The Grackle

General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
SledheadX said:
I’d LOVE to see 20 again. Being TS, I can squeak out 16 on a good day with your gas down south. 13-14 here in NY with our taxed-up-the-a$$ sh!t. You’re definitely doing something right. Or maybe change the original plugs since I’m at 135k?
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That's a good start haha. I think one of the largest contributors is on the Bullydog I can set the accelerator sensitivity to low which keeps the cruise control from always overreacting to speed changes. With that lowered it's much more gradual like some of the modern rental cars I've driven.
 
SledheadX

SledheadX

Wheeling
Supporting Member
Location
Rochester, NY
General_Tarfun said:
That's a good start haha. I think one of the largest contributors is on the Bullydog I can set the accelerator sensitivity to low which keeps the cruise control from always overreacting to speed changes. With that lowered it's much more gradual like some of the modern rental cars I've driven.
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I have the Bullydog too. Never even thought to adjust the sensitivity for cruise. Learn something new every day. Now if I could just keep from overreacting to spring pressure on the right foot pedal.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
SledheadX said:
I have the Bullydog too. Never even thought to adjust the sensitivity for cruise. Learn something new every day. Now if I could just keep from overreacting to spring pressure on the right foot pedal.
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I kind of discovered it by accident on one of our drives to Ohio when I got bored and was just trying out different settings. Off the highway it's annoying but really nice when you're on long drives.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
Yesterday Z1 Offroad had an open house event and since they're only a little over an hour away from my house I signed up for 2 VIP tickets, mostly because they threw in $20 in product credits, a bunch of random product swag plus 5 raffle entries each. They had 10 or so solid products up for grabs and I've never won a raffle in my life but yesterday was my lucky day, I ended up winning two of them somehow!

I walked away with a Z1 cold air intake plus 2 Morimoto Big Banger pods and the Morimoto rep on site also threw in 2 bonus 1Banger pods plus wiring harness kits for both. I still sort of can't believe it because I absolutely never win anything like this so yesterday was pretty good! Plus I was finally able to buy the Cam Solenoid bolt that I lost in the engine bay last year. Now just have to figure out where to mount these lights. I'm pretty excited for the 7000 peak lumens on those Big Bangers.


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General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
Installed the rear Dep Hep Molle panels I bought from @TerryD last night! They're much more solid than I was expecting so now just need to load them up with gear. I ended up junking my old ebay lightbar and using the existing mount I fabbed to install the Big Bangers in the grill mouth instead on each edge of the intake. Seems to help with airflow to the radiator, the temps have been a few degrees lower so far.

Next up I'm finally due for a spark plug change so I ordered some NGK Ruthenium plugs to install from RA, somehow the 6 cost less than what I paid 100k miles ago the last time I did them.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
I got the new plugs installed but found two of the spark plug tubes full of oil so it's staying parked until new valve covers arrive. Of course all of the PCV hoses are like rocks so I also ordered the Z1 silicone hose set for when they crack during removal. I wasn't having any misfire issues or anything but I'm glad I ordered new plugs because there was definite deterioration on the tips of what I had in there for the past 100K.

I probably should have replaced the covers a few years ago when I did the gaskets but the tubes weren't leaking so I guess I got a few more years out of the original covers.
 
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General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
Got the new covers installed yesterday, just need to start it up this afternoon and to make sure I didn't miss any connectors like like last time. It's definitely an easier job the second time around.

When I ordered the Z1 hose kit I didn't realize that it included the hose for the factory airbox so now I have an extra hose that I don't need yet. I might try to see if it will fit one of the heater core hoses.
 
Prime

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
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Denver Adjacent
General_Tarfun said:
Got the new covers installed yesterday, just need to start it up this afternoon and to make sure I didn't miss any connectors like like last time. It's definitely an easier job the second time around.

When I ordered the Z1 hose kit I didn't realize that it included the hose for the factory airbox so now I have an extra hose that I don't need yet. I might try to see if it will fit one of the heater core hoses.
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Did you have to install new cam valve gaskets? Mine disinterested when I pulled them.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
I was traveling for work today and on my way back to Atlanta on the interstate the steering got really bad and I started hearing a bunch of pops and clunks coming from the front end. I had no idea what was going on so pulled off to a parking lot and looked under. First thing I saw was the dust cap missing from the passenger wheel hub, looks like it was in the process of completely disintegrating but I was able to pull off before it completely let go thankfully. There was zero warning, yesterday I even did a pre-trip check of everything just to make sure there wasn't any potential problem that could happen today.

