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Matthew K

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  • Your Pathfinder Info
    2001 SE 4X4
  • Your Age
    22-29
  • What do you consider yourself?
    Weekend Warrior
  • Year
    2001.5

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  1. Just an update- I went out to my car a few minutes ago to assess the carpet again. In my Pathfinder, I have the OEM carpet, the OEM floor mat, and an aftermarket molded rubber floor mat (made to retain water). The rubber mat was not wet on top, but it was on the bottom and both the OEM floor mat and most of the carpet in front of the driver's seat were soaked. So either the water is coming in from the door somehow and is saturating the carpet, or it's coming from the firewall somewhere. The second thought makes more sense to me because neither the door compartment bin nor the crevices in the plastic on the door had water....
  2. That's a great thought, but no, it's never been in an accident. Thanks! Matt
  3. Hello all, I noticed that the edge of my carpet right next to the driver's side door, the edge of my driver's seat (next to the door), and my sunvisor were damp. It rained fairly hard on New Year's Eve in Fairfax, VA, but I am certain I had my windows up. The carpet was the wettest as even the rear carpet next to the door was also wet. I'm not sure exactly what to do though as there was no water on the door itself or even in the storage compartment built into the bottom of the door. Has anyone else had this problem or know of a seal issue with the 2001 SE's? If not, I guess my next step is to perform a leak test with the garden hose. I do have a sunroof, but that was also closed and everything felt dry when I ran my hand around the inside lip of the headliner around the sunroof. I have noticed this before after a heavy rain and now I know it's a recurring issue. All of my door and window gaskets seem to be in good shape with no tears or abrasions. Thanks for your help! Matt
  4. Hey guys, Not sure if this helps, but I had the same problem when I had my 95 Cherokee. The culprit was the yoke when it went in and out of the transfer case when I came to or accelerated from a stop. The only way to solve it was to take the driveshaft out and grease up the end with spindles that fit inside the transfer case (I used high-temp bearing grease). This only helped for about 2-3 months at a time because the grease would break down. I was going to put a grease fitting on the drive shaft, but never got around to it before I bought my '01 Pathy... Matt
  5. Thanks guys for all your feedback. I'm going to take it into the shop either this evening or sometime tomorrow, so I'll let you know what they find as soon as I get it back. Thanks again! (By the way, I do not have a steering stabilizer) Matt
  6. Precise1, Thanks for the feedback. I'm the only driver and I haven't hit anything hard with the wheels. They're the 2001 SE OEM rims. I actually just had the rotors machined (after this shaking issue started), so it shouldn't be those as the Pathy brakes smoothly. Also, it seems to shake between 60-70 with my both on and off the accelerator. I thought a clicking or popping noise was a tell-tale sign of a shot CV joint. The boots look good, but I'll have the mechanic check those too. Thanks again! Matt
  7. Hello again all, Sorry to bombard the site with posts, and even though this is related to 2 posts below, I thought this might need it's own. My 01 Pathy is still shaking between 60 and 70, felt mostly through the steering wheel, even after purchasing 4 new tires and having a 4-wheel alignment done late last week. Two weeks ago, I had my previous tires rotated once and balanced 3-4 times because my Pathy was vibrating. None of the balances resolved the shaking, so then I had a 4-wheel alignment done on Friday, which it needed since it was pulling to the left. When I left the shop (Sears), it was still pulling to the left, even though I watched them balance it and it seemed they did everything correctly. Then I thought it must be a tire issue (even though they all appear to be fine). That night I swapped the front two tires with eachother and took it for a drive. This time it was pulling to the right. Saturday morning I put that tire on the back wheel which solved the pulling but the Pathy was still shaking. The tires were General Grabber AW's (pretty good tires, made by Continental) with about half the tread left. Since no one carries them anymore and no one close to me had Bridgestone's in stock, I went ahead and got the General Grabber ST's, again from Sears. I had them put four on and balance them. I also had to get them right away as I had to drive 300 miles this weekend. My Pathy is STILL shaking at the same speeds (60-70). It definitely shakes similar to when a tire is out of balance. I'm going to take it back to Sears tomorrow to have them recheck the balance, but is there anything else that sounds suspect? I have 62K miles, stock suspension, and all the mechanics I've gone to lately say all my suspension components look fine. How might a mechanic check the wheels themselves to make sure they're all true? One of the mechanics said they're fine, but something's got to give. I just find it highly coincidental that the Pathy would be shaking within the same speed range with a fresh set of balanced tires and a new alignment. Thanks again all for your help. Matt
  8. Good point Pezzy-sorry fellas. This is my daily driver, but I also use it for camping/light trails, and want something that's aggressive in the rain and snow. My suspension is still stock. Matt
