Sim

Just realised that I hadn't replied to this, sorry.. Yeah, was kind of hoping that there would be a way to do it without having to unbolt half the front end - which removing the diff constitutes basically.. I think I'll run some silicon around the outside of the sump pan after giving it a bloody good clean, then it'll be ok for a while longer...

Hey mate, The only thing it says is that you've got to remove the front diff and lift the engine/gearbox up to take the sump pan off.. which is a little bit more than I have the equipment to do at home - was kind of hoping someone might just say that it's easy to do without taking out the differential etc (perhaps by just jacking up the engine from off of the mounts, or something). This is about all the Haynes manual states (oddly Gregory's doesn't produce one for the Pathfinder that I could find but Haynes, an English company, does - and I got it from Victoria, odd..) Anyway, would love to get the FSM but this was the best I could find. Anyway.. looking complicated. Sim

Anyone at all? Surely someone must know whether or not it can be done

Leo94, nice spot and a very good point. 3rdtimesacharm, yeah, I wasn't too thrilled with that big 'B' pillar, though I got used to it very quickly, but I'm used to driving/riding anything so I can chop and change and get used to things fairly easily.. This was my baby..: (it underwent a transformation from 2.0i to 2.8 TDI) As you can clearly see I often went out 4wding with other owners, just need to find some Pathfinder owners near me now!

Ok, just been reading through this long thread.. White needles are absolutely fine on an orange background, that appears to be pretty standard on some Pathy's.. The tip I was given for correcting my speedo needle (and tacho needle) which has warped onto the face was to take off the plastic and very carefully run a line of superglue along the back of the needle, then sit the instrument fascia upright so that it's all sitting with the needles sitting horizontal with the glue on the very top of it. The theory is that the superglue as it dries shrinks slightly, which will correct the needle if it's sitting perfectly flat lifting it off the face of the dash. Also, if that doesn't work a pair of small side cutters can trim it back 2 or 3 mm without causing any probs, though you might want to try the superglue first! *** CAUTION *** don't put the clear cover back over the dials until say at least 12 hours has past (I'm not sure of the 100% curing time for superglue, usually it's dry in minutes but full curing is something like 10 hours or so - anyway, don't put the clear cover back over them until completely cured otherwise the fumes off the superglue will stain the inside of the clear cover of the instrument panel. I'm yet to try this superglue trick, I've replaced my instrument cluster once already so will be doing this soon as both speedo and tacho gauges are sticking occasionally. (Oddly they don't stick on very hot days!)

Just a tip.. as happened to me the 'race bearings' inside the gearbox went.. I'm not sure of the exact name of the bearings but everyone referred to them as the race bearings (someone mistook what I was saying and thought I was talking about racing a Pathfinder!) anyway, when the bearings went I started to get a loud whine which got progressively worse over two to three weeks.. the mechanic said it was an imminent 'bang' was what he was expecting, which was when the bearing exploded, the gearbox seized and the teeth got chewed off the gear you were using. Anyway, long and short of it was that buying a second hand gearbox and having it rebuilt, or taking my box out and having it rebuilt was a stupidly expensive task because YES, just buying the bearing kit and gaskets was about $100 here as well, but if one thing is worn it's almost a dead certainty that other things are worn, my mechanic quoted me $1,000 to rebuilt my gearbox as a starting price! I went and bought a full reconditioned box with a warranty on it for that! Good luck, but be very wary of buying a second hand box and going to rebuild your old one.. if you buy a second hand box try to drive the vehicle it's fitted too first before it's removed - so you know every gear works fine. You don't need to buy a transfer case, they are a bolt on/off box which gets next to no wear considering you are in 2WD most of the time, so it won't need replacing/ repairing in all likelihood. If you do buy a second hand box and it's ok then rebuilt THAT gearbox before you fit it.. and then buy another kit and rebuild your old box and put it in the shed as a spare. Good luck, Sim

