dkpath96

Yeah, I did some more research and talked to a few guys about it, and from what I gathered, it is typical to replace strut mounts along with struts, esp. if it's never been done yet...

I had my RH manifold replaced, along with timing belt and drive belts, and an oil change, all for $390. I ordered the manifold and timing belt from rockauto.com. Shop around - their shipping is fast but pricey, sometimes other places offer free shipping on $50 or more items.

Has anyone ever had to replace the strut mounts? I took my pathy in to get the OME coils installed and the shop told me that I needed new struts and strut mounts!! This was a surprise because there was no indication of wear or noise or anything that my struts were bad. And the strut mounts, too? I have 127000 miles on the beast and around 65000 on the struts. I don't doubt they are in need, but the entire mount, too? :confused:

My drop-in K&N did nothing too noticeable for me. I did notice a bit more high-rpm power with the custom air intake that's been done on a few pathys around this forum, tho. But no doubt the biggest improvement was the Warns, in terms of performance and gas mileage. My first official tank with them I got 344 miles, which was almost 21 mpg for me. Pre-manual hubs, I was hard-pressed to get 18.

Well, just for kicks, here's the math for those interested in the mpg increase from installing manual hubs: If you average 17 gallons per fill-up, and are getting an (optimistic) 17 miles per gallon, you can travel 289 miles on a tank of gas. With at least a 1 mpg increase using manual hubs, a 17 gal. fillup at 18 mpg will let you travel 306 miles on a tank. This is a 17 mile increase per tank, which translates to a 0.94 gallon savings per tank. At $2.75, this is a savings of $2.59 per tank of gas. The cost of the hubs divided by this savings ($150/$2.59) tells you that you would have to fill up about 58 times to offset the cost of the hubs. 58 tanks x 17 gal. per tank is 986 gallons. At the new 18 mpg, this is 17,800 miles. Manual hubs would pay for themselves in 17,800 miles, if you only get 1 mpg increase. For me, I put about 16,000 on my pathy per year, so my hubs will pay for themselves in one year, one month and 10 days. Not too shabby! p.s. I am seeing at least a 2 mpg increase... so mine will pay off in half that time!!

Vengeful, I posted all the differences in the Garage section already. Biggest thing was the fact that 96+ (at least, mine was like this) have one outer spring clip and no other washers inside the auto hub. Do you think I have to worry about the length of my original studs? Check them out in the picture in my previous post... They clear the nut by a thread or two, so I figured it was close but acceptable...

Got my Warns installed... now just waiting for the OME coils to arrive!! BTW, installation is slightly different than what is posted in the Garage section. They make the front end seem "lighter" in terms of response, and I can coast much easier now. Can't wait to see if the mpg increases.

Here's a few comments on installing Warns in 96 and up Pathfinders: 1) After removing the dust cap, there is a spring clip that needs removed before the auto hub can be pulled. Then remove the stud nuts. 2) The studs on mine did not have hex holes. They were also seized and the only way to remove them would have been to heat them with a torch to break up any lock-tite. I did not remove them (next time I regrease I will.) 3) Pull the auto hub off. There are no other washers or spring clips. You will see what is shown in the third picture in statikuz's first post here. 3) Clean the drive shaft and surroundings good. I had to use rust buster since mine were really dry and coated with powdery rust. 4) I used high-temp brake grease to lube the heck out of the innards of the new manual hubs. They were very dry - "factory-greased" is not what I call greased. 5) Install the manual hub base - use the new washers and nuts provided. Re-install the spring-clip (get new ones if you can). Assemble the rest of the hub as per the first post (grease the paper seal, btw) and you're good to go! Like I said earlier, I re-used my original studs, they were long enough. But that is only because I didn't have time to heat them and remove them, which I will do at a later date when I have more patience.

The local mechanic finally isolatede the clunking noise for my pathy. It apparently is the left rear upper trailing arm bushings that are going bad.

I got mine changed at 100K. Somewhere here it was recommended that you also change the water pump while you're in there, but I didn't. Now at 126K and just wondering how long it will live...

Ok, I ended up 2.5 mpg under my average of 18, all commuter mileage. It has definitely rebounded on the second tank back to 18 mpg. I'd call it bad gas, but who knows.

