I owned a 2 liter fuel injected 1988 4X4 model for 13 years until 2003 ! In the end she began losing power and stopping, especially on hills and the rear shock absorber top attachments were rusting and needed replacing (very stringent MOT in Sweden). There was nobody here who could / would put her right at a reasonable price. I couldn't trust my local Nissan agent, he'd botched a simple repair job (lifted the car directly on the sills and crushed both of them!) Unfortunately nearly everything 'normal' on the vehicle (McPhersons, rear shocks) was unique, cost a fortune and was difficult to come by ! I paid £500 (in the mid-90's) to have a pair of rear shock absorbers fitted ! I was in the UK later the same summer - one of the quick-fit companies offered to fit both for £100 ! I loved it - the most sensible vehicle I've ever owned ! Trips to Finland wintertime, towing our (small) caravan in the summer time - no problems - ever ! Getting elderly relatives in and out of the rear seat was so easy and the driving position high and comfortable. The luggage space was very generous and some simple carpentry made accessing the area under the false floor very simple - I had loads of 'stuff' (tools) under there ! I would love to buy a good condition LHD automatic version with AC today. (that model was never sold in Sweden) I 'talked' to someone on the internet several years ago about him refurbishing her in the UK during the summer hols. and he mentioned starting a Nissan Prairie owners club - I think it's the same guy who's suggesting the 'trick' for removing the hand brake assembly ... Keep in touch with any ideas and suggestions ... Regards, Martin Bronsdon, Gothenburg, Sweden
Easy to get in and out of. Good luggage capacity. Excellent all round visibility. Reliable. Selectable 2 / 4 wheel drive. Twin sparking plugs.
Price & availability of parts. Rare vehicle, Nissan workshops not familier with it.
Reviewing a 1988 model.
4X4 fuel injected 2 liter
Owned for more than 5 years.
i own a 1988 nissan prairie had it 3 yrs approx when i first got it the distributor base plate was loose which made the timing flutter causing it to be slow going up hills and also made it run rough when it was cold damp wether causing it to stall. once that was done this improved the car quite a bit i find the car runs best in summer in winter and especialy in wet cold wehter the distributor cap gets condensation causing itto stutter. this car has took me and my family around quite a bit of the uk without any problems. The only things that a re niggling and mabe some other prairie owners may be able to help is when opening the window while driving especially after going up[ gradients there is petrol fumes wafting in the car the only way to cure it is shutting the window and also pinking at times on acceleration otherwise a great car. Also if there is anyone who has got a prairie going back as far as 1982 to 1984 i would be very interested to hear from them .
Reviewing a 1988 model.
1.8 sgl
Owned for 3 years.
Hi. Bought mine for £475 last march with full mot and 2 months tax WHAT A BARGIN! its brilliant! apart from 1 dodgy door lock and a broken seat no problems. I can recommend the prairie to anybody Mick Middleton
I have had a 87 1.8 prairie for past 5 years, its an axcellent all rounder. It can move when you put your foot down but beware of handling, although its not too bad. I have had no major problems, it was a nice clean car when i got it with 112'000 miles its now on 160 something. paid £250 and worth every penny. Certain parts are difficult(body), but overall most nissan parts will do.
prone to rust so beware of loads of weld, check underneath and sills. Exposed petrol pipe by wheel arche also corrodes easy and is a bugger to replace. Some people want to charge the world for a prairie, but my opinion is hold out and a nice priced tidy one will come along. Theyre not really worth much as you tend to need another for body spares.
If your thinking of buying one go for it, nice for round town or long distance.
I've had this 1.5 engined car for 5 years. Problems have been electrical relay for main beam lights and horn, horn button not seated correctly, water pump, thermostat and rear dampers. I've also had to replace serviceable item like the hand brake cable, exhaust system and the rea brake cylinders. Easy to work on. I'm srapping it now because of welding required to rear radius arm fixing point. The car cost me 400 quid to buy and about 400 quid for all parts.
