Look closer. They're almost as round as the current model and framed in rectangles. It looks fine, especially with the black grill.

I like it!!! Especially the interior and 250 HP engine and 4 wheel disc brakes, but does anybody know if the rear window opens, like every other SUV on the road?

I seriously doubt it.

You guys are seriously in need of professional help! Quick, get it now before it's too late! Round headlights never belonged on the Xterra. They have their places, but the X isn't one of them. Didn't you ever learn that the round peg doesn't go in the square hole? That's how the round headlights look on the Xterra; like they don't belong, and the cheesy ass plastic trim over them really adds a "special" effect. Had Nissan left the trim off they would have been tolerable, but the way they did it just makes me want to hurl! Guess I wasn't the only one at the June prototype viewing that didn't like them, because the current front end was one of the biggest complaints I heard from other people who were judging the styling on the current model and the prototype. Round lost out!

That's slightly better.

ps my round lights bring all the girls to the yard and they're like "it's better than yours"

Yeah, but they are the wrong kind of girls!

Forget about looks, round headlines are more efficent then rectanular ones. That is why people complain more about the brightness on the newer models versus the older ones. :p

Why do you think Hummers and Jeeps have round lights?

Yeah, but not all Jeeps have round headlights and even the Wrangler had squares for awhile. Now there's an example of where NOT to use square lights! Yep, Wrangler = Round and Xterra = Square!

In all truthfulness, I don't really care, but I do prefer the current model.

Unless you're talking about 05, which is better than both because it IS both.

Although it's closer to being round. Which is clearly better.

I don't care either. It's not a deal breaker for me. My biggest problem has always been more to do with what is around and near the round lights than with the round lights themselves. I mean, the Frontier lights are almost the same except without all the crap and they look good to me.

Besides, what would I do if I couldn't pick on the round headlight and 2WD folks?

Squares are for Squares...

In yellow, it looks better with the square lights, I'll give you that one any day of the week. Granite BY FAR looks best on the round-eyes. The other colors are so-so on either model.

I'm hoping for either Granite or a dark metallic grey or gunmetal finish on the '05+....

i'm just joshing as well.

i'll be tickled pink over the hand brake and a non-rusty hatch!

No, it's because they switched to a reflective rather than refractive beam pattern method. The square ones have the back side of the lens shaped to bend the light where it is needed, while the round ones rely purely on the shaped reflector behind the bulb to direct the light. You can buy reflector-type replacement housings for the 00/01 on Ebay for about $80 and they're actually pretty good unlike most of the crap you find there. There was a rumor that they were Nismo items, but I don't think that was ever conculusively determined.

I think the fact that NISMO is now available through the dealers and those lights aren't listed says they are not a NISMO item. But, I do like them better than the stock lights. One thing to note is that they are a better focused at the top cutoff than not only the '02 and up lights, but also the stock '00 -'01 lights, so they don't produce the obnoxious glare that the '02+ lights do. My point being that the complaints for brightness are not related to the type of light, but to the poor focus of them combined with improper alignment.

It still amazes me that the U.S. refuses to adopt lighting standards like those other countries have, and instead insists on poor light output to try and cover up their bad design requirements. :rolleyes:

Personnaly I like the round lights on an unmodified X, but think the square ones look better behind an ARB or Shrockworks bumper. If round is so bad, why are so many aftermarket lights round? Why do so many people put round auxiliary lighting on thier square headlighted X? I wonder why after 27 pages of discussion, we end up talking about this for the last two. I guess we ran out of real substance in all that chatter.

I like the size and the new engine. Mmmmmmmm, 6 speed manual. But, no sunroof? You can keep that cargo basket disaster and leave me my sunroof. The foot wells at the rear are gimmicky. The badging is getting ridiculous. The rims remind me of the Z71. The front end is OK. More colours, pleease! As long as the quality and reliability remain strong, Nissan should be proud.

Man after seeing those giant size pictures of the 05 X, I might have to trade in my 02 X. I should have about 40,000 miles on mine by X-mas.

Does anyone know where the oil filter is going to be on the new model? Same ol' spot, or do you think they tried to improve this from the previous models? All in all, I'd have to say that I like what I see.

Mike

How do you improve on where the oil filter currently is?

No shit. The Xterra is the easiest vehicle I've ever changed the oil on. Just drop the "skid plate" and the filter is right there. The current Xterra is pretty much perfect in that regard... :rolleyes:

Well, the '05 looks like it has a trap door for the filter - that would negate having to take the entire skid off to change the oil...

i wonder about getting a real dead pedal instead of just a tire hump.

Yup, you can see the little door in the splash guard to access it in my pics:
http://www.nissanoffroad.com/05X/DSC02750.JPG

The filter is directly behind it and sits horizontally rather than pointed down like our current setup.

I was mainly just referring to the angle of the filter. I guess I've always preferred a clean change to one where my hand gets covered in used oil.

Mike