statikuz Posted May 20, 2004 Share Posted May 20, 2004 (edited) 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. 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. 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. 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 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 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 December 10, 2007 by RedPath88 Added new pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 95PathDN Posted May 20, 2004 Share Posted May 20, 2004 Nice job -- great write up! Those are gonna be great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted May 24, 2004 Share Posted May 24, 2004 One thing I'd add to this is that the 87-89 Pathys have 27 spline front axles while the 90-95 Pathys have 28 spline axles, so they don't interchange. *edit* Fixed spline count #'s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
statikuz Posted May 27, 2004 Author Share Posted May 27, 2004 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94 Pathy Posted June 2, 2004 Share Posted June 2, 2004 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! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw Posted June 2, 2004 Share Posted June 2, 2004 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 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted June 2, 2004 Share Posted June 2, 2004 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mookie Posted June 2, 2004 Share Posted June 2, 2004 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Pickles Posted June 3, 2004 Share Posted June 3, 2004 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted June 3, 2004 Share Posted June 3, 2004 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Pickles Posted June 3, 2004 Share Posted June 3, 2004 I see. Seems how I already have a nice habit going of breaking things, I think I'll stick with my auto's for now. I haven't had any problems with them yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beano Posted June 3, 2004 Share Posted June 3, 2004 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? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Pickles Posted June 3, 2004 Share Posted June 3, 2004 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? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted June 3, 2004 Share Posted June 3, 2004 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChromoTech Posted August 17, 2004 Share Posted August 17, 2004 what happens if you leave the manual hubs unlocked but the transfercase in 4wd?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardwaretoad Posted December 19, 2004 Share Posted December 19, 2004 what happens if you leave the manual hubs unlocked but the transfercase in 4wd?? I'd imagine you'd end up with a lower-geared 2-wheel drive... if you take it all the way to 4-wheel lo... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted December 20, 2004 Share Posted December 20, 2004 It'd just free-spin the front axles inside the hubs and turn the back wheels normally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derogate Posted May 1, 2005 Share Posted May 1, 2005 and if you accidentally left one side locked and not the other? I've always wondered about this, cuase my buddy freaked out when he just about forgot to lock both hubs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted May 1, 2005 Share Posted May 1, 2005 Nothing. The unlocked hub's axle will spin inside the hub and thge other tire won't spin at all. That's the beauty of an open differential...one tire fryer, one-wheel-peel, etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest vERSATILE Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 (edited) 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 June 8, 2005 by vERSATILE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaritimeMan Posted September 1, 2005 Share Posted September 1, 2005 Since no one ever corrected 88, 87-89's have 27 splines, and the later models have 28. Thats straight from warn's page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted September 2, 2005 Share Posted September 2, 2005 I fixed it. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaritimeMan Posted September 2, 2005 Share Posted September 2, 2005 Way to cover your tracks. We all know that 88 is infallable and he NEVER posts misinformation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlaskaSun Posted November 5, 2005 Share Posted November 5, 2005 Good evening people I am about to install a set of these hubs and I was curious as to whether you should throw a fair amount of grease in them or just install them as they come??? Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dkpath96 Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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