1997 Nissan Hardbody - Dads old truck!

@6mtTRD We were trying to relocate ourselves but Covid kind of messed things up. So were still here.

 

I posted these on the vintage wheel thread already but I might as well add them here. Im looking for a few sets of specific 90's JDM wheels but for now I bought these Work Deerfield copies off of Croooober for $98 16x7 +27







Awkward shot because I have too much shit in the garage and the truck was on quick jacks.

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They were not pretty when they arrived so I stripped the paint, and did my best to polish them out. Unfortunately, I accidently tossed the fake wheel rivets and cant find any that fit haha.



Either way, they look better.

 

Before:


After:


Didnt have the same luck with driver.. Have to give it another shot and let the carpet cleaner sit longer.

 

Lol my father in law got the same truck he wants to get rid of. I was thinking of picking it up from him. But same story as you. Everything is covered in oil. Lol and he won’t change the battery. He parks it backwards on the driveway and pops the clutch every time he goes somewhere. Been that way for 3-4 years? Lol dude got money but won’t buy a $120 Costco battery

 

Nice build!

 

LOL - Sounds just like mine. Although, the battery in this one works fine. Take it off his hands. They are decent little pickup trucks.

Thanks!

 

Here is my $400 93 RC I traded up for my 10 RC Edit: The NASCAR blanket on the dash has made into the 10 RC (it gets around)

 

Nice @Steves104x4, Im on the hunt for some 4x4 fenders lol.

 

I finally got around to changing the shocks. I have the parts to lower it, but I am not sure if I want to do that right away. I usually get 30-45 mins here and there to work on the truck so Id hate for it to be fixed, then right back on jacks. Plus I'm still undecided on what shocks to run once lowered. I think Ill wait till after summer to lower it. Or at the very least drive it for a month or two. So for now, oem replacements will help these FACTORY from 1997 shocks.

 

For a guy working 30-45 minutes at a time you get a lot done!
Really enjoying this build/refurbishment, keep up the good work.

 

I’ve got an uncracked napz exhaust manifold is about all I’ve got but I’ll look out for 4x4 fenders

 

I had a talk with a buddy, who has 3 kids and a busy job on how the heck he get so much done. He told me, "any chance you get. 15 mins here, an hour there. Just go out in the garage." So I gave it a try, and it totally works. It also helps having the quick jacks and a garage, but the idea has really helped. Also, Ive gotten lucky that so far I have not run into any major issues, or stuck bolts. Living in Ca has a few benefits haha. Thank you!

Mine is cracked as well. I ordered a new replacement. Pretty common haha. Thanks!

 

Beginning process of replacing the timing chain and related parts.

 

How much $ for the exhaust manifold?

 

@Steves104x4 I think the manifold was like $125? I bought so many parts I would have to go look at receipts. Its just an OEM replacement nothing aftermarket. I also bought 02 sensors and gaskets.



Dad let these oil leaks really make a mess of things. The timing cover was so dirty and oil covered I actually thought it was black lol. I wasted so much timing trying to clean it up haha.



This was as best I could do while also watching the kid outside. Ill scrape off the old gasket material and give it one last scrubbing.



Once I got the cover off I could get a good look at the guides. Ive never seen a set before so I have nothing to base this off of but to me it looks pretty bad haha. You can see the old guide on the right was really being chewed up by the slack in the timing chain.



Cleaned up the bottom end where it meets the oil pan. After looking around I do think it was the valve cover leak and the oil pan leak that caused all the mess. So once this is all fixed that should no longer be a problem.



Small progress today with a small speed bump.

I got the oil pump out, 24mm timing gear bolt out.



Old vs New



Hit a bump in the road when I was trying to remove Harmonic balancer. Got the 27mm bolt out. However, I couldnt get any bolts into the holes to attach the puller I purchased. This is a horrible pic but best I could do.



Smallest bolt in the kit is a 6 mm.. and I couldn't get it to work. This is the kit I used for reference



Switched to the jaw type puller and it came right off. Old vs. New Harmonic balancer. This part was really expensive wth.

 

Old and busted vs New hotness



New Oem oil pump, harmonic balancer. Plus new tensioner pulleys, water pump, thermostat, belts almost done



And just for fun and moar pics... a few more shots of old vs new timing chain guides

 

Waiting on some gaskets and other random parts to come in... Also needed a break from working on the truck. In my rush to fix this quickly I may have incorrectly marked the distributor. Im 100% positive that the chain is on correctly, and engine at TDC but had a helluva time getting oil pump back in correctly and the truck barely started, and ran horribly so I immediately shut it off.

To still get work done, but take a break I cleaned up some of the oil covered parts.



Also, replaced the temp sensor since my coolant temp guage doesn't work properly. And I also really need to clean the engine. It looks terrible haha.

 

Everything was put back together. Truck started and idled but very poorly. Shut off, double checked plug wires. Got it started again and it just cant idle without throttle, and was running terrible. Shut it off to prevent any damage. Spent some time online researching possible issues, and going over the timing chain job and Im pretty sure I screwed up timing on the distributor. So I pulle dthe oil pump and attempted to get it lined up on the right tooth. Tried 3 times, ran out of new gaskets.. got frustrated. Took a day off work to try to get it... Couldn't do it.

Called several shops near me, nobody would take the truck to work on it. Got even more frustrated... Finally a friend of mine asked the shop whos restoring his 73 F100. he said he had the time, but of course, hes super expensive. Decided to have him replace the clutch and flywheel as well as figure out what I fucked up. No pics today, feeling defeated.

Ever changing to do list:
- fix leaking oil pan (this may have been bent when removing it was so stuck on it had to be pried off)
- replace front ball joints
- replace front control arm bushings
- replace speakers and add Bluetooth head unit.

That will be it for the summer IF I even get that far. Ill wait to lower it once all the suspension is good to go.

 

Do you have an actual paper service manual for the engine? Factory would be great but even a plain old Haynes usually covers it well. They are only about $30 at AutoZone, etc.

Every time I have encountered a distributor or timing belt/chain out of time issue I corrected it by following and verifying every step in the manual.

Usually it is one step overlooked or an assumption that something is right.

I know you are frustrated but after you cool off give it another try with the good old book.

 

Appreciate the advice. I did this actually a few times. I have both the Haynes and FULL Nissan FSM. I followed every step. Aligned every mark on the oil pump shaft.. For whatever reason I just couldn't get it.
Truck was already towed to the shop, he got it on his 2nd try. It was going to a shop eventually anyways, I do have quick jacks but I didn't feel like dropping the transmission while laying on the ground. Its fine, you choose your battles I guess. The truck is worth too much for me to break something serious, so I made the call.

I still have A LOT of work I will complete myself.