Nissan Pathfinder

xplorx4 · May 2002

Can you explain the difference between 2*4 and 4*4?

2*4 is 8 and 4*4 is 16...

just kidding... You mean what's the difference between 4x2 and 4x4. Well, to put it simply, 2 extra driving wheels. No, really, I'm being very simplistic.

There's a lot more to it than that.

Let's put it in terms of benefit to you. The primary reason why you would want 4WD and not 2WD in the Pathfinder (especially in your severe winter snow conditions) is because the Pathfinder is rear wheel drive, and would be much more susceptible to spinning out in the snow. That's a huge difference in handling from your front-wheel-drive 626, which is basically a 'point it where you want it to go' kind of thing, not to mention it weighs half of what the Pathfinder does. Driving in snow with RWD vs FWD is night and day... with the advantage going to FWD, because the front wheels not only steer the car, they also propel it. 4WD allows both front and rear axles on the vehicle to propel the car, so on a RWD vehicle, the front wheels are given the opportunity to provide traction/propulsion to the steering wheels.

There are a lot more complexities to describing 4WD systems (and there are many different types as well), so I would suggest reading about 4WD systems at www.howstuffworks.com. It's very informative.

If you end up deciding on a 4WD Pathfinder, consider selecting a model with the "All-mode 4WD" which allows the 4x4 system to work without driver intervention...it engages automagically! (However, it also tends to be the most expensive.) If your budget doesn't allow for the priciest of the 4WD Pathfinders, and you still want an SUV, you might want to consider some of the front-wheel-drive SUVs like the Rav4, CRV, Acura MDX, Mazda Tribute (although it's really a Ford Escape), etc.

Just out of curiousity, what are your main reasons for upgrading to an SUV?

stever · May 2002

We also have a 4WD & AWD systems explained discussion that's pretty active.

Steve
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SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards

drbigz · May 2002

http://www.autopia-carport.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=100739

http://www.autopia-carport.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=100740

lawsonb · May 2002

I have been reading through the comments on the Airlift kit for the Pathfinder. I have a 2002 and would like to consider having the kit installed. Where are you getting the kits, roughly how much will an installation cost and who did you use to install it? I love the PF but don't like how easy it bottoms out in the rear.

xplorx4 · May 2002

The kit can be purchased from many on-line vendors, including, but not limited to www.summitracing.com and www.carparts.com. Also, try this link:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=airlift+outback+special+price

Installation costs will vary widely depending on who does the work, and whether you install just the airbags or the compressor as well. Check the yellow pages in your area for companies that specialize in suspension work, shocks, springs, brakes. Also check companies that service/repair RVs, since many RVs use airbags for springs. They may be able to recommend a reputable shop.

If you're good with tools and don't mind getting a little dirt under your fingernails (and have a Saturday to blow), consider installing it yourself.

stockstiming · May 2002

Hmmm, I didn't think about stuff getting into the compressor. I launch my boat with the Pathy and I'm just now thinking about it being submerged, but I don't think it will be in the water (I hope.) It's definitely something I'll watch the next time I launch. Yikes, I wonder what would happen if it was submerged!

The gage never gets in my way. I'm 5'8" tall and like to drive with the seat farther away from the steering wheel than most. I don't know if that has any bearing on the matter.

I'll email some pictures to you soon.

wildcorgis · May 2002

Looks nice and not bulky like other I"ve seen. It doesn't cover up the PF front which I think is pretty stylish looking.
About 20 years ago, I had one on my 75 Datsun "Lil Hustler" PU and smashed into some one who ran a red light. As hard as I hit him there wasn't as much damage to my truck as there might have been. Even though the other guy took off I could see his car was much worse off than mine. So it looks nice and has some possible safety advantages.
Mine did not have the extensions for the lights but it was very very heavy. How heavy is yours?

Happy Pathfinding!!!

Steve

plasmid1 · May 2002

drbigz,

nice grill guard u put on ur pathy, where did u get it, and for how much??? it seems to be much better looking than the one nissan offers.

drbigz · May 2002

plasmid1:
I got the grill guard from an Aftermarket parts company. The guy there is really awsome and the price was by far the best especially since it included delivery. I paid $600 for front and back pieces and installation was pretty painless. Other places were asking for $800 with shipping extra. The [non-permissible content removed] one from Nissan will probably cost about 550 for front and back pieces and it's not even chrome. You can get a black one cheaper but chrome is the best. Right now, he's looking for a spoiler for my Pathfinder similar to the one on BMW X5.

wildcorgis:
The grill guard is pretty heavy and sturdy.

plasmid1 · May 2002

drbigz,

do u mind telling us what is the name of the company u got the grill guard from??? do they have a website??? thanks!!!

bulgokee · May 2002

Does anyone with a 2002 LE have the following problems:

1. Transmission: when the car is parked on an incline (the front of the car is at the top of the incline), it's very difficult to put the transmission into reverse. I sit there trying 3-4 times until it shifts into reverse. I only get this problem when the car sits there overnight. Never happens on flat terrain. And the car is only 4 weeks old!

