If I were in the position to buy right NOW, I would have a look at this one immediately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karmann Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 As others have said, get the screw looked at on the specific vehicle you're looking at, find a low mileage example, and it should be extremely reliable for you as long as you keep up on maintenance. For your purposes you could buy the QX-4 and have a nice ride, but if you're looking for a bit better mpg, look for a pathfinder with the part time transfer case, as you can install manual hubs and get better mpg/less wear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick13 Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I'm pretty sure you can install the manual hubs regardless, just may have to be a little careful not to twist the dial to "Auto" (or beyond) when hubs are not engaged. Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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