colinnwn

1) Is it Bose? If so, get a stereo with 4 volt preamp outputs (or higher) and you can connect them directly to the integrated amp/speaker input. It sounds as good as the Bose (really Clarion) factory head unit. No need for the integration adapter. I just did this. 2) You can find a decent stereo with 4-5v preamp outputs for under $200. Aren't some places still doing install labor for free if you buy from them? Shouldn't cost more than $50 bucks, plus $40 in accessories (pigtails and cubby). An experienced person with all the parts at hand can do the swap in an hour. I did it myself and due to unrelated problems it took a couple hours. You can read about me doing it here http://colinnwn.blogspot.com/2009/06/insta...eo-in-2001.html http://colinnwn.blogspot.com/2009/06/pione...reo-review.html

Finished installing the new spark plugs and fuel filter. The fuel filter was a little hard to blow through with mouth pressure, but not near as bad as my neighbor's. The spark plugs were really easy to install, except number 4. I could have done the rest in less than an hour. Number 4 required removing the air filter box, snorkel, and throttle body from the truck. The whole process of changing number 4 probably added an hour and and a half. I hate fighting with hoses to get them off the barb, but really this could have been worse. The truck is starting more quickly, and running really smooth. I didn't realize it was running a little rough before, but after feeling the difference on the first test drive, it is pretty clear it was. Looks like that solved the problem. If I discover it is still hard starting occasionally, I'll update the thread. Looks like .048 is the outside limit for the spark plug gap on the VQ engine. Except if you have the engine already torn down enough to remove number 4, I would replace it at .044 (even if you don't do the others.) Don't forget to be extremely careful testing the gap, and don't ever try to change the gap on these fine electrode spark plugs. There should be virtually no drag on the gapper, and if using a wheel gapper, rotate it back to remove all resistance before pulling out of the gap. I'd also recommend using a little anti-seize on the threads of the plug, mine were binding some on removal, and a bit of dielectric grease around the top ceramic indention. Also interesting that I have all original coil packs (knock on wood). None of them had the black dot signifying the revised coil pack. I was half tempted to replace the number 4 one while I was in there. But I guess it isn't the end of the world if I have to bust into it again.

Could be. I am replacing the fuel filter after I saw that my neighbor couldn't blow through his with 120k miles on a Grand Cherokee. He didn't know the service history of it either. He cut the filter open and the element was full of this reddish dusty sludge. After he replaced it, his ECM threw the code for injector outside turndown limit. So the new filter was flowing so much more fuel that the ECM was mad it was having to undercompensate. After resetting the codes it hasn't come back. I always figured fuel was pretty clean and a fuel filter could probably go 200k miles before you needed to worry about it. It's funny that the service manual doesn't have a recommendation on the change interval other than to change when the car doesn't respond well to the throttle. I've tried Techron additive and Seafoam on my Scout and old Maxima. I was underwhelmed that nothing seemed to change with the running quality or fuel economy. I read an injector cleaning specialist say those additives, and even the expensive on-car injector cleaning services that some garages advertise don't do much. They are really just some detergent and the same solvents already in normal gas. I thought that it figured, but of course he also wants to sell his off-car service. Anyway if the spark plugs and fuel filter don't fix it, I will probably try the SeaFoam.

It turns over plenty fast. Used to if I bumped it, it would start 95% of the time. Now it takes a second or 2 of starting, and sometimes I have to do that 2 or 3 times. Maybe tolerance is the wrong word I used. Manufacturing tolerance for sure can economically be much better than .015. But I have seen some older cars with really high powered ignition systems running gaps of .055 and greater. And my neighbor's 2004 Grand Cherokee was running ok (but not great) with spark plugs worn down to a gap of almost .060. He didn't know what the mileage on his spark plugs was. I was curious what maximum gap Nissan expects this engine to run acceptably at. Since your truck had worn spark plugs by at most .003 in 68k miles, and possibly as little as .001, then it sounds like my plugs with .008-.006 wear at 165k miles may be the original spark plugs. Thanks for the info.

My truck is taking a little longer to start than it used to, but it turns over fine. I bought it at 135k miles and don't know the service history, it is now at 165k. I thought it might be the spark plugs, so I am changing them, and the fuel filter after seeing my neighbor's that could barely blow through, and the air filter for grins. The service manual says the "nominal" gap is .043 inches. I carefully tested the gap of new plugs, not to break the hair thin electrode, and it is .041. My current plugs are at .049, so it is .006 from "nominal". You can see just a little bit of the thin part of the electrode left. My dad thought maximum tolerance could be as much as .015, but he has been out of the car mechanic avocation for a couple decades. These plugs seem either not worn enough for 165k miles, or much too worn for 60k miles. Has anyone checked the gap of their spark plugs after the factory recommended change interval of 105k miles? If so, what was the gap? Does anyone know what should be the outside tolerance for these new platinum spark plugs with really thin electrodes? Thanks.

