2000 Xterra vs. 2001 4runner

[bama16]

i had an 04 xterra, the 3.3 is identical power wise. I had no issues offroading, it was as capable as any lifted IFS suv could be. the xterra required the standard mods to fit 33s, shackles in the rear and calmini upper arms for alignment. I never got as far as an ARB locker so difs were open. Never had any issues but my commute grew and i traded it in for a car.

My commute shortened, i sold the car and took over the 4runner we had. It's a 97 with toytec lift and 33s goodyear mtrs. I have a complete elocked axle that needs to be swapped. As it sits with open difs it's been comparable. I really couldn't put one over the other as power was the same and 2 wheels spinning will only get a vehicle so far.

My wife has an xterra offroad with the 4.0, nisstec lift and 33s. With the factory locker it'll go further than the 4runner. the NA 260 hp 4.0 is nice compared to the old xterra and 4runner. I may be getting my wife a new car here soon and i'll take over the xterra and leave the 4runner as our expedition/camping vehicle. The front dif has an aluminum housing which has been known to crack with big wheels/more torque. Swapping a titan front dif and CVs provides a solid IFS vehicle on 35s.

I also have a 400whp 72 240z running an old, but built, 2.8 straight 6.

 

[white_n_slow]

i had an 04 xterra, the 3.3 is identical power wise. I had no issues offroading, it was as capable as any lifted IFS suv could be. the xterra required the standard mods to fit 33s, shackles in the rear and calmini upper arms for alignment. I never got as far as an ARB locker so difs were open. Never had any issues but my commute grew and i traded it in for a car.

My commute shortened, i sold the car and took over the 4runner we had. It's a 97 with toytec lift and 33s goodyear mtrs. I have a complete elocked axle that needs to be swapped. As it sits with open difs it's been comparable. I really couldn't put one over the other as power was the same and 2 wheels spinning will only get a vehicle so far.

My wife has an xterra offroad with the 4.0, nisstec lift and 33s. With the factory locker it'll go further than the 4runner. the NA 260 hp 4.0 is nice compared to the old xterra and 4runner. I may be getting my wife a new car here soon and i'll take over the xterra and leave the 4runner as our expedition/camping vehicle. The front dif has an aluminum housing which has been known to crack with big wheels/more torque. Swapping a titan front dif and CVs provides a solid IFS vehicle on 35s.

I also have a 400whp 72 240z running an old, but built, 2.8 straight 6.

I know the rating is only about 20hp apart, but to me, driving a 3.3 Xterra vs. driving a 3.4 4runner was a night and day difference in terms of power. Maybe the 5vz-fe just breathes better and can handle altitude better, but my Runners on 33's felt peppier than my buddy's Xterra on 31's by a wide margin, despite the Xterra's lower gear ratio.

The 4.0 is a different beast all together, but should probably be compared to a 1gr-fe to be fair.

 

[bama16]

i know i'm deviating from the 2000 in the original post, but the 04 xterra is 180hp/202lbft and the 97 4runner rating is 183/217. The xterra was manual, which i prefer for power control, and less obnoxious than a kick-down switch.

the vq40 power was just a comment, only comparing to a point where i felt a power difference was anything appreciable, and like you were saying is far more comparable to the 1gr.

 

[JayRolla]

2 pages of replies. No reply from the OP. I never replied because I knew he was just trolling this forum. LOL.

To the OP you should just sell your 4runner and get yourself an xterra and go to there forums.

 

[MuddyButt]

The Xterra is weak and underpowered in the mountains. It needs 2-3" of lift just to fit 265/75-16 tires. IFS is IFS, but IMO a strut suspension is way better and less prone to fatigue or trail damage than torsion bars. I will say that one advantage that goes to the Xterra IMO is the rear leaf suspension. Better manners and more predictable on the highway & simple to modify.

In terms of reliability: two broken TRE's on Fins & Things in Moab, which I consider a pretty mellow trail. Constantly plagued by overheating despite replacing the entire cooling system. Broke the timing belt prior to maintenance interval. It was still kicking at 200k but felt like it was on it's last leg. If I had to drive across the country, I would rather be in my 300k LX450 than a 100k Xterra.

They aren't bad little trucks and they have some character, but they can't take a beating like a Toyota, they've got no power and reliability isn't even on the same page.

I agree with most of this, but, I was able to fit 33's on my Xterra and just had to trim an inch of plastic off i don't see how you would need 2-3 inches of lift. Anyways I personally think my family was lucky and got a well put together xterra. Maybe it's because it was made in America idk. In general I agree that 4runners are more reliable.
I like hearing these responses about 4runners I hope mine last for at least 500,000 miles since it's the first car I bought with my own money.

 

[MuddyButt]

All good points. But those shackles hang so low! It seems like every time I wheel with a first gen xterra they are always getting hung up on those.

I agree they did hang low and I did get stuck on them multiple times. That's one of the downsides of leaf springs as well as them developing that annoying squeak when they get dirt or sand wedged in them.

 

[MuddyButt]

I do think they have potential as a platform, but at the very least would need the front suspension reworked.

Yes. good platform that you can throw lockers on and beat the hell out of with everything pretty much stock. I felt like it begged to get beat on when I drove mine.

 

[MuddyButt]

2 years ago I decided to finally retire my 94 Wrangler as a daily driver. I bought the Jeep new in 1994 when I was on active duty in the Marines and I loved it so much that I just kept on rocking it for 18 years. I couldn't bring myself to sell it so I currently store it at my vacation home and use it up there in the summer. One day I'll re-do it for my son who is 9 and loves it.
The Xterra is a really cool looking truck. I love the look and the tubular roof rack was just cool. I drove an 04 and an 08. The 04 was severely underpowered. I mean what a frigging dog. I thought my 4cyl Jeep was underpowered but the Xterra was honestly worse. QUOTE

Ill be honest when driving my xterra up a mountain I would shift it down to a lower gear to give it more power to get up hills so I cant say it had good power but I also cant say the 4runner is much better.

