Slartibartfast

EF&EC 155 in the '90 manual says 10-14 ohms. EF&EC 137 in the '95 agrees.

The computer just assumes you've got the distributor in the right place. It has no other reference to check it against. And, yeah, it has to be checked and set under the right conditions. I set mine cold once and it was way off once it warmed up. If you set it cold, with the timing light set wrong, who knows where it was set. I imagine increasing the advance would wake it up, to a point, until it starts pinging. No idea how far you can get away with on one of these. If it wasn't pinging, and didn't throw a knock sensor code, it probably didn't hurt anything. Might give you issues if you towed with it like that, though.

You could check it with a thread pitch gauge, measure the diameter, and see if you can find a nut of matching dimensions from McMaster-Carr or similar. Where I live, no way in hell I'd find a nut that size at Ace. If you have a larger hardware store with more than one short aisle of fasteners, you may get lucky.

GI-13 says the "connect" icon in your screenshot means you should test with the plug connected. Most connectors can be back-probed. You can get kits to do this more easily, but the way I do it (and I'm pretty sure there's a picture of this in the manual somewhere) is to wrap a thin wire around the lead on the meter, then stick the end of that wire into the back of the connector beside the wire that you want to test, so the test wire contacts the pin inside the connector. The box that says HS above the "connect" icon means the connector is shown from the harness side, which makes sense, as that's the side you're probing from. The wording is a little vague, and I haven't dug into this circuit on a round-dash truck, but I think they mean you should see 5v, then 0v, then 5v, then 0v, repeating as the truck moves. My understanding is that the speed sensor is a reed switch mounted next to a magnet on a shaft with a gear on the end, which generates a square wave signal as you drive. Each cycle (on/off) translates to a distance travelled. Try the test again, backprobing this time on the off chance that matters in this case, and see if that gets you a 5v square-wave signal. My '93 has the older style of cluster (square-dash), which has the speedo/odo driven by a spinning cable. The reed switch that makes the speed sensor signal for the computer(s) is built into the speedo. If you try the test again, and don't see the square-wave, I would check the harness between the speed sensor and the cluster, then see if I could test the sensor itself. If it is just a reed switch, you should be able to test continuity across it (harness unplugged, just the sensor), turn the sensor (could just put the rear axle on jack stands, trans in neutral, and turn the rear driveshaft by hand), and see if the switch cycles on and off as the shaft goes around. Again, I haven't tried it--but that's what I'd try next. Now that I think about it, I've got a round-dash speed sensor in a transfer case on my shop floor, and I'm pretty sure the speedo worked in the truck I pulled it out of. If I remember the next time I'm down there, I'll have a poke at that one to see if it tests the way I think it does.

I don't know crap about the R51, but I'll bet the service manual has trouble diagnosis info for the blower speed control, or at least a circuit diagram. Free download here if you haven't yet. Sounds like the hvac controls are stuck somehow. Could be the control panel itself, or whatever amplifier it talks to that moves the blend door and sets the fan speed, or the wiring between those things. Hopefully it's the cheaper/easier to get to one of those. Good luck!

No idea. Assuming the cluster stores the info on board, I imagine it would probably work. Check the '97 and '98 service manuals to see if the pinout is the same.

The e-fans are popular because they free up a little power at high revs. But, yeah, there's more to go wrong, and you may struggle to move the same CFM as the clutch fan when you really need it.

Wouldn't be a bad idea to check/replace the strut rod bushings, where the rear of the front control arms meet the frame. They're usually destroyed inside, even if they still look okay.

I remember someone (think it was my1path?) having some trouble adapting the VG30 TPS to the VG33 throttle body, which I assume wouldn't be necessary if the VG30 TB bolted up. Tuning may prove challenging. My1path got Nistune to work with his, Nefarious desoldered the eprom chip. Aftermarket EFI (megasquirt or similar) may be easier than working with what's there, especially if you're mixing and matching sensors as well. I remember someone on here had a hell of a time getting VG33 idle controls working with the WD21 computer, and that was without a supercharger (I don't remember why they didn't just use the VG30 intake). I've seen holes cut in the stock hood, so I'm guessing no, it won't clear. The Hardbody hood with the bump in the middle might clear. Write it up if you decide to try it!

I remember someone asking about it, but I don't remember anyone trying it. I doubt the bearings and gears would mind. No idea on the synchros. I know other boxes run ATF, including the T-5 in my dad's hot rod. If it was mine, and it worked alright, I'd stick with the standard oil. But it's not mine, and it has to come out anyway, so... send it and let us know how it goes.

Download the '94/'95 service manual for free here. EF&EC and EL will be your friends for this one, but you might as well download the whole thing. It comes in handy. Start with the check engine light. The EF&EC section will tell you how to get a code from the ECU, what it means, and what to check to chase it down. My money's on code 14, speed sensor. The transmission computer doesn't have a check light, but it'll flash the light in the E-AT switch after startup if it saw something in the last drive that it didn't like. The AT section has information for decoding those flashes. If you do see the flashes, I recommend recording them on your phone for easy playback, as it may take a few tries to read them properly. I haven't had to do one yet, but I've heard the speed sensors in these can be a pig to get out, and the drive gear may be difficult to track down/not included with the new sensor. Test and make sure you're on the right track before throwing a sensor at it. Good luck and let us know what you find!

I did this on mine. Haven't had a trouble code to run since I did it, but it's kinda fun to leave it in mode 1 and watch the oxygen sensor.

The MPFI intake uses a regular bolt as the bleeder. I've heard of the plastic bleeder on the TBI, but I don't think I've ever seen one, and I can't find a picture, let alone a listing. Does it look like a standard fastener, or does it have the center drilled out like a brake bleeder? If you can work out the thread pitch, you might find something close enough from mcmaster-carr.

