Dbot
-
Posts
96 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
13
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Calendar
Posts posted by Dbot
-
-
Anecdotally I purchased one autozone cv axle over the summer (boot split a month after lifting hence my replacement). Autozone axle looked really solid and beefy. The same day I installed it, I drove 45 minutes to a trail via highway. Wheeled for 20 minutes then hit a mud hole with headlight deep water. Immediately after coming out of the water, I could hear the wet cv boot squeaking with each rotation. It popped off and kinked where it was lopsided and rubbed the control arm every rotation. Not sure how mud water did this but whatever. I bent it back and put it close to how it originally was. I haven’t done any true wheeling since then but I’ve done thousands of road miles and a few hundred snow 4x4 road miles. Cv axle is still intact despite a compromised boot.
-
Rode stock suspension for one year without bad boots. Then lifted with ac coils and warn hubs. Drove one month and split a boot. Half month later the other boot split.
-
1
-
-
Hi r51 gang, I’m familiar and active with the r50 platform but I’m pretty new to the post 2005 stuff. I’m probably going several hours out of town to the big city for another attempt to get a worthy r51. One of the lowest mileage r51s I see is an s model. While I don’t need LE stuff, SE is the trim package Id like to own. Does anyone know what items I can swap over from a LE or SE (power seats, heated seats, fog lights etc) via my local junkyard or eBay?
I’m hoping some of the stuff is prewired and plug and play. I got the idea for this question because my dad has had great luck swapping LT trim components to his ls trim Chevy. Everything was prewired and compatible -
Take what I say as a grain of salt but check the radio part numbers. They can look the same but have different wiring even if they came out of the same year vehicle depending on what month it was made.
-
Hit 230k miles yesterday. I broke a trans cooler line on a rock wheeling this summer which sprayed the trans until empty. A month later the trans started acting up so I swapped it. I guess that’s my fault. Engine is rock solid though
-
One thing I’d suggest is hitting up nissanpartsdeals.com. You can look at every single part and part number for each month of production for every year. You can put in a vin and it pulls up that particular factory build. This would be good for looking for any differences around the engine crank between auto and manual. Also would work for the intake stuff too. Also, 2001 and 2002 use throttle cables. Not sure what the cutoff on the throttle cable is but I know my April ‘00 (2001) has the cable and my November ‘01 (2002) . Additionally, one can look at the engine timing critical components such as timing sprockets, crank sprockets, cam Phasers, upper oil pan, timing chain cover, cams, flywheel, flywheel sensor and stuff all change part numbers and designs ever few months during the production. This stuff will be your biggest headache for engine swap compatibility. As far as the difficulty of turning wrenches goes, It’s not easy. I’ve pulled an engine before in salvage (haven’t installed yet). Took me 11 hours to get the trans out, then it was another 7 hours for the engine. Could probably go much faster with a second set of hands while in the comfort of your own driveway. As far as other Nissan engine swaps go, it’s not any easier than putting in something from any other car manufacturer. That’s how different the other vq35 and vq40 engines are. If you could somehow know for sure you don’t have rod knock, replacing the timing chain guides, chains and water pump will be much easier and cheaper than a new engine. You can also run a compression test, if it’s bad, you can consider pulling the engine and heads to put in a new head gasket.
-
I went two months of driving with a finicky reverse. When it warmed up and the weather was warm, it wouldn’t engage reverse immediately. Sometimes it would engage after a few seconds, other times it had to blip the throttle. I added a trans cooler and changed fluid but it made no difference. I just went ahead and swapped the trans. I learned to park facing downhill so I always had an out
-
On 8/30/2020 at 1:26 PM, PATHYNDH said:
Ya totally hear ya...Ive known this buddy for like 20 years never have in my years and tons of cars I've owned have i used his option to use his shop til now. Well especially not this extensive. Ya it makes a huuuuuuuuuuge difference not having heavily rusted parts. Hey man at least u have all that, space and tools. I'm a home mechanic with cheaper brand tools, the other benefit is being here i'm surrounded with snap on tools if i need it and advice/help if needed. Good luck on the suspension overhaul guess PB blaster wont work, heat it is ha
I’ve totally daydreamed about this before. Throwing a bunch of oem parts on mine for a deep overhaul in a shop. Just curious what’s the plug and crush washer above the rms for?
