This is another guy with a 2011 Pro-4x with the 6spd. I've had a lot of vehicles in my past (83 Toyota 4x4, 89 Hardbody Ext Cab 4x4, 87 Trooper 4x4, 97 Land Cruiser 4x4 Anniv. Edition, 2004 Xterra 4x4, etc). The last one before the current Xterra was the 2004 which I bought used. In some ways it was a far superior vehicle from a complexity standpoint. Bulletproof drivetrain. That V6 and that H233b were great. Cheap "budget lift" by cranking the torsion bars, etc. However, that motor was really low on power, poor on mileage, and there were limited aftermarket parts available for it. It took me a lot of great places, but was certainly no crawler, and was definitely more grand tourer for the back country, which is what EP is really about in some ways. Other downsides were the rear seats didn't lay flat, plastics faded, and it was just outclassed by the current generation that came after it from Toyota, Nissan, and Jeep. I waited a number of years and eventually scored a screaming deal on the new Pro-4x. So far I am around 34k miles with a solid mix of on and offroad. This is my take:
Suspension is terribly soft in the rear. Really bad. You will literally bounce off the stock bump stops going over speeds bumps in the home depot parking lot. I quickly replaced those with timbrens. While that helped, it needs stiffer leafs even unloaded. The stock Bilsteins are nothing to write home about. I think they are poorly valved for the truck. I've ran Bilstein for years on sports cars and have had nothing but fantastic experiences with them. Not so on the X. The stock tires are like any OE tire in this class. Toyota is no better here. The Rugged Trails are garbage. I literally replaced the tires the day after purchasing the vehicle. America's Tire gave me a $200 credit for them. Other than that the vehicle has treated me well. The motor is a gem, the transmission is a decent 6 speed. The clutch while not great has held up, although I have a persistant squeak. The locker gets used a fair amount out on my farm and works well. The ABLS works fantastically well. The rear seats lay flat and I can store a fair amount, haul things like my kayaks on the rack, and do it for a reasonable amount of change compared to its peers.
All in all, it tows a fair amount, looks conservatively good, and is a solid choice. The axles are weaker than the 1st gen and the choice to use a hybrid D44 and aluminum housings compared to the H233b/C200 combo in the previous gen is beyond me. Its not like it is a standard D44 and was wide open to the aftermarket from the get go. Instead it had Nissan's special sauce.
I paid 26,800 with a fair amount of goodies including tow package, rear cargo cover, and factory rubber floor mats. I also bought it at the end of that model year. I felt like I was getting good bang for the buck. That being said, I wish it was a Jeep Rubicon. Not because the Rubicon suits my needs any better (it doesn't), has a broader aftermarket (it does), but simply because I love how they look and perform out of the gate. However, I wasn't willing to pay their insane prices and the build quality really was disappointing.
If you are looking for a solid overlander for a family with out of the gate financing and warranty coverage, do yourselves a favor and get the Pro-4x. If you are planning on turning this into a crawler or something to tackle more extreme trails. Save yourself some dollars and simply buy yourself a Jeep. If you must have an X, buy an S model and build it up. For me, the Pro-4x made the most sense and was a good fit for the kind of things I do.
