DaysofThundr46

I did not, but I sold it to a guy and his son who were going to!

100% they were taking advantage of him. He is older and retired and on his own. FInally his son told him to stop taking it there. Itw as clear they didn't know how to fix the issue and just had him buy new parts. They even sold him a $800 set of tires he didn't need. I do think the place I went to gave me the "go away we don't want to do this work" price. Another place won't even work on it because its too old. I may just sell it and let someone else take on the project.

I am glad you and others mentioned this. I was able to pull some of the service records for this car, and it had a new rack put in in 2018. I highly doubt the issue is the rack. Also in 3/2020: Wheel studs, Stabilizer bars, Inner/Outer Tie Rods, Swaybar Link Kit was done as well. I'd be the farm at this point the issue is the bushings are bad. I am not finding any leaks underneath the car so far.

I had read there is a common leak where the oil filter attaches. Might have the wrong part or mixed it up with the 3.5L models.

I would not be doing the rack replacement myself, but I also will not let a shop rip me off to do it. The oil leak is what mostly has me tripped up. I wanted to clean up all of the old oil, and then try and find where its coming from. It is going to be a 2nd vehicle to haul stuff with, but it needs to be safe and reliable too. I don't mind if it burns a little oil or theres a small drip, but it also can't be leaking so bad I got smoke coming from it (its not that I am aware of).

I suppose it COULD be the bearings. I did look at it as the guy moved the rack side to side without much effort. You can see the boots on the rack ripped and dislodged. The rack is a $300-600 part depending on the brand and where you buy it, and 4 hours labor, so I know the quote I got was a "go away" price. I was going to get rid of all of the old oil and clean it up, then see where its coming from. I know these have issues at the oil cooler, but also could be valve cover gaskets. These are jobs I am not experienced enough to do. The guy, for whatever reason, took it to Pep Boys. He is an older man and from what I can tell, got hoodwinked into doing work he didn't need to do. The body is pretty solid, no rot, not too much rust, clean interior, brand new tires and all electronics work. If I do try and resell it, it will only sell to someone mechanically inclined to do the work themselves.

I picked up a 1996 Nissan Pathfinder LE from its original owner. It has 177k on it. Body is in good shape, just a little rust, no rot, Interior is very nice. New tires, alternator and many new parts. I picked it up for $1500 knowing it has some steering issues. Turns out, the issues are a bit deeper. It requires an entire new steering rack. Its completely shot. You can move the front end tires left to right with your hands and see the bar just move freely. It also needs the front CV axles done. I was quoted $1900 to do JUST the steering rack. IMO this is a "I don't want to do the job" quote. The other issue is, it is or was leaking oil. I have no idea where, but the steering rack is soaked in oil, as are many components around it, so right now, I have no idea where its coming from. Could be the oil cooler, oil pan, rear main seal, intake gaskets etc... so I'd need to clean it up, then maybe do a dye job to find where its coming from. With that said, in your opinion, is it worth saving? Or do I just sell it and try and get my $1500 back? I don't have images of the issues (just saw them for myself) but I do have some quick photos of the car when I saw it in the parking garage but this forum limits me to 150kb to a post. Hope this link is OK: https://www.flickr.com/photos/10542402@N06/albums/72177720322755836