This is exactly right. The manual tranny is plenty stout. Nissan probably put a less aggressive clutch in the Pathfinder to make it easier to drive, but that also means it slips more off a standing start, which is bad for towing and longevity. I'm pretty sure a previous owner put a really grabby clutch in mine, because it is a bear to drive smoothly without clutch chatter when empty, but driving it while towing is silky smooth.

2001 VQ Pathfinder with 165k miles. No engine issues besides short startup lifter tick. It happens even with the highest quality oil filters with anti drainback valves (Nissan OEM, Mobile 1, Wix). Parents have a 1995 Maxima with the VQ and 200k miles. It has a longer startup tick. Only engine problems they had was having to replace 3 fuel injectors. On the 3rd time, they gave up and replaced the remaining 4.

Hey All, My manual air conditioner works normally on all settings except blower speed 4. On blower speed 4 the blower works, but the compressor disengages. I've looked in my service manual and it has no troubleshooting for such specific problems, and the only thing that seems like it could cause this is the fan speed switch. Does this sound reasonable? When I was looking on the Courtesy Parts site, their parts search for the control unit was messed up. But I couldn't find a fan control switch listed, only the AC base unit for $17. Is the fan control switch and the temp selector switch not separately purchasable, and does this sound like the right part? $17 seems too cheap. Does anyone have better directions for removing the front panel bezel, like the ones that sometimes come with aftermarket stereos from Crutchfield and the like? The service manual directions are pretty poor. Thanks.

You haven't really said anything here that can be quantified. What is easier burning? Burns faster, burns more completely, why is it happening? Absent more evidence, I think the reasonable explanation is today, (which might be different than in the past, and it may even vary from season to season now as they change the gas mixture for emissions and summer ozone), the heating value of regular gas is higher than the heating value of high octane gas.

The 3k "recommendation" was more necessary before high quality oils starting in the 70's were developed with better detergents, ph buffers, and rust inhibitors. Quick lube places have continued to perpetrate this myth in modern times of cleaner engines, better oils, and extended manufacturer oil change cycles. Engines used to run a lot dirtier, and wash a lot more unburnt hydrocarbons and coked carbons into the crankcase. Many auto manufacturers recommend extended oil changes on even dyno lube. I believe my Nissan Maxima the factory recommendation that carries the full force of warranty is oil changes every 8,750 miles, and filter changes at 17,500. Just because an oil looks dirty doesn't mean it isn't doing its job and needs to be replaced. I started doing 20k oil changes on my Maxima (which runs great at over 300k miles) because I read about how many trucking companies do 1,000,000 mile oil changes. Granted they usually do an oil analysis every couple months, some run a secondary low micron filter, and a few even run oil decanters to burn off any volatiles in the oil. They sometimes put an additive package into the oil when the ph is getting high. But I think 20k miles on synthetic without taking all these precautions is fairly conservative. If I did all the things big trucking companies do, I'd never change my oil unless the oil analysis indicated it was time. I did hear about it and I think it is BS unless they can prove a case that additional oxygenates are needed in gas for improved emissions. There have been enough studies that ethanol from corn is a net cost to the environment in land degradation, water use, and energy loss in conversion from corn to ethanol. Now if they can get switchgrass ethanol working, maybe it isn't as big a deal. Cars built since 2000 are more resistant to water in gas (the first major drawback of ethanol because it is hydrophillic and tends to rust internal fuel system parts), and they have ethanol resistant rubber components (because rubber from older cars disintegrates in ethanol). However, you don't put food products in the tank of your car. The spike in corn prices from the beginning of ethanol use as an oxygenate caused millions of people in the world to go hungry and probably killed thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people. If your car is in good shape, then no I didn't do anything and I have had no problems. However if you have an old car where the seals are worn out and are only holding because of dyno oil sludge, then your car may start acting like an oil sieve. Synthetic is a very good detergent and can work its way around compromised seals. The only other precaution is if you go synthetic, don't go back to dyno. Everything I have heard is doing that is hard on your engine.

You know I've been thinking about why this would be the case. Octane is a chemical, and the octane number of gas tells you the resistance to preignition of the gas in equivalent percentage of octane with the remaining amount heptane. So 89 octane gas has the preignition equivalent of 89% octane and 11% heptane. But gas companies make no guarantees about the actual chemical makeup of the gas, heat content, or density of the fuel. Ethanol just happens to have an AKI octane rating of 116, and a lower heat content than most other constituents of gasoline (that is the reason you get worse mileage with it). Ethanol is allowed in gas as an oxygenate, up to 10% without specifically noting the percentage. And ethanol prices have come down from their temporary sky high prices. Refiners may be using ethanol as the octane boosting product in premium gasoline. If this is the case, it means the premium fuel has a lower heat content, and will therefore give you fewer miles to the gallon, than regular gas.