My car is an '87 1.8 sgl Prairie. The car is quite reliable, but blow 32 deagrees of celcius it won't start without warming the engine before. Also it can carry really heavy weigth - i've moved more than 600kg of stuff+1 passangers(+driver) with a single trip. My Prairie also has gas device (uses propane), but i havent tested it yet. At the very moment my Nissan is not running due to that i just finished paintwork and am fixing gearbox. Anyway I'm totally satisfied with this car and think that i'll drive it for couple of more years... If any questions, mail me [Log in to view email]
Ive had 1998 anniversary II model for about 6 years now, she starts every time no matter what the weather and is a great work horse. mine is also adapted for diability with passenger seat now being a wheelchair as the absence of a centre pillar means that the chair lift mechanism fits perfectly.One day in the not so near future i will have to replace her, but dont know if i will find anything as good!
had my E reg 1.8 anniversary II for 3 years now & love her to bits,but in the wet it missfires and dies!can anyone help as i have already tried distributor cap,rotor arm,ht leads & spark plugs! please help cos i am going to get fired from my new job if im late again!
I brought my priarie a year ago, for my camping holidays as it was a spaciuos car, i have a (H) 1991 SLX 5 seat model, at the moment its overheating and iam hoping its just the thermostat gone, but i have a niggle it might be the radiator also the locking mechanism has gone on the central locking and the passenger side electrics dont work, i have toiled with the idea of just getting rid and buying something else but i do like my car, its just the availibility of parts and the cost its a bit of a nightmare, also i have read everyone elses comments and i also need a manual, did anyone one have any luck in finding where we all could get one from?
Bought the car 2 yrs ago. Huge trunk, excellent driving position and it looks cute aswell.. The only thing i think is sad is the availability of parts, they're hard to find. Otherwise, best car i've ever had.
hi, I have had prairies since 1982 starting with a 1.5gl, over the years I have bought and restored in excess of 35 of these fantastic far ahead of their time vehicles and as a consequence of this I pride myself on knowing virtually every nut and bolt and most of the far and few between problems that occur from time to time. some tips you may be interested in: 1, if you need any engine parts for your 1.5, look no further than the 1.5 sunny there is more of them around and the power unit is identical, I have transfered many sunny engines into prairies the only difference is the engine mountings and exhaust manifold but dont worry, your prairie ones will bolt straight on to a sunny engine, for the economy concious a sunny 1.3 engine will also go in, slight loss of power but cheaper to run especially around town, but a well tuned prairie 1.5 will return at least 35mpg around town and about 44mpg on a good run. 2, the 1.5 exhaust back box can also be replaced with a sunny one if you do a slight adjustment to the rear bracket. 3, the sunny 1.3 or 1.5 gearbox is also interchangable with the prairie but you must replace the final drive units with your prairie ones otherwise your driveshafts wont fit, ( be careful they slightly changed the length of the splines on the 86 gearbox final drive units so make sure they fit before filling with gear oil ) 4, sunny wheels also go straight onto a prairie. 5, the 1.8 engine is basically a bluebird engine with the dissy at the front of the head instead of the right hand side, if you look at your prairie engine you will see a blanking plug at the right hand end of the head, the alternator is also in a slightly different position, with these exceptions everything else is identical and therfore interchangable, the gearbox however is not as most bluebirds had a hydraulic clutch. 6, one last thing, if you have to replace the front part of the handbrake cable, according to the book you have to remove the dash to get to the mounting bracket.........oh no you dont, save yourself at least two hours by cutting a groove about 1" long into the lower facia panel adjacent to the brake lever and apply slight heat from a hair dryer and bend it upwards, this then reveals a locking pin with a spring washer holding the handbrake lever in place, prise off the washer, tap the pin out ( note the position of the spring and wiring to the dash brake indicator light ) and then simply disconect the cable from under the car, remove the two retaining bolts on the engine side of the bulkhead and withdraw the lever from inside the car....simple, it can be a bit fiddly to get the bolt back in place but it can be done. --------------------------------------- to sum up I love these cars, they are spacious, economical, easy to work on, and extremely reliable especially the 1.5, and I'm sure many of you will share this view. I would be interested in starting an owners club if anyone is interested and I can be contacted at [Log in to view email] and I live in the north west area, look forward to your replies and good luck !!!!! prairie paul.
ps.dont hesitate to contact me if you need some advice, if I can help I will.
