1,42,500 km update on my 2006 Nissan X-Trail

I thought about whether I should spend this much on an older vehicle or should I sell it and buy a relatively newer car.

BHPian haneeshN recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Service Update 1,42,500 km:

Car wasn't used much due to the lockdown. Started using it after the first wave lockdown and went on a trip to Goa. It performed well without issues. The rear suspension was bottoming out on bad roads and I decided to change the suspensions along with all bushings.

Got the car checked by the mech, he suggested changing it after 10k more km but I insisted to get it done sooner as the cost is going to be the same. The following was planned for this major service:

• Complete suspension overhaul including bushes and rods.
• General oil service.
• AC gas refill.
• EGR valve cleaning.
• Radiator flush and coolant change.
• Intercooler service (cleaning & fixing the minor leak).

Parts procured:

• Tokico front and rear shocks - 27000.
• All bushings - 6550.
• Front link set - 4000.
• Rear link set - 3500.
• Tie rod end - 4500.
• Front and rear buffer kit - 8000.
• Front-wheel bearing - 5500.
• Diesel filter - 1400.
• Air filter - 1300.
• Cabin air filter - 1600.
• Compressor belt - 1051.
• Alternator belt - 1051.
• Engine, transfer case, gearbox & differential oil and coolant - approx. 8600.

All the suspension parts & oils are sourced locally, the bushings are bought from psbushings.co.uk as they were too expensive here and got much better polyurethane bushes for a better price from this site.

Sourcing the parts took around a month and the car was handed over to the garage with all the parts. Everything was done in five days. I didn't rush them as I wanted them to do the work properly. The ride height increased close to 1.5 inches after the suspension change, confirming the old ones were nearing their end. Car is much smoother now and ready to go without major expense for at least 50k more km.

I thought about whether I should spend this much on an older vehicle or should I sell it and buy a relatively newer car. However, finding a replacement for this would be very difficult unless I can spend at least 20 lakhs as none of the cars below this price point has the features and space of this car. So, decided to do this major service and stick with this car as long as I am legally allowed to use it.

The total expense including labour was about Rs. 81,500. The car has done over 5,000 kms since the service and will be due for the regular service soon. It will be a much cheaper service (around Rs. 6,000) and am looking forward to covering the 1,50,000 km milestone soon.

I'll let the pictures do the talking now.

Waiting at the garage for the work to start:

Shoes removed:

Oil sediments in the engine below the intercooler:

Engine bay after cleaning:

New struts in place:

New rods too:

Cosmetic changes:

I wanted to make some minor cosmetic changes in order to give the car a new look. Decided to paint the rims in matt black and handed them over to the painter.

Freshly painted alloy wheel:

In addition, applied gloss carbon fiber vinyl to the center fascia of the dashboard. This was a DIY. Ordered the vinyl from Amazon.

Made a stencil of the fascia to help with cutting the wrap:

WIP:

Gave it a full wash straight from the garage:

This how an almost 15 year old car looks:

That is it for now. The car still goes very strong and this will be a keeper. The RC validity expires by March 2022 and I'll get the FC done early next year. Hope there won't be any blanket ban on old diesel vehicles in the near future.

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