mws

No, it is not crap. There is an incredibly slim chance everything is perfectly matched right out of the box, but most users will see at a least a doubling in range with tuning - and some MUCH more than that. Put your stuff in and see what kind of range you have. If it is inadequate for you, get it tuned. And with the firestick, I think you can fine tune the length yourself. It's more time consuming without the VSWR meters like the shop has, but it can be done. Tuning just the antenna won't get you quite as much as tuning the entire system, but it is far better than nothing. Find a big open area. Have a buddy park and continuously talk to you. Drive away until signal fades away. Stop, and adjust antenna length until it signal gets stronger. Drive further on until the same happens. Eventually, tweaking the length even a tiny bit in either direction causes significant loss. You're there.

So are you saying one of the cams was off by one tooth before you started? That would affect emission levels! And power... Good thing you're doing all this! And thanks for sharing your adventure. I'm thinking about pulling my heads this summer to drill out all the broken studs and do some very mild porting (basic bowl shaping and clean up) before I do the headers. And after you're done, don't worry too much about using any special "engine flush". Just run top of the line oils and change after a few hundred miles the first couple times. Top line oils contain verrry impressive detergent packages that will clean out that stuff very quickly. My personal favorite is Valvoline, but most other name brands are probably just as good. And of course, Mobil 1 is probably the best available for under $5/qt.

Pathfinders are grossly undervalued and under priced in my area (NoCal). It would have to be really clean with minimal needs to warrant $2300 here. Like new battery, tires, brakes, tune up, near perfect interior and body, etc. I found mine for $500 but it needed a thorough tune up, some TLC (aka, caressing with a sledgehammer!), new stereo, brakes, exhaust, and new tires. For $1500, it was running great and looking "good". Had 175K mostly freeway miles (still original clutch). But then again, I think a really clean 1st Gen Pathfinder is worth much more than $2300! They are awesome little buggers. Reliable, capable, reasonably practicle. In fact, if you offered to give me a Cherokee that was sellable for $4000 and a Pathfinder that was sellable for $2500, I would take the Pathy in a heartbeat. They are worth more than they sell for, whereas Heeps (IMO) are worth a lot less than they sell for. So if it is really clean, it is worth it. But with enough digging and careful shopping, you likely could score a better deal.

What's your goal? Just for looks, or soft core off roading, or hard core bashing?

Glad I was able to help before you ended up with a "modified" plenum like I have! And remember - this type of problem is NOT unique to Pathfinders - although it appears the pathy may ingest more than average. Most vehicles have the same types of problems to varying degrees. I've never opened a plenum that didn't have some debris in it. Just out of curiosity, I'd like to request everbody add a post to this thread detailing how much debris there was and how frequently they park under trees.

It was mentioned in the original post.

I would think the rear shocks from a 1 ton full size truck would be waaayyyyyy overdamped for our little light pathy's, wouldn't they? Kind of like no compliance at all and a buckboard ride?

THAT'S A KEEPER! Thanks for putting that up!

it's shocking.... Chico has over 80K people and one auto graveyard. And it is a terrible one. So I have to drive an hour or two to even look... And I have become a little fanatical about not driving unless really necessary as my way of flipping off the gas companies. I'll hold off cutting up the good wheel as long as possible... I may have to make another drive up to Portland in a month or two so I'll hit some JY's on the way.

'98: Nice job on the install! Have you taken any measurements, or seen any published figures, on how much current the Taurus fan pulls at low and at high speed? I am designing my wiring schematic. I am confident standard 30 amp relays will be plenty for low speed, but how about high speed? Did you confirm that article that said 40 amp is enough? Or should I go with doubled up 30 amp?

Thanks for looking! I'll just hack up one of my good wheels. It was just gathering dust... Anybody want the leftover? 15x8, 5 on 5 lug, standard Chevy backspacing. It's the polished aluminum style with 8 big holes in it.

I'm too old for bling, so it doesn't work for me. Sorry! But if it works for you, DO IT!

I used one for years on a car I wanted to protect the paint on with no problems. The key is to keep it very clean underneath, and only use as needed. I used it only on long road trips. Leaving it and forgetting it will result in scuffed and unfaded paint.

