QX56 - Anyone here owned one?

[Evan78]

Hi All,

I'd love to hear from anyone with ownership experience with both the CX9 and QX56.

I'm familiar with all the published information such as power, towing, dimensions, etc and have test driven both. Both have their strengths, but I'd love to hear from anyone that's owned both on what aspects of either have made the biggest impression on you, positive or negative.

They'll both do what we need, but I guess the real question is should we spend the extra money on a QX56. We're looking at 2008 models of both vehicles. The QX will be a bit more expensive to purchase, eat more gas, and probably be more expensive to operate in general due having 2 extra cylinders and at least 1000 extra pounds.

Thanks,
Evan

 

[table5511]

Just fyi, not sure about the present model, but the 08' version is body-over-frame (full frame) and CX-9 is integrated unibody construction. It also not just eats more gas, but eats premium unleaded as well.

 

[Evan78]

Thanks. The fuel consumption is my biggest issue with the QX, but it looks like we're going to give it a shot and hope we don't regret it later.

All QX's are body on frame. 2004-2010 shared design with the Titan and Armada. 2011 to present is based on the Patrol.

 

[jk240sx]

Get service records. As a Titan owner, there are plenty of shared issues, mostly the rear axle seals and front suspension premature wear. Also, the engine exhaust manifolds tend to crack, even after the redesign mid '08.

 

[Evan78]

Get service records. As a Titan owner, there are plenty of shared issues, mostly the rear axle seals and front suspension premature wear. Also, the engine exhaust manifolds tend to crack, even after the redesign mid '08.

I thought the manifold issue was entirely or primarily limited to 2004-05, but admittedly, I didn't look into it much. Is it at least less common in say 06+?

What wears prematurely in the front suspension? Dampers, bushings, or what?

Thanks for the tips.

 

[jk240sx]

Rear Axle: They shipped from supplier,Dana with a plug where the axle breather vent goes. During final assembly at Nissan, the plug is supposed to be removed and breather installed. Many shipped without breather causing axle seals and/or pinion seal to fail. Even with the breather installed, it is such a bad design it fails, agian blowing out the seals. Also, the breather is installed directly on the axle unlike the front axle breather which is installed remotely and higher than the axle. So if you drive in water that is higher than the rear axle, you can get water inside the axle causing damage and/or failure. Not a cheap repair. Nissan replaced many axles under warranty. Google it.

Front end: Half shafts are undersized, ie, spline count. They can shear under loads at or above capacity when in 4wd. Also front axles seals tend to fail around 50-80K miles depending on how hard the vehicle is used. Front sway bar bushings and endlinks are cheap and wear quickly. This causes low speed clunks/noise and makes the front feel sloppy in corners. Front spring perch bushings harden and also cause clunks.

Exhaust Manifolds: from 04-mid 08 the manifolds cracked due to the weight on them. Mid 08 they were redesigned with some improvement using gussets in the casting to add strength. They are better, but they too eventually may crack. Again, Nissan replaced many under warranty. The manifolds run about $600. each from the dealer not including labor.

 

[Evan78]

Wow, great info. I wonder if the rear axle breather can be relocated at a higher location. I'll have to do some searching to see how people address it.

Would you recommend any particular forum or other site for good info? I'm not thrilled with the relevant forums I've discovered so far.

 

[jk240sx]

here's the link i used with part #'s and procedure. Use the Toyota part # 90404-51026 union, not the Nissan one since it's shorter and hard to get a hose clamp under the bulge on the union. real simple to do.

http://www.frontyspot.com/fronty/showthread.php?tid=1696&rndtime=13785199137150389

The link is for a Frontier but they use the same rear axle. This will locate the vent to behind the right rear tail light.

I use www.titantalk.com for most stuff. the classified section is good, I've bought a few things there with great result. A good group of people.

 

[SPG1]

First time buyer of Mazda. Under 1k on the vehicle and so far we really like it so much more than QX

Had a 2006 QX56 fully loaded with 88k. Big truck that drove like a truck and was bad mileage and burns premium (12-13mpg). Hard to get in and out of since it was high and third row was was hard to get into. Brake issues since the truck weighed so much (3 sets) Power tailgate was horrible and broke and would open on its own if you did not lock the truck. Front end problems were observed also as stated by jk240sx, noises and grinding etc....that was reason for new vehicle.

I test drove the 2014 QX80 and its the same truck just more bells and whistles but same old.... 2014 MDX and that was great but no inventory that was available for immediate purchase last month.....

We haul a sailboat trailer with our CX9 and no issues and real smooth ride. Sound system is better too Bose vs Bose in the Mazda +1