2. Rear suspension: Why does the rear suspension sag (??) so much when there's very liitle weight in the cargo/rear seat area. By "sag", I mean, ther's very liitle space between the rear wheel & the wheel well and by "little weight" i mean 2 normal people. Never had this problem with my 1999.5 LE.

meca2 · May 2002

Please don't take this as an insult but are you firmly pressing on the brake pedal before you try to shift out of park? I put my foot on the pedal before my hand even touches the shifter because if you do both at the same time, that is press the button on the shifter and press on the pedal at the same time the shifter will not unlock. As for the rear end "sag" some of us have installed air springs on the rear to prevent the dreaded "sag".
New info on the PF....'03 is the last year year for the Pathfinder as we know it!!!!! A new one or something like it but much larger is going to be built at Nissans new plant in Mississippi. Should be out in late '04 or '05. Will be a full size with a third row seats and a V8 Infinity engine.

wildcorgis · May 2002

I know on some cars that if the emergency brake is not set firmly, some how the transmission engages and it is real hard to move out of park. I read this in some rental car manual when I was in Seattle. I know after I set my emergency brake my PF rolls a little. Does this happen when you shift into drive?

Happy Pathfinding!!!

Steve

xplorx4 · May 2002

The problem you're describing doesn't sound abnormal. It could be just a matter of knowing what procedure is recommended for parking on a hill. As you mentioned, it doesn't happen on level ground. Does it happen on a hill, even if it's not overnight?

Here are some suggestions to follow when parking on an incline:

Always turn the tires away from the curb when facing uphill, and toward the curb when facing downhill. Turn the tires opposite if there's no curb. (This will let the vehicle roll off the roadway if the transmission or parking brake fail to keep the unattended car from moving.)

Set the parking brake, then shift into park. (Keep your foot on the brake while doing this.)

It's not a good idea to use the transmission as the only means of keeping a vehicle stationary on an incline. It puts a lot of tension on the tranmission's park mechanism, and also makes it difficult to release the tension when shifting out of park.

Even after doing this, there may still be a little tension on the transmission, but it's normal to have to use a little more force to pull the shifter out of Park in this case.

sckeller · June 2002

Hi everyone! I recently purchased a bronzed-gray 2002 SE and have very much enjoyed it thus far. One complaint: The rubber strip under the air dam will resonate/vibrate and make a very loud noise intermittantly at speeds >65-70mph. This became annoying on a recent long trip. I stuck a small washcloth under the rubber strip and it stopped the problem completely. Before I call the dealer I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this problem.
One other question. Has anyone bought/installed an aftermarket hitch for their pathy? The hidden hitch and drawtite brands seem fairly comparable on most online sites. Thanks in advance!

bkfulbright · June 2002

I recently had a drawtite hitch installed on my 2001 LE. It is the round tubular type and was $159 plus $35 to install it. After getting home and looking underneath to see what was involved to install it I could have done it myself. It really doesn't look like it would have been that hard. Because of where the spare tire is located, the hitch sticks out farther than I would like but there isn't any way to avoid it. It really doesn't look that bad though. What I need to have done now though is to wire it up to pull a small trailer. I didn't think about that when I had the hitch installed or I would have let them do it then. Anybody out there have any suggestions on how to do this. I would appreciate any ideas.

jflash · June 2002

Hey, bkfulbright, the custom wiring harness for your application is easy to find and inexpensive (about $20-$25). I bought one from a dealer on eBay and installed it in about 15 minutes using only a screwdriver. Others might note that adding a hitch is not very difficult, and good products are available at a fraction of the cost of the Nissan hitch. I found a very nice powdercoated tubular class III hitch on eBay for $65. Installed it in my garage in under an hour. Fit and finish are great, with no interference with the exhaust or spare tire.
jack <><

cj724 · June 2002

Well I have my first problem with my 02 LE Pathfinder (a minor one). The digital temperature display is reading incorrect. Its reading 77 F when the actual outside temperature is 95 F. Has anyone else experienced a problem with their digital display?

