Hi Everyone, this is another part on an issue I had previously posted about. At the time of my previous posting at the beginning of this summer, the consensus from the community was to start looking into purchasing a new vehicle. I was able to find a newer used Toyota Highlander that has been running well. My 2002 Xterra had a P0301 code that my mechanic could not find the issue for after two repeated attempts. It has been running fine since the last time it gave me the active misfire in May. but in the last couple weeks it was having a difficult time starting and after using a trickle charger and a battery tester, the batter is reading dead. I also went to a local parts store and they also said the alternator is bad. On top of that, I’m fairly certain it eats a little oil although now that I’m not driving it as much I’m not noticing as big of a drop in the oil. I’m not a normal DIYer so I’m wondering if the car is worth fixing at my mechanic for the range of $650-$1,000 for the alternator and battery? Or with all the things that are wrong with it, if I should just sell it for 100-200$ for junk. My rationale for keeping it to this point is that it ran relatively fine up until this point, as a local/in-town only car with virtually everything working fine. Also, I may need to put another 6-800$ in one of my new Toyotas for used car fluid changes. I appreciate everyone’s opinion and fortunately I have replaced my two older cars this summer. I’m just wondering if it would be worth it at this point to keep it around as a third car for my wife and family. Thank you so much!
Those charging system tests are unreliable, especially when testing the alternator while using a failed battery. Replace the battery first.
A SUV with a dead battery for $100; sounds like a good deal. The auto salvage yards in my area resell vehicles that need minimal repairs.
Okay, thank you for the insight, Nevada_545. Do you think my mechanic could give me a more reliable second opinion if the battery is confirmed failed? I think he is pretty honest and just curious if it’s better than even putting in $150 to find out the battery is bad. The other overarching issue with the Xterra is that there is the P0301 engine misfire code but at this rate it hasn’t acted up since May and then 6 months before that if it runs decently I’m wondering if its better as a backup car for my others in case I have to take my other cars to the shop. I just was thinking about building a backup layer to my vehicle fleet, lol. Thank you for the insight, I greatly appreciate it.
Replace the battery before testing the alternator. If the alternator had failed, the battery would discharge as you drive, the engine would stall after 30 to 45 minutes with a completely discharged battery.
Many different types of battery chargers can be described as a “trickle charger”.
If this vehicle has been unused for several months, recharge the battery using a 10 amp battery charger for 8 to 12 hours. If you are using a 1.5 amp charger, connect it for at least 2 weeks.
A misfire and check engine light that occurs once every 6 months in a nuisance. Since this hasn’t developed into a more consistent problem, it is probably not worth repairing.
Let the Xterra go. I’m surprised you didn’t get rid of it when you got the Toyota.
The vehicle is 25 years old, and it’s proving unreliable. There’s no point in keeping an unreliable vehicle around for a “backup” if you can’t rely on it.
Sorry to be harsh, but it seems to me you’re making this a lot harder than it needs to be. Good luck.