BowTied

Like most everyone here, I think it would be great to see you keep going with it. Note even after you do all this maintenance, there may other things that end up going too (fuel pump, axle bearings or whatever) that you had not counted on necessarily. If that doesn't bother you, than no reason not to fix it. Can you do a lot of the work youself? If so, it will certainly be cheaper than replacing the vehicle. It looks nearly rust free. Body and paint are often the most expensive repairs (at least here in the rust belt).

I'd be surprised if anyone says try for home. Have you checked the fluid level? Could simply be that you are in limp mode. Try disconnecting the battery to reset the computer. It is a long shot though that this will fix the problem. What gear were you in/what were you doing when the clunk happened? Did the engine rev up like it was in neutral suddenly? When you says "lost first" does than mean it starts out sluggish like it is in second?

Very interesting. The 4.3 is not a high revving motor, but you will be quite happy with the torque it produces. Other V6s may have higher torque, but the 4.3 has nice torque at low RPMs. I have a Vortec 4.3 in my 99 Jimmy and I prefer it over my VQ3.5 pathy for towing. THey both tow fine, the Jimmy just feels a bit better in lower RPMs. The 2.8 5 speeds are not bullet proof, I would not abuse it if it were mine behind the 4.3. JMO. THere is always photobucket.com for posting pics. I hope the resistor thing works... like I said, I have not tried that, it was just an idea.

Very interesting. When I did my 02 there was no evidence of red thread locker on mine. The screws were not loose -as in backed off, but sure were not tight (you know, it takes a little effort and a bit of click or noise and then it breaks free when it was tight to begin with; I got nothing like that on mine).

THis is new to me. "What" is exactly ticking? Is this just the engine running or is there some component ticking? If this upgraded ground fixes the issue, it should be fine to add a new ground leaving the original in tact as an option I would think.

I would love to see pictures of this swap!! I have never done this, but just thinking out loud, perhaps put the guts of a tach from a blazer of jimmy in your dash would solve the problem? That could be a lot of work. Perhaps if you measured the output voltage on the tach wire with a meter and then got a resistor to bring the signal down to what you need? You would want to verify the result with a timing light or something you could trust.

Not a guru... just curious. What was the temperature? Was the fuel for each tank from the same fuel station? Was the altitude where you encountered the issue notably different than your typical driving? I really doubt it is plug gap.

Are you guys friends who are razin each other or is this a real pissin contest?

Thanks for posting that info!

Temps where i am range from -15 to 100 and I run a 190 all year round so I think a 180 would work well for you. If the 10 deg difference in those two stats makes any problems overheating I think your cooling system needed fixing anyway.

I just looked, the section of FSM for this is only .5Mb, PM me your email addy and I will send it to you. It looks like the axle comes out with a slide hammer, very different than my Jimmy.

Never done this on a pathy. On my Jimmy I need to remove the diff cover, pull the axle C clip, and pull the axle. THen the seal and bearing can be removed. Big job there. Check the FSM, I think it is downloadable.

ONE YEAR FOLLOW UP Well, we have added another ~11,000km, 90% of which is in town, to the truck and to date (knock on wood) things are still holding together.

from http://www.aa1car.com/library/vacleak.htm

WD40 or carb cleaner or other sovent based aerosols will work, note that these are flammable and can ignite on hot surfaces like exhaust manifold. I think there is less chance of this with or acetelyne, propane gas (but certainly propane or acetylene needs to be handled with appropriate safety measures). the stethascope idea - a long length of ruber tuning will work for this. Often inspection of old hoses finds the problem as noted.

You should have hot air in about 3 miles of driving and should feel toasty warm within 10 minutes, maybe less, with the heat on full blast once the hot air starts. Now, if it is minus 30 out then it would take longer of course. If you are getting luke warm air, especially when driving on the highway vs. driving slower in town, your stat is likely stuck open. JMO.

I had not even heard of this model yet (yeah, my head is in the sand). Found this write up... http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/cars/sto...ca-637077af3a90

So guys I doubt the issue is just with Lax's rig... anyone else find the same thing? And anyone know exactly what is happening? Something must not be engaging...?

General thoughts... I presume you are running a fan shroud? Lack of a shroud can cause short circuiting of the air reducing cooling efficiency. How did you check the fan? Could trapped air in the coolant system be causing reduced flow or the air itself playing a trick on the temp sender? Is the engine modified at all? Any CEL/MIL codes? If the engine was running too lean, or the timing is way off, this could cuase it to overheat. When you have eliminated everything else, something to check I guess.

Are you getting good heat? If yes, then you are likely ok. Between 1/4 and 1/2 is where I like to see them depending on the stat rating.

Ok, I don't know 96s....but my '02's stock gauge always runs in the middle, all year long (and same goes for every other vechile I have owned - except when the stat weas not working). I'll bet you a coffee your stat is stuck. Same goes for audiwhore.

Fair enough, didn't know the stock was 170 (which I think is almost too cool to run efficiently myself, but who am I to question Nissan). I run 190° in my Jimmy all year around without any issues. OEMs often pick one stat temp that will work for most customers. If you live in a cold climate, nothing wrong with a 190 for the winter. I think However, if the cooling system design is on the edge, it might be too much for the summer. Another option is to run stock temp and use grill covers (aka cold front kits).

Ok, I just thought of something - do you have A/C? Make sure there aren't any little valves that cut-off or by-pass flow to the heater core that are not working... I don't know if your system would have that or not...

Sorry if I mislead you there. The cap has little to do with cold, it keeps your system pressurized to increase the boiling level of the coolant during the summer. My point was that it sounds to me like you are due for some cooling system maintenance and a new cap should be part of that. Specifically to the point of no heat - 99% it is your thermostat is sticking open. Very common. Get a new stat - do not buy a cheap one - (and gasket) put in and I bet you are good to go. Take note of your temperature gauge reading before and after (at full operating temp) and I bet you notice a difference there too. THe guage should always be near the middle. While doing this inspect the coolant colour - if it is dirty/gooey/cruddy/ not nice, it needs to be flushed or this WILL hapen again. In fact if it is really bad it can be restricting flow to you heater core. A flush is not that expensive compared to replacing your heater core. Generally if the heater core is not leaking, it should be fine, just flush it. Cleaning out the fan is a good thing to check, but you mentioned that you are getting lots of air, just not hot air, so I figure it is the stat. Let us know what works.

Do a coolant flush. Change the thermostat to a 190°F (I bet the problem is that yours is stuck partly open) and change the rad cap to a new one (if yours is old). Check the blower as noted above. That should fix it.