Off-roading in the UK has so many restrictions it's not funny, and any infraction on the part of the off-roader can end up with hefty fines if the cops know what they are doing.. because there is a very, very good fine for 80 pounds that's for "Driving elsewhere than a road" so if you drive in to a farmers field... you can get the fine, and if a road gets restricted it's de-listed as being a road, therefore that fine applies. There are a heap of other things that restrict it (I policed in the area I used for 4WDing so I knew exactly where I could and couldn't go and stuck to it like superglue, and if I saw someone off doing the wrong thing I would stop them and tell them if they didn't wake up I'd report them for summons). Ummm, I like the bodywork, the back side windows are painted over because they are full metal panels replacing windows to give it a smoother look, the rear window though - would've kept that as a window and perhaps limo-tinted it.. clearly it's been set up for using for something specific, the boxes in the back etc.. not as a 'shaggin-wagon' though as it's not a full bed built in.. though it'd do ok for that... but I'd say possibly some sort of trade like perhaps electronics or something.. thus making the back fairly well impenetrable and unable to see in to it. Agree that the bonnet scoop might be a fair bit OTT because it's not a Subaru Impreza! @Leo94, why do you say that it's not a genuine Safari Snorkel? (It looks like it to me, just wondering is all) When I went out 4wding (which is commonly known as "Green Laning") in the UK I used a Frontera which I converted from 2.0 litre petrol to a 2.8 TDI. Much nicer, and again, like the Pathfinder a very underrated and very capable vehicle! (and both are torsion bar front end so a lot of commonalities but I think the Frontera actually felt a little bigger)

Ok folks, so I wanted to know if anyone here has changed their sump gasket without pulling the entire engine out.. I've got to change mine as it's leaking a reasonable amount (enought to have stained a mates concrete driveway now), and I want to know if it's a difficult job or if you 'can' remove the sump pan off the motor without having to lift the motor up from the engine mounts. So, any info about this would be great if you have done it, or had it done and watched. Cheers, Sim

Actually no, I wasn't a boy scout, but I believe in being prepared as I was raised in the bush..

Lukey make some good extractors (headers).. I just put some on my Pathy and it makes it much better!I I'm also looking at changing my carby, see the other thread about Z24 fuel pressure, lots of info in there about it... Keep us updated as well, always good to get feedback (as you'll see from Dean in the latter part of that thread with regards to removing spacers etc)

Take the hook off the front *(for safetys sake, please!!) and keep it as a momento (just for your info if it's a gold coloured snig chain hook then the chain it came off was probably worth around $150. I've got a tractor & snig chain too) If you leave it on the front when it manages to work itselt loose (and it WILL it's just a matter of time) and it comes off when you are doing 60 MPH up the road someone may get killed as it flicks out from under your 4wd and through their windscreen (sad part of that is no one will know where it came from but when you see it on the news you'll run out to see if it's still on your Pathy and then you'll know where it came from, but by that point it's too late!) I've found Heaps of @!*% like that on the road. I've got a tow chain hook that weighs about 5 kgs as a momento (it'll be useful on my farm when I move over there as well) of the crap that litters our roads out here in the desert.

Wow a thread I missed! I've got 470,000+ kilometres on my 89 Pathy and still going strong as an ox! I always keep the oil fresh!

I generally carry far too much crap but the essentials that are always there are: 5 litres of water (MINIMUM), 25 litres if over-nighting Small tool kit with multi-meter Snatch strap Long (wooden) handled shovel Swag (got to sleep somewhere, may as well be in comfort!) SatPhone, handheld UHF (handhelds are great in case something happens to your vehicle mounted ones) Metal lock box with flint striker for lighting fires, foil emergency blanket, cotton wool, hand chainsaw, chargers for everything I've got that's batt powered, and a heap of other assorted stuff and usually a can of baked beans or some noodles as backup food supply. I'm sure there is a lot more but I can't think of it all right now.. But all the above lives in the car FULL TIME. The swag is used daily for work and I add the extra 20 litres of water if I'm actually going out of town. (But hey I live in a desert so 25 litres is bugger all!) When I was in the UK with my Frontera I used to carry a plastic crate with 5 ration pack meals (including deserts) in it, tea, UHT milk, gas burner & 2 gas bottles, billy can & 5 litres of water (min). Someone asked why once... a few days later an entire motorway got shut-down due to the snow, people were freezing and being rescued by the cops.. as for me I was nowhere near it but if I was I would've just boiled up the billy, had a cuppa, had a hot meal, and waited.. no stress! Pays to be prepared for everything ALL the time in my book.. I should probably also add that I've got many of the other things listed here, things like binoculars etc live in the 4wd all the time. I don't carry lots of spares (usually one set of belts is there and a bit of oil) for the 4wd because I keep everything in tip-top shape so I shouldn't have any problems.

