engine longevity

bp53

I have a 4 cylinder 1986 Nissan truck which has 207,000 miles on it. So far it uses no oil and has about 3 tuneups. I had to replace 2 clutches and a water pump but other than that no problems. Is this kind of mileage on a 4 cylinder engine unusual or do I have a rare engine? Would be interested in some of your comments. I know I'll have to replace it one day and am trying to decide which truck to buy. I don't want another Nissan because, frankly, I don't like the way they look and I'm tired of small trucks.

PF_Flyer

I also had an 86 Nissan 4x4 king cab with a 4 cylinder and when I traded it in '96 I had 140,000 and the only major thing I had to do was replace a blown head gasket. I maintained the regular maintenance schedule and I think that had a lot to do with it. But like yours, it used virtually no oil and I can only recall having it tuned up once.


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kit1404

I had two Nissan trucks from that era. The original had no problems if you don't count an alternator way too early and a little bolt that found a way to loosen itself on our bad NM roads. Unfortunately, that little bolt held the entire transmission gear shifting mechanism in place. Anyway, the next Nissan (4WD) had the dual-plug heads, which we managed to totally massage out of their grooves. Didn't take long to make a new extension spark-plug (home-made)tool to tighten plugs just about every time we needed gas. Then there was a really bad hot-start problem with the carb, then the transfer case started slipping out of low and according to the dealer where I traded it in at 78,000 miles - all the u-joints were shot. We enjoyed the truck, but after a little less than 4 years it suffered badly from our bad NM roads. Plus, there was very obvious rust on the outer panels, the paint was awful. OK - I like the F-150's we have bought since so much more. They don't rust - the spark-plugs don't fall out and the drivetrain stays solid. Yes, we do use these trucks like they should have been built to handle and I don't think the Nissans held up anywhere near as well as they should have.

chevytruck_fan

My trucks first engine went 250k or so, only problems were a couple of exhaust manifolds that cracked. Nothing else, original tranny went strong till 330,000, this truck was used to tow and commute. I got it from my grandpa when he got a new K1500.

PF_Flyer

That pickup of mine was one of the last that they used steel welds on, so yes, the bed of the truck suffered from a severe case of the rusts by the time I was done with it. But it wasn't bad considering the way I used the truck and the fact that I had no garage. Ahhh... I do miss that truck!


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