Jeep Cherokee or Nissan Xterra?

“I like both vehicles, and both have pros and cons......Lets hear some of your thoughts.”

“Toyota!”

“Jeep”

“Jeep has poor crash ratings”

“Tango, which Jeep?”

“The Jeep got poor maintenance ratings with Consumer's guide. They have done pretty consistently every year too. I'd go with the Nissan. Better value, more reliable.”

“Ooops, Realize im talking used folks, I want to spend more money on gear and/or guns! Not to mention college, and living quarters.”

“I haven't had any major problems with my 99 Jeep Cherokee. knocking on wood”

“hmmm.....hadnt thought of accessories or gas milage.......any thoughts?”

“Grand Cherokee I was researching about 2-3 years ago.
last edited: 1/28/05 10:36:53 PM”

“Didn't we just have this discussion? No, I'm just kidding...

I'm actually about to take the "blue oval plunge" with the Escape here. The reasoning behind it is all over that thread I linked; it's kind of a long story...”

“The Xterra also has a much more rugged and rougher ride than most other SUV's of its class, but then again, being a hiker/hunter, that really shouldn't bother you...”

“XTerra for sure!”

“yeah, then again ive just spent 12 months in army brand hummers. anything feels like a caddy right now. I do apologize for opening this can of worms. Not much of an excuse but this was my second thread here. Just joined today”

“Xterra is for city people. Jeeps are for people who actually go offroad.”

“If money is no object get a Nissan. If you are looking for reliable used transportation get a Cherokee (not grand cherokee). The Cherokee has an inline 6 cylinder motor which is known for getting well over 200k miles on it brfore trouble occurs. I did lots of research before I bought mine and found that for a mid-size suv years 1993-1995 the cherokee had the best overall reliability rating of all the suv's made in those years. Mine now has 121k miles on it and is 12 years old. No leaks, very miminal rust, starts every morn (even at -2 degrees) drives very well, hasnt cost me much in repairs (less then $500 in 4 years, excluding routine oil changes and belts,tires). We liked mine so much we bought a 2000 for Sass.”

“i just got an xterra last night.... so i'm kinda biased.”

“http://www.carfax.com/car_safety/ratings/SampleSRR.cfm?year=2000&make=JEEP&model=CHEROKEE%20SPORT&trim_id=2000JEEP2W%20CHEROKEE_SPORT#SARinjury


2000 JEEP CHEROKEE SPORT
2 Dr Wagon Sport Utility
Rear wheel drive


Overall Crashworthiness Marginal
Structure and safety cage Marginal
Head and Neck Good
Chest Good
Left leg and foor Poor
Righ leg and foot Accptable
Restraints Marginal”

“I like my wrangler best for off-road. The Grand Cherokee has a softer ride than the older '00 Xterra but the new Xterra '04 is getting close. I'd rather take the Xterra in the woods than the grand cherokee by far, but the wrangler is best. I had NO maintence with my wrangler & it has 150,000 mi on it. I'm going to give it to my (work) partner because I got a newer Xterra (from my wife) & his RV burnt up.”

“Just wanted to raise a different point of view, so I was wondering if you are buying an SUV for the "rugged, outdoorsy image" portrayed in automotive advertising ( I used to work in the auto industry). You mention above that you need money for tuition, living quarters, etc, so why not get somthing that's reliable and more cost effective, like a car or std truck? That way you save $$$ (all SUV's, new or used, carry a premium price since they are sooo popular), reduce you're fuel costs & consumption, and help reduce the US's dependance on foriegn oil. Just somthing you might want to consider.”

“I would personally recommend the XTerra. It's about $3,000 more for an XTerra, but they have better reliability ratings almost across the board. They also have some nice features for cargo that Cherokee generally doesn't.

The Jeep gets "Very Good" ratings in most major categories, while the XTerra gets "Excellent" ratings in most major categories from Consumer Reports. But if you don't think the extra $3000 is worth it, then the Jeep ought to be okay.”

“well, i had thought truck, but a camper isnt as secure as a suv, and seating can be an issue as well, even with some of the 4 door models. Gotta think bout family as well, ok starting a family”

“The X-terra is the lowest rated of all small SUV's by Consumer Reports. Based upon the vehicles listed at the top of the list it is obvious that the evaluations were made by people who never got off the pavement.

The 2005 X-terra has not been released yet, but it will be soon. The incentives (1% interest, discounts) make the 2004 X-terra a better value. The 10 inch ground clearance is best in show, but never mentioned by CR.

I was not impressed with high speed acceleration of the x-terra, but I did take it off road and it had the stuff. The suspension is stiff as a buckboard, but can handle getting into the bush. Monday is the end of the month. You will get your best deal on the last day of the month.

For looks and cargo space the x-terra has jeep beat. The passenger compartment is tight in the x-terra.”

“best of both worlds...truck and suv.”

“as a new owner of the 2004 xterra (all of 2 days), i really like it so far. have not taken it off road yet, so i can't judge on that as of now.

a couple things i really like about it...
it comes with 10 or so hooks to strap gear down if you're going off road, the 10 inch ground life, the all terrain tires that come standard with a full size spare, the roofrack crossbars are adjustable, stadium seating in back, running bars (i am short, so these help me get in and out!), among a few other things.

some things i don't care for: not a lot of storage space up front, dials on dash are flimsy, have to pop back seat cushions out if you want the back to be completely flat when laying down the seats.

overall the positives outway the negatives by far.. i'm very happy with the buy as of now. no regrets yet and hopefully none that come up.”