bgritz · June 2002

What,.... a Pathy that reads 18 degrees low??? A common problem on the '01 Pathy was that they pretty routinely read 10 degrees high. I've never heard of one that's low.

dbenjamin1 · June 2002

Sckeller- I recently purchased a HHitch and wiring kit from Automotive accesories. They seemed to have the best pricing and had free shipping. This can easily be done in 1-2 hours depending on how many beer breaks are had. The hitch is pretty straight forward- Remove the tie down brackets from underneath and replace with the hitch bar. Torque to spec. I'd suggest removing the black box from the drivers side(not sure what that is!) as the upper bolt is tough to get to.
The wiring kit was straight forward- pure plug in, but it took a bit longer for the routing as i could not find a direct path for the harness from each taillight. Others have run it inside to the rear storage compartment and then out the bottom, but i chose to run each separately through the body and out near the drain lines(just aft of axle). Once each wire is through, feed the wires towards the center, taking careful aim to tie back away from exhaust and spare and plug into main (make sure to tape up connections). I ran the plug through the hitch and tied it off using the plug cap. When its time to tow,unplug the cap, insert the ball, and plug into trailer lights.
Easy peasy, mate.

Boris2 · June 2002

Using the emergency brake should fix your problem. I've experienced this on manual and automatic transmissions (with auto being worse than manual)

ve9aa · June 2002

HI All. In a day or so I am buying a 1994 Nissan
Pathfinder SE, 4x4. It's got 217,000kms on it.
Roughly 134,540 miles. It's a nice price and I've
talked to the previous owner who had it for
4 years and had it painted 2 years ago. Looks like
the rear (crankshaft) seal is leaking a bit, but other than that, twice as good as any other I've seen. Anything 'Pathfinder specific' I should look for when I take it tomorrow to a garage for a once-over? Thanks very much! BTW, I did own
a 1986 Nissan "Longrider" back in 1987-88, Anyone ever heard tell of of one of these? It was an aftermarket conversion done by a company in Montreal as far as I know.....Mike

ve9aa · June 2002

I owned a 1986 Nissan "Longrider" back in 1987-88, Anyone ever heard tell of of one of these? It was an aftermarket conversion done by a company in Montreal as far as I know.....I sold it in 1989 and I think and ever only saw one other. Basically a Nissan 4x4 extended cab truck, with the rear of the cab cut out, and grafted onto a fiberglas cap. A small bench seat and carpeting put into the center of the "bed" and some seatbelts. Sorta like a Toyota 4-runner. ANYWAY

marks1970 · June 2002

Sorry to ask such a stupid question, but when people are referring to their "shimmying" problem on their Pathfinder, are you talking about when your steering wheel shakes back and forth?

Also, when you have your tires rotated and balanced, do you have them put the weights on the inside or outside of the rims? Whenever I've tried mounting mine on the inside, I always get more steering wheel shake than when they are mounted on the outside.

xplorx4 · June 2002

When people are referring to their "shimmying" problem on their Pathfinder, are you talking about when your steering wheel shakes back and forth?
Yes.

Also, when you have your tires rotated and balanced, do you have them put the weights on the inside or outside of the rims?
The best results are often obtained by adding weights to both sides of the wheel, to counteract weight imbalances between the inboard and outboard sides.

mkapad1 · June 2002

Hi,

Wanted to get an idea on the price for a 2002 LE with leather interior. If people could post some pricing info for this would appreciate it. I am getting a lot of runaround from dealers in my area. So any help is appreciated

marks1970 · June 2002

Thanks for the response.

I'm wondering where other Pathfinder owners have their tire weights placed when balancing the tires. Most of the cars I see, at least the more expensive ones, don't have the weights mounted on the outside, I'm assuming for appearance reasons. So are these people sacrificing shimmying for looks?

brisoup · June 2002

MKAPAD1, I bought my 2002 Pathfinder LE on May 20th.The truck is fully loaded with every available option except the navigation and entertainment pkg. The sticker was $35,002.00. I paid 31,041.00 which included the $1000.00 rebate Nissan was offering at the time. I also got 3.9% financing for 60 months. You can check this site to see if Nissan is offering any rebates and/or special financing. From what i heard you should be able to get a Pathfinder for around invoice.

jflash · June 2002

marks1970, wheels can be balanced perfectly with all weights on the inside surface. With the large offsets of most wheels today, it is actually better to place weights on the inside surfaces. Yes, appearance is a consideration, as is the fact that the weights are less apt to be accidentally dislodged there. To answer your question, NO, you aren't sacrificing shimmying for looks.

