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My build/adventure thread


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Hey everyone! I've been on here for quite a while and done quite a lot to my rig, but I never got around to making a thread dedicated to my Pathfinder build and all the adventures I go on with it. In here I'll be posting anything I would do to my car, trips I go on, or whatever else I think of. Probably a lot of questions and problems as well. I'll start from the beginning and just share some pictures but I'll spare you the details and trips so far because that would take way too long, and nothing I've done is new.

 

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Here's my Pathy as close to when I first got it as I could find.

 

Then first thing I did is make a little cb antenna mount. I hate the idea of drilling into the body, so I made it work with the screw that the trunk bump stop things are held in with.

 

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The next thing was wheels and tires. I got a set of 4 American racing wheels from a friend of a friend for $75, which already had tires on them. The tires were all different sizes and all completely bald and dry rotted so badly that I didn't feel safe driving on them.

I called up a nearby used tire shop, looking for the cheapest way to get me driving again and happened upon a set of 4 265/75r16 AT's with plenty of tread left. $120 later I was cruising around on a fresh set of 32's.

 

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As you may be able to see in the picture above, I had a huge camber problem in the front, which would eventually lead to my front tires wearing completely out in the front. Here's a pic from right after I got the tires:

 

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The next step was new struts (kyb) and new springs (ome hd) up front to fix my front end issues. I also got a cheap roof basket from Walmart because I had a gift card from returning snow chains.

 

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This is pretty much how it sits currently. I have new tires coming soon, and then hopefully sliders or bumpers or something.

 

Yesterday I took it wheeling out to hollister hills, and it killed it on the trails. I had it teetering on 3 wheels a few times, but it made it over things I would never have expected it to. I definitely know I will want a new rear bumper sometime in the future, as it drags and gets caught on everything.

 

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I also got some sweet Milky Way shots the other night as well!

 

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Well folks that's all I have for now! There will be plenty more soon, so stay tuned! (:

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I have a link to a detailed diagram for a rear bumper with tire carrier if you want it. I'd paste it here now, but I have to dig it out first. I think it's bookmarked on my laptop... I'm going to either have one built or do it myself within the next year or so hopefully.

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Hey dude, so you had to beef up the springs to get rid of the camber issue? I was thinking about grabbing some camber bolts to fix my issue but I'd MUCH rather keep the original geometry if possible. So the hd springs completely resolved your camber issue after getting larger tires?

 

 

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Hey dude, so you had to beef up the springs to get rid of the camber issue? I was thinking about grabbing some camber bolts to fix my issue but I'd MUCH rather keep the original geometry if possible. So the hd springs completely resolved your camber issue after getting larger tires?

 

 

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Is your camber like this \ / or like this / \ ?

 

If it's the first way, upgraded/new springs will make it worse. Also, it should only be that way if you already have a lift (in which case you need camber bolts). If it's the second way, they will make it better. You'll probably need camber bolts anyways, as HD springs provide a small lift compared to factory which will impact the camber. If you want it back to stock and don't want to use camber bolts OE springs (or springs to OE spec) are your best bet.

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Hey dude, so you had to beef up the springs to get rid of the camber issue? I was thinking about grabbing some camber bolts to fix my issue but I'd MUCH rather keep the original geometry if possible. So the hd springs completely resolved your camber issue after getting larger tires?

 

 

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Yes, no more negative camber because of the blown struts!! However, to account for the added height with the HD OME coils, I did run two sets of camber bolts.

 

 

Is your camber like this \ / or like this / \ ?

 

If it's the first way, upgraded/new springs will make it worse. Also, it should only be that way if you already have a lift (in which case you need camber bolts). If it's the second way, they will make it better. You'll probably need camber bolts anyways, as HD springs provide a small lift compared to factory which will impact the camber. If you want it back to stock and don't want to use camber bolts OE springs (or springs to OE spec) are your best bet.

Exactly right. If you have positive camber, bigger springs will make that worse, and you'll want camber bolts. If you had an issue like mine where the camber is negative or actually constantly changing between negative and positive, it's highly likely it is the struts that's the problem.

