GoPathyGo

Nah, it was really more at the original post with spark plug comment.

Cool. I should have been more careful in my response. Are you planning to wheel a lot ? If not, the CVs may wear faster than stock but you may not mind (remans are < $100 each now). If you do wheel, it may be a bigger issue - droop, driveline strain, even faster wear etc. I was able to stuff 33s into my Pathy with the AC lift, 3 1/8" backspacing and a LOT of fender trimming. Basically I took out the fender flares and most, if not all, the plastic trim inside the wheelhouse. Still had little bits of rub (I also had 33s with an aggressive lug pattern so they looked and were kinda huge) occasionally but nothing dramatic. One thing to consider: the larger tires will weigh more. So the CV will also be turning more mass. Not necessarily a big deal; just another straw on the camels back. I would suggest seeing how you feel once the springs and 32s are in. If you still want to go with spacers, cool. Let us know how it goes.

Seafoam works pretty well. Not sure why you'd want to put it into the cylinders via the spark plugs. If you put it into the fuel tank, won't it eventually end up there anyway ?

Not good. Ride will be stiffer with the strut spacer too, though this may not matter as much to you. What size tires are you running ? Going from a 30" to a 32" would give you an inch extra clearance without the need for spacers.

The manual hubs may help so long as you don't have full-time 4WD. I don't think 97 SEs did. I hate to say it, but "fuel economy" is an oxymoron when it comes to these or most other capable trucks. Plus the Nissan V6 core was and is used in a wide range of applications. It tends to be a bit higher revving than a pure truck-oriented domestic V8 motor. Mine revs faster and has more punch than pretty much any 6-cylinder truck/SUV I've been in. (Yeah, I freed up the exhaust and stuff, but I also added tons of wheeling-related gear and it still MOVES.) You pay for that power when it comes to gas mileage. I don't think I ever got more than 16 mpg on a sustained basis, so you're definitely not alone. That said, welcome to the club.

Glad to hear you found the problem. I'd push hard to get the money back. Honestly, what a lousy job.

I have come to the conclusion that all fender flares suck. Took mine off my pickup today to get clearance for the wheels. I'll be #&$*% if there wasn't already a thin film of dirt and moisture trapped in there. The Pathy is now completely fender flare-less too. They are totally non-functional, a pain on the trail and rust magnets.

Very nice work.

Stupid. Just like the folks who want cheap, reliable electricity but don't want power lines or power plants anywhere near them. How is it supposed to get there ? Magic ? Local utility and city govt made a presentation at my neighborhood association the other day. All the power lines and equipment are being upgraded. As part of the process, they have to cut 2 trees that are leaning on power equipment and regularly cause localized blackouts. They will plant new ones to compensate for the cut ones. But the morons around here are putting chains around the trees and holding signs saying,"Save our trees". Really ? You WANT blackouts when it's 100 degrees in the shade or 5 degrees at midday ? 2 new trees won't make up for it ? Then a resident got up and asked if the utility could use a light-colored magic marker instead of the "very visible bright paint" on the "Construction Ahead" signs... *sigh* This is what we're up against. If this trend continues, eventually you will only be able to wheel on private land.

Just pointing out the contrast. I was a bit surprised by how stiff the ride became. Not complaining, but definitely quite different from the R50 Bilsteins.

I've had excellent results with my cordless 18V DeWalt HD impact. It's been dropped, stepped on and generally abused. Still runs like a top. Puts out 300 ft-lbs of torque. A quick google search will reveal many have had positive experiences with it. HOWEVER, as with all cordless items, battery is critical. If the battery's low or I'm doing extended work on high-torque parts that require precision - such as the suspension - I use an air impact that goes up to 600 ft-lbs. The DeWalt is hideously expensive - $250 new on sale if you're lucky. Less used/craigslist. But in the past year, it has never failed and saved me a good deal of time and money. No, it isn't cheap and it isn't something a lot of people would buy. But there's no denying its effectiveness. x25 on the torque wrench. Items such as lug nuts and suspension pieces are critical safety items that depend on being torqued correctly. I wouldn't risk it for $13...

I really like the R50 rear Bilsteins. Compliant and allow plenty of flex. I have 5100s front and 6100s rear on my Tacoma. They seem much stiffer. But I also swapped the front coils and added a leaf at the rear, which didn't help things in the stiffness department.

You can get seats on Fleabay for as little as $50 apiece if you're lucky. Local pick-n-pull place often has WDs and seats go for $25 apiece.

