Hello all my Xterra-ans!

My Yellow Xterra and I made it Denver! Yes, We made it. Just in case you have forgotten, I made a post that I was going to Denver from Austin, TX to visit a college bud of mine after Christmas. Well, after New Year's Day, I headed out to Denver from El Paso, TX after visiting friends & family. Everything went swell until I got to Las Vegas, NM on I-25 North. Flurries were falling but no problem, yet.

The real fun for me came after I passed the Colorado border and passed a town of Trinidad, CO. From there until Pueblo, all I saw was WHITE, both on the ground and in the sky. Yes, my 2WD really struggled but thanks to the snowplows on the highway, it did make my commute a little easier. Spent a night in Pueblo and the next day made it to Denver with no problem.

A week later, my friend and I went to Vail and Beaver Creek to do some snowboarding. This was a real break-in for my X, since it has not climbed any real Mountains until now. There were a few icy spots that you had to be careful of on I-70 West. Again, thanks to the Snowplows and the stuff they put on the road, it did help.

I am still in Denver experiencing a nice 10-20 deg. F day! Coming from TX, I'm probably the only one here wearing an Arctic Parka where the only thing you can see is my eyes!

So, to all my fellow 2WD buddies out there, you too can make it to Colorado, in the Winter. Just stay on the main roads because Colorado does a pretty good job in plowing and sanding the major roads!

Stay tuned for my return trip home in a couple of weeks! Trudge On!

YellowX
Austin, TX

So? How did you make out?

Chris B

Chris B.,
I just only wished Nissan gave these Xterras a little larger gas tank and a little more engine pep to pass those 18 wheelers. Sorry, my X does not have the supercharger.

I did encounter a little trouble north of Trinidad. The snow was falling fast and tried to get to a small motel on the side of the road. Once I got off I-25 to get to the motel, that was then I realized I wished I had 4WD. Even though the drive was only a 1/4 mile to the motel, I lost control a few times of my front wheels and almost could not brake. I drove very slow to the motel only to find out that it was full (No Vacancy!). Distraught and tired, I took the very long drive to Pueblo. What would normally take an hour or less, the drive lasted me two hours. I almost wanted to give up and park on the side of the road because my X would only go 25-30 mph without losing traction or control. However, I hanged on and made it to Pueblo where not a single snow flake was seen.

Otherwise, I had no problems once I got to Denver the next day and for the next two weeks.

Does anybody else want to share their 2WD Xterra stories on the road?

yellowX

YellowX,
Did you have much weight in the assend. I have not driven on much snow here in MD cause it dosn't snow very often here anymore. I have had mine in quite a bit of mud lately and was really surprized that it did as well as it did. I have 6 of those 15 pound sandlogs in the ass of mine and it made a huge difference. Also the stock tires really SUCK. Take heart in the fact that the gas tank gets even smaller when you are using the X in 4wd. The engine gets even pokier to. Good driving man stick to it.

Ekh.

EKH, Howdy there!
Yes! My Xterra was fully loaded back there. I had my stuff and some other stuff that I had to carry over to Denver for a friend of mine from her Mom in El Paso. They were cans of food, boxes of clothes, and house goods that he forget to take with him. So, you might say that extra junk made up for the sandbags somewhat. I had no problem going through the slush. It was when I went off the highway where the roads were not plowed or treated with sand/salt where I had to be extremely careful.

Well, since you have a 4 banger, I guess you will not have to worry too much about gas mileage as much as the V-6 owners do.

What did you use in place of your stock tires? I still have my original BF Goodrich's on mine and probably will not change them until later this year, maybe.

Hang in there, partner! Trudge on!
yellowX
2001 2WD SE

Hey there, I still have my stock tires on. Can't see any sense in wasting them. I was just commenting on the fact thet they are not very good. They actually seem to do better in the mud then in the frozen stuff.

We have only had one 1" snow here this year but it wasn't anything to worry about. I have a piece of property w/cabin in Wv. The road down to it is usually muddy. Much to my surprize the stock treads did pretty well.
in this slop.
Personally I love my 4 banger. I drove the V6 model and was very disappointed with it. I think it's only like 30 hp difference. My wife and I both drive sticks so the 5-speed was our choice. As for the 2wd vs 4wd thing. As long as I can get up and down the road to my cabin and out of the parking lot at work I don't need 4wd. Had a 4wd Mitsy Montero for about 8 years. I drove the seats off that truck and used the 4wd maybe 2 dozen times in all those years. Just couldn't justify the extra dollars.

Good Luck gettin out of Co. And help me keep the 2wd section of this board open.

Ekh.

I'll help too!

I am always checking down here for fellow 2WDers....

Chris B
'02 Xterra XE
v6, 5 speed
pwr/ute packages
"molten lava"

meeeeee too!

Hey YellowX I live about 4 hours north of you. I'm actually comin down there the 22nd to visit my girlfriend who's going to college at St. Edwards University and a few friends who go to UT. Might go out with Chia and whoever else to the slabs that Saturday... riding along of course, but that's alright, heh.

[ 02-14-2002: Message edited by: PoorBoy ]

Hey Ekh!
Down here in Central TX, my local dealer only had V-6 Xterras on the lot. So I really had nothing else to compare. As for 4WD, the local dealers here do not seem to stock that many 4x4. This my opinion but it seems the ratio was like maybe one 4x4 for every four 2wd in the sale lot. So, you can imagine how greedy these salesmen got when I wanted a 4x4. Since there were not that many on the lot, they could treat them like gold!

After nearly 14000 mi. my 2WD is not too bad. I used my X for kayaking trips, scuba trips, mtn biking, and skiing. Very shortly, I will do my first camping trip using my Xterra in a month or two.

By the way, I am back home in TX. I left Colorado a few weeks ago in late January.

Keep me posted.
yellowX
:rolleyes:

Hi all,

I may be heading out to Big Bend around May! I'll be taking the truck, of course. I'm gonna load it up and go explorin'! Last time I went there I was in a Camry. Nice, but the 4X2 Xterra will be a whole bunch better! :p

I also need to decide on the best setup for towing a small 2-bike trailer for my street bike and maybe one other, if a pal comes along, on future trips.

I can't wait to go to the Grand Canyon, too.