 

What would I recommend for you based on my limited knowledge of your situation? It look to me like you're running into issues and want your setup changed to fix those. If you want to fix whatever is wrong and add a little height, I'd say get new struts, HD springs, and camber bolts. You'll also want new top hats/strut mounts/bearings when you replace everything. Definitely let me know if you are gonna go this route though, as I will look up which strut mounts to NEVER BUY BECAUSE THEY FELL APART ON ME (Dean will know what I'm talking about).

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'm trying to read the sidewalls, but it's a tad difficult... what size tires are those? I'm really wanting to upgrade to some 32s instead of my cute little 30s

 

Those are 265/75r16! Basically a complicated way of saying 32x10.5r16 lol. They cleared with the stock suspension with the same trimming as needed for 31's, and they fit absolutely perfect (like they were made to be used together) with the OME coils. They don't look small or big at all, it looks like they were meant to fit on the car, if that makes sense.

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My place of work, for those who didn't know. The lighting was pretty good so me and a coworker snapped some pics after we closed today.

 

 

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Ohhh THAT. That was my in my friend's VW buggy. It was originally a bug, but it had a chopped frame and a tube chassis and mud tires. It was pretty sweet, but he sold it. I was just helping him work on it.

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Those are 265/75r16! Basically a complicated way of saying 32x10.5r16 lol. They cleared with the stock suspension with the same trimming as needed for 31's, and they fit absolutely perfect (like they were made to be used together) with the OME coils. They don't look small or big at all, it looks like they were meant to fit on the car, if that makes sense.

Makes a lot of sense. This Friday I'm putting in my SFD and lifting it 5", so hopefully the next dent in my wallet are some 265/75/16s cause that's what I've been looking for. They just look awesome on your pathy, and larger than 32s so I had to ask.

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Lots to update here, so I'll split it into two parts to make sure all the pictures work this time.

 

First off, I got some wheel spacers for free, and I put them on and I'll tell you what, they looked great. However, they weren't hubcentric and they also made my tires rub, so I took them back off.

 

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For the second part, a friend of mine recently picked up a '91 300zx. It still needs a lot of work but it's been fun so far. I took some pictures of it the other day and they came out pretty good.

 

The thing is soooo low that it scraped on the 1/2 inch raise into my garage and left a huge gash in the concrete, and there was no way to get a heck to fit under it so we had to drive up on a curb to get underneath it.

 

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I always like your pics, keep them coming. Nice looking Z, the super low look isn't my thing, but should be a fun car nonetheless. What size are the spacers you got? I'm running 1.5 inch spacers with 245/75/16 BFG KO2's, and it rubbed a little but a little trimming to the inside bottom of the bumper took care of it. I like the look enough that it was worth it to me to make them work.

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They were 1.25 inches I believe. My fender lining is already trimmed, and I run 265/75r16, which is over an inch bigger than yours in both height and width. And thanks! They definitely will keep coming haha

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For a long time now I've had an extra set of tail lights from the facelifted Pathfinder sitting around, and I decided to put them in the other day just to see how they would look. After I put them in I realized that the faded red on the outside of the tail lights looked absolutely horrible against my red paint, so I painted the outer part black just as the original lights were to make it look better. I really really like the look of them, but I'm not certain I'm going to leave them in yet. They look really nice and make the whole back of the rig look newer but something just isn't right. Maybe it's just the black emblems I don't like. Idk. I've always liked the 3 color lights with the orange turn signals, so I may eventually put them back on. The only money I've invested in this is $7 for a new bulb in one of the new tail lights, so I don't really feel obligated to leave them in if I don't like them. Let me know what you guys think.

 

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On an unrelated note, I really like the side marker lights with the black in them from one of the earlier qx4's. If I ever found some in a junk yard do you think they would fit/look right on my Pathy?

 

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while the qx 4 and pathfinder are "the same" not exactly....the hood line is different.so the fender doesn't match and the marker lights are slightly different as well. I have a qx fender on my pathfinder and it doesn't quit match the hood profile. and the pathy marker light didn't fit the shape of cut out in the fender. oh yea the connecter plug from a qx marker light is different than that of the pathy as well....PIA.

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