Slartibartfast

Ain't wiring fun? Good job tracking it down. Clearly you're better at it than the last guy!

Good to hear you got it! By transaxle case do you mean the front diff? I think a couple of people have had issues with the diff mounts going out and causing front end vibrations.

Sounds like you're on the right track. I haven't had a door off an R50 but I remember getting the electrical plug out of the A pillar on my '95 was a massive PITA, so I wouldn't be surprised if a wire in that harness was damaged during the process (or routed up against something that wore through it over time) and is shorting to either the door or the pillar. I would remove the head unit and check continuity between the driver's door speaker wires and ground. Maybe check it against + too, on the off chance it's shorted to a wire for the power window switch or something. If that doesn't tell you anything, check power and ground at the stereo plug to rule that out, though it doesn't sound like that's the issue if the display isn't blacking out.

Yikes. That thing took no prisoners. The ideal fix (looking at how chewed up the case is) would be a new (to you) transfer case and linkage. In a pinch, you might be able to Mickey Mouse it back together, though again, the damage to the case may make this more of a PITA than just replacing it with one that hasn't had the crap beaten out of it. From what I can see, and assuming that what I can't see (shift shaft, lever, linkage) survived, it looks like all you've really got are busted-up shifter mounts and a popped-off end on the shift linkage that goes to the lever on the shift shaft. If that linkage isn't completely buggered and the ball joint will pop back together, then all you have to worry about is remounting the shifter. The rod through the bottom of the shifter is supposed to be supported by the blind hole in the case (the one that's blown out at the top) and the strap across the outside of it (the one that's been torn from its mounting post and is now pointing up at the floor). The strap could probably be straightened if you can get it off of the shifter, or replaced with a non-pretzelled one from the wreckers. (If you go to the wreckers, make sure you get the shifter assembly from an R50 like yours. WD21s have the same transfer case, but the shifter and lockout plate are different.) That blown-out hole in the case is what worries me. It doesn't look like there's much meat left to hold the shaft in place. The correct repair would probably involve a machinist and a TIG welder, and removing the transfer case from the truck, and if you're going that far, you might as well just replace the SOB and be done with it. Maybe you could make a steel bracket with a hole in either end, one end sitting over the blown-out case hole to support the shaft, the other end retained by that nearby bolt. You'd need to space out the outer support strap with washers of equal thickness to the plate. Worst case, bush fix, maybe you could build the case back up with epoxy putty, though I wouldn't expect that to hold for long. Good luck!

Not the cheapest for sure, but I go through it pretty slowly, so, eh. Haven't had any trouble with it on my caliper slides.

I picked up a bottle of dedicated brake lube a while back. Purple synthetic schmoo with ceramic solids. Seems to work pretty well.

Maybe the grease seals or needle bearings aren't seated all the way? See if you can work out what the axle is bottoming out against. If you have the old needle bearings, I'd check their length vs the new ones, just to rule that out.

Probably muttered "cyka blyat" to itself as it ran off.

That is an odd wear pattern, and those rotors don't look good. +1 for cleaning and greasing the slide pins while you're in there, though I'd expect more of a taper if those were the problem. Check the wheel bearing while you're in there.

I did a bunch of other stuff at the same time, and ended up pulling it apart again and waiting on parts, so I don't have a good figure for time. I will say though that a friend and I did a much more involved timing belt job on his dad's Kia (that SOB had four camshafts, and two of them didn't want to stay put) that took a couple of afternoons. Depends on your tools/skills but it's not rocket surgery for sure. I used this writeup and the service manual for torque specs.

The trouble with most brush guards is that they're designed to stop low-velocity vegetation, not high-velocity venison. They have a reputation for collapsing in a collision and causing damage to more of the front end than would've been hit by the deer alone. I'd prefer a proper bumper, but of course anything will crumple if hit hard enough. My strategy in rural Washington (also lousy with hoof rats) is just to drive slower late evening through early morning when they tend to be on the road. The only one I've hit, I saw long beforehand, and thought, nah, he'll stay where he is. Dumb SOB dove in front of me at the last minute like he wanted the insurance money. I'd slowed down to around 40 by that point, though, so the damage to the truck was minor.

I tore mine down and did the belt when I got it. Not too bad of a job. The old belt probably had another 10k in it, if it was done on time previously, but now it's one less thing to worry about. Do everything you can get to while you're in there. Seals, pump, bypass hose, thermostat, tensioner, belt, the works. I skipped one part on mine and the SOB started leaking as soon as I had it buttoned up, and I had to tear it apart again. Some form of rust protection is probably a good idea as well to keep it clean, especially in the strut towers.

I downloaded a '90 service manual from cardiagn but I haven't found one between '90 and '94 yet, at least in free PDF form. The '90 should be closer to what you need than the '94. Sounds like you're better equipped to track down its electrical faults than most people! I'd have to check the diagrams again to see what runs off the meter fuse, but if the stereo's been messed with, check the wiring for that first. People do bizarre and terrible things with stereo wiring. For the reverse lights, I'd check the bulbs first (to rule out the simple/stupid thing), then if you've got no power to the bulbs, check the switch on the transmission. Also look into the TSB for overfilling the manual transmission to keep the countershaft bearings happy.