You are having pre-ignition, and you want to stop it. Your engine is a VG, so it should be perfectly happy on 89 or even 87. If it happens regularly (not just when you occasionally jump on it at low engine speed), you have 2 choices. If 91 always fixes it, then use it. Or you can try to find the root cause. I noticed you are running 32 inch tires. The larger tire means there is more load on your engine unless you switched your differential ratio to make up for it. That could be a contributing factor. If you live in a high elevation, or especially hot area that would make it worse. If you have a manual and you tend to run the highest gear you can, without downshifting to accelerate, that could cause it. You could also have a bad knock sensor, or MAF sensor, or maybe clogged injectors.

Nope Not exactly. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octane_rating Octane represents the ability of a fuel to resist spontaneous ignition with increasing temps (in an engine this is caused by adiabatic heating during the compression stroke). But it doesn't have anything to do with the heat content of the fuel. I don't know how preignition affects the heat absorbed by the engine. On one hand preignition represents an incomplete burn of the fuel so heat absorbed by the engine could go down, along with power absorbed by the piston. On the other hand since the piston is able to absorb less power it could drive engine temps up. Heat absorbed then radiated out by the engine, and expelled out the tailpipe, represent energy not converted to engine power. I use 87 octane in my VQ 99% of the time. You shouldn't do it if you are still under warranty, or notice preignition. But it works fine for me at less than 1000' MSL, and in an area with almost no hills. Only on very hot days, when I get on it too much, in too high a gear, I notice the faintest pinging.

Wouldn't have been my first guess, but not surprising at all. Your battery had a short, and was probably dragging the system voltage down to 12v or below even with the engine running. The battery may have also been throwing off electrical noise. Apparently the AC controller is very sensitive to low voltage/bad juice.

How quickly we forget. Personally I think gas should be $10/gal, but i remember paying $4.50 in Dallas not too long ago. I use 87 octane because my engine is out of warranty and runs fine on it. I haven't been able to detect a difference in mileage on higher octane. You should run the cheapest gas your engine doesn't knock on. You can test higher octane, because your engine might run a more advanced ignition curve that would result in better mileage. If you are paying 10 cents more on $2/gal gas, you need to get 5% better mileage to make the expense of higher octane worth it. I think fuel additives are expensive junk that at best don't do anything. Not sure what you mean by synthetic (unless you are talking about oil). I do run 0-30 Mobil 1 synthetic engine oil with 10k filter changes and 20k oil and filter changes. And I am eventually going to get the synthetic oil in the tranny, diffs, and TC. I might see a tiny improvement in fuel economy with this.

When your hubs are locked and the TC is out of gear, your wheels drive the front half-shafts and some of the front TC around. The inertia and some friction cause you to get worse mileage. But I have noticed maybe 1mpg better, so not a big deal. Most years of the R50 (including my 2001) have drive flanges (not auto hubs). Drive flanges are just like manual hubs locked in, so everything you say about manual hubs applies to them as well. The only disadvantage is you can't disconnect them for reduced wear and increased mileage. Some of the previous gen Pathfinders had auto hubs I think without a manual override feature. I had Warn automatic hubs in my Scout. They were fantastic. They had auto and locked settings, but not unlocked. So I had the advantage of auto hubs set and forget, with the added benefit of full locking hubs for engine braking. The only disadvantage to them was they were a little less strong than manual hubs because of the space needed for the auto feature. You are correct that auto hubs don't stay engaged in engine braking or reverse (unless they have a manual position you can set). So if your sister had a 4wh drive truck with auto hubs and parked facing down the hill, then the front wheels weren't helping hold it. But if she parked facing uphill with the TC engaged, then the torque on the hubs should have been enough to keep them engaged and holding the truck. I have no experience with Milemarkers, but I have seen enough pictures of them shelling their case that I'll happily pay the extra $50 for Warns. Warns fail sometimes, but I have never seen them split their case in 2. You can rebuild the Warns when they fail, and you can even get frangible splines that help limit the damage.

I think yall are debating the value of the mouse under the elephant's foot when you talk about $ saved on gas with manual hubs. The manual hubs (when unlocked) eliminate 90% of the CV joint wear, whether you are lifted or not. And when you are lifted, you wear out CV joints a lot faster. Even if it only doubles your CV joint life, you'll get your payback twice over, the first time you change CV joints.

Nope, I don't touch the brakes after I turn the engine off. I usually pull in and stop, pull the parking brake, take my foot off the brake, and cut the engine. I was aware there should be 2 reserve brake actuations after the engine stops and then no more. I haven't tested how long it takes for the vacuum reserve to bleed off (a few seconds or a few hours) but I know it used to last my 9 hours at work, and now it won't.

