The Nissan Path

Hi folks - I just replaced a front L strut on my friend's 2000 Pathfinder with 359,000 original miles. Yep - this vehicle is totally my hero. It's in great shape, runs like a new one and is in good shape overall. Well maintained. It is a 2WD model, also.

Upon doing 50 mile test drive, the truck has an odd suspension issue. When letting off of the throttle, it pulls to the left and when on the throttle, it pulls to the right. When letting off of the throttle quickly, there is a pretty pronounced jolt as well. Not so much of a jolt when getting back on throttle, though but not as harsh.

When letting off throttle abruptly, the rear end of the truck sort of sways back and forth (right, left, right). The opposite happens when getting back on throttle quickly.

When gently letting off throttle, it veers left, when back on throttle, veers right. The same happens when getting on and off throttle abruptly versus gently - there is just no rocking motion in the rear of the truck when doing it gently, but ultimately it's the same result. On throttle = veer right and off throttle = veer left.

This is a vehicle with nearly 360,000 miles, but fortunately has held up amazingly well with good maintenance. Where should I start looking? I'm thinking something in the suspension on the rear with rubber parts.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Travis

Impressive mileage! The most common problem with R50s when it comes to handling are the bushings in the rear suspension links. They get worn and split and cause the back end to wander all over the road at highway speeds. The splits are usually most visible if you inspect the bushings when the vehicle jacked up and the suspension hanging and the upper-right side, rear link is usually the one that goes first. If this is the case with yours, I would replace all four of the rear suspension links. You can get complete links by Dorman at Rockauto.com that have a lifetime warranty. You might also want to get a set of bolts from Nissan as often they will seize to the sleeve in the center of the bushings and will need to be cut out with a Sawzall. You might also want to check the struts and shocks and do a general inspection of the steering and suspension components.

Yep. This Pathfinder is AMAZING! I replaced the spark plugs at around 275,000 miles. At that time, I asked my dear friend if the spark plugs had been replaced anytime recently and she looked at me, batted those pretty eyes and said "spark plugs...what spark plugs?". LOL. They had probably been in there for...who the hell knows how long (coppers)...she'd had the truck for 100,000 miles at that point. It still ran amazing but I replaced them anyhow and the old ones were worn down to nubs.

It has a nasty oil leak on the R valve cover and stinks pretty bad of burning oil, which should be easy to fix (hopefully valve cover gaskets are easy on the R50 Pathfinder???). Otherwise, I have never seen a vehicle with mileage this high without any significant issues. It really runs great. It was 1 1/2 quarts low on oil when I started working on the strut, which really concerns me because she said it has never used oil before (does she check it between oil changes - she say she do???). I am not confident it is leaking the oil, but concerned it is using the oil with mechanical wear in the engine (rings maybe). I had it in my garage for 2 days and it dripped two small quarter-sized drops on the floor. That isn't super-significant to me. It does have good power, which to me means the piston rings aren't completely worn.

However, thank you very much for pointing me in the right direction. With confirming what you are saying, the swaying is not noticeable at all at low speeds in town (40-50 mph), but interstate speeds (75mph) is pretty dramatic. It certainly feels like the rear end is steering the truck. With the intense jolt when letting off throttle, which is definitely coming from the rear end, I suspected there were some rubber parts deteriorated back there that were letting things move around more than they should.

How many hours would you suspect it would take to replace the links on both sides of rear suspension? I will probably do this in a couple weeks because if nothing else, I would like to keep this truck going because I'm pretty impressed with it. The owner is pretty sweet, too.

Any advice on the oil usage - what is normal for the 3.3L V6 (some, none, a lot) and how bad a valve cover gasket replacement would be??

Also - is there a PCV valve on these engines?

Thanks so much for any advice...I am familiar with Nissan cars, but the SUV's and trucks, not so much...

If one was doing it on a lift with air tools and the bolts weren't rusted, one could probably replace all four rear links in about an hour and a half. If one is doing it on the ground or with hand tools or if the bolts have to be cut out, obviously it would be quite a bit longer.
The PCV is on the left side of the engine and it screws into the upper intake plenum. As far as oil burning, they usually don't burn any or very little.
The valve covers gaskets can be a pain if the gaskets get so hard that they have to be chiseled out of the grooves of the valve cover. The plenum has to be removed. Be careful with the EGR passage pipe removal as it can break off the end of the EGR valve. Also, the coolant hoses under the upper can make it tough to remove the plenum without damaging them. You may want to buy new ones from Nissan.

Thanks. Just know - I really appreciate the information. To be quite honest, I don't think she has the funds to actually take it to the shop and I enjoy working on it. I used to be under the hood all the time with my old 1990 Camry (with 325,000 miles at time of trade) and then supercharged 2003 Corolla. I don't have anything to work on anymore and again, I'm fairly impressed with how well the Pathfinder has held up and it hasn't been super difficult to work on so far.

I may be in touch for advice when it comes time for the valve cover gasket and rear end link replacements.

Thanks again!