First Time Nissan Owner

[joeyd13903]

I just acquired a '93 extended cab P/U with 100K on the engine, 5 speed, no rust - very clean for $500.

I've never owned a Nissan in my life and was hoping someone could point me to a site that provides information regarding the pickup. It's 2WD and has the extended cab, nothing special - was used by a florist for part time delivery work -driven by the owner only so I know it wasn't beat up (he's a good friend of mine and is very conscientious about his vehicles).

Anyway...any common problem areas with the trucks or items I need to be concerned with?

Any suggestions on must have upgrades? The truck will be used primarily for work - I install soil gas and radon mitigation systems in homes - light hauling but a lot of miles. I'm contemplating heavier suspension upgrades and larger tires/rims. As I said - any thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

JD

[Will2]

100 K on a Nissan engine I would consider just broke in. I bought A 92 seven years ago with slightly over 100,000 miles. It now has 267,000. The Nissan pickup I had before this one had over 500,000 miles. The body finally rotted away after 'one too many, Michigan winters. The only thing major I've had go wrong between the 2 is; I've replaced the drive shaft on the 92 only because the universal joints were non changeable on the factory installed shaft. They are on the replacement(go figure). That's it. I believe the secret is religious routine maintenance. Take care of them and they'll take care of you,if you will. As far as up-grades. I'd live with it for awhile. I've done alot of hauling with both( musical equipment,cement, what have you) and never felt the need for a suspension up-grade. Good luck with your find. I believe it's money well spent.

[joeyd13903]

Originally Posted by Will2

100 K on a Nissan engine I would consider just broke in. I bought A 92 seven years ago with slightly over 100,000 miles. It now has 267,000. The Nissan pickup I had before this one had over 500,000 miles. The body finally rotted away after 'one too many, Michigan winters. The only thing major I've had go wrong between the 2 is; I've replaced the drive shaft on the 92 only because the universal joints were non changeable on the factory installed shaft. They are on the replacement(go figure). That's it. I believe the secret is religious routine maintenance. Take care of them and they'll take care of you,if you will. As far as up-grades. I'd live with it for awhile. I've done alot of hauling with both( musical equipment,cement, what have you) and never felt the need for a suspension up-grade. Good luck with your find. I believe it's money well spent.

Thanks for the reply. I am well aware of Nissan's reputation of building very solid and reliable vehicles, but I don't have a lot of experience or know a lot of people that have owned the trucks. As I said in the initial post the truck I acquired was used for florist deliveries, and I intend to use it to transport my tools (large hammer drills, hole hawg, 6-8 18v dewalt cordless tools, ten gallons of dirt [one way - we take it out of the hole we put in the foundation], a 26' little giant ladder, etc)...not a whole lot of weight for a truck I imagine and around 60-80 feet of 4" PVC pipe a day (in ten foot increments) and that's about it. I'm currently using an Astro van but the gas mileage is killing me and I wanted a truck for the convenience and what not.

So I assume I'll just see how the truck handles the loads I throw at it.

I'm looking forward to getting it registered (it was just picked up yesterday) and running it a lot. The price I paid for it made it too attractive to pass up, seeing as it also has a cap on it. And, being in Upstate New York, I can appreciate the thoughts on winters. That's what makes finding anything over ten years old without rust a rare find. I'll post some pics of it later today.

As for maintenance I'm a freak about it, so that shouldn't be a problem.

Thanks again!

[joeyd13903]

Originally Posted by Will2

100 K on a Nissan engine I would consider just broke in... Good luck with your find. I believe it's money well spent.

I used the truck for work all last week, and it performs flawlessly. I've owned a bunch of cars and trucks, including the s-10 blazer in my avatar that's driving me insane with repairs, and nothing compares to this little Nissan.

I drove it to our camp in the Adirondacks this weekend, with a 12 foot boat on the roof rack and loaded with all of our gear and three passengers and it was awesome. And...I got 25 mpg on the tank of gas we used to go up. Unbelievable.

Anyway, that's about it for now. You were 100% correct on the suspension - it's fine. I tote around 8-10 "sticks" of PVC pipe a day, along with my tools and ladders, and the truck doesn't even seem to notice.

[Will2]

I'm glad it's working out well for you. Ford advertises as being'Ford tough' but these little trucks are just as.