mws

I respect your willingness to give this a serious try. It would be neat if this thing was able to violate laws of chemistry, physics, and thermodynamics. As it is, I remain too sceptical and busy to invest my personal effort in doing it myself. But I will offer sincere suggestions and help if you hit any problems.

Flash back memory: On my 1990 240SX: The section of black rubber line in the fuel return hose between solid line and fuel filler basically dissolved when CA started requiring ethanol addition. Only that one line - all others were fine. It is always possible some of this rubber line ended up on Pathies as well.... So yeah, lift the carpet, pull the access cover and look for signs of leaking on the sending unit cover AND check all the flexible lines as well.

Yup... the key word being NEW starter. The last one bench tested just dandy - it only failed when it was hot. Even after returning, it still bench tested dandy. We offered to put it out in the sun and get it hot to prove, but they actually took our word on it. I am willing to bet this turd gets sent back to rebuilder, who will ignore the defect report, bench test it, repackage, and sell it again.... If you don't want it, buy NEW.

That's absolutely NOT what I meant, Aaron! My experience says less than 0.1% of folks have the confidence to learn and do on their own... and only 50% of them can pull it off. So you are way up there. But as a JOB with proper training and a quality parts supply, it should not be this hard.

That will be my plan when the next one dies - I will dissect and attempt to repair it myself. I did eventually find some sources for Nissan starter components - just not in time to try to do so on little blue. Rebuilding a starter is NOT rocket science and can be successfully done.... I believe the root cause is the majority of consumers demanding the absolute lowest cost combined with parts stores purchasing their parts from the lowest price bidder. I call it the Wal-Mart syndrome. If the customers demand cheap crap, they will eventually get cheap crap. I was severely disappointed when the Beck Arnley failed. I was hoping/wishing they were sticking to quality above cost. They still charge a premium for their parts - either this was an anomoly or they hired an American style "Business Manager" to optimize short term profits at the expense of quality and long term viability.

Heckethorns! As sold by Rough Country (Hydro 8000's). Excellent ride AND control.

Shoot, you're in Minnesota. Out here in CA, we have perfect frames we're trying to give away! Root cause is road salting. The corrosion protection treatments applied by many automakers were just not tough enough to withstand it. Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Chevy, Dodge, etc etc etc have all been accused of making "substandard" vehicles that eventually rust out in the midwest and other areas that salt. Bottom line: The most affected are those vehicle built so well that they stay on the road for more than 10 years. The really shi$$y cars that end up in junkyards within 10 years rarely show these problems.

His input: Just pull the exhaust manifold first. Yes, it costs you a new gasket, but it saves knuckles and time.

We finally got little blue ('95) starting reliably. To get there, we (well, my nephew and his son) had to do 4 starter changes. Which means many frustrating hours. Wouldn't start, so the starter was changed with a rebuild from a very reputable local shop - NOT a Kragen or other crappy part vendor. No change, turned out it was more likely a battery issue. New battery installed. Still had intermittent starting issues, so I started doing electrical testing. The solenoid was getting full 12.6 V but not actuating. Pulled rebuild starter #1 out and took back. They confirmed defective solenoid and exchanged for another rebuild. Rebuild number 2 started smoking and throwing sparks on the second try. Solenoid had jammed and melted down the armature. Take it out and return again. Paid the difference to get a Beck-Arnley rebuild as I have had good luck with them. Rebuild 3 worked great. Until it got hot. When the underhood temps were high (like after driving) starter no go. Solenoid clicked, but no turn over or current draw. Classic signs of intermittent open in the coil. Nephew's son is getting pretty frustrated... So I begged them to buy a BRAND NEW (not rebuild) starter with the offer that if it didn't fix the problem once and for all, I would pay for it. It was something like $170. New starter is in and working perfect. Took rebuild 3 back to store. Like I said, reputable folks and they refunded full price. I will never buy another rebuild. The quality has clearly gone all to heck (low bid wins!) and the small starters are much more sensitive to crappy construction. This week my A/C compressor was found to be leaking. Think I am replacing it with a rebuild? Guess again. I'm coughing up the $360 for a brand new one. The A/C guy I use says he will not even install rebuilt compressors any more unless the customer absolutely insists and signs a waiver. He has had 6 month failure rates as high as 50%.

For reference, I have 32's (265/75-16) on 16x8 with 4" backspace and I get just a scosche of plastic rubbing at full right lock. I have about 1.5" t-bar lift and 3" BL. Every truck fits together just a little different, so YMMV.

We have one that has been whining a very long time.... several years now. We just filled her up with Redline and keep monitoring it. It has not gotten any worse.

