Taylor Swift
Member
Not sure if this will get flagged or removed since I don't have 50 posts -- I'm a longtime lurker, definitely not a business. This is my personal vehicle which I have sadly decided to sell to a dreamer and adventurer who will go places and do epic things.
The truck's name is El Chapo. Currently my daily driver in Greenville, South Carolina.
Picture album here: https://1drv.ms/f/s!AqA1KFZq-BflpycNnuV91ylV1sPm?e=8NMsb1
I bought it used in 2019 with 123k miles, and it has 190k now. When I bought the truck, it had been a bit neglected and I had to do some work to get it to where I wanted it to be. I'm a yacht captain and I refit and outfit vessels for expeditions on a regular basis. So that's what I did for this truck, for its intended purpose of off grid western hunting excursions. I lived and adventured out of it for 3 months in 2021, hunting, camping and exploring out west (I lived in South Florida at the time). My intention was to never sell the truck and to keep and maintain as a ************ adventure vehicle for 2. It is certainly every bit of that. Pretty much anything I would expect to go wrong has been fixed or replaced, mostly pre-emptively. I would drive this thing anywhere.
My first question when looking at cars is "What's the ACTUAL condition" and "How am I gonna get screwed"... So, let's start with the known issues, of which there aren't many:
2002 Nissan Frontier - 4x4 CC LB (6') - SE trim model (highest level at the time)
190k miles, still my daily driver so that number will slightly go up
Transmission rebuilt at 165k
Cooper Discoverer AT3 265/75/R16 replaced in 2022 (have maybe 10k miles on them, in great condition)
Cruise Control
Everything works.
Paint in excellent shape.
Modifications:
The truck's name is El Chapo. Currently my daily driver in Greenville, South Carolina.
Picture album here: https://1drv.ms/f/s!AqA1KFZq-BflpycNnuV91ylV1sPm?e=8NMsb1
I bought it used in 2019 with 123k miles, and it has 190k now. When I bought the truck, it had been a bit neglected and I had to do some work to get it to where I wanted it to be. I'm a yacht captain and I refit and outfit vessels for expeditions on a regular basis. So that's what I did for this truck, for its intended purpose of off grid western hunting excursions. I lived and adventured out of it for 3 months in 2021, hunting, camping and exploring out west (I lived in South Florida at the time). My intention was to never sell the truck and to keep and maintain as a ************ adventure vehicle for 2. It is certainly every bit of that. Pretty much anything I would expect to go wrong has been fixed or replaced, mostly pre-emptively. I would drive this thing anywhere.
My first question when looking at cars is "What's the ACTUAL condition" and "How am I gonna get screwed"... So, let's start with the known issues, of which there aren't many:
- This truck is underpowered, it's heavy, it's slow, and it guzzles gas at about 13 mpg average doing 75 on the highway. That's a 1st gen Frontier for ya.
- It's loud due to aftermarket exhaust, which also causes an exhaust temp Check Engine Light due to the exhaust headers; I won't clear the code, you can check it yourself. This mod is well documented on ClubFrontier.org. Makes the truck run better and will keep you from starting a brush fire.
- The suspension is stiff when it's not loaded with gear (but handles a full load perfectly which was the intention)
- Also, the engine oil pan leaks, and between that and whatever the engine burns, I add a quart around 1500 miles and that gets me to the 3000 mile change mark. It takes about 3.5 quarts of oil per change. It is NOT the front seal, rear main seal, or cam seals. Those have all been replaced.
- The truck lived in Virginia before I bought it and had a little bit of frame rust in a couple spots, I tackled the whole thing and took any rusty spots to bare metal, Ospho'd everything and painted it with undercoating paint. Have monitored since and there are no major rust spots of any kind.
- Lastly, the synchro on the 4wd is not working properly. What this means for you is that when you shift between 4H and 4L, you have to shut the engine off so as to not grind gears. You can shift with engine on in an emergency situation though. I've rarely had to use 4L, but that's that. Transmission shop forgot to do it when they rebuilt tranny at 165k.
- Oh, and there are some minor dents on both sides from squeezing through brush and whatnot. It's an off road truck. Narrow enough to wheel up an ATV trail, but a long ass wheel base = the occassional scrape when you're out there getting after it.
