blackboat Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 Can anyone tell me if it is possible to identify when an engine was produced and how to go about it? I ask this because I have a 1990 Pathfinder that I just put a new timing belt in. The hitch was that I ordered and received a timing belt with square teeth, but when I got the timing belt covers off my cam and crankshafts (and the existing belt) were of the round tooth variety. From searches earlier today I gather that the round tooth belt didn't appear until sometime in the 1993 model year. Wiped out the whole day, but I found a round toothed belt and got the job finished. Now I'm left wondering what may have happened to my engine. I'm assuming something bad happened to the original motor and it got swapped, even though the seller assured me nothing major had ever been replaced. Thus I want to ID the engine and see if I can figure out what may have happened. Any thoughts or ideas, please? This has me a bit nervous about my new Pathy. Thanks, Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94extreme Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 hmm.. could be that who ever did the timing belt before put on the wrong one. i don't think there is a way unless you can find the serial number on it and chase that down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 How many miles on it? Possible the previous owner had the T-belt break on the old motor, and swapped it out. Unfortunately, you would never have been able to tell....and evidently, the guy lied. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unccpathfinder Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 someone swapped out the cam and crank gears so they didnt have to change the TB as frequently? I thought about selling my round toothed gears for someone who wanted to increase their lifespan on the TB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9sar Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 the engines all have serial numbers stamped on them. unfortunately, they are at the back of the engine (see page GI-18 of the 94 FSM for a reference of the VG30E and the KA24E) There was somewhere I saw that you can tell the model of the engine by some stamp point on the block itself if you don't trust the VIN or spec plate. I don't think this would help with the year though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackboat Posted February 12, 2009 Author Share Posted February 12, 2009 Thanks guys. The PO wasn't any sort of gear-head and I highly doubt he had the gears swapped to use the longer life timing belt. At this point I guess all I can do is assume he lied to me and the engine has been swapped. I've already discovered damage from an accident he failed to tell me about (he admitted to one, but "forgot" to disclose the other that Carfax turned up. Go figure). Next time I go to town I'll stop in at the Nissan dealer and have the service dept. run the VIN just to see what turns up. In the end, it's a car with 192,000 on it that I paid $1250 for and am just using it until I return to work in a few months. Could even be a good thing that the engine was swapped. I need to figure out how to do a compression check without hurting anything electrical and we'll see how it looks then. At least now I know the timing belt is OK Thanks, Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 In the end, it's a car with 192,000 on it that I paid $1250 for and am just using it until I return to work in a few months. Can't argue with that... Hopefully there isn't anything really odd/damaged with yours, but honestly, these things run quite a long time and can stand a fair amount of abuse. If it as you said and you only need it for a few months, just drive it and relax. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackboat Posted February 12, 2009 Author Share Posted February 12, 2009 Can't argue with that... Hopefully there isn't anything really odd/damaged with yours, but honestly, these things run quite a long time and can stand a fair amount of abuse. If it as you said and you only need it for a few months, just drive it and relax. B I should have been a bit more specific: I have use it for the next few months mostly as-is due to financial constraints, but do intend to keep it past that point as a third/backup/hunting vehicle. Once I have the time and money it will see a bit more customizing to make it more the vehicle I want. I like the little thing and have lots of ideas for it. The body and frame are generally quite good; I need to start my own thread in Member's Rides to show what I'm doing now and blather on about my personal off-road philosophy. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 Ahh, ok. Yes, a different approach is more valid now... Yes, please do start your own thread!! B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morpheus Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 There is a unique engine code stamped on the block (near the belhousing I believe) that can be cross-referenced to the VIN. I don't think it will tell you what the engine was from, but it would give you a yes/no answer to if it matched your vin or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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