Thanks for the show and tell! Always fun to see the inside of equipment I can't afford. I had wondered how the e-lockers worked. That ramp setup is actually very similar to the 4x4 engagement mechanism in a Ford transfer case I took apart a while back, except that one squeezed a clutch pack instead of pushing splines together.

The rear brakes may need adjustment.

That is a weird one. The flashing OD light isn't a test of the OD cancel system, it's a blinky-lights transmission diagnostic system (a holdout from the first-gen trucks). There are instructions in the AT section of the service manual (download for free here) to decode the flashes, but if you have an OBDII scanner, you can just plug that in and get the same info without learning to read judgement flickers. Looking for the flashing light at startup is just a quick way to see whether the transmission computer is upset about something. You may have to check this with the OD switch on (idiot light off); I'm not sure if it can turn the light off to flash out codes. If you do have an OBDII scanner, I would be curious to check the live data and see what the computer thinks the vehicle speed is. If the live data matches reality, that suggests that the sensor is okay, and the gauge is acting up. If live data matches the incorrect gauge, either the sensor is acting up (and I'm not sure how it would generate a signal when the truck wasn't moving), or whatever's wrong in the cluster is also sending bogus info to the computer. The service manual has some basic circuit checks for the speedo circuit on EL-91. Looks like it's just checking power, ground, and the wiring to the sensor. Without those things, the gauge would not be moving at all, so I'm guessing they're not the problem. Still, not a bad idea to run those checks anyway to make sure the readings are correct. A present but incorrect speed sensor signal or weak voltage could be confusing the circuitry and making it do weird things. While the cluster is out, check that the screws holding the circuitry to the back of the cluster, especially the four screws behind the speedometer, are clean and tight. Those are the electrical connections for the gauges. The first-gen clusters are built similarly, and I've read you can sometimes fix a glitchy tach in those by loosening and re-tightening the screws. I see in the video that the needle isn't going down to zero, even with the power off. That makes me wonder if there's something physically stopping it or binding it up. If none of the above gets you anywhere, I would take the clear plastic cover off and check that the needle moves freely. Then, either way, I'd tear the cluster down further in search of the issue. Unless there was an obvious smoking gun like a dead fly in the mechanism or a cracked solder joint, I would still end up throwing a new (used) cluster at it. Good luck! Let us know what you find.

Yikes. Hopefully nothing else was damaged, and the engine you took out has the parts you need to put it right.

^^What he said. Manual hubs stay locked, or unlocked, until you get out and switch them yourself. When they're locked, the 4WD will work just like it does with what you've got now. When they're unlocked, 4WD will not work, but you'll have less rolling resistance. The auto hubs on the WD21s locked and unlocked themselves, which was less helpful than you'd expect. They were a little weird about reverse, but I don't remember the specifics. I got rid of mine and installed manual hubs years ago.

Sounds like your Chevy had clogged cats. Unless the R50 does too, spend your time/effort elsewhere. Look into manual locking hubs. Easy upgrade, supposed to give better fuel economy when you don't need 4WD (less rolling resistance). Also consider an electric fan in place of the clutch fan. Less drag on the engine, but a bit of screwing around to set up, one more thing to fail, and it may struggle to deliver enough air flow. If you want reliability, focus on maintenance. Plugs, cap/rotor, fluids, filters, vacuum lines, timing belt. Clean the crap out of the throttle body/butterfly. Check for cracks in the rubber tube between the throttle body and the MAF. Check the MAF, clean it (carefully!) if it's dirty inside. If you want more power (who doesn't), do some research on cams. People who swap the VG33 into the WD21 Pathfinders often swap in the cams from their VG30, which are a little more aggressive. I think you can still get aftermarket cams for these, too. I don't remember anyone camming up a VG33 in an R50, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. If you want to go crazy with this thing, it is possible to build these engines up, and I hear they respond well to boost. The evap can holds the gasoline fumes from the tank, then releases them to the intake when the engine is running. It's full of charcoal, which the gas vapor sorta sticks to until the engine sucks it back out. Basically it means the truck doesn't always smell like an open gas can. It's supposed to keep fuel vapor out of the atmosphere. I suspect it also helps the gas keep longer if the vehicle is parked for a while.

That's about as far as mine goes, though it's been lower lately in the cold. I'll have to check the rad hose the next time I take it out.

Unless the smog gear's causing problems, all you'll get for deleting it is a few more OBDII codes, and some gasoline fumes if you decide to pull the evap can. If you decide to tear stuff out, make sure you know what you're looking at so you don't mess up something it needs to run. I haven't done the trailing arm bushings on mine yet, but they sound like a PITA. If the complete links are cheap, save yourself the hassle, especially if you don't have a press.

Aftermarket ECU and a big turbo, you say?

Tough call. EFI's generally better, but you'd need a bunch of parts off the donor to make it work. Computer, harness, evap gear, fuel system, oxygen sensors, catalyst. Then the fun of fitting the harness to a shell that wasn't designed for it. But, yeah, easy starts, OBDII, probably better on gas. Looks like some of the Ratsun guys have carb'd the KAs and worked out which earlier distributors will work. Less to set up, less to go wrong.

Yeah, I went around it with the silicone spray after that. Got the door locks working a little better too.

Went to drive somewhere today, shut the hatch, and it bounced. No latching action. Shut it a few more times, nothing. Checked the latch with a screwdriver and it just flopped around. On a hunch, I heated around the catch with a little butane torch for a few minutes. Sure enough, it went click, and then it closed again. I guess some water condensed back there and froze the mechanism. First time it's done that. On the plus side, by the time I got the hatch to stay closed, the windshield had finished defrosting!