Hey Everyone, My Pathfinder just quit holding vacuum with the engine shut off, so I am unable to press the brake before starting without lots of effort. The likely suspect is a leaking vacuum reservoir. But I know it could also be a leaking brake booster, or a leaking vacuum line. Anyone have experience with this happening on a Pathfinder? Are there any likely reasons besides the obvious ones? Thanks.

Thanks for the specs. LEDs are highly variable as to the focus (tight, soft, or inverted) and their output. You obviously can't compare wattage between LED and incandescent. But even comparing lumens, or wattage between LEDs can be problematic due to the differences. You pretty much have to try, but I much prefer more and better data than most LED vendors provide. LEDs toward the violet part of the spectrum tend to be less efficient and therefore put out less light. White and red LEDs generally have similar outputs, but your eye will perceive white as more light than red.

Hi All, Does anyone know the part number for what the owners and service manual refers to as the "personal light"? It is really the 2 lights in the front overhead console next to the digital compass and sunroof controls. The owner's manual doesn't give a part number, but lists the specs as 8 watt (seems high) and the picture clearly shows a bayonet mount. I couldn't find any part or spec in the service manual, and the Sylvania bulb finder doesn't list this part. It isn't the DE3175 tube of the middle and cargo overhead lights. I'm gonna try to find red bulbs for them, perhaps even LED bulbs. Thanks.

AC is a good company, but I got 3" over my old suspension and felt like it was more than the truck can handle in a suspension lift. It toes in significantly with a set of camber adjustment bolts. I still haven't installed the 2nd set, but I don't think that will fix the problem either. It is also pretty harsh. If I did it again, I'd chose OME 1.75" lift. The rear suspension is fairly straightforward, but don't plan on being able to remove the panhard rod unless you have a puller, and you have to be careful of the brake lines. You should read my blog of it linked above. If you are using AC springs you need this and then some. If you are using OME springs, you need at least 1 set and possibly both. You want em. Any lift puts more wear on the front CV joints. Replacing one CV joint is more expensive than the Warn hubs. The Warn hubs stop almost all wear on the CV joints when the hubs are disengaged. They save hundreds of dollars in the long run. As I said above, 3" is too much for this suspension. Your truck will look bowlegged in the front even with the camber adjustment bolts. If you want to go higher, you need to look at doing a subframe lift.

I agree, though after seeing the terrible job National Tire and Battery did assembling my struts I have thought about getting my own alignment tools. Caster and toe are hard to see, but camber is more easily visible. My camber is so positive right now that the truck howls when making tight slow turns on slick asphalt. I'd like to take it in with my camber bolts properly installed, so the shop doesn't try to charge me for their camber "kits".

Hi All, How do you install camber adjustment bolts like these? http://www.ingallseng.com/parts/81260.htm If you check out the poorly worded directions http://www.ingallseng.com/Instructions/81250-81290.pdf it says, "For positive camber correction (in the upper strut mount hole), install with the... bolt head arrow facing the engine." I took this to mean if the camber was positive and you want to correct it towards 0 (or negatively). But it could also mean the opposite, i.e. if you would like to correct the camber in a positive direction. On New Years Day I finished up the install of lift springs on my Pathfinder. I have done strut replacements on an Altima, and the Pathfinder was much more difficult than I anticipated. Here are my longish comments on the topic http://colinnwn.blogspot.com/2007/12/insta...on-my-2001.html . The AC springs gave me over 3 inches of lift. I like the way it looks, but this may have been too much. I installed only one camber bolt in each of the upper strut mount holes, preferring to keep the much larger stock bolt in the bottom mount holes. The front wheels still have very visible positive camber which results in poor cornering adhesion and abnormal tire wear. I was wondering if I misunderstood the camber bolt directions and installed them wrong. If not, I'll try putting the 2nd adjustment bolt in each of the lower mount holes. Thanks.

I am finishing up the installation of the AC lift springs, KYB struts, and RS5000 shocks and have some fairly strong opinions on the process. Still having issues getting the front put together so I can't comment on the ride yet. The truck looks great with the rear complete and the front jacked up about where it will sit when finished. Here is the short version - DON'T buy Rancho RS5000 shocks for R50 Pathfinders, EXPECT installation to take at least 10 hours of work your first time in a home garage, DON'T start this project without having a mechanic you trust with the proper hydraulic press willing to assemble the strut packages - those pansy screw MacPherson strut compressors won't cut it on the bigger and stiffer lift springs. And if you want to hear about the nitty-gritty http://colinnwn.blogspot.com/2007/12/insta...on-my-2001.html