Can be done. Not much point, though, unless it's buggered and you don't want to pay for a new valve. It only kicks in when cruising, so it shouldn't be holding the engine back unless the valve's jammed open. It's supposed to improve fuel economy when cruising by reducing manifold vacuum. If it is screwed up, there's not much to remove, though the fittings on the exhaust line will be a fight to get loose. For testing purposes, you could just unbolt the valve from the intake manifold, slip a thin piece of sheet metal between it and the manifold (covering the hole), and bolt it back up, just to see if you notice any difference in performance. If the truck's got federal emissions, the computer shouldn't notice. California-smog trucks will throw codes and light up the CEL. I had mine apart when I had my intake off. It was all in good working order, so I just knocked out the carbon buildup and put it back how it was.

Back to plan A, then! Good thing you checked before getting into it.

I have a manual for the TD27 (engine only). It's mechanically injected. There's a module that controls the EGR valve, but near as I can tell, that's the only computer. That alone should make the TD a whole lot easier to work with. Ekim Naelcm on the NPORA Facebook page (formerly Nefarious on here) TD27-swapped his WD21. I think he had either a half-cut or a complete donor. I remember seeing pictures of wiring harnesses all torn apart. That's who I'd talk to if you're curious. I seem to remember a thread from a while back where someone had swapped a QD32 from an R50 into a WD21. I don't remember seeing details or underhood pictures, just a couple of dark highway pull videos showing it off. I'm not even sure it was on this forum. As cool as either would be, parts availability (both for the initial build and for when something goes wrong down the line) would worry me.

Good luck and let us know how it goes. It'd be good to know if the Fronty pedal box turns out to bolt up.

Don't forget motor mounts. You don't need anything special, but don't assume that your originals will be worth reusing.

Part numbers are different for the MC and I'd be surprised if a Fronty pedal box fit a Pathy firewall. The rest should fit right up. Make sure you've got the right bolts for the flywheel.

First-gen ('99-'04) V6 Xterras should have what you're after. Not sure on the cams, I think most people re-use the cams from the VG30 they're taking out. May or may not be an option depending on the condition of yours. The stock ECU should run the 3.3 just fine. Use the 3.0 intake, it's already got your idle controls, injectors, and TPS on it. I think most guys reuse the stock wiring in its entirety (with the exception of the charge wire if you're doing the Quest alt), though having fumbled with Bosch clips on the side of the road with a pocket knife, I can see the appeal of using something else. Nissan Nut has a pretty good writeup on his website for Quest alts. +1 for doing all the engine work you can with the engine out! I did a few seals on a friend's Chevy recently while we had the engine out and man was that nice compared to the usual "up to my armpits in the La Brea Tar Pits" experience of working on that pig. Was there a fitment issue with the 3.0 dizzy or did you just like the integrated coil design better?

Swapping cranks/pumps (the pump is crank driven, and doesn't interchange between 30/33 cranks) to keep stock accessories might make sense in a Z31, but it seems like a lot of extra work in a WD21. The X/Fronty VG33 accessory layout is supposed to fit in the WD21 engine bay. AFAIK the alt and steering pump shouldn't be all that different, though it looks like the port design on the aircon compressor might require some creativity to hook into the WD21 aircon lines. I'd much rather modify a couple of hose fittings than tear down the bottom end, especially if the crank/pump you have on hand are the ones in the engine with 350k on it. The only bottom-end work you'd have to worry about is the oil pan and possibly the oil pickup. The thread linked below says that you can use a VG30 pan and the Xterra pickup and it'll bolt right up. IIRC somebody on here used a VG33 pan and just beat it with the BFH until it cleared (don't remember which donor it was from or what it fouled on, probably the diff). Then, yes, VG33 heads, VG30 cams, VG30 intake/sensors/wiring. The VG33 exhaust studs are bigger, so you'll probably need to hog out the holes in the exhaust manifolds. Make sure those fit before the engine's in the truck and you've got bugger-all room to see what you're doing. Check this thread out if you haven't yet. He went all kinds of hog-wild on his, but there's good info for milder builds there, too--and because he built it for a WD21, not a Z31, there's better info about what will/won't fit. Keep in mind that he's using the throttle body injection intake, not the multiport you've got, so ignore the bit about gutting the mixture preheater that you don't have. His intake gasket recommendation should still apply. Unfortunately he quit making the special adapter he used to put the V-belt pulleys on the VG33 crank. Also unfortunately, the pictures are on Photobucket, which has for some reason decided to blur them and add a watermark so we know who to blame.

+1 on that probably being deeper than it looks. Won't heal itself, though, so you might as well see what you're up against.

I remember Mighty Car Mods doing a similar setup a while back for an intercooler.

Weird. I've never heard of one failing like that and I'm having a hard time working out what would've gone wrong to make it do that. Maybe the bearing for the pulley is buggered, and the clutch pulling in applies enough side-load to unseize it somehow? Seems like you would've found that out when you spun the pulley by hand, though, unless the belt tension has something to do with it.

Rockauto shows mostly the same clutches (same part #s) for an '87 Pathy and an '02 Xterra, so you should be alright reusing the X flywheel, provided it's in good shape. IIRC the flywheel bolts are longer than the flexplate bolts, so save those when you pull the flywheel.