Slartibartfast

In both diagrams, there are two parts labeled 'tie rod assembly.' Each is made of two tie rod ends (TREs) and a sleeve that they both screw into. The Hardbody centerlink doesn't work with the Pathfinder inner tie rod ends, and the Pathfinder knuckles don't meet the Hardbody outers very well, so you have to make a hybrid tie rod (HB inners, Pathy outers). The hangup is that the two have different-sized threaded ends, and so won't fit into the same center sleeve. The solution is to take the smaller sleeve (Pathfinder), enlarge the hole, and re-thread ('tap') it to accept the Hardbody tie rod end. At that point, you just thread the TREs into the modified sleeve, then mount them to the centerlink and knuckle. It appears that you just get the centerlink, Hardbody inner TREs, and Pathfinder outer TREs, then have a machine shop modify the original Pathfinder sleeves. This is, to the best of my knowledge, all you need. Hopefully once somebody gets the full proper system done up, we'll get a nice write-up and some pics. Any updates, guys?

You can test for voltage at the solenoid with a voltmeter, or a bit of wire and a tail light bulb. I doubt it needs banging on if it worked on the bench, but my understanding is that you only bang on it if it's not clicking... means the solenoid's stuck. If it clicks but doesn't crank, the solenoid's firing but it's not making the connection for the starter (or there's not enough power to run the motor). I guess it couldn't hurt to try, but I suspect the problem is a bad connection. If it is getting charge, but not enough (significant drop from the battery), you could try adding a relay to the circuit (so the low current triggers the relay, powering the starter right from the battery). If there's no charge... bad wire? Ignition cylinder? When the starter in my 95 failed, and my uncle put a new one in, it refused to crank the first time I tried the key. The second time, it fired right up. We put it down to greasy connections.

I was thinking you'd narrow the rear end on one side, hook a small bit of the front axle to that side, then cut the other side long/hook a long front section to it, that way you could put the diff wherever you wanted it. I suspect I'm barking mad, and the taper of the tube wouldn't match up properly... And if you want cheap... junkyard? No reason to go with a brand new CL for a temporary application, right?

Less stress to get the Z going, probably. Or you could put a Hardbody CL in the Pathfinder, then get the Z together, then drive the Z while you work on the Pathy.

I know the flares changed between 93 and 95... I'd be very surprised if they didn't change again for the R50. I figure the lines they're made to fit around are different, and the bolts wouldn't line up... can't hurt to try though. If they do fit, I'll be looking for an r50 to pull a rear flare from!

Hey, I appreciate the criticism. I pretty well botched the stock wiring harness (nobody around here knew what a female 9004 was), or I'd try new pics with a wall. I added a disclaimer to my original post. And yeah, just depends on the bend of each contact in the switch. Each filament has its own contact (except for the markers/tail lights). Also, I've had no trouble with my lights since I did this mod.

Assuming both hubs are unlocked/transfer case in 2H, yep, the front shafts shouldn't spin. You can jack it up and spin the front wheels to verify. I'd just wrap a whole lot of duct tape around the existing boot for now, without extra grease. If there's dirt in there now, more grease will just mean more cleanup to get the dirt out when you put the new boot on.

+1 on that. Don't bump an old thread just to say "hey man that's sweet," but if you've got a question or something to add, it's cool.

Check and make sure the ratio's the same, there should be a plate on your door jamb (?). If it's a different ratio, it'll work, but your speedometer will be inaccurate.

It's a little tough to get in around the bumper; it's easy with the bumper removed, but that's a PITA. The best way to do it is probably to jack the truck up, pull the wheel off, and hose it out through the cleanout holes. A needle-spray attachment should help. Spray around from different angles until the water stops coming out brown, and make sure water's coming out through all the drain holes along the bottom. I usually try to shoot a little water in there when I'm at the self-serve car wash, but it's tough with the wheel in the way.

