Hey everyone i just joined the forum. i just bought a 2002 pathfinder le 2wd for 500.00 bucks. The SUV is amazingly perfect on the outside and inside but from what ive seen and heard i believe its jumped time i know its a possible common problem with these i just wanted to see if anyone could confirm it. it was running perfect then started tapping it was instantly turned off and it has sat up for 6months. the family friend i bought it from and myself took the intake off and as we spun it over i was getting air pushed back up the first intake tube from the firewall and i know thats a timing issue and the bottom never made a noise so i don't thinks it the bottom end. I know a good bit of mechanics but never owned a nissan before so all is new to me. and lastly ive been looking around for a good place to buy a timing kit or a better than oem timing kit if it available . so if anyone could help out that would be great and ill be posting alot on the forum so hope to get to know u guys soon thnxs[/img]

Actually, jumped timing is not a common problem on these engines. What is common is that the power valve screws in the intake can work loose and fall down into the engine. Sometimes they'll get caught on top of the valve and sometimes they'll fall past the valve into the combustion chamber. An intake valve could get bent, piston could get cracked, or a cylinder wall could get damaged. The reason that the screws fall out is that not enough thread locker was applied on the screws from the factory. This problem occurred on several Nissan engines, including the 01-02 Pathfinder VQ35DE. If you have the upper intake off, it would be a could idea to check the power valve screws and make sure they are all there before you do anything.
As far as timing sets, Nissan parts are the best. That said, Rockauto sells a DNJ kit for $274 and they're pretty good. I would do a little more checking, first, rather than go through the work of replacing a timing set only to find out it wasn't the problem. A cylinder leakdown test would be a good idea.

thnxs smj999smj.

Ive only did a bit of searching on the the pathfinder. i did see the power valve screw as a possible problem. and i haven't checked the power valve screws since i bought it. i did take the intake off and that's how i noticed the intake was pushing air back out. i didn't know the power screw was a problem til i joined the forum. but i plan on going to my shop this weekend for a full run down on whats wrong.

for all member that have seen my post ive checked the power valve screws and all screws are there. I put a hot battery in it and did some test of turning it over it had no noise from the bottom end again. oil was about half a quart low. i started tearing it down to check the timing components and a compression test. from there i guess it's just a Remove & Replace time depending on what i find.

smj999smj wrote:Actually, jumped timing is not a common problem on these engines. What is common is that the power valve screws in the intake can work loose and fall down into the engine. Sometimes they'll get caught on top of the valve and sometimes they'll fall past the valve into the combustion chamber. An intake valve could get bent, piston could get cracked, or a cylinder wall could get damaged. The reason that the screws fall out is that not enough thread locker was applied on the screws from the factory. This problem occurred on several Nissan engines, including the 01-02 Pathfinder VQ35DE. If you have the upper intake off, it would be a could idea to check the power valve screws and make sure they are all there before you do anything.
As far as timing sets, Nissan parts are the best. That said, Rockauto sells a DNJ kit for $274 and they're pretty good. I would do a little more checking, first, rather than go through the work of replacing a timing set only to find out it wasn't the problem. A cylinder leakdown test would be a good idea.

Does this happen to 2003 pathfinder made in japan not in the states?

All US Pathfinders (WD21 and R50 models) were made in Japan until the debut of the R51 Pathfinder in 2005 model year.

smj999smj wrote:All US Pathfinders (WD21 and R50 models) were made in Japan until the debut of the R51 Pathfinder in 2005 model year.

Thanks for the information