R50 meets Yosemite

[abadlovesong]

Last weekend, I decided to let the pathy stretch it's legs (and mine as well) and took a drive from Los Angeles to Yosemite National Park. It was an unbelievable trip. The initial drive out of LA isn't the most inspiring, with the traffic, the smog, and the virtual desert mountains to climb over (although, they are impressive). In fact, the drive through Bakersfield up to Fresno could possibly be as boring, if not more, than driving through Oklahoma, or Indiana. Take your pick. After Fresno, it gets interesting. For those of you who haven't been to Yosemite, or driven into the Sierra Nevada mountains for that matter, the change in terrain and elevation can be out of this world. Flat featureless plans give way to gentle hills, but quickly turned steep sided. Then large granite outcrops pop out of the ground, and the steep, rolling hills are no longer smooth and featureless. Trees, albeit short and gnarled looking ones, begin to sprout up everywhere, marking a change in elevation and climate. This was the start of the Sierras, the more gentle western side. During all of the this, my pathy took it easily and demanded more than straight roads and easy hills.

So, the mountains deliver. The asphalt got a lot more vertical, and much more curvy. The climb was real this time, and my pathy wasn't backing down. The power of the engine was just right. It didn't hesitate when accelerating upward, nor did it back down around the corners. It hugged the turns, and ate away at the pavement. It was impressive. Beyond impressive. The tires continuously tore away at the road, gripping like racing slicks (I was riding on 265/70/16 Bridgestone Dueler Revos). No squeal of losing traction around any of the curves, no matter what (reasonable) speed I entered them. I did have to obey physics, considering I was a roll over hazard, but was able to corner at 30-45 mph around many (most) of the hair pin turns, except for the couple very brutal 180 degree turns. The most surprising experience while driving through this alpine Eden, wasn't just how my pathy handled (which was like a sports car) but how comfortable it was to drive. I never once felt like I was driving a truck. I felt no roll, no exaggerated bumps. The ride was smooth. I think I can attribute much of that to having the original suspension and the struts are starting to go bad, giving me a more 'cushy' ride than a stiff one. I could be wrong, but the drive was undeniable.

I will say that no offroading was done, because it's not allowed inside the park. It's just not that sort of place. My pathy remains untested when it comes to that (I have done some light offroading before, but nothing extreme for my 2x4 R50). The experience driving, and the experience hiking Yosemite, was definitely worth it. Time to share some photos, and hope my story appeals to a few of you guys.

[m0nkeyprince]

"The power of the engine was just right. It didn't hesitate when accelerating upward, nor did it back down around the corners"

Thats because you have a 3.5 :P

The trip sounds sick, i might try that out, after i finish up my 90,000 service. Where did you stay for the night?

[miamiheat3332]

sounds like a cool trip, especially the changes in scenery and stuff, since yours isnt 4wd you should lower it like mine and then take it around those hairpin turns , also something i once saw one safecar.gov , is that the 4wd pathy has less of a rollover rating than the 2wd version, which is im assuming cause of more weight at the lower center of gravity (transfercase, front driveshaft, etc) but it was interesting. i also wonder how much of acceleration difference there is between the 4wd and 2wd + gas mileage.

Anyways id like to take my path out there but its a long trip from the east coast, after im done with the other work im doing with it, i think ill take it to the tail of the dragon in NC.

[abadlovesong]

Thats because you have a 3.5 :P

The trip sounds sick, i might try that out, after i finish up my 90,000 service. Where did you stay for the night?

The 3.5 is a beautiful thing, definitely. Only modifications I've done to the engine are removing the air intake resonator and tightened the throttle pulley. Which are really easy to do. For your 90,000 service, make sure to clean your throttle body, clean the MAF sensor, replace spark plugs, and replace the fuel filter. You'll get the best performance out of your R50.

As for where did I stay for the night, I camped in the truck. I folded down the rear seats for a relatively flat bed, and put down some padding. Worked great, except for not quite enough room to stretch my legs fully (and I'm only 5'9) and it dropped to 40 degrees overnight. Regardless, I'd do it again in a heart beat.

[abadlovesong]

sounds like a cool trip, especially the changes in scenery and stuff, since yours isnt 4wd you should lower it like mine and then take it around those hairpin turn

No plans to lower mine at all. Even though she's only 2wd, I still want to raise her. Lowered, I think the pathfinder looks too much like a subaru station wagon. Not my taste.

Anyways id like to take my path out there but its a long trip from the east coast, after im done with the other work im doing with it, i think ill take it to the tail of the dragon in NC.

I actually moved from Georgia to California at the end of January this year, so I've done that long trip, and it was actually pretty fun. Long, but exciting. Except for Arkansas and Oklahoma. I'd like to have that day of my life back.

[m0nkeyprince]

how do you clean the MAF?

"As for where did I stay for the night, I camped in the truck. I folded down the rear seats for a relatively flat bed, and put down some padding. Worked great, except for not quite enough room to stretch my legs fully (and I'm only 5'9) and it dropped to 40 degrees overnight."

whoah thats exactly what i did when i went on my trip around the south-western united states, i agree, it got to -5 degrees celcius,cold to a point i had to turn on the car and run the heater

[Empty V]

Awesome pics and story brutha! What camera and lenses did you shoot with, they look great! Also, if you're interested in lifting I'm going to be changing out my coils soon and will no longer have a use for my OME 922's which only have about 20K miles on them.

[abadlovesong]

Awesome pics and story brutha! What camera and lenses did you shoot with, they look great! Also, if you're interested in lifting I'm going to be changing out my coils soon and will no longer have a use for my OME 922's which only have about 20K miles on them.

Thanks, man! I shoot with a Canon 40D and switched between a Canon EFS 10-22mm lens and a Canon EF L 70-200mm f4 lens for panoramic shots.

Dude, would love to buy those OMEs off of you, but i'm a bit of a charity case at the moment, and wouldn't have the money (and not much) till december. So, if you can hook me up with a great price, would gladly take them off your hands.

how do you clean the MAF?

Cleaning the MAF sensor is pretty easy. Buy a can of MAF sensor cleaner. You can find it just about anywhere. It's located on the air intake, just after the air filter box. I'm forget exactly how to remove it, but again, it's not hard. Then follow the instructions on the can to clean it.