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Trying to filter through everything as best as I can so I don't miss something significant. I appreciate the in-depth info here's to hoping I can comprehend most of it. What it seems like to me from just my own personal experience and research is a huge factor to the oil consumption is excess blowby past the piston seals which once in the crankcase is sucked through the pcv valve consisting of not just exhaust gases. Once rerouted through the intake, siphoned oil begins to either coat whatever it comes in contact with before reaching the combustion chamber or is then burnt off within the combustion chamber which then contributes to a clogged cat, a lot to go wrong here. I've found that the excess blowby is attributed to obviously the fact that we've got older cars and seals wear out but on the other hand have read about the cylinder walls themselves being discovered to have more taper than they should which would explain premature wear and oil consumption. This could be due to poor quality control who knows but it makes sense considering some R50s just never had a problem with oil burning and some did, check that a lot did. I'm sure this might not be anything new to you all but thought I'd share anyway just my 2 cents. I'm open to anyone finding flaw with my theory, there's definitely a lot of people on this forum who know more about the VQ35DE than I do. I digress, from what it sounds like though I'm going to need new spark plugs as well which isn't a huge deal mine are on probably 30-40k. Speaking of spark plugs I've seen a lot of debate and is there a clear superior plug over the others or pretty much just get what was originally factory installed? Now in reference to the valve cover itself, is it pretty easy to determine if the baffles are clogged when you have it in front of you? The hard part is knowing to order it ahead of time or not because I'd hate to have the engine apart in that kind of state while waiting for it to be shipped. Lastly the only thing I'm really confused about is what you said RainGoat about the Power Valve/Butterfly Valve screws being what needs to be removed and loctited if hopefully they are still there. You said there are 6 butterfly valves with 2 screws each which equates to 12 screws. At the bottom of the post, you mentioned there being 8 in number. Is this something totally different or are you giving me a reference for getting extras in case yeah some have backed out and are missing and the set happens to only come with 8 screws?

I’ll take your word for it but just because what the heck I’m going to try it out. My local junk yard has got somewhere close to 10 of the prefacelift pathfinders. I’m also only having them there pretty much for aesthetics vs removing my current factory ones completely. If i end up getting a rack i’ll be looking at that other thread around here somewhere where someone fabricated a rack flush with the roof rather tham sitting on crossbar supports.

Are those middle 3 supports shown in the photo pretty much necessary then? They’re the tiny ones more flush witth the roof.

I've always liked the look of the more aero crossbars. What kind of roof rack bars do you have on in this pic? Would they fit on an 02 LE you think? After some research, this seems like it's the oem crossbars! Will they fit a 2002?

