The Xterra has received the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA's) highest rating – 5 stars – for side-impact crash safety.¹

Precise steering allowed the Xterra to hunt back and forth through boulders like a bloodhound on the scent, and when you needed to goose this baby up ascents, it leapt like a sports car.

The Xterra impressed me as the type of vehicle a sport utility is supposed to be; rugged, truck-like, off-road capable (and I mean really off-road), and with enough power to make its on-road travel less of a bother.