IndianRider Posted March 14, 2005 Share Posted March 14, 2005 (edited) hi all .. my first day in here .. i just got my 96 Pathfinder 3 days ago. has 104 k miles great condition and drives smoothly.. the vehicle was traded in at the Nissan dealership in Dec. 2004 so it hasnt been driven until i bought it last week .. However, to my utter dissapointment i noticed its leaking coolant occasionally .. its not coming from the radiator and the hoses so im guessing its from the water pump and i can see coolant drops dripping on the plastic cover under the body. it does that after i start the engine in the morning then drive a couple of miles to work and park it. then within the next 30 minutes there is app. 4 ounces of coolant on the road. i dont think its doing that when i go to work for lunch .. is the water pump the silver colored housing right behind the fan ?? is the water pump failure common on the vg33e motor ? does anyone know if there is a link or website with instructions on changing the water pump/timing belt ? i havent bought the haynes manual as i was planning to buy the factory service manual. any info on prices of parts / labor costs and difficulty of labor would be greatly appreciated as im totally new to the Pathfinder ... is this motor exactly the same as in the x terra ? i found the xterraparts.com website pretty neat and was planning to buy stuff for the Pathfinder from their website .. thanks in advance .. Edited March 14, 2005 by IndianRider Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pezzy Posted March 14, 2005 Share Posted March 14, 2005 Did you get your pathy from the dealership? I'd say bring it back to them & have them fix it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted March 14, 2005 Share Posted March 14, 2005 The timing belt is due for a change at 105K miles, and the water pump is usually replaced at the same time. You're close to that mileage already, so it could be that the water pump is finally giving out on you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJ Dank Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 Yup, you are due for timing belt and water pump change. Wow, Dean you decided to register and join us!! Woo hoo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 I'll bet you its not the water pump, but the coolant bypass hose that sits behind the rear timing belt cover. I just did mine at 107k and this small hose was leaking directly down on to the water pump so it would look like it was coming from there. At the top middle of this pic you'll see the coolant bypass hose connection just behind the thermostat with the water pump directly below that hose. You can see the coolant on the water pump but its hard to see the hose leak until you get everything apart. http://groups.msn.com/LewisPictures/97path...hoto&PhotoID=16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 lewisnc100...that pic album was awesome!! i can't tell you how much i appreciated getting to see what you did!! i am growing more mechanically inclined every day, and i am begining to think that i may be able to do the belt myself!! i have read here before that the pass side cam seal leaks and you took an excellent pic of that...did you replace that and was it hard?? chris :bow: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 I changed both cam seals, here's the full list of parts replaced: 21501-0W501 Radiator Hose Upper 21503-0W001 Radiator Hose Lower 14055-0W000 Coolant Bypass Hose 14055-0W??? Small Hose to Thermostat 21200-V7206 Thermostat 13028-0B785 Timing Belt 13070-42L00 Timing Belt Tensioner 21010-0W028 Water Pump 13042-0B001 Camshaft Seals 02117-88023 Drive Belts 11720-0W002 11920-0W002 I have to admit I tore the cam seals apart with every type of seal puller and screw driver I had, they didn't want to budge. Didn't seem to be anyway to get them out without scraping things up. I remembered a post in the past that said to carefully drill a very small hole in the center of the seal, and insert a small screw into the seal until it gets into the spring on the back side. Then just pull on the screw head with a pair of pliers and the seals pull right out. This worked for me but is risky, one slip with a drill bit and you'll have a nasty mark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 WoW!! You da man! Did you have any problems with the timing marks like another recent post on the board?? If i am doing something that i think is above me i take lots of pictures and zap them onto the computer for later reference or to print. were the cam seal leaks a decent sized oil leak? I posted a while ago that i have a leak that takes about 2500 in town miles to make itself seen again on the bottom skid plate...its not the valve covers and the leak itself runs behind the alternator so i can't quite see it. anyhow thanks again for the very helpful album post!!!! chris ps --sorry to drag off topic-- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 No problems with the timing marks because I didn't rely on them, I just lined up the RH cam sprocket mark with the rear timing cover mark as close as possible and ignored the other marks. From there I just used the marks on the new timing belt and counted teeth from the RH cam sprocket to the LH cam sprocket, then from the LH cam sprocket to the crank. If you count timing belt teeth you can't go wrong. The cam seal leak wasn't visible at all until I took the rear timing belt cover off, and then there was just a drip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndianRider Posted July 7, 2005 Author Share Posted July 7, 2005 would anyone mind copying and faxing me the timing belt/water pump replacement procedure from the factory service manual ? i ordered the parts from courtsey Nissan and am planning to change the t. belt and wp and other related accessories myself .. any other tips on getting the old cam seals out ? or if there is already a thread that describes the prodecure in detail, a link would be greatly appreciated .. thanks in advance.