GoPathyGo

Shot in the dark... "C230 Sport had DOHC with continuously variable intake and exhaust timing. Magnesium 2-stage resonance intake manifold increased intake runner length at lower rpm for improved response. Electropneumatic turbulence flaps at start of intake path help increase intake airflow speed at midrange rpm for greater air-fuel mixture swirling and stronger, more complete combustion" Dunno. I'm more a Nissan and BMW guy m'self.

Yeah, I've tried tons of tires and keep going back to them. They are freaking AWESOME in wet weather. Forget glue, they're like nails. Can't wait to put 500-600 miles on them. That's my usual break-in time. Looking to get the road feel back with the thin rubber. Don't want to go much thinner given the roads around here. So if the 18s don't work in terms of road feel, I'll have to look into the power steering boost levels. Stiffer sidewalls and larger wheels are already making their presence felt - much flatter when cornering.

Eventually went with the Eagle F1 GS-D3s. Just like that tire too much. Ditched the idea of the Brembo Big Brake kit. Too expensive for dubious value. Just gonna grab some new rotors and a fresh pair of calipers instead. She's on 235/50-18 up front and 255/45-18 out back on TireRack Sport Edition (their house brand) alloys. Worked out well. Thank God!

x2. There's already a "What's your other ride" thread...

When I took my hitch off, I think there was a wiring harness built in behind the taillight. Passenger side. It was meant to allow you to hook up the 7-pin adapter. You may have to root about a bit to see if yours has one too. Try looking both directly and via the panels that pop off. All those trim pieces can be popped off carefully with a screwdriver. I'll see if I can find something in my service manual or owner's manual. BTW, if you don't have one and plan to work on your Pathfinder, a Service Manual is an invaluable tool. $20 online for a pdf.

For reference, here are the drain and fill plugs I found. With the skids and all the rubbish in the garage it was difficult to get good shots but you should get the general idea: Fill plug in top center of pic, rear of t-case facing the back of the truck. It's between the rusty clamp and the rusty cat pipe at the top of the pic. Drain plug at bottom of case, front of t-case facing the front of the truck. Has a little yellow mark underneath it.

Sorry, Ty, I have to disagree on this one. That looks like a frog crossed with a fish. And those side mirrors look like warts. UGH.

Willkomen!

Black, with trail-installed stripes. Will eventually have her repainted silver. Easier to maintain.

Hmm... The front is up on jack stands, so maybe a bunch of the liquid got pushed back. I'll try it again when it's level or, better yet, when the rear's up a little higher and everything gets pushed towards the drain plug. Not like I'm short ATF - got 4 quarts of the stuff lying around.

Dunno. I don't really see the point. With these things, I feel like you aren't really driving a truck/car anymore. For me, the fun of wheeling, specially in IFS trucks, is conquering obstacles and exploring in what are (relatively speaking) lightly modified real-world vehicles that can go right back onto pavement. It's part of the reason I really don't care too much about Wranglers on 40" tires. Why bother with trucks at all ? Just get an old Soviet BMP or tracked recovery vehicle. Just my personal bias.

Aight, so I did what I HOPE was the right thing. After scraping off some crap and using a flashlight (apparently my eyes are the latest thing to be going), I found what I believe are the t-case drain and fill plugs. The drain plug was on the driver's side, facing the front of the truck. The refill plug was also driver's side but facing the rear of the truck. Both were basically right at the edge of the t-case. Far left if you were sitting in the driver's seat. Both opened up with a 1/4" drive. The stuff that came out of the drain plug was so dark brown as to be almost black. There also was far less than I expected. I refilled up to the level of the fill plug, per the service manual. But even that wasn't much. Maybe half a quart, including spillage etc. I had to use a freaking siphon pump to get the fluid in. Used Castrol ATF instead of Nissan Matic-D. After filling and closing everything, I started the truck and went through all the locations in all modes. P/R/N/D/2/1 in 4HI, 4LOW, 2HI etc. Nothing screamed at me from the instrument panel and nothing seemed to catch fire. Couldn't actually drive it since it's up on jack stands right now, waiting for a new brake line. Do the location of the plugs and the amount I used sound right ? Did I miss another set of plugs ? Did I just fill something completely different with ATF ?

Ha! Fortunately not. Turns out I never changed the t-case oil. Just the A/T oil. That was 'cause I never found the t-case drain and fill plugs. Today I finally found them - after scraping off crap and using a flashlight. Apparently my eyes are losing it... So there was definitely fluid in it when I smelled the burning. They do use the same fluid, just not the same drain and fill plugs. I was confused on the drain and fill thing.

