XPLORx4

A 96 doesn't have the all-mode transfer case, so its internals may be different.

Go visit a reputable dealer, and have them put a new manifold on. Should cost ~$300.

They add about as much HP to your vehicle as a Type R sticker on your rear window. The first item, #1, modifies the signal of the IAT sensor, which isn't even used to control engine functions at all on the Pathy. Basically, the "best bang for your buck" mods are: upgraded intake and upgraded exhaust. After that, swapping cams or getting the chip reprogrammed by JWT or Jet is the next step.

Couple grand, probably. Check KBB.com or edmunds.com for comparable values.

Do you have a sunroof, the temp/compass display or map lights in the overhead console? Why bother running wires down the A-pillar if you can just find +12v hot and ACC in the overhead console? Constant hot is easy: just tap into the map lights. If you don't have a sunroof or the temp display, then you will need to run a wire down the A-pillar to find an ACC-switched source.

Yeah, but ATP means "Automatic Transmission Park". The ATP function described on page 133 of my owner's manual is shown below:

The ATP light doesn't come on in my 97 unless the ignition is on, the T-case is first shifted into "N", then the transmission is shifted into "P". It doesn't come on if the tranny is in "N".

It's likely that the when you push the plug further into the socket, the metal springs (which are ground) on each side of the plug get pushed further into the plug body and contact a positive wire or connector inside the plug, creating a short circuit. You can verify this by removing the plug from the car, and using an ohmmeter to measure the resistance between the positive (tip) and the side springs when you squeeze them in. If it measures 0 ohms when you squeeze the springs, but not when you release them, that's the problem. Can you disassemble the plug? If not, just exchange it for a new one.

Heck, power seats? Most rough-and-tumble vehicles I've seen don't even have an enclosed cabin! Yeah, dust-free, climate-controlled comfort is pure luxury compared to a Jeep! My rig may not crawl over the biggest boulders, and I might actually have to THINK about picking a line, but at least I don't need to worry about being too hot (or cold), or getting wet, or sneezing mud out my nose, while on the trail.

No. Go pick up your new part at your local auto parts store first. Sometimes they're special-order and take a few days to ship. You don't want to have you truck disassembled and find out nobody has the part in stock. You'll need to remove the tire, then remove the snap-ring on the outer hub: Then, unbolt the 6 bolts holding the CV axle to the differential: Finally, support the hub/knuckle with a floor jack, and unbolt the 2 bolts holding the strut to the knuckle: Remove the clips/brackets holding the brake line and ABS wire to the strut, so they don't pull off when you lower the hub. Now, lower the entire front hub/brake/knuckle assembly away from the strut and try to wrangle the CV axle out from the REAR of the wheel well. It helps to turn the steering wheel so that the REAR of the wheel well has more space. In other words, if you're working on the driver's side CV, turn the wheel RIGHT. To provide more clearance to maneuver the CV axle out, you may also need to disconnect the endlinks of the sway bar (on both sides of truck). Swap out the CV axles, go return the old/bad one to the auto parts store and get your core charge back.

Functionally and mechanically, the QX4 and Pathfinder basically are the same, except only Pathfinders with the all-mode 4wd knob on the dash are the same as the QX4. Models with the lever-operated transfer case are different. Suspension tuning (springs/shocks) may also be slightly different, but Pathy and QX4 springs are interchangeable. The QX4 may have some additional cool features, such as remote rear glass release, and it has some different body trim, but everything else is close enough. Why do you ask?

Does the cigarette lighter work? Try another accessory plug. That is, plug some other kind of 12v device into the socket. If the fuse blows again, it's likely something wrong with the socket. If it doesn't blow, try just plugging the Treo plug into the socket (without the Treo attached). If it blows, then your new Treo power adapter is defective.

Yeah, road noise when it's wet out is pretty loud, especially from the rear wheel wells. This is typical behavior. You can reduce the noise by spraying a rubberized undercoating in the wheelwells.

But you're still looking for a pillar pod, right? Me too!

4x4le- thanks! For the record, I wasn't expecting pics, anyway.