2002 Nissan Frontier - 4x4 CC LB (6') - SE trim model (highest level at the time)
190k miles, still my daily driver so that number will slightly go up
Transmission rebuilt at 165k
Cooper Discoverer AT3 265/75/R16 replaced in 2022 (have maybe 10k miles on them, in great condition)
Cruise Control
Everything works.
Paint in excellent shape.
Modifications:
- Automotive Customizers 3" suspension lift
- Heavy duty Old Man Emu leaf spring pack
- heavy duty articulator shackles (allows for long downtravel)
- heavy duty torsion bars, tie rods, front end components in general
- ball joints and tie rod ends greasable (all new or 2 years old)
- Steering stabilizer
- Bilstein shocks
- ARB front bumper with Mile Marker 10,000 lb winch in working order with light use and regular exercise/maintenance
- exhaust headers and Magnaflow muffler, all cats removed for better performance and so as to not start a brush fire
- Backseat delete with platform and fabricated brackets mated to existing seat holes in case you ever wanted to put a backseat in (backseat not included)... Seatbelts mounted and useable if you had kids for a short ride
- ARE camper shell topper with
- traction board mounts on drivers side and
- mounts for two (2) 3 gal Rotopax fuel cans on passenger side (rotopax not included... turns out you can't leave them mounted or the gas will expand and crack the cans)
- 5% blacked out windows for security
- Yakima roof rack on adjustable track with round steel bars
- Yakima Skybox 21 Carbonite
- heavy duty custom bed drawer platform on low friction sliders with storage cubbies
- 2021 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
- 200 watts of solar
- Cascadia 4x4 Xterra 90W hood panel (high heat and impact resistance)
- 110 W polycrystalline rigid solar panel over cab
- Wired in parallel and run through engine firewall to backseat battery
- Goal Zero Yeti 1000 battery/inverter with dual charger that allows for simultaneous 10A vehicle charge AND solar (not really necessary so I leave it charging just with solar so I can have a free 12V for the seat heater... keep scrolling for that)
- Solar and truck charging is more than enough to power all my rechargeable lights, laptop, camera gear, and FRIDGE
- 200 watts of solar
- Dometic 45qt CFX Fridge/Freezer (single zone with divider trays)
- Windows tinted... front with clear UV block, sides with... I forget. It works (and has the warranty papers in truck)
- New headlights with LED bulbs... not super bright tbh but it looks clean... See Projects To Do (scroll down)
- Wet Okole grey neoprene seat covers...
- Driver's seat has lumbar support (air bladder with squeeze ball) and a heater that I keep plugged into a 12V socket (SUPER warm)
- I also got the driver's seat restuffed when I bought it, super firm and comfy
- Both seats have pockets in between legs... drivers side is the deep "Gun Pocket" where I can confirm you can keep a full size pistol in 1 side and a spare mag in holster on other side)
- Tow hitch with wire harness
- Husky deep front seat floor mat replacements
- rubber floor mat replacement for backseat
- Transmission rebuilt at 165k by Gold Coast Transmissions in Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Brakes
- New drum brakes and calipers (2019)
- Stainless brake lines
- A/C completely new 2023
- 2022 driveshaft U-joints replaced
- spark plugs 2019
- injectors 2019
- radiator 2019
- water pump/t-stat 2022
- belts and hoses 2022
- PCV valve 2019
- Battery 2023
- Distributor 2019
- Oil changed every 3k miles with full synthetic Mobil 1 High Mileage
- AC completely replaced 1 year ago
- Diff fluid changed 2019 (limited slip stock differential)
- Amazon/Chinese 12v air compressor (it's ******** but gets the job done when you need to air up)
- Tent system (tarp with stakes, boat hook for center pole... it works great and has withstood wind storms and 3" of snow)
- Spare New Distributor
- 1" ball joint spacers if you want to play with leveling front end (I decided against it)
- snow chains for all 4 tires
- ARB tire plug kit
- 2 heavy duty pulleys for recovery
- Snatch strap
- 7 gallon water jug that fits behind passenger seat
- Induction charging phone mount
- bluetooth audio
- Carpet topper ceiling
- Add light bar/fog lights/brighten headlight set up in general
- Remove rubber on backseat platform and replace or paint
