jond8

Just fixed my trans with this same issue. Although it turned out to be the rear main bearing which was toasted I opted for a complete rebuild. It may be possible to fix this problem by removing the trans and just replacing the 15$ bearing. My 2 cents.

Holy crap... and I thought I was lucky for finding the NISMO headers.. (very rare).. A new tranny is unheard of. Nice job. JB

UPDATE: Since I want to keep the Pathy for another 10 years, I decided to remove the trans myself and have it completely rebuilt at Kirkland Transmission. They were very very professional and knowledgeable. Turns out the failure is a pitted out rear main bearing. So, for all those on a budget: you can pull the transmission and replace that bearing without a total rebuild. Total cost for rebuild with new bearings, seals, flywheel grind, and syncros = 1000$ I have the unit back in the Pathfinder... rented a transmission jack this time.. I will never do without one again. Made things sooo much easier. I have not driven her yet as she is awaiting the NISMO headers and Gibson cat back that are on order. Only had to drill out four broken exhaust studs Should be like a new truck.

Ahh.. good deal, thanks for the heads up. Tell you the truth I am a bit hesitant about putting in a used unit as don't want to inherit any new problems. Felton Autoparts (Nissan wrecking yard) quoted me 550$ with free delivery for a unit with 147K miles. I am not so sure that I am comfortable putting in a tranny that has more miles then my current problematic unit. Just called Kirkland Trans today and they gave me a ballpark estimate of 800$ for bench time and parts (if I bring in the trans). That includes syncros. Not sure what to do...

I've been calling around and you will not get the job done for 500$... forget the clutch and flywheel... Most rebuild= services or refurbished units cost 1000-3000 Most used trans run 500-1000$ Labor for install 500-800$ Clutch ~150 Flywheel ~40 If you can get the problem fixed w/ new clutch installed for under 2K... then you are a magic man. This doesn't count AAMCO, most people that have gone to them seem very disappointed with their work. I think they quoted me 1.8-2K including labor. Now, does pulling the trany and replacing the 13$ bearing sound more attractive? ??? Probably not the most fun job, but 2K is 2/3 what I paid for the damn rig.

Hello all, I have the classic MT whine associated with the low lubrication fill level (FS5R30A). I am on a tight budget and don't have a ton of time to fix this problem (so the 3500$ quote from the dealer is out...) But, I have a hypothesis about fixing it the quick way. I want to see what all you tranny pros think. The noise only happens in 1-3rd and 5th (not in 4th or neutral). This means that all the bearings on the main shaft should be noise free. This leaves the bearings on the counter shaft as the culprits. The noise gets much louder as you shift towards 5th... 1st = barely audile, 2nd = louder, 3rd = louder still, 5th = screaming.... So this leads me to believe that the it most likely the countershaft back end bearing or the maybe the 5th gear needle bearing. If not a combination of the two. I am thinking this because the radial loads on the counter shaft end bearing increase greatly as you sift towards 5th… (highest in fifth) It would be fairly easy (once the tranny is out) to remove the back part of the transmission case and use a puller to remove the countershaft back end bearing and pull 5th gear to replace the needle bearing??? Slap the cases back together and re-install. This may allow for a second life for this ol' crunch box. Keep in mind everything else works great.. shifts super smooth etc. Anyone attempted this fix? Any constructive input is much appreciated!

So, last night I pulled the front of the engine back down, rented a puller, and pulled the harmonic balancer. While installing the proper bolt, the whole damn ear broke off (as mentioned above). About half a pound of RTV later she is sealed up. I hope that it keeps the muck out. Hopefully I will have time to write up my whole experience and post pictures soon.

Thanks for the pic!!! See this is what burns me. I have the Chilton’s manual and the online manual (which I think are the same). Notice that the bolt that I am concerned with is not in your diagram (below harmonic balancer hole). It isn't shown in any manual that I can find and I have no idea what the heck it is for. If you notice the diagram basically says to use Bolt A on the upper cover, and bolt A on the lower with no differentiation on the lengths. Not that it really matters because the bolt that is hitting the HB is not listed in any of the diagrams, although it does show up in the exploded view from the parts fiche.

Ah yes!! Thanks for the correction. After another long night under the pathfinder I need more: :coffee!:

You would think this is the case, but it doesn't fasten to the oil pump or block... so, what is it fastening the cover to? The bolt goes through two peices of sheet metal, one being the front cover... the back being???? I need to craw under this afternoon and take a closer look...

Well, just finished one of the worst mechanical jobs I have ever ventured to attempt. After recently purchasing a 93 Pathy for the girlfriend I decided to do the timing belt and associated other misc parts. It turned out to be much harder than as described on this site and other places on the internet. I will post pictures and the full story in the next few days. But first.... I FINALLY finished putting the last bolt in the rig and decided to craw underneath and install the radiator petcock that I had removed earlier during the job, and I noticed that one of the damn bolts from the timing belt cover was contacting the harmonic balancer.... and because I had tightened the harmonic balancer bolt to spec, I ended up bending the hell out of the cover. See below for a picture of the said bolt. The head sticks out far enough to contact the harmonic balancer. So, before I tell the whole horror story, I want to get this job finished. Any ideas what this bolt does and why it is hitting the harmonic balancer? It doesn't fasten to the oil pump (hangs below... I can't figure out why it's even there. Anyway, time to take another 5 hours to re-disassemble, rad hoses, fan, shroud, belts (oem belts that are too damn tight to fit the pulleys so they are a PITA to remove and install), and then go rent the puller again, pull the harmonic balancer, and inspect the damage. Will post the whole story with tons of pics soon.

Could you post the factory manual sections relating to changing the timing belt on the VG30e? I want to use it as a reference along with the good instructions on this site. Thanks, JB