LarryMack Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 the woodruff key on my 88 pathfinder has "rolled' over. does anyone no of a cheap, secure fix for this? the truck was given to me but i don't have alot of money to put new engine iin it and I think that is one of the very few that there can be. Had a guy talk to me about welding it. any helpful input. this one's a doozy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowTied Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 (edited) Welcome to NPORA. Is it the key, the slot in the crank or both damaged? You should be able to buy a new key, the crank I think? could welded, but not sure if could done without removal (ideally remove the crank). If the slot is damaged it will likely fail again without a repair. Edited April 5, 2009 by BowTied Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPath88 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 --------------------------------------------------- *Moving this to the Garage so more people see it* Please feel free to do a normal intro in the new members section (where you originally posted this) --------------------------------------------------- This also happened to my truck and in my case it was both keyway slots (crank pulley & timing pulley) I looked into my options and found three. 1: Replace Engine - If you can find, afford and have the skills/tools to do an engine swap then this is a good choice if you can locate a good strong running engine. 2: Replace Crank - I had problems locating a good crank locally, only one I did have as a possible option was from another member here on the boards, but that meant shipping it from the other side of the country. And then pulling the engine would still be required as with a straight engine swap. 3: Weld Crank - I found two places that could and would do it, but again it meant pulling the engine because they would not risk welding it since the inner keyway on mine had to be done as well (to close to the seal/bearing for that amount of heat) The second place would weld it and re-temper the entire crankshaft to maintain it's overall strength. Neither place would warranty the work beyond the first start. If you go with option 2 or 3 be 100% sure that the engine is in good strong running shape and that you are completely comfortable that it will treat you good for many a thousands of miles to come, otherwise the time and money spent is wasted. I went with option #1 after finding a relatively low mileage used engine in a wrecking yard for a fair price. Thousands of miles later, I have no regrets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Welcome Larry!! Sadly, this problem is quite rare so there isn't a lot of information on it. Your best source is Red /\ and he already posted. Without mechanical skills/help this bound to be costly. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryMack Posted April 6, 2009 Author Share Posted April 6, 2009 the woodruff key on my 88 pathfinder has "rolled' over. does anyone no of a cheap, secure fix for this? the truck was given to me but i don't have alot of money to put new engine iin it and I think that is one of the very few that there can be. Had a guy talk to me about welding it. any helpful input. this one's a doozy. The key is damaged and if I'm correct in what I've heard from previous owner the crank is off by 2 degrees. I'm thinking it would be the best to just find an engine to put in with all the work involved. Hate to get it all done and have to repeat. I was taught not to be stupid or take less than definite when that deep into any job. waste of time and hope and money. hope is not what i want to rely on when turning that key over for the first or second time. thanks for the input all who have chimed in. All good feedback. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryMack Posted April 6, 2009 Author Share Posted April 6, 2009 The key is damaged and if I'm correct in what I've heard from previous owner the crank is off by 2 degrees. I'm thinking it would be the best to just find an engine to put in with all the work involved. Hate to get it all done and have to repeat. I was taught not to be stupid or take less than definite when that deep into any job. waste of time and hope and money. hope is not what i want to rely on when turning that key over for the first or second time. thanks for the input all who have chimed in. All good feedback. ok heres the deal. the engine turns clock wise. the key did a half roll and made a gouge or indentation on left side of slot from the force. guy spoke of doing a bronze weld. the key is still good supposedly. also says it can be done in the vehicle and he's been a mechanic for 30 yrs. he has no welder or time or inclination or cash to do the job. he had a welding supervisor look at it and he said he could make bronze key, insert key and weld crank, remove bronze key and wa la like new? sounds logical to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Yes, that sounds like it would work. Only problem is to change the timing belt, I believe you have to remove that pully... B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msavides Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 Yes, that sounds like it would work. Only problem is to change the timing belt, I believe you have to remove that pully... B if i understand him correctly this would repair the key way so the pulley would still be removable. using a brass key and welding would alow him to weld in the shape of the grove cause the weld would not stick to the brass. so he is not welding the key into the key way just repairing the keyway. I am not sure if this repair will last as welding the crankshaft will probably create weak points in the metal and probably cause a future failure. But Hey it is worth a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9sar Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 what's the worst that can happen.... oh yea... the engine could eat itself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 I only heard of one person who welded theirs up and it lasted about a year and it spun out again on him. He then decided to do a 3.3l swap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPath88 Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 I am not sure if this repair will last as welding the crankshaft will probably create weak points in the metal and probably cause a future failure. what's the worst that can happen....oh yea... the engine could eat itself I only heard of one person who welded theirs up and it lasted about a year and it spun out again on him. He then decided to do a 3.3l swap. This was the exact reason the second company I talked too wanted to re-temper the entire shaft after welding it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morpheus Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 If you're doing the majority of the labour yourself (teardown and re-assembly) and you're ok with the possibility of it not working out, then I'd say go for it, try welding first.. The brass key idea is a good one, because it will keep the hole clean of welding slag. You'll need to grind the weld area to make everything work. Otherwise, you'd be looking at least replacing the crank, or the engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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