Rebuilding Dads 1997 2WD XE Hardbody

Forum for the Xterra, Frontier and Hardbody, the smaller workhorses of the Nissan lineup!
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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Name - James
Location - Bay Area
Truck - 1997 2WD XE 5 Spd
Mileage - 196,XXX

My brother in law bought a new 4Runner and gave my dad his 2 wd Tacoma single cab so I was given his hardbody. Im pretty excited, when I was a teenager looking for my first truck I had my eye on this but couldn't afford a new car. I bought my 2nd favorite truck at the time which was a 1985 S10 Blazer Tahoe.

Anyways... Truck is 99% oem and needs a ton of work. Its been neglected most of its life, since it was mostly a commuter vehicle. Regular maintenance was hardly ever done and its starting to show. Its almost scary to drive, and I cant believe my 70 year old father in law was driving it. I've been with my now wife for almost 18 years and I have never seen him wash it. When I was working at Goodyear I would do his oil changes for free just to make sure it was done at all haha.

When I got the truck these were the noticeable problems
The shocks are gone
ball joints are there, but useless
steering has a clunking sound
tires are 9 years old and cracking. all 4 slowly leak about 3-5 psi per day
front brakes squeak and pull a bit
has a high idle (1100 rpms)
has a slight rattle and cold start
leaking oil from pretty much every place possible
Its starting to rust

That's what I know SO FAR.. But here she is.

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I have been working on it for a few months now in my garage. Between my work schedule, kids and the usual house "honey do list I only work on it 45 mins to an hour here and there.
Ill follow this post with what I've done so far to catch up to its current status.


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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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First thing I wanted to do was locate the source of the clunking from the steering. I swore that it was coming from outside the cab, but I couldn't find anything loose or damaged. I did find a bunch of ball joints and bushings that need to be replaced.. so we will eventually address all of that at a later date.

I did a google search and found a thread about some balancer inside the steering wheel and sure enough when I pulled the air bag out dropped a giant piece of metal and rubber.

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Supposed to be here
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Because of all the bad suspension, I impulse bought a ton of s*** online. Not sure if I should have but oh well. After ordering I read some not so great things about these overseas made ball joints but they were really cheap so if they don't last ill go with better options after I guess.

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I miss-ordered shocks, so I had to re-order. Those will be first.

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Before any work was done I spent like 2 days washing and claying and waxing the truck to get years of caked on dirt and grime and whatever off the truck. Its not perfect but at least it has a sort of shine to it now and looks like she actually cared for!

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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I drove the truck home from my dads place at night and OMG. You can hardly see! These sealed beam headlights are probably the same pair from the factory. f*** crazy man was driving half blind. I found an affordable recommendation of bulbs and and lights so I will link those later.

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Thankfully I was prepared for the rusted on bolts (thank you Infamous) and had WD40 and a torch. they came right off.

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Also replaced the xtra cab window locks as both of them were busted. Thankfully he was smart enough to leave the hardware in there.

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I replaced the power steering hose that I hoped was the cause of all the oil and not a bad pump.

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So far no more oil so thats good.

After the truck sat in the garage for a month I finally changed the shocks that were blown.. only to decide to lower it and order 4xd and quest shocks with spindles and drop leafs.. so ill be doing this again soon.

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Found more leaks and most likely the reason for the squealing brakes

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I know the valve cover has a leak facing the firewall but man, thats a lot of oil.

Replaced the sway bar end link bushings
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Calipers replaced

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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So that was basically everything from December to July. Due to coiv19 my work was pretty stressful so I was getting home with enough energy to put the kid to bed, get ready for the next day and go to bed haha. After taking the truck on a test drive after the calipers were installed I noticed the startup rattle was REALLY bad. I think having been around the truck for so long the noise became normal so I didn't pay attention to it. But after not hearing it for a few months, when I started it up it was clear it had to be looked into right away.

Its a good thing I parked the truck to replace timing because this what was waiting for me in the oil pan once it was finally dropped.

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Guides were also worn through the metal

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New oil pump

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Q451990
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Car: 1990 Q45 - 118K, 2022 Toyota 4 Runner, 2004 Frontier M/T - 108K, 2012 Xterra (Mom's), 2023 Rogue (Inlaws)
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:welcome: to NICO!

Awesome job, and an awesome thread you're putting together here!

I had a white '97 XE without the extended cab before my current Frontier. It was a fleet truck for a termite company when I bought it, and I sold it to my neighbor when I got the Frontier. He drove it to over 300,000 miles, and beat the heck out of it. They're tough trucks.

The clunk in the steering wheel thread you mentioned may have been mine from that truck. I've never heard of timing chain guides failing on this engine - but given the maintenance history I think anything is fair game.

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Project510
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Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Q451990 wrote:
Fri Aug 13, 2021 11:51 pm
:welcome: to NICO!

Awesome job, and an awesome thread you're putting together here!

I had a white '97 XE without the extended cab before my current Frontier. It was a fleet truck for a termite company when I bought it, and I sold it to my neighbor when I got the Frontier. He drove it to over 300,000 miles, and beat the heck out of it. They're tough trucks.

The clunk in the steering wheel thread you mentioned may have been mine from that truck. I've never heard of timing chain guides failing on this engine - but given the maintenance history I think anything is fair game.
The timing chain issue is a regular one if not replaced. In my experience from other owners is that 150k mile range is when things start to break down. Its not a really difficult fix, but definitely a job that takes time and patience.

