Howie

I agree with the shock and strut upgrade. However, keep in mind that it's not the shocks and struts that keep your vehicle from bottoming out. It's the springs. The shocks and struts dampen vertical oscillation, but the springs keep your frame off the bump stops. The OEM coils on the Pathfinder are soft to begin with, and they only get softer over time. If you want to stop bottoming out, look at Old Man Emu coil springs.

That's a nice-looking specimen you got there. How many miles on it? It looks well-taken care of.

I'd check Rockauto first, and then Ebay second. If you want OEM parts, try an online retailer like everythingnissan.com. They're a dealership that sells OEM parts for way cheaper than other dealerships, including shipping. I believe they operate out of Pinnacle Nissan in Scottsdale, AZ. At least, they used to years ago when I bought from them. It's been a while, and that may have changed.

Cruise is electronic, not vacuum. There are 2 separate throttle cables, one for cruise and one for regular throttle. If it's the cruise cable that's the problem, you can disconnect it to physically disengage it, then figure out whether the electronics failed, or servo mechanism.

Hey, thanks again. I just had a shop press it out again, and sure enough, you were right. The chamfered part does go towards the shaft, and the outer part of the spider ring is squared off where the snap ring sits. I'm in the process of banging it back on, but was interrupted by the kids. I'll finish it tomorrow. The shop said they had a hell of a time pressing it out because they couldn't get the thing to seat properly in their press. They were hampered by the fact that there was a newly-installed boot on there, and of course they didn't want to tear it off. I wouldn't have been able to knock it off like you did with that boot in place.

Thanks! With all the banging I was doing and it not going anywhere, I was beginning to suspect as much. And you're right: I should have marked the damn thing. Especially since I think I took it apart almost a year ago, and it's been sitting on my workbench until now! Oh well, lesson learned. Did you have to use a shop press to get the spider joint off the first time? I couldn't get it to budge, and had to finally take it to a shop to press it out, like what the shop manual says to do. I think I'm going to have to do that again, because it's wedged on there pretty tight.

I replaced the boot on one of my front CV joints, but I could not get the spider joint to seat all the way in order to fit the snap ring. I know one guy on here was able to take his apart and put it back together, but I had a hell of a time. I had to pay a mechanic with a shop press to get the spider joint off, and now I can't get the damn thing back on. Is the spider joint unidirectional? As in, is it possible that I have it on backwards? Here's a pic. The end of the half shaft needs to stick out a few millimeters more so I can fit the snap ring on there. But no amount of banging will get the spider joint to seat any farther. Any ideas?

My 2001 has 148,000 miles on it, and it's still going strong. I've replaced all the fluids religiously, still on the original clutch (5-spd manual), and only have replaced a couple of VTC sensors, an O2 sensor, and the release bearing. The engine doesn't even burn oil. The engine will outlast the car, and if the body rusts through, I'll drop the engine into a new vehicle and keep it going! I'll probably end up keeping this car forever.

Nice! Don't forget to post pics when you're done!

Very nice!

Did you take off the whole roof rack, or just the front air dam? I like that stock roof rack. Came out a year or two after my model year (2001). If you're taking the whole rack off, I'd be interested in buying it off you!

You're thinking of O2 sensors. There are 4 O2 sensors (pre- and post-cat on each side), but only 2 catalytic converters. Check out page FE-10 of the shop manual.

That's awesome! Great ending to the story. Don't ever go back to the dealer again!

When was the last time the transmission fluid was changed? I'm on my original clutch and flywheel at 145,000 miles, and changed out my trans fluid at 90,000. Your fix might be a lot cheaper than you think, and you can do it in you driveway.

When I had a cracked boot, I replaced the whole shaft, and then replaced the boot on the old shaft to have a spare. Now I noticed the new boot is leaking, so all I have to do is replace it with the spare old shaft/new boot combo, and bring the broken one in under warranty. Definitely do it yourself. It's good to be able to know how to do and all you need is a wrench.

Find a mechanic that specializes in imports, especially Nissans. Tell him what the dealer found (but not how much). See if he'll be willing to just take apart the engine and clean the sludge. My guess is the labor would be far less than the $5000 your dealer wants, and it would take a lot less time than if you're doing it yourself (unless you have experience taking apart engines).

Looks like a Monster Truck!

I would buy two, but only replace the defective one and keep the second good one as a spare. That way you can replace the other one only if it goes bad. No need to throw away a perfectly functioning sensor. It's not like they're hard to get at or anything.

Good job troubleshooting. I went through the exact same process (including testing the voltage on the sensor with a multimeter and switching them side to side), ended up replacing the sensor and it fixed it. A few months later, the other sensor failed. Fixed it too, and no problems since. I think those sensors just go bad.

Dude, you are so ready for Armageddon! In a post-apocalyptic world, you'll be truckin' around in your Pathfinder, prepared for anything.

Way to go, MacGyver!

I have 4WD, and I don't believe I have that bushing.

Yeah, I don't have that light/diagram on mine. I just have a blank gauge face.

I think the 4LO indicator is only on the AWD systems, not the part-time 4WD systems (transfer shifter on the floor, as opposed to a console switch). I have a manual transmission with manual transfer, and I don't have the 4LO light (I never did, and I had this car since brand-new). I only have the 4WD icon and that's it. I can tell when I'm in 4LO by the position of the transfer lever. If you read the manual carefully, they state the 4LO indicator is when the transfer SWITCH is in the LO position (not transfer lever).

Yup, point taken. I should probably replace it.