I just got a hard copy of the Haynes repaire manual, I have finally worked out why I couldn't find them anywhere before.. firstly Gregory's who make the majority of these manuals in Australia didn't have them listed but Haynes did (UK company, go figure) and it's listed under the Nissan/Datsun Pickup and Pathfinder, so if you were looking for Pathfinder specific (which I was) you wouldn't find it at all. These seem to be fairly easy to find once you actually know what you are looking for! As with previous posts I'm happy to scan small sections at once if required, or go to one of the above download links perhaps

Hey Dean, Thanks for the feedback on that one..it's good to know.. I figured that there would've been a good reason for Nissan to put those bits in under the carby, if nothing else it also gives the fuel/air mixture a few more milliseconds to mix better before being sucked in to one of the cylinders for combustion. I would say you are too right with your thoughts on what happened, I'd certainly be thinking about that myself out here where our daytime temps are in excess of 40 degrees for 5 to 6 months a year and you worry about the fuel evaporating before it even reaches the carby when it's 46 degrees and the tarmac is melting on the roads! I'm still waiting on my mate to get back to me with the info about the carby he's got.. then I can arrange for a carby rebuild kit to be ready for when I visit him, likewise I can also arrange for an air filter and so on to fit it as well.. all sorts of stuff that needs to be obtained before I go fitting stuff like this onto the vehicle - sadly I get everything ready long before I fit stuff, means it takes me a long time to do some things... Hey, lesson learned on not having recovery equipment with you right? I always have a snatch strap, and a long handle shovel in the vehicle even when I'm planning on just driving to and from work.. as a consequence I was able to assist some government workers who managed to get their Hilux bogged to the sills, my little Pathfinder pulled this Hilux out of it's bog in 2 goes, thankfully Nissan put that LSD into the rear, it always impresses me the places that my Pathfinder can just 'go' without any difficulty, even in 2WD it is pretty amazing with the LSD helping out.. but in 4WD let's just say I've never yet had it stuck.. Before jumping out and grabbing a new fuel pump check your current one out.. according to the Haynes manual I managed to find on eBay - what a find!! - it states that a normally operating electric fuel pump will deliver 47.3 fl oz or 1400 ml into a container in one minute, so grab a decent size measuring jug, disconnect your fuel pump from the fuel filter inside the engine bay and put the pipe into the jug and turn on the ignition for exactly 1 minute. If you are getting 1400 ml or around that amount in 1 minute then I would say that it's ok.. that said though, my fuel pump completely died in the ass one day, no explanation it just stopped working, the mechanic that I broke down 200 metres away from told me that normally fuel pumps last between 100,000 - 200,000 kms, he was shocked to find that mine was the original - and with 470,000 kms that makes for one hell of a pump! Anyway, he found a replacement from Repco for $90. On the shelf!!! Let me know how you get on with the fuel pump test and the rest of it, hopefully you'll get it sorted out soon enough.. Shame you are so far south or I'd call in and say Hi on my next trip across to the Nth Coast of NSW (where my family and property is).

Hey, welcome to the newer folks, it's nice to know that I'm no longer a newbie because there are newer peeps than me on here rustedhorse, that looks like fun. I'll look forward to seeing pics tg3, try looking at overseas markets, particularly Australia and the UK - lots of aftermarket products available for most 4WDs that ended up on the world export markets, also markets that specialise in the Navara Utes and so on and so forth, because of all the commonalities in the vehicles you will probably find a lot of stuff for other models that will fit straight on to the Pathfinders. If you are after suspension stuff I can't offer any better recommendation than the ironman.com.au selection - I've driven my pathfinder over some of the worst roads in Australia (and the world) and my Ironman suspension has taken a beating and still works fine. HappyCarGuy, try looking in your user control panel at settings that you can play with, other than that I don't have a lot of experience on this particular forum software but it'll be there somewhere... just play around and you'll work it out.

Yeah, I think finding a decent Z24 will be a mission and a half mate. I agree that they are a good engine and I'm definitely hesitant to change anything more with the engine (apart from the carby) until I have to, though the tick isn't anything to do with the valves, they've been adjusted (sent it to a mechanic to do that because I was going on a big trip a couple of days later and didn't have time)... I've not noticed that I could see the timing chain from the filler cap, I'll have to climb up and have a look, it's a little more problematic with a bullbar in the way and a suspension lift to add to the fun... I dare say it's exactly as you say, double row timing chain.. (to be honest I should've thought) I got my Pathy for $1,500 as well.. though it was up for $4k and I just got lucky.. I was overseas and bought it sight unseen.. I got very lucky! I'm just working my way through the rest of the front end and replacing stuff with neo. Then I'll look at doing the rear brake shoes and possibly drums, but one step at a time. I've put thousands into this 4WD but she'll just keep on keeping on. She's done 2 x trips over the Plenty Highway between the Stuart Highway 70km north of Alice Springs and Boulia in Queensland, it's one of the roughest roads in Australia.. a real suspension killer. Pathfinder ate it up, I did end up with the centre muffler shaken to bits and needed 2 new rear tyres as they'd been chewwed to bits. I think rebuilding an engine and just doing a swap over is a great idea, it also means you can take your time knowing you can still use the vehicle as needed.

