DanF.

Are there any pros/cons to crawling along (+/-5mph) in 1st gear with OD off? (automatic gearbox) Next, is there a guide to how much I should air-down with stock-sized tires? I'm thinking about going down to 20psi as a starting point, and see how that works. And, does anyone have any experience good/bad with the Viair 88P Portable Air Compressor? My wife is demanding an Xmas present suggestion (she didn't think rolls of crisp $100s was appropriate) and I pulled this out of thin air. Are there better options in the sub-$100 category? I've been exploring a lot of the class VI roads nearby, and realized that I don't really know what I'm doing other than trying to be safe and not break anything or tear up the ground. Thanks .

Newb questions: Are there realistic pros or cons to driving off-road at slow speeds (+/-5mph) in 1st or 2nd gear with the OD off? Does having the torque convertor locked add any benefit to crawling along at low speeds? Next, I've been looking for ways to increase traction while still adhering to the "tread lightly" philosophy and had a "duh" moment over never bothering to air down. For OEM size tires, what is a good pressure to drop to? Is 20psi still too high? Also, I've seen a lot of positive reviews for the Viair 88P 12v portable compressor. Do any of you have experience with that model, or know of a better model in that sub-$100 category?

Here: http://www.andysautosport.com/performance_mufflers/nissan_350z.html

All these nice rigs, and here I am just slipping and sliding up a rutted Class VI road I found yesterday on my winter tires and saggy springs. Just enough clearance for 99% of the road. Look at all that flex! The ruts in that small hole were about two feet deep, and I would have been stuck out in the middle of nowhere. So I just took the go-around. I drove maybe a half mile (?) up the road, and turned around at a fork where it was wide enough to do a 234-point turn. It was the only time I needed to engage 4wd. The road and ground consist of wet leaves covering muddy stones, so my rear tires spun too much. The road goes for a bit more, but I had my sleeping daughter in the back seat and didn't think I needed to do anything reckless like pop tire. The winter tires on the truck are M+S Firestone WinterForce 245/70R16, so nothing too off-roady. Anyway, after I left that road I continued to explore the (million or so) backroads near where I moved to. Even thought peak-foliage has passed up here in NH, the colors are still amazing. Saw my 43rd* flock of turkeys. I imagine they have some Spidey-Sense® that alerts them to non-hunters. So they just walk out in front of me and take their time pecking away at the ground.

tuning peg

A tech specs repository for the various options offered for the R50 is what's needed. Too much, "well I heard this..." about a certain year's specs, and not enough verified data floating around. Hope this post gets stickied for future questions.

Call them up, and ask. Or email them.

Sand Casting

Thanks for sharing. I always enjoy the technical write-ups with PICTURES!!! Considering the time, effort, and money (for parts and tools needed) would it be feasible to get the complete rear end from an Xterra (or other vehicle with a locker already installed) and fabricate your own spring perches, trailing arm mounts, etc... and use that?

Sounds like it could be a stuck thermostat. It would prevent the coolant from circulating through the radiator, and causing the fan clutch to lock up (due to the high engine temps) and get louder.

Is your cooling fan clutch frozen? When they die the clutch freezes/sticks and likes to spin at the same speed as the engine. It makes it much louder. A good fan clutch should allow you to spin the fan by hand (pretty easily) when the engine is off.

It looks like yours is lifted. Do Tundra upgrade parts fit on the Sequoia?

What size are you running, and where did you buy them... online or brick & mortar shop? I'm looking at them now, out of curiosity's sake, and realized that they don't sell them on TireRack.com, or other online retailers.

I love the AT2s on our 2004 Pathfinder. Great tread wear on those unexpected 2000 road trips. Also, I've really only got it into sand, from hardpacked beach stuff to light, deep, dried-out sections that sunk me in 2wd. After switching to 4wd (have open diffs front/rear) I had no trouble climbing out..... luckily. Not great in (freezing) cold weather and in snow, the rubber compound hardens up, and there is too much open space between the tread blocks. I'm moving from TX back up to NH, and we're going to get some dedicated studded snow tires for the 6 months of winter that is gifted to us.

What wheels do you have? Post a picture if you can. I'm confused what rotor issue you'd ever have. The lip on the inside of the SE wheels holds the center caps, and will prevent the MM hubs from poking through enough to allow the wheels to fit back on the hub. IIRC, the SE wheels that I have are the only wheels that will have interference issues with the Mile Marker hubs. It's also been said (somewhere on this forum...) that Warn hubs will fit without modifying the SE wheels. I don't have the dimensions for the Warn hubs, so I can't speak to that. Hope this helps.

Do you have a writeup with pictures for this? I'm interested in the setup and installation.

Guy's name is Georges Nasr, and he posts pretty frequently on the Faceballs page for NPORA: https://www.facebook.com/groups/NPORA/

Thanks for the link. Those guys were removing a substantial amount of material compared to what I need to do.

I will grind it myself. I just don't know the right bit to use. I assume I can run it in a regular 3/8" chuck electric drill, and pretend it's a giant Dremel. I've seen cutter bits, such as Slartibartfast's suggestion, but there's also those coarse grinder bits.

Thanks for the clarification. I had my window of free project-time, but I've run up against a wall of higher-priority stuff (selling my car, helping family member pick out new car, packing up current apartment for move, maintaining sanity with newborn, etc...) that's pushing back the non-essential goal of getting these manual hubs fitted to the wife's Pathfinder before I drive it 2000 miles back to Texas towing a U-Haul trailer. I did make a little bit of headway by emailing customer support at Rugged Ridge and getting a reply from one of their product engineers with the dimensions of their RR manual hubs, so that I could see if they'd (and by "they" I mean a less expensive eBay clone, like the ones hawairish linked) fit with the '04 SE wheels with no additional modifications, e.g. no spacers behind the wheel, no grinding of the wheel opening, and no replacement hub studs, etc... just straight swaps. I haven't had time to compare the specs provided with me against the wheel opening on my SE wheels and the MM 435 hubs I have sitting in front of me. Heck, I can't even find a ruler or tape measure. Anyways, here's the Rugged Ridge Manual Locking Hub Set; 90-04 Nissan Frontier/Pathfinder/Xterras SKU: 15001.61 specs per their customer support:

Fair enough, thanks for sharing.

This is direct from their eBay listing: http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-SUSPENSION-FITS-NISSAN-PATHFINDER-INFINITI-QX4-1996-2004-R50-LIFT-KIT-NEW-/272320699207?fits=Make%3ANissan&hash=item3f67941b47:g:0a0AAOSwQJ5USa3H&vxp=mtr Says they are urethane. Still, they will work just fine.

Nice truck. Be extra careful ordering from RockAuto. Some parts listed on their site for R50 2004 Nissan Pathfinders are actually for TA60 2004 Nissan Pathfinder Armada. I just went through this issue with ordering wheel bearing parts from them. They list the SKUs or part numbers from their vendors, and go by what is provided from the parts manufacturers, in this case, Timken.

Which locking hubs kit were you referring to? The Mile Marker 435s or the Rugged Ridge clones?