-
Sorry to hear that. Not much fun pulling those out. It’s interesting to see that apparently transfer cases on these don’t have paper or rubber gaskets. I’d assume it’s rtv
-
My 02 is tight also. It’s about the same as my 01. I replaced the connectors on the 01 without shortening the wire. I probably should have a bit more descriptive. The metal sleeve that’s crimped around the copper strands was severed by a 1/2” belt sander wand I got from harbor freight. I imagine a Dremel could also notch the metal sleeve with precision to where you could pry open the split sleeve in order to get it to let go of the wire. This will still cause a small handful of strands to break off but you’ll be fine.
-
You can just cut off the old clamp if you like. I've done it to both connectors on mine. Just try not to let falling copper wire strands fall down on to the alternator.
-
1
-
-
I bought mine at 206k mi and did it around 212k mi but there's been people who've had the issue with the screws falling in the intake way earlier. It's a roll of the dice. You could either be missing screws right now or you could go another 50k before dropping a screw. I'd recommend doing it when you do the IACV gasket.
The 2001 and 2002 Pathfinders have a IACV gasket that gets brittle and eventually fails. When it fails, it drips coolant on electronics which shorts them out which has a chain reaction that shorts out the ECU. Power Valve screws won't work themselves loose sitting in a barn, but the 18 year old rubber gasket keeps aging whether it sits or drives. I would recommend buying the cheap gasket and an impact screw driver to change this first. While you're there, you have access to the power valve screws with just a few more turns of the wrench.
-
1
-
-
Wireless charging experiment:
For whatever reason, my 02 LE doesn't come with that third cupholder the 03 models have. The flat spot has always just been the instinctive place I toss my phone. Its within reach, visible and it doesn't slide or bounce out of that spot. I've always wanted to give wireless charging a shot, so here's what I did.
Picked up a tri coil Qi wireless charger from amazon
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07176HT5T/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Bought a 104F thermal cut off switch
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PK6892Z/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Generic 12v USB phone charger
Generic wire harness plug
Auto/Cancel power seat switch from salvaged LE R50
Wireless coil attached to plastic insert by jb weld
Wireless coil fed by modified micro USB wire with thermal cut off switch spliced in.
Modified micro USB wire connected to generic wire harness plug
The other side of the wire harness plug is tapped into the 12v power socket on the dash in a parallel fashion.
Blank plate on the dash has been swapped with the Auto/Cancel power seat switch. (acetone removed some of the seat graphic)
Auto/cancel breaks the circuit.
My experience with it has been decent so far. I'm using an iPhone Se 2020 edition with a silicone case and the phone is still able to charge. The phone has never had a chance to overheat since the thermal cutoff switch steps in really early. I had apparently made a miscalculation from Celsius for Fahrenheit. I thought initially, it would kill the circuit around 130F. Dry days with temps in the 30 (f) the charger seems to continuously charge unless I'm parked and idling a bunch. It will continuously charge in the 40s (F) on rainy days. It appears the heat is more from the engine/drivetrain and exhaust than from the wireless charging circuit. I can run maps continuously on the phone and the charger seems to be able to keep up with that. Being that winter is coming upon us, I'll leave the thermal cutoff switch in for now, and think about getting a different in the spring.
-
4
-
-
More post bombardement: I have been religiously checking part outs and salvage yards for black leather seats. I have never found one that’s not ripped. As far as other materials and colors go, I can probably count on 1 hand the number of times I’ve seen other driver seats in good condition. After seeing a dozen or so good condition passenger seats I began to wonder if I could swap the material over to the driver’s side. So I bought a black leather passenger seat for this experiement. I stripped the seat down and removed the leather from the cushion using snap ring pliers to pry apart the hog rings. I looked it over to find its about 95% symmetrical on the inside. I did a trial reinstallation with new hog rings to verify I’m handy enough to put it back together. I stripped down the ghetto driver seat and swapped over the passenger seat material. All hog rings line and up and all clips connect together. Some clips are slightly offset and there are a couple millimeters of foam showing at the edge. Also, I had to cut a hole for seat controls and make a patch to cover the old seat control holes but it really wasn’t too hard. I would definitely recommend this if you need to replace a driver cushion but can’t any good ones. I hear some salvage yards sell just the cushions so this could be a very economical fix in the right circumstances.
Pt 1 video:
pt2 video
-
2
-
-
I did my first transmission swap and knocked out a couple experimental projects along with that. I learned some things from both mistakes and unexpected differences. I thought I’d share the projects and note some differences I discovered along the way.
