prginocx

Well, you guys were right, the alternator was bad, so I replaced it with one from Napa. The Batt and Brake light went off and stayed off, so that is a done deal. On a related note, I did the relay / starter solenoid modification, and it seems to be really solid in terms of actuating the starter solenoid every single time that relay closes. I used a relay from NTE and the Part No. is R25-5D16-12. SPDT handles a maximum of 16 amps and only needs 12VDC and .045 amps to activate the coil.

Well, I guess the good news is the odometer is working fine. Suppose I have the Brake and Batt light ON when the truck is running, if I jump it with my other truck, won't that cause them to go out ? I mean it puts a good battery in parallel with my " supposedly " faulty system, so the Batt light should go out, right ? BTW, you are correct, this is a 5spd. I just find it very peculiar that the alt suddenly " failed " when I removed / replaced the instrument cluster.

I had the typical odometer issue where it works when it wants to, so I sent the whole cluster off to get this repaired. Now I've got it back, the odometer works fine, at least so far, but now sometimes the Brake / Batt indicator lights come on together. Not the ABS, the red Brake for the E-Brake. And everything runs fine, vehicle starts and runs fine so far. I mean if the Batt indicator was for real, I'd have some problem soon, right ? Like the alternator not charging or a dead battery or something. I guess they screwed this up when they were trying to fix the Odometer issue ? Where do I start troubleshooting a problem like this ? Sometimes I drive it and they never come one. Sometimes they come on and stay on until they next time I start the pathy. Sometimes they never come on... But they always come on together ? Is there really any connection between the E-brake light and the Batt light ? Uuuugh, I hate this kind of $hit.

I think this whole setup came out of a wrecked '92 pathy. I guess I'll have to break down and buy some from the dealership.

I guess so, kinda suspicious BOTH of them don't work, and I know for sure they BOTH used to work. the whole reservoir assy. has been replaced with one from a dump 'cause it was leaking so bad...

I ran water in the tube with a hose, it does spray. The reservoir does have fluid, about 3/4 full. I guess you have to have the engine running to activate it ? I couldn't hear the little pump running cause of that extra noise... I know they were working before. The windshield wipers work, and so does the delay so everything else on that switch stalk works fine. Is there a relay for these guys ? I did check the 20A fuse, it was fine.

Well, I looked at it very closely, the dent is really creased along the bottom, more like a valley or ravine, everyone else I spoke to about the suction said when its creased at the bottom, they don't pull out w/suction 'cause the dent is too strong. I just dread drilling all those holes and pulling it out, then bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand, sealer, sand, paint, sand. Why did I promise to fix this anyway ? P.S. This forum did save me a week ago, I drove this Xterra across town (55 min ) to a salvage yard for the fender ( Turned out I wasted $20 bucks of gas, they had the right fender, I needed the left, oops on their part...). Anyway, the Xterra refused to start, so after fooling around with the battery posts and such with no luck, I banged the starter with a big rock. RRRRRMMMMM started right up and I drove it home and replaced the starter assy. Big thanks to the Forum guys !

Its actually a 2 wheel drive Xterra ( 2001 ) but for this question I figure it don't matter. I fixed the crumpled front fender, and replaced the turn signal light assy, but she also dented the rear quarter panel. Dent is about 9 inches long, 3" wide, and 1.5" deep, starts right after the door ( door is untouched ) and about 4" above the wheel well. Parallel to the gound. Kinda a long oval shape. I don't want to fill this guy with a ton of bondo. Do I have to drill it and pull it out ? I looked at an Xterra in the salvage yard, I can't access this dent from either the wheel well or the inside. Are there any super good options ?

In Feb. of 07 I struggled for 2 months with an intermittent starter problem. There are at least two long rambling posts on here about my ordeal. It was finally solved after install of the 2nd rebuilt starter from AutoZone ( Napa has minimal Nissan Pathy parts ). Anyway, 2 weeks ago that starter failed, and when I say failed, I mean I stopped for gas while driving 300+ miles home from a hunting trip. Turned off the car to put the gas in ( safety first ). Would not start, not even making a clicking sound. Pop the hood, the damn starter assy IS IN PIECES. One piece still bolted to the flywheel assy, one huge piece dangling from the big wire that goes to the battery. And several pieces caught in the skid plate. Evidently the starter is held together by two loooong bolts which came loose and the whole deal fell apart. I replaced it with a rebuilt starter from the dealership, which was almost $100 more... I've just had it with Autozone parts in general. The only good thing about that store is they are open long hours... Has anyone else had this trouble with starters ? What could have caused this failure ? Thank GOD I was able to bump start my pathy... On an unrelated note my heater / ac controls section is dark. Is there a tiny bulb back there to replace ? I hate takin' that thing apart...

'95 Pathy 5spd, 3.0V6 4X4. 98k miles Plus there is a lot of wear only on the top of the pin where it latches to close. The guy at the Dealership said something I didn't understand about adjusting the straps ? I thought it was time to replace the bushings in the door hinge pins...Am I on the right track ? Is this for sure a 2 guy job ?