A bra? Why would any "Hardbody" want to wear a bra! Flaunt it!

Trying....... not..... to ..... lose it here...... Oh my.............. Must........retain....... professional..... demeanor

On my '87, I believe I am seeing 1-2 mpg improvement on long trips. It's hard to put an exact figure on it, but here's the stats on (3) 1000 mile road trips from NoCal to Portland OR and back: 1) June: 17 mpg. Mechanical fan, had A/C running at least 75% of the time and it was hot. 2) October: 21 mpg. Electric fan, but A/C was on for maybe 100 miles. 3) December: 19.5 mpg. Electric fan, NO A/C, stiff head wind for several hundred miles. Even factoring in the rule of thumb that A/C will cost about 1 mpg, and tossing out another 1 mpg for colder, denser air on trips 2 and 3, I think at least 1 mpg is very realistically attributed to the fan. I am using a fan out of a mid '90's BMW 528 as I had one laying around. It's a 3 speed. And the engine does pick up revs much quicker without the mechanical fan load. It feels like what a 5 hp increase would. Although it is mostly inertial effects and probably more like a 1 or 2 hp increase, it is a noticeable kick in the peppy pants. How much did I like it? I purchased 2 taurus fans (the 2 speed version off the 3.8l car) to do the same in my tow van.

Please stop driving immediately! If I am seeing what I think I'm seeing, your strut tower is breaking free from the unibody - and will get only worse until the top of the strut breaks loose completely, which will result in the front left corner collapsing downward and likely a loss of steering and control. There must be massive rust damage and/or a serious impact to cause that to break. Take it to a very reputable repair shop and get it fixed. It will require lots of fabrication and needs to be done well.

Hmmm.... that's exactly what the previous owner said before the smoke began... Does the smell start when the cabin fan is on speeds 2 or 3, and then dissipates when you turn the fan to settings 1, full, or off? If so: STOP using the ventilation fan on any settings except off or maximum until you check this out - when the fire starts (and the smell is telling you it is just about to...), it is hard to put out - until it melts/burns through the plenum and makes a hellacious mess of things.... Seriously, this can be a real mess. The fire will start inside the plenum and blow massive amounts of smoke into the cabin, blinding you. What's happening? There is a resistor pack for the blower motor. This is what allows you to have multiple speeds. It works by adding resistors in line with the motor. Since the motor draws so much current, a bunch of current goes through the resistors. Which means a whole lot of heat. The resistors would glow red hot and ignite things without a lot of air blowing across them. When fan is off, no heating. On setting 1, three resistors get a little hot. On 2, two resistors get hot. On setting 3, one resistor gets REALLY hot. On full/maximimum, the pack is bypassed and does not get hot. Where are these resistors? In an ideal location where lots of air will blow across them when they need cooling. Inside the heater plenum, after the fan and before the air conditioner evaporator and heater core. Works great with one possible problem - If you park under trees on a regular basis and don't clean out the fresh air intake regularly (the grilled area between the hood and windshield), small pieces of leaves and pine needles can work their way down through the fan and get into the plenum. Over years, they build up. Once you get about 4" of build up in the plenum, they start touching those resistors. Run the fan on speed 2 or 3, and those resistors will get hot enough to dry out and eventually IGNITE the debris. By the way, this is not unique to Pathfinders. Pretty much all vehicles I know of are subject to this. How to fix? Easy. This is how you would do it on an left hand drive '87 - others are likely similar: 1) Remove the glove box. 2) Remove the metal plate you see. You are now looking at the ventilation system plenum. It is fiber reinforced plastic. The fan is to your right, the AC core and heater core are to the left. 3) See that giz bob sticking out into the plenum with a connector plugged sticking out of it? With 4 or 5 fat wires sticking out of it? That's the resistor pack. Remove the two screws securing it to the plenum and pull it out. Look in the hole. 4) WHOLLY CRAP! See how much debris is built up? And notice some of it is scorched? Thank goodness you cleaned it out now! scoop it out with your hand or use a vacuum. Reassemble. Thank your good fortune you did this before the fire. :bow:

