Nissan Mulls Xterra's Future

Edmunds.com

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adw_squared

I bought an Xterra in 2002 and loved every second of it...until gas prices routinely stayed above $2 /gal. I went with the supercharged engine, as the only other choice was fairly anemic - but the supercharger = premium fuel. I traded in the Xterra in 2005 for...a VW Jetta TDI. At this very moment, I am in the market for an SUV, and I am only considering Diesel-powered options, which means my beloved Xterra is off the list.

Memo to Nissan - you guys were all set to bring a Diesel Maxima/Altima a few years ago, and then got cold feet. Really, REALLY bad decision, because now you have nothing to plop in to the Xterra!

markstip

Hmmmm, Nissan has not even signifiantly updated let alone reengineer the Xterra or Frontier in forever and they wonder why they are not selling. A Modern Powerful and Fuel effcient Xterra and Frontier would sell if done properly. The Xterra could easally merge with the Patrol and sell in other markets. New partner Mercedes Benz should be interested as it needs an answer to the VW Amorak and MB could usally market a more rugged SUV.(as well a more affordable version of the original G -wagon perhaps!) A Mercedies Diesel in a Xterra or Frontier sounds pretty sweet to me! Get with it Nissan!

agentorange

I own a 2005 Xterra and it is a good off-road vehicle, but that VQ derived motor loves fuel. Thing is the market for them is small. Most folk today want a less utilitarian interior and certainly want better gas mileage. I can accept the mileage for what the vehicle can do. My only complaint is that it was never updated to take a coil-spring back end. Should the Xterra go away then the market for a replacement gets rather narrow. I'm not a fan of the FJ, the latest 4Runner has grown some unhelpful overhangs so I would be left with rolling the dice on a Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk or GC diesel. Losing the Xterra would really cramp my choices, so I would like the new model to have a coil rear and a diesel motor. I know, dream on. ;-)

festus67

Diesel.

exoman1

I had an 02' manual transmission with 200k miles which I just replaced. I bought a 14' Xterra S with automatic transmission and had my first 200 mile highway drive. I kept speed to 70mph on cruise control, level drive in Wisconsin, no wind to speak of, and happy to report 21.3mpg. This drive in my 02' would have yielded 17-18mpg, so I'm satisfied with this 20% improvement.