I was planning on replacing the hubs anyway this fall once it cooled off some outside but looks like that timeline has been moved way up.

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General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Location
Atlanta, GA
The repairs are still ongoing, just a few small things left. The X is stuck in my driveway because the county has been paving our road so there's not too much of a rush to finish it up since I can't test drive it anyway. Both hubs have been installed + new hub bolts, new rotors, brake pads, and caliper slide pins. The winter trips to Ohio have been rough on my rotors, I've never had them rust so badly before at this mileage.

All that's left is a new serpentine belt and caliper piston boots. I ordered some Centric boots from RockAuto and I'm 99% sure they don't fit. Either that or I'm doing it wrong because I'm trying to install them without removing the pistons, after two hours of trying to get the caliper side of the boot to go into the slot without success I gave up. Comparing the OE with the Centrics, the OE's have a thinner lip so maybe that's why I can't get them in. I ordered a set of Stoptech Premium boots from Z1 Offroad to try again because eventually I tore a couple holes in the Centrics and they don't seem to fit anyway. I looked for OE but all I could find was complete calipers listed and they were discontinued.

I'm not seeing it in the FSM but I wonder if our calipers use a spring clip to hold that section on the caliper, if it does that would mean the original clips are still in the caliper which would explain why I can't get the replacement boots seated.
 
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General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
Prime said:
There aren't any spring clips involved with the boots. It just pops over the pin.
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Thanks for confirming, you saved me from wasting time digging around in the caliper looking or one. Am I wrong in thinking it shouldn't be that hard to get the boot to sit in the caliper, assuming the boot is the correct size?
 
Prime

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
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No. It should just pop on. Now, I will say, that every time I've done 2nd gen/Titan brakes...theres a rubber collar that goes around the base of the upper caliper pin. I've always left that out. Because when it's been installed that rubber swells with the heat and locks the caliper in place so it can't float anymore.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
Prime said:
No. It should just pop on. Now, I will say, that every time I've done 2nd gen/Titan brakes...theres a rubber collar that goes around the base of the upper caliper pin. I've always left that out. Because when it's been installed that rubber swells with the heat and locks the caliper in place so it can't float anymore.
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On the caliper piston?
 
TerryD

TerryD

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Covington, Va
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
IM1RU said:
Sil-Glyde doesn't make the rubber swell. Been using it for years. No problem with that ring at all. (I bought the NAPA version)

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That's what I thought I used last time until I checked the tube, I had the multipurpose Sim-Glyde in there and the passenger side pin completely seized up. I must have not cleaned out the tube completely or something because it was like glue in there. I bought a tube of the brake version to use this time around and cleaned out the tubes until a paper towel would come out totally clean. Hopefully this time around there won't be any problems.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
TerryD said:
I use the Permatex jar of green goo and it's always worked fine for me as well.

Just to reiterate, slide pin not caliper piston.
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Yeah the piston boots are what I'm waiting on now, I finally tracked down a Nissan part number for the kit (D1ABM-VK125) and ordered it. I looked at a ton of aftermarket boots and a lot of the reviewers said they had the same issue I did with the inner boot not fitting the caliper. Nissan uses a pretty thin slot to hold it in place and I was able to reinstall one of the old boots with no problem so I'm hoping that using the OE part will make getting those reinstalled much easier. I could only find complete calipers the first time I searched for an OE boot kit, they really bury that kit on the parts websites.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
I'm getting a little bored with the waiting on parts so I went ahead and bled all the brake fluid with DOT4.

This might be a bad idea but when I removed the front hub abs sensors I noticed you can see the bearing insides through that hole next to the tone ring. I ordered some Timken wheel bearing grease and a few industrial syringes, my plan is to inject some fresh grease into the backside of the bearings through that port assuming the bearings are still in good shape. I still need to check them out first and make sure it's worth the effort. I found a post on a Chevy forum where a guy tried this method just to see if grease would reach the bearings (he was replacing them anyway) and after he pulled the axle the bearing was filled with fresh grease so if I can prolong the bearing life I'll be happy. If not, I'll just use the Timken grease on my RC car differentials.