Your 4runner is awesome btw.

 

[Grgg1978]

I have a '99 4runner 4x4 3.4L 5spd now

Used to have a frontier '00 4x4 3.3L 5spd

Have to agree the VG33 is under powered, my runner has way more top end but I still feel like the 3.3 has it on the low end. The engine and tranny in the frontier were bullet proof. I bought it new in '00 and lost the green machine when someone ran into him when my mom borrowed it, but never had any problems with it. Not one thing broke unless it was because someone hit the poor thing, 4 accidents total with it. It was a beast and got me through all the trails I am going through now in my 4runner.

I would have bought a xterra if it wasn't that my brother was stupidly selling his 4runner to buy a BMW X5... His loss my win.

Would have probably loved a xterra as much as I love my 4runner.

If I had to choose again it would still be a tough choice but I would probably stick with the 4runner because of the size and aftermarket parts.

 

[MuddyButt]

2 pages of replies. No reply from the OP. I never replied because I knew he was just trolling this forum. LOL.

To the OP you should just sell your 4runner and get yourself an xterra and go to there forums.

not trolling just busy working

 

[MuddyButt]

here is the old(xterra) and the new(4runner). need a better picture with the duratracs on

 

[Black Flag]

Though I've only had my 2000 4Runner for a couple of months and haven't asked it to do much except look nice, I've had a 4wd Tacoma 2.4 since 1995, so a fair comparison to the Xterra can be made.
After much online research my wife bought her 2002 Xterra new and drove it as a daily commuter until she totaled it last year with just over 300,000 miles on the clock.
To provide some meaningful context, we live at the end of a 5 1/2 mile dirt road that's a washboarded bone-shaker and is only graded by the county about twice a year.
The Xterra began shedding body components right away, starting with the running boards, then the front and rear bumpers, the skid plate, and all the extensive plastic cladding.
As far as I can recall, other problems were:
broken leaf spring (twice)
broken shock mount (twice)
broken front hub, causing it to be engaged full time and leading to...
front transfer case destroyed and needing replacement.

In all fairness, the Xterra'sV6 engine was entirely trouble-free for the 12 year life of the car. However, our local mechanic, who got to know that car really well over the years, remarked after doing a weld on a broken shock mount that the steel in the frame was poor quality.
My Tacoma, by comparison, has just over 200,000 miles on it, a fair amount of which has been off-road chores around the ranch, and has given me NO (zero) problems.
I think the Xterra is a nice enough auto if it never leaves the pavement, but I'd never recommend it except for in-town driving.

 

[chimpy]

I will take my 01' 4runner over an Xterra-ble any day. My son recently purchased a new Nissan frontier "desert runner" pick up and has already had it back to the dealer for water leak issues from around the extended cab windows and a grinding noise from one of the wheels. It is a really good looking truck but I buy my vehicles to drive them, not look at them. I tried to get him to buy a Tacoma but he said that our local Toyota dealers wouldn't knock off as much money from the sticker price as compared to the Nissan dealers.
I told him that you get what you pay for and he has found that out the hard way now.

 

[slomatt]

I've driven a friend's modified 2000 Xterra through the Rubicon, Deer Valley, Hell's Revenge, Golden Spike, Elephant Hill, Black Bear Pass, and a bunch of other trails and I own a modified 2000 4Runner which I've wheeled for several years.

Making a direct comparison between these two particular trucks is unfair since the XTerra has larger tires (285s), a front locker, and 4:1 transfer case gears. Both trucks are 5speeds.

Here's my comparison (for what it's worth) of the two trucks in stock form.

4Runner
+ Nicer interior. The Xterra feels a little plasticy and utilitarian compared to the 4Runner (SR5).
+ Better engine. The hp difference isn't all that large, but the 3.4l in the 4Runner is happier to rev which is great on hills, especially at altitude. The VG in the Xterra requires quite a lot of downshifting to keep speed. Both engines seem to be very reliable.
+ Coil-over front suspension flexes better than the torsion bars on the Xterra.
+ Linked rear suspension flexes better than the leaf springs in the Xterra. The Xterra's springs tend to get hung up on rocks as do the 4Runner's control arm mounts.
+ The 4Runner's suspension feels better at high speeds on dirt roads.
+ Availability of factory rear locker.
+ Steering components seems to be stronger. Xterras have a habit of bending steering components.
+ Power rear window, because it's fun to roll down and wave at people behind you at stop lights.

Xterra
+ Flat underbelly, especially with aftermarket skidplates installed. This is great offroad. The gas tank on the 4Runner hangs down way too far.
+ Ability to put 4:1 gears in the transfer case for a reasonable price. The 4Runner requires a t/c replacement to change the ratio.
+ Plastic bumper corners that can take a beating.
+ Better roof rack system, the cargo basket over the sunroof is useful.
- Transmission syncros went out at only 90k, but this might be because of heavy trail use.
- Factory running boards have a bad habit of being shoved back into the rear tire when they hit a rock. This is a good reason to remove them.

Either truck can make a nice wheeler, but I think the 4Runner is overall better built, more capable offroad, and nicer to drive on road. But, I would not be disappointed to own an Xterra.

How about some pictures?

Xterra on bald 265s at the bottom of Cadillac Hill on the Rubicon. We went through the Gatekeeper before it was blown up, but of course took the bypass for Little Sluice.

4Runner on the Slickrock Trail.

- Matt