Damn, that's not a bad price for a rebuild kit.. but is that for the Z24i (8 plug head)? One of the other differences I've found and been unable to get confirmed 100% was with the timing chain, is it double row or single row? because I could only find a double row chain kit and I'm not pulling my engine apart to find out what chain it is until I'm going to replace it (which should probably be done some day sooner rather than later).. I'd love to rebuild my engine but with over 470,000 kms on the clock she still starts first go every time, idles lovely except for a slight tick, and still gets an easy 11.2 litres per hundred km fuel economy without running air-con on a long trip... though can use up to 16.5 litres per hundred on a quick 130 kph run down the Stuart Highway (130 limit these days sadly), but yeah, acceleration is a little lacking - probably my shagged as hell carby that sucks air in places they were never designed to! Though my engine is old and high kms it doesn't blow any smoke and doesn't use any oil and after 5,000 to 6,000 kms when I dip the stick the oil is still almost clear like new oil - but I change it and the filter at that point - that's why she's still going strong, always has good fresh oil. A full reco of my engine would be $2,300 'ish from some place in Brissy and would take approx 1 week. Would love to go there as I imagine even with a rebuild kit the 'mechanic rates' would add up to around $1,500 anyway.. and I just don't have the time or even the experience for a full rebuild, I can strip down a motor and do most of the work but if I stuffed up one little bit due to my lack of knowledge of that particular operation that's a big cost to fix it.. I love the sound of what you've described as a throaty sound when you plant your foot.. a bigger, better, double barrell carby combined with my nice new Lukey extractors and 50 or 55mm exhaust - can't remember which and too lazy to climb under and measure it again - (which only has a centre muffler and Cat) should make for some nicer sounds all around.. Just on a side note I've heard from 'many' people that the Z24 engine is almost unkillable and that if it's given fresh oil all the time it'll last for a 'very, very' long time.. and I met a guy with an 89 Pathy 2 dr out here in the NT who had clocked up a whopping 950,000 kms on the original engine, he was just starting to have problems with the distributor system (because it's slightly complicated)..

Forgot to ask... was it particularly difficult to fit mate, ie how long and did you need any specialist equipment (good to be prepared before I try to do anything and end up with an undriveable vehicle for want of a pink electroplated skyhook and a fuzzy equalising lefthanded screwdriver! Sim

Hey Dean, thanks for the info mate, absolutely brilliant.. Would definitely like to know if your fuel use goes up or down.. But I guess only time will tell. Was the drive quite improved then with the bigger carby? I'm really keen to know as much as possible about this one as I love my Pathy to bits and it's my daily driver, so if I can get a bit more fuel economy with normal driving and just a little bit more power on acceleration then that's a wonderful modification to do.. and to be honest if I don't increase my fuel use by much I'd even consider still doing it, specially as my current carby is stuffed (it's almost 500,000 kms old). Of course the fact that I've been offered a Weber carby (though not sure of the size yet) is also a good bonus... Sim

Well, I've noticed that even using my air-con now that I've got the extractors fitted (and I already had a 50 or 55 mm (2 - 2.5 inch) exhaust system fitted) I'm now getting atleast another half of a litre less fuel use per 100 kms. I've only done my calculations with town and highway driving and only over 2 weeks or 1 fill of the tank. In another few weeks it'll be getting cooler so it'll be interesting to see what the new extractors combined with the already larger exhaust does for the fuel economy, I'm guessing it'll be a lot nicer than it was before fitting extractors. I'm interested to know if anyone has a Weber carby fitted on a Z24i (the 8 plug engine) and whether that increased or decreased your fuel use..

Hey Stamper (is that after the evil henchman of the bad guy in the James Bond movie? or do you just walk heavy???) One of the most popular mods for any 4x4 is to raise your suspension, check out Ironman.com.au (they have local stores in the US). You'll most likely find that they stock suspension for your model and that you can buy it directly from a local stockist. Good job on pulling the 'F truck' out of a ditch.. nice when you get to do that sort of thing... I pulled a brand new Hilux out from being bogged to the sills using my little old Pathy.. made me laugh like hell to think my 25 year old truck with no modern technology could pull them out and NOT get stuck in the bog they were in despite my backing right up to them! LSD, low range and a snatch strap.. wonderful! Sim

