FINALLY!! After all is said and done, my biggest complaint lies within this thread...one that I have been UNsuccessfully trying to plea my sanity to both my husband and boyfriend (ya gotta have more than one theory here...that's beside the point).
A thread that screams loud and clear, nearly everything that I have been saying over & over, apparantly falling on deaf ears... until NOW!
Thank you for VALIDATING and putting into words precisely my complaint and looming huge concern.
Most of you state my exact sentiments and ongoing experience. My lack of confidence in the steering (column/accuracy/wear down etc.) issues, as far as being able to pinpoint in descriptive lingo and getting directly to the UNSETTLING possibilities are addressed finally. I am so thankful for being supported, in theory here. This thread managed to get through to my boyfriend tonight, by stating almost verbatem my biggest frustration in knowing what I perceive to be a problem and the complaints I have said over and over in the last month or so are being challenged.
I have checked in religiously on this site, going from alignment, rotating tires, shock issues, to leaf springs and/or lift mods and possible weakening of parts, etc. to finally this. Excuse my jubilation here, it's just extremely hard to get a man to take me serious when he drives my truck and says everything is fine!
After my hooping and hollaring and obviously celebrating in a sense the confindence empowering me by the backup here....I taunted him for a reaction, with a 'bring it on now baby attitude'...only for him to say...Well, if this is the case, and the steering is what is really the culprit and the core of my problems and other ailments stem from this, than that's #%@**%&$ up... and I should just unload it now!
He also added that the steering is one of the 'foundation basics' and are a huge factor in determining the quality of the make of the truck.. and if that's all out of wack and needing replaced etc., then the truck's quality is in serious question, and in the least, speculative of questionable manufacturing with the quality in design and detail of OUR "X" should be of serious concern....
SO...I put this out there for some backup here....I love OUR Xterra! Any idea if the 2003-2004 models are having this obviously widely shared and apparantly widely occurring problem?
Help me out here, is replacing the steering a bigger issue than just the damage we feel financially (if not covered under warranty which sounds like it may be)...but any hint of this being more than what's seems easy enough on the surface to replace? is this an area of greater concern? down the road? in the long run?