Yup.... I I am using a 10.5" 14 bolt FF (with Eaton locker) rear axle for the rear. No more worries about diff failure from hammering 450 lb-ft through it for extended periods pulling the trailer up over the Sierra's! The old rear end was running at about 350 degrees after about 15 minutes of hard pull. That wasn't going to last long... The G vans were limited for rear end options - 8.5" 10 bolt was used in the 1/2 ton and 3/4 ton, and then the big 14 bolt in the G30. And that was it. And P/U axles are too narrow. And the FF only came with the large bolt pattern so the outer bearing carrier can fit through the wheel hub. Yup - aluminum. The thicker the better, with as much meat as possible between the lug circle and any decorative styling holes in the wheel as the new studs will be inserted about 3/4" further out from the existing lug holes. What I'll be doing is cutting the rim section off, and then turning a 9" diameter disk out of what's left. Then drilling holes and inserting studs - 8 studs on a 6.5" diameter circle. I have a pair of nearly new 15x8 Ultra wheels that would work, but I would hate to cut up a good wheel....

The speedometer itself, or the odometer? If it's the speedometer itself, look closely at the needle. Mine was warped and the tip was just touching the black face - and would drag and stick.

Newark Electronics and Mouser Electronics are my two favorite sources for switches. Mouser has hundreds of styles, Newark has literally thousands. You'll have to look carefully as most lighted switches are designed for 120 systems and would not light up with only 12 volts. You can also wire in LED's alongside the switches... Conversion vans tend to have lots of switches added. And some are attractive, and most are lighted. If your local JY's have any, you might want to take a look. And for a fuse panel, check these beauties out: http://www.seamar.com/blueseas.html Scroll down a bit... I am using two of the 12 circuit panels in Frankenvan, and they are the nicest I have found. Got them through Bass Pro of all places... Here's another couple sites you may find useful: http://store.hamiltonmarine.com/browse.cfm...atid=384&step=2 http://www.americanautowire.com/index.cfm http://www.wiringproducts.com/index.html?t...html&lang=en-us http://www.v-sales.com/switches.htm

Sorry about posting CHEVY stuff, but hoping you all can forgive me.... I am looking for one aluminum wheel with a 5 lug on 5" circle lug pattern. I will be just cutting out the center and throwing away the hoop, so an old bent or disgusting crusted up wheel would be fine! Go drag that nasty turd out from under the junk pile and help a guy out! What the heck for? Frankenvan has a 1 ton rear axle with 8 on 6.5" lug pattern. The front is 3/4 ton with 5 on 5 pattern. That means I would have to carry two spares... I looked into swapping the front suspension to a one ton, but that results in several other problems - wheel and tire selection being the biggest problem. So I designed an adapter that will allow me to fit the 8 on 6.5" wheel on the front hub. This will allow me to use the single big spare on the front in case of emergency. Buying the aluminum to make the adapter would be well over $100. Then it dawned on me that an old wheel would work - and it already has 5 of the holes in it! Ideally, the wheel will have a very thick center (1.5" would be optimal) with the mounting surface on the back side being about 8" in diameter before holes and stuff appear. A modular style wheel would probably be ideal. If you can help, I will gladly pay shipping and beer (or JD) money!

That's a damm good thought..... hmmm..... acoustically couple the metal to the plywood! That would deaden it something fierce! Would be a whole lot of holes (I'd guess about one every 6 or 12" and would have to do a row between each "rib") but last time I checked, they were cheap!

Yes, a lathe is a fantastic way to check for flatness. The only difficult part is getting it chucked up perfectly perpindicular to the face of the lathe, but you should be able to figure it out. then turn it slowly while tracing a dial indicator across. The manual will give maximum allowable specs. And if I were in your shoes, I would be ALL OVER trying it myself! Chuck that baby up and take a couple thou off! What's the worst that can happen? You goof it up and have to use it as a core to get a rebuilt one.... I'm sure you can do some surfing and find out what type of cutter to use, what kind of feed rates are ideal, etc. There have got to be lots of home mechanics and small shops with lathes that talk among themselves on what works and what doesn't.

About time I got a response... I was getting impatient! Thanks, Pezzy!