I know a lot of people are not so sure about the new 2005 Xterras looks so I did a side by side comparison of a pic off nissan's website and a pic I took of my car with my digital camera.

Which do you prefer? 2004 or 2005? Forget about the better engine...I'm just talking about appearance.

Its getting a little boxy for my taste. Almost like they were incorperating the brinks truck look evil h2's...
Continuing the straight lines over the wheel trim was a bad call, comparitivly, same goes with the rear door, so boring, so... hummer.
I should make it known that I dispise the hummer because they are nothing more than public wealth icons, the few i see around here are always buffed to a mirror shine, and at either wal-mart or the bank. To me nothing says "im a prick" more than the h2, no offense to those non-prick h2 owners :rolleyes:
Definatly the 00-04 for me

Yah, the 00-04 have more of a sporty/rugged look.
Look at the roof rack and step rails.

What I always liked about the Xterra was it's unique looks. They can be spotted from a mile away, whether from the side, front or rear. It's amazing how a few details can have such an adverse effect on that unique quality.

My initial opinion: The overall look of the '05 is basically the same. However, who ever squared the rear windows and straightened the fore/aft fenders, which ultimately had to be compensated with with larger bumpers, should be horse whipped.

Granted, pictures can be deceiving. I'm going to need to see one on the road, or more likely one in my driveway, before I can really form an opinion about the looks. I'm still getting one.

Are the angles of approach less on the '05?

They definitely seem to be. Ground clearance 'looks' less as well, although the pictures are not taken on exactly the same level.

The '05 to me looks less rugged, nimble and able to avoid dammage on the trail. The bigger, more pronounced panels look more suceptable to being dinged up. However, I've only seen them in pictures and commercials so I'm no authority at this point.

I'll stick to the "Classic" Look...more of a Rugged look, and let's face it...all of us are used to the Design of the '00-'04 Xterra's...despite the looks though...the '05 is way better in all aspects of the "Classic" Xterra's...

The new one looks pretty sweet..The old one was sweet....Xterra is sweet in general. I think once their out on the roads we will like them better. I wish your image came out though so I could see the comparasion. I do, however, think the old one was a little more oringinal looking. The newer one does seem to take styling cues from current models on the road.

I'm mixed on the issue. At some angles, the '05 looks pretty darn good. Others, it looks stubby (the above picture is a good example). I've also noticed that the '05 looks better in darker colors, probably because it takes attention away from the massive amounts of dark plastic.

Pretty much the opposite for the '00 to '04's. A nice Solor Yellow or Aztec Red (ah, how I miss that color) classic X is da bomb.

I've finally noticed what is missing on the '05. It's a subtle thing, but it makes the truck look taller in the body and less stylistic. The classic X's have another body line, or crease if you will, just below the window level that joins the two fender bulges and sorta integrates them better.

I just fixed it! You should be able to see the comparison now in the original post!

I am now using "imageshack.us" to supply the images. I will never use "imagehosting.us" ever again.

Anyone know why we can't post pics directly to this message board? Seems like a hassle to use a third party host.

At least the 05 doesn't have the round wannabee jeep headlights

I still thing the original design is the best...

Flame away....

The weather looks DAMN nice where you live! haha

They both still look alike. The new one still has a lot of the same look of the old, which is nice since our older ones won't look totally outdated. They are both really sweet! That is a great shot of your xterra...What size wheels do you have on your xterra? The ones in the stock photo look really big, but it could just be the way the pic was taken.

I have to admit I like the four spoke wheels better then the 6 on the stock photo...

It's San Diego baby!
They are the 16" rims. Part of the "world championship package" for the XE-V6.

The squared rear doors make me think Honda Element... but it's not too bad. I like my '00, though.

GRRRRRR!!!!!! I love the jeep style round headlights!

Do you think Jeep's we're the first vehicle to ever use round headlights? I'm like you though I would much rather have some "ol yellers" instead of my roundys. :rolleyes:

i agree, i hate the back, from the side it looks "stubby" like someone else stated, but the front end, from an angle looks pretty good, but the first thing that came to my head when i noticed they squared out the back doors...ELEMENT!...and i hear alot of people like that rear step, i think its ok but i usually just stand on my tire, one thing i really like about the exterior is that new basket, totally enclosed, i think thats pretty neat

I prefer the current styling. The '05 isn't so bad in profile from the rear door forward, but that boxy-assed rear end and square rear side windows really take away from the "Xterra" look. My other dislikes about the '05 are:

1. Gigantic fender flares
2. Gigantic rear hatch bulge (takes up nearly half the tailgate - what, is the '05 first aid kit big enough to supply a MASH unit?)
3. hatch badge placement

That's all relatively minor stuff, and I still need to see one in person though before making up my mind. Can't do that with pics alone.

Round lights were the staple of cars in the old days...i really love the round lights!

Do they make a cover to put on the older baskets that lock down? If not then maybe I should work on one...who wants to buy one? I give you all a discount

I like the old style better. But than again it has been out a number of years and we are all use to it.

They look way better in person than in pics, it just takes some getting use to because we are so familiar with the "Classic".

I am pretty much sold on the 2005, I will definietly miss my 2001 but the 05 resolves the few issues I had with my 01, like rear windows go all the way down, wider entry into rear passenger seats, more power, more comfortable seating more head room in front seats. things i don't like about the 05 but can live with are the new rims and the roof basket, don't get me wrong the lockable roof basket is a great idea but thy minimized the depth from 6 inches to about 3 inches. Once you see the roof basket you can see the difference, with the lid on you are really limited on what you can put in there. My solution will be to buy the extension for my loadwarrior. The last thing I didn't like was the rear bumper steps but they have grown on me, they feel really strong I weigh 230 lbs and they felt like the could carry my weight.

hmmm the new one does look considerable bigger then the old one...

If you have an 04 XE then they are the same as yours...

Nobody cares what you think! :p

Bonedog, do you have a picture of the back of your xterra. I wanted to check out your taillight guards, are those factory ones or did you get yours somewhere different?