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dernt Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 If you just bought that car, bring it back to the dealer. I'm sure you get at least 30 days warranty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Before you start make sure you get all 4 coolant hoses, I made the assumption that I could get them at any dealer during my change and most only carried 1 or 2 of the 4. This link had some tidbits that I used, the part about the AC line helps since it runs directly in front of the timing belt cover. Timing Belt Link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathfinderlude Posted July 8, 2005 Share Posted July 8, 2005 Anyone know how much it should cost to replace the timing belt and water pump at a local repair shop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted July 9, 2005 Share Posted July 9, 2005 It depends on local labor rates, which vary widely by region. I suggest you contact local reputable auto repair shops for quotes by searching your yellow pages. You may want to buy all of your parts first from an online dealer, such as courtesyparts.com or nissanparts.cc. Ideally you should replace: 1 water pump 1 timing belt 2 camshaft seals 1 crankshaft seal 1 timing belt tensioner Optional: 1 a/c belt 1 fan/alternator belt 1 power steering belt Also, since the cooling system needs to be drained, it's a good opportunity to replace the thermostat, coolant hoses, and have the coolant flushed. You'll probably be able to get a discount on those services with the timing belt replacement, as opposed to doing them all separately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted July 9, 2005 Share Posted July 9, 2005 Before I decided to do mine myself I priced all the items above at 2 Nissan dealerships, both quotes came back at $1000 - $1100. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndianRider Posted July 11, 2005 Author Share Posted July 11, 2005 lewisinc 100, which manual did u use to change the timing belt .. were the instructions accurate.. ? i heard the haynes doesnt cover the cam/crank seal replacement .. true or false ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted July 11, 2005 Share Posted July 11, 2005 I used the Nissan FSM steps, you can get them from an alldata.com subscription or from nissantechinfo.com for a daily subscription fee. Someone had a link to free FSMs a while back on here but I think that's dead. I did look through the Haynes manual and it seemed to have about every step but did notice the final timing belt tension step had the wrong size feeler gauge listed. Other than that I think it had a lot of detail, I'm just not sure how it compares with the FSM steps. I think it also has pictures of the seal replacement but there really isn't any steps to post on that, remove seal, oil and tap in new one. Doubt you'll find anymore than that in any manual. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndianRider Posted August 5, 2005 Author Share Posted August 5, 2005 I changed both cam seals, here's the full list of parts replaced: 21501-0W501 Radiator Hose Upper 21503-0W001 Radiator Hose Lower 14055-0W000 Coolant Bypass Hose 14055-0W??? Small Hose to Thermostat 21200-V7206 Thermostat 13028-0B785 Timing Belt 13070-42L00 Timing Belt Tensioner 21010-0W028 Water Pump 13042-0B001 Camshaft Seals 02117-88023 Drive Belts 11720-0W002 11920-0W002 I have to admit I tore the cam seals apart with every type of seal puller and screw driver I had, they didn't want to budge. Didn't seem to be anyway to get them out without scraping things up. I remembered a post in the past that said to carefully drill a very small hole in the center of the seal, and insert a small screw into the seal until it gets into the spring on the back side. Then just pull on the screw head with a pair of pliers and the seals pull right out. This worked for me but is risky, one slip with a drill bit and you'll have a nasty mark. hey lewisinc.. didnt u replace the crankshaft seal ? or do u have to replace it only if u mess it up while removing the crank pulley ? thanks .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Had the crank seal in hand, part# 13510-10Y10. I originally planned on replacing both cam and crank seals, but after struggling with the cam seals that are high and very accessible, I decided against touching the crank seal since it was completely dry + tougher to get at. It's definitely a risk that could come back to bite me before my next timing belt change. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94extreme Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 wrong size feeler gauge listed. what's the correct size? 88 had whole another solution.. he had some issues with the feeler guage method.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 0.35 mm (0.0138 in.) thick and 12.7 mm (0.500 in.) wide. I want to say my Haynes manual listed the gauge at .5 in. thick and .5 in. wide, minor typo but it would leave the belt very loose if you didn't check belt deflection after that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
94extreme Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 that might have been 88's issue.. he had to redo the thing 3x.. but then he did something different the last time.. maybe he'll chime in.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herm Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 First word of advice: see if the dealer will do this under thier used car warranty. secondly: see if the dealer can determine if the timing belt was changed yet - some folks do it earlier. If a nissan dealer did it the service may show up with the VIN number. thirdly - get a parts/labor quote from the dealer for reference. People post quotes of 1000 bucks, but mine was half of that. Maybe they had additional stuff done - I had fairly new belts so I didn't need much. Bangor, Maine Nissan Dealer invoice: 2004 13028-0B785 Timing Belt = $46.44 13042-D0101 Oil crank seal (cam seals) = $15.12 (for 2) 21010-0W028 Water Pump = 106.80 21014-0W000 gasket (water pump) = 5.58 anti-freeze 6.75 upper rad hose 21.98 misc 2.04 total parts = 204.71 total labor 350.00 total job $554.71 in hindsight I should have requested the timing belt tensioner be replaced. So, if you want to do it yourself, great - more power to ya - personally I'm not that well set up for such a task (mentally or shop-wise) so the $350. labor charge was fine by me to drop it off in the morning and drive it home that afternoon.... no worries, mon! m. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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