Brikwall Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Alright the mission objectives for this weekend are rear bumper replacement. I've got a 1995 XE-V6 that got a little smooshed during a recent snowstorm here in Boston. U should see the other guy. I've got a couple of questions for anyone who would be so generous. Bear in mind I'm very new to Pathfinders and car maintainence in general, tho what better place to make an arse of myself than in front of anonymous internet friends amirite? Plus this site is like Shangri-La when it comes to Pathfinder info. 1. What tools do I need to borrow from work? There are 2 operations here: picking through a junkyard and removing a bumper, then replacing the bumper on my "Pathy." I haven't bought a second jack yet so I haven't had a chance to look under there. 2. Are all of the WD21 Pathfinder '86-'95 bumpers compatible when I pick thru the junkyard? Since I'm going to try to make this ish happen in my apartment parking lot with all this melting snow, I'll prolly need scuba gear too haha. Anyway thanks guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9sar Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 looking at the 95 FSM, it appears that the removal and assembly is fairly straight forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Not sure on the bumpers being completely compatible from 87-95. The brackets may have changed, as there were a couple of bumper changes. Easiest way would be to get a bumper from a 93-95. Then it's like 2 bolts per side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M in KC Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I haven't done this nor do I need to to this but I'm guessing that you're going to need a good can of penetrating oil for the removal of yours and whatever donor vehicle you find. PB Blaster is pretty good and widely available. Don't be afraid to spary too much. If you plant to remove the bumper(s) with wrenches or sockets I'd start soaking your bumper mounting hardware as soon as you can. The more time before you but a wrench on it the better. Don't be suprized if the nuts and bolts break while removing or the need for a flame wrench to remove them. If room permits a nut splitter might be handy, a dremel tool or right angle grinder fitted with a cutoff wheel. I wouldn't be too concerned about the condition of the nuts and bolts during or after removal, for fasteners are relatively cheap. So if they get fubared in the removal process big deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I have a 95 rear bumper on my 88. They interchange. Three bolts per side and voila...done. Use lots of PB Blaster, the old bolts tend to be VERY tight or rusted on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 What bolts on our pathy's isn't rusted shut.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I have a 95 rear bumper on my 88. They interchange. Three bolts per side and voila...done. Use lots of PB Blaster, the old bolts tend to be VERY tight or rusted on. Is it the fronts that changed in terms of the mounting brackets then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brikwall Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 thanks for the tips guys I'm sure this will save me a lot of time and trips to the hardware store. this is the warmup round, next up is something on my front axle, not sure the parts name but it looks like a black plastic bellows or accordian kinda. All I know is that behind it lies lots of axle grease, which is now leaking through a small crack in this part. I'll prolly leave that to the pros tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 (edited) thanks for the tips guys I'm sure this will save me a lot of time and trips to the hardware store. this is the warmup round, next up is something on my front axle, not sure the parts name but it looks like a black plastic bellows or accordian kinda. All I know is that behind it lies lots of axle grease, which is now leaking through a small crack in this part. I'll prolly leave that to the pros tho. That's a cv boot ........I just replaced one myself... Edited March 23, 2007 by John Boy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9sar Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 pain int he ass to replace one unless you use a zip-boot or split-boot application. then it's simple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamzan Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I remember helping dad change the front and rear bumpers. But they were so rusted that we had to break them off first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRASS PUNK Posted March 24, 2007 Share Posted March 24, 2007 (edited) hi there cv boots are a pain to replace but for way less then paying a shop you can just replace the whole axel your self took me like 2 hours for all 4 on a subaru and like 45 min for one on a toyota there only like 50 to 100 bucks plus a core you get back when you return the old one jus though i would try to help better to have a whole new cv then just the boot for a lil less cash then a shop would charge Edited March 24, 2007 by CRASS PUNK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 24, 2007 Share Posted March 24, 2007 Actually, rebuilding CV's is both cheap and easy. I've done mine twice for around $20 each. It just takes the time and effort to do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted March 24, 2007 Share Posted March 24, 2007 I just went ahead and replaced the whole axle ...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 ...and spent $100 or more to do it. That was my point. Replacements boots and grease are cheap and it's easy to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPath88 Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 Use lots of PB Blaster, the old bolts tend to be VERY tight or rusted on. I'll second that... before the last wheeling trip I pulled my rear bumper so I could bend the ends (where they wrap around the sides) back out and away from the body a bit more... the PO seemed to have had something against the bumper corners as all four are messed up. Two bolts per side are attached to each other by a steel plate that they are pressed into. One of the bolts stripped out the "teeth" in the plate and would just spin in place. I ended up taking an angle grinder to it and ground the nut almost all the way down to nothing, before I was able to get it out. I replaced it with a nut and bolt and now have a replacement bumper in the garage waiting to go on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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