Going back before my transmission had issues, I had pulled a salvage transmission in march intended for my 01 r50 assuming that the 01 trans would be dead by now. I pulled it from a 2004 SE 4x4. It had all the dealership paperwork and insurance paperwork showing that it sold from a Chevrolet dealership at 142,xxx miles and was wrecked with 144,xxx miles. I pulled the pan off the trans to observe normal looking and smelling ATF residue was present. This was my first time ever pulling a trans off anything, but after 11 total hours, I got it home with the torque converter. I would go back out weeks later a nab the engine and flexplate for a “maybe someday” project. Fast forward to July, the 2001 transmission is still quirky but it hasn’t gotten any worse. I wheel my newly lifted 02 about every other weekend. One particular weekend, I was in the local offroad park doing a very long, steep uphill climb on loose rock. Upon reaching the very top of the hill where a flat clearing is, I smell hot atf. I roll forward about 30 feet and stop. A minute later, I put it in D to find I don’t creep forward. (or backward in R). I hop out to look. A dense, wide path of ATF soaked the rocks and dirt from current location to about 30 feet back. Trans case and pan were fine, but the aluminum barb on the lower radiator was bent over sideways with a visible crack at the bend. This was the source of the ATF spray. Really wish I had at bought a plastic dust cover to put there beforehand. I hitched a ride to the parts store and bought a Hayden 679 cooler and some new ATF. Fixed it up and filled it up and drove it home with the stock cooler bypassed. Everything felt and smelled fine. At home, I topped it off with another pint and called it good. So I may have hammered some nails in that coffin, it just wasn’t the very last nail. That came a month later when after driving around all day, I tried to back into the driveway. It never engaged reverse. I sat there a few seconds puzzled before it finally engaged itself and let me back up. I went through the gears in my parking spot and everything seemed normal until the next day. During pizza deliveries, it would randomly decide to delay giving me reverse. Eventually, it would sometimes never grab reverse without me retrying or blipping the throttle. There were no dash lights, smells, noises, slipping or slamming. ATF level was always proper and cherry red. I replaced the radiator and used it with the Hayden cooler and replaced the trans fluid. Not a single difference. So I started researching the project and schedule some PTO to make a 5 day weekend for this.
I removed it in about a day and a half, taking my time to avoid making errors. When I got it out, I compared it to the donor trans. This is where I would get hyper-obsessed with year to year differences. Despite the despite the resounding “It’s the same trans, just send it” the internet told me, I would find that no, these are not identical transmissions. The tailshaft housing is different. I think the length is the same and I know the transfer case bolt pattern is the same, but the side is different. There is one variant casting that is milled, drilled and tapped for the ATX14a transfer case linkage and the other casting variant is milled, drilled and tapped for the TX10 transfer case linkage.
I assume bolting an atx14a to this could yield a functioning 2wd pathy if somebody wanted to do that. Using both VINs on nissanpartsdeal.com, I cross referenced the parts in the diagram to see that the tailshaft housing and some internal clutches were different between the two years. Thankfully the parking pawl junk inside the tailshaft housing was the same so other than a new gasket, I didn’t have to buy anything to swap tailshaft housings. The particular gasket is not reusable so I had to dig up a replacement. There are no more OEM gaskets left nor does Amazon/ebay/rockauto/auto stores carry them. I had to have a local trans rebuild shop get me in touch with their supplier to order it. It took about two days to get it so I decided, I would make a template.
https://1drv.ms/b/s!AsTQm6L1QIoAhOFF-OsSBL5-AZszew
For the two particular years I was working with, part “gasket-extension 31338-41x02” is a paper type gasket. The original OEM paper gaskets were blue but the aftermarket was gray. I found this gray material at autozone here:
( Cometic Fiber Material Sheet product number C15385. )
Now whoever stumbles upon this from a web search can make their own. Also, there aren’t any good videos online regarding RE4R01A teardowns for the pathfinder except that one that’s in 360p. So I did an overly thorough tailshaft swap video in 1080p.
So with the tailshaft swapped, I focused next, on my own screwup.
