Slartibartfast

Yeah, that doesn't look right. Don't trust the divots, though--best way to know for sure is to count teeth. IIRC it's 40 between the cam dimples, 43 from driver's side cam to crankshaft. +1 on making sure the dizzy's in right. Spark won't do you any good if it's not timed right.

Have backed spare tire into neighbor's car, can confirm.

If the heater's not blowing hot, it was definitely low on coolant. I don't know the TBI intake, but I know the MPFI has a bleed screw on top you have to pull out and squeeze the hose to fill it up properly. I don't know how low coolant has to get in a VG30 to not circulate properly, but if it's too low to circulate, it's not doing much of anything for the engine. Hopefully the overheating didn't damage anything else, though the rough idle and increased blow-by aren't promising on that front. I have heard of head gaskets failing just enough to put combustion gas into the coolant (though not necessarily on a VG). Remove the radiator cap, start the engine, and see if bubbles start pouring out.

If you think it's venting more than it should, or more than it used to, you might want to check your evap system. Check valve, maybe, if the R50 evap is like WD21 evap. My gas cap gives a long hiss from time to time, but I haven't worried about it enough to track it down.

^That doesn't look half bad! I like having the carrier on mine, and from what I've seen on here, they make decent armor against tailgaters.

Bizarre. I did a little looking around and found a post on Nicoclub suggesting that the lower outputs on the pumps go to your front and rear wipers, and the uppers tee and run up into the fender where the line just ends, evidently as a breather for the tank. Maybe Nissan made the washer cap too airtight and had to improvise? Seems ridiculous but I don't have a better explanation. Second to last post here: http://forums.nicoclub.com/pathfinder-windshield-washer-pump-t491364.html And I don't know about R50 pumps, but the pumps on my WD21 just go through rubber bungs into the tank. To remove, twist a little and pull (suck the fluid out first). Your idea of swapping plugs and washer lines is a good one, provided the lines will reach and the plugs are the same. You might also try just switching the electrical plugs in case there's a weak connection somewhere in the wiring to the front pump that's not giving it the amperage it needs.

The swaps I've seen just bolt the stock VG30 intake manifold to the VG33 (or 34 in your case), thus retaining the truck's original sensors and idle controls and whatnot. Everything the computer cares about plugs in and works like it was always there. That said, your description of the wiring differences makes it sound like the two idle setups may not be that different, and I don't see how an idle air circuit could screw up throttle response off-idle. (If it's not idling, the idle air control should make little to no difference, right?) This leads me to suspect that your wiring on the IAC is not the issue here. The twenty second cutoff on the problem is interesting as well. You say it's like a switch closes. I'm wondering if it's not a solenoid that's closing. I'd have another look at your vacuum lines, particularly the line for the fuel pressure regulator, and make sure nothing's crossed up that shouldn't be. Compare the VG30 and VG33 vacuum diagrams, maybe try and figure out what system is supposed to kick on for twenty seconds on a warm start, and verify that it's rigged properly and you don't have, I dunno, the charcoal can purge solenoid robbing vacuum from the fuel pressure regulator, or the wrong connector in the EGRC solenoid, or something else supplying vacuum to the EGR valve when it shouldn't be. Or maybe the VG33 IAC has some relationship with a vacuum component that's not present on the VG30. I don't know either system well enough to point at anything in particular, and I don't know how much of either system is in your rig at this point, but that's where I'd start.

What in the heck even takes an M18x1.25 lefty?

Looks smokey out there.

You might be able to get new ones from the dealer. Check factorynissanparts or courtesyparts to see what they want for them. Keep in mind there are two styles, one with the risers for the rear spoiler and one without, so make sure you're getting the right critter. Personally I'd hit a wrecking yard or PM someone who's parting one out and pick up a used set.

You're sure it's getting fuel?

Checked mine, looks like 12 x 1.25 to me but my set doesn't go that high so my basis for the 12 part of that was holding the bolt threads to a ruler and squinting. 17mm head, for all that matters. RC, I like the idea. I've got a (sketchy homebrew) D ring mount that fits in the tow hitch but have to dig it out of the junk in the back when I need it. Where are you planning to mount rear hooks on yours?

What ratio are you running now? Regearing would probably help but in the meantime, you might get away with just forcing the trans to shift later. The auto in my '93 tends to massively overestimate what the 3.0 has to give and upshift at stupid times. Given that your trans was programmed expecting a much smaller tire, I assume it's behaving similarly. My strategy for hills is OD off, power mode on (switch on the dash, don't know if the R50 has this or not). Forcing it to keep the revs up really does help, and I haven't noticed a hit to fuel economy from doing it.

Looks pretty good! I've heard of using silicone oils to do the same sorta thing, but apparently they fade with time. Hopefully the caulk holds up longer.

^+1, broken timing belt almost always means valve damage on these. And depending on how far out the timing was, it may have damaged the other valves trying to start before you fixed the timing. Compression test is your friend.

Sounds like you've pretty well narrowed things down. I'd have a look in through the hole in the transfer at the gear to verify whether the gear inside is borked, though at this point I can't think of much else it could be.

Dizzy = distributor, sorry.

Nice when it turns out to be something simple!

I remember someone on here had a similar issue. Turned out the intake boot between the throttle body and the maf was ripped, and when the engine rocked under torque (might have been an engine mount issue too, don't remember), the rip opened up and leaned out the mixture until the engine barely ran.

Any codes? The position sensor in the dizzy is known for this failing-when-hot stuff, but I've also heard of oxygen sensors and coolant temp sensors causing similar issues. I'd start by inspecting the wiring for the coolant temp sensor (the two-wire one on the coolant neck the upper rad hose attaches to) for corrosion and checking under the distributor cap for the red dust that apparently indicates that the bushings are going out. If there's no smoking gun, and no code, I'd unplug either the O2 or the coolant temp and try driving it again. (The ECU can fudge the fuel mix if it senses that one of these sensors is absent.) If unplugging one of those sensors resolves the stalling, then it stands to reason that the sensor that's unplugged was causing the problem and should be replaced. If neither makes a difference, then I'd go for the dizzy. And the exhaust leak shouldn't be the problem, I think those came standard on these.

It's what you stick the key in to start it, so yeah, behind the wheel in the clamshell there.

+1 for checking battery cables. If the battery's good, cables are good, and the starter and solenoid are good, my next suspect would be the contacts in the ignition switch. I don't know if this is as easy on the R50 as it is on the WD21 but I'd pull the clamshell and see if there's an easy way to jumper the start wire to + on the switch. If that starts it no problem, start looking for an ignition switch.

Ah. Yeah, that's not a good thing. Change your oil once you've got the injector sorted. I'd be surprised if six miles of driving on dirt brought in enough dirt to stick the injector open, but if you're concerned, I'd pull the pump out and look down into the tank with a flashlight to see if it's a mess in there.

I doubt it's a fuel delivery issue, at least not one caused by the gas cap. If it was, it wouldn't have waited 105 miles to cause problems. I don't know the TBI very well but I'd be checking sensor connections and vac lines.