Looking to replace my dying 1989 4WD Suburban. I need a 4WD and decent ground clearance to deal with my long gravel uphill driveway in the snow. Must have. Also I am a big fan of manual transmissions. I have poor history with automatics. I also do some moderate 4 wheeling here in the Colorado Rockies. Colorado levies very high sales taxes at purchase and exorbitant annual property taxes upon plate renewal. Property tax decreases a bit as the car ages.So an older (min 7 years old) vehicle is much preferred. I personally like the appearance of the X-Terra over the 4-Runner but would defer to the Toyota's better quality with your input. Which to choose?
4Runner is a great choice but as far as I can recall they haven't offered a manual option for years now. If you're okay with a truck the Tacoma has been having manual option for some time now.
I would go with the 4Runner, even though it has an automatic transmission. But at least that transmission is pretty bullet proof. Besides, for off-roading it’s far easier driving with an automatic than a manual.
The 4Runner is the better bet. With that said, the Xterra is one of the few Nissan’s that are an exception to the general anti-Renault/Nissan positions. It’s basically a Frontier underneath. And probably one of the last Nissan’s actually being a Nissan/Datsun before the Renault/Nissan merger went into full force and took Nissan down.