I assume the Rubicon is a full-time 4WD, so it's not designed to be disengaged. If the width was right, it probably could work (if a close gearset's available), but you'd always be turning the driveshaft, even if the transfer case was disengaged, like a stock R50. Here's a stupid idea... Narrowing axles is fairly common, right? How much more trouble would it be to weld on different ends? Why not take a jy Pathy rear end, cut it down, and weld ends on from pretty much any front axle? You'd have to do a little work on the shafts, but if the donor front axle was wider, you'd have room to cut and re-spline for the 233b. Sounds like a lot of work, but the ratio would be perfect. Just throwing it out there.

Three, actually. I've seen a few HBs around here with them.

I take it back, that's horrible.

Unless the contacts in your solenoid are truly knackered, it shouldn't be running at all unless it's engaged. There is a one-way clutch in the starter gear (which engages the flywheel) to prevent the starter from flinging apart when the engine starts. Once the engine's going, if it's still engaged, it should turn without too much resistance... maybe easily enough that you wouldn't hear the gears. The only thing I can think of (short of an extreme case of noob-rigged wiring) is that your ignition column switch is sticking. I'm not sure which wire does what, but the lower part of the dash is easy to remove, and the ignition contacts are right out in the open once you remove the cover around the steering column. Disconnect the battery and mess around with a voltmeter (or a battery and a tail light bulb) to figure out which wire goes to the starter, then see if it's sticking. If this is the case, I'm not sure how your starter is still functional. I'd expect the motor to burn out pretty quickly, though perhaps without a load it doesn't heat up as much. You might also try rigging some kind of switch to the starter's positive lead. Start the car, disconnect the lead, see if it's still making the noise. If it is, it's not the starter, though I can't think what else it could be.

LOL I was in a PT cruiser a few years ago, and was actually impressed with the interior. My mom said it drove well. It was still a minivan, but nice for what it was. But yeah, it's just a badge. There's probably going to be as much similarity between Datsuns as between the new crossover Pathfinder and our rigs. But, hey, they might surprise us all with something decent.

The problem is if the iPod's rigged in, and the wires to the stereo are intact, some of the signal will be lost to the stereo. Probably best to try whatever you hook up with a cheap old CD player or something first. I accidentally plugged my iPod into a line out instead of line in once, and pretty well fried it. It still worked, it was just a whole lot louder on one side than the other. IIRC the end of the plug is ground, and the two bands are signal R and L... double check though, I could be wrong.

http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/pathfinder/1995_Pathfinder/ This: the Factory Service Manual. Hugely helpful.

With the price of gas rising, Lord Humongous had to downsize a little...

I can feel the difference when I'm trying to rock the truck, but not so much when I'm driving. Then again, I don't generally drive on washboards. Stupid question... can the factory shocks be rebuilt?

Looks like it's coming together! Is that the overhead lights reflecting, or does it have LED parking lights?

My factory spare held air until the day we got rid of it... despite deep cracks in the tread and sidewall. Glad I never had to use it!

I managed to make it come on once, when I thought we were going to have to drop the tank to do the frame. It was sort of intermittent; it would be on when I parked, then off when I started it again. Never gotten it that low since.

When I'm driving it, it's 'Pathy.' When I'm underneath it, it's 'Son of a Dog-Faced Whore.'

Sorry to hear, it's a good looking truck. Maybe find a blown motor/cash for clunkers truck with a frame under it and build one out of the two? Got any pics of the break? I hate to be a hearse chaser but I'd like to see what failed.

Boxed, except it's sort of open at the top IIRC. Road dirt gets in, can't get out, and holds water against the metal. If there's any salt in that water, it'll eat the frame. You can tell rust vs solid by the sound. Tap it on the top (should be solid there)... it'll make a sort of ping. If you hit rust, it'll go thunk, as what's left of the metal gives a little. For reference, here's where mine rotted out. As you can see, it was full of dirt. You can't really look into the rail without removing the bumper, which is a real PITA. A flashlight wouldn't hurt, but the hammer's still your best bet. If you can put the rear axle on a jack and pull a wheel off, you'll get a much better look at the frame! Also check the driver's rail above the exhaust in the back, mine had what looked like a crack, turned out it had about a foot-long rust hole. And this is on a car with almost no body rust. Sounds like the one you're looking at is really clean, hope everything works out.