I've had my 02 LE for around 4 years now and I love it to death which is why I'm willing to spend the money to aid in longevity even though it'll soon rack up 170k miles. Now I recently solved an issue with the fan clutch which I had been suspect about for years but funny enough everyone I talked to claimed it was synonymous of these pathfinders. Eventually, I pulled the trigger on a hunch and voila the loud semi-truck roar was gone and returned was some low-end torque and slightly better mpg at least it seems that way so far. This was a great step in the right direction but it has opened up now all the peculiar and interesting sounds coming from the engine which I had not been hearing before. Now I have also been burning oil ever since I can remember which is nothing surprising but never understood its potential effects and how destructive it can be. I decided to take a look at the throttle body the other day and it just about scared the @!*% out of me how bad it was compared to what I've seen online from people showing how to clean them. My valve cover gaskets for sure need to be replaced as I can see cooked oil just outside of them but what this all means is the PCV system is letting loads of crud feedback into the intake and I'm a little nervous to take a look inside the plenum. I plan to get the notorious valve cover gasket replacement done this summer but due to the high cost, I wanted to make a list of everything needed to avoid ever having to undergo this process again. So I'll start out with what I already know should be done and if anyone has any recommendations, or advice I would be more than willing to listen. Forgive me if I sound ignorant as I don't know enough about this procedure. The gaskets other than the valve covers, are there a lot that need to be ordered and should I only use oem factory parts? I feel like I've read somewhere that Nissan released altered/improved gaskets for maybe the valve cover or some related gaskets in this area to help improve the stock ones in our R50s. Can't confirm how valid this is. It sounds like as well that there is a left and right side valve cover gasket and to me it looks like both need to be replaced because I can see cooked oil on both sides. Now something I've recently been looking into is an oil catch can which sounds like a savior for anything intake related and better for the cats as well. Can anyone point me in the right direction for a high-quality one which will last the life of the car? I also wanted to bring up if there is ever a possibility of adding this altering the pressure of the system in some way and throwing off a sensor or affecting the performance of the engine? I just want to make sure I cover all of my basis, excuse me if I'm sounding a little anal. Also because of all this crud and grime being thrown back into the engine, what do I need to look into cleaning when disassembling everything down to the valve covers. Would this include the upper and lower plenum? For sure the throttle body but I might as well wait until I do this job as it could just build up again in between now and I when I get around to doing this. I've heard the actual valves themselves can be pretty bad if an engine exerts a lot of blowby but I'm sure I can't really get to them even if I go down to the valve covers? That's unknown to me maybe someone can clarify. Thank the lord it's not a GDI haha. Maybe I can use some sort of solvent while I've got everything apart? Anyways finally I wanted to address the screws that everyone warns about backing out due to vibrations and causing a ruckus. I don't know if it's just me but it seems like either there are multiple things that need to be loctited to avoid this or there is simply different names for the same set of screws. I've heard butterfly screws, power valve screws, and maybe it's just the valve cover screws that everyone is talking about. Maybe all of these need to be loctited. Regardless I've said enough this one is a long one but if I plan on keeping this truck for any significant period of time this needs to be done and hopefully only once. Let me know of any suggestions and maybe how coils/injectors/spark plugs lie in all of this mess.

I ended up getting my mechanic to do it as I'm at Uni so don't have too much free time. Sorry I can't help you out with that one but from what I saw of the 3.3L procedure, it looks pretty simple and I hear it's very similar to the 3.5L engine.

I am happy to report that after having installed the new fan clutch it solved some issues. For one and the biggest is my pathy no longer sounds like an 18 wheeler driving down the road! It just about sounds 75% quieter which is much more than I expected because I was so used to the semi truck roar. It also solved a squeeling sound above 4000rpm that was driving me nuts thank god. It accelerates smoother and I feel I’ve gained some power back. The issue that remains which is kind of funny because it was a result of the roar is I can now hear the other subtlties of the engine. I’ve had an inkling there might be an air leak somewhere in the engine bay and I can now hear some air escaping somewhere in the rear of the engine up higher in front of the driver side. Dont know if anyone would have some insight on this. I also hear some crackling now in my exhaust near the cats. Dont know if this is normal but it sounds like something is in there bouncing of the walls. It could be just from the fact that I can hear more going on with my car that was less noticeable before. Occasionally though will note after have turned off my car to park it I’ll hear some loud pops from the exhaust from it cooling but pretty loud ones. Regardless glad to have fixed the main issues. I thank everyone who’s commented and contributed to this thread!

Im going to try and see if one of the techs at my work can help me with it I don’t think it’s super straightforward, not much online in terms of info. If you order one I’d only recommend the stock factory clutch as I’ve read many stories online of people getting aftermarket ones and the fan being just as loud if not louder so there’s that to think about. Unfortunately the OEM is pretty pricy with around a $170 price tag so make sure it’s what you need. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Wow that’s definitely some memories you wouldn’t forget haha, personally never had coolant shoot out of the radiator cap but yeah ive had my fair share of ac issues. Takes forever for the air to actually get cool sometimes in the summer and my heat in the winter is blazing hot no matter what the temp is set to unless it’s 65 which magically just switches the air to cool. Other than that i’ve ordered myself a new OEM fan clutch from nissan in hopes to rid myself of this noisy engine, ill update eveyone once its on and functioning. My plan is if that doesnt work ill get a bluetooth obd2 scanner to help narrow down things and possibly look at the thermostats.

