• By Mike Spinelli
    Oct 3, 2005 9:57 AM 792
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    #2006

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    read more: #jalopnik, #2006, #nissan, #reviews, #suv, #japan, #pathfinder, #soccermoms, #workingstiffs

    Jalopnik Reviews: 2006 Nissan Pathfinder SE, Part 3

    Why you should buy this car: The Pathfinder is an SUV from the old school: tough, reliable and capable. In SE guise, the Tennessee-built truck isn t afraid to bash some boulders and plug some mud. The Pathfinder s exemplary 6000lbs. towing capacity means one boat can pull the other. Surprisingly, the heavyweight, V6-engined SUV is faster than a speeding bullet. OK a bowling ball (imparting that exact same sense of something very heavy going very quickly). But the rest of the accommodation is spacious and inviting. And the price is right — especially in today s buyer s market.

    Why you shouldn t buy this car: If you re not an off-roading, boat-towing kinda guy; if you don t live somewhere where it s a good idea to keep emergency space blankets in the glove box; it s time to face facts. Fifteen mpg ain t enough. Not for a family car that schleps five people (the Pathfinder s tippy-up way back seats are best suited to Oompah Loompas). If you re a suburban sophisticate or city slicker who simply must have an SUV, the new (though equally piggy) Ford Explorer V8 is the Ritz to the Pathfinder s Motel 6.

    Suitability Parameters
    · Speed Merchants: No
    · Fashion Victims: No
    · Treehuggers: No
    · Mack Daddies: No
    · Tuner Crowd: No
    · Hairdressers: No
    · Penny Pinchers: No
    · Euro Snobs: No
    · Working Stiffs: Yes
    · Technogeeks: No
    · Poseurs: No
    · Soccer Moms: Yes
    · Nascar Dads: No
    · Golfing Grandparents: No

    Vitals
    · Manufacturer: Nissan
    · Model tested: Pathfinder SE
    · Model year: 2006
    · Price as Tested: $33,240
    · Engine type: 4.0-liter DOHC 24-valve V6
    · Horsepower: 270hp @ 5600 rpm
    · Torque: 291ft-lb @ 4000 rpm
    · Redline: TBA
    · Wheels and Tires: P265/70R16 BFGoodrich Long Trail OWL tires
    · Drive type: four-wheel-drive
    · 0 - 60: 8.4 seconds
    · 1/4 mile: you d be lucky
    · Top speed: don t ask, don t tell
    · Fuel economy city/highway: 15/21
    · NHTSA crash test rating front/side/rollover: 4/5/3

    [by Robert Farago]

    Related:
    Jalopnik Reviews: 2006 Nissan Pathfinder SE, Part 1, Part 2 [internal]


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