I say possible car problems because we are looking at a used 1994 Nissan Pathfinder for Geek Child #1. It’s not ours yet, so it may not be our problem.
The good:
The pathfinder seems to overall be in good shape. The motor is good, the transmission is good. It’s got 4wd which seems to work properly.
It’s a rugged vehicle that I know from experience will run darn near forever, even if it is abused (and I think Geek Child #1 is going to abuse it a bit). I’ve got experience with Nissans and I know they run forever but the body will rust off of it. As long as we keep ahead of the rust, I know we can get another 150 to 200k miles out of this vehicle.
The bad:
The clutch pedal is really easy to push down. I used to own a Nissan pickup truck which is exactly the same thing as the Pathfinder but with a different body. The clutch was never that easy to push down. The clutch seems to work fine and doesn’t slip, but the easy push worries me. Does it just need adjustment or is there something mechanically wrong with it?
The other bad thing was a slight shimmy coming from the front end as it drove down the road at higher speeds. I looked underneath and didn’t see anything obviously bent or unusually rusted. The frame isn’t bent. I couldn’t find anything wrong other than it may be out of alignment or it may have a wheel out of balance. What else could it be?
shrug could be the difference between a cable and a hydraulic clutch, could be differences in the length of the pedal from the fulcrum, the release fork could be different, and so on. IME if something affects the pedal force- say, breaking diaphragm fingers- the pedal force required will go up not down.
tire out of balance or out of round, bent wheel, something loose up front or worn bushing.
ETA:
you’re dealing with a 17-18 year old vehicle. You don’t “know” anything. It could start nickel-and-diming you the day after you buy it.
That seems like a really old car to buy for your kid. Is the price really killer? Unless it’s only a few hundred dollars, I’d have to think that you could get something newer and with better safety features for not much more. Does your kid really need an SUV or off road machine? Your money would probably go a lot further with a sedan like a Honda Accord.
All that said, the front end shimmy would concern me at least a little. It seems worth having it checked out by a mechanic before committing if this really is the car you want to get.
As had been said just because the clutch is easy to push, does not mean it is bad.
The front end shimmy?
Balance,
Bushings,
Ball joints,
Wheel bearings
FWD axles
Pick one, or two, or all 5.
Does geek child have to have 4WD?
In general, with 4WD you get a higher center of gravity (easier to roll over), poorer fuel mileage, longer braking distances, more expensive repair bills due to the extra complexity, and many times a worse safety record.
So I ask you again, does geek child have to have 4WD?
And what, pray tell, is bad about something working beautifully?
In all seriousness, high clutch pedal effort is possibly a problem, low clutch pedal effort is a blessing.
It’s not misalignment – that doesn’t cause shimmy. If it’s right around 60-65 mph, wheel balance is a prime suspect. Any play in the steering linkage (most common – tie rod joints) could give a shimmy. All we can do is speculate, have it checked out.
He does want a stick shift. What he really wants is my truck, which is what he is driving now, but I want it back next fall when the weather gets bad. We live in a rural area with very bad roads, and they do not do a good job of plowing them at all in the winter.
A Honda would be way out of our price range, and he would probably rip the bottom completely off of it on the roads around here. I could picture him replacing the exhaust system about once a year due to the roads here. Any other car that sits low to the ground will probably have the same problem. One of the reasons I need my truck back in the winter is that the main roads get clogged very quickly when it snows here, and I’m too afraid of doing some severe damage to my car to take it on the back roads home, not to mention that it would probably get stuck in the snow if I tried.
What he’s driving right now is an old Dodge Dakota pickup with close to 200,000 miles on it. We’re aiming for the equivalent of that on a very small budget. The Dakota happens to be 4WD but like I said he would do fine with 2WD.
The Pathfinder has 140,000 miles on it and is very cheap.
Another thing to add to Rick’s list is the lock-up hubs. These are the gizmos that lock and unlock the front wheels to the front axle so the front axle isn’t constantly turning when you’re in 2wd. They can very commonly get stuck on older “urban” 4x4s where the 4wd is seldom used. If one is partially or fully stuck engaged and the other one is freewheeling, it can cause a sort of subtle shimmy and pull like it needs an alignment. It also isn’t very good for the differential.
If I had to bet on it, I’d agree with an out-of-balance wheel, but given the more expensive possibilities, you should definitely have someone put it up on a lift and look at it. It would also probably be a good idea to get someone else to evaluate the clutch issue. If the pedal feels “easy” because it’s disengaging with very little motion, that could indicate a problem. Though I agree it’s also quite possible that the fancier Pathfinder has an easier clutch than your old pickup, even if they are basically the same truck. I know the clutch on my Honda always feels broken after I’ve been driving my pickup!
And I mean put money aside for the pending repairs that will no doubt obtain from acquiring this vehicle. I usually figure about $1,000 on a used vehicle to put it in shape. If I’m lucky, great. Those repairs are coming eventually. I think this vehicle with the 4X4 is too much for a kid. It’s expensive to drive and repair. Doesn’t sound like you will be repairing it yourself either so double the expense. A kid should be driving something small and efficient in my opinion. A four wheel truck give a kid license to do all sorts of damage. He will meet your expectations, guaranteed.
IANA rural guy, but **Al Bundy **doesn’t sound like he understands living far out in the country in a state with lots of snow and little or no road maintenance. A tall vehicle with agressive tires & 2WD may be the bare minimum that’s safe year round. 4WD would be better yet.
Yes, kids will hot-rod whatever they get their hands on. Crashing off the side of the snowy back-country road into a ravine in their “safe” underpowered Nissan sedan with street tires is just as much a hazard as rolling the truck.
Actually, I probably will be doing most of the repairs myself. I’m just an idiot back yard mechanic and I don’t have anywhere near the skills and knowledge of our resident experts like Rick or Gary T, but I can usually muddle through it with a little help from Chilton’s and the friendly folks on the dope.
Thanks to everyone who replied. I’m having someone who has a bit more experience have a look at the front end, and we’ll go from there. We haven’t made a decision one way or the other yet, so you’ve all been really helpful in letting me know what I might be getting myself into.
The clutch started acting up a bit after we got it. It was a bit slow to engage. It never did that while we were test driving it. I think that the truck has just been sitting for a while because after a few days it started working fine and has been perfect ever since. I guess whatever was sticking has worked its way loose. We can’t make it fail at all now so there’s nothing to fix.
We replaced all of the tires and repacked one of the front wheel bearings and the shimmy is gone. I don’t know if it was the tire or the bearing (or both) that got it but either way it’s gone.
We replaced the fuel filter, put new spark plugs in it, and put a new distributor cap on it and the thing runs like a champ.
Geek Child #1 has been driving it around quite a bit and is very happy with it. The tires were the only expensive fix and we put basically the same tires on it that are on my Dodge truck. They aren’t cheap, but they handle the snow and unplowed back roads around here well.
We haven’t had it very long yet, but so far we are very happy with it.
