XTerra Power

Hi all. I was in the market for an XTerra last year. When I went for a test drive I noticed that it was a bit underpowered with only 170 horses, so I went in another direction. Now with the '02's S/C option with 210 ponies I was somewhat impressed by the charger, but not by only 210hp. My Jetta has 150/165 HP/TQ stock and is a good 2000 lbs lighter. My GF is now in the market for a new vechicle and wants an Xterra, and something with some nut. Now I dont expect to be running an Xterra to the track for 1/4 mi times, but I also dont want an underpowered truck. I assume this forum is packed with people with the S/C (or I hope:D ). Anyone with the charger think that it is underpowered with only 210 horses? also, is there any type of ECU upgrade for it? I can put a chip in my Jet for $400 that will give me an extra 50 horses and 65 lb/ft. Anything like that for the Nissan? ok..one more thing...what are people getting for gas milage with this truck?
THANKS!!

I don't think any of the guys on this board have the supercharger...at least none of the regular posters I can think of. Perhaps a lurker or two will pipe in with their experiences.

One question--a stock Xterra weighs ~4000 pounds (4WD version.) What the hell are you stripping out of that Jetta to get it down to 2000? My friend's long-discarded '86 2 door Acura Integra weighed more than that, without rear seats. :confused:

Gas mileage--assume 15, less if you put offroad mods on your truck, or drive it like a Jetta. :D

well i guess the 2000 was a bit optimistic. i think the acutal curb weight of my car is around 2800?? but still, a much larger vechicle for only 50 more horses seems to be underpowerd, ESPECIALLY with the 170hp flavor

Yeah, it's underpowered. A friend of mine's girlfriend got a 2.8 VR6 Jetta (automatic though :() recently, and I made the mistake of driving it a few times this past summer. My Xterra felt like driving the Jetta with its parking brake on... :(

You get used to it though...it's not meant for speed. Especially mine. :)

Comparing an Xterra to a Jetta is like comparing apples and oranges. If you want the acceleration of a car, get a car. Like goth, I've got swampers and other mods that hinder my street performance. However, I still have no problem keeping with the flow of traffic on the D.C. beltway, which is saying something.

Having said that, I think we can all agree that we'd like to have a few more horses under the hood. :)

ok, lets forget the comparisons. obviously a car will be able to smoke a truck. but as a stand alone, does it have enough power, or will I need to put more into it to get the thing to move. in its class is it considered a dog, a stallion, or somewhere in the middle? I know nissan makes bulletproof engines and was hoping that this would be one of them. (maxima, sentra, pathfinder, etc etc...)

I was just busting your balls with the comparison thing. Honestly, while I'd like to have more horses (primarily for offroad applications) I find street performance to be decent. You will have no problems maintaining 80 on the highway, which is about as fast as I would want to drive a 4000lb truck. If you want to compare, check out the November issue of Four Wheeler. They pit the S/C X against the Jeep Liberty in a battle of the mid-sized sport utes.

Well this is my first post. I just ordered a 2002 SE with Supercharger, I will be getting it in the next couple of weeks. I will write back once I have more experience with it.

However I did test drive both the non supercharger and the supercharger and the s/c was more fun :D

I will chime in here since our local Nissan dealer sent us a 2002 SC X for our Truxpo Victory Party Sat. night. First, compared to the 170 hp Xterra, it is a rocketship! It will easily howl the tires (I drove a 2WD) and spin the truck out.

Now for the bad news. Gas mileage goes in the toilet and you HAVE to run premium. There is a price for the performance. I thought the truck was smooth across the powerband on hard accel, but a little sluggish at points on casual accel. I would be concerned about the ease that the rearend goes out from underneath it in the Florida rain. I wouldn't even want to think about it on ice. If you don't mind dealing with these things, then it would definitely be for you. I can't testify how it performs off-road since I haven't seen or driven a 4WD one yet.

I've owned my 2002 SC for about a month now and so far I couldn't be happier.

I test drove both the NA and the SC and found a considerable difference in power with the SC, in particular through the first 3 gears (5 spd is the only way to go for full enjoyment). Gas mileage does take a bit more of a hit with the premium requirement but I've always put mid grade in my other vehicles so the difference is minor. I wouldn't worry too much about the back end kicking out, in the dry you certainly can do it but you have to try, and in the wet - well, all rear wheel drive vechiles sipn out easily. Once you get used to the throttle its easy to control.

One thing I have found to be a nice change from all other trucks I have owned is it has the power I want when I want it. When you need to beat someone off the line at a light or pass on a hill, the SC makes it much easier to do so. It's nice to know it doesn't get pushed around by the competition anymore.

Other benefits: cool interior, 17in rims, BFG Rugged Tires, chrome tip exaust.

The choice is yours, but for me, opting for more power was a no brainer (especially considering the low $ increase - an auto SE is the same $ as a 5spd SC).

Originally posted by Mojo-3
Other benefits: cool interior, 17in rims, BFG Rugged Tires, chrome tip exaust.


I wouldn't call 17inch rims or chrome tips a benefit unless your keeping your X on-road all the time. I can't imagine the tires being rugged enough for me.

All I'd like would be the supercharger and a smaller pully =-) 40 ponnies isn't that much from a supercharger...

Warmonger. Did the 2wd you drove have LSD? I imagine a 4wd with LSD would have a bit more control in the slick stuff. 4wd engaged or not.

Schlud,

Yes it did have LSD. The problem with LSD is that when you break it loose, you break both tires loose and the vehicle comes around. I actually have more control over my truck in the rain now since I added the air locker. In the old days if I broke it loose it came around sideways. Now it just spins one tire and keeps coming straight. I would lay odds the SC X would benefit from this as well, at least the 4WD.

Hey all, I was reading this post and had to respond. My fiance owns a 1999 VW Jetta GL. I had a 2001 Xterra that I just traded in for a 2002 SE S/C. We have raced a few times for fun and let me tell you I will put my S/C up against any stock Jetta if not just for fun. I have let my fiance drive my X and I had the Jetta and she flew by the Jetta. The initial power you get from the S/C off the line is substaintial. This is just my experience.

Originally posted by scooby
The initial power you get from the S/C off the line is substaintial. This is just my experience.

It just goes to show that people "buy" horsepower but "drive" torque.

well there ya go, the 1999 with its mundo 115 horses would get smoked. this does bring up a good point. how much torque does this thing put out??

Originally posted by lukeN1.8R
well there ya go, the 1999 with its mundo 115 horses would get smoked. this does bring up a good point. how much torque does this thing put out??

200 ft/lbs @ 2800 rpm 90% of which is available below 2500 rpm.

thank you. suppose i could have looked it up but im too lazy to do so. looks like a test drive is now in order :)

I have a Supercharged 2002 X and it gives me very good power for the size of vehicle. It definately comes on pretty strong when you floor it. If you take it to the 1/4 mile, the only 13's you'll be getting is 13 mpg unfortunately, but that is not why we buy 4X4's -Right...
I came from a 99' Mitsu Eclipse AWD w/300 HP and did 13.2 sec in the 1/4 and i'm not dissappointed with my SUV's power at all.:sun:

TK1 in UXOC club has the 2002 XE S/C and has done some serious offroading in it. It is a nice commodity but not a necessity - besides, we didn't fork out the 40K+ sticker price for a V8 Escalade. The Xterra does just fine at 170HP, just remember it ain't no car!

For pix and videos of the S/C offroading check out www.uxoc.org

Happy wheelin'

Robert