Interesting I'm wondering if it still means it's around the same temp as yours even with the extra space up top?

Let me try this, posting it from tapatalk. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I posted it from a desktop so maybe you can only see it there, huh that's weird.

Was able to post a pic, this is what it looks like at operating temp. Basically never goes any higher.

Not exactly mine doesn't have that gear selector display in between the tachometer and speedometer. I can't see everything so I don't know if the rest is identical but my temp guage is on the very right side.

Something I think I should mention again is when the engine is cold, if I spin the fan with a descent force it'll spin about 1/7 to maybe a 1/4 of a revolution being rough estimates.

Interesting because yeah it's pretty much been that way since I've had it. The gauge though is not exactly cut in dry in terms of what's halfway because of that section at the very top dedicated to just overheating so when you say halfway you mean within the first section with the obvious notches on the top and bottom? The transmission only seems to struggle between the 1st and 2nd gear otherwise it's pretty streamline maybe a tiny bit sluggish on 2-3 under heavy acceleration. That's a little bogus though the tank isn't funneled in any way in order to get your money's worth. My question is than how do you guys calculate gas mileage and is it a possibility my float in my gas tank is faulty? Regardless I do agree with you guys on the fan clutch probably being my main priority as I'm sure if it's faulty it's sapping up mpg and power. Today it was 27 degrees in the morning so definitely cold but the fan seemed to do it's thing as per usual and took about 10 minutes from starting the engine (with driving) for it to get to operating temp. Something else I discovered though from some technicians at my work (I work at a dealership) the ac compressor clutch seems to have slight in and outwards play. It also is pretty coated in rust where it resides directly behind a radiator hose and the hose is also coated in rust which means that could also be a culprit for squealing. Whatever vibration is going on is causing the rust on the clutch to spray all over the rubber hose so maybe? What's a solid way to test if my fan clutch is faulty because the oem one is not cheap. Finally it could be a problem with the thermostat which I've read is supposed to fail while locked open which would also make sense so I'm running in circles as anyone can probably tell. Any ideas as to my next step?

Wow its been 2 years and I never brought anyone up to date, hope I can be forgiven ?. I’ve done quite a lot since then but still feel as if I’ve made not much headway. As for the O2 sensor I cant say i remember what the mechanics said but I know I had it replaced. In reference of what I’ve done since, switched back to conventional, had the leak fixed but recently found I had a new tiny one coming from the oil pan gasket while changing oil. Had the tranny drained and filled because flushing is rough on an older auto trans from what ive been told. Still have some rough shifts, worse in the winter I’ll say but thats to be expected im sure. In recent months I’ve found that my mpg is in the toilet with an average of about 12mpg if im lucky but I feel as if my gas guage is not accurate because after having the fuel light come on I only fill up about 16 gallons! I highly doubt the engineers would have 5 gallons in reserve?! Still havent addressed the fan clutch issue but it still roars and now the belt squeals fairly loud when the rpms reach over about 4500 which is also another sign of the clutch going bad ive heard. Had the belt replaced around a year and a half ago. Still losing about a quart every 1000 miles that has not changed. Finally something I’ve always been curious in is the temp guage being just below the halfway mark which I’m wondering is normal. Ill attach an image of it showing the needle at operating temp where it pretty much never goes above what’s shown. It would make sense if it is slightly below if my fan is never disengaging but you tell me. If anyone has some advice on any subject or where I should look next I’d love it. Just shoot me a response and lets get talkin! Edit: Couldn’t figure out how to attach image because it’s size was too big