Months back in the salvage yard, I had just minutes to finish pulling the trans before they closed so I got sloppy and cut the trans wire harness instead of removing a couple layers of heat shielding below the plugs. I assumed that the harness would detach from the trans case like how engine wire harnesses do with engines. The revolution sensors come out of the case easy enough, but one group of wires does not. I think they control the solenoids or valves. Those can only be removed by pulling the valve body. I’m debating a rebuild attempt on my original trans so I didn’t want to steal it’s harness, so I went back to salvage and retrieved the other half the harness and I cut one from a 2003. I compared the plugs and wires on all 3 years and can confirm they are all the same. I used the 2003 harness since I cut it about 3 inches longer. I stripped, cleaned, soldered, shrink wrapped and heat shielded 23 wires. There are repeating wire colors in the harness, but each of the 4 sub groups of wire don’t have any repeating colors which made things easy.
I had also observed that the 2004 flexplate and flexplate washer have a locating hole to line up with a locating dowel pin on the crankshaft. The 2002, flexpalate washer had a locating hole and the crank had the hole for the dowel pin but the flexplate did not. There also was no dowel pin. The 2004 flexplate had a different ring for the engine timing. The notches were less abundant and spaced farther apart than the 2002 flexplate. The sensors that pick up the notches were different too. The 2002 had small sensor with a chisel tip and smaller electrical plug. It was also held in place by a rubber gasket that slides in the bell housing cutout. The 2004 sensor was bigger and looked a camshaft position sensor with a slightly bigger plug. It filled up the bell housing cut out so the gasket wasn’t needed. The gasket can be swapped between bell housings though.
So before I started the project, I ordered new pan bolts, input shaft o ring, a filter/gasket kit and crush washers for the trans coolers and a new rear main seal kit. With the trans out, I skimmed through the Haynes manual to find it essentially tells you to pull trans, remove the 3 RMS bolts, pry off the old seal, carefully install the new one and torque down three bolts. Nothing was mentioned about removing upper oil pan. So I pried off the old leaky RMS and began finessing the new one on. I worked every angle I could think of and used every non-sharp tool that I had before gradually upping the force to ultimately total brute force. After 45 minutes, I had broken the tension spring inside the lip seal. Defeated, I check the FSM to find out about the formerly unmentioned rtv needed on the seal corners and the upper oil pan removal and the two days of work required to do that. Two days I didn’t have. I bought a new seal and began practicing installation methods with the broken one. I found that If you sand down the black seal pan gasket, you can wedge it in there. It felt snug but I could see a hairline air gap in a low spot that I sanded. I spent about 20 minutes slowly sanding the new gasket. I sanded some slight tapers on the leading edges to help it enter the groove it sits in. Since I removed less material, It was way harder to install, but using every bit of finger strength I had, I got it in. I put on some rtv around the outside since, well why not? Anyway, video for the hack job here. By the way, the rms is leaking again, but at least I have it installed.
I installed a $16 oem input shaft o ring on the shaft and installed the trans. I noted the 2004 pan is missing the two forward facing tabs that support the trans cooler lines but this doesn’t seem critical, but did explain the extra 2 10mm bolts I had laying around. I can also confirm a 2004 torque converter fits on a 2002 flexplate and uses the same bolts. Once installed, I dropped the pan, replaced the strainer, cleaned the pan and magnet. The Duralast kit from Autozone had a rubber pan gasket that didn’t match the pan. Maybe this was because I bought this for the 2001 months earlier? Maybe Duralast screwed up?. I bought a fel-pro paper gasket and installed it with new pan bolts.
I dumped a gallon of dexron 3 down the tube and performed the checklist in the FSM for transmission testing. Ended up putting over 6 quarts in. I smelled burning odors off and on for a while. Could have been any of the following. Degreaser residue on back of block, degreaser residue in trans pan, brake cleaner on back of block, Paint marker on torque converter and trans case, pepsi cans used as temp exhuast clamps or greasy hand prints on exhaust tubing. Trans drove fine with no hiccups. I went 20 miles, came back and dumped the trans fluid. I refilled with 5 quarts and got the level pretty much spot on. I’ve done pizza delivery, highway crusing, backroad cruising, hard launches and some super light wheeling. At this point, I’m confident the trans is a keeper.
-
1
-
-
I have used them as a winch before. Prevented some serious cosmetic issues when I was stuck and the only movement I could obtain was crab walking sideways further into a tree trunk. Then as a winch again when maneuvering down a muddy slope peppered with trees. Mud was so slick I could either maintain just enough friction to stay stationary if I did a brake stand or slide forward with no steering response from my mud caked tires. Jack was used to pull front end tow hooks left/right to avoid trees as I foot by foot slid down the hill until it leveled out
-
2
-
-
If it’s way up there in mileage, consider pulling the timing chain cover off and replacing the three chains, tensioners, and water pump. This requires your valve covers to come off which gives the opportunity to check clearances between cams and valves. If that doesn’t help, could it be fuel injectors? I’ve heard somebody say those can tick
-
I have two VQ pathfinders and they both leak oil. I’m always putting a couple quarts in between oil changes. If you’re trying to keep a clapped out VQ running, it’s gonna be a nightmare even if you’re motivated because it’s soo tight in there, oem parts are scarce/expensive/month+year specific unless you’re into pulling from junkyard. Like I want to love on my VQs with parts but I can’t just slap on parts since they are scarce and particular in some circumstances. I think VG engines are more friendly toward rebuilding and overhauling from what I’ve heard
-
I don’t think the rear main seal would leak overnight since from experience I removed my rear main seal and upper pan seal with it, without even draining the oil pan. Not a drop spilled out through the opening. You probably have residue that leaked when driving that settles and runs down the back of the block
-
-
I’ve wanted a Xterra since like 2010 but pathfinders are so much cheaper. What’s cool about the second gen Xterras is that yes, they have factory skid plates, body on frame design, rear locker on pro-4x, 260hp and for the real dedicated wrench turner, you can titan swap the suspension. Titan control arms, cv axles and rear axle which gives it a lift, wider stance and more suspension travel. And you can also swap in a Titan VK56 V8 with some coolant hose modifications, wire harness conversion and an ecu flash have the meanest sounding Xterra on the block.
-
1
-
-
1 hour ago, colinnwn said:
Could you tell if the system engaged the front drive shaft? Or was it smart enough to know the speed difference between the front wheels and front drive shaft was too high and did nothing?
I think some of the people who reported problems were actually QX4s. I wonder if the system is any different.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
When i accidentally turned the dial it was one of those "oh crap, what am I doing?" moments, so it was only engaged maybe 1-3 seconds. But no noises other than the actuator engaging like normal. Didn't feel any different either. But again, it was low speed, driving straight on rainy roads just a few feet for a few seconds doesn't give me much time to compare anything. Had I left it engaged, would something mess up or start making noises? Idk, but i have my doubts.
-
Electronic here: 227k miles and no issues. I’ve been running manual locking hubs since around 224k or 225k. No issues. Accidentally briefly engaged 4hi, and auto for a second at least once with hubs unlocked. No noises or lights on the dash happened.
-
My 2001 4x4 auto has this or a similar issue.
around 45mph and above, if there is a slight downhill (where no throttle is needed to hold speed) or any type of downhill, releasing the accelerator induces this "rocking" feeling. It's subtle but it's like its smoothly transitioning from engine braking to coasting about 1 transition per second. It varies the load on the engine as the tach fluctuates up and down as much as 500 rpm per transition. This can be induced at lower speeds than 45mph on the same downhill by turning off overdrive. However, 1st gear and 2nd gear speeds don't appear to have this issue as I can coast hilly and flat neighborhoods without this issue occurring. This issue is not intermittent.
Additionally, at speeds above 45 mph, the sudden jolt can occasionally happen. It happens so fast it's hard to interpret what happens. It happens in the blink of the eye. Either the engine does a extremely quick stutter or something in the drivetrain releases or something brakes/binds up. Its accompanied with a thump or thud sound which could be the transmission, rear end backlash or u-joint backlash. This is more likely to occur at faster speeds. It usually happens at stable throttle inputs (not actively accelerating or decelerating) but can happen once in a while at moderate accel or decel scenarios. I have yet to find a way to reproduce this and seems entirely random and doesn't happen every time I drive above 45mph.
Previous owner said the transmission was repaired at one point, but didn't divulge any other details.
I suspect there could be electrical issues as the headlights dim in with the rhythm of the turn signal when they are in use (this does not happen on my 02). Also, it sat in a field for 6 months before I bought it and discovered wire loom chewed by a rodent. Also, I had accidentally touched terminals with a backward battery (ford battery with opposite poles) the day after i bought it.
Lastly, it may have a partially clogged cats which may affect vacuum readings.
Perhaps someone else has a similar issue we can find a common condition with.
SEAT SWAP
in 96-2004 R50 Pathfinders
Posted
For what it’s worth, you can swap seat fabric/leather between passenger and drivers seat. Just need hog rings, hog ring pliers and a box cutter. Looks oem if you take your time