I took advantage of the Toyota 4Runner’s spotlight’s blinding glare to scoop up a vehicle that very much lives in its shadow. The 1996-2004 R50-generation Nissan Pathfinder is unique for presenting not just a rough-and-rugged personality that can tackle most off-road trails with impunity, but also a day-to-day drive that leans heavily on its unusual platform to return smoother results than its more famous rival.

This past summer it became clear that my long-time beater, a 2004 Subaru Impreza RS, was in dire need of deferred maintenance that would likely cost more than the actual value of the car. After four years, it was time to move on to something new as my fleet leave-behind (the vehicle that primarily sits in Montreal week to week as I drive from one media fleet location to another).

I had been casually shopping potential replacements on Marketplace as I do in nearly every spare moment of my time whether I’m serious about buying or not, when I spotted an extremely clean 2002 Nissan Pathfinder. I’ve long been enamored of the R50 generation SUV, and this one sold me not only on the fact that it was stunningly rust free (a miracle in Quebec’s salt-heavy winter clime), but that it also featured a five-speed manual gearbox (unheard of due to extremely low production numbers).

I paid a reasonable price for the Pathfinder and I’ve enjoyed driving it every moment I can squeeze some time behind the wheel . Along the way I was inspired to write a buying guide for the R50 for Hagerty, explaining why this is the truck to target for everyone who’s been priced out of the much more popular Toyota 4Runner of similar vintage.

It’s ok—now that I have one of my own, I’m ok with the secret being out about how awesome these SUVs are. You can buy one too. I give you my permission.