crikey · June 2002

I though you could only get one or the other. did you negotiate this into the deal? If so, good job, then.

ggombos · June 2002

On the wheel weight note. I had to have one of my wheels redone due to NTB not taking off the weight before using the tire removal machine. It caused a nice scrap around the rim, lucky for me I noticed it when I picked it up. The clerk tried to tell me it was like that but I demanded a mgr and he knew right away it was his fault. To their credit NTB did pay to have it the wheel completely redone from a local shop. The guy did a great job and put the weight on the inside of the wheel.
He said he redoes wheels all the time due to the outside weights damaging the outside surface. He thought NTB will use inside weights if requested (haven't verified this). He also told me he does wheels from various tire shops like NTB and also car washes! He said it was apparently cheaper for a particular car wash to pay him when people noticed the damage than it was to fix the problem!

Why do why auto makers use outside ones when they will surely damage the wheel. Are they saving that much money?

nickg5 · June 2002

hi everybody,

I am looking to purchase one of those two. I know they are just about the same but I am not sure. Should I go for the better warranty and a couple extra bells and whistles? Or stick with the Nissan Pathy?

Any input will be appreciated

xplorx4 · June 2002

ggombos- I'm not familiar with the tire store called "NTB". In northern CA, I have bought tires at WheelWorks and America's Discount Tire Co.

The particular style of wheel I have (5-spoke aluminum alloy) does not have an outer lip on which weights can be attached. Most steel wheels have a lip on the outside and inside, so the clip-on lead weights can be attached easily. On my wheels, they use clip-on lead weights for the inboard lip, and adhesive weights stuck onto the inner circumference of the wheel near to the outside edge.

Perhaps you don't see many newer vehicles with outside weights because they either didn't need them or they use adhesive weights.

Click this link to read more about tire balancing. It's especially important to recognize that the infamous wheel shimmy on the Pathfinder can be caused by improper tire balancing.
http://www.discounttire.com/dtc/brochure/info/tireBalance.jsp

phil47 · June 2002

Negotiate your best price on both, calculate the price difference and weigh that off against the upgrades you receive on the QX4. The cosmetic differences (as well as warranty and service experience) are significant enough to do the analysis, but it ends up being a personal decision (similar to choosing the PF LE over the PF SE or XE). I didn't feel it was worth the difference when I did my math, and besides, I felt the PF LE was enough luxury for an SUV.

mkapad1 · June 2002

I am assuming that you paid 31K + tax etc... Since the $1000 rebate is after the tax + tag + price?

Also how did you manage ot get both cash rebate + 3.9% financing?

marks1970 · June 2002

I just spent $700 for 4 Michellin Cross Terrain SUV tires from America's Tire Company (Discount Tire Company), and they shimmy just as much as my Bridgestone's did! I had them place the balancing weights on the inside, so what do they need to do differently to get the shimmying to stop? Its really ticking me off because for the type of money I spent on them, they should be perfect. I don't want to put them on the outside, because I was doing that in the past and now my rims are scratched up on some spots. Help!

brisoup · June 2002

The $31,041.00 I paid for the Pathfinder LE was before tax,tag,etc...Nissan was offering 3.9% and 1000.00 cash back until 6/1/02.I learned this from this site.I went to a high volume Nissan dealer and the salesman imediatly acknowledged this.Basically he gave me the truck for almost $50.00 over invoice and applied the $1000.00 cash back to the balance. But I had a 2 year old loaded Explorer Sport which I only got $15,600.00 for. They put it on the lot for $19,300.00. So in the end they did make out on the deal.I also had to chose from dealer stock in order to take advantage of the rebate and financing.

brisoup · June 2002

One thing I forgot to say was I had to haggle with the saleman for 90 min to get this price almost leaving the dealership twice. Every time i got up to leave they would come back with a better offer.

smithmd · June 2002

Marks,

To make the shimmy go away, they have to have someone that knows what they're doing use the right balance machine.

A year ago, I had a Firestone dealer try unsuccessfully 3 times to balance my brand new Bridgestone Dueler A/T tires. The first time I asked to have them rebalanced, the guy at the counter told me that he would have his best guy do the job. When I came back the next day to tell him that they were much better but still not right, he didn't believe it until he test drove it. Firestone paid for me to take it to the Chevy dealer that had the right machine. Shimmy gone. And it hasn't come back.

Most recently, the Nissan service manager told me that they had to buy one of the Hunter machines specifically to deal with the shimmy issue.