I did check the fluid in the clutch master cyl. and it was OK.

The oil is coming from a tiny rectangular hole at the very bottom where the engine mates with the Tranny. It is not coming from anywhere else 'cause I got under there and cleaned everything up really good, and then after a drive that is the only place where fresh oil appears. There is a tiny bit of oil on the little device that sticks out of the side of the transmission slightly farther back. This device has a cable on it, I kinda assumed it was related to the clutch. The reason I ask about the tranny is because I believe the oil is the same as engine oil, this is a 5spd. It looks black like used engine oil, though... I did find the shift lever boot kinda loose, I guess I'll wrench on that a bit...I don't want to glue it down, 'cause I know someday I'll be taking it off...

Ah, crap, I should have told the truth from the beginning, its actually my GF who is complaining about the smell. I just didn't want all you guys razzing me 'bout it...I'm letting her drive the truck 'cause of the snow, and she has a 2 wheel drive Xterra. I barely see any reduction in the engine oil level. Is it possible the leak is from the Tranny ?

Isn't that rebuilding the whole engine ? Can't it last for a while ?

I have a tiny leak from the Rear Main Seal and it gets on the exhaust sometimes. I Hate that burning oil smell. Any easy solutions ?

My temp guage has always been near the bottom, except on the hottest days of summer when it approaches the center. I thought that was normal. In this cold weather, it takes about 10 min for it to move to the Normal position, which is about 1/8" from the bottom line. I do have AC BTW.

Ok, you guys have convinced me, there is something wrong with my heating system. ( Please God, not the heater core plugged ). I will have to dig into it and check it out. There is a lot of air coming out, it just isn't very warm even after 10 minutes. The blower is kinda noisy on the high setting, like BRRR GRRR BRRR GRRR BRRR. I just dread having to swap out the heater core, in addition to Purcha$e price from the Stealership. I don't understand what he said about the Radiator Cap ? Is there some new one I should try ? Should I ask the Dealer about that ?

Traction was OK, especially with chains on the front ( Is it ok to put them on the front ? It seemed to work better on 2 icy hills in particular ) but the damn heater just doesn't get hot enough...Since it keeps snowing, the heater doesn't melt off the windshield fast enough. I didn't really know what was wrong until I finally gave up and brought out my Primary RV, a '94 Chevy truck, 4X4, 350V8. I didn't even need chains at all after I put two sandbags in the back. Why is the heater in the Nissan so weak ? It took like 30 minutes to melt the snow right around the wipers. The damn chevy truck almost melted ME out of the cab, it was sooooo warm, I could only use the fan set to 3 instead of HI. I wonder if my heater core in the Nissan is plugged up ? Shouldn't it get hotter than that ? Don't some people in Canada use Pathfinders ?

Funny story for you guys: I was helping my bro do the doors on his '93 Chevy dually, same issue needed pins and bushings. During the R-Hand door job, his GF's cat clawed his ankle, and the door fell off the " safety support " and smashed the mirror, in addition to tearing all the electric lock/window/speaker/mirror wiring apart. That was six years ago, and she is now his ex... P.S. I was the same reviewer on epinions. I'm a bit short with people who have the entitlement mentality our legal system breeds....Once you start travelling to some other countries and get some experience with how their system works, you realize stuff like " whiplash ", and that lady getting $4 million for spilt coffee is crap. So is people speeding in a high ground clearance boxy vehicle, then filing suit against Nissan 'cause they can't corner like it was a beemer...total crap. It is the exact same reason 3 wheel ATCs are banned, but the accident rate for ATVs continues to climb, and the people who filed suit for ATC accidents already cashed the big check.

So cruise on by the Nissan dealer and buy hinge pins/bushings ?

'95 Pathy, V6, 3.0L, 104k miles, 4X4, 5spd stick. When I close the doors they are hitting on the latch top like the hinge pins are worn, especially on the drivers side. How do I fix that ?

My method for troubleshooting the problem was to scrub the area all over with gas soaked rags, really clean all the dust, grit and other smudge off, then run the truck, then examing the area again. There isn't any fluid coming down from above, it is only coming out of that little rectangular hole, not from above for sure. I hardly see any decrease in engine oil level between changes, nothing like the 1/2 quart down like on my chevy truck. I never see any decrease in the brake fluid at all. ( Nowadays anyway, I used to have a leak at the rubber hose LF wheel, but I finally fixed that....that was early last year.)

Well, if it is the Rear Main Seal, with only about 100k miles on the truck, suppose I just let it leak a bit and replenish the oil ? What harm is it really doing ?

'95 Pathy, 3.0 V6, AC, PB, PS, 5spd, 4X4, SE model i believe... Source point is the point where the engine and front of the transmission meet, I believe this is the " bell houseing "...There is a tiny hole right at the bottom, almost a rectangular hole. Every time I stop when vehicle is warm, about a half teaspoon leaks out from here. Very irritating, but perhaps a problem to be ignored ? How can I stop this leak ? I think it started right after I had the water pump / timing belt done...