150 ft/lbs should be plenty. For reference, the lug nuts holding our wheels to our vehicles are torqued at 96 ft/lbs and various suspension pieces are torqued at 100-120 ft/lbs. You'll love it at the JY. Strongly suggest getting an impact-safe extension and a universal joint. The former will allow you to get at bolts easily. The latter will allow you to rotate the socket - perfect for those annoying weirdo angles.

Anything can be turboed - even a sad little Geo Metro with no radio. Did the mechanic specify whether that guy did an aftermarket turbo job on the Pathy engine or was it an engine swap ? A single turbo can actually be more trouble than it's worth in a wheeling setup since they typically tend to be "on-off" mechanisms and don't kick in at low rpms. You don't want the turbo engaging and launching you off the ledge you so carefully tiptoed around! Twin turbos eliminate some of that problem but are expensive. TurboDiesels are a different matter altogether. They make tons of torque down low and the turbo assists with hp. A proper turbo job runs into thousands and requires more than just bolting a fan to the motor. I'd take an SAS before a turbo any day...

Pep Boys carries Castrol. This is a pretty helpful article on the differences between GL-4 and GL-5, though I'm not endorsing Amsoil in any way. http://www.amsoil.com/articlespr/2007/arti...roilbasics.aspx

Yeah. 16 mm is not used that often on our trucks or on many vehicles, for that matter... I had to literally buy a single 16 MM socket at Lowes...

Interesting; hadn't thought about it. Where would you put that ? It says "for steel curved bumpers". The "Steel" beneath plastic on mine is really a weak crumple zone that I was concerned my twist/bend under the weight. I have a rear steel bumper but that's a whole different setup.

Not sure how you'd get the Hi-Lift in there. A screw jack can go anywhere you want, but probably best used at the factory jack points etc.

Depending on the sliders, you may still not have enough space. A number of folks - self included - can only use the Hi-Lift with the doors open to avoid gouging the door sheet metal. Honestly, I was very disappointed in the Hi-Lift. I know that sounds heretical and there are a number of unconventional situations where it might be useful. But, for pure jacking purposes, I got a screw jack instead. Looks like a bottle jack but has a screw mechanism instead, allowing it to both jack up the vehicle AND act as a jackstand. Purely manual and as light as or lighter than a Hi-Lift. Much smaller than a Hi-lift. Makes my life easier. That said, I have a winch so I don't need the Hi-Lift quite as much as other folks in unconventional situations. I have 2 screw jacks. You may be able to find them cheaper elsewhere. I think they're also called support jacks. Amazon had pretty good prices on them a while ago. http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/sto...18901_200318901

x3 or x4 on no substitute for a winch. They scare the bejeesus out of me, though, so I got a synthetic rope line from a dude on Craigslist who couldn't afford his rig anymore. Synthetic line was literally new. It kinda pi**es me off to see the prices people charge for winches, synthetic rope and the like. After all, we all know the margins are huge and a $650 Warn Tabor is fundamentally the same as a $900 Warn 9.5i. There's also no way the rope cost that much to manufacture. Then I ask myself,"Is my life worth $900 ?" There are many questions in life for which I have no answers. This is not one of those questions.

Have you checked all the bushings, control arms, tie rods and so on ? Wondering if it's a suspension issue...

One thing I did on my Pathy was to remove fender flares and just put body bolts (bolts with extra large washers) in. Prevents mud and water from getting trapped in there, makes it easy to hose off stuff and ensures I catch rust easily. You can get them in black or silver and paint them to suit your tastes.

I think they forgot to "detail" the frame rust.

Few tricks I learned the hard way. 1. Bolts where the head has broken off. Use an air hammer ($20 at Lowes, complete with 3 bits) to hit the area on the other side of the bolt or, failing that, in the general vicinity of the bolt. The vibrations from the air hammer will often work just enough of the bolt loose for you to grab it with pliers or hands and unscrew it. It should be fairly easy to unscrew now that the head's bust and the threads have been worked loose a bit. I have used the same trick when removing bolts that are stuck/rusted in place. If I'm worried the head will snap, a quick set of whacks with the air hammer, with or without a gentle turn on the head of the stuck bolt, has sometimes worked wonders. 2. Use a rubber mallet if you can. I only go to hammers as a last resort. The mallet will often provide the shock you need without denting/bending/twisting the part 3. Buy fasteners in bulk, particularly the common M6 and M8 sizes. It turns out to be cheaper and faster than constantly running to the local hardware store or auto parts shop. MUCH cheaper. You can also be certain you're getting the class and type of fastener you want. I keep a full set of Class 10 metric and Grade 8 SAE bolts (flanged and regular), washers and nuts. This also makes it economical to replace fasteners as you work on the car. www.boltdepot.com www.nutsandbolts.com