EricCR

Thanks, guys! The folks at 4x4parts offered me a good deal so I got their bolt/nut kit. Even getting only 8 of 54368-0W02A at Courtesy Nissan was more expensive than what I ended up paying, so all good. Still a bit more than your solution @hawairish, but not too bad all things considered. Is Mevotech "Supreme" good quality for the 4 arms with bushings?

Thanks for taking the time to update us on the solution. It may help someone at some point. If you have a multimeter you can also find open circuits by measuring resistance and/or continuity, just in case you already have one.

Maybe. Ignition switch failures tend to cause all sorts of weird glitches and it's common in Nissans for it to fail, so I'd change it, it's a simple job and relatively cheap. But I would also look at the relays in the engine bay. Try swapping identical relays and see if some of those issues go away. To give you an example: my AC was randomly spewing warm air. I replaced the HVAC module and it was doing the same thing. I even disconnected the air mixing actuator. In the end the problem was the relay that controls the AC compressor which was intermittently failing and I found it by swapping it with the fog light relay. My fog lights started acting up and the AC started working fine. So check relays too. Start from the cheaper, simpler things then move on to the complex. I'd leave the starter for last. It's not easy to replace, access down there is terrible.

When you say "turn the key, it doesn't start" do you hear the starter motor turning or no sounds at all? If the starter is turning but the engine doesn't start then it's of course not the starter. If there's no sound at all (maybe just a click from the relay) then it could be the starter. My 2003 has around 160k miles and the starter had clearly been repaired before. My symptoms were "turned key, relay clicked but starter didn't spin. Kept the key in the starting position and after about 20 or 30 seconds the starter came back to life and engine started right up". That delay was getting worse so it was only a matter of time before the car left me stranded. Replaced ignition switch, that did nothing so I replaced the starter motor and it was as good as new.

I just replaced my ignition switch thinking it was faulty (it was in fact a starter motor issue). You don't have to reprogram the keys after that. The transponder radio is not part of that switch. If you go back a few pages you'll find my thread with some pictures on how to replace the switch. It's super easy, but try to buy it OEM. Good luck!

Reviving this old thread. Man, these bolts have gotten expensive. Courtesy Nissan is asking $100 for the 8 bolts (4 + 4) and 8 nuts. 4x4parts still has the kit but at $70. I know the lower bolts are completely seized and I haven't checked the upper ones but I'm sure they're not coming out without a fight, so I want the full kit to avoid getting stuck with the car on jack stands. Alas, I don't think I can source non-genuine bolts+nuts as quickly or easily as you guys in the US, so I need to have everything at hand before I commit. Any other options that I'm overlooking?

Update: Got the springs and shocks installed (Lesjofors springs, Sachs shocks, stock height) and it raised the rear about 2cm. It went from 82cm (32.3") to 84cm (33"), measured from the floor to the lower edge of the wheel arch. The rear doesn't sag anymore so I'm happy. Time will tell how long it takes for the new springs to get soft and saggy again, but for now everything feels great. Well, not everything as I noticed all the bushings in the trailing arms are shot and the bolts won't budge. That probably explains a few weird clunks. Would it be better to get all the arms new or have poly bushings made for the old ones?

Oh damn, but of course! Those things are even less safe and I don't think anyone cares to take them off the car. If anything, I doubt someone would notice the little panel with 3 buttons in the sun visor any more than they would notice the massive generic garage door remotes. I'll still do some testing with the factory alarm activated and the window opened just for fun and to see how smart the battery saver circuit is.

No suspension mods, fully stock facelift R50 with original 16" SE wheels. Tires are 245/65R16 if I'm not mistaken, Cooper AT. No rubbing when turning. The only issue I have is a saggy rear suspension but I have the new shocks and springs at home in a box waiting for me to stop procrastinating. I'll do all those 3 tests and report back. Thanks!

Well, I'm done retrofitting the sun visors. It was relatively easy with the only hassle being routing the wires through the small holes in the roof. There is a reinforcing structure just above the windshield that prevents you from easily reaching out and grabbing the wire. To make that part easy you would need to remove the whole headliner, which is something I wasn't willing to do. In any case, it's manageable once you get the hang of it. The rest is just splitting wires and testing everything. I tapped into the reading lights power and ground as I planned but on the console's side. The main harness was left untouched. I already programmed two garage motors. BTW, @hawairish, not sure if homelink is always powered in R50s as they came from the factory, but they way I wired it (to the power saver interior lighting circuit) it cuts power after 10-15 min so it's not that bad. What I don't know is if someone forcefully opens a door (without the key and with the alarm armed) if the car will be dumb enough to "wake up". If it does, then there's still that risk you mentioned.

Good call. I have homelink in my old BMW and it's only powered in ACC and ON. The new sun visors are mostly there for the wife. She's been using the Pathy a lot while she waits for a new EV (gasp). You know how having no mirrors is a tragedy of biblical proportions to them, so homelink is secondary. I'll see if there's anything ACC powered that I can tap instead. Alas, I believe everything in the roof console when you don't have compass/external temp display is always powered too.

Thanks, hawairish. I saw the schematics but couldn't make much of them so thanks for translating that into something I can understand. I'll see if there's something going up the A-pillar. If there's no wires I'll just use the spot/reading lights for power. According to the service manual they are connected to the same "power saving" circuit as the rest of the interior lights so I should have no problems with parasitic power draws.

Hi folks, I got my hands on a pair of sun visors with vanity lights and homelink (my SE only had an unlit passenger side mirror). I was hoping Nissan kept the wiring harness but no such luck. The service manual is a bit cryptic on where the original harness was coming from. My assumption is that in LE's the roof console acts as a junction box and there's short wires going to each sun visor from there. Or do those wires originate all the way from under the dash? Would everything work if I just tap into the roof console reading lights?

Thanks for the tips. The more I think of it the more I recall previous instances of that humming when turning which then I attributed to tire noise or road imperfections, but it's clearly something else. The rear drums do stick a bit, especially when cold, so that's my prime suspect. I recently took the front brakes apart to do some cleaning and maintenance so I'm fairly sure those are fine. I did notice that the pads are missing the squeal shims, never installed by the PO. I've read about the steering stops but people who report that describe a different noise, more of a metal-on-metal grinding instead of my low-pitched "hum-hum-hum". My fear is something that's not properly lubricated in the 4WD system or a center diff lock that's not fully disengaging (if that makes any sense at all). That would explain both the occasional noise and the hopping. I'll triple check fluids yet again but I worry this is one of those things that will have to get worse to really be able to tell exactly what's going on.

Thanks guys! Last night I noticed something else (perhaps since now I'm paranoid about full lock turns): Turned left again and instead of hopping, I got a noise that I can best describe as a low-pitched grinding noise, like a wheel bearing, but intermittent (linked to wheel speed). I jacked the car up this morning and it doesn't seem the bearings are bad, but then again, I can't put the lateral stress of a full lock turn when rotating the wheels by hand. The noise went away after warming up and driving a few min (I tried a couple more times). I also engaged 4L on a straight stretch to make sure everything got lubricated. Could this be related to said hopping? The noise didn't correlate with any weird behavior, it wasn't felt through the steering wheel or chassis.