1990-96 300ZX Twin Turbo FTW Gorgeous cars, wicked fast, 4-wheel Super HICAS steering, cockpit-adjustable adjustable shocks, 4-piston front calipers, 300 hp... *drool* http://www.modified.com/features/0306scc_n...urbo/index.html Pain to work on cause of the tight fit, but dang they are hot cars even after all these years... Just my $0.02.

After I smelled burning oil, decided to grab a transfer case temp gauge and a tranny temp gauge. I think the only diff between a "Transmission Temp Gauge" and a "Transfer Case Temp Gauge" is the labeling. I like the idea of getting a T-connecter version for the sending unit. Avoids drilling into the tranny. Could you use a drain plug, too ?

Also, check the area under the center console. My R50 has a gap and a 2-piece rubber trim piece that folds around the emergency brake. You'd be amazed how easily stuff drops in there - pennies, screws, pens (!), crumbs etc. You can pop up the hard plastic trim piece in front of the e-brake and also the trim piece around the gear shifter. (The large wood/plastic one, NOT the aluminum-colored shift gate itself.) A shop vac in there will do wonders. I developed the heat shield problem after installing the AC skids. The clamp after the driver's side cat was causing an audible hum when driving. Solved it by using a pair of heavy-duty scissors to trim the shield around the clamp bolt and a pair of pliers to twist a small section up and away from everything else. Solved the problem. Also, MJBBMANO, I highly recommend buying a Nissan shop manual. If nothing else, reading it will give you peace of mind. The more you know, the less you'll worry about things. You can get them online. Just google "Nissan Pathfinder service manual" and your year. Just make sure it's the original Nissan one and not a knockoff. I got a pdf version of mine for $20 online. It has paid for itself many many times over.

Ok, so a few updates based on my experience. 1. The stock power heated seats are HEAVY. No doubt about it. I removed the passenger seat yesterday and that thing's 40+ lbs 2. The Corbeau seat adapters sold by AC and others for the Xterra/Frontier do NOT fit my '03 R50. Too long and the R50 has a plastic bump/floor reinforcement (haven''t pulled up the carpet to see what's hiding underneath) those 2 apparently don't have - at least not in the same place. So I'm looking at 2 options right now: 1. Separate the stock frame rails from the rest of the stock seat, drill new holes and try to attach suspension seats to those. Separating the frame rails on mine will require essentially drilling through some flat clips and bolts holding the rails to the rest of the seat. 2. Forget the whole idea and just get lighter manual fabric seats from the JY Will keep you guys posted. (Bad pun, I know.)

FYI, I spoke with a friendly neighborhood dealer parts desk. (Shockingly, such things do exist.) 1. "Mobil 1 should be fine" 2. "Dude, save your money on the so-called Nissan Coolant. It's just green stuff." 3. "It makes NO SENSE to buy AT Fluid here. Get Dexron III anywhere and you're fine."

They went from radiator to A/C to rack and pinion ? Surprised to hear the entire Rack & Pinion is going. Did they say specific parts needed to be replaced or the whole thing ? Given a bill that size, I'd get a second opinion from another shop, at least... Cheapest parts will be a local junk/salvage yard. Typically, the "you pull it off the car, you pay for it" places are cheapest, then junk/salvage yards where they pull the parts. Also check eBay. But would definitely suggest getting a 2nd opinion. Good luck.

Welcome! Yup, there isn't anywhere near as much aftermarket support as there is for Jeeps. But don't let the mild manners and everyday cruising ability fool you. These trucks can go most places and do most things you could reasonably want. (Not counting things like 40"+ tires and stuff, though some folks HAVE done that too.) Part of the charm is being able to hang with the toughest off-road vehicles when no one expects you to. Then you just hose it off and drive to work. Can't do that in a lot of the rigs I see on the trails. Anyway, you're gonna have a lot of fun. We have one guy on here who's at 400k miles all original I think. So yours is practically new at 132k miles!

Good to know. D'you have a closeup shot or a description of how you pushed the rear plastic in ? I have a bit of rubbing on the rear with the 265s but reluctant to do major surgery there since there are more important things in that footwell area. Thanks.

So, what color's the brand-spanking-new one he's buying you gonna be ?

"Which lift" is a bit like the "which beer" question. Everyone has an opinion and an experience but ultimately it comes down to what you'd like out of a lift. OME makes nice products but the OME lift doesn't give you quite as much lift as the AC lift. Some would say the 0.5"-1" difference is negligible. Others would say it makes all the difference in the world. The KYBs are an excellent strut. Bilsteins are great, but if you want adjustable shocks, Rancho seems to be the way to go given the sheer number of people who have them. Guess it'd help to understand your goals/budget/priorities etc.

Cool. Do the 275 width tires fit without rubbing ?