I've got a 4x4 auto version, 1990. Lovely comfy car, bit heavy on petrol about town (20mpg) but can get 29/30 on a long run. Distributor gave up at 120,000 miles! New one from Nissan £450, found a s/h one in Leeds for £15.00 Same as Bluebird, so maybe a B/bird manual might help if one is available. Watch the bodywork and touch in any stone chips otherwise they will spread. Don't see many Prairies about, but they must have sold reasonably well when new. LAtest offering is just a van with seats and windows - awful. Nissan got it right and now everyone is copying the basic style.
Just bought my first Prairie, an anniversay II 1.8 1987. Cracking value for £200. Nissan UK OE service parts prices are on the whole very reasonable, I think, as the Prairie shares many components with the Bluebird and Stanza. Indeed, I refer to the Stanza Haynes manual (No.824) for tech/spec. Second-hand mail-order parts from TXD-Manchester 0161 231 8269 or Jap Auto Parts-B`ham 0121 772 3205. Oh, and by the way, odometer reads 252,000 miles ! :-)
I have an 89 SLX auto 4x4 (*quite rare?) Goes well, heavy on petrol about town. Problem starting - carb must drain back into tank. Turn key to ignition on, wait 10 - 20secs untuil you can hear fuel sloshibng back into tank, turn key and she's away. Taken me 18months to discover this. Plenty s/h parts about breakers for engines, body bits probably hard to come by. Overall a good s/h buy. Better than Mk1 type which I had previously. Steve Walden, Leeds
I have Nissan Prairie 2.0 Pro(1992 year) during 6 months. I love this car. But I've not found any information and/or technical manual of this model in web pages or on Nissan's web site. Could anybody help me about this? My e-mail: [Log in to view email]
I am a lucky owner of 1988 Nissan Prairie (sold in the US as Stanza SW, in Canada - Multi). The one I have is a 2WD, 2,0L fuel injected. Bought it in May of 1996 with appr. 87,000 miles on it. Now it has 217,000 miles. Original engine. Replaced a water pump, an alternator. Runs strong. The only problem with my car is its automatic transmission - had it rebuilt twice. Last week noticed some grayness of metal abrasions in the transmission fluid. I think the third time of the transmission rebuild is coming... Other than that - Absolutely love this car! I am a tall guy, but I swear this is the most comfortable car I've ever driven or had a chance to find myself behind a steering wheel of. This car enables you to get in and out with some dignity, as it does not humiliate you by making you crawl in and out. My mom with her lower back problems just loves it. Driving is a pleasure. Parking is extremely easy, - you sit high and the window area in that car can probably compete with an acquarium. It's like flying a helicopter - you just hover. Rear sliding doors are extremely convenient and practical. Each time I see them sliding, especially being parked in a close proximity to another car or something, I praise those Japanese engineers who came up with such a smart decision which enabled this car to be just fine without central pillars between the front and rear doors, - some (serious)weight reduction too. Trunk is just huge, especially for the car of its class and size. Through all these years, I've been getting nothing, but compliments about convenience and practicality of my Nissan from the people who have not been introduced to it earlier. I travel a lot internationally, and it's so good to see these lively cars all over the world. I saw them even in Russia, Ukraine, Cayman Islands. Sorry for such a long message. Just wanted to share.
I have a Nissan Prairie 1.8 1988. I also have problems with a tendancy to peter out after travelling for a few miles and loosing power on an incline. I am having trouble locating a workshop manual for her.Any helpful tips? Are there any good sources for second-hand spares?
Brilliant high level access with excellent sliding door accessibility (like when someone parks tight against your driver's door) Remove passenger bench seat in two minutes to create flat floored Tardis that swallows huge loads. I own two (one since 1988)
All ratings and reviews are submitted by visitors to this web site, and represent their own personal opinion. They do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of Preloved.
You use this information at your own risk. Preloved can not be held responsible for any damages or loss resulting from the use of this site. Please see our Terms and Conditions for more details.
