The Nissan Path

Rear AC lines, back by the evap canister. There are rubber pieces wrapped around the rear ac lines probably so that they don't rattle against each other. Looks like water or something got under them, corroded the pipe and created a crack. This in turn created a nice mess of dried coolant which probably helped keep the leak to a minimum. Once I started checking out the hoses they of course crumbled away and out comes all the coolant. New lines are 260 bucks, and I can only imagine what service is going to cost me.

Ok, it's not a crack, it's eroded like the grand canyon.

trance34 wrote:Ok, it's not a crack, it's eroded like the grand canyon.

Sounds like you have a leak in the rear water lines.

The rear AC lines have R134A in them. I thought I had a leak in my rear AC lines, and after researching, found out its required to lift the body off the frame to replace them.

Found this on the net:

http://www.autoacsystems.com/_store/sto ... epair.html

Now if its just a water line, you should be able to cut out the affected portion and replace with rubber hose and clamps. Can you take any pics of the affected area? I would be interested in seeing what that area looks like on my truck.

t

It is the water line, but they are a part of the AC lines so that's what I was calling It. The parts gut did say you would have to separate the body and frame to replace it. I was thinking of a way to patch the hole, but I like the cut an replace method better.

trance34 wrote:It is the water line, but they are a part of the AC lines so that's what I was calling It. The parts gut did say you would have to separate the body and frame to replace it. I was thinking of a way to patch the hole, but I like the cut an replace method better.

Yeah, you have to lift the body to replace the entire line.

A Toyota engineer bought a Pathfinder and eventually had the same problem. It's basically caused by the strap wrapped around the rubber or plastic cover to prevent the lines from rattling.

The strap catches all the dirt/sand and eventually rubs into the aluminum tubes. He's complained to Nissan many times to no avail. The aluminum lines says should be at least stainless steel and a better way to prevent them from rubbing.

Best thing to do with the 05+ Pathfinder that DON'T have this problem is to carefully cut the strap and plastic/rubber covering. Clean off all the crap and wrap it up again and apply silicone to the open areas that trap dirt and sand.

dealer has a tool to cut out and replace section of pipe without lifting body. PM me if you want #'s. If its the coolant line, you can bubble flare and repair with hose, if it's the a/c, you need that tool and the segments.

I'll take some pics of the piping and rubber hoses later. I ended up cutting out the bad section and putting in some new pipe with compression fittings. It took quite a few trips to find the right fittings and piping 5/8's. So far it is holding up. Probably put 500 miles on it and no leaks.

Npath wrote:
Best thing to do with the 05+ Pathfinder that DON'T have this problem is to carefully cut the strap and plastic/rubber covering. Clean off all the crap and wrap it up again and apply silicone to the open areas that trap dirt and sand.

Yes, I would recommend doing this instantly.

trance34 wrote:

Npath wrote:
Best thing to do with the 05+ Pathfinder that DON'T have this problem is to carefully cut the strap and plastic/rubber covering. Clean off all the crap and wrap it up again and apply silicone to the open areas that trap dirt and sand.

Yes, I would recommend doing this instantly.

get any pics of the affected area?

Not yet, but I will take pics of the piping I cut out. It really ate threw the aluminum pretty bad.

Not yet, but I will take pics of the piping I cut out. It really ate threw the aluminum pretty bad.

First post here guys and yes I'm a fellow sufferer with a bad case of pipe rot on my 2005 T-Spec Pathfinder

It really is a very poor bit of design on a car costing this much; on mine there is corrosion to the extent that it is dripping fluid from both areas where the ridiculous rubber "protectors" are fitted. It is definately water system leakage and not AC (as I first thought) as the expansion tank and radiator are both low.

Looking at where these pipes sit I can well believe the body needs to be lifted to access them. The worst spot on mine is where the pipes pass very close to the top suspension hanger, guess the only way to repair is cut well back and fit rubber hoses. Might as well run them all the way to the rear matrix as the rigid pipes are just a problem waiting to happen.

Would be interested to hear and see how you guys finaly sort it out.

I had a Terrano before the Pathfinder and just fancied something a bit more modern; I use it to tow a fair sized boat trailer and for my hunting and fishing activities. Before this problem I was really pleased with it, good fuel economy and very comfortable for a 4x4. I'm just starting to wonder what else is likely to go wrong if stupid design mistakes like this one exist!

bump- any pics?

Has this come to mind... Is this problem only in Staes that use salt on the roads in winter? I would like to know exactly were to look on my Pathy, just so I can maybe brain storm a fix befor this happens to me. Do I look under rear of vehicle on passenger side? or??

Similar to the transmission cooler by-pass, this looks like a serious problem that can be avoided with a small amount of effort.
A picture or a diagram of the potential problem areas would be very helpful.