Pathogenic Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Hey everyone, Excuse how many directions this post goes, its my first one. Just recently bought this 1999 LE Pathfinder and looking for advice on next steps for kitting it out/ upgrades that make sense. It's an automatic 4wd with LSD and has 270k miles. It's definitely a little beaterish (got it for $300) and would like to spend some money to fix cosmetics like a bent door etc, but think it would make more sense to buy performance parts first. So far I've replaced spark plugs, cap, rotor and timing belt. The car has 31's on it and I really want to get a lift for it. I've ordered 2" ac front springs (the front looks to dip more than the back) and I'm currently thinking about getting manual hubs. I'm mostly using this for skiing but would like to do off road stuff closer to spring. I'm looking for ways to improve gas mileage and saw a lot of people get the KnN filter but I'm not sure how worth it those are. I'm sure my TB and plenum need to be taken apart and scrubbed, my mpg on the highway is 11.5 with new spark plugs and wires. I'm also looking to do a SFD because that almost seems to be a requirement for any meaningful and safe lift for this car. I guess it boils down to what should I direct my focus on first, coils/ shocks and struts - SFD - or other performance parts? I also probably need to update the exhaust system as its falling apart near the back. I get strange loud clunk sounds directly under the car when I push the throttle while car is decelerating, I thought it could be the broken muffler but it sounds almost directly under the driver seat.. Maybe transaxle or engine mounts, not sure. Overall though, very excited about this car and love the look of it, my first suv after a life of sedans and excited to see all that it can do! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R50JR Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 7 hours ago, Pathogenic said: I guess it boils down to what should I direct my focus on first, coils/ shocks and struts - SFD - or other performance parts? You have to work on the suspension for a subframe drop, so working on everything at once makes most sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pathogenic Posted January 20 Author Share Posted January 20 19 hours ago, R50JR said: You have to work on the suspension for a subframe drop, so working on everything at once makes most sense. Was thinking that was probably the case. Less work to do it all at once. Do you happen to know of any other possible mods people like to do other than suspension stuff that I should look at? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R50JR Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 20 minutes ago, Pathogenic said: Was thinking that was probably the case. Less work to do it all at once. Do you happen to know of any other possible mods people like to do other than suspension stuff that I should look at? You can also do control arm bushings, tie rods, and ball joint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 These aren't great on gas, but it should be getting better than 11.5 on the highway. I would check the timing (instructions are in the service manual, free download from nicoclub) and see if it's got any stored codes. Check/clean the MAF, check for vacuum leaks. Maybe throw some injector cleaner in the tank on the off chance it does something. Good thinking doing the timing belt right off. I did the same when I got mine. I also changed the fluid in the transfer case and the transmission, and added an aux cooler and external filter to the trans cooler lines in hopes of keeping the slushbox alive (so far so good). Who knows what maintenance a $300 truck has/hasn't seen over the years. I haven't heard much about the K&N filters that makes me want one. If you do get one, be careful with how much you oil it. I've heard of the oil fouling MAF sensors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pathogenic Posted January 20 Author Share Posted January 20 57 minutes ago, Slartibartfast said: Who knows what maintenance a $300 truck has/hasn't seen over the years. Haha you should have seen it when i got it, guy originally wanted $1000. It barely started and the steering was completely off (straight was 100 degrees to the left). Put some new bushings on the rack and fixed that. Had a horrible running condition and discovered that he replaced the radiator, thermostat and water pump but didn't replace the timing belt, thing had skipped 6 teeth on the cam! Not sure how it was running but it worked great after fixing that. Been thinking about doing the aux trans cooler, somehow the new radiator nipple is leaking on it and figured an aux might be nice. The timing is on point.. I think ~ I replaced the idler pulley with one that came with the car since the old one had a sheared bolt in it, but the new one has the timing marks on the wrong side. Exactly opposite of where they should be when TDC. I ended up just lining the old one up with the new one and used metallic sharpie to hand draw the timing marks, so I'm not sure how accurate they are, but no misfire codes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pathogenic Posted January 20 Author Share Posted January 20 1 hour ago, R50JR said: You can also do control arm bushings, tie rods, and ball joint. Thanks for that suggestion, just checked and realized my rear upper control bushings are non-existent, and probably that clunk I've been hearing haha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R50JR Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 12 hours ago, Pathogenic said: Thanks for that suggestion, just checked and realized my rear upper control bushings are non-existent, and probably that clunk I've been hearing haha. I was referring to the front control arms but new bushings for the trailing arms will definitely help with any wobble. I forgot to write that I have the k&n filter. It doesn't really do anything and the standard paper are probably better at filtering Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Sounds like the last guy had no idea what he was doing! Lucky the valves didn't get et. You'd need the spark timing to be pretty far off to get misfire codes, but you could still be losing performance if it's off. Spec is 15 degrees BTDC plus or minus 2, at warm idle. (If you set it cold, it'll be off once it warms up.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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