Well, I finally got around to doing some much-needed upkeep/maintenance on my '98 Nissan Frontier pickup.
First item - the shocks.
The ones on the truck are (were) the originals; the upper casings had literally begun to rust away. These shocks were shot! I have replaced them with a set of aftermarket Rancho 5000-series gas shocks; these are designed for light trucks/SUVs and I have hadgood experience with them in the past. The change in ride quality is noticeable - though that may be less due to the greatness of the Rancho shocks than the state of the originals I just removed. Four new BFGoodrich Long TRail TA tires are on deck.
Next item - cooling system.
Since the truck has 100k-plus (and the original water pump) I plan to replace the water pump pre-emptively, along with all hoses and belts and the thermostat, etc. The radiator looks good (internal passages clean, no leaks, etc.) Some may think this is excessive, but I'd rather do the pump now, on my terms - and have a basically "good as new" cooling system that probably won't have any issues for another 50,000 miles - than have to deal with it when it's least convenient, or suffer a breakdown, etc.
I plan to drive this truck at least another 70,000 miles before retiring it; so I consider this money well-spent.
More to come....
If you ask me, I think it's a good idea to replace a part, especially one whose time may be near to leaking, such as
a water pump, fuel pump, and yes, even a good "working" wiper motor which may stop working at the wrong time
and whatcha gonna do?
I plan to replace MY wiper motor soon as I wouldn't want to be stuck in a heavy or even a light rain!
Great minds think alike!Originally Posted by ChevyMan
I am going to do a clutch/pressure plate job, too. The parts are less than $300 (for a high wuality Centerforce replacement kit) and since it's a pick-up, dropping the transmission is (as we say in the country) a "can o' corn."
The truck's nearly 10 years old but looks much newer (here's a pic). It also still runs and drives flawlessly. I bought it used for about $7,000. If I get another five years of service out of it, the yearly cost of ownership (purchase price plus maintenance will have been around $700 annually. And I'm sure it'll stil be good for several more years of "Farm Use" work after it's retired!
That does look nice -- you've really taken care of it.
Chip H.
Former owner: 2012 Honda Civic LX, 2006 Honda Ridgeline RTL, 2000 Honda CR-V EX, 2003 MINI Cooper S, 1992 Honda Accord LX, 1999 Mercedes ML-320, 1995 VW Jetta GLX, 1991 Mercury Capri XR2, 1981 Mercury Zephyr, 1975 Chevrolet Impala
You know it was a Nissan Frontier that the drunk hit us with up in Pennsylvania 5 years ago or so? For having hit a 60,000 lb object, it was amazingly good. In fact, if other truckers hadn't blocked him, he would have been able to get away in it.
That truck is in good shape. Looks almost new.
Thanks!
I'm definitely a bit on the obsessive-compulsive side when it comes to machinery and maintenance.
Except for the tailgate...!
(I bent it when backing up to unload some stuff and forgot it was down - and that I had less room than I thought. )
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