The front end is almost wrapped up, just waiting on that new piston boot kit to arrive from Dubai which is looking like it will be next week.

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General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
I checked out the rear bearings yesterday and they feel ok.

What didn't check out was the rear brakes, passenger rear had a seized pin that was covered in dry anti-seize. I remember that particular screw up, I did it around 2016 and a week later went back and cleaned it all out I thought but I definitely missed that pin because the rest were fine. Anyway the sized pin completely destroyed the inner brake pad, half of it was missing and the pad was sitting crooked. I never noticed any drag or even noise while this was happening somehow but the rotors on both sides are pitted and rusting heavily so I'm just going to replace everything back there.

I'm not impressed by the performance of the Raybestos coated rotors I had on the rear, they were more rusted than the fronts which were the uncoated type so this time around I'm trying the Bosch Quietcast line. At this rate the truck will probably have been sitting for a full month before I get all of these repairs done but I'm slowly making progress.

At least I found a good way to calm down every time I get frustrated with it, I just go online and look at new trucks and see the monthly payments lol.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
I got a lot done over the weekend so the X is almost back in action.

The rear bearings feel to be in good shape and I didn't see any metal shavings on the wheel sensor like I did on the failed hub so I injected one syringe of Timken wheel bearing grease into each port. That's about all it would take, once I'm able to test drive it some I'm going to pull those off and look again to make sure it can't take more once the grease spreads out inside.

I pulled the rear caliper brackets and heavily scrubbed the ports for the slide pins. I found a small amount of the old green Permatex in the very back of the of the locked side slide port so that could have been what caused that pin to seize again. The bushings were junk so I tossed those and instead put a single o-ring on each, I could see heat being an issue with those so I'll check on them in a month or so to make sure they haven't deteriorated into mush. I need to replace the pins at some point and probably the bracket too on the PR side, there's some rust inside the slide pin port and on the pin itself. I would have just replaced them like I did on the front but it's been almost a month of slow work waiting on parts and I need to get this thing back on the road so I'll swap them out later.

All that's left to do is the front caliper piston boots which should finally be here tomorrow. Oh, and I found a screw in one of the tires lol. It's dead center of the tread and in a block so pluggable, but I'm going to wait until the rest of this project is complete before taking that one on.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Atlanta, GA
If anyone was wondering, the caliper piston boots are not replaceable without removing the pistons. Somehow 4 hours went by with me trying yesterday and I finally gave up on that approach and removed the pistons. Installed the new seals and boots in 10 minutes on one side. I ran out of light so I'm planning on completing the other side today and doing another brake bleed and the X should be back on the road.
 
General_Tarfun

General_Tarfun

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Location
Atlanta, GA
The X is back! That took way longer than I expected but today I finished the caliper rebuild and bled the brakes twice to be safe. Took it for a test drive and it drives great, FINALLY. And when I removed the screw I spotted in one of my tires, it was short enough to not puncture the tire and came out easily. Felt like winning the lottery after everything else.

All in I spent about $1000 even on tow truck/parts/supplies which hurts but I know would have been a lot worse if I'd had a shop do the work. I was fortunate to have access to another car in the meantime but here's the full list of work completed:
Timken Wheel Hubs
OE Nissan Front Hub bolts
Akebono Front/Rear Brake Pads + hardware
Bosch Rotors Front/Rear
OE Nissan Slide Pins + Boots
Gates Serpentine Belt
Prestone DOT 4 Brake Fluid for 3 system bleeds 96oz
Rotated Tires
OE Nissan Front Caliper Rebuild Kit PN: D1ABMVK125 -Caliper seals, boots, grease packet for lubing piston/seal, slide pin boots + sleeve, bleeder valve cover.
Timken Wheel Bearing grease + industrial syringe to inject into rear ABS ports



To give myself something enjoyable to look forward to I bought a polisher and a few Griots products to bring the shine back, that project will be a lot more fun.
 
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