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Old 05-21-2004, 06:32 PM   #1
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Nissan Armada owners

My husband and I are looking into the Nissan Armada for our replacement tow vehicle. Would really appreciate your feed back with the pro's & con's about this vehicle. Especially interested in long drive comfort level, fit & finish, and towing experience.

Best regards,
Gail
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Old 05-21-2004, 06:46 PM   #2
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4 Runner

Just bought a new 4 Runner V8 Limited and love it. With 320 torque I have no problem towing my 1986 Sovereign 25. It is smooth and quiet like a Cadillac and at 60 MPH I am doing about 2000 RPM. I tried the Armada and it was wonderful as well, but felt it was a little over kill. My 4 Runner will go to 60 MPH with the trailer in 20 seconds.
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Old 05-21-2004, 08:38 PM   #3
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Nissan

Gail,

I have the Nissan Titan pickup truck that is essentially similar to the Armada SUV from front seats on forward. They are built at the same plant. I have no complaints. I think you will find it well suited to tow your 25' Safari. It is a monster of an SUV similar in size to the Tahoe but will feel bigger when behind the wheel.
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Old 05-22-2004, 04:53 PM   #4
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Nissan Armada

In January I purchased a (4400#) 19' Bambi, planning to tow with a Pathfinder. The more I thought of towing the 19' in Arizona, up the mogollon rim in 110 degrees with the A/C on, I decided to upgrade to the Armada. I have towed the 19' 3-4 times and now with the Armada, in typical A/S tradition, have decided that a 19' is too small for my wife and I and two German Shepards. So we have a new 25' 6300# on order, delivery around early August.

We love the Armada. Be sure to get the optional tow package which is activated via a 'tow' button on the dash.. There is only one engine offered, 305 hp with 385 ft. pounds of torque.

The Armada tows our 4400# as if it is not back there. I couldn't find acceptable tow mirrows except the door bolt on (temporary) kind and they still wobble a bit. But not too bad with the very large std. equip. Armada mirrors.

The Armada rides rougher than my old Lexus 300ES, proving that the Armada is built on the Titan pickup platform. The transmission temp gauge is nice. The transmission cooler has its own fan and is more noisy than I'd like.

But best of all, all the interstate speeders now drive around me rather than try to 'push' me to another lane. I'm getting 'respect' now with the BIG Armada.

Couldn't get the Nissan dealer down much in $$$, but we feel we got a wonderful tow vehicle.

Best I can tell, I'm getting 10-13 mpg.
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Old 05-23-2004, 07:48 AM   #5
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Armada Next Tow Vehicle

I currently tow a 27' Safari--probably about 7000 lbs. as towed-- with an Expedition/Hensley. Works great,if good acceleration, firm braking even when the trailer brakes are set too light , low highway RPM, and easily getting up and down big hills are the right measures.


Nonetheless, I am upgrading to an Armada --more horsepower(50) , more torque, 4" longer wheelbase, and only 2" longer. It will fit nicely in my garage.
I am confident that it will tow a 30 to 31 ' trailer--Airstream or Holiday Rambler Alumascape. I plan on upgrading to one of these in a year or so.

I simply do not want an Excursion or a Surburban 2500--both too long. I do not feel I need a 3/4 ton vehicle--even with a heavier trailer. The Armada is rated at 9100 lbs. tow capacity, almost 1000 lbs. more than my Expedition. But tow capacity is not the best measure. Performance is what counts. My Expedition/Hensley work great--I have pulled the Safari about 27,000 miles.
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Old 05-23-2004, 06:25 PM   #6
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Thanks guys for the info.

Richard, your 4 Runner V8 is a great choice of vehicle, we are Toyota fans. Have owned Toyotas' since 1978.

Davydd, we were looking at the Nissan trucks today. Have to admit, they are very nice looking.

Neil, good luck with your larger A/S. We love the space in our new 25ft. Safari, but more space is always a plus. Glad you are getting the "respect" now with the BIG Armada. Looking forward to that myself.

Princer, good luck with your future purchase. We can compare notes when you make your purchase.

Our current tow vehicles are a full size Ford Van Clubwagon and a Ford F-150. We need more pulling power with a 6200# A/S, can hear the engine down shifting on the hills. Now we are soooooooo use to the full size van, we feel the Armada might meet our current and future needs. Might upgrade to the 30ft A/S in the future and want to have that extra towing availability. After hearing all your opinions, we are really leaning towards the Armada. Sounds like a great vehicle.

Cheerios,
Gail
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Old 05-23-2004, 08:14 PM   #7
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Richard: What does your Sovereign 25' weigh. I also have a V8 4Runner and love it. Super smooth. I'm looking for a 25' - thinking Safari 2000 or later. Is yours stable in tow behind the 4Runner? New 25' Classic might be too much for the 4Runner. Any thoughts?
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Old 05-24-2004, 07:36 AM   #8
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My Sovereign 25 1986 weighs 4900 dry and on a weigh scale loaded it came in at 5700 lbs. The new 4 Runner is rated for 7200 and it tows like a dream. I use a leveling hitch and anti-sway bar. On the steepest hills, and we have a lot of very steep hills in Nova Scotia, I sometimes have to slow to about 80 but normally I cannot even tell it is behind me. The 4 Runner Limited has an anti sway device built into the vehicle as well. The engine never seems to be stressed at all as at 60 MPH, I am running 2000 RPM. I find that it is very adequate with the 320 torque. My fuel consumption is also surprisingly over 20 miles per gallon without the trailer. The new 25' trailers are about the same weight as mine.
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Old 05-24-2004, 02:08 PM   #9
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Weight chart A/S (1954-2003)

Hookedonclassics,

This will help you out with your A/S purchase, to find a good weight match for your V8 4Runner. Good luck.

list of trailer weights

Cheers,
Gail
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Old 07-27-2004, 06:42 PM   #10
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Question should we buy the Armada?