The horn is a GROUND switched circuit, which is causing the confusion. Most circuits in a car are hot switched. No worries, just need to wire it up a bit different. On the NEW relay: Pins 30 and 85 need to be connected to a 12V source. Can be hot all the time, or a switched source, depending on whether you want your horn to be be usable when key is off. Stock config would have it hot all the time. Pin 87 goes to the + input of the horns Pin 86 goes to stock horn switch in the steering column. Which is the effectively the same as what you described, but reversed. So how you hooked it up WILL work equally well. Is it not working? If so, then I would suspect the contacts in the steering column. The pin that wipes on the copper ring does wear down over time.

I'm with B. A high flow universal is cheap, it won't cost you ANY noticeable hp, may actually add torque, will reduce the tailpipe stench, and is just good karma. Why be a gross polluter when it is so easy not to be?

Help what? It will reduce underhood temperatures. Sellers claim it will aid horsepower. I have not yet seen any objective data to support that, only marketing claims. It will also trap moisture. Depending on your climate, usage of vehicle, and the quality of base header, this can lead to serious rust problems over time. I had a floorboard heating problem in a van. I laid a piece of 6" wide wrapping material across the top of the header (NOT wrapped) between the header and floorboard. It resulted in a very significant reduction in temps. My climate is extremely dry and I did not have rust problem. Eventually ceramic coated the headers so the experiment was not for long. I kept burning my pants leg on a stainless steel header pipe on my XR-400. I wrapped a 6" section. No more burns, but when it was trashed and needed replacement a couple years later, there was notable corrosion on steel surface.

1) Choose to live close to work 2) Ride cycles (motor or pedal) 3) Combine errands to minimize driving. Use BMW 318 to run errands.

I can pretty much guarantee you'll be rubbing with any width 34" tire unless you're willing to cut metal. ] 32" is about the max you can get away with, regardless of lift. Unless you're just posing on the pavement....

There are so many typos, lies, and misinformation on that page.... And as Aaron alluded to, that fuel cell wouldn't produce enough energy to power a flashlight. I strongly suggest you NOT waste your money!!!!!

Because all the cool kids are doing it? J/K. Trailchaser gave the right answer... On (all or some - somebody clarify, please) the R50 models, it also helps fuel economy as the front stub axles remain engaged to hubs and rotate even when in 2wd.

USUALLY the machine gun action in relays or solenoids is due to a weak battery. And cold makes the situation worse as a cold battery puts out less amperage - and unfortunately, a cold engine needs more amperage to crank over. That's a double whammy. Next time it happens, try connecting to a known good battery with jumper cables. I bet it spins over fine. If so, new battery time.

I did just recently read an article about a town that was canceling their photo radar contract because not enough people were getting caught. Yes, the city bluntly admitted they were installed to generate revenue, but people were slowing down where the cameras were and the revenue flow was not what they wanted so they were getting rid of them! So that is the ONLY proven solution to date - LEARN where the cameras are, EDUCATE everyone where they are, and SLOW down when driving by the cameras.

Mythbusters tested a bunch of "solutions". 2 episodes worth, as I recall. And for the most part, they were completely ineffective.

Unfortunately, the vehicles that are perfect for off-roading in CO are not so perfect for towing.... And vice versa. For $7000, you could get a SERIOUSLY nice 5 speed WD21 for offroading AND have a serious chunk o' change left over towards a real tow vehicle in the future! The value of gas guzzlers is plummeting right now. That's what I did. And since I have two drivers, I don't carry any insurance beyond P&L which keeps costs of operation in line. If one gets wrecked or stolen, I do still have the other.... And since both are older ('87 and '88) and not cherry looking, they are not likely to be stolen. And registration is cheap! Or you can put the money in the bank and use it to rent tow vehicles when you need it....

I understand. It is kind of a halfway step.... Well, more like an 90% step in the Pathy's. Properly done (as in the Pathy), it is still a HUGE improvement over a carb, and having driven TBI and MPFI VG30's back to back, I find the difference to be relatively small. Noticeable, but small. The Pathy TBI is NOTHING as pathetic as the original GM efforts.... If you find a post '89 engine to put in, start with the '88 TBI set up and give it a try. Once it's running great and all the other niggles are fixed, then tackle the swap. Make sure you get everything with the later engine! Getting all the parts later will be a pain and $$$.

WTF? Are you trying to sound like a non-sensical, illiterate, grammatically challenged idiot? If you were, congratulations. Now explain yourself. If not, you failed....

The towing in Colorado is going to be a real challenge if you are thinking to put the Miata on a trailer. You just ain't got much air up there, yet the hills are steep.... I'm afraid a Pathy (or any of the others you listed) just isn't going to do it as well as you'd like. You really need at least 5 liters worth of torque... But other than that, they are excellent rigs, and I highly recommend them.