XPLORx4

Hahahaahaha! Been there, done that! I think I still have mud lurking in the deepest crevasses under my truck from 10 years ago!

Some of the most common hex head sizes on the Pathy are 10mm, 12mm, 14mm, 17mm, and 19mm. You'll do well to get some ratcheting and/or combo wrenches (one end is open, the other end is boxed) in each of those sizes.

Well I guess you should consider yourself fortunate! My Pathy won't even go 85mph up a slight grade! LOL. I'm not really surprised that at that speed your tranny won't shift into OD. The engine (even your VQ35 with more HP than my VG33) is working really hard to overcome drag at that speed, and it just does not have enough power at lower RPM to maintain that speed while also ascending a grade. Nevertheless, a fluid change is a good idea. Just don't be disappointed when you find out that replacing the ATF does not achieve the expected results above.

Maintenance tip: When replacing oil filter: •Loosen the oil filter, but don't break the seal to let oil leak out. •Place a ziplock sandwich baggie over the filter while you unscrew it and remove it. The oil will drip into the sandwich baggie instead of down onto the steering rack and bushing, which will deteriorate rapidly after it's been soaked in oil. The 96 Pathfinder does not have auto hubs. It has drive flanges which lock the front drivetrain to the front wheels. The front drivetrain always rotates when the wheels rotate. You notice the CV clicking only when in 4WD because that's the only time there is significant torque applied to the front wheels. As mentioned above, you can install automatic hubs (such as from an Xterra) or aftermarket manual hubs, to improve MPG and decrease wear and tear.

Cool. Please also report on your observations about fuel economy, acceleration, and braking.

Looks good! What actual size tires are those? Have you stuffed the rear end yet? I'd hate to see you mangle a rear fender.

You sure it's a front end wobble, and not a wobble caused by worn rear lower link bushings?

The Pathfinder has a part-time 4WD system, and is not recommended for any high-traction surface. Tip: wet pavement qualifies as a high-traction surface. Part-time 4WD systems lock the front and rear axles together, preventing each wheel from rotating at different speeds needed during tight turns. This is why many crossover SUVs have AWD, which allows slippage between the front and rear axles, a characteristic that's needed on pavement. The condition you're describing is absolutely normal and expected, whether or not you have a rear limited-slip differential. Don't use 4WD anywhere you would normally see a FWD car. If a FWD car can drive on it, you obviously don't need 4WD.

Sorry it's taken me so long to reply. I checked the tag on the Nissan cargo liner that I own, which fits my '97 LE. It's 999m1-xg000, the same as linked in various places above, so it'll definitely fit your '96! This place has the lowest price.

That's a good tip, but he already mentioned he knows about pushing down while shifting, so the issue must be something different. To BowTied: Is it possible that you're just not pulling it back into 4LO firmly enough? The tranny needs to be in "N" when shifting from 4H to 4L, and sometimes full engaging 4LO requires the gear mesh to be just right.

Looks nice, although I would encourage you to gusset the bracket shown in the first photo to strengthen the joint between the plate and the box tube. A hard hit on the outside bottom edge of the main slider may cause the bracket to bend downwards. The lateral box tube is much stronger than the plate, and it may bend away from where it's bolted to the chassis. Also, if you opt to make these sliders entirely bolt-on, use all three mounting points on the chassis: front (shown in your photo), middle, and rear (just in front of the rear wheel well). I have run the bolt-on sliders linked below for many abusive miles and they're still holding up fine! Pathfinder Sliderz

I'm running an Optima blue-top as my primary battery, and an Odyssey PC680 as an emergency backup battery. I'm using a stock alternator. All electrical loads (incuding aux lights, audio, and winch) are attached to the Optima, and the only time I ever engage the Odyssey is if I've drained the main battery, such as running a 12v fridge all weekend while camping, and need to start the engine. I am using the Hellroaring BIC-95150B Battery Isolator/Combiner with a in-cab remote switch to temporarily engage the PC680 to help put just enough "charge" into the main battery to start the engine, at which point the alternator begins recharging the main battery. Probably the most difficult challenge you face is finding a suitable location to mount your second battery where it won't compromise the cargo volume. The BIC unit is pretty small. I was able to mount it on the front of the passenger-side strut tower in the engine bay, directly beneath the fuse box.

You do not want to connect batteries in series. You want them connected in parallel. Check out this diagram, which I found after entering "series or parallel battery wiring" on google. As for keeping your electrical systems completely isolated, you might want to consider the Powergate. It's a high-quality component.

