Another thing worth noting is the Frontier has something like a 13” diameter steering wheel whereas say a 3rd gen Tacoma is around 15”. I can’t help but wonder if some of this heavy steering is from an undersized steering wheel.
Midsize truck shopping
- Thread starter dlundblad
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All the previous Nissan VQ's use internal water pumps. They almost never give a problem. I have to assume the new 3.8 does also?
Nissan makes it possible to replace without pulling the timing chains - through an access cover. It has inspection covers you pull to put slack on the chain then you pull the pump out with a couple bolts. Its a little more involved than a Chevy V8, but not bad by current standards.
As for the steering, yes its a little heavy at low RPM. My wife and daughter have never said anything, so maybe you boys need to hit the gym. But honestly, I only notice it at all when trying to go lock to lock at idle, so I can't see that be a show stopper for anyone.
I will also add on the water pump - even though its internal - its sealed from the oil with a double o-ring, and the front cover has a weep hole. so even if the pump leaks it in theory should never contaminate the oil.
Back in the glory days of Nissan Engineering.
https://www.thenewx.org/threads/water-pump-leak-diagnosis.285045/
Back in the glory days of Nissan Engineering.
https://www.thenewx.org/threads/water-pump-leak-diagnosis.285045/
To be fair, after only driving Toyota’s over boosted vehicles for the last decade, I might have been my own worst enemy. Trust me, I’ve long missed that on-center dead spot that my VW had.I think the first three cars I owned were manual steering. I was sad that I couldn’t get my Saturn with manual brakes. That was about a lifetime ago… where does the time go?
From what I was reading, the access got removed on the 3.8L. It's still internal, but you have to remove the whole timing cover to get to it.
Seems like they did it right since it can't contaminate the oil like every other engine with an internal timing chain driven pump
Well, you all can feel free to laugh at me. My wife happened to find a 175k mile Jeep Jk 4 door with the 3.8. The price is cheap enough and it’s certainly nicer than my current daily.
It’s my understanding the 3.8 is fairly reliable minus the extreme oil consumption. The vehicle itself fits the bill for me too. 4WD, decent towing capacity.
We may look at it this weekend if it’s still available.
It’s my understanding the 3.8 is fairly reliable minus the extreme oil consumption. The vehicle itself fits the bill for me too. 4WD, decent towing capacity.
We may look at it this weekend if it’s still available.
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That wranger has a max tow rating of 3500 lbs, not really all that "decent" IMHO.
Good enough for me.
The Rav4 "adventure" package has a 3500lb tow rating. So yes, 3500 for a Wrangler is pretty pathetic.
Is it like the Forester Wilderness that has a disclaimer stating it needs trailer brakes in order to tow that much?
Well that's certainly a pivot, but a much cheaper option than a new/newer pickup!
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Fair enough, I just wanted to point it out in case you were thinking it was higher.
Vehicles with short wheelbase like a wrangler are less stable with a load behind them. And the suspension which you want for great articulation is also not the same suspension you want with 650 pounds on the tongue. We own a RAV4. I would *not* want to put more than 2,000 pounds behind it. The unibody itself doesn’t feel like it would be up for the challenge. Put a 275lb male in the passenger seat and the whole vehicle rides funny. Likewise, I wouldn’t want more than 3,500 behind a 2 door wrangler just because they can’t even manage their own weight on a wet off-ramp in the hands of many drivers. 4 Door has a longer wheelbase, but again, a nicely articulating suspension can’t be stiffly sprung in the way you’d want for pulling 5,000 pounds - two different purposes.
I towed 3000 ish lbs (Nautique) behind a SWB vehicle (Bronco II) - I would advise against it.
A 2 door wrangler can only tow 2000 lbs whereas the 4 door is 3500 lbs.
I recently began operating a 2024 Toyota Tacoma SR5 double cab as a work truck. It is a much higher quality, performing, and comfortable vehicle than the Colorado.
My personal vehicle is a 2021 Ridgeline and it suits me fine.
https://www.edmunds.com/car-buying/...yota-tacoma-trd-off-road-comparison-test.html
Go down to the paragraph titled "Making Sense of it All".