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86-95 Pathfinder Warn Premium Hub Installation


statikuz
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Warn Manual Hub Installation: 90-95 Nissan Pathfinder

 

The debate between automatic and manual locking hubs is still going on today, but there are a few things that have been agreed upon. Manuals hubs are stronger across the board, and not as prone to randomly unlocking as auto hubs, and some people even report slight MPG gains. So, if you're looking for some serious 4WD action, one of your upgrades should definitely be manual locking hubs, and far and away the most popular choice is the Warn Premium hubs, which can be had [new] for around $130.

 

This will give you a rundown on how to remove your stock automatic hubs and replace them with a set of Warn Premiums [PN 29091]. Estimated installation time is around 20-30 minutes per wheel for the novice mechanic. Just be patient, keep track of all the parts, and you'll be fine.

 

First you will need to remove the old hub. The stock automatic hub is made up of quite a few parts, which go in this order, from outside in towards the drive shaft.

 

bolts, hub body/sub-assembly, o-ring, spring, brake A, snap ring, washer B [with teeth], washer A [no teeth], brake B, lock washer [has holes], wheel bearing lock nut, and drive shaft

 

The automatic hub assembly is comprised of all of these parts down to the final lock washer. Here's how to take it off and install your new hubs.

 

1. First, you'll need to remove the stock beauty cover from the hub area.

 

2. Then use a 6mm allen wrench to remove the bolts holding the hub to the wheel. These are tough to get off, but not impossible at all, so just be patient and they'll come off eventually. I used some ViceGrips to hold onto the allen wrench while I turned it and it worked beautifully. Remove the 6 bolts and slide the stock automatic hub off of the drive axle.

 

hubswap01gz9.th.jpg

 

3. You will now see the drive shaft, and there will be a few parts held on by a snapring, as shown in the picture. You'll need to use a snap-ring tool [or needle-nose pliers] to remove the snap ring. Slide it off the drive shaft, slide off washer B [with the teeth], washer A [no teeth], and brake B. This leaves you with just the lock washer [has holes in it] and wheel bearing lock nut on the drive shaft. Check out the second (and third) picture for an 'exploded' view of the parts that need to come off. With these off, it should look like the third picture.

 

hubswap02pn2.th.jpg

 

hubswap03ag6.th.jpg hubswap04mx8.th.jpg

 

hubswap05su9.th.jpg

 

4. Since everything else you need is part of the new manual hub, you're good to go. Remove the little allen bolts that hold the cap onto the body of the new hub, and slide the hub body onto the drive shaft, making sure the holes line up.

 

hubswap06xy8.th.jpg

 

5. The stock bolts will be too long, which is why you are provided with new studs, nuts, and washers. Thread a nut onto one end of a stud, add a lock washer and flat washer [in that order], and thread the bolt into a hole. Repeat this with the other 5 new bolts, make sure they all go in smoothly, and tighten them down to 18-25 ft. lbs.

 

*Note: It is recommended by most to use high grade bolts in place of the studs and lock nuts provided by Warn, due to the number of people who have reported that the original Warn studs brake over time.

 

Pic of the alternate bolts

 

hubswap07rz6.th.jpg

 

6. Place the thin gray gasket onto the new hub body. Make sure the little indentation for the pin lines up properly. Slide the cap onto the new hub body, making sure the pin lines up, and use the small silver allen bolts to secure the cap to the body.

 

*Pic shows alternate bolts

hubswap08xe8.th.jpg

 

7. To test the hubs, turn both hubs to LOCK and jack up one of the front corners of the truck. Spin the wheel by hand and the front drive shaft should rotate. Do the same with the other corner. To check for proper disengagement, turn both hubs to FREE and spin the wheels. The driveshaft should NOT move and you should NOT hear a ratcheting sound.

 

8. You can now either leave the stock beauty covers off [which I did], or use a Dremel or the like to enlarge the hole so it fits back over the new hub.

 

*The above pics are of an earlier Pathfinder hub install, with the exception of the spline count they are the same.*

Edited by RedPath88
Added new pics
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Looked up a bunch of different years in the Warn online catalog, and sure enough, the hubs for the 87, 88, and 89 Pathfinders are different, they are part number 28739, while the hubs for 1990 and up [the latest they showed for the Pathfinder was 2000], the part number is 29091.

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Why would you want to change from auto hubs to manual. That means you will have to get out and change them over before blasting through/over things. They are already to go with automatic's! Just curious? I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, but clsoe! Ha Ha Ha!

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manual hubs dont fail or have a mind of there own

they dont take two or three shaft turns to engauge

 

more reliability with manuals

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Exactly. I got stuck once when I broke an auto hub from going forward to reverse too many times. The aftermarket manual hubs are tons stronger and STAY LOCKED when you want them to. When you go from forward to reverse with auto hubs, they unlock, then re-lock in the opposite direction before any power is transferred to the front axles. Makes it real hard to go places sometimes. With manual hubs, they stay locked period. No direction change delay or pause.

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Why would you want to change from auto hubs to manual. That means you will have to get out and change them over before blasting through/over things. They are already to go with automatic's! Just curious? I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, but clsoe! Ha Ha Ha!

True, but once you lock them in, you can shift out and back into 4x4 at any time.

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True, but once you lock them in, you can shift out and back into 4x4 at any time.

Does running with the hubs locked but out of 4wd pose any wear issues to anything? I'm talking about many miles driven Also, can you shift in on the fly at all? I ask because I ski often up at Crystal Mt., WA and you never really know where the snow will start. Could be anywhere in about a 20-30 mile area really. And often there is nowhere to safely pull over.

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Running the hubs locked will spin the front diff and axles fulltime, which will contribute towards early CV boot wear, etc. You can't shift on the fly with manual hubs locked, no. If you did, you'd get a really nice loud grinding noise. :)

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You can't shift on the fly with manual hubs locked, no. If you did, you'd get a really nice loud grinding noise.

 

88, do you mean shift up or down. i have just ordered a set of manual hubs for my 5sp manual. with the auto hubs, i have been stopping to shift into 4wd but shifting back into 4 hi or 2 hi "on the fly"

 

can you still do this on manual hubs? or do you need to stop to shift out of 4wd?

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88, do you mean shift up or down. i have just ordered a set of manual hubs for my 5sp manual. with the auto hubs, i have been stopping to shift into 4wd but shifting back into 4 hi or 2 hi "on the fly"

 

can you still do this on manual hubs? or do you need to stop to shift out of 4wd?

Shouldn't you stop and go a few feet in reverse anyways with the auto hubs to get them to release out of 4wd back to 2wd?

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If you drive with the manual hubs locked, you will need to stop to shift from 2WD into 4WD. You always need to stop to shift from 4HI to 4LO anyway. You shouldn't need to stop if shifting from 4HI to 2WD, but it'd be a good idea.

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Guest vERSATILE

I have heard "there are those that have and those that will" in relation to auto hubs. This is with my Bronco don't know about Nissan. They will eventually engage on their own and that can be dangerous at speed. Also i thought the theory was that with auto hubs you must make at least one tire revolution before they engage. This would mean that when you go to 4wd after getting stuck in a hole or ditch that no 4wd until both front wheels do a revolution. Is this correct?

Manual hubs are the true answer for the serious.

Edited by vERSATILE
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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.

post-28-1144505903.jpg

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