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I just ordered every coolant hose, thermostat (and the rear water valve), all gaskets and rear main seal. I still have to get a clutch kit, driveshaft u-joints replaced and balanced plus all brakes. I don't think the last engine died due to power valves as the manual transmission VQ35s don't have power valves. Friday we are going to tear down the old engine and do an analysis on it. I am not going to SFD or SAS, just 2" lift springs and 5100 shocks on the rear. Eventually I will do an ARB front bumper (or something that looks similar), and dual lockers with 4.6 gears. Except for lockers and armor I want this thing as stock as possible.

The dimensions found on this forum are pretty much good with one exception, the angle of the strut spacers and the orientation of that angle. Basically, your strut spacer tube should be straight up and down (perpendicular & parallel) in relation to the trucks subframe mounting points. The angle will be the same no matter what height you choose to make your lift. Just like the subframe blocks only give vertical change, the goal is to "translate" the compound angle of the strut mounting point straight down so when you are done the factory suspension geomterty will be retained. The posted prints on this site and elsewhere on the web show 8.5 degrees which is wrong. Most R50's will have anywhere from 10.4 to 12.0 degrees. There is some wiggle room so it doesnt need to be exact, but too much error on the strut spacers could result in your caster being out of spec which cannot be changed and camber being off, requiring camber bolts to correct the offset. Again, your strut tube should be square to the subframe mounts when you're done. If they look like they're leaning in any direction the angle or orientation of that angle is wrong. You can check this using a digital level by zeroing or referencing the subframe mounts. Will it drive down the street if wrong? Sure. But your suspension characteristics will change from factory spec which could lead to increased wear on components and unsafe handling traits.

Welcome back, man. Knowing what you know, think you'll go SFD or SAS again? Nice find on the MT! My guess for engine failure is the power valve screws coming loose (don't get @RainGoat started). BTW, if considering the SFD again, search the forums for Land Rover springs...several of us are using them for more lift and cheaper than OMEs (and they ride well).

I copied this over here from Expedition Portal. At this stage this forum is probably more appropriate for the build since I am bringing the vehicle back to mechanically sound operation. I am looking for some 16x8" wheels that look good and have the proper backspacing for 265x75x16 tires. Dean (Xplorx4), I really like your rims. What kind are they? Dimensions? About a month ago I started looking at a cheap reliable vehicle capable of being built up as an overland rig but retaining the ability to get me back and forth to work (when needed) and could maintain a decent cruising speed on the highway. I had always wanted a later model Pathfinder with the VQ and a manual transmission, but cannot spend a ton of money. As luck would have it I found a 2002 5spd MT with a blown engine, but otherwise was in good condition for a reasonable price. I contact the owner and planned on going out to pickup the Pathfinder the next weekend. We just got back from the trip to last night and today I began work on the new to me Pathfinder.The plan:This vehicle has a lot of miles on it and although the unibody is in amazing condition with no rust I don't know what condition the mechanical are in, except the engine, which is completely blown. Step one is to get the engine, transmission, transfer case and driveshafts out. The transmission and transfer case will be disassembled, inspected, repaired if needed, and reassembled. The driveshafts will get u-joints and and be balanced. After the drivetrain is reinstalled and all fluids changed I will move on to the brakes, wheel bearings and suspension. Once funds are available I will be installing a 2" coil lift, wheels and tires, arb style bumper, lockers, sliders and skids. The goal is to keep weight down so that drive-ability is not lost.Known Issues:Right now the only two known issues besides the blown motor is that the rear windows will not roll down with the driver's switch or the rear window switches and the exhaust system past the largest muffler is completely shot.Current Status:Right now I only have to remove the upper engine wiring harness, bellhousing bolts and motor mounts before the engine can be removed. I will probably go ahead and pull the transmission/transfer case as a unit before removing the engine.

My Neighbors love me! I expect a privacy fence will be coming up when the host next door sells. Old engine ready for analysis:

I would 2nd this. I have carried an incredible amount of lumber on my ‘02 load bars, no problem. Not recommending it but I have significantly exceeded my weight limits &!even emergency stopped with something like six 5/8” 4x8’ subflooring up there.

Ain’t that the truth. I evangelize every late model R50 I come across these days.....kind of annoys my wife. Honestly thinking about printing up little cards to just hand out. FU Nissan! (See what he means)

Washed it

Derp...always overlooking the MT doesn’t have the power valves...just habit thinking about all the engine failures that have come from this. Now I’m more curious to know what failed. Good luck on all the repairs, and keep us posted on the build!

Nice! 3.5 with a manual, lucky guy. Be sure to change the coolant crossover tube gaskets and the rear main seal on the donor motor. They are probably the biggest pain to sevice with the engine installed. Cake while its out and worth every penny.

Have you taken a look at u-pull junk yards near you? From my experience the pre-facelift crossbars (like you have) feel cheap/flimsy to me compared to the post-facelift ones my QX4 came with, however the earlier ones sit much closer to the roof, by about an inch and a half. Minor tradeoff for strength though.

On the shore of the Baltic Sea, in the Lomonosov district of the Leningrad region.

A picture of my car and not myself. Cuz I'm always anon And another.

We were going to pickup two VQ35DE R50s, the second one was CHEAP, auto, 4x4, decent exterior and ran, but rough. Unfortunately my trailer wasn't big enough. I tried to rent a 30 foot trailer, but it was not available and I only had a 24 footer. I am glad we couldn't fit a second R50. Although two R50s would have been within the weight limit when we got home we realized that the trailer had a frame crack where the gooseneck attaches to the frame. I notified the rental company. What sucks even worse is I had a neighbor that wanted parts off the second R50 that would have paid for itself AND it had the 4.6 gears I wanted I realize the companies sticker that I rented the trailer from is in the pictures. They seemed very receptive to the damage on the trailer (that was not caused by us due to rust in the crack) and were going to take the trailer out of service until repaired. I am renting another trailer from them Friday for a move and am glad they provide the service they do. Towing the trailer with the crack was my fault. I should have done a proper inspection before leaving and gotten another trailer. The blown engine had 194k on it...shouldn't have died. The owner was told by a mechanic that it had an internal oil leak and that it ran out of oil, which makes no sense. The oil has to go somewhere. I suspect that the timing chain skipped or the oil leaked out. It ran enough to get it on and off the the trailer, but it was rough, had #5 misfire and random misfire codes. Tonight I got the engine out and the engine bay pressure washed. One thing that confuses me is that the engine bay is black?!?! The vehicle has not been repainted and I see no damage up front that would indicate a crash. The firewall, sides and upper radiator support are all black...the rest of the truck is factory blue.