I finally completed my Bose-ectomy last night. It sounds pretty good. It took me about 20 hours to install everything, though. Whew! With the new HU and all 4 door speakers upgraded, the poor-quality sound and door buzzing has disappeared. I've listened to a few CDs and DVDs with my new setup and I'm very content. I didn't want to go through the hassle of running new speaker wire to the doors, so I found a creative way to reuse the factory speaker wires. The factory Bose HU runs front audio signals from the HU directly to the front doors, where each speaker has its own amp, and it runs rear audio signals to the Bose amp behind the rear left cargo panel. Since I mounted the Alpine amp in the same location (where there are no front speaker or signal connections), I had to find some way to get audio from the amp to the front speakers, without running new speaker wire from the rear to the front doors. So, powering rear speakers is easy. I simply used the now-empty factory audio wiring harness. The amp's rear speaker outputs are connected to the harness' rear speaker wires. The amp's front outputs are connected to the harness' rear speaker signal wires (that normally carry the low-level HU signal). Whoa there! Huh? you say.... Yes, that's right, I'm sending amplified speaker output back to the HU! But wait! The HU isn't even connected yet! So, now I have amplified front speaker output coming from the factory HU wiring harness' rear signal wires. To get that front speaker output heading to the front speakers, I just jumpered the front and rear signal wires together. Voila! Front signal makes it from the rear of the vehicle via the rear INPUT The trick to this is two-fold: 1) Use the Nissan audio wiring adapter (supplied for free with my Crutchfield purchase). 2) Get audio signal from the HU to the amp with RCA pre-outs; the speaker-level HU connections are never used. This is the important requirement to make it all work. About the speakers: The speakers I have are 50wRMS Alpine 2-way 6.5" (woofers and tweeters in one unit). I put identical speakers in all 4 doors. Each door has its own Bose amp and speaker. I looked at the wiring at each Bose amp. It has only 6 connections: +/- signal from the HU +/- signal to the speaker +12vDC/ground At the speaker itself, there are 2 wires attached to each speaker terminal: +/- signal from the Bose amp +/- signal that goes back up to the door (not back into the amp). According to the FSM and my Haynes manual, these wires connect to the A-pillar tweeters. Because of the way each front door amp and speaker is wired, it's clear that the Bose amp is not a crossover, and the front tweeters are getting a full-range signal which must be being clipped with a capacitor mounted on the tweeter itself. The Bose amp would need 8 wires to be an active crossover: +/- in from HU +/- to woofer +/- to tweeter +12vDC/ground (to power the amp) To disable the Bose amp, I unplugged the connector, and simply jumpered the +/- in and the +/- to speaker. (The +12vDC/ground connections are not used.) Since I simply reused the factory speaker wire, the A-pillar tweeters still get an amplified signal. The only possible problems I can think of by retaining the A-pillar tweeters are: 1) The impedance of the front speaker system is not 4ohms. I didn't measure the tweeter impedance, but I'm assuming it's 2ohms, just like the woofers. 2) The A-pillar tweeters may not be able to withstand 40wRMS (from the amp). And perhaps I won't get the best imaging from my system, but it's certainly better than the original system. Next on the list is to take advantage of the HU's 3 video inputs: Video1 and 2: Undercarriage-mounted cameras (for self-spotting while rock-crawling) Reverse-camera: License-plate camera :thumbsup:

The Apexi Super AFC (Air Flow Converter) is an air/fuel computer that allows tuning of the A/F ratio when the engine is modified. It basically converts the MAF voltage to different levels at various RPMs to reprogram the air/fuel map. The stock PCM doesn't know that the engine has performance cams, which allow more air to enter the combustion chamber, invalidating the factory pre-programmed fuel map.

FWIW, I have over 153,000 miles on my 97 Pathy, and have spent about $3000 on unscheduled maintenance, the majority of which was replacing the exhaust manifold, catalytic converters, and distributor ($2200) in order to pass emissions. This was the single most expensive repair I've ever had to pay for. Over the years, I have also had to replace the EVAP canister, the lower control arm bushings, and a leaky power steering hose, which cost another few hundred. The engine, tranny, t-case, and the rest of the drivetrain have not had any problems.

145,000 clicks (km) = 90,625 miles. That's still pretty young!

You're still going to want some way to supplement the rear suspension when towing. The tongue weight of the trailer will affect the rear suspension. It may not sag as much as it does now, but it will definitely be apparent.

Payload limit. Tow limit is 5000 lbs. It would be less stressful to the suspension and chassis to tow than to load the cargo area up, but it sounds like in his case, towing isn't feasible.

The "Service Engine Soon" light may be totally unrelated to your camping trip. Get it checked out. It could be as simple as an improperly tightened gas cap. The stock suspension on the Pathy is biased to provide a comfortable ride (instead of a stiff truck-like ride) when empty. The problem with this design approach is that when you use the vehicle for hauling loads (such as what you did), the rear suspension can't really do its job well. Just like you, I had this problem very early in my ownership experience, when I used the Pathy to carry passengers and tow a boat. The solution to this, when towing or hauling, was two-fold: 1) Install helper springs, in the form of inflatable air bags that insert inside the rear coil springs, and help support the extra weight over the rear axle. Read about my installation here. 2) Install adjustable shocks, whose shock rate can be increased to dampen the spring oscillations when there is significantly more load on the springs, and decreased when the vehicle is empty. Read about my installation here. When the Pathy was serving as a daily driver, the airbags and shocks were set to their minimum settings. When loaded down, I would pressurize the airbags to help level the load, and would dial in the shocks to provide a more controlled ride. My Pathy is lifted now, and the stiffer springs help compensate for heavy loads, so I don't really use the airbags anymore, but I always adjust the shocks when I've loaded the truck full of gear, or the rear end bounces up and down excessively.

So, I am now in the process of replacing my BOSE system. I purchased 2 pairs of Alpine SPS-17C2 6.5" speakers and an Alpine MRP-F250 4x40w amp to drive them. So far, I have replaced only the rear components: the Bose amp and rear door speakers. After spending $3 for a custom mount (2 metal framing ties at Home Depot) to attach the Alpine amp to the Bose mounting bracket, I was able to mount the Alpine amp in the same space. I'm driving the amp with the speaker-level outputs from the HU and using the factory speaker wires. I've not replaced the HU or the front door speakers yet, since I have not yet received the HU, and the Alpine speakers are 4?, while the Bose are 2?. The sound quality from the rear speakers is still disappointing, and the door panels rattle/buzz during louder bass notes. Is the poor sound quality due to the new speakers, the amp, the rear door "enclosure", or the Bose headunit? What can I do to eliminate door panel vibrations?

Doesn't your 99.5 have 16" wheels? If so, then no, 31x10.50R15's won't fit unless you get new wheels, too.

Ooops. Yeah, that's what I meant.