QuietMan

Wow! Did anyone ever accuse you of being terribly helpful? This is incredibly useful info to me. I thank you. Hard to imagine a time when the Internet didn't exist and you couldn't tap helpful info like his so easily, but there was. Thanks again. QM

Thanks for your quick response. You confirm much of what I read, of course. Sh_t! So what's a used JDM engine? And where can I learn more about it? QM

My '97 Pathfinder's timing belt snapped recently. I know, I know. I've done some reading since then, and I am preparing for the worse. But before I make some major decisions, I thought that it would help to definitively know if the valves/pistons are affected. So I asked two mechanics if they could: 1) open the engine; 2) replace the snapped timing belt with a new one, and; 3) run a compression test. One mechanic said that he could that, but the other one said that it would be cheaper to replace water pump, tensioner, seals, etc. while the engine was open... perchance the compression test rolled a snakes eye and I lucked out. He (the second mechanic) said that you would have to open the engine up again to replace those parts if the compression test produced favorable results, which means more labor, which means more dolleros. Which mechanic would you be inclined to put your trust in? Thanks, in advance, for helping me to clear up my state of confusion. QM