  9. Hello all, This is related to my topic below about an alignment and tire balance/rotation. I went ahead and got the thrust alignment done which it needed. After that I found that it was still pulling to the left and shaking between 60 and 70 on the highway. I couldn't figure out what to do so I switched the front left tire with the front right tire. I then went back on the highway and the pathy pulled to the RIGHT this time, with more shaking. So I think I've narrowed it down to the tire itself. I have General Grabbers on there now, and there seems to be plenty of tread left, but I think the culprit tire may have some internal separation (you'll read in the aforementioned post below that I've already had the tires balanced numerous times) that lends to an imbalance that can't be rectified from normal wheel balancing. On the outside, the tire looks fine. I was going to just rotate the front tires to the back, but I think I'll just get shaking anyway. I may just replace the front two tires since the wear is slightly more on those. In that case I'll get two more Grabbers. But I wanted to see if anyone has any other tires that they absolutely love. One mechanic suggested Michelins, but he didn't say what type. Has anyone had any problems with their General Grabbers? Thanks, and sorry for the long post again! Matt
  10. Dan, Thanks VERY much for the referral. I'll give them a call when I get off work! Matt
  11. Hey guys, Thanks for the advice! The Merchants I took it to was actually in Richmond. I'll take it to one of those places you guys mentioned since they're all pretty close. Hopefully it's just misaligned and nothing more. It's hard to find a dependable mechanic around here. Man, I'd love to go wheelin' this weekend--it's been a while. Unfortunately though I have to go to another wedding down in Staunton. Maybe another time? Have a great time, and thanks again! Matt
  12. Hi all, I have a 2001 SE with approx. 62k miles. I took it in to NTB in Arlington, VA for an oil change and tire rotation and balance last week. I usually change the oil myself, but had a coupon and figured what the heck. I've learned my lesson. It turned out that they didn't change the filter the first time, and when I took it back I got some bad attitudes and dirty looks from the mechanics. Needless to say I was pretty p*ssed with the whole situation. Anyway, I also had them balance/rotate the tires under my lifetime plan. That also was a mistake as they balanced the wheels without using the adapter on the machine. I took it back the second time and the car still shook at highway speeds and found out that they balanced the wheels without calibrating the tires. I will never go to this shop again (then also put some nice scratches in my wheels). To make a long story short, I've had the tires balanced 2 more times at Merchants (since they and NTB are part of the same company) because my car still shakes. Evidently they also checked the alignment which was okay. They also assured me they balanced the wheels with a freshly calibrated machine and with the adapter. The shaking isn't that bad, but it is noticeable. Actually what I experience is a shaky steering wheel between 60 and 70. My pathy doesn't seem to pull either way. I'm just at a loss of what I should do. Merchants also checked the wheels themselves to see if they're bent and apparently they're okay. Should I have the alignment checked again somewhere? Would a misalignment cause shaking within a 10 mph range? Oh, apparently my shocks and struts are okay, but I was also wondering what their expected life is (mostly highway/around the town driving with light 4-wheeling). Thanks for your help all. Sorry for the long post... Matt
  13. Hello all, Well, I finally narrowed down the cause of the noise/vibration I've been feeling in the steering wheel when I go around turns and over bumps. I thought it was something loose in the suspension, but when I was cleaning out my Pathy yesterday I noticed that the airbag cover is loose as I can push/pull it vertically (towards the dashboard and down towards the floor). This causes the same vibes in the steering wheel as I've been feeling. Does anyone have any experience in removing the steering wheel on a 2001 or similar? I noticed there's a special hex bolt that I would need to remove but am not sure that I can get the tool from the dealer. Also, does anyone happen to have or know where I can get an exploded view of the airbag/cover assembly to see if it's even possible to tighten the cover up? Haynes doesn't really illustrate this very well. One more question--if I do remove the steering wheel, does anyone know if/how I can reset the airbag light myself? I'd hate to have to pay the dealer to do it--I'm sure they'd charge $50 or more. Thanks a lot! Matt
  14. Thank you for your responses (and for checking on ebay)! I re-examined the rear glass and the struts. The struts actually work very well (glass pops right up). The rattling seems to be coming from a tolerance between the glass and the rubber seal. The latch mechanisms (and all the other parts behind the paneling of the hatch) are tight, so I guess I'll just have to put something between the glass and the seal to hold the glass tight. Thanks again. Matt
  15. Hello all, I'm pretty sure this topic has been discussed before, although I can't find it by searching. The the gas struts for my rear lift gate are shot since the glass rattles pretty badly. It happens more when it's cold (gas is at a lower pressure) than when it's warm (40 degrees or more). I'm looking for a good replacement without paying the dealer prices...any recommendations? Thanks! Matt
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