I have a bubble starting behind my license plate, on the rear hatch, and right around a nice little dent that's been on my front right fender since the day I bought it. Neither have spread in two years so I am hopeful that continual waxing will keep them in remission! The rustiest part of my pathy is the front bumper - used to be black, not anymore. What would be easier - removing, sanding and re-painting, or just buyin' a replacement one?? Aren't they like $30-40 on e-bay?

Thanks Entropy98, that's cool that your pathy is on the Rocky Road site. I just ordered the OME front HD springs, rear medium springs, and a set of the Warn manual hubs!! I can't wait to get everything and start building up my pathy. NPORA forums are PRICELESS!

Thanks!! I just saw another pic of a 97 pathy with the HD coils up front, it sat perfectly level. Problem is, it was 2WD, so it's quite a bit lighter up front, right?

98Silverpathy, You wouldn't happen to have a blueprint or template or something for those strut spacers available on paper, eh? I have access to a metal shop and a plasma cutter that would do a nice job at making those spacers. My only other option would be to buy one from Rocky Road and use it as a template...

Racer38, Would you happen to have a pic of your pathy head-on so I could see the stance it has with that setup? Nice rig!

herm and 98silverpathy, Thanks for the great posts! I also do mostly commuter/highway miles (until summer rolls around, then it's trails) and am leaning towards Old Man Emu. For the both of you - after the break-in period, were you still seeing around 2" of lift in the rear, 1+" lift in the front (no spacers)? And what would be the problem of stacking two 9/16" spacers - or are they not made to allow that? My stock coils are giving me an axle to fender height of 19" front, 20" rear, in case you need some reference...

The Pathy has been running ok but I think I am still about 3 mpg less... I'll know for sure after gassing up here in a day or so.

Well, the MAF sensor is gone, and I am trying to put it all behind me. I'm hoping I just got a tank of bad gas - when the pathy was jerking so bad I thought maybe I was out of gas (my fuel gauge has been acting up here and there) so I filled up at a POS station... Next tank should tell me more about the mpg.

Still debating between AC and OME... The four OME coils will cost me a total of like $310 shipped; the AC will be $450 shipped if I include the camber align (is that needed for the OMEs?). The question: will the 1" difference between the two setups be worth the extra cash?? I am in doubt that it is... Anyways, 98Silverpathy, your setup is niiiice. Where did you get the 1" strut spacers and how much were they? And will they require the manual hubs for CV joint protection? P.S. This is a very informative post, too, perhaps it could be pinned with the other lift options topic...

Thanks for all the great thoughts! I've slept on the issue (always helps) and have decided to keep the Pathfinder. Herm, you are so right about the scratches. My gold (wife calls it dried mud) colored pathy hides everything, from clearcoat scratches to, well, dried mud, very well, and that blue X would show it like nothing else. And I've already experienced having a log kick up and dent a door. Besides that, I just can't talk myself into buying a vehicle on ebay that's over 500 miles from me, with no test-driving, looking it over, etc. That's not wise. Third, the thought of having the pathfinder paid off so that more $$ can be put into upgrades is just too good to pass up! It's scary what the "bling" of a shiny new(er) truck does to the mind... lol Again, thanks for the great input! Now... OME or AC....

Thanks for the replies, guys, and the recommendations. Here are two more variables I am chewing on... 1) my pathfinder will be paid off and mine outright in July... but car payments aren't that big a deal for me. 2) here's what I'm up against: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2003-NISSAN...1QQcmdZViewItem #2 sure makes it a tougher decision, eh?

Here's my big question: my '96 has 125k miles on it. I'd say maybe 10% are off-road miles, the rest easy highway commute miles. I've put about $6000 in it in the three years I've owned it (big $$ was exhaust, new tires, new struts, and clutch replacement). I am torn between putting more $$ into it with a suspension lift (AC 2"), or putting that $$ towards a younger Pathy or XTerra (2003, preferably). I plan on doing more off-roading, either way. What do you all think?

No, I didn't get it back... but I will see if they still happen to have it on Monday. Let me guess, I could have just cleaned it with some rubbing alcohol, and "voila"! problem solved?? Thanks for the info, this discussion board is better than an OBDII diagnostic!!

I do have a K&N drop-in, cleaned it about 6 months ago... As for how it was acting up, I was driving to town one day and wham, the vehicle lurched. Then it was fine for a while, then it would lurch again, like it was seriously just cutting out completely. I feared fuel pump or worse - tranny - and there was no check engine light. Drove it right in to the closest shop (grr...) and they fixed it.