Something to report, the same day after I had cleaned the MAF sensor the way many videos in YouTube explain explain it, later in the day my service engine soon light came on. The following day it remained on for quite a while and eventually turned off on its own without reshowing since. Looking on the Vyncs app when the code was actually there it mentioned "Evap system leaking (gross leak). It seems to have fixed itself though and I don't know if I should be worried. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Okay that makes me feel a whole lot better. I appreciate all of the info and I might just take it to a mechanic to get a definite diagnostic rather then fiddling around with it myself. I've gotten the maf cleaner and will be doing that soon, I'll then probably hand it off to the professionals for the rest. Would you happen to have any idea how much getting the valve cover gasket replaced or tightened might set me back? Also having them use a smoke machine to try and find a vacuum leak I can't imagine would be that expensive unless I'm wrong. I also noticed that the exhaust is pulsating in the slightest manner, not a constant stream of exhaust which leads me to believe that there might be a misfire but within the computer threshold that will set off a code because my dash shows none. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Looked around my ignition coil locations and I noticed on the drivers side, it seems like all 3 have a oily residue caked around the outside on the surface, not on the coils but on he surface of the body surrounding where the ignition could sit in the engine. Take note I have not tried to remove hen to check the spark plugs yet. I'm wondering if this means theres something entirely wrong? I know I have spilt some oil over the sides of the oil filler hole when refilling occasionally but this only exists above the one ignition coil, I doubt it would have spread to all 3 on that side of the engine. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm guessing there's most likely some sort of vac leak but finding it on my own with the tools I have would be a real task. How is it you would go about cleaning the MAF sensor, I'm guessing it's a process of taking off the intake rubber pipe and looking inside? Also are taking the plugs out something that is possible without having to take apart everything including the plenum and such? Have you done it yourself? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah i started college last fall so likely it had been sitting for extended periods of time with out being used. Maybe my parents occasionally used it but not very much if any since it sat in the garage. How long is long though, I might just replace the filter anyways since it's fairly cheap and it rules out this as a possibility. Now I actually noticed something interesting today, I tried looking for a vacuum leak and through all the infinite number of hoses, (visually inspecting the engine is pretty much a lost cause for me) it seems like I hear a pretty sizable amount of air escaping somewhere closer to the driver side behind the engine. Now there's no way of telling if it really is a leak or just my imagination created by the fan or engine but to me it seems like it's separate from the rest of the commotion going on. I've always heard a very high pitch ringing since I've had the car but not necessarily coming from the engine though I heard this is a symptom of a vacuum leak. I can't tell where it's coming from due to the nature of a high pitch sound but more likely then not it sounds like it would be some tiny air leak coming from some part of the exhaust manifold. I've looked under my car and it's a rusty piece, all along, but just giving it a quick once over I can't find any particularly noticeable leaks. As for the spark plugs, I definitely should get them looked at but I just don't want to spend the money on getting them fixed and then proceeding to burn oil, ruining them at a much quicker rate than they should normal ware. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This is starting to make a little more sense. I'm starting to think my spark plugs are at the end of their lifetime. With the addition of a known oil loss issue more likely burning, its a no brainer to get them checked out. I actually replaced my fuel filter around a year ago and I believe it should still be in okay shape. Is there a chance it could have gone bad though before it's expected lifetime? The metal clamp I mounted it back into is all bent up from a frozen rusty nut that took forever to remove, but something like that wouldn't cause it to fail I hope. I also had one of my 02 sensors replaced around half a year ago after it failed but I can't remember exactly which bank it was. Now going back to what you said about the valve cover, how come the 2nd mechanic wanted to re torqued it after having already gotten the gasket replaced? Do the valve covers cause burning or leaking when not tightened correctly? Also what is the cost for something along those lines, possibly also replacing the pcv valve while they're at it because it's a common fail point and it's so close to the valve cover? Finally, the error codes are not actual codes thrown by the vehicle. I have a Vyncs reader that stays in my OBD 2 port all the time giving me information about my car via app. Occasionally it'll send me a notification of low fuel economy or engine fuel system lean but the parameters of this device could be so close to the normal range that these are basically within the normal limits of the car. There are a plethora of possibilities though as to why my car would be running lean, but could it be due to fuel filter having gone bad? I know having a system running fuel lean definitely has an impact on performance. Sorry for asking so many questions in no particular order that makes sense by the way, I'm just kind of saying everything that comes to mind first. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk