racaron

Still having overheating issues with mine. Had the thermostat removed and rad flushed, and still overheats. I was about to head for the H2O pump, but was advised on the fan clutch. Now I will be checking the clutch before moving on to replace the pump. We will see. Next will be the cat, planning to take it somewhere down in 441 to have it emptied. Next will be a body lift, 3". But definitely once the overheating issue is solved the rig is ready to go swamping somehwere! Let me know if you need help or a good mechanic, I know a good few ones.

When removing or replacing the thermostat, have a universal joint handy! If you try (like initially I did) to remove the housing back screw w/o the universal joint, you might spend more time cursing that working. After a trip to Sears and buying this little piece --> http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_0...universal+joint reaching that screw was a breeze.

95shakinPF: The good thing is that I got the universal joint! This little piece will be very handy in the future. I left the truck running w/o the thermostat, is not really needed here in SoFla. Now on to the pump task. Your idea of replacing the timing belt while working with the pump is not bad at all. When I realized that I needed to replace the H2O pump I thought of it, but not sure if I am going to do it because I have never replaced a t-belt before and I dont want to mess up anything. Question. Do you need to remove the timing belt cover in order to replace the pump? Can you maneuver around the cover to have the job done (pump replacement) without having to remove the t-belt cover? RedPath88: Interesting you mentioned the fan clutch. Last night while talking to my dad about the Pathy issue, he also mentioned the clutch. See, if I leave the truck on idle for 30 mins (with the a/c on!) it wont overheat. If I take it for a spin after a while it will star overheating very slowly. Today I will make a test, will drive it around my neighborhood at low rpm to see if it will overheat. If it doesnt, I will take it to the road at higher rpm to compare. I called Advance Auto and was quoted 92 bucks for the clutch, although through their website I can get one for 40 bucks. The idea of installing an electric fan is something I am interested. Besides the electric fan, what else do I need to complete the installation? What stills bothering me is the way the coolant is flowing. Initially the flow is strong, and then it slows down dramatically. Thanks for all the help guys.

Updates... After a lengthly process to remove the thermostat I had everything placed back together and voila! Oh yeah... Still overheating... There is only one more thing to do, replace the H2O pump. Well, I should have known this because of the way the coolant is flowing. When you let the truck run (rad cap out) you can see that initially there is a very good flowing, then the flowing turns intermittent and finally the flowing just stops. Seems that the water pump starts working and after a little while it just quits... My thoughts on the thermostat removal... It was a pain in the a**. You definitely need a universal joint to remove/install that back screw! I didnt have one and my wife went to Sears to get me one. With the universal joint handy I had that screw in almost immediately. Now until next weekend to work on the pump, hopefully I will fix this issue before Christmas...

I have been trying to upload some pics I just took to show you how to clean the contacts, but apparently I have used 147.98k of 150k of the attachments space. PM me with your e-mail and I can mail them to you. ***Had an e-mail sent with 4 good pics, hope this will help.***

Had the busted hose replaced, flushed the radiator (it was pretty nasty), replaced the cap with a new 13lbs one, let the rad burp... and yup, still overheating... Next step, throwing away the thermostat! Something I noticed was that while waiting for the burp, initially there was a lot of flow. Then it turned into an intermittent flow... then it stopped... Thermostat shut...? Bad H2O pump...? We will see after getting rid of the thermostat....

Take the headlight switch out and clean the contacts. It is a common issue with our Pathfinders.

Today, on my way home, I stopped to check the caps at Advance Auto. There have two at 13lbs that according to their database are made for the Pathy. One of them has a little lever to release the pressure the other one has none... Any advantage in having a pressure release lever? Hose will arrive tomorrow, cant wait until Friday to work on the truck!!!!!! Thanks guys.

Thanks for all the replies guys! 95shakinPF: Thats definitely in agenda for next Friday. I am going to give a good flush to that radiator and while having my hands dirty, might remove the thermostat. I dont think the truck will be needing it here in SoFla. Slick: I am getting an AM cap, any of you guys know the suggested psi? Hoses were bursting because of the pressure due to the overheating. I am lucky that the hoses were the weakest point and not the radiator. The rad is getting a good flush next Friday. 5523Pathfinder: I bought the truck a few years ago from the original owner in WPB. Although the truck is in very good condition and apparently the previous owner took good care of it, I dont know if the cooling system was properly maintained. The Pathfinder has been parked most if its life, and maybe thats why the coolant has a weird "goo". Once I am done flushing the system, replacing the hose, the cap, and removing the thermostat, if it still overheating I am heading toward the water pump. Hopefully flushing/replacing/removing will solve the issue. I will keep you all posted! Any info on the rad cap psi will be appreciated.

Checked at my Mitchell's today, the stripes are OEM and discontinued.

The place by 27 and Griffin is the Holiday Park. I have never been there for offroading, but for fishing at the dock. I am still having some issues with my truck cooling system, but should solve them hopefully by next weekend. We could meet and go to that place by the county border, or maybe closer by the Holiday Park. I bet there is plenty of mud with all the rain we are having!

...and here are the numbers! Rt quarter panel, 500.57 Replacement labor time, 23hrs Refinish, 5hrs More viable... used quarter, sectioned from bodyline down.

Hello guys, TruBlu: I dont recall feeling any hiss or any pressure indication when I removed the radiator cap. Upon a visual inspection I can tell that the cap doesnt look in really good condition. It shows some rust underneath. Today at work a PD3 guy told me the same thing you said. zonianbrat: I didnt turn the heater on while riding the truck to check for a temp drop, but at anytime while riding the truck (30 mins max) the temp never dropped. After 10-15 minutes it start climbing very slowly and it stopped where you saw at the pic. mzxtreme: I didnt burp the radiator at anytime. I let the cap off, but not for long. I was just checking if the water pump was working (checking for coolant flow). Slick: The mechanic that worked on the truck didnt touch the thermostat. As for the smoke, not at all. The truck doesnt smoke at anytime. On the other hand, now that you mentioned to check if the hoses were holding pressure, I remember that after the first time it oveheated the upper hose collapsed when it cooled down (same one that busted last time). The system is not loosing coolant, only through the busted hose. I already called Advance Auto to order the upper hose (the one by home doesnt have it in stock), will also buy a new cap. Once having the parts at hand will get the radiator down to clean it. Will put everything together and will burp the rad. For how long should stay the cap out to assure that there are no air pockets left in the system?

After almost two years of being parked, I did some maintenance on my 89' (3.0L) to have it back on the road again. Asked the mechanic to flush the radiator because was (still is!) pretty dirty showing some goo, but the guy didnt flush it. Last week on my way home from his shop, the truck overheated and got a pinhole on a hose. The hose got replaced today and the mechanic insisted that this was was the issue, although I asked the guy to remove the thermostat and flush the freaking radiator. I took the truck to the road and it busted another hose, definitely something else is going on. The truck rides with the temp gauge at 1/4 for about 10-15 minutes, then very slowly it starts climbing until it gets just below the first line of hot. Please see the picture. Weird thing is that It just stays there without getting any hotter. Anyway, I have been thinking about a couple of possible issues with the cooling system. 1) Could be that the radiator fins are clogged, or 2) that the thermostat is stuck, or 3) that the water pump is gone. I took the radiator cap off and started the engine to check for water movement to rule out a busted water pump. There is some water flow, but not as strong as it should be making me think the radiator is clogged. Please help, any more ideas?

I guess I should not write about the overheating issue in this thread because I titled it as "cat converter". So I will keep this one just for the cat issue. Well really is not an issue, but just a small leak and am getting rid of it. Will post as soon as it gets removed (or emptied) to write how the Pathy rides without it.

I agree that frame (rear rails, kick up area or any other area) rust is an issue, but keep in mind that to replace a quarter panel takes at least 12 hrs of labor (will check tomorrow at my office) plus the cost of the part. If you keep adding time for replacing rockers (not that many hrs to replace these), the BS (body shop) bill will rack up. You can also work on a half quarter replacement from the body line down... at around 6-7 hrs. On the other hand if you want to keep a light weight body... let the rust take over... Salud!

Replaced bypass hose... I believe still running a little hot (needle just above half, is that normal?) after taking it for a spin around the neighborhood. Left the thermostat in... for the moment. What I noticed is that has a lot of goo in the radiator. The mechanic told me he didn't flush it, but replaced the coolant. I think that maybe is running a little hot because the fins are clogged... (?) Next step... taking it to 441 (thats where the shady shops are in Ft Lauderdale ) to have the cat either removed or emptied. It also has a small exhaust leak at the back flange of the cat. Damn I really neglected this truck!

Check that right quarter panel for rust , seems to have some at the rear wheel well. Check the rockers and if posible take it to a lift. From which state is that Pathy?

vengeful: I am interested in that trip, how many rigs are going so far?

Pretty good shape Pathy. On the stripes I believe there are OEM. Mine also has them, but in black. Will check at Mitchell's Monday at work.

I live in Plantation, we could meet to go 4-wheeling somewhere down here. Tomorrow I am (hopefully) finishing my toy (89' Pathy), removing the thermostat and replacing the bypass hose. Do you know someplace to go at the everglades? I have seen some nice dirt roads off 27 and mostly sure there are plenty on the way to Shark Valley. There are some nice areas down by Flamingo (south of Homestead), I use to go dirt biking down there.

Too much rain tonight, and according to the news for the next few days. I think the hose replacement and thermostat removal will have to wait until the weekend.

For sure the problem is up front, either because of the pinhole at the bypass hose (lots of coolant coming out of this lil'hole) or the hose and thermostat (?). I will try to work on it tomorrow after work.

I am definitely keeping the muffler, but getting rid of the cat. Now I have other minor issues, my mechanic did some work on it (converted from R12 to 134a and replaced the high pressure power steering line) and on my way home (20 mins drive) the truck was overheating. I noticed a pinhole at the bypass hose (the "L" shaped one) and already bought it, will replace it (seems to be a pain to do it) and while in there might also remove the thermostat (I live in SoFla) because I think is sticking. I believe that a pinhole on that hose should not cause the overheating (there is coolant in the system), hence my theory of the bad thermostat (truck was parked for almost two years). Any ideas?

Thanks for the reply, these are great news. I am planning to use a straight pipe instead of the cat to have a less restrictive exhaust. Hopefully it wont get too loud, what do you think? (Will post some pics of my 89', I believe is in pretty good shape)