“I've owned Jeeps for the last 10 odd years. The only thing I've ever had go wrong with any of them are the front brakes and Jeep always paid for those. They may have fix the problem though because I've got 56,000 on this Cherokee and have had no problems.

The Xteras look nice too. I don't know anything about them but they look nice.”

“I think it's hard to find a vehicle made today that doesn't have some flimsy interior parts.”

“rich, isn't that true? it's ridiculous. accidents today destroy cars completely... they don't make them as solid as they used to.”

“I know, I test drove a 2005 Subaru Forester a couple of months ago and it had rattles coming from the back door. Cars today are so flimsy it's sickening. My old 1988 Astro van even though it had problems of its own at least had a solid interior. No rattles and was pretty beefy compared to the newer cars I looked at.”

“and not plastic!”

“I drove a Forester last week. It did not rattle and was nice on the road. The Forester handles like a car and sits low to the ground. I like sitting higher above the road than that. Look under the Forester. The suspension looks like a go cart. Not an off road vehicle at all.”

“calmwater has a forester and we went off road in it and it handled pretty well... granted we were just fooling with it around in the wet sand. i wouldn't take it severe off roading or anything.”

“The Forester rode well and does seem like a car, but it had less cargo room than my RAV4 has. I just thought they were a little bigger than they are.”

“rich are you planning soon to get a new vehicle?”

“I prefer a car to ride like a gokart.
But then again I'm into on road performance like rally and autocross.”

“My Forester goes off-road just fine. No, I don't take it where there are 6-foot diameter boulders it would have to pass over or 10-foot deep holes it would have to jump. But it's great in the snow and has forded a couple of creeks, too.”

“I think the Forester would be great on snow.

I would prefer the 10 inch clearance and beefy suspension of the X-terra on creek crossings we have in the Ozarks.”

“so when are you buying a vehicle, bacpac?”

“I looked at the Subarus but the gas milage was nearly as bad as my straight 6 in my Jeep and the horse power was next to nothing.”

“JEEP all the way... the xtera is for wanna be's. It certainly is not all that and a bag of chips! As far as crash test stats... thats bull... Any suv will be more prone to rollovers than a street car... so learn how to drive one.

The new Jeep Grand Cherokee got this years 4WD & Offroad "Car of the Year" award. But even if you're not talking new, the Jeep Cherokee (in one or another of it's renditions) has won 4X4 of the Year in 2002, 2001, 1999, 1998, 1997(Jeep Wrangler), 1996, 1993, 1988, 1984, need I go on... Nothing has even come close to the number of wins for actual off road ability as the Jeep. The Wrangler is more of a pure offroader and that's why it hasn't won as many awards because of it's limited cargo space... but I LOVE mine & wouldn't trade it for anything!

I also own a Cherokee I use for family events when I need room... It can go almost anywhere my Wrangler goes. The new Jeep wrangler Unlimited also scored very well this year... it's an elongated Wrangler (a little more space in the back for cargo), but still not a Cherokee in terms of space.

Notice you don't see an Xterra anywhere in the win column of any 4x4 testers results. If I were going to get anything other than a Jeep it would be a Toyota Tacoma (shorter the wheelbase the better).

Just my 2 cents. Check out my Jeep at www.jeeprocks.com




Capt. Jim
last edited: 1/30/05 6:18:26 PM”

“Well ya gotta admit, Jeep was making SUVs before most other companies even came down the pike. I love to have a restored Wagoneer with the wood panels and all.

One of the reasons I bought the first Jeep was the high resale value.”

“Buy American, the job you save may be your own!!!”

“Xterra is for city people. Jeeps are for people who actually go offroad.”
Dub

LMAO!!

Scorch, if the seats folded flat into the floor you wouldn't get the clearance you do with the Xterra. That space has to be made up somewhere,”

“[b]Scorch[b]
Well, Im due bout 10 grand from the military in a few months, so looking in that time frame. Got a few bills to pay off, so i was considering a used cherokee, or even an old wagoneer. But, if i can find a good deal on a 4x4 xterra, maybe ill get one of those. only want to put down 5grand at most, but i might make payments.”

“Scorch, at this point in time I'm not making any moves yet. I'm kind of confused what to do with this RAV4 right now and there's really nothing else out there similar that impresses me enough to make a move right now. The problems have settled down, but it hasn't been that long since they were fixed. It does some things well, but it has some quirks that I just hate. I like the CRV for the room it has and better design in some areas, but I'd like to see where this engine fire issue winds up. I'm thinking I'll wait until the summer and see what happens by then. If I start having mechanical issues fire up again with this RAV4 then that that will push me to make a move sooner.”

“Freakin forget Heap and Nissan...Windwalker had it nailed..it's all about Toyota..Buy a used Landcruiser and thank me later...”

“Y'all gotta check out the VIN number on the car. If it starts with a 1, the car was made in the US. If it starts with anything else, it was made elsewhere. Common others are 2 for Canada, 3 for Mexico, 9 for Brazil, J for Japan. Where was your car actually made?

Cars are intentionally made to wreck easier in accidents these days so that they can better help save your life. This way more of the car itself absorbs the energy of the impact, as opposed to your knees smashing into the dashboard, or head smashing into the steering wheel. With average freeway speeds of around 75 mph these days, that could mean the difference between life and death in a freeway wreck.”

“rich, good luck with your decision and keep me posted on what you decide to do.

maybe you should have invoked the lemon law?”

“"Buy American, the job you save may be your own!!!"

Blalock
6:52:10 PM
1/30/05

Hate to break this to ya Blalock but Jeeps are German now...”

“Which is good Bison because they heat up quicker. I mean, who wants to wait around for an American car to warm up? :P”