Battery isolation systems used for dual-battery configurations do not charge one battery, wait for it to be "full" then charge the second battery. Both batteries are charged simultaneously as needed. If one battery is mostly charged, but the other is depleted, the circuitry charges one battery more than the other. The alternator's function is to supply the vehicle's electrical needs without having to rely on the batteries. If your electrical drain exceeds the alternator's capacity for long periods of time, then you will eventually end up with a dead battery, a burned out alternator, or both. If your current system, with all your lights and gizmos, is working OK, then you may not need to change anything, except find a place to install that second battery somewhere and connect it. There are several types of dual-battery configurations. Here are a few: 1) MAIN battery + BACKUP battery: All electrical needs are attached to the MAIN battery. The BACKUP battery is there in case the main battery dies, and fails to start the vehicle. 2) STARTING battery + AUX battery: The starting and ignition circuits are attached to the STARTING battery. Everything else, including lighting, accessories, audio, etc. are attached to the AUX battery. 3) MAIN battery + AUX battery: All electrical needs are attached to the MAIN battery. The AUX battery is attached to the MAIN battery, and can serve as a means to double the overall battery capacity. Read more about dual battery configurations here.

I'll take a look at the one I have, and see if it has a part number on it still. I know it fits my '97. It's not rubber, though. It's vinyl. The parts guy may be confused.

The 96-04 interior dimensions and configuration are essentially the same, so I wouldn't worry. 999M1-XG000 is said to fit a '99, whose cargo area is unchanged from the '96. In fact, other web sites even specify that part to fit only the 01-04 as well, so it seems that perhaps Nissan is somewhat embarrassed to admit that they used the same chassis for 9 years. http://www.nissanparts.cc/catalog/?section=85#585

Check your wheel bearings, too.

I second that! Mine came in very handy when I took my sister's dogs to the beach. It kept the cargo area mud, sand, and dog-hair free!

Welcome to the forum. Go with 15x8 with 4" BS. The wider wheel and neutral backspacing will increase the Pathfinder's track width, improving cornering and stability. The wider track also makes the truck look "tougher". More backspacing will pull the tire closer to the strut and introduce higher risk of rubbing; you don't want that. 4" BS works great to keep the tires (up to 32x11.50R15) away from the strut. However, there may be some *minor* rubbing on the front plastic inner fender liners during full-lock steering, but you can reshape them with a heat gun (or trim them with a utility knife) if the rubbing annoys you. The struts won't "collapse" on you; that's nonsense. I've been running 15x8-4"BS wheels for over 120,000 miles, with both 31x10.50R15 and 32x11.50R15 tires without any kind of catastrophic failures that could be attributed to the wider wheel size.

There are no aftermarket bolt-on trailer hitches which provide alternate mounting methods for the spare tire. All of the trailer hitches I've seen keep the spare in the stock location. Nevertheless, a trailer hitch is a good accessory, because it provides a solid rear attachment point for recovery equipment and protects the rear bumper when you exceed your departure angle. I wheeled my Pathy for 8 years with a trailer hitch and the spare in the stock location.

Yeah, don't mod that protective cover. The fuel and brake lines are beneath it! I would not worry about the rubbing on that cover, since it's not often that you drive with the wheels fully turned right. If you are concerned with the rubbing, just back off on the steering wheel input a little. Something you might find interesting is that the 96-99 LE has a steering rack which allows for a tighter turning radius. SE's and XE's have steering racks which don't allow the tires to turn as sharply, so ironically on those models you won't get as much, if any, rubbing on that plate. Here's what mine looks like with 32x11.50R15 tires on 15x8 wheels, after 160,000 miles:

Well, the gist of it is if you want to do absolutely nothing more than replace the tires, get 30x9.50R15. That tire size won't be noticeable with the stock LE gearing. However, if your budget allows the purchase of new wheels, "bunch of mods" isn't really that big a deal. If you have a hairdryer, you should be able to heat up the plastic fender liners to reshape them to prevent rubbing when you steer full right or left. And it's just a few screws to remove the mudflaps.

Swap the left and right bulbs. If the blown light moves with the swap, it's the bulb. If it doesn't move, it's a wiring problem. It's likely just a bad bulb.

Yep, the difference in height is due to the tire size. The stock LE tire recommendation is 235/70R15 (or 28" diameter), while the SE uses 265/70R15 (29.6" diameter). Also, the LE has a higher final drive ratio of 4.363:1 (i.e. the ring and pinion gears in the front/rear differentials), so the engine has to work harder to spin larger tires. The SE's ratio is 4.636:1, which is 6% lower, and is a better ratio to handle larger tires. Finally, the stock "luxury spoke" alloy wheels on the LE are 15x6.5", which are too narrow to fit 31x10.50R15 tires. The 15x7 wheels on the SE can accomodate 31" tires OK, though. The largest tire I would recommend on the stock wheels is 30x9.50R15. If you're willing to replace the wheels because you really want 31's, and you think you might eventually want to try 32's, then I suggest 15x8 wheels with a backspacing between 3.75" to 4". Backspacing outside this range will not work. Wheels this size will accomodate 31" tires with some trimming or heat-gun reshaping of the front plastic inner fender liners, and 32" tires if you remove all mudflaps and trim pieces on the fenders.

How did you check the bulb? Did you swap it with the passenger-side headlamp bulb? Since your high-beam indicator comes on all the time, the problem may be the multifunction headlamp/turn signal switch.