Overview & Reviews

The Nissan Xterra is a traditional midsize SUV with seating for five and serious off-road capability. Thanks to stout body-on-frame construction shared with Nissan's Frontier pickup, the Xterra is a beast on the trail and can tolerate a fair amount of abuse. The downside is that this Nissan lacks the on-road polish of car-based crossover SUVs you might buy instead.

The Xterra debuted for the 2000 model year. Later Nissan Xterras are similar in appearance and personality to the early models but have a slightly longer wheelbase, a roomier interior, more power under the hood and a few extra features. If you want a reasonably priced off-roader and find the Jeep Wrangler too crude for everyday driving, the Xterra is worth a look.

User Reviews:

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  GREAT CAR NEVER GET ANOTHER SEDAN AGAIN! - 2004 Nissan Xterra
  By Taylor2 - December 31 - 2:00 am

  I LOVE MY XTERRA I WOULD NOT EXCHANGE IT FOR THE WORLD. I LOVE TO GO OFF ROADING IN IT AND IT PERFORMS WELL IN THE SNOW. I GOT IT BRAND NEW AS A 17TH BIRTHDAY GIFT IN 2003 AND NOW 18 I WILL NEVER GET ANYTHING ELSE, ASLONG AS NISSAN KEEPS MAKING THE XTERRA NOTHING BUT WONDERFUL THINGS!!! IT WILL GO TO COLLEGE WITH ME IN VERMONT AND I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE SNOW SEASON TO BEGIN!!!

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  AWESOME RIDE - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By JERRY - December 30 - 10:00 am

  Love the new xterra,,,,very smmoth driving,,,looks are exceptional S/C gives it lots of GET E UP....... Goes where ever you want to.

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  Just got my Solar Yellow SE SC 5spd... - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By Dingo - December 30 - 10:00 am

  I thought that I was going to feel like Ive sacrificed performance, since I just traded in a 99 Maxima SE, but this thing hauls and handles remarkably well. (I wasnt able to test drive a 5 spd Supercharged, so I went on blind faith and had one built at the factory.) Velvet shift, stylish interior, killer good looks....Gotta love it!

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  Horrible Experience - 2013 Nissan Xterra
  By kevin170 - December 26 - 12:31 am

  A month after I bought an Xterra, I took it through the car wash and water came through the roof. I took it in to get serviced and it ended up needing a major repair to the roof. Nissan ended up offering to repurchase the vehicle per the terms of the CO lemon law. They subtracted $945 for usage which I thought was a lot for 2 months of driving. They also refused to refund a few items on the purchase agreement saying they were “non Nissan” items. The arbitrations woman, Denise C., claimed that Nissan and the dealership were different entities and was very rude and difficult throughout the process of me trying to recoup my money.

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  SIMPLY THE BEST MOTOR AND TRANNY - 2007 Nissan Xterra
  By ro-ads - December 24 - 4:36 pm

  wELL I have had my X since july o7.. I drove it for 6 months stock..... simply fell in love with the power and smooth tranny it came with. Cheap, simple easy to use utility vehicle. Some cheapy plastic interior finishes but all the door jams are solid. Great box fram + exceptionally strong precision motor with state of the art shifting capabilites = one capable vehicle.......now if they had only remembered the suspension!!!!!!!!!!! THIS AMAZING VEHICLE WAS LACKING ONE THING THAT SHOULD OF BEEN CONSIDERED. mORE TRAVEL PLEASE. STOCK IT HAS LETS SAY 6" INCHES OF TRAVEL. 3" EACH WAY UP AND DOWN...............GIVE IT 10 - 14 7" EACH WAY ANY REALLY CONQUER ANYTHING YOU GIVE IT.BUY IT

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  My X - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By lboughie - December 24 - 10:00 am

  This is a great all round "real" SUV. "REAL" as in built on a truck design and not a car or car-like desing like the other mini-suvs out there. Fun to drive and even more enjoyable when shifting into 4x4 and putting the X to good use.

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  My Xterra - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By Denise - December 22 - 12:26 am

  I love this truck. I would by another one in yellow this time. It is one of if not the best vehicle I have ever owned. Only tire and breaks in 4 years. Once suggestion, gas mileage. It is horrible. It states 16-20 Im lucky if I get 13 mpg. This needs attention especially in todays gas pricey world. Other than that I look forward to another 4 years in this truck. thanks Nissan

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  Was a great vehicle until it reached over 100K miles - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By xterra02sc - December 12 - 3:57 am

  I really loved driving my SE S/C 4WD 2002, and it was mostly problem-free except for last couple of years. One owner vehicle. Problems accelerated dramatically after 100K miles.

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  Awesome SUV - 2003 Nissan Xterra
  By Everclear - December 12 - 2:00 am

  Ive had my Xterra for a week now. I love it so far. Really fun to drive.

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  Hanging on by a thread - 2005 Nissan Xterra
  By sparrow1257 - December 10 - 11:49 am

  I love the car but will never purchase another Nissan. I bought the car new and starting at 15k miles the repairs started and never ended: tensioned assembly replaced three times, all brake assemblies replaced at 25k miles, transmission and radiator replaced due to fluid peeking into the transmission, cracked transfer case, bad veil and oil sending units, abs assembly on the driver side completely failed, coolant leaking onto passenger side firewall. Fortunately I purchased the 100k extended. I have 105k miles on the car. My total out of pocket for the past year would have been $18k if not for the warranty!! That is a new car! Nissan also damaged car during repairs and refused to pay.