Neil-
We are very close to buying an Armada. We got confused with the "tow pkg".
We were told we could get it on the LE, but that only refers to the hitch.

We were told on the SE off road, we could get the"big Tow pkg" with the big battery, extended mirrors, transmission cooler-

We have a 26' Overlander, dry weight 4500# but we like to load it up.

Which Armada do you have?

Thanks for any input.

Maryszka
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Old 07-27-2004, 06:51 PM   #11
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Question

Davyd-

We are looking at an Armada to tow our 26' Overlander. Do we need the
'big tow package" Do you have that on your truck?

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Old 07-27-2004, 07:22 PM   #12
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We have the standard 2 wheel drive Armada. Not the off-road and not the luxury edition. You MUST get the tow package. Call me for more info. The dealer may tell you that you can tow without the package but without, you can only tow maybe 6500#. And the tow package is not that expensive, maybe $500. Tow package is available on 2 wheel drive. I saw many of them in the lot here in Phoenix. You get a transmission cooler with a very noisy fan, 10,000 tow hitch, better rear end axle, self leveling rear end, and transmission temperature gauge. You can tell if an Armada is tow package is equiped because it will have a 'tow' button about 9 inches below the left side of the radio. Extended mirrors, as best I can tell, are not available for the Armada, only for the Titan. But the Titan mirrors might fit the Armada.

Trailer Life just recently reviewed the Armada and 3 other large tow vehicles.

Neil.
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Old 07-27-2004, 07:34 PM   #13
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Smile

Thanks so much Neil. The people in the showroom have no clue.

What is a good time to call you? We are on the East coast so it is 9:30, but
my husband is still working. He could call in about 45 minutes to an hour.
Would that be too late?



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Old 07-27-2004, 08:19 PM   #14
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Hi Maryska,

We have decided that the Nissan Armada will be our next tow vehicle. My husband test drove it, and just loved it . It may be a few more months before we purchase, need to sell our Ford F-150. We are interested in the LE 4x4. Are the dealers dealing? We were quoted $37,800 with the upgrade ($600) package in RI. Where are you located in New England?

Keep us updated!

Gail
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Old 07-28-2004, 10:56 AM   #15
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Maryszka

Our time in Phoenix is the same as PST. Call anytime 11am to 11pm your time (EDT I presume). If we don't answer, leave a message and we will return your call.
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Old 07-28-2004, 03:34 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Titu & Gail Ahmed
My husband and I are looking into the Nissan Armada for our replacement tow vehicle. Would really appreciate your feed back with the pro's & con's about this vehicle. Especially interested in long drive comfort level, fit & finish, and towing experience.

Best regards,
Gail
I have now pulled my 27 foot Safari about 4000 miles with my new Armada. Previously, I pulled with an Expedition. While the Expedtion/Hensley were great, the Armada is even better. I a thoroughly pleased with the vehicle. fit and finish is good and the power is great. I am convinced that I could pull much more wieght--easily a 31 foot Airstream.

I have the LE which has the tow package--including transmission coolre and temperature gauge. I did but the tow mirrors which, installed, ran about $500.

I did not want the SE or the Offroad--the latter has 17 inchtires, as opposed to the 18 inch that the LE has.

Get the LE , you will love it. Overall this vehicle is only 2 inchs longer than the Expedition, but has a 4 inch longer wheelbase--and much more power and torque.
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Old 07-28-2004, 08:12 PM   #17
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Tow Package

If the Armada tow package is anything like the Titan tow package it is well worth it. Here is what I got with the Titan.

Increased towing capacity (considerable - I think about 7600 lbs to 9400)
Vehicle Dynamic Control - VDC
Lower final gear ratio
Heavy duty battery
Extendable outside mirrors
Auto transmission temperature gauge on dash
Class IV receiver hitch
7 pin wiring harness (BTW the same pin setup as Chevy)
Trailer brake controller pre-wiring under the dash

That seems to be a lot. The MSRP on the Titan was $600 add. I love the giant mirrors with the separate wide angle on the bottom that picks up the blind spot. They telescope out a few inches for towing.
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Old 07-29-2004, 07:31 PM   #18
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Were the extendable outside mirrors extra $$$?.

They were not included in my Armada Tow package. Everything else you mention was included.

Thanks,
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Old 07-29-2004, 08:21 PM   #19
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Mirrors were included

Quote:
Originally Posted by neil.ervin
Were the extendable outside mirrors extra $$$?.

They were not included in my Armada Tow package. Everything else you mention was included.

Thanks,
The extendable mirrors were included in the Titan Big Tow package.
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Old 07-31-2004, 09:48 AM   #20
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we got it!

Thanks everybody! We are picking up our Armada LE today, and are very excited. Will let you know later towing experience!

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