In the service bulletin pertaining to the shimmy, it specifically says to use a Hunter 9700. I can e-mail you a copy of that bulletin. E-mail me at smithmdsmith@yahoo.com if you want a copy.

You can find a tire shop with a Hunter machine at this website: http://www.gsp9700.com/index.cfm

By the way, I have no connection to Hunter at all; that machine is what made my truck a pleasure to drive, again.

Sorry for the long post.

stuartbonia · June 2002

Nick

You should be able to pick up a Pathy LE with everything except Nav and Ent for about $31,000 to $31,500 after rebates on a car with an invoice of about $32,000 and MSRP of $35,002.

A similar QX4 is about $34,000 to $34,500 net of rebates. Invoice on it is around $35,480 and MSRP is $39,235.

If you are buying the vehicle you have about $2,500 to $3,000 difference.

Leasing isn't so easy a comparison. I think the money factor and residuals are a bit better on the QX4. This will narrow the gap between them for the monthly payment.

Ask Car_man on the leasing site for specifics.

stever · June 2002

You can find Car_man on the Finance/Warranty/Insurance or the Smart Shopper boards.

Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards

csternberg1 · June 2002

I have a '01 LE (I have had no problems at 17K miles). I bought mine in August at the end of the model year for $1500 under invoice (the $1500 was a "Nissan Cash-Back" Offer). I looked for a dealership in a rural area and found one in Central NJ that was located between a Ford and Chevy dealership. I figured that no one in a small town/rural area would want a $35K MSRP Japanese truck. Sure enough, there were 20 on the lot when I showed up. They actually had to jump start the test vehicle because it had sat there so long. I think I did pretty well at $30K. Good luck....

bigorange30 · June 2002

unless it is a 4X4 and it came with navigation and/or DVD player. Is that counting your $1500 rebate or was it $28,500 after your rebate.

pitrott · June 2002

All,
I to have an o1 LE 4x4 with all the bell's and Toy's listed for 38850.00, It to sat on the lot for about 9 months(A lot of money for a Suv) But i got it for 32350.00 out the door with the 1500.00 Rebate.
Now i wish it was trouble free with 8k i am the proud owner of a New Sunroof/O2 Sensor and i Have ghosts in my windows that groan, Dealer sez that that is a normal P-Finder trait! But i am getting 21.0 MPG's with a K@N airfilter and 93 octain go juice. Also if any one has the Navi i could use some help!
Pit

mhenderson1 · June 2002

have information on Nissan's new full size SUV that will arrive in the fall? How big will it be and what does it look like? Are there any pictures?

dverespey · June 2002

Funny I ran that search in my area and just about every car dealer had one except Nissan.

ggombos · June 2002

I should have been a little more clear on my post.
When I said I had my wheel redone I meant recoating the entire wheel with whatever protective layer (like clear coat) is on them.
The regular weights that shops beat on with a mallet seem to damage this surface. Why not use adhesive weights when possible?

xplorx4 - NTB is National Tire & Battery used to be NTW and they are affiliated or owned by Sears. Everywhere here in MD not sure about national presence.

To me it doesn't matter what shop mounts/balances your tires I would just be request inside weights provided you can keep away the dreaded shimmy. Never had that problem so I don't know.

csternberg1 · June 2002

My LE is a 4X4, but I skipped the Nav system. I didn't like the "bird's-eye view" and thought that the buttons were a little small for my fat fingers. I was told that the DVD system wasn't an option if you had a sunroof. Maybe I'm mistaken. However, I have everything else.

I did see some prices in similar ranges toward the end of the year that were advertised in the papers. I wonder if the advertised lower prices had anything to do with Ford and GM's 0% financing in response to 9/11. If so, it may be more difficult to make a comparison.

bigorange30 · June 2002

You are then about $1000 higher than pitrott's price if you take his $1800 navigation system and $1400 DVD player off the price he got.

The DVD system cannot be installed where there is NOT a sunroof. The sunroof is required. So you can still get it if you want it.

brisoup · June 2002

Sorry to hear you are having problems with your Pathfinder.You said you had your sunroof replaced.What happened?Was it leaking,did it stop working?Or did it shatter?Did your check engine lite come on when the o2 sensor went bad? I'm curious because I rarely here of people having problems except with the steering wheel shimmy.Getting 21 MPG sounds like great fuel milage though.I've only managed about 15.5 MPG with super unleaded. The truck only has about 900 miles on it though.

Nissan Pathfinder

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