Sorry, this post sounds a bit harsh, but I've got to make a point here... leaving any engine sitting completely un-touched for 3 years is highly likely to be 'fatal' to the entire engine and it's components and it's irresponsible (so is not maintaining your daily driver), this might be an exercise in futility and might cost you more to rectify than you think, I think you may be better off putting some $$$ into the Jeep because you currently RELY on it as your daily driver. Perhaps the Pathy might be best retired or donated to someone who can afford the time/$ to fix it up - perhaps the tech school is a good idea, but you won't want it back afterwards with stripped nuts/bolts, everything worn from being taken off and put on a hundred times etc, etc. Before you think about starting the Pathy (after 3 years of sitting un-started) take out the spark plugs, pop about 25-50 ml of clean oil (machine oil is light and would do the job beautifully and will burn off in the first minute of starting up the engine) in to each cylinder, then drain all the oil out of the sump and put in fresh engine oil, once this is done you can use a socket and breaker bar attached to the crank and rock the engine back and forward a couple of inches each direction, don't forget to change the oil filter when you do the oil (and because it's not been started for so long put some oil in the filter before fitting, it doesn't have to be full but some oil will help lubricate the oil pump when things start moving around - because it's guaranteed to be as dry as desert inside it's components). You CAN go and put the clean machine oil down the cylinders now even if you don't plan on starting the engine for another few months, it'll soak in to the rings and work it's way down around the pistons which may prevent further damage occuring when you do crank over the engine, if you plan on leaving the engine unstarted for another 6 months or more then make that oil standard grade engine oil, not light machine oil.. that way it'll take longer before it's run down past the rings - which'll keep everything sweeter. Change the fuel filter and drain the petrol out of the tank (as it'll have seperated by now and while it may be flammable you probably don't want to run it through your engine as it'll run like a dog) and then put in fresh fuel, but before starting disconnect the fuel filter 'input' pipe (pipe from tank) and turn the key on so that the electric pump pushes out any old fuel from the pipes. Drain the radiator completely, make sure the entire engine is drained of water as well, then flush it out with normal tap water from your garden hose, when the water runs completely clear out of the radiator and engine you can drain out most of it and add coolant and top back up to full. I would expect to see a bit of rust come out - I just hope that your welsch plugs are intact. Also look for signs of oil in that water (drain it into a bucket at first so you can look for oil - just as you'll need to look in the oil for signs of water, if you are going to use the same bucket wipe it out between these jobs so it doesn't cross contaminate your examination). So after putting a little oil down the cylinders, changing the sump oil, the petrol filter and draining the tank and replacing the fuel, draining and refilling the radiator with coolant, you are already looking at a couple of hundred $...... though to be honest all the rubbers, seals and gaskets on everything could be shot now! Most things on an engine are designed to be kept supple by fluids in the engine and cooling system, most metals are designed to be kept moist as well - that stops them from rusting or corroding etc. Many people who own a motor vehicle fail to maintain them properly because they say they can't afford to - the problem is can you afford NOT TO maintain your vehicle? Can you afford to get a taxi to and from work for a week because something major goes wrong because the engine coolant hasn't been changed in over 3 years? and on top of that cost for the taxi, the cost of the mechanic will make the $20-30 for a bottle of concentrated anti-freeze/anti-boil coolant, 30 minutes with a screw driver and a garden hose while the engine is cold seem like pocket change!!! Also don't forget that failing to maintain any motor vehicle puts your own life at risk - do you KNOW how worn your brakes are for instance? Just remember that when you replace 1 headlight bulb you should always replace the other - odds are it's done the same amount of work and that it'll blow within days of the first one. The same goes for almost everything on a vehicle, steering, suspension, tyres, etc. Not having time or money to maintain your vehicle is not really an excuse. If you own a motor vehicle and you rely on it you spend the money and/or make the time! Its your life that's at risk when you don't make that effort. I work 60+ hours every week driving in and out of a desert going up to 850 kms in each direction... yet I can still find an hour in a month to do preventative maintenance on my Pathy - things like checking the oil and coolant levels, checking the power steering fluid and brake fluid (brake fluid levels also tell you when your brakes are getting very worn, so it's good to get to know the usual levels), once in every few months I'll jack the Pathy up and take the wheels off and check everything is tight in the suspension and steering as well as greasing all the grease nipples and looking for wear on components that wouldn't normally wear or don't get seen often enough to notice the wear, such as brake pads. I treat my car just like I would've treated a customers car when I was an apprentice mechanic. Anyway, it is of course completely up to you how you choose to proceed.. Good luck whichever way you choose to go, but don't skip out on the vehicle you rely on. Sim

Sounds like a good idea to check those for sure. The other one is whether or not the plug could've come loose with all the wiring being tugged around etc. I don't have a dimmer switch.. anyone got a spare? that'd be neat to have and I'm pretty sure the wiring harness will have a plug on it no sense in having different harnesses.