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Waiting on parts from RockAuto, NissanPartsonline ebay etc so started to clean up engine bay. Its really really dirty. Dirt, dust, and a LOT of oil.
Its crazy to see the actual color, with the flake and all. The exterior looks NOTHING like this haha.

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I was having a hell of a time finding wheels for tis truck that weren't crazy expensive. You only option was a steel wheel from places like Summit etc. I eventually found a set on Croooober that I liked and were cheap even with the shipping. They have a bit of corrosion which turned out to be on both the face of the wheels and clear coated lips. I sanded a test area to see if it would come off and how it would look and I think we are good to go. So I started stripping off all the old paint and clear coat and will have them polished.

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Project510
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Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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There are several rust areas like the photo below in different places on the truck. I decided to try one spot tonight. I am no mechanic but I have been messing around with cars since about 1995 and that was the very first try at any actual body work. It was interesting trying to learn something new. Not sure I really like it but at least (assuming I did everything correctly) the truck will stop rusting.

Before

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After

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Before you ask why the primered area looks much bigger than the original damage, I will say I found more rust under the paint as I sanded. Which was unfortunate because I was paying attention to the window trim and tried staying away from that. Unfortunately it went right up to it. I also should have removed the tape before I put down the etching primer. You might still be able to see a square shape under the surface primer. Oh well. the car has like 17 more little spots like this so I am sure ill get better as we go along!

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Project510
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Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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There was so much oil everywhere that I thought a lot fo these parts were black or cast iron. Turns out they are aluminum and were just SO DIRTY.

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All new timing parts added:
cam gear, sprocket, chain guides, Martin ind. self adjusting tensioner plus all new oil seals. Ready to be reassembled.

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Q451990
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From what I can see of it, the inside of the engine looks surprisingly good.

D21hardking
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Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 11:56 am
Car: 1991 D21 Hardbody King Cab 2.4L 2wd
1997 D21 Hardbody XE King cab 2wd 2.4L
Location: Southern Ontario

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Nice job man! You're gonna have one helluva nice truck when you're done! Enjoy!

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AZhitman
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DUDE! You're on a ROLL!

I just did basically the SAME process with my 97 HB (was a landscaping and paint truck). GROSS.

https://www.nicoclub.com/archives/d21-h ... ation.html

Carry on - NICE WORK!!!

00pathyse
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2007 Nissan Altima 3.5 SE Sedan
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Nice work! Following this thread.

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Q451990 wrote:
Sun Aug 29, 2021 11:18 am
From what I can see of it, the inside of the engine looks surprisingly good.
D21hardking wrote:
Mon Sep 20, 2021 8:24 am
Nice job man! You're gonna have one helluva nice truck when you're done! Enjoy!
AZhitman wrote:
Tue Sep 21, 2021 9:20 pm
DUDE! You're on a ROLL!

I just did basically the SAME process with my 97 HB (was a landscaping and paint truck). GROSS.

https://www.nicoclub.com/archives/d21-h ... ation.html

Carry on - NICE WORK!!!
00pathyse wrote:
Tue Sep 28, 2021 9:38 am
Nice work! Following this thread.
Thanks! Sorry for the delay in posts. I got really sick, then my son got sick, then we had a death in the family and its been crazy. Updates to come.

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Small updates in between me getting sick and all the other crap that's been going on.

OSK timing chain kit is fully installed. During the process I found some other items that need to be addressed.

One snapped exhaust manifold stud - there is not enough spce with manifold on to get the stud extractor in there. At least no the one I have. I should replaced the manifold gasket anyways so I will remove the manifold and do all that at same time. Bought all new studs. If one is broken, maybe they are all old and should be replaced.

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Heavily pitted thermostat housing - got the parts in, just need to install
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Changed the upstream 02
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Randomly had this Greddy oil pan bolt so I swapped it in
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So once the Timing chain install was complete I crossed my fingers and started her up. She started up smooth and quiet which was a good sign, but ran rough. Pretty sure I have the timing off via the oil pump. Ill give it a 2nd try, but during the removal I marked the wrong alignment by mistake so hopefully that wont too much of an issue. Really want to drive the truck.

Gonna try to polish the wheels within the next week or so.

Thanks again for all the positive comments!

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Project510
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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So hit a snag with the timing chain replacement. No matter how hard I tried I could not get the oil pump and distributor properly aligned.

If you are going to attempt to do this make sure you pay close attention to the oil pump shaft. I mistakenly aligned the distributor and not the oil pump shaft and couldn't get it back right.
I went through a few gaskets, and multiple tries and had to take it in to my mechanic. He got it on the 2nd try.

In the meantime, I had them replace the clutch, flywheel, ball joints, engine and transmission mounts, control arm bushings, exhaust manifold.

I started polishing the wheels as the truck is almost ready to come home.

Before:
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After:
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When the truck comes home I want to do the following during summer time.
remove rust spots and primer
upgrade old cd player head unit with an apple car play tablet or head unit
full interior carpet and seat clean

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Project510
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Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 11:31 am
Car: 1997 Nissan Pickup XE 2WD

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Fun times!

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Manifold replaced - Clutch/Flywheel in


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